April School District Happenings: New Castle County Edition

April School District Happenings: New Castle County Edition

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The oft unnoticed school board elections are happening in every New Castle County school district May 10th. In only one of the districts is an actual contest taking place. 5 of the 7 seats up for election across the county have candidates running unopposed, which too often is the case in BOE elections. As anticipated, Brandywine School District will be returning to the public sometime in May seeking approval for capital and operating referenda. Last evening their Board voted to go back out; this time there will be no turf involved.
Tuesday Open Thread [4.5.16]

Tuesday Open Thread [4.5.16]

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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."
Tales of Corruption from Tom Gordon’s NCC — Coverups, Double Dealing and GA Senators

Tales of Corruption from Tom Gordon’s NCC — Coverups, Double Dealing and GA Senators

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First, go look at WDEL's story on this. The story as currently released alleges that an employee of the county (and husband of Bethany Hall-Long) took confidential records of low-income housing residents in order to run his own personal phone bank for his wife.
A confidential source implicated Hall-Long's husband, Dana Long, in allegedly using his position as a Section 8 housing property inspector--a contract position within New Castle County government--to lobby for his wife's state Senate re-election bid. A confidential source told WDEL that Long took the county's protected contact list of low-income housing residents and cold-called them--on his own time--urging residents in his district to vote for his wife when she faced Republican John Marino in her 2014 re-election bid.
Outing People Is NOT Okay

Outing People Is NOT Okay

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Kevin Ohlandt, of Exceptional Delaware, has crossed a line. He has outed an anonymous commenter - and one that doesn't post on his blog. Publius posts on Kilroy's. I disagree with Publius almost 100% of the time. His comments read like a high school burn book, but that is no excuse for what Kevin has done. There might not be many rules in blogging, but this one is carved in stone. I hesitate to link to the post because giving this sort of behavior more hits is wrong.  I have emailed Kevin asking him to pull the post. I'll update with his decision.
Baumbach Endorses Townsend

Baumbach Endorses Townsend

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."
DL GOP Fantasy Pool Update – Cruzin’

DL GOP Fantasy Pool Update – Cruzin’

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.
BREAKING: Bryon Short Drops Out

BREAKING: Bryon Short Drops Out

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From his Facebook page:
Campaigns take an unbelievable amount of money to win. Although we have consecutively raised more money each quarter than the previous, I do not believe my campaign is on track to raise the necessary resources to get our message out in such a crowded field of candidates. After much thought, I have decided to end my campaign for U.S. Congress. Delaware needs a member of Congress who can cut through political nonsense and get things done. It is my hope and my belief that Americans will reject the ugly politics of the past several years and focus on electing people with a positive vision for our future. I am confident that Delaware’s next Representative will be one of those people. I am incredibly grateful to all of the people who supported me in this campaign and through the years. Thank you. Your support means more to me than I will ever be able to express.
So what happens now? Does Short run for reelection in the 7th RD? There is already a crowded primary there, so do those Democrats stay in? In the Congressional race, Short was the establishment candidate. Establishment support will now likely be divided between the new Delaware resident Lisa Blunt Rochester and Sean Barney. Townsend remains the progressive candidate. I think this race will eventually come down to Townsend v. Rochester. With Short bowing out, I cannot wait to see the financials for the first quarter.
Schwartzkopf and Park City Republican to Hold Joint Fundraiser

Schwartzkopf and Park City Republican to Hold Joint Fundraiser

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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.
Park City McGuiness