DOVER — Some notes and quotes between headlines, deadlines and holiday shopping lines …
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At the close of the year, we’re looking back on a year of politics and looking forward with some uncertainty to a year of election impacts on our state and the country.
Next Sunday, the From the Editor column will feature a look back at the Delaware State News’ top stories in 2016.
Additionally, we’re excited to share some of the best photos of the year by Delaware State News chief photographer Marc Clery, who is now in his fourth decade of Delaware photojournalism.
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The Associated Press released its top 10 stories of the year following a poll of the nation’s editors and news directors.
“The turbulent U.S. election, featuring Donald Trump’s unexpected victory over Hillary Clinton in the presidential race, was the overwhelming pick for the top news story of 2016,” wrote the AP’s David McCrary. “The Top 10 reflected a year marked by political upheaval, terror attacks and racial divisions.”
Mr. McCrary wrote of the No. 1 story, the election: “This year’s top story traces back to June 2015, when Donald Trump descended an escalator in Trump Tower, his bastion in New York City, to announce he would run for president. Widely viewed as a long shot, with an unconventional campaign featuring raucous rallies and pugnacious tweets, he outlasted 16 Republican rivals. Among the Democrats, Hillary Clinton beat back an unexpectedly strong challenge from Bernie Sanders, and won the popular vote over Trump. But he won key Rust Belt states to get the most electoral votes, and will enter the White House with Republicans maintaining control of both houses of Congress.”
The remaining top 10:
2. Britons’ vote to leave the European Union; 3. Black men killed by police; 4. Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando, Florida; 5. Worldwide terror attacks; 6. Attacks on police; 7. Democratic party email leaks; 8. Syria; 9. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s death; 10. Hillary Clinton’s emails.
Locally, President-elect Trump’s run for president was a hot topic, before and after his rally in Harrington.
Certainly, our Opinion page reflected the divisive nature of 2016 politics.
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Thinking about quotes of the year, U.S. Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., may have offered the most memorable. State News reporter Matt Bittle jotted it down at the Democratic Party Jamboree in September.
Sen. Coons referred to President-elect Trump as “a thin-skinned reality TV star, a Cheeto-faced short-fingered vulgarian who is a serial developer of casinos and beauty pageants and whose knowledge of Russia and Putin and his crimes of invading his neighboring countries seems so shallow as to shock the conscience.”
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In 2017, we will be closely covering Delaware politics.
Three big stories are on the horizon:
First, there is a special Senate election coming up in Middletown that will determine whether Republicans or
Democrats will hold the majority in Delaware Senate.
Democrats have held the Senate majority since 1973.
The election will fill the open seat created by Democratic Sen. Bethany Hall-Long’s election to the lieutenant governor’s office.
(Can you believe the lights have been off in the lieutenant governor’s office for two years following Matt Denn’s move to Delaware attorney general?)
Already, Delaware is discussing a major budget deficit, so we’ll be interested in seeing how Gov.-elect John Carney and the General Assembly find a solution.
And, as we have wondered for quite a while now, will there be a reduction in the gaming taxes on Kent County’s casinos?
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The staff of the Delaware State News wishes our readers “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Hanukkah.”
Thank you for another year of your support and readership.
We hope you enjoy the many holiday greetings from our advertisers in today’s edition.