Delaware
Sunday Daily Delawhere [5.12.13]
![Sunday Daily Delawhere [5.12.13]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8122/8712576464_2d745b3878_z.jpg "Sunday Daily Delawhere [5.12.13]")
Winter Oasis on Kirkwood Highway, Wilmington, DE. From AmSteinsgraben on Flickr.
What is it about Sussex Conservatives and Sexual Assault?
First the alleged child rapist Eric Bodenweiser, and now this:
A young woman is suing a veteran Sussex County councilman, claiming he repeatedly sexually assaulted her after encouraging her to become in involved in politics. The lawsuit filed this week in Kent County Superior Court alleges that Republican Councilman Vance C. Phillips forced sex on the woman several times in 2011, beginning a few weeks after she turned 18. The 17-page complaint includes graphic details involving bondage and sex toys during the sex acts that she says happened in Kent and Sussex counties. The complaint also says Phillips threatened the young woman not to tell anyone.
This seems to be connected to the allegations about Vance Phillips in an anonymous letter sent to the General Assembly last year. From the News Journal:
Delaware State Police investigated Phillips last year after members of the General Assembly received an anonymous letter claiming he was involved in a relationship with an underage girl. No criminal charges were filed. Phillips’ attorney, Joe Hurley, said he was told by the attorney general’s office earlier this year that the investigation was complete and that there would be no criminal prosecution.
So what does the 17 page complaint say? I am trying to get my hands on it, but here is the News Journal’s synopsis:
The lawsuit alleges that Phillips first met the girl at a GOP event in Sussex County in March 2010, when she was 16. The complaint said that she later began working with him almost daily, regarded him as a close friend and adviser, and became “completely reliant” on him.
On May 9, 2011, a month after she turned 18, Phillips accosted the young woman in a parking lot of a Georgetown dentist’s office, exposing himself and trying to take her clothes off, according to the complaint. Phillips then told her to follow him to an isolated rural area, where he again tried to have sex with her.
About a week later, the woman alleges, Phillips sent her a text warning her that if she told anyone what had happened, she would never have a career in politics, that he was “a very powerful politician with lots of power over the courts and judges,” and that no one would believe her. Phillips demanded that she meet him in Laurel, locked her in a farm building near his home, and sexually assaulted her, the complaint alleges.
Other attacks followed, with the woman claiming she feared what would happen to her if she did not submit to Phillips’ demands, according to the lawsuit.
Saturday Daily Delawhere [5.11.13]
![Saturday Daily Delawhere [5.11.13]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8559/8711450223_119d2b58a9_z.jpg "Saturday Daily Delawhere [5.11.13]")
Beautiful scene from the Mt. Cuba Center. From Elaine K on Flickr.
Friday Open Thread [5.10.13]
The Hill recounts the story about how Delaware’s own Joe Biden forced the President’s hand on gay marriage:
Last May, in the heat of President Obama’s reelection efforts, Biden went on “Meet the Press” and said he was “comfortable” with same-sex marriage. Obama had not at that point announced his support for gay marriage, and the vice president’s endorsement left the campaign lurching to clarify the administration’s position.
The following week, Obama acknowledged he had decided to make an announcement endorsing gay marriage before the election, but Biden’s comments forced his hand early. Biden at the time said he apologized to the president for putting him in that position, but in the Rolling Stone interview, Biden said Obama couldn’t have been happier.
“I got blowback from everybody but the president,” Biden said. ”I walked in that Monday, he had a big grin on his face, he put his arms around me and said, ‘Well, Joe, God love you, you say what you think.’ I knew he agreed with me. It wasn’t like he was in a different place.”
Booman wonders if the “Biden Push” was and is the seminal moment for progress on marriage equality in America. Recall that ever since, the polls have shown nothing but majority approval for it, and momentum in the states passing gay marriage legislation has been brisk.
![Friday Daily Delawhere [5.10.13]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8140/8711450243_8c5b171071_z.jpg "Friday Daily Delawhere [5.10.13]")
Pro Rassler Provides Sophisticated Analysis of Delaware Marriage Equality
From the Bible of Pro Wrestling, Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Weekly, comes the following:
–Jay Briscoe got himself into trouble, deleting his entire Twitter account over what he tweeted Wednesday:“The Delaware Senate passed a bill yesterday that allows same sex couples to get married. If that makes you happy, then congratulations!!!”“..try and teach my kids that there’s nothing wrong with that and I’ll fucking shoot you.”
About 12 hours later, after realizing that was probably not the right thing to say, he wrote:“I feel very strongly about who should teach kids about certain things but I showed poor judgment by using that analogy and I’m sorry.”
