Delaware 2006

What are you doing here?

2006-12-19T16:17:00.000-05:00

We've moved! Since 2006 is almost over, and the election definitely is, we've found ourselves a new blog home: http://delawareconservatives.wordpress.com

What are you waiting for? Go there now!

Chrstine O'Donnell netted over 11,000 votes

2006-11-18T17:52:00.000-05:00

delawareonline ¦ The News Journal ¦ O'Donnell netted over 11,000 votes

Christine O'Donnell, who lost the Republican U.S. Senate primary, but stayed on as write-in candidate, picked up 11,127 votes, election officials revealed Friday.
...
She outpolled Libertarian William Morris, who was on the ballot in the Senate race and received 2,671 votes.

She also outpolled U.S. House candidates Michael Berg, who got 4,463 votes on the Green Party ticket, and Karen Hartley-Nagle, who got 5,769 votes on the Independent Party ticket.

She did better than all those candidates who listed above and were actually on the ballot.

Crossposted at Gazizza.net

What's Next for Conservatives?

2006-11-13T09:55:00.000-05:00

An NRO Symposium on Conservatism on National Review Online

NationalReview.com has a good discussion of what the path forward for conservatives should look like.

Lee Edwards,who's been in the conservative movement from the start (and is a very nice guy) makes an excellent point:

Conservatives should remind themselves that they do not live by politics alone. Conservatism is a way of life, of which electoral politics is only a part and not the whole. A movement that survived the unexpected death of Robert A. Taft in 1953, the Senate’s censure of Joseph R. McCarthy in 1954, the crushing defeat of Barry Goldwater in 1964, the failure of Ronald Reagan to win the Republican presidential nomination in 1976, and the overnight fall from grace of Newt Gingrich in 1998 can survive the severe disappointments of 2006. Why? Because our movement is built on a solid foundation of enduring ideas, not the shifting sands of public opinion and the 24/7 demands of the mass media.

Conservatism is more than just a political view; we're not just about government. To paraphrase Russell Kirk, conservatives care more about culture than politics. Partisan Democrats in the media and the Democratic Party have written conservatives off before only to see their hopes dashed. This time won't be any different, either.

Bruce Frohnen makes a similar point:

Conservatism’s roots do not lie in facile slogans about natural rights and free markets — let alone angry, dismissive rhetoric that casts aside the poor and treats rich people as above the law. They lie in our attachment to families, churches, towns, and small businesses. It’s time to remember who we are and who we should be defending.

Conservatives in Congress started responding to the needs of big business and creating bigger government, forgetting that conservatism is about the small: the towns, the churches, the families. We need to remember who we're fighting for and why.

Finally, Stephen Hayward makes an important point:

Despite the electoral carnage last Tuesday, we should recognize a measure of success it represents: just as Republicans had to embrace “compassionate conservatism” as a practical political response to the Clinton years, many Democratic candidates had to move right in response to Republican electoral strength over the last decade. This suggests, incidentally, that we should look to support Democrats like Joseph Lieberman, James Webb, and Heath Schuler when we can.

Given the often unremitting hostility from Demcrats, it's easy for conservatives to identify solely with the Republican Party. This sort of thinking needs to be changed. We've finally got some moderate conservatives inside the Democratic caucus again. (We haven't really had one since Zell Miller retired.) We need to work with them as well. Rather than being a subset of the Republican party, we need to always work to transcend party lines and work with conservatives in both parties (all parties, really) so we can better achieve our ends. If we only work with Republicans, they'll take our support for granted and we'll never advance. Having Democrats who are friendly to our views is a plus for us as we have people in both camps ready to fight for us and our values.

Last Tuesday was a setback for the conservative movement, but hardly a death blow. We took some hits as the Republican Party moved away from our principles and we got caught in the crossfire. The landscape has changed, but not our fundamental challenge: making sure our nations grows in a sensible direction, while protecting our traditions and culture.

Crossposted at Gazizza.net

The Dems are going to party like it's 1998

2006-11-08T12:25:00.000-05:00

And they deserve to. They should live it up. But keep in mind what happened to them in 2000.

This election reminds me a great deal of what happened in 1998: the Republicans got lazy, forgot their principles and failed to give the people a reason to vote for them. In 1998, they offered the voters a menu of the impeachment of a President and little else. This year, they offered nothing but a veiled threat: "The Democrats suck worse than we do."

Cliff May on NationalReview.com summed it up well:

The Democrats said: “Had enough?”

The Republicans said: “It could be worse!”

The voters said: “Let’s find out.”

Unfortunately, a number of great candidates like Ferris Wharton got caught up in the national tidal wave. One woman at the polling place I worked yesterday told me her husband was voting for the first time in years because he was so upset. I didn't ask who he was voting for, but I didn't think I had to.

Fortunately, there are Republicans out there who recognize that what happened was because the Republicans betrayed their principles. (And to a certain extent, also because the Democrats smartly moved to the center in some key races.) Let's hop those Republicans carry the day in bloodletting to come.

Beau Biden: Too Good for Delaware

2006-11-04T10:37:00.000-05:00

But Biden said his time in the federal system prepared him to lead the office, if he's elected.

"Prosecuting a case in front of a federal jury is like playing in the major leagues," Biden said, adding that prosecuting here was, "like playing Triple-A ball."
Source

Baseball analogies are something I can deal with.

Why would any major leaguer voluntarily go back to Triple-A? They wouldn't. They are sent to AAA because they can't handle it in the major leagues. Now that's fine in baseball, where a player works their way up through the system and finds the level they can succeed at, but Beau is on his way down after apparently heading straight to the show. Before we let him be the presumed star of our Triple-A team, why not try him in Double-A for a while? After all, he apparently had trouble with the Majors since he wasn't there long and is on his way down. Let's make sure he can handle Double-A before letting run the team in Triple-A.

The other thing that's frustrating about this comment is the sheer arrogance of it. He really seems to think he's better than this job. I've already voted, but this comment would have turned me off his candidacy if I hadn't already been. Mr. Biden, if you think you are too good for Delaware, then do those of us who love our state a favor:Leave. Go where you think you belong.

UPDATE (11:04 AM): This came off harsher than I meant it to be. A combination of lack of sleep and running off to do something else combined to be a little harder than I would otherwise have been. I apologize for that.

But, it's still clear the Biden the Lesser believes that this job is beneath him. Continuing the baseball analogy, major leaguers in the minor leagues on minor league rehab assignments are well-known for not focusing on the game at hand, not running out ground balls, not playing hard, etc. Can we risk that in our chief law enforcement officer? Or should we choose someone who's glad to be in the game and will play hard? The choice is obvious: we must elect Ferris Wharton as our next Attorney General.

Biden Campaign Gets Slapped

2006-11-03T12:22:00.000-05:00

Link: Biden's attack over sex offenders is unfair, untrue and should stop

Like my blog over at Right On The Right, my political interests have been dormant for a few months. I think the negativity all over the map politically has afforded a lack of interest on my part. Not to mention the fact I've been looking more and more skyward towards where God wants me to be, and I think he'd kinda look at politics with distaste.

Nonetheless, where I work, we like to have on the radio. All of the sudden, Joe's son starts running ads blasting Ferris Wharton over some 800 or so child sex offenders being lost, and that it was his fault. So I'm intrigued, because I kinda thought that a prosecutor is supposed to prosecute, and after that the responsibility falls on the prison system, parole board, and other Executive Branch-type roles.

And the other impression that I got was that someone was enlisting that wonderful pre-election tactic, "The October Surprise." That was in fact confirmed pretty quickly, since this was information that was known:

"Danberg said Wednesday he learned about the matter this summer from police, and convened a meeting with Col. Thomas F. MacLeish, state police superintendent, and other police leaders."

It's unclear about the timeline; did the Democrats feed this info to the News Journal to help create some negative buzz, or did the News Journal publish this on their own volition? And if the News Journal did their own investigation, did they sit on it?

The link I listed atop this entry is an editorial from today's NJ. They scold Biden and his campaign for using their article to smear Wharton's record. This gives the appearance that they were in no way influenced by the Democratic committee to run this article.

So now we'll have to see if the mudslinging has already done it's damage. One would hope that this would scar the Biden campaign and portray him as a pol who will go to any length to obtain the position he seeks. I'm just afraid that there are too many people in this state who will see the Biden name and blindly give him the vote. I'm sure that's what the State Democratic Party and the Bidens have been hoping all along.

Why You Must Vote Republican

2006-11-01T17:04:00.000-05:00

My editorial, as it appeared in The Review:

This country is facing a crisis of leadership. We are coming to a fork in the road. A choice lies before us.

The choice may not seem clear, but upon closer inspection, there is only one road this country can embark upon. We must continue down the path of Republican leadership. The country cannot afford otherwise.

The Democrats' "alternative" is nothing but dressed-up rhetoric, while Republicans have shown that they can take the difficult road and succeed. What the national issues come down to is how the Republicans have acted, and how the Democrats claim they will act.

First, the economy. In 1992, voters were bombarded by the clich�d Clinton campaign slogan, "It's the economy, stupid." This unofficial theme allowed Clinton to ride President George H.W. Bush's economic woes into the White House.

Right now, the economy has recovered since the recession following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and the stock market has been posting record highs on a regular basis. One of the leading factors in this economic boom are the tax cuts proposed by President Bush and passed by the Republican Congress. According to Investors Business Daily, since the 2003 tax cuts went into effect, there has been $14.4 trillion added in real wealth and 5.8 million jobs created.

How would Democrats handle the economy? They will run it into the ground, stifling growth and hurting small business owners, the main beneficiaries of the Bush tax cuts. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, the most likely candidate for Speaker of the House under Democrat majority, has promised "a rollback of the tax cuts."

Rep. Chuck Rangel, D-N.Y., who would be the Chair of the Ways and Means Committee, was one of 205 congressmen who voted against the tax cuts and "cannot think of one tax cut" he would renew. This will cost the economy a good deal of growth, and will have a severe negative impact on the job market and your wallet.

Second, the war. While Iraq is not stabilizing as easily or as quickly has we would all hope, Republicans are determined to finish the job. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., said earlier this year that "we can't win" and has accused U.S. troops of "killing innocent civilians in cold blood."

Murtha calls for the immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq. This would be tantamount to an unconditional surrender and leaving now would only make Iraq more unstable and under the control of terrorists.

As for the wider War on Terror, Democrats have yet to put forward any sort of policy that would fight terrorism. This is the biggest international crisis facing the Western World today, and the Democrats have no plan. What sort of leadership is that?

I will be the first to admit that the Republican Congress has been far from perfect. It has not acted as it should on several issues, and the negative feelings toward it is mostly justified. However, the Democrats have not shown that they can lead.

In 1994, when the Republicans took over Congress from a Democratic majority that had lasted for 40 years (except for two years in the 1980s when the Republicans had a slight majority in the Senate), they had clear leadership and a clear plan.

The Democrats of 2006 have neither.

So what if the Democrats win? As well as having higher taxes and no direction on foreign policy, we will have a country torn apart by meaningless trials and investigations. I call this the "Lesson of 1998," or the ridiculous circus that the Clinton impeachment hearings became and how detrimental they were to the state of government in this country.

Though Clinton did clearly violate the law, the proceedings themselves became politically motivated and fruitless. In the end, Clinton remained president and actually more popular than before they began.

Why is this an issue?

The loudest Democratic voices are those calling for the impeachment of our president based on a loose confederation of assumptions and conjecture. It will not take much, but they will pressure a Democratic-controlled Congress into relentlessly investigating the Bush Administration in search of "the smoking gun" that can bring its most hated man in America down.

If the "Lesson of 1998" shows us anything, it is that they will never find this smoking gun. The trials themselves will turn people off from the political process and will divert attention away from the real problems at hand.

These are the stakes. Two years of meaningless, politically-motivated, investigation coupled with misdirected foreign policy and a shattered economy. That is far worse for the country than anything the Republicans will enact in the next two years.

How I Voted (And Why)

2006-10-26T19:32:00.000-04:00

I voted by absentee ballot yesterday since I'll be away from my district working for the Department of Elections on Election Day. My ballot is below.

Senate: Jan Ting
I was tempted to write in Christine O'Donnell since I should vote for the strong pro-life Catholic in the race, but Ting isn't a bad enough candidate for me throw my vote away on a write-in candidate. He'd make a welcome addition to the Senate, bringing a great deal of expertise to that body on a critical issue (immigration).

Congress: Christine O'Donnell
Here, I didn't like any of the nominees for any party, so I wrote in Ms. O'Donnell. As others on the DE blogosphere have mentioned, she'd be better off in this race anyway.

Attorney General: Ferris Wharton
This difference in experience makes this one a no brainer.

State Treasurer: Esthelda R. Parker Selby
Markell will win, but I gave my vote to Parker Selby as a thank you for taking for the team and filling a vacancy on the ballot. Plus, I lover her call to abolish the post as a elected office.

Auditor of Account: Tom Wagner
He's done a good job and there's no reason to turn him out of office. Plus, he's just a really nice guy.

State Senate (District 1): Greg Chambers
I've known Greg for years and he's got the dedication and commitment to do a great job and is also a great person.

State Representative (District 4): Gary Linarducci
This one was tough for me because Gerry Brady is also a good guy who would work hard for the district. Two points carried the day for me: 1) I would rather have a Republican in there on general principles and 2) I think that if the City of Wilmington sends no Republicans to Dover then it becomes easy for the GOP down there to write off the City and not help them out. Wilmington needs a Republican down there fighting for them inside the Republican caucus.

Register of Wills: James McClain
Recorder of Deeds: Jason Horitz
Party affiliation. It's not like these offices should be elected anyway.

Sheriff: Mike Walsh
I've always enjoyed the Walshes and haven't heard any reason he should be voted out of office.

Will the real Mr. Smith please stand up?

2006-10-24T16:20:00.000-04:00

It was only a matter of time before Dana Garrett over at Delaware Watch began to "go after" state House Majority Leader Wayne A. Smith (make note of his name, by the way). Which is fine, of course. As I mentioned on the relevant thread's comment section, Dana is indeed asking good questions of Wayne (like he has all candidates running for various offices). But that doesn't stop Dana, of course, from using overheated hyperbole and rhetoric, not to mention seemingly getting a lot of his information exclusively from Smith's opponent, Carl Colantuono. For instance, Garrett writes (using Colantuono as his sole source):

But after the Progressive Voices interview with Smith’s opponent Carl Colantuono, I learned that Smith will not appear at any public event in his district to talk if Colantuono is present for the same purpose. Smith won’t even debate Colantuono inspite of his reputation of being a brilliant conservative and a skilled orator.

That's news to Wayne. In an e-mail, he writes to me:

On my supposed being “afraid” of Carl Coluntouno. I’d debate him anytime, anywhere, anyplace. There have not been any scheduled debates. I’ve missed some meetings this fall because my wife is recuperating from surgery and was in bed for a while. Many nights have been spent helping my four kids with home work during some of the civic association meetings that Coluntouno attended. In addition, I’ve been available every Tuesday morning for sixteen years at the Branmar Plaza Brew Ha Ha. Public access is a big part of the way I serve. Anyone can see me at least once a week if they want me.

I wonder about two things. First, if Garrett is such a blogging "sleuth," how is it that he cannot pick up a thing called the telephone and call Smith to get his reaction to Colantuono's claim(s)? Either that, or the blogger's best friend, e-mail? Second, how is that Garrett could so erroneously attribute an answer by sixth representative district candidate William E. Smith to seventh representative district incumbent Wayne A. Smith? I know that "Smith" is a popular name, but yeesh!

A commenter to the thread then attempts to recycle claims that Wayne's opponent from the last election attempted to make use of. For instance, the commenter states:

He said on the house floor that bastard should be left on the birth certificate of children so the mother can see the error of her ways. Is that cold blooded and sick or what? Women have left politics because of Wayne's mean ways. The Talaban treat women better then Wayne Smith does.

Smith's response:

They are recycling the [Steve] Tanzer lies from last election. One response cites the “Bastard” debate. We were debating the name of a “Bastardy Exam” a forced paternity test ordered by a court for deadbeat dads. The DE General Assembly took the term “Bastard” out of the Delaware code in the 1920’s – yes the 1920’s. This lie was exposed two years ago when my opponent used it.

Colantuono himself jumps in on the comment thread too. He says:

Mr. Wayne A. Smith has not provided any answers to the News Journal Questionaire that I have been able to find. I have yet to see any response to this campaign from Mr. Wayne A. Smith at all.

Colantuono must not be a very perceptive person. After all, Wayne Smith's answers to the News Journal questionnaire are directly under Colantuono's own. (The full page of Smith's answers is here.) Colantuono continues:

Smith noted that since taking office in 1990, he has offered regular Tuesday morning meetings in the district, buying coffee for any constituents who show up to talk at Branmar Plaza during a half-hour slot.

"You can always get Wayne Smith at least once a week, face-to-face," Smith said.

Too bad many of us are at work or on the way to work to see you then - when we'd rather have you join us in the work that is already underway in our community. But then Mr. Wayne A. Smith isn't interested in that.

Smith's meetings at the Branmar Plaza Brew Ha Ha are at 7:00 am. That's usually before people leave for work but actually is a time when many people are in transit to their jobs, getting a cup of java. What better time to chat with constituents about their concerns? Colantuono is grasping at straws here, plain and simple -- much like his silly line "I go talk to people here, and I find that very few people know who [Smith] he is. The only ones who do know him are in Dover." This is such a laughable statement as to induce hiccups. As I note on the blog to which I normally contribute, I have worked on Smith's campaigns over the years. The only people I encountered when doing literature drops (or whatever else) who didn't (don't) know Wayne are relative newcomers to the 7th district.

Bottom line: As stated above, Garrett has some good questions to ask. There's no need for the ridiculous hyperbole and name-calling (Garrett calls Smith a "sissy" -- how quaint), nor his (and Colantuono's) factual inaccuracies. Just remember: "phone," "e-mail," "confirm."

Tyler Nixon and conspiracies

2006-10-13T14:15:00.000-04:00

I don't know Tyler Nixon and he sure seems a nice enough guy in his comments around the DE blogosphere, but in a conversation in one comment thread (over at Mike Matthews' Down With Absolutes) Nixon made the following claim regarding President John Kennedy:

I have listened the Oval Office conversation between the General and JFK and it is clearly not indicative of a JFK ready to go off the deep end in Southeast Asia. Interesting that MacArthur made veiled warnings to Kennedy about the forces he was taking on, by squelching their plans for war profiteering and military buildup.

Looking at today’s God awful mess it seems that everything old is new again…..a wacko Texas yahoo war President forcing us into a micro-mis-managed ground war against guerilla insurgents, but only in Southwest Asia this time.

Kennedy knew just how to handle the nutsos, (like Curtis Lemay)….until they handled him …right into eternity.

