It’s Official. David Tackett to Challenge Bryan Townsend.
Tackett sent out this e-mail to community leaders. I swear I have not changed one letter of what he wrote. This is (presumably) his own syntax:
Well I am reaching out to share some exciting news, I have decided to run for the senate seat in our area, As you know I have been the councilman for going on 10 years now and I have used this experience and time to build my relations in the communities and helping our residents on the county level and I am now ready to move to the state side and use my experience with the multitude of state issues we are facing. We have worked on many issues in Breezwood over the years and we will have many more.
I have watched as Dover has done nothing for our economy and jobs and they only dealt with a bunch of social issues while we have been hurting and struggling just to maintain. I fell it is time to carry our voices into Dover and demand this struggling economy be addressed. I promise I will be this voice!
The guy we have now that beat DeLuca last year still lives with his parents and while he is a nice guy I just feel he does not understand the pressures we face as homeowners, parents and ever increasing pressure of inflation.
I hope to have your support and know I have been here for the district and I will carry a strong voice we so badly need now.I hope to have your support and I am always available to stop and talk and or chat on the phone if you would like.
Dave Tackett
So there you go. Nothing can ever be taken for granted in an off-year primary.
We simply can’t afford to lose Bryan Townsend. I can’t recall another senator who has had such a positive and impactful first term. So, feel free to click here and…well, you know the drill.
Tags: Bryan Townsend Delaware, Dave Tackett Delaware, El Somnambulo, Steve Tanzer Delaware
Is it just me that thinks basic grammar skills still count for something? I don’t want to see another buffoon in state government who can’t even write properly. That being said, I’ve lost what was initially a great deal of respect for Townsend. I think he quickly drank the Dover koolaid and I don’t like the way he talks to people he seems to consider his underlings.
Ever-increasing pressure of inflation? What country is he living in?
So Tackett attacks Senator Townsend personally right out of the gate. Despicable. Another Deluca thug.
Tackett also told people that he had been ‘promised’ the rub from DeLuca for the seat when Tiny Tony retired.
So, he sat back and watched Townsend challenge DeLuca, and now he’s saying “It’s my turn.” One guy had the guts to challenge DeLuca, the other sat back and waited to get the Godfadda’s blessing. Guess which one I’m supporting?
As it happens, and this is by complete coincidence, but we just published our interview with Senator Townsend (http://delawareliberal.net//2014/04/15/interview-with-senator-bryan-townsend/). Methinks Tackett is going to have to bring more than insults to defeat this rather intelligent Senator.
Bryan is pretty much the brightest guy in any room he’s in. Tackett better not debate him. That would be ugly.
Bryan in a landslide.
Completely agree, John.
And not only that, but Bryan has been on the ground with his campaign team basically since the last election. His constituents know and like him, and hear from him constantly. In other words, he is the anti-Deluca. I really am rather sorry that Mr. Tackett missed his chance to succeed Deluca in the 11th District. Perhaps if he had stepped up in 2012 and told his friend Deluca that it was time to go, he would be Senator today. He didn’t. But that is not our problem.
This will probably be viewed as blasphemy here, but I have found Bryan Townsend to be pompous and smug. I know you all love him, but you’ll never love him as much as he loves himself.
LOL. Such a description of Bryan is completely at odds with reality. He is a great guy to have a beer with, literally. I have never seen him be smug or pompous. I suspect these comments are from Tackett supporters who are pursuing the personal attack route against Bryan. And you know you are already losing when you resort to personal attacks from the start.
All I can say is, I’ve worked with, and observed, a lot of legislators during my time working in Dover, and Townsend’s ego is better grounded than most. And he’s serious about the real key issues. Just listen to the interview and you’ll understand that.
I’ve heard that Tackett is a good guy who does a good job on constituent services, so I’m not here to trash him. But there are few people in Dover who have the ability and drive to move the needle toward the side of progressive reform. Bryan is one of the few.
Bryan 2014. All the way.
Bryan Townsend is in it for the right reasons and fighting good fights in Dover. Delaware is lucky to have him in our legislature. He also has kept in touch with his district on part with the most responsive legislators our state has. Whether or not all Democratic primary voters agree with him, they voted for him two years ago, they respect him, and I sincerely hope they will put him back in this September/November.
BTW, can one talk about needing to fix the economy in one sentence and then criticize someone who is engaged and saving money for not being a homeowner in the next? I guess so…
I mean really, inflation? Who’s the target market for that message, retired cranks? What the f* can he, or anyone in Dover, do to fight inflation, anyway? Who’s running his campaign, a guy with a Magic 8-Ball filled with political sound bites? A retired crank?
