ARCHIVES -- DECEMBER 2003

GOOD-BYE TO 2003

Posted: Dec. 30, 2003

Delawareans had a lot to talk about in 2003 -- the smoking ban, speculation about U.S. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. and a presidential bid, a frightening flood, and federal indictments that never came, among them. Here is a summary of some of the prime political topics of the year.

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POLI-TICKING

Posted: Dec. 23, 2003

It's the little things that make politics tick. This is a column about that. When no one was looking, former Secretary of State Glenn C. Kenton made himself an unconfirmed bachelor. When everyone was looking, Delaware's top officeholders showed up to cheer for the University of Delaware's champion football team.

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"ALL OF DELAWARE WILL MISS HIM"

Posted: Dec. 21, 2003

Delawareans came out for one last public event for former U.S. Sen. William V. Roth Jr., who dominated the state's public life for so many years. At a memorial service Sunday at the University of Delaware, that notable bipartisan mosaic for which the state is known was on display for this Republican legend.

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PRESIDENTIAL INTERLUDE

Posted: Dec. 19, 2003

Joseph I. Lieberman, the Democratic presidential candidate, paid his respects to William V. Roth Jr., his Republican ex-colleague in the Senate, while campaigning Friday in Delaware. Lieberman's appearance was part of a surge of political action that also included events this week for Wesley K. Clark and Howard B. Dean.

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"I AM BILL ROTH"

Posted: Dec. 16, 2003

With an oversized campaign button reading, "I Am Bill Roth," and a Saint Bernard puffing clouds of hair over the voters, William V. Roth Jr. hardly had the look of a U.S. senator and one of the quintessential figures in Delaware politics for the last half of the 20th Century. It was, however, vintage Roth. 

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WILLIAM V. ROTH JR., 1921-2003

Posted: Dec.15, 2003

Former U.S. Sen. William V. Roth Jr., a Republican whose 34 years in statewide office set a record unmatched by any other Delawarean, died Saturday at the age of 82. Read an account of his tenure adapted from Only in Delaware, a modern political history written by Celia Cohen, the political writer for Grapevine.

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ROTH: OBITUARY

Posted: Dec. 15, 2003

Bill Roth's family has scheduled a public memorial service for the senator on Sunday, Dec. 21, at 2 p.m., at Clayton Hall on the University of Delaware campus in Newark in remembrance of the man and his accomplishments, from his governmental principles to his beloved Saint Bernard.

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ROTH: HIS COLLEAGUES MOURN

Posted: Dec. 15, 2003

Gov. Ruth Ann Minner ordered U.S. and Delaware flags be lowered to half-staff Monday for Bill Roth. The governor, U.S. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., U.S. Sen. Thomas R. Carper and U.S. Rep. Michael N. Castle all offered statements on the death of their colleague.

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TAKING PUERTO RICO BY STORM

Posted: Dec. 11, 2003

When the Council of State Governments has an annual meeting in Puerto Rico, somebody has to go. In this case it was Gov. Ruth Ann Minner and 25 state legislators, jetting off just as Delaware was having its first snowstorm of the season. Funny thing about the weather . . .

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TEAM BUSH

Posted: Dec. 9, 2003

Delaware Republicans made their move Tuesday to elbow their way into the state scene on presidential politics, setting up their leadership for George W. Bush's re-election campaign as a counter to the multi-candidate Democratic field that has been getting most of the attention.

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DEMOCRATIC CHAIRMAN FOCUSES ON BATTLEGROUND DELAWARE FOR 2004

Posted: Dec. 8, 2003

Terry McAuliffe, the Democratic national chairman, paid his second visit to Delaware on Monday. Edward W. Gillespie, his Republican counterpart, has come here, too. It is a sure sign that the 2004 presidential election is going to be as hard a fight as the last one, and Delaware will be in the thick of it.

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MIKE CASTLE'S SENIOR MOMENTS

Posted: Dec. 4, 2003

U.S. Rep. Michael N. Castle spent two days this week taking the political pulse at Delaware senior centers as he held town meetings there on the new prescription drug benefit being added to Medicare. He encountered interest, curiosity, perplexity, some frustration and a little worry.

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TO ENDORSE OR NOT TO ENDORSE

Posted: Dec. 2, 2003

Among Delaware's top officeholders, U.S. Sen. Thomas R. Carper and U.S. Rep. Michael N. Castle have said early and often which candidates they want for president. U.S. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Gov. Ruth Ann Minner have left people guessing about their choices -- or even whether they will endorse at all.

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