General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tuesday, April 16, 2013

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Marriage equality is on the fast track. How fast? HB 75 (Smith) was introduced last week while the General Assembly was out of session, and will be considered in the House (House) Administration Committee this Wednesday, 2:30 pm, House Chamber. It is at least possible that the full House could consider the bill as early as this Thursday.  For those of you who have not yet checked, here are the sponsors and co-sponsors of HB 75: Prime Sponsor: M. Smith; Additional Sponsors: Rep. Schwartzkopf & Rep. Longhurst & Sen. Sokola & Sen. Blevins; Co-Sponsors: Reps. Barbieri, Baumbach, Bolden, Brady, Heffernan, Keeley, Kowalko, Mulrooney, Osienski, B. Short, Viola, D.E. Williams, K. Williams; Sens. Henry, McDowell, Peterson, Poore, Townsend. Thanks to each and every one of you. By my count, there are sixteen House members as sponsors. 21 votes are needed for passage. I know, or at least suspect, that there are silent commits from some below the Canal. However, there are a few notable absences, and I would encourage you to contact them if you are one of their constituents: Charles Potter, 1st RD: He has been a strong advocate for civil liberties, there are many marriage equality supporters in his north Wilmington district, but he has not yet taken a position; Deborah Hudson, 12th RD: She has generally been a moderate on social issues and, again, there are many marriage equality proponents in her Chateau Country district; John Mitchell, 13th RD: He was 'almost' Speaker, and he could wind up there someday...if he does the right thing; James 'J. J.' Johnson, 16th RD: He represents part of the City of Wilmington and has an overwhelmingly D majority district; Mike Ramone, 21st RD: It's possible that Ramone has already announced his support, as he has increasingly cast more and more progressive votes; Joe Miro, 22nd RD: This Pike Creek R has lots of marriage equality proponents in his district. Keep in mind that each of these representatives could well be 'gettable' on this vote. When you contact them, be positive. Encourage them to support HB 75. If they commit to supporting the bill, thank them and let them know that you have their backs. With some of the potential 'silent' commits,  HB 75 has a great chance to pass the House, perhaps with a strong mandate.

John Sigler: Lawbreaker? Probably…Creep? Certainly

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What if we told you that Delaware's (and one of the nation's) most prominent advocates for 'law abiding citizens' may well be both a lawbreaker and an inhumane killer? And what if I told you that this upstanding citizen is the head of the Delaware Republican Party? Ladies and gentlemen, Delaware's Mr. NRA #1, John Sigler....

Why the Phils Will Suck Until Ruben Amaro Jr. Goes

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Let me be clear. It's possible, just possible, that they might have one year left. I don't think so, though. Not with the aging and defensively-challenged additions they made this offseason: Michael Young and Delmon Young. Neither of whom are 'Forever Young'. But, that's it. Why? Because Amaro insists on ignoring one of the most important tools in the GM's toolbox: statistical analysis, aka 'sabermetrics'.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., March 28, 2013

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Seven, count 'em, seven amendments have already been prefiled for HB 35(Longhurst), the criminal background checks bill. And these are only the so-called friendly amendments. In the immortal words of Casey Stengel while managing the inept New York Mets in their inaugural season:
"Can't anybody here play this game?"
This bill should be the easy one. They've got the votes, no fuss, no muss. But, by paying undue deference to the NRA, they have become the Senate (United States version) Democrats, turning what should be defining statement victories into, at best, marginal progress and, at worst, defeat. The issue is larger than HB 35. The House dithering has emboldened the NRA b/c they've learned that they can run circles around the house managers of this legislation. That will make passage of other key elements of the gun control package far more difficult than it needed to be. Need I remind these Profiles In Courage that a massacre of school children in Connecticut was the catalyzing event for this package? After several other massacres all over this country? This kind of appeasement will only help to ensure that such a massacre occurs here. Maybe then they'll stop listening to these uncompromising zealots. Until then, we have HB 35, on today's House Agenda. Do us all a favor, and at least pass this one?

