I’m not tracking on this…but is Chip Flowers pulling a Jeff Christopher?

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When reading Celia's blog you never know who is telling her to write what, so I'm not putting too much stock into her account but it sure sounds like Flowers is the catalyst for the turmoil.
"You have a treasurer who is a constitutional officer," Flowers said. "That's the argument of the Sussex County sheriff. We're all constitutional officers," said Jeff Bullock, the Democratic secretary of state.
I don't know if Flowers is in the wrong, but I love that "Christopherism" has now been used to identify someone as a crackpot.

The Weekly Addresses

We have a special guest for the Governor's Weekly Message this week... The Governor! We also have a video of the Governor thanking legislators for their work on the Background Check bill. We also have the President's weekly address below and the West Wing Week inside.

Behold the beauty of our “Club for Growth” style paradise

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Oh the oppression of regulations industries are forced to endure in their determination to make a buck. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration most recently inspected the Texas fertilizer plant that exploded Wednesday night in 1985.Thanks to a prolonged and sustain policy of not providing the funding necessary to hire inspectors or do inspections the United States is now officially Bhopalesque.'
Nineteen, nineteen, nineteen - eight five !!! Prediction : This year more people will be killed in America by uninspected, tainted food than by terrorists.

Boston On Lockdown

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Authorities are asking the entire city of Boston to "shelter in place" and not leave their homes for the time being.  There are reports that one suspect is dead, the other on the loose. TPM has a recap of the night's events.
If you’re just waking up, it’s a been a surreal night of chaos and violence north of Boston which, according to latest reports, has ended with one of the two Boston marathon suspects dead and another (apparently the so-called suspect number two with the white cap) still at large. [...] Listening to police scanners from midnight until roughly 1 AM was a surreal experience and certainly a terrifying for those involved as law enforcement officers struggled to make sense of a chaotic situation, engaged in shootouts and were targeted with explosives by fleeing suspects. Soon scores of police from different departments and federal agencies were converging on Watertown. Dynamite, hand grenades, pipe bombs were the phrases tossed out live over police scanners as the events unfolded, though all that seems certain is that there were explosives of some sort. Police held a press conference a short time ago, the details of which are here.
Use the thread inside for updates.

Delaware’s Unafraid

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While all of the 13 Senators who voted for the Background Check Bill (HB 35) are unafraid in my book and deserve credit for their vote today, I want to give special recognition to three who took politically risky votes for different reasons. Without these three votes, the bill would have failed 11-10. Come inside to read why I think these three votes are relatively brave.

We Lost in Washington Yesterday. We Can Win in Delaware Today.

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We had a defeat in Washington yesterday, but we can still win in Delaware. The background checks bill (HB 35) is scheduled for a vote today in the Senate, and I'm told by well placed sources that some wavering Senators could really benefit from a final call or email this morning. And if you are in Dover or can make it to Dover today, get to the Senator chamber for the vote to show support. So join me and call or email the following this morning: Senator Bethaney Hall Long, bethany.hall-long@state.de.us, (302) 744-4286 Senator Bruce Ennis, bruce.ennis@state.de.us, (302) 744-4310 Senator Nicole Poore, Nicole.Poore@state.de.us, (302) 744-4164 Senator Cathy Cloutier, catherine.cloutier@state.de.us, (302) 744-4197 Senator Brian Bushweller, brian.bushweller@state.de.us, (302) 744-4162 Senator David McBride, David.McBride@state.de.us, (302) 744-4167

Here We Go Again… Pencader Charter School

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I detest hostage situations, especially when the hostages are children. Pencader Business and Finance Charter School is in financial trouble again. Shocking, I know. Seems they've run out of money and are threatening to close the school on April 30th. The News Journal has the story:
In a letter addressed to parents, students and teachers last week, president Frank McIntosh said Pencader didn’t have enough money left to pay teachers’ salaries through the end of the year, putting it at risk of bankruptcy. He said the school needs $350,000 to pay its debts and enable its students graduate. McIntosh said transferring students back to their feeders schools so late in the year would be a mess. Traditional public schools, especially those in the Christina and Colonial school districts, would have to accommodate hundreds of students on short notice with little additional resources, he said.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., April 18, 2013

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For all intents and purposes, it's a one-bill day in Dover. This bill. Can Dover legislators do what Washington legislators could or would not do? HB 35 would require criminal background checks for virtually all gun purchases in Delaware. The NRA, embodied and emboldened by its pigeon-killing mouthpiece, have whittled away at the bill, and still oppose it. Not a single R senator is on the bill as a sponsor. Which raises the question. Will they stand with the overwhelming majority of the people of Delaware, or will they march in lockstep with the leader that they have chosen to lead the Delaware Rethuglican Party?

President Obama is Angry About the Gun Bill

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President Obama spoke some hours back on the failure of the gun bill to pass the Senate. He's clearly angry and he's quite right that this is a shameful moment for a Government that is supposed to represent us. If you haven't seen his remarks, this is the video from TPM (they seem edited, to me):

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Weds., April 17, 2013

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A mixed bag on voting rights and, for that matter, bipartisanship during yesterday's session Republicans stonewalled 'No-Excuses' Absentee Voting. Not a single R voted for HB 20(Jaques), and the bill failed to reach its 2/3 majority requirement by one vote. According to a press release from the House Democrats:
“Several House Republicans have expressed support for the bill. So why won’t they vote for it?” asked Rep. Longhurst, D-Bear. “It’s clear House Republican leadership is playing politics with this bill and withholding votes. Voting is not a partisan issue. Delawareans deserve fair access to voting. Republicans need to either help pass this important bill or explain their uniform opposition to the public.
That seems only fair. What do Rethugs want? Paging Dr. Freud. I mean, besides economic disaster that they can then blame on the D's? And crippled pigeons to maim (they already have those)? If they're looking for respect or relevance, sorry, I can't be of help there. Logic and comity prevailed across the building in the Senate, as HB 10(Keeley), which would restore voting rights to convicted felons who have paid in full their debt to society, passed by a 15-6 vote. R senators Cathy Cloutier and Greg Lavelle voted for the bill (thank you!) while self-proclaimed 'moderate' Ernesto Lopez voted no.  Hmmm, sure looks like somebody sold a lot of somebodies a bill of goods. Here's the roll call. Since this is the second leg of a constitutional amendment, HB 10 will soon be law.