The obvious implication here (as I noted in a comment response) is that General LeMay was complicit in the assassination of President Kennedy on that fateful November day. When I pressed Tyler about this (asking if he was moving into "Oliver Stone territory"), he answered thusly:

No, Hube it’s the territory of roughly 75-80% of the American people, in survey after survey after survey for over 40 years.

Did you think I believed President Kennedy was killed by a lone nut, who was almost immediately killed by another lone nut? Sure, and the DRBA is selling me a piece of the DM bridge every time I pass through the toll booth.

I think we can call this the “lone nut” theory, not so much for its subjects but for the few people left who actually still believe it. No offense to you personally, Hube.

To this I responded thusly:

Yes, but you specifically implicated LeMay. And your evidence is …?

I’ll keep this in mind when people bring up “But the 9/11 Commission said …” as well as others in the past. Maybe the fact that upwards of half the American public believe that Iraq was somehow involved in 9/11 isn’t … inaccurate, then? After all, if public opinion polls essentially eradicate the Warren Commission report, then …

And BTW, Tyler — it’s not what I believe — or anyone else — about the Kennedy assassination. It’s what the evidence shows. Until we have anything to the contrary, it’s what we should accept. Otherwise, like I mentioned about the 9/11 Commission, we’ll be making policy based merely on polls, evidence be damned. I’m sure you’re angry at the current admin. for helping to foment an atmosphere where people believe Iraq had something to do with 9/11. Is this a safe assumption? But the 9/11 Comission says this wasn’t the case. And likewise the Warren Commission said …?

So, who do we believe, hmm?

Tyler's final reply was

My willingness to share my views, controversial or not, may well be a handicap as far as any “poltical” future. So be it.

I have far less interest in my own future than I do in the one we all have to face together and I would rather stand on my beliefs than be silent for a seat.

It's admirable, in my opinion, that Tyler doesn't care overly much about any political future if it has to compromise his beliefs on any particular subject. He's certainly free to believe what he wishes about the JFK assassination -- that Lee Harvey Oswald wasn't really the killer and/or was a dupe for other sinister forces and/or didn't really do it at all. However, the evidence investigated by and reported on by the Warren Commission report does not back up these beliefs. This goes directly to my point above which Tyler refused to address: If the Warren Commission report is to be disbelieved (since, according to Tyler, a vast majority of Americans don't believe its conclusions), then what about the 9/11 Commission report? Numerous polls, after all, show a majority of Americans believe Saddam Hussein had a hand in the 9/11 attacks. What would Tyler say to these people? Are they nuts? Overly partisan? There are, after all, some researched offerings that state Saddam Hussein had a connection to al Qaeda. Are these all spurious assertions?

I do not mean to infuse a belief onto Tyler which he may not hold. But based on reading his numerous comments around the local blogosphere, it's conspicuous that he is not a fan of the current executive branch in Washington. Since he (and others) consistently tout his "independent" nature, I am indeed curious as to what ... "validity" Tyler would give the [majority polled] belief that Iraq had some connection with September 11th. And if he believes it foolish, what makes it more foolish than believing that Curtis LeMay had a hand in murdering John F. Kennedy -- especially since the two commissions that were set up to investigate the respective relevant historical occurrences did NOT reach any such conclusions?

Startling Admissions from the Left

2006-10-13T11:20:00.000-04:00

After following some inbound traffic back home, I stumbled on a critique of the Wharton campaign. Mike M. at Down with Absolutes has this to say:

It’s clear that the Delaware GOP is in a bit of trouble. While they, indeed, have the better candidate for attorney general, the mere fact that Delaware has more Democrat-registered voters is most certainly a cause of internal pain to them in their mission to get the best man for the job elected.

Emphasis mine of course. Perhaps the Delaware GOP should highlight that even liberal bloggers think Wharton is the best man for the job.

Biden's Finance Report Underperforms

2006-10-13T09:49:00.000-04:00

Dave at First State Politics has a report on Beau's financial status, and also a link to The News-Journal with this morsel:

About 35 percent of Biden's cash has come from out-of-state donors, through six fundraisers held in New York and Washington -- compared with virtually all of Wharton's money coming from Delaware.

Primary Result Analysis

2006-09-13T18:08:00.000-04:00

State Of Delaware - Elections Results

A more detailed analysis will have to wait, but here's some points that jumped out at me and I think should be noted:

1) Pro-lifers come out looking great from yesterday. Christine O'Donnell, with virtually no campaign spending or publicity, captured more than one out of 6 primary votes in her race for Senate, while taking a very strong pro-life position. Mike Protack, also pro-life, broke 40%. In total, almost 3 out of every 5 votes in the Republican primary were cast for the pro-life, non-Party endorsed candidates, even though one barely campaigned.

2) Wilmington Republicans, though frequently maligned in the State GOP, put on what was likely the best showing of a GOP party committee yesterday. Their endorsed candidate for the 1st Senate District, Greg Chambers, beat his opponent, Tyler Nixon, by more than a 2-1 margin. In addition, they delivered an outright majority of the City's votes for Jan Ting, singlehandedly providing over half of his state-wide margin. Their performance is likely envied by other regional committees who weren't as successful.

Check out FirstStatePolitics for some more good analysis of the election.

U.S., Delaware Flags To Be Lowered in Memory of 9/11 Victims

2006-09-08T18:31:00.000-04:00

Dover – Gov. Ruth Ann Minner announced today that Delaware flags should be lowered to half-staff on Monday, Sept. 11, in memory of those who lost their lives as a result of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. This is in accordance with a proclamation from President Bush to lower the U.S. flags on Monday, which he has proclaimed Patriot Day.

As with the U.S. flags, the Delaware flags will return to full staff on Tuesday, Sept. 12.

Press Release

Ferris Wharton statement on latest Beau Biden radio ads

2006-09-06T15:39:00.000-04:00

Actions Speak Louder Than Words:

On Prosecuting Violent Criminals in Delaware

Biden says he wants to prosecute criminals in Delaware,

but Wharton has actually done it.

Wilmington, DE – Attorney General candidate Ferris W. Wharton today issued the statement below regarding radio advertisements by Beau Biden’s campaign.

“Beau Biden says he wants to work with police to identify and remove violent criminals from Delaware’s streets, but has never actually done so. For over 25 years I’ve worked side by side with local police in our communities to identify violent criminals and get them off our streets. I’ve been in our communities, at crime scenes and in the courthouse putting violent criminals in jail where they belong. Beau Biden hasn’t taken a single violent criminal off Delaware’s streets. Beau Biden’s ambition is no substitute for my accomplishments” said Ferris Wharton.

Total number of murderers taken off Delaware’s streets by Beau Biden: ZERO.

Total Number of rapists taken off Delaware’s streets by Beau Biden: ZERO.

Total number of other violent criminals taken off Delaware’s streets by Beau Biden: ZERO.

The following is list of just a few of the violent criminals who no longer pose a threat to our families because of Ferris Wharton’s work with our local police officers:

Tom Capano - murder
Keith Thompson – rape and kidnapping
David Hunter - rape
Jeffrey Davis - rape
Thomas Younger - multiple rapes
Clifford James - robbery and assault
Kevin Howard - multiple rapes
Samuel Bright – multiple rapes and kidnapping
Kimberly Kremer - assault
David Dawson - murder
Victor Sanchez - rape
Charles Getz - rape
Timmy Goodwin - rape
Christie Shipley - murder
Roland Daniels - manslaughter
Adan Alcocer - murder
Richard Thompson - murder
Randolph Graham - murder
Santise Robinson - murder
Steven Crawford - murder
Jermaine Wright - murder
Joyce Lynch – double murder and kidnapping
Lonnie Williams – double murder
Francis Ferrell – rape and kidnapping
Luis Reyes - multiple murders
Luis Cabrera - multiple murders
Michael Manley - murder
David Stevenson - murder
Carol Albanese - murder by abuse or neglect
Danny Hindt – manslaughter
Dirwin Harmon – rape, kidnapping, attempted murder
Harry Rhoades - vehicular homicide
Paul Leary - arson
Travis Leary - arson
Tyrone Faines - armed bank robbery

Ferris Wharton is one of Delaware’s most distinguished and experienced crime-fighters. At 53, Wharton has been a member of the Delaware Bar for 27 years. A prosecutor for over 25 years, Wharton has successfully put hundreds of murderers, rapists, and other dangerous criminals like Tom Capano behind bars. He has prosecuted at the state and federal level. Wharton is widely praised by Delaware leaders for his expertise, diligence, and competence in fighting for victims.

delawareonline ¦ The News Journal ¦ Bloggers hope to generate Del. buzz

2006-09-04T07:25:00.000-04:00

delawareonline ¦ The News Journal ¦ Bloggers hope to generate Del. buzz

Article on the potential impact of blogs on Delaware elections from the News Journal. A number of local bloggers were interviewed for it.

Strangely, I think I'm one of the "political pros" referred to in the subhead. At one time, that description might have fit, but I wouldn't say it still does.

Gazizza: Faithless Candidates?

2006-09-03T21:23:00.000-04:00

I just wrote this post about candidates running in major party primaries while also accepting the nomination of a third party.

In a conclusion that may surprise you (it surprised me), I come out in favor of it and think it should be encouraged. Read why.

Plugs (aka. Joe Biden)

2006-09-03T00:30:00.000-04:00

Last week, on his nationally syndicated talk radio show, Mark Levin discussed recent comments by the Senator from Delaware, Joe Biden.

(Click on speaker to listen)

I know why Delawareans keep electing Joe Biden again and again. Nobody in Delaware will speak out like Mark Levin challenging Biden when he makes these outrageous statements!

Cross posted on MarkLevinFan.com

Dopey local political line of the week

2006-09-01T08:44:00.000-04:00

I guess when you got no shot, you have nothing to lose by uttering stupid lines like this:

"I go talk to people here, and I find that very few people know who he is. The only ones who do know him are in Dover."

This is from 7th representative district Democrat challenger Carl Colantuono, about House Majority Leader Wayne Smith.

How would I know that this utterance is nonsense? 'Cause as noted here, I've assisted in Smith's campaigns over the years, and the only people I've encountered in the 7th district (during my numerous journeys of "lit drops") who didn't know who Wayne is were people who had just moved in from other states. Wayne must wear out ten pairs of shoes during the months preceding an election, as he visits all the homes in his district. And if you doubt the power of Wayne's campaign's organizational prowess, one need look no further than his five-way primary win in 1990, and most recently his victory against longtime House incumbent Dave Brady after redistricting.

Colantuono's comment is just desperate drivel.

(Cross-posted at Colossus of Rhodey.)

Elections chief orders House candidate to return contributions

2006-08-25T13:05:00.001-04:00

The Delaware Commissioner of Elections has ordered Brian Moore, a Republican candidate for the 20th state House district seat, to return two campaign contributions that were above the limit set by state election law.

I thought I'd add a comment on this because I was indirectly involved in a similar situation.

When I was campaign manager for Brad Zuber, the Republican candidate for Mayor of Wilmington in 1996, we noticed that Jim Sills had reported a $3,000 donation from one person. (It's been 10 years, so the exact details may be off. I think the violation had been on a 1992 finance report.) We reported it to the Comissioner of Elections. Sills responded that it wasn't a single donation, but five six hundred dollar donations listed together since they were delivered by the same person, and therefore merely a reporting error. The decision was made by the Commissioner of Elections that the Sills campaign should file an amended report correcting the error.

In the heat of the campaign, I was disappointed with that decision. But in the current case, they've essentially made the same decision. The Moore campaign will surely return the money and I'm sure separate $600 checks will be forthcoming from the respective wives in the situation. We'll essentially return to where we were with slightly different reports filed.

So, this decision is in keeping with past practice and custom. I'd like to congratulate the Commissioner on deciding the issue fairly. I wonder, though, if they could set their reporting software to catch issues like that in the first place and prevent donations above the legal limit from ending up on the report to force campaigns to fix mistakes like this before filing.

Elections chief orders House candidate to return contributions

2006-08-25T13:05:00.000-04:00

The Delaware Commissioner of Elections has ordered Brian Moore, a Republican candidate for the 20th state House district seat, to return two campaign contributions that were above the limit set by state election law.

Wilmington Republican Committee Unanimously Endorses Chambers for 1st Senate

2006-08-22T21:10:00.000-04:00

The Wilmington Republican Committee tonight unanimously endorsed Gregory Chambers in the September 12th Republican Primary. City Chairman Tom Ross stated that Chambers had the experience and community involvement to serve as the next Senator from the 1st District.

This follows the unanimous endorsement of the Brandywine Region Executive Committee on Monday. Tonight's vote was open all members of the Wilmington Republican Committee. I also learned tonight that the vetting committee ~~who interviewed both candidates~~ also unanimously recomended Republicans support Chambers in the September 12th primary and in November.

UPDATE: (8/23 1:37 PM): Over at First State Politics, Dave says Tyler Nixon tells him he was never interviewed by any committee. Thinking back to what was said last night, I'm not sure the word interviewed was used and I may have interpolated it into my comments above. I've struck them out since I'm not sure of what the process was. I apologize for the mistake.

1st Senate Democratic Primary

2006-08-21T20:38:00.000-04:00

2006 Primary Election State Senate Candidates

Just got a flier from Les Hendrix, who's a candidate in the 1st State Senate district Democratic Primary. I've now gotten some form of voter contact from all of the Democratic candidates. (I'm registered Republican, remember.) His campaign volunteers were doing it right, delivering fliers only to certain homes. (I'm not sure if they were targeting all Democrats or only likely Democratic voters, but they were planning on skipping me until I was outside talking to my neighbors when they were dropping a flier to them.)

(Note: I've only heard from Greg Chambers on the GOP side.)

So, the Democrats are all going hard for this race. I have no idea how to handicap it. It will be fun to listen to returns come in for this race.

Brandywine Republican Region Endorses Gregory Chambers

2006-08-21T11:35:00.000-04:00

A press release from Republican State Committee:

WILMINGTON – The Brandywine Region Republican Executive Committee has unanimously endorsed Gregory T. Chambers as the Republican Candidate for the First Senatorial District.

The Brandywine Republican Region includes a part of the 1st Senate District.

The Executive Committee of the Brandywine Republican Region recently met and reviewed the qualifications of both candidates filed to run on the Republican ticket for the 1st Senate District.

"After careful review, it became obvious that the candidate with strong community support, the candidate with the background needed, and the candidate who would have the best chance to win in the November general election is Greg Chambers," said William Sahm, Sr., Chairman of the Brandywine Republican Region. "We look forward to putting all of our resources behind Greg Chambers’ campaign. I am confident he will make a truly great Senator for the men and women of the 1st Senate District."

Chambers has been involved with Public Service for 34 years. He is active in many community organizations and his church.

Chambers said he is grateful for the support from the Brandywine Republican Region and that he is excited about the continued outpouring of community support for his campaign.

###

I've known Greg for many years and he will make a great State Senator.

delawareonline ¦ The News Journal ¦ Carper announces his announcement

2006-08-14T15:43:00.000-04:00

Tom Carper plans to formalize his re-election run Sept. 9.

The Democrat senator today announced he’ll follow the state tradition of a three-county announcement circuit that day.

His announcement in New Castle County is set for 10 a.m. in Wilmington, with the Kent County stop in Dover at 12:30 p.m. Ending the sweep in Sussex County is a 3:30 p.m. announcement in Rehoboth Beach. Details and exact sites are to be announced later.

Full article

Ting Featured in Weekly Standard

2006-08-08T16:30:00.000-04:00

First State Politics mentioned the cover story of the latest Weekly Standard on immigration issues in Sussex County. Jan Ting, the GOP candidate for US Senate sent out the following press release:

WILMINGTON, DE--- Jan Ting, Delaware's Republican candidate for United States Senate, is featured in the August 14 issue of the Weekly Standard. Weekly Standard Senior Editor Chris Caldwell traveled to Georgetown, DE in July to investigate the effect that illegal immigration has had on the area. The resulting cover story is entitled "Hola Delaware! How Guatemalan Immigrants changed an American small town."

Excerpts from the article include:

Ting has the Republican endorsement to run for the Senate against incumbent Democrat Tom Carper in November. He was an assistant commissioner of the INS under "Bush 41," as he calls him, and is campaigning on immigration as his "number-one issue." That his own parents were immigrants--his father, a refugee from Japanese-occupied China, fought for the United States in World War II--does nothing to reduce his sympathy for Delawareans who are riled up about newcomers' paperwork. "People should be riled up," he said during a campaign swing through Sussex County.

Ting feels that Americans were sold a bill of goods with the 1986 "Simpson-Mazzoli" immigration reform, which extended amnesty to workers in exchange for heightened enforcement of immigration laws. He doesn't want it to happen again. It was predicted that a million immigrants would gain amnesty; 3 million did.

###

While immigration is an issue that provides Ting a strong contrast to his opponent, there's bad news on that front as well. A recent survey by the Gallup Group shows that fewer voters consider immigration to be a primary concern:


                                     July        May        April

Situation in Iraq/war                48           42           29

Fuel/oil prices/lack of
energy sources/energy crisis         17           29           13

Economy in general                   15           14           14

War/conflict in Mideast              14            —            —

Immigration/illegal aliens           13           23           20

(Source)

Also interesting is the decline in concern about oil/gas prices. I read something the other day that even with the huge gas price increases over the past year, we''re still spending a below historical average percentage of our income on gasloine. Yes, gas prices are up. Yes, they're close to, if not over, the typical inflation-adjusted price. But our income has increased even more over that time apparently. I found that a good explanation of why (outisde the extreme Left) most people are just grumbling about the prices.

New DCBA Member

2006-07-31T21:24:00.000-04:00

We're pleased to welcome RickJ of DelaVision to the Delaware Conservative Blogger Alliance! Be sure to check out his site.

In honor of DNC Chairman Howard Dean's visit....

2006-07-27T18:41:00.000-04:00

Delaware 2006 is proud to present the highlights of the 2005 Delaware Howard Dean Scream Contest!

Linarducci Has Filed

2006-07-27T16:49:00.000-04:00

Just checked here, and Gary Linarducci has filed as a Republican candidate in the 4th Representative District.

UPDATE: Here's the press release:

Community Leader Gary Linarducci files for 4th District House Seat
Candidate has full support of Rep. Joe DiPinto

WILMINGTON – Gary C. Linarducci announced today that he has filed to run as the Republican candidate for the 4th Representative District Seat – the seat currently held by Rep. Joseph G. DiPinto (R-Wilmington West)

Rep. DiPinto announced on the floor of the House of Representatives that he would not seek re-election this November.

Linarducci, 55, is an attorney in private practice, focusing on Social Security issues. He is President of the Highlands Community Association, chairs the Rockford Falls Working Group, and serves on the boards of the Red Clay School District, the Graham Senior Center, and the Oak Grove Senior Center.