I like Dave Tackett too but I can’t imagine him getting very far against Townsend. Dave is a notoriously crappy writer so how is it possible no one told him he needs an editor?
I do not know Dave Tackett. I did not know Bryan Townsend. The only things I do know are healthcare and education. Winter and Spring 2013 were some of the most tumultous times in education history for our state in regards to legislation. Bryan Townsend met with me on multiple occasions to review some critical, paramount, legislative items for clarity and exponential collateral damage review should some legislation pass. His quick study, and ethical compass trumped the default act of “going with the flow’, and “don’t make waves”. That guy gets the greater vision and landmines others are just casually dismissing as incidental and a done deal.
I am not even in Bryan Townsend’s district, and have been extended MULTIPLE courtesies to bend his ear about the only issues I know about. Whereas, other events I have attended, well, Bryan Townsend is there too. He gets around — he’s getting it done. A lone voice now often, but one others will hopefully feel more secure in joining as he sets the new fresh example of doing the “right” thing, and not the party line, obstructionist positioning, or marching orders from top down. Hey, if you guys don’t want him up there, he’s welcome to move into my basement, in this district. Townsend for Townsend!!! 🙂
And if I find out that cheap shot was truly said–I am just winding up Mr. Tackett with a few words for you. But, I will leave it alone for now, until I can confirm, because again, I don’t know you, you may be a fine person, something may have been taken out of context–but I really don’t think your district needs to fix an incredible legislator holding down, and doing well an incredible job.
Amen Joanne.
Plus, there are enough districts that don’t fit the category of “an incredible legislator holding down, and doing well an incredible job.”
Looks like he wrote that at 2 am after a fwe cups of beer coffee, i mean im sure he’s a nice guy and all loljk but srsly if you are a going for public office omg at least proof read m-i-right?
I’m getting a little… scratch that… very sick of the … domicile shaming?
Sen Townsend’s choice to live with his parents is one so many people around our age are having to make these days. It doesnt mean we’re lazy or unambitious. It means (for many of us), that while we may have a good job, the waste of money that is renting ( i rent, i hate it)….. and the financial commitment of buying a house (which, even adjusted for time is way more expensive now than ever before) is something we just can’t manage. (student loans???????)
It’s a sad and pathetic line. “dont vote for him because he isn’t willing to sink hard earned money into an unstable market” “don’t vote for him because he’s POOR” “don’t vote for him because his parents lost their retirement in the Boomer-caused recession and they need another income earner in the house” “dont vote for him because his family is close and home ownership isnt a priority”
This ire is, of course directed at Mr English Major, but I’ve seen it before…. I’d like to not see it again.
Here’s the key. It’s an off-year. Bryan is running against someone who people have become used to voting for.
It is not a slam dunk that he wins. He’s doing his part. It’s up to those of us who support him to do OUR part. Volunteering and/or donating to his campaign are the best ways to do that.
Writing (and thinking) that he’s a shoo-in is the WORST way to do that.
Bryan’s only been elected once. This ‘Bryan in a landslide’ meme is how you snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Get involved.
I was involved in 2012, I will be involved in 2014. Bryan in a landslide. Saying it/writing it, does not portend the opposite.
Speaking of using the term “official” in this context, shouldn’t that be tied to actually filing for the seat?
No, it doesn’t portend it. But if that’s the extent of people’s involvement, it makes it more likely, which is my point.
I’m like you, though. Was involved in 2012, will be involved in 2014.
This recent arrival in Delaware is interested in state and local races but is having a hard time keeping up with you folks. As much as anything, I’d appreciate having a little more information in the beginning of articles like this. Is Tackett a Democrat? What is his current elected position? And, honestly, where is Breezewood? Certainly weak (not bad, just weak, and fond of run-on sentences to boot) doesn’t help Tackett’s cause, but could you provide some information about his past electoral success? Finally, who is/was DeLuca — Dem or Rep, how long an incumbent, why was it such a big deal that Townsend won?
Also, too, who is the “we” that he refers to?
New In Town: Just type in ‘Tony DeLuca’ and/or ‘Bryan Townsend’, and you’ll find that we’ve covered the waterfront on this. I hope you’ll find the material fascinating. I think it is, but then, I wrote a lot of it.