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Weds., March 27, 2013

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And to think that I was gonna cut back on covering the legislative beat. Whatever was I thinking? Every day, huge stories, two of 'em yesterday: 1. State Senate votes to repeal Delaware's death penalty statute, and 2. The Obama-ization of the House Democratic Caucus appears complete. At least with respect to preemptively compromising with an enemy that will not compromise with you.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., March 26, 2013

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Jack Markell: From clammed-up to happy-as-a-clam. The Governor who was unwilling to take a public position on a minimum wage increase effusively praised it after it had passed the Senate:
“I commend Senator Marshall for the changes he made to the bill. I assured Senator Marshall I would sign the bill as passed by the Senate because of the help it will provide to many struggling families,” Markell said in a statement.
Jack Markell has proven time and time again that he cares not for struggling families. But Markell was able to (a) get a cost-of-living provision struck from the bill, (b) get the effective date for the bill pushed back, and (c) lower the amount of the minimum wage to $7.75 an hour in 2014 and $8.25 in 2015. All this in exchange for dropping his threat to veto the bill. Ladies and gentlemen, your Democratic governor. Still, kudos to the 12 D's who voted yes. It's better than nothing, which is all you're gonna get from this governor. For the record, self-professed 'friend of labor' Cathy Cloutier voted no. This will not be the last time that she proves to be a phony during this, or any session, of the Delaware General Assembly.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., March 21, 2013

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Wow, where to start? Action everywhere. Here is today's session activity report (it's all here). We'll start with gun control. HB 35 (Longhurst) cleared the House Judiciary Committee by a 7-4 margin. Democrat Trey Paradee(!) voted against it. Why? It's the slippery slope to gun registration and Big Brother argument. From today's News-Journal:
Many opponents of the background check proposal at Wednesday's hearing said the private-sale-record-keeping provision is a precursor to government gun registration, which could lead to firearms confiscations.
Damn! Where were these folks when what remained of our civil liberties were flushed down the drain in the name of 'homeland security'? Anyway, it looks like an amendment will address this issue, and I hope and expect that Paradee will vote 'yes' when the bill comes to a vote. There no doubt will be other amendments, and some will likely be 'killer' (pardon the expression) amendments. Stay vigilant, my friends.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Wed., March 20, 2013

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Doesn't look like anything got done on Tuesday. Here is the session activity report. Until further notice, consider it a misnomer. Two huge committee hearings today. We've already talked about the continuation of the hearing on HB 35, which would mandate criminal background checks for almost all gun purchases in Delaware. Starts at 11:30 am in the House Chamber. The Senate is wasting no time in taking up the death penalty repeal legislation. The Senate Executive Committee will consider SB 19 in the Senate Chamber beginning at 1 pm. And here's something that's pretty cool: Sen. Bryan Townsend, who is a co-sponsor of the bill, will be live tweeting during the hearing. His twitter handle is @BryanTownsendDE, and he will be tweeting with the hashtag #DErepeal. I don't know what any of that means, but I'm sure virtually everyone else reading this does. (Update from DD: I added the links to Senator Townsend's twitter page and the DERepeal hashtag for those of us who use Twitter. El Som, your training begins this Saturday. ;) )

BREAKING: State Republican Executive Director Backs Gay Marriage

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Story just broke at the News-Journal:
John Fluharty, who took the GOP director job after the last election, declared his support for marriage equality in an interview after attending a fundraiser last week for the group leading efforts to pass legislation legalizing gay marriage in the state.
Good for him. No change in the official Party position, however:
The Republican party’s national platform declares a pledge to preserve and protect traditional marriage. Delaware GOP Chairman John Sigler released a statement saying Fluharty’s views on gay marriage and his sexual orientation are totally separate from his job. "John Fluharty is a valued and capable employee of the Delaware Republican Party who works extremely hard for the party and is good at his job,” Sigler said. “What he chooses to do on his own time with his own money is his own business. He did not attend the recent event in question on behalf of the party or in his capacity as an employee of the party.”
Maybe not, but this is a brave and principled stand. Man, gay marriage really could pass this year...