“I am honored to have this opportunity to continue to serve our community,” Mr. Linarducci said. “I have worked closely with Rep. DiPinto to help the people of the 4th Representative District and now look forward to continuing Rep. DiPinto’s tradition of good government and public service.”

Rep. DiPinto called Linarducci “the best candidate for the open seat.”

“I have seen first-hand how Gary works – he is a true leader, a consensus builder, and someone who gets things done,” Rep. DiPinto said. “Whether we’re addressing environmental issues, education concerns, or ways to improve our communities, Gary has been right there with ideas to implement and the energy to see them through.”

Linarducci and his wife, Kathy, have two children and have lived in the Highlands neighborhood in Wilmington for more than 30 years.

Linarducci is unanimously endorsed and supported by the 4th Representative District Republican Committee. So far, five Democrats have filed to run for the seat Rep. DiPinto has held since 1986.

###

4th Rep District GOP Picks Linarducci

2006-07-26T20:35:00.000-04:00

The Fourth Representative District Republican Committee unanimously endorsed Wilmington attorney Gary Linarducci as their candidate for State Representative from the Fourth District earlier tonight.

Linarducci is a lawyer in private practice, President of the Highlands Civic Association and a Board member of Red Clay Consolidated School district. He's also been active in environmental issues over the years. His previous political experience includes running for the 1st Senate District in 1996 and City Council at Large in 2004. He was also the Republican candidate for Mayor in 2000 before dropping out of the race to allow James Baker to focus on his transition into office, rather than a political campaign.

I've known Gary for about 10 years now and I know him to be a good man who's sincerely devoted to doing the nest he can for his community. I was speaking to an acquaintance earlier today and said that of the candidates mentioned in this morning's Ron Williams article, Gary would be the best State Representative. He'll have a tough campaign ahead of him, given the district he's running in, but if the voters elect him, they'll be glad they did.

Here's the most up-to-date list of filed candidates:
David I. Walsh (D)
Gerald L. Brady (D)
Campbell Hay (D)
Loretta Walsh (D)
Joseph Zilcosky (D)
Joseph G. DiPinto (R) (will withdraw)
(Source)
Linarducci should be filing tomorrow.

delawareonline I The News Journal | Hartley-Nagle wins shot at Dem. primary

2006-07-24T16:27:00.000-04:00

delawareonline � The News Journal � Hartley-Nagle wins shot at Dem. primary

If Karen Hartley-Nagle can gather enough petition signatures, there will be a Democratic congressional primary in September.

Election Commissioner Frank Calio today ruled that Hartley-Nagle passed the poverty test needed to waive the $3,300 filing fee to get on the ballot. She still must provide proof of the ownership of the house she is living in.

Site Issues

2006-07-22T14:03:00.000-04:00

For reasons beyond our control, something goofy's happening down below. One person, who claims we're obsessed with him, although he writes about us more than the 11 of us write about him combined, suggested we're deleting old posts. I assure you that is not the case.
Something with blogger is acting up. (Patting myself on the back: Once again, my decision to move my personal blog off Blogger is vindicated.)

UPDATE: Whoo-hoo! Seems to be gone! Same old story with computers; sometimes forcing it to work fixes problems. (Years of support have taught one important sentence: "Try it again and let me know if the problem reoccurs.")

Actions Speak Louder than Words

2006-07-20T18:54:00.000-04:00

Ferris Wharton issued the following press release today. (link only valid for so long. Otherwise, check the archives.)

Actions Speak Louder Than Words: On Protecting our Children from Child Predators
Biden says he wants to fight child predators, but Wharton has actually done it.

Attorney General candidate Ferris W. Wharton today issued the following statement regarding radio advertisements by Beau Biden’s campaign. Biden’s ads talk about how Beau Biden wants to fight child predators.

“Beau Biden talks about fighting child predators, but I’ve actually done it, and actions speak louder than words. I’ve spent over two decades fighting for our children by prosecuting the criminals who prey on them.”

“Over my career I’ve prosecuted numerous child predators. I twice headed the Rape Response Unit, now called the Sex Crimes Unit. That unit prosecutes predators who commit sex crimes against children.”

“I have sat with the 8-year old who was kidnapped, raped and left for dead, and prepared her to meet her rapist, Keith Thompson, in court. I have fought for children like 4-year old Brian Martin of Elsmere who was tragically murdered by one of Delaware’s most notorious child predators, his father’s girlfriend Carol Albanese. That kind of experience is necessary in an Attorney General; I have that experience and Beau Biden doesn’t. Beau Biden may have good intentions, but good intentions are no substitute for experience and actual accomplishments.”

Ferris Wharton is one of Delaware’s most distinguished and experienced crime-fighters. At 53, Wharton has been a member of the Delaware Bar for 27 years. A prosecutor for over 25 years, Wharton has successfully put hundreds of murderers, rapists, and other dangerous criminals like Tom Capano behind bars. He has prosecuted at the state and federal level. Wharton is widely praised by Delaware leaders for his expertise, diligence, and competence in fighting for victims.

Biden says he wants to fight child predators, but Wharton has actually done it.
Anyone else get the sense that Wharton should just have a boilerplate template for press releases "Biden says he wants to fight _fill_in_the_blank_, but Wharton has actually done it." A Microsoft Word macro should be able to take care of it easily.

White House talking about Castle

2006-07-19T18:39:00.000-04:00

Presidential Spokesman Tony Snow had the following statements about Congressman Castle today:

Number two, there is a bit of demagoguery in the House of Representatives. Representative Castle was circulating talking points about a measure that the House ended up killing that would have provided for research into promising areas that would give us access to what he wants, which are pluripotent cells. But rather than using embryos, it could use adult cells and other cells, and using techniques that are now being pioneered here in the United States provide exactly what he wants. And instead what he did is, is he circulated a series of misleading and fallacious talking points.
...
Let me just give you a couple of examples. One of the things that Representative Castle was saying is that "it mandates the National Institutes of Health to support highly speculative research, some of which has been deemed unethical by the President's own bioethics council." Wrong, false, 100 percent wrong.

As a matter of fact, what the bioethics council said is that this precise kind of research, because it does not place in jeopardy the life of a human being — which is what many people think that the embryo is, and that is what the President believes — you do not engage in morally controversial research when you find ways to back-engineer adult or blood cord cells.

As I stated in my last post, a lot of Republicans don't seem to like Congressman Castle. Those are pretty harsh words for the White House to use about a fellow "Republican", so the split likely goes much deeper than this issue.

Read the whole thing.

Weldon Thanks Rep. Castle for Making Strong Case for Presidential Veto of HR 810

2006-07-18T21:26:00.000-04:00

Congressman Dave Weldon of Florida issued the following press release today:

WASHINGTON, DC – In an odd turn of events, the key sponsor of legislation to fund new embryo stem cell research with taxpayer dollars today laid out many reasons why
his bill is flawed and should be vetoed by President Bush, said U.S. Rep. Dave Weldon, M.D. (R-FL).

The office of Rep. Mike Castle (R-DE) sent an email urging other Members of Congress to vote against H.R. 2754, legislation that would encourage research into alternative ways to derive embryo-like stem cells without killing an embryo, because it would be “time wasted on exploring speculative methods,” and because the “NIH can and does already conduct this research,” and because it “mandates the NIH to support highly speculative research,” — all reasons cited against his own bill, H.R. 810, said Weldon.

“This is about as convoluted an argument as I’ve seen on Capitol Hill. It’s not everyday that an author of a bill articulates so clearly why we should oppose his own legislation. Now the question is: will the media lay out this circular reasoning.”

Earlier in the day, Weldon joined several colleagues at a press conference where they urged President Bush to veto HR 810 should it pass the Senate today as expected. Interestingly enough, the Congressmen said that the House should sustain a veto because HR 810 would use taxpayer dollars to fund speculative research that involves the destruction of human embryos.

You ever get the feeling other GOP Congressmen really don't like our Congressman?

Colossus of Rhodey Down

2006-07-18T15:27:00.000-04:00

As are all mu.nu blogs. No idea of the problem or an ETA on the fix.

Feel free to check out all the other Delaware Conservative Alliance Blogs in the meantime.

UPDATE: The Colossus is back.

File When Ready

2006-07-14T12:24:00.000-04:00

First State Politics tells us that Overlaywered.com has picked up Celia Conen's article on Richard Korn.

Overlawyered.com describes itself as "explor[ing]an American legal system that too often turns litigation into a weapon against guilty and innocent alike, erodes individual responsibility, rewards sharp practice, enriches its participants at the public's expense, and resists even modest efforts at reform and accountability." Given that Korn is quoted as saying "I would sue anybody again if I had to, if something were not right or accurate...I will go to the ends of what it takes if I feel I've been slandered, libeled or maligned in any way.", this seems to fit that description to a T. (That's a phrase I've never understood.)

This was originally discussed and debated on Delaware 2006 here.

Pro-Wharton quote of the day

2006-07-12T17:07:00.000-04:00

"If Beau Biden was hired by our office, with his experience, he'd be trying misdemeanor cases in Traffic Court." -- Deputy Attorney General R. David Favata.

Save Ferris!

2006-07-11T20:21:00.000-04:00

I know. It's an obvious joke, but it makes me laugh.

I went to Ferris Wharton's campaign announcement in Wilmington tonight. Good sized crowd, not sure how many total since I didn't bother to count, but seems to be more than he got in Sussex County from the looks of the photo, which was also a sizable crowd.

He was introduced by a gentleman whose adoptive father was shot by a gunman soon after the adoption took effect. Clearly not a polished speaker, the gentleman gave a touching speech about how Wharton helped his family and took care to make sure that the shooter stayed behind bars as long as the law allowed.

Wharton himself gave a good speech, which was clearly extemporaneous as he fumbled for a word when discussing the sexual solicitation of minors over the Internet.

As an example of politics making strange bedfellows, I bumped into Mike of Down with Absolutes and Dana Garrett who were there to support Wharton.

Seriously, compare the two candidates and it's pretty clear which one deserves your support in November. If this election were solely about qualifications, it would already be over.

Ferris Wharton to Announce Tomorrow

2006-07-10T18:26:00.000-04:00

July 11 Announcement Tour Schedule

Sussex County Announcement
Location: The Old Courthouse, 10 South Bedford Street,
near the Circle, Georgetown
Time: 9:00 AM

Kent County Announcement
Location: The Century Club, 40 The Green, Dover
Time: 12:00 Noon

New Castle County
Location: Delaware Association of Police, 2201 Lancaster Ave., Wilmington
Time: 6:00 PM

Update on the 4th Rep District Race

2006-07-10T09:27:00.000-04:00

Word has it that Priscilla Rakestraw has decided not to run for this seat.

4th Representative District Update

2006-07-08T15:34:00.000-04:00

No candidates have filed yet on the GOP side, but four (!) have on the Democrat side.

Loretta Walsh - Longtime City Councilwoman-at-large, very connected within City Democratic circles. Strong organization. Works in the County Sheriff's office.

Gerry Brady - City Councilman for the 8th District, almost wholly contained with the 4th Representative District. In his third term. Works as Executive Director of the state AFL-CIO.

Campbell Hay - Multiple-time loser in 4th Representative District to Joe DiPinto. Active with the state Democratic party. Works with "major banks in Delaware." Last I heard, it was JP Morgan, now Chase.

David Walsh - Still waiting final confirmation, but this is apparently Loretta's ex-husband. If I've got the right guy, he's a partner with a law firm downtown and is well-connected behind the scenes in Democratic circles.

Bud Freel has repeatedly denied interest. I personally believe him.

This will be a very interesting race to watch, just on the Democratic side. (Add in a potential primary on the GOP side, and WOW!) Obviously, we have the "ex" factor at play, plus some bad blood between Loretta and Gerry Brady, and the rivalry between the state and city Democratic parties. This will be fun!

My prediction: Loretta's organization and name ID carry her through the primary. (It pains me a little to say that since Gerry Brady's a good guy and I consider him a friend. He would do a good job in Dover as well.) Then she takes the general election as well, unless the GOP comes up with a home run of a candidate.

UPDATE (7/8 10:10 PM): An anonymous commenter says that this David Walsh is actually Loretta's former stepson, not her ex-husband.

BREITBART.COM - POLITICAL NOTEBOOK: Biden Defends Remarks

2006-07-08T13:35:00.000-04:00

Read the article

Facing criticism, potential 2008 presidential candidate Joe Biden on Friday defended his recent remark that "you cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent."

The Delaware senator said his words were taken out of context.

They weren't taken out of context; we saw the video, it was quite lengthy.

It would have been a better defense to just day "it was stupid and I didn't mean it the way it sounded. Sorry."

While many things are taken out of context and therefore sound worse than they were meant, I don't think this is one of them. This is something that sounds worse than it was meant because of a brainfart on the part of Senator Biden. It happens. It just would have been a better response to say "I was stupid."

UPDATE (7/8 3 PM): I wasn't happy with what I wrote above, so I'm going to try rephrasing it a bit.

What was Biden said originally was dumb, but I'm sure he meant it with the best intentions. I believe his explanation that he was trying to point out the growing Indian middle class in Delaware. Fine. But he shouldn't have said it "was taken out of context," which puts the blame on someone else, either the listener or the people recording it. Because the video is of the whole conversation, so it's not out of context. Just saying, "I said something that could taken as insulting when I didn't mean that way. I'm sorry. My mouth was moving faster than my brain." would have been better because it would not blame others and would also speak the truth. He screwed up. That's all this originally was. But blaming others, I think, just made the situation worse.

Good News for Wharton

2006-07-08T08:21:00.000-04:00

Despite Beau Biden's lead in name recognition, a recent poll puts Ferris Wharton only one point behind in the race for Attorney General.

Even better, after describing the candidates Wharton takes a three point lead. (I wish I could see the descriptions of the candidates, though.)

This gives more strength to the point of view that the more Beau becomes exposed, the more his lack of experience will come back to haunt him. "Gorgeous" though he may be, that likely won't be enough to carry him to victory. (By the way, I told the "gorgeous" story linked above to my mother and she agreed he was gorgeous. That creeped me out. I didn't need to hear that.)

Support Republican Candidates

2006-07-07T12:59:00.000-04:00

First State Politics announces the arrival of ABCPAC, the right's online donation center. It's a site where you can "shop" for federal candidates to support financially.

Representative DiPinto's New Job

2006-07-05T13:31:00.000-04:00

Mayor Baker Appoints State Representative Joseph G. DiPinto as Director of the Wilmington Office of Economic Development
Retiring State Lawmaker and Former City Council Member Will Begin His New City Duties In August

Wilmington Mayor James M. Baker today announced the appointment of State Representative Joseph G. DiPinto as Director of the City’s Office of Economic Development. Mayor Baker said DiPinto, who has announced he will retire in November after serving Wilmington’s 4th Representative District for the past 19 years in the Delaware General Assembly, will begin his new duties with the City in August. Representative DiPinto is also a former Member of Wilmington City Council and a former scientist with the DuPont Company.

The City’s Office of Economic Development sits within the Mayor’s Office in City government and is responsible for guiding the Administration’s business and job development efforts and advising the Mayor on the expansion of the City’s business base.

“One of Wilmington’s most distinguished citizens and one of Delaware’s most honorable public servants will now have a primary role in our ongoing efforts to develop a new Wilmington from the old,” said Mayor Baker today. “I could not be more thrilled and appreciative that Joe has agreed to lead Wilmington’s economic development efforts and utilize his many years of skill, wisdom, and accomplishments directly to making Wilmington a more vibrant and productive City,” the Mayor continued. “This is a wonderful day for Wilmington and for everyone who is hopeful about the City’s future prosperity.”

“Jim Baker and I have been good friends for many years and were bi-partisan co-sponsors on City Council of some important legislation, such as waterfront zoning and development, establishing the Design Review Commission for neighborhood development, and establishing the Wilmington Arts Commission,” Representative DiPinto said today. “Mayor Baker knows that when I left City government in the late 1980’s for State service, it was because I thought I could best assist the City through a role in the General Assembly, and that assessment turned out to be correct,” DiPinto continued. “Now, with the recent resurgence in residential and business growth in the City, coupled with the annual financial support the City is receiving from the General Assembly and Governor, the City can begin to control its own destiny. I am honored and excited to return to City service and to work with the Mayor and Council to help guide the City’s future.”

-MORE-
News Release
DiPinto Named Wilmington Economic Development Director
Wednesday, July 5, 2006
Page 2

Mayor Baker’s Chief of Staff William S. Montgomery worked with Representative DiPinto for many years in Montgomery’s former role as head of Legislative Council in Dover and initiated the recent discussions with the State Representative about returning to City service.

“Joe brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to one of the most important positions in City government,” said Montgomery. “He also brings his considerable skill at negotiation and consensus building which will serve the City well. We are extremely fortunate to have Joe join this Administration.”

Representative DiPinto will earn $92,841annually as Wilmington’s new Economic Development Director.
He replaces Richard V. Pryor who had served as Economic Development Director for Mayor Baker’s Administration until Pryor’s retirement in March of this year.

###

4th Representative District Election Analysis

2006-07-03T19:28:00.000-04:00

With the recent announcement that State Representative Joe DiPinto will not be seeking re-election, a seat that looked as if it was safe for the Republicans is suddenly in play.

No candidates have announced to seek to replace DiPinto at this time, so this will be based on past performance and registration numbers until we can add candidate information, since obviously strong candidates for either party could tip it in either direction.

Registration Breakdown (as of 7/1/2006)
   Democrats: 6,718
   Republicans: 4,946
   Independents: 3,572
   Total: 15,236 (Source)

Past Election Results
   2004: 46.29% GOP(Source)
   2002: 47.53% GOP (Source)

Democraphic Information (as of June 2002)
   White: 82.94%
   Black: 12.92%
   Hispanic: 3.66%

This district is much more Democratic than I had anticipated. (Most likely, after years of City politics and thinking of the 4th Representative district as the Republican district, I assumed it was a lot more favorable to the GOP than it is.)

In fact, those past results make it look much more strong a district for Republicans than it likely is. Those numbers are largely driven by Mike Castle's overwhelming popularity. (76% of the vote in 2002, 72% in 2004) The only other GOP candidates to win the district in the past two elections are DiPinto with 58% of the vote last time around and Wagner in 2002. (DiPinto was unopposed in 2002.)

Helping the GOP's chances in this district is the relative moderation of most voters. There aren't many voters who are too extreme in one direction or the other, which is part of why DiPinto lasted so long. (I've lived in the district since I was four and can only think a few very conservative people and the same for the other side of the aisle.) There's a lot of cooperation between Democrats and Republicans on campaigns and events, so neither party can nominate someone too extreme as the leaders of the district are more than willing to cross party lines.