Townsend had the guts to challenge virtually the entire D political establishment, including the governor, but excluding Progressive Dems of Delaware (yay!), to take out DeLuca. Tackett is running in part b/c he says he was ‘promised’ he’d have DeLuca’s backing once the Godfadda decided to retire.
David Tackett is a New Castle County Councilman who represents much of the area that is within the 11th Senatorial District. He can run this time w/o fear of losing his council seat b/c he’s not up for reelection. Here’s more on Tackett:
http://www.nccde.org/530/David-Tackett—District-11
Here’s Bryan Townsend’s site:
http://bryande.com/
And here’s just ONE of my articles on the guy who Townsend defeated, Former Senate President- Pro-Tempore Tony DeLuca:
http://delawareliberal.net//2012/02/23/tony-deluca-makes-the-laws-tony-deluca-makes-up-the-laws/
OK, I couldn’t stop at just one. Here’s a couple more:
http://delawareliberal.net//2011/12/14/did-tony-deluca-resign-from-the-state-senate-and-not-even-know-it/
http://delawareliberal.net//2011/02/24/the-further-misadventures-of-tiny-tony-deluca/
And one last one:
http://delawareliberal.net//2010/07/02/tony-deluca-has-disgraced-his-office-markell-must-call-senate-back/
Hope this helps. BTW, Breezewood, with or w/o the third ‘e’, is a community in the 11th Senatorial district.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a flimsier reason to run for office. “The economy is bad and the incumbent should own a house”.
That said, he’ll start off with a lot of name recognition from being on the ballot so many times. There will definitely be a base of support for him as a long-time elected, so it’ll be interesting to see how strong that support is against a popular, active, and involved official like Bryan. Now’s definitely not the time to start slacking in the 11th.
I was involved with Bryan’s campaign before it was a campaign…it was an idea. Anyone who wishes to maligne him doesn’t know him. He is well grounded, thoughtful and incredibly smart. He may be a bit shy, but never should anyone think for a nano-second that he is condescending or arrogant. He has accomplished things in his first legislative year that most freshman legislators would not consider trying. Help send him back…he’s an up and comer…the real deal.
The guy we have now that beat DeLuca last year still lives with his parents and while he is a nice guy I just feel he does not understand the pressures we face as homeowners, parents and ever increasing pressure of inflation.
Did it ever occur to Mr. Tackett that Senator Townsend is still living with his parents because he understands the pressures of home ownership, parenting and inflation enough to know that he needs to save his money before buying a house, marrying his fiancé and having kids? I applaud Senator Townsend for approaching the next phase of his life with sound planning and thinking, I wish more young people were this responsible.
The only fault I find with Senator Townsend is that he failed to break 80% against Evan Queef in 2012.
I find this move by Tackett really, really disappointing. I’ve always found Dave to be pleasant and likeable but must admit I don’t have any, not any, impression of his work on NCC Council. As somebody else noted, he waited for the wonderful young man to come along and slay the DeLuca Dragon, and now Tackett wants the seat. That just plain offends my sense of fairness. If he has so much to contribute to the legislature he should have stepped up before this when Tony was riding roughshod over the senate, the governor, and anybody else who got in his way. Tackett would have been a logical candidate to bravely take on the DeLuca power base. But he didn’t. To claim that he’s going to come riding to the rescue now seems disingenuous at best and opportunistic at worst.
I worked and contributed to the Townsend campaign in 2012 and I’ll be in line to repeat that in 2014. Bryan is an amazing, talented, and thoughtful man. In my book the only way we could improve on him would be if he were a woman — but that’s just me. As so many have noted on this thread, Bryan is exceptional and exactly what Delaware needs in our Senate and our future.
Oh, and, one more thing because I’m simply sick of hearing about Bryan living in his parents’ basement . . .
Bryan graduated from UD and then went on to attend Yale, Cambridge (the one in England) and Beijing (the one in China) Universities. He launched into life with some heavy student loan debt. The Townsend family is close knit and supportive of each other and the fiscally responsible thing to do was for him to live at home and save money to pay down his debt.
It was a smart move and it has worked. Bryan and Lilliana will be married this coming August and they are looking for a home of their own in the district where Bryan grew up, among the neighbors he knows and serves so well. They are looking forward to a day when their children will attend the local schools that Bryan cares so deeply about. The schools that started him on his extraordinary path.
To attack this fine young couple because they chose a responsible path to the increasingly difficult American dream is just mean spirited and tone-deaf to what young people are facing these days.
Tackett rhymes with racket and that says more than I ever could.