DOVER — Some notes and quotes between headlines and deadlines…
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“Our” Joe Biden is back on the big stage again this week in Philadelphia.
He’ll be among the prime-time speakers for the Democratic Party convention.
Somehow, his name and speculation and interest never seem to fade.
A couple of weeks ago, ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos asked Vice President Biden if he would be interested in being Hillary Clinton’s running mate,
“I’m not interested in re-upping for VP,” he replied. “I’ll do anything I can to help her win. And I think she’s going to win, but I have been proud to serve for eight years as vice president, and I think that’s enough.”
Richard Cohen, a longtime political columnist for the Washington Post, wrote a column on July 14 that suggested VP Biden would be a good pick.
“In my circle (an expression I want to revive), Joe Biden is being mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate,” Mr. Cohen wrote. “Of course, Biden is already vice president, and my circle is not exactly Hillary Clinton’s, but more than any of the others mentioned, Biden would balance the ticket. He’s not black, and he’s not Hispanic, and he’s not a woman, but he is an open-handed, warm-hearted, old-fashioned pol. He’s the politician Clinton, try as she might, simply cannot be.”
VP Biden and President Barack Obama will be the featured speakers on Wednesday.
Delaware will send 31 delegates and two alternates to the convention.
When Delaware Democratic Party Chairman John Daniello steps up to the microphone to represent the First State, he’ll announce that the majority of the Delaware delegates support Clinton. Based on the primary election result, 12 are committed to Clinton and nine to Bernie Sanders.
Another 11 super delegates’ votes will be added to those numbers. Thus far, at least six are committed to Clinton.
Delaware State News political reporter Matt Bittle will be on the scene in Philadelphia for some of the convention. Stay tuned for Delaware news from the event.
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In a recent social media post, one Delawarean gave a thumbs-up for commentator-free C-SPAN during the Republican convention, turning away from the cable news networks that interject throughout the event.
How many of you did the same?
We’re interested in hearing reader reaction to the conventions. Send a letter to the editor to newsroom@newszap.com.
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Here’s an odd thought about the Delaware State Fair … there’s always talk about weird fair food, but locally no one ever mentions scrapple. Would that be the case in other states?
Maybe that’s because the Kirby & Holloway stand has been at the Delaware State Fair for 27 years now.
As mentioned last week in this column, our state fair clings to tradition.
We recently heard that the Grange is celebrating its 50th anniversary of serving up platters of chicken in its current building near the grandstand.
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As a follow-up to our collaborative effort to publish the fair’s “Official Program” in the Delaware State News, we want to give a shout-out to Danny Aguilar, the assistant general manager and marketing director for the fair, and his team.
He and assistant Barbara Anne Jones and interns Ali Bishop and Abigail Harrington did a nice job of helping us prepare content for a thorough guide.
Delaware State News News Editor Karen White pulled all of the pages together.
For the next several days, keep an eye out for our coverage by reporters Mike Finney, Craig Anderson and Ashton Brown and entertainment editor Craig Horleman.
Marc Clery, our new chief photographer, has been capturing the spirit of the fair and slideshows of his work there are available at DelawareStateNews.net.
Oh, and you’ll want to keep an eye out for Wednesday’s story on rock-n-roll legend George Thorogood who reflected on his Delaware roots in an interview with Mr. Horleman a few days ago. The two have something in common — both graduated from Brandywine High School in Wilmington. Ironically, a young Horleman’s homeroom desk bore the initials “Lonesome George” etched into it years earlier.
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Last month, this column had a piece on the Air Mobility Command Museum’s Festival of Flight, a celebration of its 30th anniversary.
As another example of the connection retired airmen have to the planes and museum, it was neat to see the comment posted under the column at DelawareStateNews.net.
“I was a crew member on several aircrat from C47 to C97 to C141 and C5As,” wrote Joseph Cotta, a flight engineer. “Loved every minute for 20 years. Met some fantastic crew members, including pilots. Thanks for a wonderful life and now I can enjoy all of the memories.”
In today’s People section, there is a short item on the upcoming Festival of Flight and how to get tickets for the exclusive Friday night party and raffle.