Some potential candidates who have expressed interest in the past (not an exhaustive list):
GOP
Jim Ursomarso (2004 Lt. Governor candidate, affiliated with Union Park Auto Group)
Gary Linarducci (1st Senate candidate in 1996, City Council at Large in 2004, Highlands Community Association President, Lawyer specializing in Social Security)

Democrats
Campbell Hay (ran the last few times the Democrats fielded a candidate, a consultant originally from Georgia)
Loretta Walsh (Long-time City Council at Large)

I've been out of the loop recently so I'm sure there are other people looking at it who I'm not thinking of. Campbell Hay will likely not be the candidate on the Democratic side. He may run but would likely lose in the Democratic primary. (He's admitted to not trying too hard in the campaigns against DiPinto before, running mostly to get his name out for when DiPinto finally did retire. But there are a number of big name Democrats who may be interested who could crush him in a primary.)

To keep this seat, the Republicans need a strong candidate who can devote a lot of time to reach out to voters who are normally inclined to vote Democrat. There are a number of strong community associations and organizations in the district so retail politics can work. The Republicans just need to find a candidate who can pull it off.

UPDATED 10:50 AM 7/4/2006 to add Demographic Information and fix a few typos. Hopefully, I've gotten them all now.

File When Ready

2006-06-27T20:52:00.000-04:00

(This article was written by Celia Cohen for her web site, Delaware Grapevine. You can see the original here. The piece mirrors many of the arguments presented by Delathought in this post for Delaware 2006.)

Richard J. Korn brought the script with him. He tried to sue his way into public office in Nassau County on Long Island, N.Y., but it did not work. Now he is trying again in Delaware.

Korn, a serial candidate who has the campaign smile and the handshake down pat, was on the perimeter of New York politics when he went for a burst of publicity and a David-against-Goliath image by taking the county to court for bungling its bookkeeping of a budget surplus.

He was right, and the county retooled its budget. Korn vaulted into the race for county executive, while insisting to a newspaper he had not planned to run but was “surprised and overwhelmed” by a surge of support after the lawsuit.

If it sounds familiar, it should. Transplanted from New York, Korn trotted out the budget-surplus attack on New Castle County and got a court ruling that made the County Council put a patch on the way it accounts for reserves. He was back running for county executive and back protesting he “did not move to Delaware ever thinking, dreaming or planning that he would run.”

Both campaigns for county executive were in vain, but Korn was not about to give up politics, not with those lawsuits still there as fuel for his ambitions. Now he wants to be elected to the Delaware General Assembly.

Lawsuits have been a big part of Korn's life for the better part of two decades. He is eager for the voters to know about the ones against the county governments, but as for others, well, they are what they are.

There were the legal wranglings in New York over a business relationship that soured, not to mention a defamation case from an embarrassing episode about his love life that made it onto "A Current Affair" and also the way he outsmarted himself by filing for personal bankruptcy protection.

Those are some highlights. Korn says he has not even counted up all the times he has gone to court.

He uses lawsuits for offense and for defense. When he was interviewed last Thursday for this story, the friendliness in his eyes faded away to a freezing stare, and he reached for his weapon of choice. "I want to be honest with you. I don't want us to wind up in court," he said.

Korn previously had similar words for Brian N. Moore, his opponent for the state legislature. Moore said Korn approached him at a civic association meeting and warned, "I hear rumors, I hear talk that someone's looking into my background, and I hear you're behind it, and if something comes out, I sue people. I take people to court, and you wouldn't be excluded from it."

Korn, 55, has been in Delaware since 1999, explaining he moved to Hockessin not for political advantage but to tend to his aging parents, also New Yorkers who arrived in the area earlier to be near grandchildren living outside of Philadelphia.

In his second try for public office here, he is a Democratic legislative candidate for a seat held for 30 years by state Rep. Roger P. Roy, a Limestone Hills Republican who is retiring and giving his political blessing to Brian Moore, his neighbor and a fellow Republican. Korn says he is running full time, while his wife Magda, a Venezuelan native and artist he married in 2002, works at a bank.

The last time, Korn was a me-too candidate in the Democratic primary for county executive, a footnote in a much-publicized venomous slugfest that had Christopher A. Coons winning the party nomination over Sherry L. Freebery and going on to win the 2004 election.

Korn is no stranger to running for a legislative seat, either. His political past in New York includes an unsuccessful try for the state Senate in 1976, according to Newsday, a New York newspaper.

Korn is not a lawyer. He has a legal background -- he was the son of a lawyer, he went to Hofstra law school, and he clerked for a federal judge -- but he says it was a means to his "first love" of government and politics. In fact, lawsuits have been his entree.

Only in Nassau County, it spun out of control. Lawsuits begat lawsuits begat lawsuits that begat a black hole of legal misery. "There were so many documents. You have no idea. Thousands and thousands and thousands of them," Korn said.

A number of the proceedings converged in Korn's bankruptcy case, for which the records were made available to Delaware Grapevine from storage in Missouri, the place where outdated New York bankruptcy records go. They tell the story of his political, business and personal entanglements.

In 1989 Korn ran for county executive against the Republican machine that controlled Nassau County, one of the largest local governments in the country, and lost. Afterwards, a communications consultant sued him for hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid bills.

While Korn was dealing with that case, there were more court squabbles because of a falling out with Gary Princz at PrinczCo Productions Inc., a New York video company that the two of them ran. Their disputes continued even after Korn agreed to sell his half of the business for more than $700,000.

Korn was dating around. He was single after splitting from his second wife Julianne about the time of his campaign for county executive, according to Newsday. His romancing turned ugly when three women tattled about him to "A Current Affair," the tabloid television program. A show about it aired on Nov. 3, 1992.

"He's the Democrats' handsome hotshot. His angry girlfriends say he's a candidate for playboy prison," the broadcast said. "He's got the right words, the right moves and the right hair."

The "right hair" -- which he still has -- probably resonated more with viewers then than it would today, because it was hair reminiscent of Gary Hart, the Democratic presidential candidate whose 1988 campaign foundered after he was caught with a woman on a boat named "Monkey Business." Korn had a boat, too, according to the show. It was called "Clowning Around" when he was with one woman, "Princess Bobbie Lee" with another.

The episode also happened to be shown on the day Bill Clinton was elected president.

"A Current Affair" made Korn out to be a conniving cad who not only was promising to marry more than one socialite at a time but manipulating them to give him the deed to their million-dollar houses.

One of the women, Barbara Ozer, said she was married for 28 years when she began a relationship with Korn after meeting him at a political function at her house. Four to six weeks later, he proposed and pressured her to divorce quickly, and he insisted on getting the house title, Ozer said in an interview on camera.

Korn called the portrayal an "absolute lie" when a reporter for the show found him for an ambush interview in a Long Island parking lot, and he still was saying it in the interview last week.

"That is absolutely, categorically false. That is the subject of libel and slander and defamation suits. It was all a made-up story on the show," Korn said.

Korn says the broadcast was a set-up by his political enemies with the help of Ozer, who had family ties to the Fox television network, which produced the show. He sued for $102 million.

Another woman, Shelly Silver, recanted in 1994, although Korn refuses now to characterize his relationship with her at that time. Before she recanted, he was supposed to have sent her a dozen roses twice in one week to patch things up, as the show said when it aired. After she recanted, court documents show Korn was living with her at least by sometime in 1996.

"The program stated that Richard Korn 'preyed upon' me as a 'wealthy Long Island socialite' and that Korn persuaded me to sign over the deed to my house to him. This is a lie. None of this is true. This was made up by the show," Silver was quoted as saying in Newsday.

Amid all the legal hubbub, the communications consulting firm that was stuck with the unpaid campaign bills won its suit for $593,281 and was ready to go after Korn for payment. As the judgment came down on June 19, 1996, Korn fled for bankruptcy protection.

Although he says now he was not in a rush, his bankruptcy lawyer at the time says he was. In a court statement filed July 30, 1996, Mitchell H. Levitin said he had planned to take a vacation day when Korn contacted him with such "urgency and desperation" that the attorney told him to come to the house.

"Mr. Korn advised me that he had just gotten my name from the Nassau County Yellow Pages and contacted me because my advertisement provided for 'rush emergency service,'" Levitin wrote.

"Within 20 minutes Mr. Korn was at my home, and we sat down at my dining room table with my laptop computer. . . . Mr. Korn's demeanor at that time was disturbing. He was visibly upset, flushed, perspiring, chain smoking, and convinced by his discussions with his litigation attorney . . . that his sole source of income would be garnished . . . [so] he must file his bankruptcy immediately."

Korn's bankruptcy case was filed, but once he was in, he wanted out. David J. Doyaga, a new bankruptcy attorney, told the judge that Korn had not understood what would happen to him, according to a court transcript.

Despite Korn's legal background, his lawyer said Korn did not realize that a bankruptcy trustee would be appointed by the court to assume control of his financial and legal affairs to pay off his creditors.

The trustee would take over the outstanding balance of roughly $287,000 that Korn was receiving in monthly installments of $7,763 from his PrinczCo buyout, which he was living on, and she also would try to settle his lawsuits.

Korn particularly did not want to give up his right to the "personal vindication" he was seeking in his business dispute with PrinczCo and his defamation action over "A Current Affair," his lawyer said.

Bankruptcy Judge Dorothy T. Eisenberg did not let Korn out. When he skipped meetings and failed to produce records -- which he blamed on the difficulty of accumulating those "thousands and thousands and thousands" of documents -- she found him in civil contempt of court and gave him a month to comply or face jail. Korn complied.

Korn himself was squared away with the court by August 11,1997, but it took another two years for the bankruptcy trustee to resolve the tangle of financial and legal matters.

The trustee settled over "A Current Affair" for $50,000 -- with $2,000 coming from Fox and $48,000 from Ozer family members -- and no way to sort out who had harmed whom. Under the terms of the agreement, there was "no admission of wrongdoing" and nothing was to be "construed to be an admission of the truth or falsity . . . or as to any fault or liability."

In negotiating the $50,000 settlement, the trustee noted dryly, "[Korn] alleges that the broadcast has effectively destroyed his personal life. . . . The trustee believes that Korn's lifestyle was surely a factor in 'destroying his personal life.'"

The judge approved the settlement on June 14, 1999. The bankruptcy trustee turned in her final report on August 12, 1999.

Korn put New York behind him. County property records show he had a house in Hockessin on August 18, 1999, six days after the bankruptcy trustee put Korn behind her. He also had intact his craving for political attention, and his instinct for lawsuits did not die.

"I would sue anybody again if I had to, if something were not right or accurate," Korn said. "I will go to the ends of what it takes if I feel I've been slandered, libeled or maligned in any way."

DCBA STATEMENT ON BLOGOSPHERE ANONYMITY

2006-06-26T17:26:00.000-04:00

As has been noted previously, Dana Garrett of "Delaware Watch" has been making a habit of threatening to reveal the identities of anonymous bloggers with whom he disagrees. Although Dana has often made common cause with free speech, and spoken out about the importance of anonymous speech, he appears incapable of actually living up to his rhetoric. If this was about one man’s hypocrisy, we would content ourselves to ignore it. Unfortunately, Dana is rapidly establishing a precedent that if you do not agree with an anonymous speaker, a threat is the most effective way to win the debate. The calculated design of such conduct is to chill speech, and it risks poisoning the Delaware blogosphere should it become common practice. It is for this reason the DCBA believes that Dana’s actions must be confronted, disavowed and condemned by the Delaware blogosphere as a whole.

However deep the blogosphere’s political divisions, surely there’s common ground on this: cheap bullying to stifle speech cannot be accepted. If identities are fair game for some on the Delaware blogosphere, what will Dana and people like him do the next time they disagree with a poster, anonymous or otherwise? Home and work numbers put up on the Web with accompanying posts egging readers to call and harass? Maybe some digital pics of the target person leaving work or dining with their families with “Caption This Photo” written underneath?

Free speech is foundational, and this should be a matter of both common sense and common decency. The fact that it isn’t for some speaks volumes. In particular, it says that these individuals may pay lip service to free speech but are incapable of actually practicing it. It says that in principle, they have no respect for the speech of others. With this in mind, the DCBA condemns Dana Garrett’s threats against members of the Delaware blogosphere. In the marketplace of ideas, conduct such as his is completely unacceptable, and he should be ashamed. Whether he realizes it or not, individuals so insecure and angry that they issue threats simply cannot be taken seriously. By acting in this way, Dana continues to undercut and embarrass himself.

The DCBA respects the right of anonymous speech. We believe anonymity is necessary for a vibrant blogosphere. It is for this reason that we respectfully call on all Delaware bloggers, regardless of political affiliation, to both make a similar promise to respect anonymity and also to condemn those that do not respect this basic right. Moreover, we call on Dana himself to apologize, and to publicly state he will refrain from making such threats in the future.

Being bloggers, we understand that disagreements, often heated, are the price of doing business on the Web. Threatening identities, however, goes beyond the normal sharp-elbows all bloggers expect. Such conduct doesn’t further the debate. Rather, it’s the coward’s way of silencing the anonymous speaker, of chilling the very free speech we all, at least in theory, claim to love.

Free Speech For Me, But Not For Thee

2006-06-26T16:18:00.000-04:00

"Goebbels was in favor of free speech for views he liked. So was Stalin. If you're in favor of free speech, then you're in favor of freedom of speech precisely for views you despise. Otherwise, you're not in favor of free speech." --Noam Chomsky, posted by Delaware Watch's Dana Garrett here.

Dana Garrett of Delaware Watch has a real problem. He just doesn’t play by the rules he expects everyone else to. He’s a model hypocrite.

Be sure to read Garrett's post from August 30 of last year. He discusses the situation of DelDOT employees who began a website named FireNathan.com, and laments the "chilling effect on anonymous political commentary." He writes:

In the USA employees, in both the private and public sectors, must resort to anonymous speech in order to keep their jobs, even if what they say is the truth. Of course, the reason why employees must resort to anonymous speech is because our nation and state government empower employers to act as censors under the rubric of “property rights.” It’s a way to exercise political and social control by making one’s well being, if not their survival, contingent on their silence. Therefore, employees must engage in anonymous speech.

Of course, this bit of hypocritical commentary didn't prevent Dana from threatening to reveal Hube's identity and place of employment for comments Hube made that he didn't like, nor did it prevent him from doing the same to DelaThought when DT caught Garrett posting quite dubious information about folks related to the state Republican power structure and insisted on having his points addressed.

Likewise, in this entry, Dana was quite vociferous in his support of former Dover Post reporter Matt Donegan. He wrote:

It is hardly shocking to read that Matt Donegan was fired by his employer for his personal blog entries. Yes, Donnegan [sic] was a reporter and, yes, his employer was the Dover Post. But newspapers today like Congress in 1798 have the same desire to control others and the same sense of "free speech." Freedom of speech should exist for them and those whose speech pleases them but not for those who speech might embarrass them.

But it’s more amazing that some people in the USA actually believe people can credibly maintain a right even though they can lose their livelihood for exercising it.

There was also a bit from an old Al Mascitti column from this post:

Several Delaware bloggers worried that Donegan's firing would have a chilling effect on others who post their thoughts online. Dana Garrett, who writes a blog called Delaware Watch, said people worried about losing their jobs will start censoring themselves…

Amazing! Garrett feels so strongly about protecting people's right to free speech -- arguably a virtual absolutist stance -- yet he has utilized threats, not once, but TWICE of this exact nature. He threatened to reveal the identity and the place of employment of two anonymous bloggers with whom he disagreed! Can the hypocrisy get any more viscous? (Yes, that’s “viscous,” not “vicious,” but it's that, too.)

Then, there's this post. Garrett begins this offering with an unintentional rib-tickler: "My critics won’t believe me when I say that I don’t take any pleasure in being correct." He then writes regarding Cindy Sheehan:

I don’t want to live in a nation in which our right to free speech can be usurped by the whims of the powerful or by their “longstanding rules” to protect themselves from merely reading on someone’s chest a message of dissent.

That’s what makes a Beverly Young’s, a Cindy Sheehan’s, a Frank Calio’s, and a Matt Donegan’s freedom so threatening. To defend someone’s freedom of speech, however odious, is to defend freedom of thought per se, especially the freedom of thought deemed “unacceptable” by the authorities, and that is scary for those who fear the responsibility of thinking for themselves.

Once again, what should be good enough for everyone is good enough for Dana Garrett -- sometimes. He gets to pick and choose when free speech (and anonymous punditry) should be protected and defended. The instances are easy to figure out, too: Dana favors free speech all the time, except when he decides that what someone says about him is "unfair" and that person continues his criticisms of Garrett over Dana's objections.

By the way, Dana discusses Frank Calio noted above in more depth here. This post just adds more fuel to the fire that is Garrett's ridiculous sanctimony. Here are this post's money quotes:

The notion that silence is preferable to speech has become such an entrenched value that we now look suspiciously on those who speak often and loudly about political matters and trust those who are silent.

Those who are silent about their views can in fact hurt the public trust in ways no one can expect. But those who voice their views often actually provide us with an important public service: they tell us precisely where their political interests lie and, thereby, make any malfeasance they might commit more detectable. It is precisely for that reason that I trust those who exercise their 1st amendment rights more than those who don’t.

What hilarity! The truth of the matter is that Garrett only trusts people who believe as he does and/or who follow the dictates of debate that he proscribes. Garrett did not trust DelaThought's speech over silence; that's why he was electronically bullied off the Delaware blogosphere. Somehow, one less voice in the DE blogosphere sure doesn't "hurt the public trust" in this case now, does it?

Garrett has also opined numerous times about “censorship.” He has repeatedly and fervently spoken out against it, such as in posts like this where he writes about WILM radio’s John Watson:

Watson's final response to the caller? He hung up on him: the ultimate censorship. But for those who listen to Watson's program, none of his censorious tirades are surprising. They occur often when someone exposes Watson liberties with facts or when they have apparently exposed that Watson has done little research on the topic he is discussing.

Sounds eerily familiar. Here’s another example. And here Garrett criticizes Paul Smith Jr. for removing Delaware Watch from his blogroll using the “censorship” term. (Interestingly, in yet another bit of hypocritical action, Garrett has recently removed a few DE blogs from his blogroll including Jokers to the Right, Into Good and Evil, and Colossus. Well, at least he kept his word to Paul Smith Jr., eh?) In the former linked example, Garrett lambastes Colossus of Rhodey for having [temporarily] banned Delaware Liberal’s Jason for “turn[ing] every little thing into an overly partisan matter ... and all a hate-Bush rant. It's silly, tiresome, and childish. You just piss everyone off w/that crap.” Garrett comments:

Imagine, actually banning someone ON THE BLOGOSPHERE because they are "partisan." Oh, my! Just imagine -- partisan comments on a political blog! How dare Jason engage in partisan speech!

The problem with these comments is threefold: 1) The writers at Colossus have never claimed virtual 1st Amendment absolutism as Garrett had (and has); 2) Jason was warned several times about his behavior, and there is a written notice at the top of each and every Colossus comment window explaining comment rules; and 3) Colossus never threatened to “out” Jason – or any other anonymous blogger for breach of blog etiquette -- UNLIKE DANA GARRETT HAS DONE WITH DELATHOUGHT.

