In a post on her campaign website, McMahon says she has financial relationships with eight delegates. Three of them are campaign staff: Stefanie Tinti of Newington, Alex Levin [...]]]> Two days before the state Republican convention, U.S. Senate candidates Linda McMahon and Chris Shays released a list of delegates with paid ties to their campaigns.

In a post on her campaign website, McMahon says she has financial relationships with eight delegates. Three of them are campaign staff: Stefanie Tinti of Newington, Alex Levin of Middletown and Justin Clark of West Hartford, who managed Tom Foley’s gubernatorial bid in 2010.

The remaining five — Jeff Santopietro of Waterbury, former state Senator Lou DeLuca of Woodbury, Michael Iezzi and Amy Iezzi of Hamden and Michael McGarry of Hartford — are vendors who have sold goods or services to the campaign.

Shortly after McMahon posted the list, one of her rivals for the nomination, former congressman Christopher Shays, released a list of delegates who are being paid by his campaign.

Steve Basserman and state Rep. Penny Bacchiochi are listed as Shays campaign staffers and state Rep. Brenda Kupchick is listed as a former staffer. Margaret Derisio is listed as convention staff and Charlie Devan and Bryan Perry are vendors.

McMahon was criticized following the 2010 Republican convention for paying delegates.The controversy prompted some Republicans to push for a change in party rules that would require any delegates on a candidate’s payroll to wear a badge identifying that fact while they were on the convention floor. The effort to require the badge failed.

This year, when the allegation was levied again, McMahon’s campaign pledged to release a list of all those who are on her payroll.

Clark  said Roraback embodies the spirit of a New England Republican and is the one Republican who can win in the race, for a seat being vacated by Chris Murphy, [...]]]> Mike Clark, a Republican running in the 5th Congressional District, announced Wednesday that he was leaving the race and throwing his support behind Andrew Roraback.

Clark  said Roraback embodies the spirit of a New England Republican and is the one Republican who can win in the race, for a seat being vacated by Chris Murphy, who is running for U.S. Senate. Democrats have endorsed Chris Donovan, the General Assembly’s speaker of the House, for the seat.

Roraback said that he was humbled and honor to have Clark’s support, and that he felt his candidacy was peaking at the right time. Republicans will endorse candidates for U.S. Senate and Congress at their state convention in Hartford on Friday.

A former FBI agent and local official in Farmington, Clark, 57, had trouble getting traction in the crowded 5th District race and his fundraising has lagged. He acknowledged Wednesday that he did not have the support of enough delegates to make inroads at Friday’s convention.

Four other Republicans — Roraback, Justin Bernier, Mark Greenberg, and Lisa Wilson-Foley — are also seeking the party’s endorsement.

Clark made his announcement at a 4 p.m. press conference held outdoors at his Farmington headquarters. A TV reporter asked Clark if he would be making his announcement from a podium. Clark said, “If could afford a podium, I’d still be in the race.”

State GOP Chairman Jerry Labriola congratulated Clark for running a good race.

Daily, the influential co-chair of the General Assembly’s finance committee, since 1993 has represented the 33rd Senate District — which includes Chester, Clinton, Colchester, Deep River, East Haddam, [...]]]> Citing health issues, state Sen. Eileen M. Daily, D-Westbrook, said Tuesday that she will retire from the state Senate upon completion of her current term, her 10th.

Daily, the influential co-chair of the General Assembly’s finance committee, since 1993 has represented the 33rd Senate District — which includes Chester, Clinton, Colchester, Deep River, East Haddam, East Hampton, Essex, Haddam, Lyme, Portland, Westbrook and part of Old Saybrook. Senator Daily is a former first selectman of Westbrook, and before that served on the town’s board of education.

“In the past year holding office has become more physically demanding for me and it would be difficult to initiate a re-election campaign. I’ve been diagnosed with cancer, endured chemotherapy and associated treatment, and am presently recuperating from a broken ankle,” Daily said in a statement.

“During the last weeks of this session I was challenged to maintain the pace required at the Capitol. As I review my 20-year tenure and consider the future, I’ve settled on this plan with complete confidence that it’s time for another voice to speak for this district,” Daily said. “I am also literally blessed with a loving husband and family – Jim and I eagerly look forward to spending more time with our children and grandchildren.”

Daily is the second of 22 incumbent Democratic state senators in a week to announce that she will retire after 2012. Sen. Edith Prague, D-Columbia, announced last week that she will be retiring, as well.

