General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., May 17, 2016

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., May 17, 2016

6 Comments
I'm back from Oregon, and I see that I didn't miss much. The General Assembly is currently in collective thumbs-twiddling mode.  I now understand why they took a week off recently.  It's not like they have nothing to address (like minimum wage), it's just that they've chosen not to address much of consequence. Cowardice in an election year, who'dathunkit? Can we just talk about minimum wage? Please?  While places across the country are passing $15 an hour minimum, idiot/legislators like Andria Bennett and Quin Johnson turn up their noses at a far less ambitious proposal by accepting Chamber talking points w/o even looking on their own at how higher minimum wages have impacted communities that have implemented them.  Plus, if one of them should 'falter' and eventually go against the Chamber, there is always the no-longer-running-for-Congress business lackey Bryon Short waiting to deep-six the proposal. When it comes to minimum wage, Delawareans did better when the R's controlled the House than they do now. As to the notion of raising taxes on Delaware's wealthiest, I wrote about this last year. If it wasn't even gonna be considered in an off-year (thanks, Pete), it certainly isn't gonna be passed in an election year. The General Assembly made the decision to give more to the 1%, hence the corporate bailouts that were rushed through in January.  More and better Democrats are few and far between in Dover.
General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., May 3, 2016.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., May 3, 2016.

11 Comments
By far the most important bill on the House Agenda is SS2/SB 130(McDowell).  The bill:
defines criteria for a local government to enter into an agreement with the Department of Transportation (“Department”) to create transit-oriented development districts, called Complete Community Enterprise Districts (“District”), for the purposes of promoting economic development. A District may be designated in downtown or urban core areas, traditional towns or villages, or regional activity centers. A District is characterized by its mix of land uses, efficient use of public infrastructure, efficient use of public services, and multiple modes of public transportation combined with environmentally friendly private transportation.
I  look for this bill to pass some time this week.
Why Lisa Dean Moseley Matters–Even If Her Death Doesn’t.

Why Lisa Dean Moseley Matters–Even If Her Death Doesn’t.

22 Comments
Sherry Freebury. Elmer Setting. Lisa Dean Moseley. We all know that Freebury and Setting, at the time they accepted favors from Moseley, were/are among the most powerful people in New Castle County and deeply connected to the county police. Freebury received, and publicly admitted that she would never have had to repay, a $2.3 million sweetheart loan from Linda Dean Moseley allegedly in exchange for county approvals for a country club that Moseley wanted.  At the time she received that loan, she was Tom Gordon's CEO, as she was from 1997 to 2004. She previously was the head of NCC police, as was Gordon.  There's so much more on Freebury and Gordon.  This article serves as a good starting point. More recently, the longstanding 'rent-free' deal that current NCC Police Commissioner has enjoyed from Moseley was documented in the this WDEL story.  He claims he provides 'security and maintenance' for the property.  (BTW, didja know that one of Lisa Dean Moseley's marriages was to her gardener? Another was to her gynecologist. But more on that later.) Lisa Dean Moseley died recently.  Here is the obit from the paper. I searched for anything recent in the News-Journal to place her life and death in context.  After all, context is everything.  So far, nothing.  If she had merely had the two clearly inappropriate relationships with Freebury and Setting, that alone would have warranted such an article.  Two law enforcement officers at the highest level being paid off for their 'services'. But here's another reason why anyone from law enforcement should have had nothing to do with Moseley, and perhaps a reason why they did. 
Delaware Political Weekly: April 22-28, 2016.

Delaware Political Weekly: April 22-28, 2016.

15 Comments
While the Trumpster talks about building a literal wall between the US and Mexico, Bryan Townsend is building a figurative electoral wall around the greater Newark area.  His campaign HQ is in Newark, the preponderance of his grassroots efforts so far have been in the greater Newark area, and all of these endorsements are from legislators who more or less are from that area.  It makes sense to me.  Shows that his grassroots campaign is paying off.  He now starts with a solid group of supporters largely based on geography.  That's a nice chunk of voters who he can count on.  The question will become: To what extent can he expand and replicate that grassroots either throughout the state as a whole or in a more specific sense. A great start though.  Haven't contributed to his campaign for, oh, three weeks or so.  Might be time to ante up again.
Wilmington Mayoral Debates at Ezion Fair

Wilmington Mayoral Debates at Ezion Fair

24 Comments
Last night was another big Mayoral debate, this one including the newly announced (but not filed) Maria Cabrera and finally showing up Dennis Williams. This debate was sponsored by the Complexities of Color Coalition, the Metropolitan Urban League Young Professionals, Interdenominational Ministers Action Council, Delaware Young Democrats Minority Caucus and Delaware Black and held at Ezion Fair church in Southbridge. This was really well attended and the audience was definitely there to be engaged. The NJ provides a bunch of the highlights of the evening, but I want to focus on some campaign themes emerging and a different cattle call at the end.
Delaware General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tues., April 19, 2016

Delaware General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tues., April 19, 2016

2 Comments
Oh, Jeez, Frank Luntz must be consulting with the House R's again.  Today, Greenville's Debbie Hudson and Monsignor Greg Lavelle are pushing the, wait for it, Parent Empowerment Education Savings Account Act in the House Education Committee.  If the bill's title leads you to suspect that this is another scheme to take $$'s away from public schools, you are correct:
This bill provides opportunities to parents of special needs students to select the most appropriate and productive educational pathway for their children by using funds otherwise allocated to their residential school district. The co-sponsors of this legislation appeal to the General Assembly to dignify parents of special needs children, by approving an innovative experiment to empower certain parents with the authority to design their special needs children’s education plan, subject only to state approval of vendors to be managed by the state Department of Education or its designee.
And, of course, those parents who aren't 'empowered' will find resources even scarcer than ever. Why do Rethugs hate public education?
Delaware Political Weekly: April 8-14, 2016.

Delaware Political Weekly: April 8-14, 2016.

7 Comments
NCC Councilman Joseph Reda passed away yesterday at the age of 73. A ‘sheet metal worker, union man, bartender, husband and politician’, Reda earned the affection and admiration of all of his colleagues, regardless of political differences. I encourage you to read the obituary. He did a lot of good for a lot of people. People really liked him. Folks like that deserve to be remembered.