That’s right. Most recently, Garrett attempted to ban DelaThought from commenting on Delaware Watch, for HIS political speech. DelaThought knew that by posting from a dial-up service, blog comment bans are usually ineffectual. He thus continued to post comments on Dana’s blog asking for replies to his points, whether related to Delaware Watch comments or points made on DelaThought itself. Garrett, seeing a conspiracy in everything, refused to realize that DT was merely using ONE internet service (AOL) from which to post his comments. At first, Garrett censored DT’s comments by manually changing hyperlinks DT made regarding relevant points he had made (see here and here.) Then, realizing that his “ban” was not functioning to his satisfaction, Garrett resorted to threatening to reveal DelaThought’s personal information, which would destroy his anonymity. You see, DT’s speech suddenly ceased being “political"; using Noam Chomsky-like linguistic gymnastics, Garrett labeled DT’s comments “harassment,” and called DT a “troll.” This supposedly is his “justification” for his threats. Amazingly, Garrett refused to take a course of action most normal bloggers utilize when faced with a similar situation: They simply ignore the comments/commenter, and/or delete the comments made by the person. The latter is still “censorship” in Garrett’s world; however, it is certainly preferable to potentially ruining one’s livelihood by “outing” personal information.

And, not only doesn’t Dana doubt his course of action (threatening DelaThought), he gloats about it!

We invite you to read all of these other "free speech"-related posts by Dana Garrett to see what a 1st Amendment charlatan he really is:

Post #1.
Post #2.
Post #3.

And the following links show where Garrett has made his thinly-veiled threats to reveal other bloggers' personal information:

Example #1.
Example #2.
Example #3.
Example #4.
Example #5.

Lastly, in yet a further example of his hypocrisy, Dana has posted the following quotes:

“The principle of free thought is not free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought we hate." -- US Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes.

“The price of freedom of religion, or of speech, or of the press, is that we must put up with a good deal of rubbish." --Robert Jackson.

(Also see the Noam Chomsky quote from this same Garrett post at the beginning of this article.)

Garrett should follow his own advice, since he has worked to silence those who have disagreed with him. Apparently Garrett doesn't feel he has to put up with what he deems to be "rubbish". According to Noam Chomsky, whom he often favorably quotes, Garrett is not in favor of free speech. (Or in the words of Nat Hentoff, perhaps he believes in "Free speech for me, but not for thee.") And note the title of that post: "The Flimsy Excuses of Tyrants." What "flimsy excuses" will this tyrant give us for his actions?

Is Beau a No Go?

2006-06-19T21:58:00.000-04:00

This definitely falls into the category of gossip/rumor, but I was talking to a Democratic acquaintance of mine at the Italian Festival last week and he was telling me that Beau's campaign is as good as over. He says that once voters look at Wharton and Beau, they'll know there's no comparison; Wharton is clearly much more qualified for the office.

I was forbidden to use his name, but have no reason to doubt him, especially considering his normal positiveness about Democratic chances. He's fairly involved in the party, and counts a number of state wide officials as personal friends, so his pessimism has to be taken as a good sign for the GOP's hopes to win this election.

"Hello, pot? This is the kettle. You're black"

2006-06-15T15:24:00.000-04:00

[Perennial GOP gadfly Mike] Protack, a Marine veteran, said he was offended by Ting's decision to launch his campaign on Flag Day because of Ting's protests against the Vietnam War while he was in college.
...
"Jan's got to get on decaf," Protack said. "But it does make me sad that he is choosing to go to the gutter instead of discussing the issues."

Source.

Dana-gate

2006-06-13T21:05:00.000-04:00

Here's a question we haven't discussed about Dana Garrett's accusation against Republican State Committee. Who's his source?

It's allegedly a Republican insider. Now, why would a Republican insider contact Dana Garrett? If someone's trying to undermine Terry Strine's standing in the party, why would they go to someone who hates all Republicans and has no credibility among them? Why not go to DelaThought (who doesn't have much love for Terry) or DelaVoice? They're both former, if not current, GOP activists who would be more likely read by Republicans than Garrett is. So, whoever contacted Dana must have some already existing relationship with him.

And why would Dana trust this source? It's clear he has no love for Republicans. Why is this one trustworthy?

Is there any Republican who has a grudge against Republican State Committee, would think to go to Dana with bad (in more ways than one) information and Dana would trust?

I can think of one person. Now, I don't think Dana will acknowledge this to be true, and I'd lose even more respect if he did, but add it up and it all spells "duh", to quote Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Italian Festival - Night 2

2006-06-13T10:38:00.000-04:00

The only candidate I saw there was the "gorgeous" Beau Biden. I got home late from work, so I only popped up there long enough to grab some quick food and talk to my associate pastor who was amnning the Diocesan Vocation booth, so there may have been more that I didn't see. Mondays at the Festival are often slower, so it may ahve behooved candidates to be elsewhere anyway.

Beau did stop by and talk to my nextdoor neighbors again. A neighbor from down the street was clearly trying to get Beau and I in an argument given our differing political leanings. I didn't rise to the bait but am considering getting a Wharton sign for my house before Sunday, when Beau promised to stop by again.

The Time Is Now

2006-06-12T09:39:00.000-04:00

UPDATE: 2:22pm - This, from Ken Grant, DE GOP spokesman:

"Dave Crossan has not been reassigned to anything -- he is the Executive Director of the Republican Party of Delaware and has not had a single word changed in his job description nor has any of his duties changed.

Terry Strine has every intention of running for re-election as the Delaware Republican Party Chair in 2007."

There you have it.

------------------------------------

According to Dana at Delaware Watch, Dave Crossan's duties will be "reassigned" and Terry Strine will not be running for re-election (Cheers, Dana, you newsbreaker, you.).

This means that now is the time for the young Turks of the GOP to rise up. Do not let the next GOP leader come from the ranks of the current GOP hierarchy.
You know who you are. I will not call you out by name....yet. What I will do is offer to facilitate the coming together of the next generation of leaders from upstate who may not know the folks from downstate and vice versa. If you are in that group, the 30-50 year-olds who grew up in the "good" GOP, or if you want to recommend someone for that group, email me at delathought-at-gmail-dot-com. I will not publish your name or your input, (you know how I am about confidentiality) but I will put those people into contact with each other.

PLEASE, PLEASE, step up. I am past my prime, so to speak, and it is time for a new crew to rise up and lead us into the future, to focus on recruiting, electing and supporting Republican candidates, and spreading a positive message of low taxes, smaller government, small business, school choice and family support.

Do it.

cross posted at delathought

Italian Festival Night 1

2006-06-11T20:05:00.000-04:00

Politicians I saw there: Castle, Ting, Wharton, and Beau Biden (who my next door neighbor pronounced "gorgeous.") I also saw Spivack stickers on people, but I wouldn't recognize him if I bumped into him.

Anecdote of the night: I went down to a neighbor's house because I recognized an usher from our church. The neighbor introduced me to his extended family as "the only Republican on our block." (I don't think that's literally true, but I am the only one who puts up GOP yardsigns.)

Republicans should highlight lines like this

2006-06-10T08:13:00.000-04:00

Amid all the hubbub about Republican "attack ads" against Democratic Attorney General candidate Beau Biden (see Paul Smith's post below), there's one gem of a line the state GOP should use from Biden's recent appearance on WDEL to highlight his experience -- or lack thereof -- compared to opponent Ferris Wharton:

"I've prosecuted tens and tens of cases."

Listen to it here.

delawareonline ¦ The News Journal ¦ Republicans question state GOP's use of attack ads

2006-06-10T07:58:00.000-04:00

(Link to News-Journal article. Which, by the way, is very similar to Celia Cohen's Delaware Grapevine article on the same subject. There's also already a discussion of this going on at DelaThought.)

This article could very well have been titled "Why Delaware Republicans Don't Win."

By way of disclaimer, I oppose Senator Bonini's amendment to the amendment. I don't think we should make status as a lawyer a requirement for attorney general. I think the voters should, but that it shouldn't necessarily be written into the state constitution. Call me Menckenish, but I agree that "Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard." (More Mencken quotes.)If they want to elect someone with no legal experience, God Bless them, because they'll need it. I do support the requirement that they be a Delaware resident as the original amendment states and wouldn't object to some sort of minimal age and length of residency requirements, but beyond that, let them run.

Having said that, the requirement of bar membership is not outlandish; I can see the point of those who support it.

"I don't know what they're trying to do with this," said A. Judson Bennett, a Lewes Republican and leader of the Coastal Conservative Network. Wharton's long tenure as a prosecutor for former Attorney General M. Jane Brady should be the GOP's calling card, he said.

Wharton will be promoting his experience, but at the same time part of campaigning is defining your opponent. If this election is allowed to be the Biden name versus Wharton's experience, there's a good chance Wharton will lose. The task for the GOP and Wharton is to define Beau as too inexperienced for the job.

"These ads just make it look like the Republicans are whining," said state Treasurer Jack Markell, a Democrat. "Politics in Delaware is usually about the quality of someone's ideas and this kind of campaigning could backfire on them."

This is kind of ironic coming from a man who did the exact same thing in his last re-election campaign, sending out a mailer that criticized his opponent's inexperience. And to make matters worse, he didn't even need to do it: he was going to win even without that mailer. (It was one of the best pieces of negative campaigning I've ever seen. Very well done and just laid the smackdown on his opponent. I actually called out-of-state friends about it and sent them copies of it. They all agreed with my assessment of it. Beautifully done.)

The amusing thing about this article is that all the people they found willing to criticize this ad is that they are Democrats or Republicans who've never won an election. If your opponents don't like something you're doing, you should probably keep doing it. It's likely effective. And perhaps a refusal to campaign against Minner's record is why the article didn't quote "Governor" Bill Lee.

These aren't illegitmate, personal attacks that are going on here. They are directly related to the experience that Biden Jr. does or doesn't bring. It raises a completely valid point that should be discussed. The fact Democrats are complaining about it is a sign they don't want it discussed because they know it's their weak point. When your opponent starts complaining, what you're doing is working, keep it up.

Beau Biden To Announce for Attorney General

2006-05-31T14:14:00.000-04:00

Announcement Details:

Hallie And Beau Biden
Invite You And Your Family
To Join Them At
The Announcement of

Beau Biden
Candidate for Delaware Attorney General

Thursday, June 1, 2006

RSVP@BidenAG.com
(Include your full name and number attending (adults/children))

Please Respond With Your Acceptance or Regret — We Want To Stay in Touch.

*****

Details by County Below:

Sussex County — 8:00 am
Old Sussex County Courthouse
10 South Bedford Street
Coffee and Doughnuts

Kent County — 12:00 noon
The Schwartz Center for the Arts
226 South State Street
Brown Bag Lunch

New Castle County — 5–8:00 pm, Speech at 6 pm
Biden Headquarters
The Shipyard Shops at The Riverfront
(Near L.L. Bean)
918 South Madison Street
Light Fare

The Delaware GOP issued the following statement:

Beau Biden Marks 4 Years At Delaware Bar By Announcing For Attorney General

WILMINGTON, DE --- David A. Crossan, Sr., Executive Director of the Republican Party of Delaware, issued the following statement today on the 4 year anniversary of Joseph R. (Beau) Biden, III being admitted to the Delaware Bar.

“This week, Beau Biden will celebrate his 4th anniversary of being admitted to the Delaware Bar by officially announcing that he wants to be Delaware's Attorney General.

With only four years at the Delaware Bar, Beau Biden is not qualified under Delaware law to serve as an arbitrator in a civil case, to serve as a Family Court Judge, or to be a preceptor, or mentor, for another applicant to the Delaware Bar.

These laws are in place to ensure that a certain level of experience be required for such important positions. While Delaware law has no such requirement for the Attorney General, this raises serious concerns about whether the Department of Justice should be run by someone who is not qualified by law to perform these other important roles.

The fact that Beau Biden is unqualified to serve in roles such as these makes it even clearer that he is not ready to be Attorney General.”

(2006 Delaware Bar Directory: Beau Biden Admitted May 31, 2002)

(Superior Court Civil Rule 16.1 states that active arbitrators shall consist of all members of the Delaware Bar actively engaged in the practice of law for more than 5 years.)

(Title 10 Delaware Code Sec. 906(c) states that Judges of the Family Court must be members of the Delaware Bar for at least 5 years prior to their appointment.)

(Board of Bar Examiners Rule 10a states that an attorney is qualified to act as a preceptor if the attorney has been admitted to the Bar for at least 10 years.)

###

What's going on with the Sussex GOP?

2006-05-31T12:44:00.000-04:00

I received an email from a Sussex County Republican today asking me to do a post about the Sussex County GOP. This individual was quite critical of the Sussex Party and upset at the seeming lack of activity coming from those in charge. I feel a bit cautious in doing this post, due to my status as a part-time Sussex Countian. But, since it came up...

The Sussex GOP's status update for 2006:

Reps. Ewing, Carey, Booth, Hocker, Lee, Atkins, Councilmen Phillips and Cole running for re-election and expected to win. Dan Short running to replace retiring Rep. Fallon, also expected to win.

Democrat incumbents:

- Pete Schwartzkopf - D - 14th Rep district - Unopposed as of yet
- George Bunting - D - 12th Senate district - Unopposed as of yet
- Thurman Adams - D - 18th Senate district - Unopposed as of yet

So, three of the four Sussex legislative seats the GOP doesn't own are up and there are no opponents for them. Schwartzkopf is rumored to be running for LG in 2008, and the scuttlebutt is that this may be Adams' last go-round. So why not run people for those seats specifically, who would then have the fast-track and the experience to run again when the seats open? Plus, a great example of recruiting paying off is Bunting. Among the last three opponents he defeated were a couple of guys named George Cole and Gerald Hocker. They lost to Bunting, but it seems like things turned out okay for them, since they now go by "Councilman" and "Representative". Also, Schwartzkopf and Bunting have been opposed in every election for their offices, and Adams has had opponents in 2 of his last 3 elections. So, folks, it's been done before.

This led my emailer to his/her next point, which is, "Are we even planning for '08 and '10? Who's going to replace Ben Ewing? George Carey? Adams? Venables? Schwartzkopf?" If the Sussex GOP is worth its salt, they know the answer to those questions already.

I'm told by another source that the Sussex party's sole focus right now is running around trying to find people to give them money so they can pay for their executive director, but what exactly does that person do? The tab for the ED is enough to fund a state Senate campaign, for crying out loud. I'm told past chairs of the county committee were successful without an ED, so why can't current chair Bill Lee do the same? Under a guy named Keller Hopkins in 2002, the county held all of their incumbents; held an open county row office; picked up an open Dem seat and came within 600 votes of another; and beat two incumbent legislators; and he did it without an ED.

Here's my recommendation to those loyal GOPers in Sussex with some disposable income. Do not give it to the Sussex GOP. There are no races in Sussex whose outcome is in question for 2006. Instead, send it to these folks (if you need addresses, email me):

-Brian Moore, candidate for State Rep., 20th district. Max donation $600.
-Mike Ramone, candidate for State Senate, 8th district. Max $600.
-Gregory Chambers, candidate for State Senate, 1st district. Max $600.
-Ferris Wharton, candidate for Attorney General. Max $1200.

And what's with the persistent rumors about Bill Lee planning an '08 Governor run when we need to be moving forward, not backward? It's enough to make your head spin. I'm told he "won't rule it out." Well, Judge Lee, if it's true, for the party's sake -- RULE IT OUT. You couldn't get your party's nomination for the open seat in 2000, and you couldn't beat the worst governor in recent history when she was vulnerable in 2004. There's a whale of a difference between Ruth Ann Minner and Carney or Markell. What in anyone's right mind makes you think you can run again and win? The same question goes to Terry Spence, John Burris, Mike Protack and anyone else who ran for Governor in 2000 or 2004.

It's time for fresh blood and new energy, all across the board.

Thoughts?

cross-posted at delathought

13th Representative District Election Preview

2006-05-29T20:06:00.000-04:00

District Map (PDF)

Registration Breakdown (As of 5/1/2006)
    Democrat: 6,482
    Republican: 2,486
    Other: 3,280 (Source)

Candidates
Democrats:
    Edward F. Doyle, Jr.
    John L. ("Larry") Mitchell, Jr.
Republican:
    John Jaremchuk
(I wasn't able to find website links for the Democratic candidates. I'll update the post with them if someone can provide them.)

Financial Data
No finance reports are available online for the candidates.

Past Election Results
    2004: 36.6% GOP
    2002: 40.2% GOP
(Source)
(Results based on contested races that include the entire district and only includes votes for the two major parties.)

Brief Candidate Bios
Larry Mitchell is a Sergeant with the New Castle County Police Department and has been very active in the state FOP, serving as Legislative Chairman where he successfully promoted legislation to improve officers' pension plans and tuition assistance for active officers. He's been endorsed by a host of Democrats, including retiring Representative John Van Sant, Senator Patty Blevins and County Councilman Joe Reda, all of whom represent the area currently.

I can't find anything online about Edward Doyle, but he faces a tough time in the primary against the strongly supported Mitchell.

Former Elsmere Mayor, Treasurer and current Councilman John Jaremchuk is running as the Republican candidate for State Representative. He's made the most news recently for his proposed legislation that would have fined anyone in Elsmere who could not produce proof of US residency with 72 hours or who housed or employed illegal aliens.

Analysis
We can likely chalk up the Democratic primary as a win for Mitchell. His strong ties to the FOP provide him with a large core of dedicated and hardworking volunteers. (I can speak from experience on that one; the FOP provided a great deal of work for a campaign I worked on.) He'll also have the support of the Democratic party regulars which is often decisive in a primary campaign, as that will give him the advantage of the party organization, lists, money, volunteers, etc. Expected Democratic Primary Winner: Mitchell

Jaremchuk enters the race with high name identification due to his stance on illegal immigration. This is a mixed bag, though as the publicity surrounding his legislation brought a good deal of scorn down upon him and has set a lot of people against him. He also faces a district that's over one-eighth Hispanic (based of 2002 numbers, no online source) and outright majority Democrat. Given his party affiliation and stance on the issue of illegal immigration, those numbers don't bode well for his candidacy. Barring a major turn of events, this seat will likely stay Democratic. Expected General Election Winner: Mitchell

Carper & Ting on Immigration Reform Bill

2006-05-26T16:12:00.000-04:00

Carper's Statement:

WASHINGTON (May 25, 2006) – Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., today released the following statement on the Senate immigration reform bill, which passed the Senate on a vote of 62-36. Carper voted in favor of the legislation.

“It's estimated that there are already 12 million unauthorized aliens in the United States, and that number is growing by almost 10,000 per week. In order to secure our borders and deal with the millions of undocumented immigrants living in this country, we need to develop an immigration reform plan that is tough, smart and comprehensive, and see it signed into law this year.

