Gov. Meyer stressed early education, rural healthcare, housing, and energy prices in his second State of the State address Thursday.
And Democratic lawmakers generally agree with those priorities, but State Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton expressed disappointment in Meyer’s silence on immigration policy.
I was actually initially very excited by the State of the State. I was disappointed though to see a glaring omission from his speech which is immigrants. Unfortunately it was, I think, one sentence in the speech that was very vague about vulnerable communities and doing what's right, but nothing specific" she said.
Wilson-Anton says immigration is a large issue for her constituents in House District 26, and she would have liked to see Meyer address ICE action in the state directly. She says that many in District 26 are living in fear, and are looking to the Governor for guidance.
"ICE is assaulting our communities, kidnapping family members. In the cover of night, in the middle of the day. Just this week, in my district.... ICE was kidnapping people off of the street" she said.
Democrat sentiment remains broadly optimistic, however.
Democratic Senator Trey Paradee says that he's looking forward to working with the Governor and his team on their upcoming budget. Paradee was named by the Governor in his address for his actions to address Meyer's declared literary emergency in the First State-
"It's nice to be acknowledged for your work in this building. It was especially nice to hear him mention my father, who passed away a few months ago. It really meant a lot to me to hear my father's name acknowledged." he told DPM.
Charlie Paradee was one of several notable individuals that Meyer mentioned as having passed in 2025 during his speech, alongside former Governor Mike Castle, John Kowalko, John Brady, Dr. Jerome Lewis, Ray Firmani, and First Corporal Ty Snook.
What caught Republican lawmakers’ attention was what they called a more amicable tone than a year ago - and Meyer’s commitment to exploring nuclear power options to address the state’s growing energy needs.
Still, House Minority Whip Lyndon Yearick says the speech left something to be desired.
I think the speech lacked a lot of specifics- that will come with the budget. Where your priorities are is where your put your money. The situation where we are with energy today are the results of actions and inactions over the last 10 to 20 years." he said. "There’s a reason why those bills are going up. So yes, we will 110% get behind the exploration of nuclear, but that’s not going to solve anything tomorrow.”
House Minority Leader Gerald Hocker agrees, arguing Democratic action in previous legislatures are the cause of rising energy prices. He also took issue with Meyer’s direct callout of Delmarva Power, a sentiment echoed by many Republican lawmakers.
But Hocker says he did feel better about Meyer’s overall tone in this year’s State of the State
“My reactions today were nowhere what they were a year ago. A year ago I thought he did a campaign speech slamming the Republican party. His tone this year was much different.” he said.
Hocker says he still doesn't feel like the spirit of compromise is really present in legislative hall,
"There's very little compromise in this building. Most of what I see is: 'We got the votes, we're going to do it.' And that isn't the best for the taxpayers, nor the residents, of the State of Delaware" he said.
House Republicans note they do appreciate Meyer’s goal of lowering state budget growth below 5%, which Meyer promised his upcoming budget will accomplish.
Democratic lawmakers also now wait to see Meyer’s budget plan. He’ll unveil his budget proposal next week.