Daily listed among her accomplishments her co-authoring of “breakthrough legislation” creating the Small Town Economic Assistance Program, or STEAP, through which grants are available for public works projects that small towns might otherwise be unable to afford. Daily also “co-authored legislation creating a fund for open space acquisition statewide, and was instrumental in preserving many acres of open space in her district,” the statement said.

However, one open-space issue that caused controversy for Daily was her support of the so-called Haddam land swap. Under that proposal, which outraged many environmental advocates, the state would have transferred 17 acres of public open-space land in Haddam, overlooking the Connecticut River, to private developers in exchange for 87 wooded acres that the developers owned elsewhere in town, away from the river.

Daily pushed legislation providing for the swap through the legislature in 2011, but the swap fell through earlier this year as property appraisals indicated the 17 state-owned acres are worth $1.3 million more than the developers’ 87 acres. Rather than make up the difference in values with cash or other property, the developers withdrew from the deal.

Daily also identified several short- and long-term project as being “among the many gratifying instances of bringing state resources to bear” in her district. They included:

–Sediment detention and ice control in a federal-state Salmon River Flood Control Project.
–Inclusion of the Eight Mile River Watershed within the national Wild and Scenic River program.
–A comprehensive, federal-state dredging project for the Westbrook harbor, which is to begin next fall.
–Acquisition of property in Haddam for new athletic and recreational fields.
–Grants to 33rd District towns through STEAP for infrastructure improvement.

Daily said her office “remains open and available, as always, to help municipal government officials and constituents.”

As reported yesterday, East Lyme First Selectman Paul Formica will be making his announcement official tomorrow. And today comes word that Doug Dubitsky, a lawyer from North Windham , is also launching [...]]]> The two Republicans considering running for Congress in the 2nd Congressional District have made their decisions — and they are both jumping in.

As reported yesterday, East Lyme First Selectman Paul Formica will be making his announcement official tomorrow. And today comes word that Doug Dubitsky, a lawyer from North Windham , is also launching a bid to unseat Democratic U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney.

“Time is running out to preserve our freedom from an out-of-control federal government determined to ‘fundamentally transform’ our nation with crushing debt and oppressive regulations,” Dubitsky said in a press release announcing his candidacy. “We must win at the ballot box to restore the private sector’s ability to innovate and create good -paying American jobs without being hamstrung by overbearing bureaucracy.”

Dubitsky sought Republican endorsement in 2010 but lost to former television anchor woman Janet Peckinpaugh.

Both Dubitsky and Formica are entering the race less than a week before the 2012 GOP convention, which will be held Friday,

Their announcements come after state Rep. Chris Coutu dropped out of the race to pursue a run for state Senate instead.

Madison businesswoman Daria Novak is also seeking the Republican nomination.

“I’ve received calls from two [...]]]> News that Republican Chris Coutu is forgoing a run for Congress in favor of a seat in the state Senate has set off a scramble in the 2nd Congressional District among some Republicans, who are reportedly reconsidering their political options less than a week before the state party convention.

“I’ve received calls from two candidates who were evaluating their options after the withdrawal of Rep. Coutu,” state Republican party Chairman Jerry Labriola said Saturday. “We had discussions. I’m not sure what the outcome will be.”

Coutu, a state representative from Norwich, said last week he was abandoning his run for Congress and would instead run for the state Senate after Democrat Edith Prague announced her retirement.

There is already another Republican running for the 2nd District seat — Madison businesswoman Daria Novak. Reached Saturday afternoon, Novak said her campaign is doing “extremely well” and that she expects to receive the party endorsement at the convention on Friday.

“We have strong support,” Novak said. “There is no other announced Republican in the race.”

But that could change in the next few days: sources said two Republicans, East Lyme First Selectman Paul Formica and Doug Dubitsky, a lawyer and farmer from eastern Connecticut who ran for the seat in 2010, are contemplating a run for the 2nd District seat, currently held by Democrat Joe Courtney.

UPDATE: After this item was posted, I received a press release from Formica, affirming that he is getting into the race. “It’s time we look at where we are as a country and take immediate action to guarantee that the ‘American Dream’ will be available for every generation of future Americans. We need to be able to leave our kids a truly ‘United’ States of America that is safe and financially secure,” he said in the release.

Formica, whois also a small business owner, plans to make a formal announcement on Tuesday during stops  in East Lyme, Colchester, Enfield and Vernon.

