Governor-elect Dan Malloy expressed surprise Wednesday at how the National Journal described him as blasting the White House in remarks Tuesday to the New Democratic Leadership Council in Washington.
Malloy told his Washington audience that the Democratic Party did a poor job of “messaging,” giving a milder assessment than President Obama have given his own administration and party.
“I was not strident or overly critical or critical,” Malloy said. “Actually, I said exactly of the election that which the president has said.”
Malloy said he has not had contact since Monday with the White House, but the governor-elect’s staff was furious that Malloy was portrayed at odds with Obama, who campaigned in Connecticut the weekend before the election.
“I am a supporter of the president,” Malloy said. “I appeared with him every time he came to Connecticut.”
Malloy said he has defended the administration’s stimulus spending and argued that Obama has not received sufficient credit for his first two years in office.
“In my comments yesterday, I specifically praised the administration with respect to health care, something that I think the public of the United States does not fully understand the magnitude of that which has been accomplished in the past year,” Malloy said.
The Journal’s take was awkward for another reason: Malloy’s main errand in D.C. was to lay the groundwork for federal support of projects in Connecticut. When you are meeting with administration officials, blasting the boss never helps.