Despite some wins, Delaware Democrats should question their leadership

Matthew Albright | The News Journal

All things considered, the General Assembly got a lot done this year.

Democrats and Republicans negotiated and passed several important gun safety bills, most noticeably red flag laws that will make it possible to take guns out of the hands of potentially dangerous people.

They approved a major plan to beef up the Port of Wilmington, made progress on fixing our broken bail reform system, fixed a glaring funding gap for elementary school special education and implemented paid family leave, to name a few successes.

When you look at a dysfunctional Congress and other gridlocked state legislatures, you've got to think "Hey, things could be a lot worse."

But it is not all sunshine and roses in Legislative Hall. There are still obvious faults in the political machinery.

The biggest of them is that Democratic leaders are not on the same page, and often don't seem to have a coherent vision or strategy. That has caused unnecessary battles and delays, and it has contributed to the defeat of some bills that are supposedly Democratic priorities — when those priorities got votes at all.

Even if you're not a Democrat, there's reason for concern. Another major breakdown like last year's — when lawmakers missed their end-of-session deadline and hastily passed a budget that upset many Delawareans — is still very much on the horizon.

That much was obvious when lawmakers unexpectedly battled long into the night on the last day of the session. Saturday's fight started when the Senate decided late at night to send a $1 minimum wage hike to the House — Speaker of the House Pete Schwartzkopf said he hadn't been planning to work the bill. Upset that they were taking unexpected votes on major economic policy after midnight, House Republicans held up the bill full of capital improvement projects in protest.

So there they were, playing legislative chicken in the wee hours of the morning. They didn't gavel out until after 8 a.m.

Does anybody think this is a good way to make laws?

RELATED: Delaware's legislative season produces plenty of winners, losers

I don't think it was right for Republicans to hold the bond bill hostage over the minimum wage. But it's hard to blame them for being upset — there was no good reason why that vote had to happen at the absolute last minute.

The minimum wage vote was delayed because Senate leaders needed Sen. Brian Bushweller's "yes" vote — and he wouldn't give it until he got his casino tax relief bill passed. The casino bill languished for weeks because of disagreements between the Senate and Schwartzkopf, who hadn't been included in the original negotiations.

This is hardly the only example of majority leaders tripping over each others' feet.

Pretty much nobody in either party opposed banning bump stocks and trigger cranks for guns, but House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst’s bill to do so kept ping-ponging between the two chambers. In the process, it racked up eight — count ‘em, eight! — amendments. The House passed a bill to expand early voting, only for the Senate to rule that the House hadn't gotten enough votes.

Not only is there a rift between Democrats in the two chambers, there's a divide between the legislature and Gov. John Carney. Two major bills the governor backed — an assault weapons ban and a "budget smoothing" plan for state government — never even got floor votes.

If I were a Democrat, I'd be concerned. These sorts of logjams are common and understandable in governments with divided party control — but Democrats hold all the levers of power in Delaware.

I would be particularly worried if I were a progressive Democrat. A bill to ban assault weapons never even saw a floor vote, nor did a bill to fund water infrastructure and cleanup. The General Assembly didn't pass a rewrite of the criminal code, didn't pass all the bail reform bills, didn't legalize marijuana, and had to go to war to move the minimum wage up to $9.25 by October 2019 — the Democratic Party platform calls for $15.

If I were a rank-and-file Democrat, I'd be wondering: Who is in charge here? What's their plan?

In Legislative Hall, many blame Carney for a lack of leadership, saying he hasn't engaged with lawmakers except with the few bills he personally cares about. I've heard this from so many legislators that I have to think there's some truth to it — if Carney wants to make lasting achievements, he's going to have to get his hands dirtier.

But that doesn't absolve Senate and House leaders. There are rampant rumors of personal animosity between some of them; even if those rumors are overstated, there is clearly a communication breakdown.

This problem isn't fatal in good times like this year, when the state budget is on solid ground and there is no political crisis to solve. But the budget is still systemically unbalanced — what happens a year or two from now when lawmakers again face a big deficit?

Carney had a plan with Republican support. It would have created new spending restraints to fill a budget savings account while broadening the income tax base to grow revenue.

However, Democrats in the General Assembly rejected that approach. So what's the plan now? Do legislative leaders have one?

Best I can tell, it's the same as it was last year — raise income taxes. But I haven't seen General Assembly Democrats come up with something to offer Republicans they need to get a compromise.

Much of the future hinges on the elections this fall, particularly given the number of retiring lawmakers. Democrats are hoping for a "blue wave" that will give them supermajorities, which would make the politics way easier. Progressives are hoping to elect senators and representatives that will push harder for the priorities they couldn't get votes on this year.

But what happens if Democrats don't win big in November? What happens if the balance of power in Legislative Hall remains largely the same?

If I were a Democrat, these are the questions I'd be asking. I would be working now to try and get on the same page and come up with a strategy that looks beyond the next fiscal year.

Things may have gone relatively well this year. But when the stakes are higher and the politics are more difficult, Democratic leaders are going to need to step up their game.

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