The Senate bill isn't perfect, but it represents a good-faith attempt to pass a bipartisan immigration bill that will increase security at our borders without providing amnesty to the millions of illegal immigrants living in this country.

The bill would tighten border security by hiring additional border agents, deploying the latest surveillance technology and constructing strategic barriers at our most-vulnerable points. At the same time, it would allow undocumented immigrants already in the United States to eventually earn their citizenship rights if they hold down a job, learn English, pay a fine and all back taxes, and, most importantly, obey the law.

It will be tough to marry the Senate bill with immigration legislation passed by the House, but my hope is that we can work together and come up with a bipartisan solution to immigration reform this year. We shouldn’t let politics stand in the way of enacting a tough, smart and comprehensive immigration bill this year.”

Ting's statement:

WILMINGTON – Jan C. Ting, U.S. Senate Candidate, issued the following statement concerning Thursday’s vote on the Senate Immigration Bill:

"Tom Carper and other supporters of the Senate immigration bill have voted for amnesty now, even while thousands of illegal aliens continue to cross our borders into the U.S. every single night of the year.

"The border security measures in the Senate bill are insufficient, and will result in continuing illegal immigration, just like the 1986 comprehensive immigration reform and amnesty.

"The provisions of the bill, such as trying to distinguish 5-year illegal aliens from others, are simply unworkable. The border must be secured before tackling the problem of illegal aliens already here.

"That was the point of the Isakson amendment rejected by Tom Carper. The amnesty provisions will not only cover most of the estimated 12 million illegal aliens in the U.S., but their spouses and children as well, even those not yet in the U.S. So the total number amnestied could be as many as 30 million.

"This vote is simply a politically-expedient ‘Band-Aid’ to a continuing crisis."

Wedding Bells

2006-05-26T11:55:00.000-04:00

Our own Jeff the Baptist is getting married this Sunday.

On behalf of the entire Delaware Conservative Blogger's Alliance, I'd like to wish Jeff and Amybear a lifetime of happiness.

The Delaware GOP's 2006 Comeback

2006-05-22T17:11:00.000-04:00

After two torturous election cycles in the First State, the Delaware GOP appears to be eyeing a resurgence in Election 2006. It looks to me like the GOP's plan is to hold all of their incumbents, split the Castle-Carper races, pick up all of the open seats in the Delaware Legislature, and knock off at least one if not two incumbent state senators. Add to this a win for Tom Wagner and a re-take of the Attorney General seat by Ferris Wharton, and you will have yourself an old-fashioned, behind-the-woodshed whuppin', as they call it down here in saltwater Sussex. And all this is possible. A look at 2006:

OPEN LEGISLATIVE SEATS

13th Representative - (VanSant-D retires)
Former Elsmere Mayor John Jaremchuk v. DE FOP President Larry Mitchell
I don't know Jaremchuk, but anyone who can stomach Elsmere politics for that long has to have a decent shot at this seat, especially with immigration being a hot topic. All I can say about Mitchell is 'Do we need another cop in Dover?' Aren't Lee, Ewing, Williams, Schwartzkopf, Vaughn and company enough? Aren't the state police babied and protected enough already? Jaremchuk will need to have everything go his way to beat someone who's both a cop and a union leader in Elsmere, but he's definitely in the running.

20th Representative - (Roy-R retires)
Red Clay SD Facilities Manager Brian Moore v. businessman Richard Korn
See here.

33rd Representative - (Caulk-I retires)
Levy Court Commissioner Jack Peterman v. businessman Bobby Walls. If you take a map of Jack Peterman's Levy Court district and lay it over a map of the 33rd district, it would almost match. Peterman is a lock. It doesn't hurt that the 33rd is staunchly Republican.

39th Representative - (Fallon-R retires)
Ex-Seaford Mayor Dan Short v. Sussex Tech School Board memberRandall O'Neal. Write this one down in ink, too. Short by a lot. The popular ex-mayor almost beat Bob Venables in the 39th's portion of the '04 Senate race.

CHALLENGED SEATS

1st Senatorial
Senate Majority Leader Harris McDowell III was first elected in 1976. He was, with Roger Roy, the driving force behind the deregulation that led to the Delmarva Power rate hike. Those two facts make him as ripe for the picking as any incumbent. His opponent, Greg Chambers, has spent his entire adult life in service to others. He has worked for the State of Delaware for over 20 years, after working for the City of Wilmington for 13 years. His list of volunteer work is impressive, and he won a Governor's Award for Volunteerism in 2004. Serves others selflessly, running against a DIPer. I can't wait to hear the Nancy's and the Dana Garrett's of the world jump on Mr. Chambers' bandwagon. He has most certainly earned a shot to represent the people of the first SD. It's an uphill battle, in a district that went 68-32 for Kerry and 61-39 for Minner in 2004, but this could be the year.

8th Senatorial
I've touched on this one before, but here's a recap. John Allison/Kilroy will tell you all you need to hear about Sokola. Ramone is a small businessman with a big heart and a ton of campaign experience. He lost narrowly to Sokola in 2002, and absolutely has a great shot in this pocketbook/anti-incumbent year of knocking off the incumbent. Relatively equal district only went 53-47 for Kerry and 53-47 for Minner in 2004.

By my calculations, a Ramone win and a Chambers win would make the Senate 11D-10R. Can you say "Excuse me, Sen. Venables, the GOP is on the phone" ???

KEY STATEWIDE RACES

Auditor - (Wagner v. ?????)
Wagner keeps on rolling.

Attorney General - (Wharton v. Biden)
What can I say? Compare the resumes. Compare the experience. When it gets down to it, this will be a case of the Delaware people having a choice: the right name for Delaware politics, or the right person for the job. In a perfect world, where educated people familiarize themselves with the issues and the candidates, Wharton would be a lock. However, this is Delaware, where the citizenry gives you eight years of Ruth Ann Minner, so who knows?

There are some danger spots for GOP incumbents, such as House Speaker Terry Spence, who inexplicably is rumored to be losing labor's support this year; and Rep. Stephanie Ulbrich, who ran less than 60% against "activist" John Kowalko (and by activist I mean likes to do public things to boost his name ID in free media) in 2004 and now faces him again in the wake of the Delmarva rate hikes. If those two can hold on, and most of what I laid out above comes to pass, it will be a beautiful day for the GOP in November.

Americans for Better Immigration

2006-05-19T13:36:00.000-04:00

For those interested, Americans for Better Immingration has published a scorecard comparing Senator Carper with his expected GOP opponents on immingration issues. (It still lists Colin Bonini as a potential opponent so some of the imformation is out of date.) Carper is given a "D" by the group for his past and recent votes on immigration issues. By way of comparison, Biden received a "D" for his career and an "F" for his recent votes, while Castle received a "B" for his career and a "C+" for his recent votes.

Link via The Corner.

DCBA Announcement

2006-05-16T11:39:00.000-04:00

Now you can see all of the activity from the Delaware Conservative Blogger Alliance on one webpage. This page takes the top five posts from each member and puts it on one simple page. Ahh, the power of RSS feeds.

Enjoy!

Delaware Conservative Blogger Alliance News

The Fallacy of the Sussex NIMBY's

2006-05-15T15:01:00.000-04:00

Since Thurman Adams introduced SB 304, a bill to add two seats to County Council following the 2010 census, and the NIMBYs responded with a 'that's not good enough' attitude, it allows me to bring up once again the fallacy of the argument of the 'Citizens for a Better Sussex.' They mention several times on their web site the term "fair representation." They have a petition, wherein they say

"For years Sussex County Council districts favored western councilmen over eastern councilmen -- permitting 2 councilmen to both come from Laurel and one from Greenwood, giving the west control -- with 3 out of 5 votes.

However, 2004 voter data reveals that at least 67% of the county actually resided East of U. S. Route 113--not West.

With numbers like that in 2004, eastern Sussex should now have 4 council representatives, but still has only 2.

Furthermore, 5th district lines capture nearly all of southeastern Sussex waterfront land in one place, giving those voters just one council vote, resulting in frequent 4 to 1 losses."

The argument is that although 67% of the citizens of the county are east of Rt. 113, 60% of the council is from Western Sussex, and that is unfair. What they don't tell you is that two of the districts are entirely or nearly entirely in Eastern Sussex, and a majority of the voters in the 5th district are in Eastern Sussex.

According to the Delaware Coast Press, in 2002, "former Fenwick Island mayor Peg Baunchalk ran for County Council against Councilman Vance Phillips, R-Laurel, whom she took to task over his pro- growth voting record. One might think Democrat Baunchalk would have found a friendly reception for his position, at least in the east. According to the 2000 census, 56 percent of the voters in Phillips' district resided east of Route 113 -- a number that has certainly increased in six years. But Phillips garnered 63 percent of the vote against Baunchalk, who beat him only in her own polling place and only by a meager eight votes."

Lynn Rogers sought his re-election in 2004 against Republican Judson Bennett, who took a rabid anti-growth stance and ran right at Rogers as being in the pockets of developers, in the Eastern Sussex growth area of Milton and Lewes. Rogers won. He won by the slimmest of margins, but he won nonetheless.

Therefore, the people of Eastern Sussex have had ample opportunity to put anti-growth councilmen into, yet they failed to do so. The silent majority thinks, basically, that although there are more people, more houses and more cars, there are also more opportunities, more restaurants and grocery options and more to do. They are basically okay with it, or else Rogers and Phillips would have lost. Had Baunchalk won the 2002 race against Phillips, the NIMBY's would not be crying foul, yet the circumstances would be the same. So, in reality, the people of Eastern Sussex have had fair representation, and they have more votes than those in the West. They exercised those votes, and chose to keep the council intact. I predict they will do the same this year.

cross-posted at delathought

Conservatives sitting out 2006 hurts the GOP’s right, not the RINOs

2006-05-15T09:50:00.000-04:00

Jim Geraghty argues that while the frustration among conservatives who are contemplating sitting out the 2006 election in frustration over the inability of a Republican Congress to act like Republicans is understandable, it would be counterproductive to the conservative cause to do so. Going through a list of Senate and House races that are in play, he shows that, by and large, sitting out would replace a conservative with a liberal while leaving the "moderate" Republicans unscathed.

Why are so many conservatives hell-bent on cutting off their nose to spite their face? Are they really willing to throw away a decade’s worth of work and go back to square one?

We usually like looking at the Daily Kos crowd insisting for an immediate pullout of the troops or impeachment hearings right this second and we laugh at them for their ludicrously unrealistic expectations.

But apparently the Kos are not the only ones with an all-or-nothing mentality. Sometimes in life you have to use the West Coast offense, nickel and diming your way down the field instead of going for the long bomb. If I want a more conservative government, I get it by electing the more conservative of the two choices, even if he isn’t as conservative as I would like. I do not get it by sitting on the sidelines and pouting, and letting the less conservative guy take the reigns of power.

Unfortunately, he's right. By and large the RINOs come from safe districts while the conservative win the competitive districts. (Then the RINOs claim they have to be moderate to win re-election, despite having pretty much clincked by appearing with an R after their name om the ballot.)

While there are plenty of Republicans I'd like to see lose, they're not the ones who are likely to. Conservatives will have to work to reelect the good ones and hope to wait out the RINOs and replace them when possible.

In the meantime, let's not punish the good ones while allowing the ones we're justly angry with to gain in influence in our party.

United 93 Reactions

2006-05-13T02:46:00.000-04:00

I just got back from seeing United 93 with a contingent of the Delaware Conservative Blogger Alliance (DCBA). In attendance were Hube (and spouse), Paul Smith, Jr., Mark Levin Fan (and spouse), Miss AO, and Anna Venger.

I will post links to their reactions of the movie once they go up.

My reaction at Jokers to the Right

Miss AO has her reaction up

Hube's thoughts

Anna Venger's reaction

Paul Smith, Jr.'s review

Brian Moore, Richard Korn and the 20th RD Race

2006-05-11T11:20:00.000-04:00

(FOREWORD: I once said that I would never question Richard Korn's motivations. That, however, was before the anti-everything establishment began to fit him for a crown as hero of the people. I waited for it to stop, hoped that reality would set in, but it looks like I waited and hoped in vain. So, I dug a little deeper into Korn's lawsuits, his publicity stunts and his prior political career in New York. This is the result.)

Richard Korn, who will announce his candidacy for State Representative in the 20th district on Friday, admirably moved to Delaware a few years ago to be closer to his ailing mother, but it didn't take long for him to begin following some familiar pursuits: suing governments, seeking publicity and trying to get elected. For someone who once claimed, "I didn't come here to run for office," it didn't take him long to change his mind, and now he's doing it again, two years later.

Interestingly enough, the lawsuit he filed against New Castle County was nearly a mirror image to a similar suit he filed in 1988 against Nassau County, New York Administrator Tom Gulotta. The charge: That the county illegally built up a surplus to be used in later years; a reserve orrainy day fund, if you will. Now, I'm certainly not one who likes to see people overtaxed, but as you can see today, the county needed that money, so the practice of creating a reserve fund was sound fiscal management.

Korn's suit cost the county time and money to defend. The outcome: Korn won, then County Council automatically adjusted their policies to fit the money into their rules. Korn had to know this would happen, and that the net result of his suit would be nothing at all, but it was the best way to get his name out there for his obvious next move: running for New Castle County Executive. Again, eerily reminiscent of his Nassau County days, where he successfully sued the county government, got a load of publicity, and then ran for the executive position. He clearly had a plan.

His race for County Executive here in Delaware never really got off the ground, and he was trounced in the primary. Perhaps he didn't have enough base support here, as evidenced by his using a Philadelphia lawyer named Stan Ellenberg as his campaign chair and his limited in-state financial support.

Korn's next "coup" was helping to bring the CITGO home heating oil program to Delaware through his wife's personal connections to the Venezuelans. It's something he should be applauded for, and he has clearly given people the opportunity to applaud. He staged a big press conference with the Venezuelan Ambassador, and again, somehow, he appeared in the paper. One question, though: If he's so close to the Venezuelans, and as some claim, the whole CITGO program was Korn's idea, why did Delaware only get 1.15 million gallons of discounted oil, when Rhode Island got 3.3 million gallons, despite having a similar per capita income and weather conditions not tremendously unlike our own? (I know. I've lived in both places.) You would think we could get at least as good a deal as Rhode Island.

Feeling, I suppose, that his name had been out of the papers for too long, Korn next decided to file a complaint with the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division about Delmarva Power's 50%-plus increase, asking for an investigation, stating that:

"Today, seven years after deregulation and choice was mandated by statute, a deregulated monopoly still exists. "DP&L" Delmarva Power & Light Company and "DEC" Delaware Electric Cooperative remain the only two residential electric distribution/suppliers in the state of Delaware."

He claimed the fact that there are only two suppliers in Delaware as evidence substantiating his charge. However, anyone who has given any thought to the situation quickly realizes that the price freezes of the last seven years are the reason there's been no competition. Now that the caps have been lifted, at least one other provider, Washington Gas and Electric, has already entered the market. So, the complaint is now moot, yet Korn's name, picture and transparent populist pandering made the paper yet again.

So, are we to assume Richard Korn had no plans to run for the 20th RD seat when he trotted out the Venezuelan Ambassador to a press conference or fired off a pointless letter to the Justice Department? Or is he the same type of opportunist politician we have come to know and love, one who claims allegiance to the people when we know that just under the surface is an ego-filled starvation for power and attention?

It's abundantly clear, for those who are open to seeing it, that Richard Korn simply wants an elected office with which to satisfy his decades-long thirst for electoral success, and a pulpit for publicity. Korn could have easily helped in the CITGO situation and sent the letter to the Justice Department without the press releases and press events, but that would not have raised his name ID to a sufficient level to run for office again. At this point, does anyone still believe that Richard Korn is the voice for the people?

Okay, arguments aside; let's look at the hard numbers. In 2004, both Korn and his opponent, Brian Moore, ran unsuccessfully for countywide seats; Korn, for County Executive, and Moore, for Clerk of the Peace. Breaking down the individual races into their vote totals specifically for the 20th district, you find that:

- Moore got 47% of the General Election vote, nearly 5,000 votes, against Ken Boulden, who had been Clerk of the Peace for 8 years, was popular, and had performed his job competently.

- Korn got 164 votes, or 18% of the vote, in the Democratic Primary, losing by almost a 4-to-1 margin to Chris Coons, and only outpolling controversial County CAO Sherry Freebery by 47 votes.

These numbers draw two conclusions. First, the people of the 20th RD clearly want to give Brian Moore a chance to represent them, even against an incumbent they approve of. Second, Richard Korn appears to have had little or no voting support in the 20th district, even among Democrats.

Certain people, especially the "anti-everything" types, will put a lot of emphasis on this race, due to Korn's populist leanings and media-grabbing antics, as the “us against the establishment” race. Some will treat it as if Korn is running against the entire legislature, when in truth he is running against Brian Moore to represent the people of the 20th district.

Brian Moore has earned it the right way, through many years of service to his community. A native of New Castle County, Brian has served others both professionally and civically his entire adult life. A former member of the Coast Guard Reserves, Moore is currently a Facilities Manager for the Red Clay Consolidated School District. He is the president of the Pike Creek Civic Association, the Limestone Hills Maintenance Corp. and is involved with the Delaware Police Athletic League as a member of its Board of Directors. He is also an 18-year veteran volunteer fireman and a Fire School Instructor.

Add all of this up and you see Brian Moore is truly involved on a day-to-day basis with the people of the 20th district, and he knows this Republican district and its people well from the ground up. This choice in this case is abundantly clear, and Moore should retain the seat. For Moore, by his actions over the long term, has proven himself to be the true ‘peoples champion’ in this race.

It is important to support Brian Moore with both your money, and if possible, your time. The address to send contributions is: Brian Moore for State Representative, 15 Bellmont Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808. Send $6 or send $600, whatever you can, and tack an extra $.o6 onto the end to let him know that the online community is behind him.

We don't need another self-serving, ego-driven politician in Dover looking to climb the political ladder. We need Brian Moore.

cross-posted at delathought

Wharton Launches Campaign Site

2006-05-11T10:11:00.000-04:00

FerrisWharton.com is online. Visit the site to learn about the candidate and his impressive record.

“The outpouring of support I’ve received over the past several weeks has been humbling,” Mr. Wharton said. “It’s good to now have FerrisWharton.com available for people to access the latest information, sign up for email updates, make donations, and get involved.”

“As I travel across Delaware, people are asking what they can do to help with this campaign,” Mr. Wharton said. “It’s exciting to now be able to offer the web site as a central place to learn more and find the specific areas where they can best offer their time and talent to make a difference.”

The Nerd and the Head Cheerleader

2006-05-03T14:22:00.000-04:00

Talking to a friend who's a GOP party dropout like myself this weekend, we discussed the Mike Protack situation. I made the analogy that Mike Protack is the guy in high school who can't accept the girl just isn't interested. No matter how many times and how many different ways he asks, the girl just won't go out with him. Rather than setting his sights on another girl, he keeps going after this one girl to exclusion of a girl who might actually be interested in him.