A few hours after that, he deleted his entire account. ROH released this statement: “Ring of Honor Wrestling respects and appreciates every fan regardless of age, gender, race, religion or sexual preference. The recent post by Jay Briscoe does not represent the views or opinions of Ring of Honor Wrestling, its owners, management or employees.” ROH has said Briscoe will both make a public apology for his remarks on Saturday’s house show in Belle Vernon, PA, and he has agreed to donate his pay for the next two weekend to the Partners Against Hate charitable organization.
![Thursday Daily Delawhere [5.9.13]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8276/8712576530_16d8886446_z.jpg "Thursday Daily Delawhere [5.9.13]")
El Som is out in Indiana, so no Post Game Pre Game today
I will however be posting an update of the Vote Tracker, my own contribution to following the workings of the General Assembly, this afternoon, and in that update I will highlight what other very important bills passed the House yesterday while all focus was on the Senate. I will also provide info as to what is on the agenda for Thursday. In the meantime, enjoy some more photos from yesterday’s victory by way of the Delaware House Democratic Caucus’ Facebook page.
The Bigots’ Response
They are calling for the immediate repeal of the marriage equality law, I suppose not realizing that the 12 Senators and 23 Representatives are not going to repeal a law they fought hard to get passed. And apparently not realizing that once civil rights are expanded to new groups and classes of people, they are hardly ever rolled back. Indeed, the Hate Amendment in California is the only example I can think of, and even that attempt is about to be struck down as unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Here is a rescued comment from one Ecia. I moderated her (or his) comments on the prior Marriage Equality thread because she (or he) started spamming the thread with this drivel. But I decided to highlight this comment to reveal how bigoted and stupid the opponents of equality are.
Here is her (or his) comment:
Calling For Repeal SB75:
As The State Government has completely ignored the legitimate concerns of the People of Delaware, there is an urgent call for A Special Election to REPEAL SB75 or to do something to correct this unjust law that Desecrates God’s Word.
Let me stop you there. The General Assembly ignored your bigotry. They did not ignore the legitimate concerns of the People of Delaware. To the contrary, they addressed a very legitimate concern: equality for all. What is it with conservatives thinking they always speak for all the people of the state or country. And they loudly pronounce that they are speaking for all the people and all the people agree with them. They doth protest too much. They know their minority and bigoted views are not shared by the majority anymore and it scares the living shit out of them, so they have to scream louder that they do speak for all, I guess thinking that if you shout a lie loud enough and often enough it turns out to be true. But I digress…
Second, a special election? Did a Representative or Senator die or resign? No. So there can be no special election. But Ecia is talking about a referendum here. Thankfully, we don’t have referenda in Delaware. Not because I fear losing a referendum. In fact, the forces of good and equality would win such a vote. I just don’t think it is right to have a vote on someone’s rights. How would you like it Ecia if we voted on whether you could get married to the one you loved?
“A just law is a man-made code that squares with moral law or God’s law” If necessary, I am prepared to go to jail before complying with any law that so blatantly desecrates the most sacred gift from God, The Institute of Marriage.
Unless you are a Clerk of the Peace, as a citizen this law does nothing to you. It does not force you to comply with anything. [Come inside for more]
![Wednesday Daily Delawhere [5.8.13]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8551/8712576586_b09f26b288_z.jpg "Wednesday Daily Delawhere [5.8.13]")
School Board Elections, Redux
Yesterday’s NJ had a remarkable article from Matthew Albright that purports to take a look at the usually out-of-sight school board elections and the possibility of influence by outside interests on the eventual winners. It is remarkable, because it singles out teacher’s unions as the outside interests being served by the inattention of voters to these elections. There isn’t even a fig leaf of a “both sides do it” argument — in large part because this article lets Jea Street pontificate about how teacher’s unions are running the board for school board elections:
Matt Denn seems confident
Indeed, most of the organizations interested in a yes outcome in the vote this afternoon in the Senate seemed to be guardedly optimistic. I dare say if the outcome was truely in doubt the Lt. Governor would not be posting a status update like this:
To guard against complacency, there is still time to lobby Senators Bob Marshall, Bethany Hall Long and Cathy Cloutier. Encouraging emails or calls only please. Find their contact info here.
Tuesday Daily Delawhere [5.7.13]
![Tuesday Daily Delawhere [5.7.13]](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8138/8711450331_fca0233de2_z.jpg "Tuesday Daily Delawhere [5.7.13]")
Looming south of Newark is Iron Hill, which is an outcropping of the Piedmont Plateau. The hill, named for the iron deposits mined on it, is 331 feet above sea level.
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