Labriola said any Republican from the 2nd District has the right to enter the race, but, he added, “we have a good candidate, Daria Novak, still remaining in the race.”

Labriola has pledged to be a “fair and honest” broker, saying as party chairman he would not take sides in internal Republican contests.

“It remains to be determined whether any one of those prospective candidates will enter the race in light of change of circumstances” following Coutu’s withdrawal, the chairman said.

But, he added: “When there’s an opening in politics, its not unusual that people would take a look at it.”

Senate Republican leader John McKinney and House leader Larry Cafero held a post-session press conference that differed sharply with Malloy’s end-of-session speech and post-session news conference.

Malloy hailed the accomplishments of the past 16 months, but [...]]]> Top Republican leaders blasted Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Thursday for “rhetoric” that they said “doesn’t match the facts.”

Senate Republican leader John McKinney and House leader Larry Cafero held a post-session press conference that differed sharply with Malloy’s end-of-session speech and post-session news conference.

Malloy hailed the accomplishments of the past 16 months, but Republicans said Malloy has failed to keep his long-held promises of switching the state’s finances to generally accepted accounting principles and avoiding all gimmicks in balancing the budget. Republicans voted against many of Malloy’s initiatives that were approved this year by the Democratic-controlled legislature.

“What the citizens of Connecticut should be concerned about is one party government doesn’t work,” McKinney told reporters Thursday. ”One party government has given us the largest tax increase in the history of the state of Connecticut. … It has given us a budget that is not honest and transparent like the taxpayers deserve. One party government has given us an economy that is still struggling.”

“Governor Malloy talked last night about the dramatic change over the last 16 months,” McKinney said. “During the creation of the Malloy budget, with the largest tax increase in state history … he said we were going to take the road less traveled. And in taking that road, we’ve ended up right back where we started: 29 states have budget surpluses. Connecticut, taking that road less traveled, had a budget deficit.”

McKinney added, “Governor Malloy, we’re not fooled by your budget gimmicks. He said he was going to be honest and transparent and have GAAP accounting. Rather than cut spending, Governor Malloy gave up GAAP accounting. There’s no more honesty and transparency.”

But Malloy presented a completely different picture early Thursday morning in discussing the just-completed session during a speech in the historic Hall of the House. In a speech that lasted 10 minutes, Malloy ticked off a series of changes that had been made, including allowing Sunday alcohol sales and permitting Election Day voter registration. He did not mention two major, controversial issues that he supported: repealing the death penalty and legalizing medical marijuana.

“ Over the course of the last 16 months we have pushed more change through these two chambers than has occurred in Connecticut in a long, long time,” Malloy said in his speech. “Positive, meaningful change. We’ve changed our economy – growing thousands of new, private sector jobs for the first time in years. We’ve created 18,100 new, private sector jobs in the past 16 months, and the unemployment rate is 20 percent lower than it was the first time I spoke here. We’ve gone from being two-tenths of a point above the national unemployment rate to a half point below.”

After listing the items that were approved, Malloy said, “That’s a lot of change. It’s required a lot of tough decisions to be made. Along the way, I have to admit, it’s ruffled a lot of feathers. That’s because change is hard.

“Let me repeat: change is hard. But change is also necessary. While the world changed, and while states around us changed, Connecticut stood still. Now, thanks to the men and women in this chamber, that’s no longer the case. Now, Connecticut is changing, too – for the better.”

Malloy continued, “You should be proud of what you’ve accomplished, but we should all remember how much more work there is to do. We need to continue to focus on creating jobs.”

At a Thursday morning news conference, Malloy said he probably would sign the Sunday alcohol sales bill next week, and that sales could start the following Sunday, May 20. In addition, the first holiday sales would be this year on Memorial Day.

But McKinney said the reality is different from the talk of accomplishments.

“The same governor who wanted to spend over a half a billion dollars on a useless busway from New Britain to Hartford is taking money away from fixing and repairing roads and bridges,” McKinney said.

He added, “Last but not least, one party government gave us a downgrade in our bond rating and probably another one in the future: $222 million borrowed for operating expenses by Governor Malloy – the governor who said no fiscal gimmicks. … The rhetoric doesn’t match the facts.”

After McKinney’s initial remarks, Cafero said, ”Using Governor Malloy’s standards that he set for himself, I believe we had a failed session. To give credit where it’s due, we did education reform. Was it historic, bold and sweeping? No. That’s not his fault. It’s something we should have done a long time ago. … [To give] credit where it’s due, we did a bipartisan education reform package.”