Mike Protack is not pursuing just any girl but the head cheerleader, the top spot on the Delaware GOP ticket. In each of the past three elections, he's sought the top spot available for a Delaware Republican, only to be rejected by the GOP Convention, where delegates are elected by the grassroots membership of the party. (I don't have results for past years, but he got beat over 5-1 this year and past margins were similar, I believe.)

In 2002, after running for US Senate against Ray Clatworthy and losing at the convention, Protack gave a gracious speech where he pledged to respect the convention's decisions and work to elect Clatworthy. I, and many others I talked to, were impressed with his graciousness and were ready to support him for a lower office in a future campaign. (It's no insult to say that someone isn't ready for a state-wide campaign, just as it's no insult to say that a player right out of the draft isn't ready for the major leagues. That's why we have minor leagues, to prepare people for the majors. Similarly, many people need to build a resume before they can be a credible state-wide candidate.)

But Protack can't get that head cheerleader out of his head, so rather than going for the pretty flutist in the band. Not content to run for a state representative seat or some other local position, Protack will accept nothing other than the top spot on the ticket. (Think of it this way: he demands to be on the ticket ahead of a two-time Governor and seven-time Congressman.)

To make matters worse, after his two most recent defeats he's angrily attacked the cheerleading squad and tried to force his way into the head cheerleader's arms. He's tried telling her how popular he is with people outside the cheerleading squad, using misleading polls as his evidence. (Here's an example. If you read it closely, it's clear what Protack has done here is a complete misuse of polling. It's legitimate to ask questions like this to determine your strengths and your opponent's weaknesses for honing a campaign's message and strategy, but is useless for determining actual campaign standing which is how he attempts to use it in his release linked to above.)

So what happened when Protack took his case to the rest of the student body for their support in his quest to date the head cheerleader? Over 70% of them voted for the starting quarterback Bill Lee, with only 23.5% supporting Protack.

So, the cheerleader's not interested, and the cheerleading squad and student body think she can do better? It's time for our nerd to move on from the head cheerleader and hope the flutist hasn't been turned off by his obnoxious behavior.

Jan C. Ting for U.S. Senate

2006-04-28T15:11:00.000-04:00

By Delathought, on behalf of the Members of the DCBA:

The Delaware Conservative Bloggers Association proudly endorses Jan C. Ting for the Republican nomination to be the next United States Senator from Delaware. We are a coalition of Conservative, Republican, Delaware-based bloggers, independent of any official GOP organization; just average folks with a passion for politics and a hope for the future of the Republican party in Delaware.

Jan Ting is a law professor, and is internationally recognized as an expert on immigration policy, which is one of the most important issues facing our nation today. He has experience in federal government, as Assistant Commissioner of the INS under President George H.W. Bush. He also holds a Masters degree in Asian Studies, which will help him understand the coming importance of our relationships with Japan and China. He was asked to testify before the 9/11 Commisssion, due to his reputation as an expert on the national security effects of immigration.

Anyone with experience in beltway politics will tell you that the Senate is a group of specialists. Each Senator has their own area of expertise. Freshman Senators are advised to hone in on a policy area and master it. Jan Ting would enter the Senate ahead of the curve due to his mastery of immigration policy. This makes our decision even easier.

Recently, the blogosphere has been abuzz with controversy regarding the supposed ill treatment of perennial statewide candidate Mike Protack in his current incarnation as a candidate for US Senate. What those outside of the Republican Party don't realize is that those inside the GOP have weighed and measured Mike Protack already at least twice: first, testing the waters in 2002 against Ray Clatworthy, who eventually lost to Joe Biden; and next, in 2004, where he only received about 5,000 votes in losing the nomination for governor to Bill Lee, who eventually lost a close race to Ruth Ann Minner. This is now Protack's third foray into statewide electoral politics. He again has failed to generate any measurable support, this time against Jan C. Ting, who the party recruited to challenge US Sen. Tom Carper.

Now, we at the Delaware Conservative Bloggers Association recognize the uphill battle that faces any GOP nominee against the popular Carper, who polled a 60% favorable in the most recent Survey USA polling, even polling a majority favorable among Republicans. But we believe that Jan Ting will pose the most formidable challenge to Sen. Carper, and is much more qualified for that challenge, so it is our decision to proudly endorse Mr. Ting.

Carper still very popular

2006-04-25T10:55:00.000-04:00

And in other news, Earth still revolves around the Sun.

SurveyUSA has issued the latest job approval ratings for Delaware's Senators.

For the purposes of this blog, look at Carper's ratings. Over 60% approve of the job he's doing, while only 27% disapprove. Even among Republicans, Carper gets a 60% approval rating. Whoever the GOP nominates (Jan Ting) will face a tough campaign when a super-majority of their own party likes the other guy. (For historical tracking of Carper's approval rating, go here.)

So, how can the GOP nominee (Ting) beat Carper? Here's a few strategies I'd recommend:
1) prayer
2) Ting's credibility on immigration could be key sice I think it's safe to assume that Congress won't have resolved anything come election time
3) Tie him to Minner. She was his choice as Lt. Governor in 1992 and so was heir apparent in 2000. She currently has a negative approval rating (more Delawareans disapprove of the job she's doing than approve). She can't even achieve a 50% approval rating among her own party.

I saw that Ting intends to tie the electric rate increase to Carper. I'm not optimistic about this strategy. One, I think most Delawareans blame DelMarVa for the increase, rather than politicians. Plus, it's not something that can be easily run on as a party-wide platform since most GOP officeholders supported deregulation. Running against Minner is something all Republicans should be able to do and that's a message that can gain traction among the voters through repetition. "Carper gave us Minner, how can we him trust on other decisions?"

Gas price increases expose a chorus of nitwits

2006-04-25T10:42:00.000-04:00

Monday, Mark Levin exposed the politicians responsible for our high gas prices. Delaware is well represented, as our two Senators have joined the crowd of nitwits by voting against drilling in Alaska.

(Click on speaker icon to listen)

They are mostly Democrats as you might expect, but as Mark Levin points out, the Republicans have nitwits as well!

(Crossposted on marklevinfan.com)

Responding Watch

2006-04-24T12:05:00.000-04:00

I have responded to Dana Garrett's statements about us at JttR (link here).

Jan Ting v. Mike Protack, New Castle County Debate

2006-04-21T14:52:00.000-04:00

Last night I attended the New Castle County Committee Debate between Mike Protack and Jan Ting, who both wish to run as a Republican against the incumbent Carper. Rick Jensen, host of the afternoon block on WDEL, hosted the debate, adding a level of entertainment not normally seen in this kind of event.

Ting won the toss and went first with the opening statements. Mike Protack started out in an ominous fashion, trying to crack a joke 'from Washington' about the Pope and George Bush walking on water. A Pope joke? Really?

The issue of Ting's mild anti-Vietnam War past was not avoided. Protack warned that veterans, as a block would refuse to vote for Ting, calling them "pro-flag people." How many people are anti-flag? Ting suggested it was an insult to veterans to say that they were not independent thinkers and voters.

Protack also decimated his "conservative record" by calling for Universal Health Care, the details of which are on his website. One of the attendees remarked to me that Protack's website was "a website reminiscent of the 2004 Kerry campaign...a portal through which information lives, which the candidate does not know by memory."

Jan Ting won the straw poll with 39 votes to Protack's 15. Ting has won every debate.

When will Protack realize he is not a viable candidate and drop out?

Cross-posted at JttR

BREAKING NEWS: George Pataki at state Repub. convention

2006-04-20T18:51:00.000-04:00

BREAKING NEWS: New York Governor and potential 2008 presidential candidate George Pataki is scheduled to speak at the Republican State Convention next Saturday, April 29 at Ruddertowne in Dewey Beach.

Stay tuned for more info.

UPDATE (4/21 at 10:35am): It's official:

PRESS ADVISORY: New York Gov. George Pataki to Address Delegates to 2006 Delaware Republican State Convention on April 29.

WILMINGTON, DEL. --- New York Governor George Pataki will be the keynote speaker at the Delaware Republican State Convention on Saturday, April 29, at the Ruddertowne Complex in Dewey. The media is invited to cover this event.

In addition to the Convention on Saturday, the Delaware GOP will hold its traditional Convention Dinner on Friday, April 28 beginning at 7:00 PM. The dinner will feature a presentation by Ferris W. Wharton, Republican candidate for Attorney General.

Saturday’s Convention will begin at 9:00 AM and will feature an address by Gov. Pataki and the endorsement by delegates of Republican candidates for U.S. Senate, U.S. Congress, Attorney General, State Treasurer, and State Auditor.

For more information, contact Ken Grant at (302) 651-0260, ext. 4.

DCBA Member Update: Lovely Ladies Edition

2006-04-20T13:45:00.000-04:00

We have two new members in our ranks, and this public welcome by me is long overdue.

Frist, Anonymous Opinion is just that, though her opinions are well defined. She also holds the distinction of being the first female member of our little Alliance. She is definately a good conservative because he has even been known to find a way to avoid some unnecessary taxes:

A friend at work pointed out that because I don't have a landline but do have a cell phone I can save money by not paying taxes.

Ok, it's not as like I won't have to pay Federal or State Taxes, but why should I be taxed on a service I don't use?

Second is Anna Venger (an alias, I assume). She is a mother of two, and a Christian conservative. From the looks of it, she is very adept at covering things that most of the rest of the DCBA doesn't, which is conservative-minded pop culture. From Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, to a review of Anne Rice's Christ book, she's got it covered, not to mention her own take on politics!

Welcome aboard ladies! If there are any other conservative bloggers in DE who want to join, the only requirements are that you are from DE, conservative, and a blogger!

Cross posted at JttR

UPDATE (3:51PM): Sorry AO...just an issue of anonymous bloggers...

Kean 43, Menendez 36

2006-04-18T12:55:00.000-04:00

From Rasmussen Reports today, Tom Kean leads Bob Menendez 43-36 in the battle for NJ-SEN. People seem to be tying Menendez to the lying sack of crap that appointed him and then hiked taxes to astronomical heights.

That's right Jerseyans: Menendez/Corzine=lying sacks of crap/tax hikes.

Tom Kean=common sense.

You seem to be getting the picture.

Roy to retire

2006-04-13T17:37:00.000-04:00

If you haven't heard by now, Roger Roy will not seek reelection. Limited details here.

Newark candidates focus on reservoir, mill

2006-04-11T10:38:00.000-04:00

There is an election today in Newark for City Council and I'd be remiss if I didn't put in a plug for Stu Markham, one of my coworkers, who is running for the 6th Council District Seat. I don't know his politics (left/right, Republican/Democrat) at all, but he's a good guy who would be a credit to Newark. So if you live in that district, please vote for him.

Ting, Protack, Wharton at Hartly Fire Hall

2006-04-08T12:27:00.000-04:00

"Republican Senate hopeful" Jan Ting and "person also on the ballot" Mike Protack had a debate last night at the Hartly Fire Hall. From the Delaware State News:

The two candidates vying for the Republicans' U.S. Senate nomination differed on several issues Friday during a debate at the Hartly Fire Hall.

Law professor Jan Ting and airline pilot Michael Protack told the audience they would be the best to topple incumbent Sen. Thomas R. Carper, D-Del., but not for the same reasons

Ting's quotes:

"I have been writing and talking about Republican and conservative issues for the last 30 years," said the son of Chinese immigrants.

"I have a record on those issues that is respectable. I invite you to compare my record to any other person's in the race."

He also cited immigration as the #1 issue in the campaign.

Protack's quotes:

"We have a unique opportunity to run against someone who is known by everybody but known for just about nothing," he said.

"We have issues we can attack to defeat an incumbent senator, but we have to do things differently."

He cited health care as the #1 issue in the race.

Ting won the straw poll, 88-19.

The most notable news of the evening was the first appearance of candidate Ferris Wharton. Great quotes:

"Delaware needs an attorney general who been in the trenches, prosecuted the hard cases, been with victims," he said.

"Delaware does not need someone who is packaged, imaged and someone who has never been there.

"I started in the lowest position there was in the attorney general's office because it never occurred to me that my first day in the attorney general's office should be running the attorney general's office."

Nice.

delawareonline | The News Journal | The way out of the immigration deadlock

2006-04-06T11:36:00.000-04:00

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jan Ting has an editorial in this morning's News Journal about the approach we should take in reining in illegal immigration.

Tonight, nearly five years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, thousands of illegal aliens will enter the U.S. across our southern border, and we have no idea who they are. The same thing happened yesterday night. And the same thing will happen tomorrow night and the night after. Also coming across our open border are drugs, drug dealers, violent street gang members and other criminals. The level of violence along the border is increasing, with regular attacks on our border patrol agents and other law enforcement personnel. The Democratic governors of both Arizona and New Mexico have declared border emergencies. Does anyone believe al-Qaida is unaware of our open border?

It's an intolerable situation, but Congress keeps proposing to do what we know doesn't work, hiring some more border patrol agents and deploying some more technology. That's what we've been doing for 20 years without effect.
...
Conversely, we know for sure what does work, a border fence. Ask anyone who's lived in San Diego for a while what a difference 14 miles of border fence have made in reducing illegal entry and crime in that city. We also know the fence works because the aliens entering the U.S. illegally complain about having to walk around it, complain that it forces them to cross the border at less hospitable points, where they are forced to risk their lives, and unfortunately sometimes lose their lives, trying to enter the U.S. illegally.

Once we gain control of our southern border, we can have a national discussion on whether our legal immigration program, the most generous in the world, is sufficient to meet our labor needs.

This makes a great deal of sense. Fix the big issue and then we can focus on how to handle the rest of the situation.

Read the whole article. It raises a number of good points while puncturing a few of the arguments of those who call for open borders, in practice if not in actual policy.

delawareonline | The News Journal | Raids reveal possible human trafficking

2006-04-03T11:14:00.000-04:00

Last May, a man called Delaware State Police with an outrageous claim: His wife was being held against her will in a Bridgeville brothel, forced to work as a prostitute to repay a debt to men who smuggled her across the Mexican border.

Another reason to oppose illegal immigration: it's not jsut bad for the country; it's bad for those sneaking into the country.

Carper's Approval Rating

2006-03-30T15:06:00.000-05:00

Senator Carper's approval ratings are pretty high across party lines. Consistently in the mid-60s, he even draws over 50% approval among Republicans, regularly creeping up into the 60s. He does slightly better among Independents, and better than that among Democrats naturally. Rated by net approval (approval %age minus disapproval %age), he ties for the 16th most popular Senator in America; he also ties for the 16th position when ranked by approval rating. (Number as of 3/23/2006.)

Add in the fact that Carper is virtually attack-proof since he was the victim of a horrible slander during his re-election bid for Governor in 1996, and Jan Ting faces a touch campaign ahead of him.

Given Carper's popularity, it's going to be very tough for Ting to pull off a victory in this race. I don't know much about Ting's overall philosophy, but given that he's a Republican, we can probably place him even with or just to the right of Carper, Delaware's most conservative federally elected official.

So, the good news for conservatives in this race is that no matter which of these two candidates win, we'll have someone who would fit into the mainstream of the GOP.

(By the way, check out Minner's approval ratings. She's barely keeping her head above water even among Democrats. I had no idea she was doing that poorly. The News-Journal loves to publicize Bush's negative ratings, but Ruth Ann's down about his level as well. I'm not surprised she doesn't get the same treatment.)

BREAKING: Wharton to Run for AG

2006-03-27T12:01:00.000-05:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:
Monday, March 27, 2006 Ken Grant (302) 651-0260, ext. 4
(302) 588-4151

Ferris Wharton to run for Attorney General

“He’s been a successful prosecutor at both the State and Federal level and is highly regarded around Delaware for his expertise, diligence, and competence in fighting for victims. I’m thrilled that Ferris Wharton is ready to serve as our Attorney General.” said Retired Superior Court Judge Bill

WILMINGTON, DE --- Ferris Wharton, one of Delaware’s most distinguished and experienced crime-fighters, made clear his intention to run for Attorney General today. A formal announcement will be planned for a later date.

Wharton, 53, has been a member of the Delaware Bar for 27 years. He has put hundreds of dangerous criminals behind bars over the past 25 years, prosecuting at the state and federal level.

Wharton has held numerous positions within Delaware’s Attorney General’s office including Chief Deputy Attorney General, State Prosecutor, and chief prosecutor for both New Castle and Kent Counties. Wharton has served as Assistant United States Attorney for the past three years.

“For over 25 years, I’ve had the responsibility of prosecuting some of Delaware’s worst criminals, and the privilege of helping their victims and their victims’ families,” Mr. Wharton said. “I’m eager to put those years of experience to work as Delaware's next Attorney General.”

Mr. Wharton resigned his position with the U.S. Attorney’s Office as of Friday, March 24th and will be joining the law firm of Fox Rothschild, LLP.

Bill Lee, a retired Superior Court Judge who has seen Mr. Wharton’s work in the courtroom, said Ferris Wharton is the right person to be Attorney General.

“Ferris Wharton is the most experienced prosecutor in Delaware,” Judge Lee said. “He’s been a successful prosecutor at both the State and Federal level and is highly regarded around Delaware for his expertise, diligence, and competence in fighting for victims. I’m thrilled that Ferris Wharton is ready to serve as our Attorney General.”

Wharton has successfully prosecuted numerous high-profile criminals including Tom Capano, a well connected political insider with a high powered defense team. Capano was convicted of killing then-Governor Carper’s Secretary Ann Marie Fahey.

-------

Smith and DeLuca straighten out News Journal

2006-03-22T15:34:00.000-05:00

In an op-ed titled "Paper supported deregulation in '99," House Majority Leader Wayne Smith and Senate Majority Whip Anthony DeLuca write the following:

In a recent editorial, The News Journal roundly criticized the electric deregulation law, claiming that the bill was rushed and mocking the General Assembly for touting the benefits of the 1999 law.

Conveniently, The News Journal has forgotten its own positions. In a 1999 editorial entitled "Electric Deregulation Will Benefit Utilities and Their Delaware Customers," The News Journal stated: "Delaware has taken a long and thoughtful approach to deregulating the electric utilities. As a result H.B. 10 ... is a good bill." The 1999 editorial had it right.

As they say, read the whole thing.

Coons proposes raising taxes 5%, spending 7.35%

2006-03-22T14:30:00.000-05:00

Some quick details:

Proposed Spending: $230.2 million
Property taxes would rise 5 percent
Sewer rate would rise 4 percent
Spending Increase: 7.35%
18 positions eliminated through attrition; 18 added, including 10 more police officers and staff for new Woodlawn Library

Some of these spending increases are unavoidable and no one really deserves any criticism for them. Higher power prices are unavoidable; the expanded Woodlawn Library will need more staffers; employees have raises built in; the police officers are likely needed due to increasing population.

