Delaware Political Weekly: Jan. 28-Feb. 3, 2012

Two new positions are open, but the names are old and…shopworn. With City Councilman Charles Potter running for Dennis P. Williams’ RD 1 seat, guess who has reemerged to seek Potter’s seat? I’ll give you a hint. He was once suspended from practicing law in the State of Delaware for 18 months. That’s right. Sam Guy. He’s ba-a-a-ck.

Delaware Political Weekly: January 21-27, 2012

Anyone expecting Sen. Mike Katz (4th) to go gently into that good night against Greg Lavelle are bound to be disappointed. Katz already has almost $200 K in the bank, much of it from Delaware’s medical community, with $73K in the form of a personal loan. Lavelle has $82K, $25K of which is in the form of a personal loan. This is one race where finances will not do the Democrat in. Meanwhile, neither Dave Sokola nor Liane Sorenson are rolling in dough. Time to toss some $$’s Sokola’s way.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., Jan. 26, 2012

Wednesday’s session illuminated precisely why properly-functioning committees are essential to the legislative process. Or not, depending on the committee and/or your point of view. Here are arguments for either side:
The House Education Committee tabled legislation that would raise the mandatory age of school attendance from 16 to 18 years of age.  It doesn’t mean that [...]

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., Jan. 24, 2012

Little of interest in the Senate today. There’s a bill from the Joint Sunset Committee eliminating some state agencies, boards, or committees that no longer serve a public purpose. Or perhaps never served a public purpose. Not that they’re the only ones…

There’s more action in the House today. Should be an interesting roll call on HB 222(Jaques), which would require the Department of Labor to ‘publish the names of employers who have violated the Workplace Fraud Act, by misclassifying an employee as an independent contractor or otherwise.’ Let’s see who favors screwing the little guy by claiming that an employee really isn’t an ‘employee’.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., Jan. 19, 2012

I don’t know whether the House will get to these bills today, because the highlight of the day, and often of the legislative session, is the Governor’s Annual State of the State Address to the General Assembly. In addition to proclaiming the ’state of the state’ (“The groundhog has seen his shadow!”), the address serves as the official unveiling of the Governor’s legislative priorities. Sometimes it’s a laundry list of specifics, sometimes it’s more an articulation of the principles that the Governor believes the General Assembly should embrace, usually it’s some combination of both.

Governor Markell is by far the best orator we’ve had as governor during my time in state government. He’s at his best when he speaks, or writes, from the heart. As he did on civil unions. And as he did on the Gattis decision. However, he tends to lose that human connection when he embraces the policy wonk side of his personality. We already know, based on this story, that the Governor intends to seek ’savings’ (meaning cuts) from Medicaid. Just so there’s no mistake, Medicaid=Health Care for the Poor. Last year, the Governor proposed a $92/month cut to services to the medically-indigent. I sure hope he has learned from that kamikaze mission that that’s both horrible policy and a political non-starter.

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Tues., Jan. 17, 2012

Sen. Bob Marshall has introduced a two-tiered increase in the state’s minimum wage from the current $7.25 an hour to $7.75 an hour in January of 2013 and to $8.25 an hour in January of 2014. It will be interesting to see where our Governor stands on this.

Delaware 2012 Politics Weekly-Jan. 6-13

Looks like the Rethugs will have something like a statewide ticket after all. Chad Livengood’s Sunday News-Journal piece pieces it together. The R’s are calling it something like the ‘real people ticket’, which presumably is better than the ‘just some guys’ ticket. (Bleep, Daily Kos stole my line before I could even publish this.)

General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show-Weds., Jan. 11, 2012

While the legislative season didn’t exactly kick off with a bang, the political Hot Stove League was in full blast mode in Dover. House Minority Leader Greg Lavelle, who had already told colleagues that he would not run for reelection to the House, announced that he would seek the 4th Senatorial District seat currently held by Sen. Michael Katz (D-Centreville). More surprising was the announcement that Rep. Dennis E. Williams from Brandywine Hundred is facing a primary challenger.

Delaware 2012 Political Weekly: January 1 to January 6, 2012

Just in time for the 2012 Delaware election season, I’m starting a brand new weekly feature for all you political junkies out there. Each Friday, I will review the political events of the past week. Events will include, but not be limited to, announcements, filings, retirements, intrigue, financial reports, debates, etc. I aim to be comprehensive and, of course, entertaining. Accordingly, I will often evaluate/predict how meaningful (or not meaningful) each development might be. I’m also pretty certain that this format will change as I get more accustomed to writing the weekly pieces.

Mitch Crane Speaks Out on BCBSD-Highmark

Mitch Crane, the progressive Democratic candidate for Insurance Commissioner, issued a press release yesterday regarding KWS’s turning her back once again on the people of Delaware by approving the merger of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Delaware and Highmark.
“This is a bad decision for Delaware. Once again this Insurance Commissioner has put the interests [...]

The 62 District Strategy [2012]

Alright, 2012 is here, and it time to focus on the 2012 Legislative elections. Because most often than not, state legislative races are ignored, even though they are our most direct connection to democracy, as those we elect from our respective districts in the House and Senate are our neighbors (or at least they are supposed to be). So we are going to begin to familiarize ourselves with each district and who currently represents that district. Now, it is early enough in the calendar that we don’t yet know if many of the Representatives and Senators are going to run for reelection, or if they will face challengers in their efforts to get reelected.

In 2012, all seats in the General Assembly are up for election. All 21 Senators. All 41 Representatives. The reason for this is because we have just drawn up new districts in both chambers as a result of population changes over the last 10 years, as indicated by the 2010 census. As a result, Kent and Sussex Counties have each gained a House seat, and the Sussex County gains a Senate seat.

Tornoe’s Toon: A Civil Union-y New Year!

I’ve drawn my fair share of cartoons on why civil unions are a step-forward, but gay marriage is the way to go if you’re looking for true equity.

Did Tony DeLuca Resign From the State Senate And Not Even Know It?

I believe that the answer is yes. I believe that legal precedent established in this state also says yes. I believe that, according to law, Tony DeLuca is illegally serving as President Pro-Tempore of the Delaware State Senate and illegally serving as a member of the Delaware State Senate. I shall now proceed to explain to you why I believe this to be true.