So 5 years later, how are we looking?

“I believe there are millions of dollars of waste and inefficiency to eliminate from government. We will find it.”

What do you think?  Knowing the details of school budgets I’d say we found it, with some help from a recession that sort of forced our hand a little.

That means cutting back on many government functions and services

Yep, that happened.

I see beyond the gray clouds, to a brighter Delaware.

Clouds were gray today; all day.

A Delaware where every child can grow to his or her full potential. Where every worker has the opportunity to earn as much as possible. Where every family has the health care, housing, and heat they need to live a decent life.

As far as fulfilling the minimum, Delaware is one of the best in the US.

A Delaware that is the best place in the world to go to school, to raise a family, and to start a business.

Not there yet because we are not taxing enough. Our infrastructure looks poor and rundown compared to our neighbors who tax at higher rates and make sure tax dollars get spent into their economies.

We want to start by using the anticipated federal stimulus money not just to build short-term jobs but to create future growth in energy infrastructure and a greener economy,,

Although not green, both Bloom Boxes and the Delaware City refinery are  up and running now, in part to the stimulus money.

 The basis for that economy is education, and we must make Delaware’s education system the best in the world. We currently rank near the top in the nation for education spending per student. It’s time we rank in the top for education results for students.

Reminder: scores went backwards this past year.

We will spend smarter. We will demand accountability from top to bottom. We will retain, recruit, and train the best teachers in America – and we will reward them for carrying out the most valuable job in Delaware. We will demand the performance, promote the innovation, and provide the flexibility to make every school in this state great.

TFA?  Really?

By creating a 21st-century workforce development system that trains workers for the jobs employers need, we will make the term “Delaware workforce” a high-quality credential that employers trust.

See above:  Educational scores went backwards.

We will expand our efforts to promote entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and asset-building. The ultimate goal of all these innovations will be to promote people-centered, community-based development that makes virtually every individual an economic resource rather than a financial responsibility.

Don’t think we are there yet.

Our commitment to supporting Delaware families will not waver. We will work with the federal government to finally bring affordable health care to every Delawarean.

This is happening as I speak.

We will develop a Public Safety Plan to keep every street in Delaware safe.

Needs to become your first priority. Far more than education.

And we will start by opening up state government itself: I pledge that my administration will be more transparent and accountable than any that have come before.

What do you think?

Some might call this agenda ambitious. Some might even call it “audacious.” But audacity is exactly what this day demands. To brave the raging storm, to dare upon the roiling sea, and still to reach for the further shore: My fellow Delawareans, that is our challenge. That is our charge. That is our task. And this is our time.

Since the turnover of staff beginning in 2013, the Governor has become cautious and now plays things safe.  The ambition, audaciousness, and audacity he extolled back then, is burnt out now.

When the torch was passed to a new generation – and, against great odds, like those before them they carried it higher. Let us be that people. Let us be remembered as that generation. Let us seize these times.

Still waiting.