Merit-bound Alley

How about $300 on makeup?

Will this make Mrs. Mitt the first woman president?

Courtesy of Tyler Patrick Nixon, here is the letter that he handed out to members of the House before Saturday night’s big win. Let’s get him and Karen into office soon, Delaware.

Tyler Patrick Nixon

Wilmington, Delaware

June 30, 2007

TO :    THE DELAWARE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

RE :    ELECTION REFORM PROPOSAL -  INSTANT RUNOFF VOTING

Thank you for your service to the people of Delaware as our representatives in government.   You are the voices we all count on to act in the best interests of the citizenry and ensure government is truly the peoples’ servant and never their master.

This year we have seen legislative proposals introduced to alter Title 15 of our state code – the law governing our elections.   In a republican democracy like ours, there is perhaps no more profound act lawmakers can undertake than to change election laws.   Of all the laws governing the people of Delaware election laws are the only ones that directly determine how and whether the people of Delaware truly govern themselves. 

As you wind up this session and prepare for a well-earned break over the interim adjournment, I would like to offer you some information to consider.  It offers a positive,  progressive means to further democracy and self-governance by expanding the voice of the people in our elections. 

It is a revolutionary voting system called “Instant Runoff Voting” (IRV) that is taking hold around the country in a variety of jurisdictions large and small.  The response of voters has been overwhelming in support of it, wherever it has been proposed or adopted.  The system eliminates many of the problems associated with traditional ballot methods, including “spoiler” and minority-elected candidates.   If adopted in Delaware it could eliminate the need for divisive, contentious party primary contests that often see paltry turnout but nonetheless are conducted at great cost to the taxpayers.

I urge you to consider this proposal as you reflect on the needs of the people of Delaware and the imperative that our elections not be restrictive, corrosive partisan battles but rather free, equal, and worthy contests of ideas and leadership for the future.

Again, thank you for your service to the people of Delaware.  Have a great summer and a happy, successful break until we meet again next year.

                                                                            Best Regards,

                                                                                /signed/

I’ve read novels with fewer pages than the budget bill. As it stands in GA right now, the budget bill is presented on the last day of the current session, and if Saturday was any indicator, within the last two hours. What this means is that our legislators have little more than a few hours to review how they will be spending our money. No one could possibly be able to read and understand the budget in that amount of time. So, what happens when our legislators are completely unaware of how money is being spent? You get the state government buying extraneous buildings for $13 million from huge banks! Awesome!

HB 4 is currently desk-drawered in the Senate Executive committee, headed by Thurman Adams. This bill amends the Delaware Code to require “the annual Budget Bill and Bond Bill to be introduced no later than five (5) legislative days prior to June 30th. This Bill requires the Bond Bill to be introduced no later than three (3) legislative days prior to June 30nd. Any amendment would be introduced no later than June 27th for the Budget Bill or June 29th for the Bond Bill.” (link) This gives critical time for the legislators to review the budget before amending and then voting on it.

The only way we can get this bill out of Sen. Adam’s clutches is to make our voices heard. Please sign the petition to get HB 4 out of committee. It’s just good government.

Matt Marshall brings us the screed* of the day. Is it wrong to feel a little proud?

*Thanks for the term Mike, I’ll give it back when I’m done with it.

This was a very exciting day for me as it was my first trip down to Legislative Hall. For live blogging, I was able to make most posts from my cellphone, with only a little cleanup once I got home. Those damned keyboards are small.

I arrived in Dover at around 2:30 and met up with Mike Matthews and one of our resident anons in the cafeteria shortly thereafter. We also met up with Mark Brunwick and Rep. Gilligan as we waited for the session to begin, and Mike brought up the subject of Civics courses in the public schools. Gilligan said that he thought that the Government and Economics classes offered in the 12th grade were enough, at which point I mentioned that if there were still Civics courses, we may not see so many unchallenged incumbents. I don’t think he likes me anymore. We were then joined by Dana Garrett and Richard Korn.

We moved into the house chamber to see that all of the seats on the floor were reserved for the families of Representatives and the naysayers to SB5. There was some half-serious speculation that the chairs were marked reserved to keep the bloggers off the floor, but that seemed eerily portentous when later in the night, Mike was removed from the floor for using his cellphone. Through the night, we were also joined by Karen Hartley-Nagel, Michael Dore, Tyler Patrick Nixon, and (not surprisingly considering SB5) Jordan Warfel.

The big news is, of course, Dave Burris’ last minute Indiana Jones shit on HB177. Dave explains what happened, but neglects to mention the poison darts and giant boulder. Everyone owes Dave a round of applause and some deep respect for his quick thinking and persuasive arguments. Let’s hope that Dave clues us in on what conclusion he came to about why the Dems were pushing so hard for this bill, other than the general “for power” offered by opponents or the ridiculously childish catchphrases offered by the Dems in support of the bill. As for the vote itself, Mike and I looked at each other in amazement with each vote of “no”, and like a flash of light Democracy had won.

Outside of the chamber, our little cadre was all smiles and hugs. I can’t remember ever feeling so good about something that went down in the government. Two things that I will always remember from last night are Karen’s wonderfully big smile, and Tyler dancing a spontaneous jig on the front steps outside of Legislative Hall. The feeling was that good!

What I’ve learned from this:

• It’s worth quitting smoking just to avoid having to go through security 17 brazillion times.
• Rep. Gilligan is not above sitting and chatting with people who vigorously oppose his legislation. That takes class.
• I don’t know if I’ll ever have the energy and drive that Dana has, but I’d like to.
• It’s amazing how all of our time spent talking, debating, and in some cases agonizing over a bill can come down to about a minute and a half of floor time.
• I am vindicated in my opinion that, despite our disagreement on some matters of policy, Dave Burris is one of the good guys.

UPDATE: It occurred to me that I have given a lot of credit to Dave without mentioning everyone else who worked against this bill: Dana Garrett, Mike Matthews, Tyler Nixon, Karen Hartley-Nagel, Mark Brunwick, and Nancy Willing, among many others. It was not my intention to do so, and I am very sorry. Dave may have spiked it, but the ball was perfectly set for the win.