McKinney, though, complained that the Democratic majority delivered the 185-page education bill to the Republicans late at night and started the debate soon after in the 36-member Senate.

“I guarantee you that over 30-plus members of the state Senate did not read that bill, and that’s not right,” McKinney said. “You can’t call it good government when you’re asking senators to vote on bills they have not read.”

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said Thursday morning that he probably would sign the Sunday alcohol sales bill next week, and that sales could start the following Sunday, May 20.

The governor made his remarks during a post-legislative-session morning news conference with reporters.

Malloy hailed the accomplishments of the session, [...]]]> Courant staff writer Kathleen Megan reports:

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said Thursday morning that he probably would sign the Sunday alcohol sales bill next week, and that sales could start the following Sunday, May 20.

The governor made his remarks during a post-legislative-session morning news conference with reporters.

Malloy hailed the accomplishments of the session, as he had in his remarks to lawmakers shortly after midnight the night before.

When asked where he goes from here, the governor said, “I’m really looking forward to pushing my commissioners and managers to continue the process of restructuring Connecticut state government, to modernize it, to bring higher uses of technology to the fore for the purposes of cutting expenses in the state.”

He said he had already been meeting with those commissioners to talk about such issues as the environment, economic development, transportation, tax policy and social services. He specifically referenced the “burgeoning number of people on the autism spectrum and what those implications are for long-term management.”

He said he was “looking forward to time to delve deeper into those issues and bring results forward.”

Malloy also said that, despite all the non-economic issues that came during the 2012 session that ended Wednesday, the administration never took its eye off jobs creation.  “Now,” Malloy said, “we’ll be talking about jobs more in the future as we try to rebuild Connecticut’s economy.”

Asked about campaign finance bill that passed during the session, he reiterated that he has concerns about it but said he has not reached any conclusion. He said first needs to study the bill and reach out to legal scholars about it.

The [...]]]>

“Lt. Governor Wyman, Mr. Speaker, Senator Williams, Representative Cafero, [...]]]> The following are Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s prepared remarks to the General Assembly early Thursday morning following the end of the legislative session. He stepped to the podium at 12:22 a.m. Thursday in the historic Hall of the House for a speech that lasted 10 minutes.

“Lt. Governor Wyman, Mr. Speaker, Senator Williams, Representative Cafero, Senator McKinney. Thank you. It’s always an honor for me to address this chamber.
I’ll be brief in my remarks tonight, but there are a few things that I’d like to say.
Over the course of the last 16 months we have pushed more change through these two chambers than has occurred in Connecticut in a long, long time.
Positive, meaningful change.
We’ve changed our economy – growing thousands of new, private sector jobs for the first time in years. We’ve created 18,100 new, private sector jobs in the past 16 months, and the unemployment rate is 20% lower than it was the first time I spoke here. We’ve gone from being 2/10 of a point above the national unemployment rate to a half point below.
With our Design Build legislation, and with our project labor agreements, we’ve changed the way construction projects will get done in Connecticut – and, in the process, we’ll create thousands of good paying jobs.
We’ve changed our state’s finances – we’ve closed the worst-in-the-nation deficit and we’re firmly committed to keeping our books honestly for the first time in a long time.
We’ve changed our blue laws to bring us in line with our neighbors – and we’ve begun the process of making our liquor laws more consumer-friendly.
We’ve changed our election laws – and in the process we are making it easier for people to participate in their democracy.
We’ve changed the way that we respond to major weather events – and in the process, the state and its utilities will be better prepared to handle emergencies.
We’ve made more intelligent changes to our criminal justice system – and in the process we’re continuing to restore confidence in the system’s accuracy and fairness. Those changes are part of the reason crime is at its lowest rate in 44 years.
And now, thanks to votes you made over the past few days, we’re changing our public schools.
We’re putting more education dollars into our lowest performing districts, something almost no other state is doing – and we’re ensuring that those dollars will be spent wisely.
We’re creating a thousand additional seats for young children to have a chance at pre-kindergarten learning experiences.
And we’re recognizing and supporting our teachers, administrators, parents and students in ways they’ve been asking us to for years.
That’s a lot of change. It’s required a lot of tough decisions to be made. Along the way it’s ruffled a lot of feathers. That’s because change is hard.
Let me repeat: change is hard.
But change is also necessary. While the world changed, and while states around us changed, Connecticut stood still.
Thanks to the men and women in this chamber, that’s no longer the case. Now Connecticut is changing, too – for the better.
Before my friends on either side of the aisle get nervous, let me say that I’m not declaring victory or suggesting our work is done. Far from it.
But just as it would be a mistake to declare anything resembling victory, it would also be a mistake not to acknowledge how much good work has been done in the past 16 months. You should be proud of what you’ve accomplished, but we should all remember how much more there is to do.

