As the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday on a challenge to a long-standing restriction on campaign contributions, a small knot of protesters stood outside a federal courthouse in Hartford, decrying big money in politics. Fran Goldstein, a Common Cause member who drove to the courthouse on a 106-mile round trip from Weston, agreed […]
Mark Pazniokas
Mark is the Capitol Bureau Chief and a co-founder of CT Mirror. He is a frequent contributor to WNPR, a former state politics writer for The Hartford Courant and Journal Inquirer, and contributor for The New York Times.
Posted inPolitics
Peter Wolfgang: In prayerful search of Connecticut’s Great Right Hope
Peter Wolfgang’s hope for 2014 is that when Republicans finally awaken, they see what he sees: an untapped vein of social conservatism deep within the hostile, liberal political landscape that is Connecticut. The Grand Old Party disappointed him in 2010 and 2012, and Wolfgang has every expectation of being disappointed again next year in the gubernatorial election. He sees no GOP candidate willing to talk about cultural issues.
Posted inNews
As Dannehy departs, Jepsen names new senior team
Attorney General George Jepsen said Monday he has named Perry Zinn Rowthorn of West Hartford as deputy attorney general to succeed Nora Dannehy, who is leaving the public sector for a position with United Technologies Corporation. Zinn Rowthorn, who is now the associate attorney general for litigation, will be succeeded in that post by Margaret […]
Posted inNews
Guay, a flashpoint in Malloy’s struggle with watchdogs, takes new post
David L. Guay, the gubernatorial appointee who embodied the Malloy administration’s tense relationship with the state’s three major watchdog agencies, is stepping down as executive administrator of the Office of Government Accountability for a new government post. Guay will become the first executive director of the Contracting Standards Board. He starts the new job Oct. […]
Posted inNews
Larson gets noticed with a full-volume speech
U.S. Rep. John Larson, D-1st District, is getting notice Tuesday for his midnight rant about the federal government shutdown. “Do you stand with your country?” Larson yelled on the floor of the House. “Do you stand for your country? Or do you want to take it down this evening? Stand up for your country. Stand […]
Posted inNews
CT’s reaction: Dems shout, GOP shrugs
The debate over the looming federal government shutdown Monday was one-sided in Connecticut as Democrats aggressively tried to brand Republicans as irresponsible, while the GOP had no coordinated response. U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy each held press events reinforcing the message and strategy of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, who opposed making […]
Posted inMoney, Politics
Connecticut bets on keno, maybe more slots
The Connecticut Lottery took a step Thursday toward bringing keno to bars, restaurants and other outlets next year, while legislators in Hartford began a study of the feasibility of introducing video slots to pari-mutuel facilities in Bridgeport, New Haven and Windsor Locks.
Posted inNews
Olsen offers fiery farewell to CT AFL-CIO
Mashantucket – Without a whiff of irony, the longest-serving president of the Connecticut AFL-CIO railed against the status quo Wednesday as he prepared to step down after 25 years, warning of dangers to labor even in this bluest of states. “The status quo is our enemy,” John W. Olsen told labor delegates, his voice booming, […]
Posted inNews
The new voice of labor in Connecticut is female and gay
Lori Pelletier, new head of Connecticut AFL-CIO Hamden – Lori J. Pelletier appears set to be chosen by acclamation in a casino hotel ballroom Thursday as the new voice and face of labor in Connecticut, becoming the first openly gay woman to lead a state labor federation in the United States. But on Tuesday, Pelletier […]
Posted inNews
CT rated a top-ten state for first-time home buyers
Connecticut was rated a top-ten state for first-time homebuyers in a new survey, a reflection of the assistance offered to people trying to buy their first home. The ranking was made by MSN Real Estate on the basis of a study by HSH.com, a publisher of mortgage and consumer loan information. “Not only does the state […]
Posted inPolitics
Reporter who broke Blumenthal Vietnam story joins McMahon alum’s firm
Consider this a footnote to a tumultuous episode in the 2010 Senate race between Richard Blumenthal and Linda McMahon. Ray Hernandez, the New York Times reporter who broke the story about Blumenthal misstating his Vietnam-era service record, is joining the PR firm where McMahon’s top strategist that year, Ed Patru, is now a vice president. […]
Posted inNews
Nassi, top aide to Donovan, gets 28 months
New Haven – Joshua Nassi, once the top legislative and campaign aide to House Speaker Christopher G. Donovan, was sentenced Thursday to 28 months in prison for conspiring to block tobacco tax legislation in return for $27,500 in contributions to his boss’s doomed congressional campaign. Nassi, 35, a lawyer who worked as a community activist […]
Posted inNews
Yes, the new commuter rail guy’s name is pronounced ‘roadie’
Meriden Mayor Michael S. Rohde was named today by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy to the Connecticut Commuter Rail Council. Under state law, Malloy is responsible for appointing four of the new council’s 15 members, one of whom must be the chief elected official of a municipality located on an operating or proposed rail line. His other […]
Posted inNews
Foley uncertain of evidence against Malloy
Republican Tom Foley conceded Tuesday he has no idea what evidence, if any, supports his suspicion that Gov. Dannel P. Malloy accepted money as a candidate from the man he later appointed commissioner of environmental protection, Daniel C. Esty. “It’s possible it’s not true,” Foley said. “I believe it’s true.” Foley, who says he was […]
Posted inNews
CT jobs numbers don’t lie, they just confuse
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy trotted out a favorite statistic Monday on the tarmac of Waterbury-Oxford Airport, where he was promoting his administration’s economic development efforts: More than 40,000 jobs have been created in Connecticut since he took office. “The reality is with the creation of over 40,000 private sector jobs, we’re doing a pretty good […]