[County Executive Chris Coons] likened the county's finances to living in a house that costs more than a family can afford, forcing the residents to dip into their savings account each month to make the mortgage payment.

"You can keep taking money from the savings account, but you know eventually you will have to either get a second job or move to a smaller house," he said. "We are in the same situation in New Castle County."

But, he's taking little action to move to a smaller house. He's dipping into savings, but also stealing from his neighbor in the form of taxes.

I was stunned to read the following:

The county code provides 5 percent merit increases for most employees for the first 10 years.

That's amazing to me. I'd love to have a guaranteed 5% raise for the next ten years. There's a place we can put in some savings. Even cutting that 1-2% could save a decent amount of change.

The county can't keep going back to the taxpayers to fix its problems. As Jeff said, it's time a for a reassessment, so our tax basis is appropriately distributed. The current assessments are decades out of date, so some peole are no doubt getting off easy, while others are overpaying their taxes. Then, let's look at what functions the County government has that can be reduced in scale or eliminated. As DelaThought wrote:

So to ask [Wilmington Republican Chairman Tom Ross] how he would balance the county budget is a red herring. The fact is, Chris Coons can elect to cut some popular programs or he can raise taxes.

This reminded me of something that a sitting officeholder once told me: Politicians can get too wrapped up in figuring out what to cut. Sometimes the nest solution is tell department to find 5% in savings and let them figure out what is most expendable; they're the ones who deal with the issues everyday; they can best figure it out.

I have no doubt that some tax increases may be necessary due to the rapid growth in county government we witnessed during the Gordon years. But let's figure out if there's any growth that can be removed before inflicting a unnecessary tax burden on NCCo residents.

Joe Biden calls Iraq war, Bush’s war

2006-03-21T09:16:00.000-05:00

Monday, Mark Levin played some audio clips of Delaware's Senator, Joe Biden.

(Click speaker icon to listen)

This is Bush's war? Is that what you believe, Joe?

(Crossposted on MarkLevinFan.com)

Property Tax Implications

2006-03-20T17:35:00.000-05:00

I have to make some admissions here. I haven't been following local politics until we created the Alliance a month ago. My understanding of state politics is limited to all my state employee friends hating Grandma Ruth with a white-hot passion. Something about them never getting raises. While doing the work of three people because of a hiring freeze. On their fingers because the state can't afford computers. I'm also not a native Delawarean. I'm originally from Delaware County, which is inexplicably not in Delaware. I grew up on both sides of the border because I went to church in the State instead of the County. I've also never owned a home in Delaware and so I pay property taxes only indirectly through my apartment rent. So my understanding of the property tax system is a bit weak.

With those things in mind, what the hell is up with this? In essence Chris Coons, New Castle County Grand Pooh-bah, thinks NCCo needs higher property taxes. But he and the rest of the council don't want to say it too loudly because elections are coming up soon and people are already paying through the nose for gas, electricity, and heating oil. The explanation for the fiscal shortfall from the News Journal is this:

The county derives the lion's share of its revenues from property taxes and real estate transfer taxes. The latter is a one-time fee paid by buyers when they purchase property. The state collects the 3 percent tax and gives half of it back it to the county.

The housing boom that began in the late 1990s as New Castle County's population grew helped generate millions of dollars annually from the transfer tax. That allowed the property tax rate to go untouched and helped former County Executive Tom Gordon sock away millions in reserves.

And a bit later...

With the real estate market leveling off, so is the money reaped from the transfer tax, officials said.

Delaware's tax rate is the second-lowest in the country, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. While thousands of new homes have added significantly to the tax base, the growth in property tax revenues is not keeping pace with spending.

That last sentence just screams "we've been spending too much money." This probably isn't a revenue and tax problem, even if Coons wants to address the shortfall that way. This is almost certainly a spending problem. If County spending is outstripping County growth, something is definitely out of wack. Methinks somebody was a might over-ambitious with the People's funds.

But my real issue with the article is in property taxes themselves. Property values have been skyrocketing across the state for a while because of low interest rates. Increased development should not only see tax revenue from transaction fees, but a big increase in the tax revenue from the tax assessment of that acreage. Real estate speculation works the same way. People are only flipping properties because it makes them money from the change in housing value.

So where is that additional tax revenue from the increased market value of these properties (and their neighbors)? That is my question. Is there some sort of issue with property tax assessments so that they lag behind the rated percentage of the home's market value? My Maryland coworkers have been seeing tax reassessments almost the moment a neighbor's home sells. Is Delaware different for some reason? Maybe it is, I don't know. Honestly it has me perplexed. I'd hate to see New Castle County pass a tax increase when a property tax reassessment could solve the revenue shortfall without touching the underlying rates. Any help here?

Shilling for the NRA

2006-03-14T10:55:00.000-05:00

According to the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action, there is a Shall Issue Carry Bill being introduced in the State House of Representatives by Deborah Hudson (R-12th). Unfortunately the bill, HB 359, isn't showing up on the Delaware legislative website.

Here is a basic primer on concealed carry laws. There are essentially four types: may issue, shall issue, Vermont, and none. Vermont style carry (also found in Alaska) means law-abiding citizens can concealed carry firearms without permits. None means there are no provisions for normal citizens to concealed carry in that state. The most common concealed carry systems are called "may issue" and "shall issue."

As Packing.org shows, Delaware is a "may" issue state. In Delaware, you have to take training classes and go through an application process involving references, etc. Then the state issuing authority (in our case a judge) "may" give you a permit. Or not. Their choice. If this system seems like it may be prone to abuse, that's because it is. In "may issue" states, issuing authorities have been known to base permit decisions on very specious grounds like skin color, bank account size, and friends in high places.

HB 359 would change Delaware from "may" to "shall" issue. There will still be a training requirement and an involved application process. The difference is that when you apply the state "shall" give you a permit. Unless the judge has grounds to deny your permit (like a history of mental problems or criminal activity), the State of Delaware has to issue it. No denial based on skin color, gender, need, or politics is possible.

Some claim that shall issue will turn your state into the wild wild west. This has never happened. Historically, shall issue is very safe. Data from Michigan has shown that permit holders are actually less prone to firearm and violent crime than police officers.

I like shall issue concealed carry. I have a real problem with the government restricting self defense rights without just cause. Shall issue fixes that, but weeds out potential wackos and ensures some level of basic firearms competency. I would also prefer that unlicensed carry take the form of legal open carry, not concealed carry. In short I'm not enough of an absolutist to demand Vermont carry.

Hopefully HB 359 will get us shall issue, but if not then we'll keep trying. Recent history has given Delaware some very good gun laws, like mandatory state CCW permit reciprocity. Lets hope we get this one too.

UPDATE: The text of the bill is now available. I've edited this post accordingly.

Jan Ting mentioned on NationalReview.com's The Corner

2006-03-09T10:27:00.000-05:00

Mark Krikorian wrote the following:

Temple U. law professor Jan Ting won a straw poll of the Delaware Republican state committee this week to run against Sen. Tom Carper (there's a perennial gadfly also seeking the nomination). Ting, who was assistant INS commissioner in Bush 41 (and is a Fellow at my Center), has an uphill battle before him, since Carper has $2 million in the bank and near-universal name recognition. But Carper also has a D- grade from Americans for Better Immigration, and if immigration becomes a hotter political issue (there are more illegal immigrants in Delaware than you'd think) Ting, the son of Chinese immigrants and a pro-enforcement hard-liner, could just pull it out.

He's a bit more optimistic on Ting's chances than I might be, but he's right that illegal immigration could become a hot political topic on Delaware sometime soon. Sussex County has a large number of migrant workers, many of whom no doubt are illegal.

As I wrote on my own blog yesterday, we need to come to some rational decision on this issue soon that doesn't reward lawbreakers while still allowing people who wish to join our society to do so. Immigration should be allowed, but we need to acculturize them to our society so that our "Melting Pot" can continue to flourish.

Dennis Spivack wants to Raise Your Taxes..

2006-03-08T11:45:00.000-05:00

At least he's not shy about it. From today's Delaware State News:

Mr. Spivack said his campaign would focus on reducing the number of Americans without health insurance, increasing energy conservation by supporting alternative energy sources and balancing the federal budget without slashing services.

"Slashing services" is oherwise known in the real world as "cutting spending." So, if you're not going to cut spending, and you want to balance the budget, what do you do? Raise taxes and raise 'em often, and stifle the economy. The Bush tax cuts raised federal receipts. In other words, the tax rates were lower, but more money came in due to the prosperity and growth created. The problem here is not on the revenue side, it's on the expenditure side. By not understanding that, Dennis Spivack has proven already that he has no clue.

This is the alternative we're supposed to entertain to Mike Castle?

More Smyrna Election Shenanigans

2006-03-04T07:00:00.000-05:00

Let me qualify this post. I am registered Republican, and consider myself a strict conservative on most issues. My family moved to Smyrna over a year ago, and just recently I started receiving the local news (SC Sun Times) This was when I was (regretfully) enlightened to the bitter political battle between the Mayor and 1/2 of the Town Council. At first, because I tend to side with Republicans based on beliefs, I gave the Mayor (a Republican) the benefit of the doubt and took issue with the Cahill/Mullen/Chervenak alliance. Of course, after doing the proper research on the dispute, I came to the conclusion that the Mayor has engaged in very shady politics. In particular, his use of influence to sway the election last April was troublesome.

Jeff at Stupid And Wrong is pretty much the authority on all that's happening with the Smyrna Elections. I will warn you, Jeff's slant is strictly against Mayor Schaeffer; other than that, by his account and others, he is another conservative. Jeff lived in Smyrna during the last election (where the Mayor used some absentee ballot chicanery to win the election by two votes), but has since moved to Texas for employment reasons. Anyway, it's obvious that Jeff has connections in the heart of the Smyrna political scene, and does an excellent job of reporting facts that are damaging to the Mayor.

Anyway, I'll get to the overall point of this post. I wanted to wait until Jeff had reported a full-blown problem, and he has. Turns out the Smyrna Board of Elections, overseeing the next Town Council elections, contains two members who have familial connections to Schaeffer allies on the Town Council. Now, their political siblings (Councilmen Pressley and Evans) are not up for election directly. Still, given the current state of affairs in Smyrna, this type of conflict of interest is troubling at best.

We'll see at the next TC meeting if something is done about this. Candidates for the BOE should be forthright about their potential conflicts, and it appears that these two approved members did not disclose their relationships to the Town Councilmen. Let's just say that the Mayor is grasping at straws to maintain his control of the Council. Two seats are open, and two candidates are Schaeffer enemies (one being Gene Mullen, Schaeffer's opponent in the questionable Mayoral election last April)

I'll report more as it happens. It saddens me to have to turn my back on Republicans, but this situation is not right. Personally, I'm not sure that the elections will be close enough to allow for shenanigans to occur, but that doesn't mean it's OK to attempt to influence the results.

Choice Words for Mike Protack

2006-03-01T00:30:00.000-05:00

Cute Conservative has something to say to Mr. Protack:

Also, stop embarassing the Republican Party. You are now a laughing stock for the nation because you run for every possible position you can get your hands on, regardless of your qualifications.

Read the whole thing.

Kudos to the Delaware GOP

2006-02-28T22:56:00.000-05:00

I knock the Delaware GOP. A lot. I often feel like they are too obsessed with national politics and money, and not with turning the tide in Delaware. They got skewered by Celia Cohen a week ago, and their tactics are often bitterly partisan and negative. They came down to Sussex very late in the 2004 campaign and had a big fundraiser, taking a big chunk of change out of the county that the Sussex GOP and the local candidates could have used.

But when they do well, integrity demands that I recognize it. And in fact, I have nothing against Strine, Crossan and company personally, and I want them to succeed. And there is a road map for the 2006 elections to be successful, in a state with a 10-point registration deficit.

It looks like all of the Republican incumbents in the legislature have a good chance of returning to their seats. The deregulation issue may have an effect, but there doesn't appear to be many strong challengers at this point. Also, it looks like the R's will retain their vacant seats in the 33rd and the 39th. Pickups are possible in the 13th Rep and the 8th Senate.

Tom Wagner and Mike Castle will be re-elected, maybe by less than they are used to, but re-elected still.

They recruited a solid candidate to face Tom Carper. Make no mistake, Jan Ting will lose. But he'll have a lot to say, and he will force Carper to run and spend. I posted earlier on Ting, and the fact that he'd be a great AG candidate, and that it was a waste to run him against Carper. I said it was a colossal failure if they didn't have a high-quality candidate waiting in the wings.

It looks like they did. Ferris Wharton. Paraphrasing Gerry Fulcher today on WDEL, just lay the resumes side-by-side, and you get your answer. We can stop the vaunted Democratic "bench" in its tracks, and end up with a highly qualified Attorney General. It would also be a statewide pickup, since Carl Denberg is a Democrat.

So in review, it is completely possible that the R's can hold all our incumbents, make Carper sweat a little, and stop the next generation of Democrats in their tracks with an R pickup. The only thing missing is a candidate to oppose Markell and start knocking him down a peg in advance of 2008.

I have to say, at this point, things are looking exciting for the Delaware GOP in 2006.

cross-posted at delathought

Gotta know when to keep your mouth shut....

2006-02-27T14:01:00.000-05:00

Did you see this letter to the editor in Sunday's News-Journal?

Paper endorsed idea of electric deregulation

It is easy to second guess a person's vote like you have with the past vote of legislators regarding the deregulation bill.

If I recall at the time the proposal was on the table, your editorial board endorsed and encouraged the passage of such legislation.

Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

Frank Calio, Laurel

Do you recognize the name of the letter writer? That's Frank Calio, Delaware's Commissioner of Elections, who was investigated by the Attorney General's office for allegedly violating the law by writing political opinion columns in a downstate newspaper. Although cleared by the investigation, Calio agreed to stop writing the column.

I worked for the New Castle County Department of Elections two summers and work as a polling place Inspector for statewide elections. One thing has been made clear to me above all else when working in that capacity: avoid even the hint of partisanship while you work for the Department of Elections. Why would our Commissioner of Elections (who came close to losing his job for expressing his political opinions in a public forum) do so again in an even more public forum? And on what's likely to be the number one issue in this fall's General Assembly elections?

And what was his purpose in writing this letter? Was he unable to control his passion on the issues? Was he trying to put the News-Journal on the defensive to keep them off the legislators' backs through this election cycle? Was he trying to influence the election?

I haven't heard any complaints about his conduct in managing the Election Commission from either political persons or those who work in the Election system. But he raises doubts about his objectivity when he writes like this. Remember Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004? If there's a controversy like that in Delaware while Mr. Calio is in his current position, his earlier writings and letters like these will be used to attack his objectivity and fairness.

I don't think any of us want Delaware to go through that. It's why employees of the Department of Elections aren't supposed to publicly express their opinions. Many of them have strongly held opinions. (Trust me. I enjoy getting under their skin when in private.) But they keep their mouths shut when on the job, don't express their opinions publicly, and do a great job in running a fair election. I'd hate to see my friends suffer because Mr. Calio didn't uphold the same standards the people who work for him do.

Delaware has a great election system. I'd stack ours up against any other state's. But that won't matter if a crisis does come. And Mr. Calio's actions will only make that crisis worse.

Property Tax Increase in NCCo?

2006-02-24T14:16:00.000-05:00

The News Journal reported a few weeks ago that County Execute Chris Coons is considering a large tax increase to head off a projected deficit in the coming years.

The county has dipped into cash reserves to balance the last three budgets, using about $38 million to plug the budget gap. At that rate, cash reserves will be gone by 2009, and a property tax increase of up to 60 percent would be needed to make ends meet, Coons said.
...
Coons said he could play politics and "squeeze down costs and services, run the clock out to 2008 and let the next county executive deal with it."

"But I think the responsible thing to do is have a discussion with council and the public about what's the best balance between services and costs," said Coons, a Democrat whose term expires in 2008.

I'm glad to see he's looking at elminating services, but a word warning: politicans seeking re-election are loathe to make cuts in spending, as any terminated government employees work hard for their defeat, so the taxpayers often wind up paying extra in taxes to maintain unnecessary positions, due to a lack of political courage on the part of our elected officials. (As evidence, the article points out: "[Coons'] cost-saving measures included erasing 39 vacant positions" but says nothing about currently filled positions.) Another warning sign that higher taxes are indeed coming:

Coons won't say until his March 21 budget address whether he'll call for a property tax increase for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.

If he knew taxes weren't going up, he'd be sure to let us know. This is just sound political strategy.

Six of the County Council members are up for election this year, so they'll be most receptive to political pressure to minimize any tax increase. Contacting them and urging them to hold down taxes could be extremely effective. County Council's website is here, and the members representing Districts 1 through 6 are those up for election. Contact them and let them know New Castle County's government should get its own house in order before passing their costs on to the taxpayers.

Jan Ting & Mike Protack

2006-02-21T23:02:00.000-05:00

Earlier this evening, the College Republicans at the University of Delaware hosted both Republican US Senate candidates. Both were given ample time to speak, and both followed their speeches with question and answer sessions.

Jan Ting did very well. This is my third time seeing him doing this sort of talk, and this was the best performance of his I have seen so far. His speach covered a lot of ground, but did so with a style that encapsulated his message without lecturing. Ting seemed to have a clear grasp of the issues and where he stood. He spoke with a tone that allowed him to sound educated, but not condescending. His responses to the questions fielded by the audience sounded thought out and reasoned. It seemed like most of the room had a favorable impression of Ting, especially on immigration (he has also laid out his position here).

After a short recess, Mike Protack was given the floor, and that is where the meeting took an interesting turn. Protack laid out his message, focusing on what he deems to be the big issues of 2006, health care and pensions. Protack talked heavily on re-facing the Republican Party, especially about reaching out to labor unions, and trying to fight for the "working man." Sounds a little too much like the Democrats if you ask me. Apparently, some of the College Republicans in the audience agreed, and asked Protack several pointed questions, both about his positions, and some of his claims.

One member disagreed with him when he said that "most jobs do not require documentation to get." She countered this point with facts that in her five jobs, she had to present documentation to get all of them, in various places, including resteraunts. She said that Protack's statement was misleading, and called him on it, causing him to stammer and try to qualify his answer. She then accused him of dodging the question. Others accused Protack of not exciting the base, and questioning what they called a deluding of values to try to reach out to the middle, rather than the base. In response to that, Protack said something reminiscent of John Kerry in 2004, claiming that his conservative positions were all on his website. Yet another questioned him dilligently on his call for national healthcare. If Mike Protack cannot handle a group of self-identified Republicans in college, how can he expect to do against an established Democratic politician?

After the meeting, Ting stayed and chatted with several students, Protack finished one of his arguments with an audience member, and then left.

Cros-posted at Jokers to the Right.com