National

With less than 9 months to go in President Obama's second term, Nobel laureate/NYT columnist Paul Krugman takes a look at his presidency and offers a well-documented set of conclusions about the Administration's accomplishments regarding the economy, financial reform and health care that will set Republican teeth to grinding, especialy Krugman's summation that: "All in all, it's quite a record. Assuming Democrats hold the presidency, Mr. Obama will emerge as a hugely consequential president -- more than Reagan."

Fellow Newark State Representative and fellow progressive Paul Baumbach has announced his endorsement of State Senator Bryan Townsend this morning. Rep. Baumbach:

"I am very pleased to endorse the candidacy of State Senator Bryan Townsend, for the office of US Representative. I have known Bryan since 2012, when we both successfully ran for seats in the Delaware state legislature. I have served with Senator Townsend on education task forces, have worked closely with him on multiple legislative initiatives, and have partnered with him on many constituent matters. I have seen him meeting his constituents on their doorsteps, and inspiring the many campaign volunteers who work with him. I have always found Senator Townsend to be caring, smart, principled, and hard-working. Recognizing that he is constantly learning, he graduated from the CSG Toll Fellow Program in 2013, a program from which I graduated last year. He has been a terrific State Senator, and I believe that he will be a wonderful US Representative. It is for these reasons that I am happy to officially endorse Bryan’s candidacy."

It's all over... IT'S ALL OVER!!! Do you believe in miracles?!?!? Ted "The Lunatic Cringe" Cruz (tm) has outplayed, outwitted and outlasted all the other candidates (who were drafted in this fantasy pool). Marco Rubio dropped on March 16th, but I couldn't bring myself to sweep the floor one last time, turn off all the neon, and shut the old game down. I wanted to live in the craziness for a few more days.... *sigh* And also, as the days wore on, the math started to get a little wonky. The table below probably could not withstand heavy accounting scrutiny, but what is lacks in scientific accuracy, it makes up for in heart. And isn't that really the most import thing? Heart ...and the fact I won my own contest. Those are the two most important things. So under the rules of this contest, I owe everyone reading this sentence a beer.* And I look forward to raising that glass with you sometime, as the gentle Christina River flows on into tomorrow.

Governor Markell joined members of the General Assembly today to announce legislation that will allow Delawareans to become equity investors in Delaware start ups. The bipartisan bill, which will be…

Because...of course they are.

Speaker of the House Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth, and Democratic candidate for lieutanant governor Kathy McGuiness are holding a joint campaign fundraiser from 6:30 to 8 p.m., Monday, April 4, at The Starboard, 2009 Coastal Highway, Dewey Beach. The suggested donation is $250. The maximum donation for Schwartzkopf is $600. The maximum donation for McGuiness is $1,200.

Ed Kilgore on Sander's convention demands.

If anyone in the current Team Clinton expects Bernie Sanders to emulate her 2008 surrender, they'd better get over it quickly. It's not happening. [...] It's important to understand that the Sanders campaign began as an effort by ideological progressives to "keep Hillary honest," and then with success became an insurgency against the policies and political strategies of both the Clinton and Obama administrations. Unlike Clinton (and, for that matter, Obama) in 2008, Sanders is not the embodiment of some disenfranchised identity; he's not the candidate of septuagenarian Jewish men. And he presumably has no personal political future to protect. It's all about shaping the future of the party, and if he cannot do that as the nominee himself, he can make his mark via his own convention speech and Clinton's, supplemented by concessions on the platform and perhaps the future Clinton administration.

What might Sanders expect? This, from Martin Longman:

This would include consultations on the veep, and concessions on many key appointments. Sanders will want a say in the staffing at Treasury, for example. He may have other demands, too. He'll need to get some very visible wins that he can show his voters so they can feel like what they've done has made a difference and can continue to make a difference.

I would also play to Sander's ego, which is pretty massive and has only been buoyed by his primary run. I would tell Bernie that he is still in charge of his revolution, that he, with the full financial backing of the DNC, DSCC and DCCC but without the interference of either, can travel the country over the next four years finding progressive candidates to run for office. Hillary can't adopt his entire platform, because right now it is not financially, fiscally, or politically possible. For the precise reason that Bernie put the cart before the horse. Put Bernie in charge of grooming the horse to be a champion, and it will be a good thing for all.