Phillips crashes radio chat with opponent

Originally published Aug. 29, 2014

The scene: Talk radio station Delaware 105.9 FM's Lewes studio. The players: Host Dan Gaffney; his invited guest for the hour, Sussex County Council candidate Rob Arlett; and then, suddenly, a guest Gaffney would soon eject from the room: Arlett's opponent in the Sept. 9 primary, incumbent Council member Vance Phillips.

In a highly unscripted encounter whose awkwardness carried quite clearly over the airwaves, Phillips surprised Gaffney and Arlett Thursday by dropping in on their one-on-one chat about Arlett's campaign stances and answers to listener calls.

The episode was not the first time Gaffney and Phillips, a long-serving GOP county official, got into a testy exchange on-air. It started when Gaffney interrupted Arlett, a real-estate agent who is Phillips' only challenger in the Republican primary, in mid-sentence.

"Vance Phillips, your opponent, has just walked in the studio. Vance, I thought we had an agreement for next Tuesday," Gaffney said.

"How you left it was, this was an open debate," Phillips countered. "I was under the impression that I would be welcome."

Listeners then learned the following: Gaffney and Phillips had been texting each other for days to set up an on-air interview. Phillips told Gaffney Thursday morning was out because he had a scheduled surgery, one of many following a 2011 ultralight-plane accident that damaged his spine; Gaffney believed Phillips would come to the studio on Tuesday, Sept. 2, instead. Phillips said the surgery got rescheduled – so there he was.

"I would say, I've not eaten anything in two days. I might be a little off," Phillips said matter-of-factly. "But I thought I'd be welcome. If I'm intruding I can leave."

At first, Gaffney seemed like he'd ignore the second candidate in the room, and took a caller who had a question for Arlett about farmland preservation. But then Gaffney said: "Since Vance has walked in in the middle of this interview, what is it you'd like to say? You walked in and sat yourself down there."

"I think it's important the voters hear both our voices," Phillips said calmly. "I've never seen you look so puzzled, Dan."

The next caller, Eileen in Lewes, was the first one to take in just what was transpiring. And she didn't like it.

"You have a perfect example of what I've always thought about Sussex County politics and the way things work," she said. "I don't have to have an appointment! I can do what I want, come and go as I want – I'm running the show. Good ol' boys network."

It didn't get any better for Phillips from there. "Does the caller have a point?" Gaffney asked as Arlett, still in the studio, said nothing to interrupt things. [He later called the episode "shameful" for Phillips, and said it shows "the opponent thinks it's all about him."] "The only person doing an ambush here is you."

Phillips gave no ground. "You didn't respond [to a text message] for two days, Dan. I thought that was a little rude," he said. "I'm sure you've got callers lined up to attack me."

"I am not lining up any callers. You're outta your mind," Gaffney said, sounding exasperated. "Are you on pain meds? I'm serious."

After two more calls, Gaffney collected his thoughts well enough to propose a next step: Both candidates could come on the show together on Tuesday, Sept. 2 in the morning for a debate. Arlett was fine with that.

Phillips, though, said he'd hoped for a one-on-one chat that day, the kind Arlett was having with Gaffney before his surprise entrance. "That's a little disappointing," he said. "I did make an extra effort to get here."

Which is when Gaffney booted him out. "Could you leave now? I would like you to leave," Gaffney said.

Phillips made an exit, perhaps not a graceful one. "Because Dan doesn't have his ducks lined up, we'll do it next Tuesday," he said to Arlett, and the audience, as he left.

A few weeks ago, it was Phillips who grew exasperated with Gaffney on-air. The host asked Phillips to say something about a much-publicized lawsuit targeting him as a defendant. The plaintiff, a young woman who worked in Sussex GOP politics, accused Phillips of sexual abuse that terrified her so much she feared telling anyone about it. Phillips, in court papers, denied any wrongdoing but isn't willing to say much about the suit otherwise, citing legal advice.

"Do you deny the allegations?" Gaffney asked him several times in the Aug. 1 interview, which took place in a crowded Bridgeville restaurant serving breakfast.

"Dan, are you gonna just really try to ruin this interview by putting this out there when you know that I can't say a thing?" Phillips replied then. "If you and my other detractors want to either entertain Sussex County with this very unfortunate set of circumstances, it really does question your professionalism, I believe."

Sussex's other talk-radio station, WGMD 92.7 FM, announced the two candidates would be on its airwaves Tuesday, Sept. 2 as well, beginning at 7:06 a.m.

Contact James Fisher at 983-6772, on Twitter @JamesFisherTNJ or jfisher@delawareonline.com.