We need to continue to focus on creating jobs – every day, that should be our first thought.
We need to continue to be vigilant about the state’s finances.
We are in much better shape than we were 16 months ago, but we’re not where we need to be yet.
Let’s keep squeezing every dollar we can out of state government. Let’s make government more efficient. Let’s continue the conversion of the state’s books to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
And now that we have passed a bold education reform package, a package that has the potential to allow our state to pull ahead of other states instead of lagging behind, we must implement that change. If we do this, someday our children will thank us.
As we end this legislative session, I want to acknowledge all of the legislators, Republican and Democrat, who’ve decided not to seek reelection. Thank you for your service.
But I do want to make a specific point of acknowledging two of those who will be leaving.
First, Senator Edith Prague. Your advocacy on behalf of your constituents, and on behalf of every senior citizen in this state, has been admirable. Senator, you are a remarkable woman, and this place won’t be the same without you.
Second, the Speaker of the House, Chris Donovan, who after 20 years as a state representative, including the last four years as Speaker of the House, is leaving to run for another office. Mr. Speaker, you’ve fought hard for what you believe in. Congratulations on all you’ve accomplished in your time here.
I want to thank the hardest working Lieutenant Governor in the nation, Nancy Wyman. I could not have a better friend, partner, or confidante.
Finally, I want to say something to every member of the legislature. Being a legislator is supposed to be a part-time job, but it’s turned into a full-time commitment.
What you do is not easy. There are nights, like this past week, when you don’t get to go home. Nights when you miss dinner with your family or your child’s soccer game or recital. Nights when you’re so tired you have to pull over when you’re driving home.
Simply put, citizens may not see how hard you work. But I do.
And you do this for only one reason: because you believe in public service. Because you believe you have an obligation to give something back to your community. Because you know we all have a responsibility to leave the world a better place for our having been in it.
So on behalf of your constituents, let me say thank you.
We might not have always agreed, but I respect the passion and commitment you bring to the work you do.
Together we’ve made a lot of progress in 16 months. But we have a lot more to do.
So let’s get it done.
Thank you, God bless you, and God bless the great State of Connecticut.”

Informally called the “Bysiewicz Bill,” it grew out [...]]]> A  bill that would have simplified the qualifications for service as Connecticut’s attorney general has failed for the second straight year. The measure became officially dead Wednesday at midnight, when the 2012 legislative session adjourned without the Senate or House ever bringing it up for a vote.

Informally called the “Bysiewicz Bill,” it grew out of Democrat Susan Bysiewicz’s unsuccessful effort to win her party’s 2010 nomination for attorney general.  The bill would have set the requirement for attorney general simply as 10 years’ admission to the Connecticut bar as a lawyer. That would have been a change from the current, 115-year-old requirement that a person have at least 10 years’ experience in the “active practice” of law in Connecticut.

In 2010, the state Supreme Court blocked Bysiewicz’s attorney general campaign effort by ruling her ineligible for the office. It ruled that the vague requirement for 10 years’ “active practice” means “at least some experience litigating cases in court.” Bysiewicz had been a lawyer more than 10 years but had not tried a case in court.

Democratic proponents of the “Bysiewicz Bill” this year never overcame Republicans’ criticism that the proposed change would render meaningless the legal qualifications required to serve as attorney general. If all a person had to do was pass the bar exam and then just pay the annual fees to maintain a law license for 10 years, he or she could do some job that is completely unrelated to the law and still become attorney general, the critics said.

Rep. Gerald M. Fox III, D-Stamford, co-chairman of the legislative judiciary committee, said Wednesday night that no one could agree on new wording this year. Each time language was proposed to describe the quality or quantity of legal work that an attorney general candidate needs to have done, it seemed to open up a further risk for future legal challenges to a candidate’s eligibility for the office, Fox said.

“I’m still hopeful that we cab get something through next year,” Fox said.

The next election for state attorney general is in 2014.

Bysiewicz is now seeking the Democratic nomination for this year’s U.S. Senate nomination. Her Democratic rival in 2010, former state Senate Majority Leader George Jepsen, went on to win the election and now is state attorney general.