BREAKING: Superior Court Rules that Jeff Christopher Is Not a Police Officer

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Here is the key language from the decision:
To summarize, Delaware’s constitution recognizes the office of sheriff but does not enumerate any specific power or authority held by the office. The Court concludes that the common law authority and responsibilities of the Sheriff are subject to modification and restriction by the legislature. The 2012 legislation extinguishing the Sheriff’s law enforcement powers is valid. This Court declares and holds that a sheriff in Delaware shall not be involved in law enforcement and shall not act in any capacity as a police officer or peace officer. This decision moots the Sheriff’s complaints that the County has not properly funded his office and attempts to meddle in his business. IT IS SO ORDERED.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., March 19, 2013

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Go ahead. Pick a hot-button issue. Any hot-button issue. This year's General Assembly is considering it. Can't remember this many controversial issues under consideration. Gun control? Check. Gay marriage? Check. Death penalty? Check. Minimum wage? Check. I'm not sure if there's enough time/political capital to go around. So. Please allow me to prioritize. To me, there are no excuses for the Delaware General Assembly not passing gun control and minimum wage legislation this year. The votes are there for minimum wage. Only the Governor's (a) unwillingness to get on board, and/or (b) the Governor's opposition to minimum wage stand in the way. Last year, it was (b), and friendly house leadership buried the bill in an unfriendly House committee. This year, the Governor has stated that he's excited about the debate (Truthometer says? BZZZT), but won't take a position. Only with Jack Markell could that be considered as progress. Let's be practical here. Markell's best chance to stop the bill, and it's not good, is in the Senate. But, the Senate voted for minimum wage last year and, other than Sen. Venables, I think it's unlikely that any other D's will vote no. The margin of support for minimum wage is even larger in the House, so Markell's only chance there is to get the bill buried in committee.

NRA Chooses Greg Lavelle and Ernie Lopez to Scuttle Criminal Background Checks.

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Any doubts that the Delaware Republican Party is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Rifle Association should now be laid to rest. Former NRA Executive Director (and State Rethug Chair) John Sigler has anointed his serial bloviator and vice-chair Sen. Greg Lavelle as the person best-suited to kill mandatory criminal background checks on firearms transactions.  With an assist from self-styled 'moderate' Sen. Ernie Lopez. Lavelle's tortured explanation as to what his newly-proposed legislation would do goes like this. According to the News-Journal quote, his bill:
"...doesn't mandate background checks. It doesn't create a registration. It allows people to make smart decisions for themselves."
Great. Because people always make smart decisions for themselves. Especially when it comes to deadly weapons that they're unloading for cash. And, if they don't, they could be in trouble once the bodies are scraped off the bloody sidewalk. Lavelle's attempt to scuttle criminal background checks would make 'it a crime to sell a firearm to someone prohibited from possessing guns'. Got that? It would be up to the seller to conduct a criminal background check on a prospective purchaser. (Or, perhaps, to look soulfully into their eyes.) Except, of course, any seller would not have access to any sort of data base. And Ernie Lopez, marching in lockstep, has proposed a bill to increase penalties for those who 'knowingly' sell firearms to someone prohibited. Even by NRA standards, this is pathetic. Without background checks, the gun sales addressed by HB 35 would be 'unaddressed' by the Lavelle and Lopez proposals. After all, under their proposals, ignorance is a deliberate defense. 'I didn't know that this guy was a three-time loser.' All righty then. Let's call this for what it is: An attempt to muddy the waters just enough to deep-six common-sense legislation. It's up to you to let your legislators know that you will not stand for this. And for you Brandywine Hundred/Greenville denizens who supported Greg Lavelle and, for that matter, Ernesto Lopez last time? They're both up for reelection in 2014.