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Posted: Jan. 3, 2014 WHAT TO RESOLVE FOR 2014?By Celia Cohen The New Year is a time for resolutions, and there is a lot that has to be resolved in Delaware politics in 2014. WHEREAS The Democrats have had it with Chip Flowers, their treasurer whose antic management of the office has gotten him on the wrong side of the governor, the attorney general, the secretary of state, the finance secretary, the budget director and the legislative leadership,
Be it resolved that a party primary is coming. As 2013 ended, there was an underground pre-primary going on. While various names were batted around, the Democrats were hoping they could coalesce around a single candidate to avoid splitting the anti-Flowers vote. It looks like they are settling on Sean Barney, who was the policy director in the governor's office until Dec. 31, when he left, presumably intending to get a campaign started. Meanwhile, the Republicans are expecting a run from Ken Simpler Jr., a financial professional. This race could further resolve whether the Republicans, down 123,000 voters to the Democrats, are still relevant at all. WHEREAS The Democratic majority in the legislature was living large as it pushed through a tax on the upper-income bracket, a background check on private gun sales, gay marriage and transgender rights,
Be it resolved that the General Assembly could still get even more liberal in 2014. Bills that would repeal the death penalty and raise the minimum wage went through the Senate last year but got stuck in committee in the House of Representatives. The pressure will be on to get them unstuck. WHEREAS The four words most uttered in political circles are, "What's up with Beau?" Be it resolved that the Republicans have quite the conundrum on their hands as they try to figure out what to do about a candidate against Beau Biden, the now-you-see-him-now-you-don't Democratic attorney general. The Republicans made the strategic decision not to field a candidate in 2010, the last time Biden was on the ballot, to keep his father-the-vice-president sidelined, but do they dare do it again in 2014 with Biden's wellbeing such a mystery? It has the Republicans afraid of recruiting someone for attorney general and afraid of not recruiting someone for attorney general. WHEREAS The state has been chief justice-less since Myron Steele left the Supreme Court on Nov. 30, and although it is well-known the Judicial Nominating Commission did its work and sent Jack Markell, the Democratic governor, a list of four possible replacements, he left them hanging over the holidays, namely Justice Carolyn Berger, Chancellor Leo Strine Jr., Chief Judge Jim Vaughn Jr. and Judge Jan Jurden, Be it resolved that Markell pick someone already! ### |
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