Connecticut politicians reacted strong to the failure by the U.S. Senate to pass even a watered-down effort to expand federal background checks for gun purchases in response to the Newtown school massacre. House Minority Leader Lawrence F. Cafero Jr., R-Norwalk, used just three words to describe his reaction: “Disappointment. Colossal disappointment.” Cafero, who found himself […]
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.
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Special election set for Hurlburt’s seat
There will be no rest for the weary on the Democratic and Republican caucus staffs in the state House of Representatives: A special election is likely on June 11, just six days after the annual session adjourns at midnight on June 5. As expected, Rep. Bryan Hurlburt, D-Tolland, handed in a resignation letter to the […]
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Rep. Hurlburt to resign, accept federal farm post
State Rep. Bryan Hurlburt, D-Tolland, intends to resign from the General Assembly this week and accept a post as the executive director of the federal Farm Service Agency’ office in Connecticut. On the recommendation of a screening committee, Hurlburt was nominated by Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy and U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney. A special […]
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Connecticut General Assembly passes bipartisan gun bill
In emotional back-to-back debates, the Connecticut Senate and House overwhelmingly voted for one of the nation’s most comprehensive gun laws Wednesday and Thursday, a long-awaited response to one of the nation’s worst mass shootings, the Sandy Hook school massacre. The Democrat-dominated legislature passed the sweeping measure with significant Republican support, a rare bipartisan gesture on […]
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Malloy signs Newtown gun bill, calls for healing
With the parents of Sandy Hook’s young victims peering over his shoulder, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy signed a bipartisan gun-control bill into law at noon Thursday, just 10 hours after final passage by the General Assembly. “This is a profoundly emotional day, I think, for everyone in this room,” Malloy said. “We have come together […]
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Bipartisan deal makes Connecticut a symbol on guns
Connecticut’s bipartisan compromise on gun control generated a run on gun shops Tuesday, enthusiastic praise from Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, laudatory national press attention and plans for a visit to Hartford next week by President Obama, who cannot find compromise or bipartisanship in Washington, D.C. “This is a good moment,” Malloy said. “We have a […]
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A gesture that whispers ambition: Bacchiochi creates exploratory for LG
State Rep. Penny Bacchiochi, R-Stafford, said today she has formed an exploratory committee for lieutenant governor, one of those gestures that announces availability, especially if the GOP field for governor is all male. Bacchiochi is perhaps best known for her advocacy of legalizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes, a cause she took up […]
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Newtown families want strict ban on large ammo magazines
The families of the Sandy Hook school massacre victims delivered a precise, unequivocal and timely message to legislators Monday: The current bipartisan proposal by the legislature’s leaders to ban the sale, but not the possession, of high-capacity ammunition magazines is inadequate. In a letter delivered to leaders, the families of 11 of the 26 victims […]
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Vote planned Wednesday on sweeping gun-violence bill
The General Assembly’s leadership finalized a bipartisan response Monday to the Sandy Hook school massacre, scheduling a vote Wednesday on a sweeping gun-violence bill that imposes new restrictions on the purchase and ownership of firearms and ammunition in Connecticut. After weeks of negotiations, the deal will create the nation’s first gun-offender registry, require universal background […]
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Five awful minutes: 154 rounds fired, 26 killed
Authorities released chilling details Thursday of Adam Lanza’s troubled life and his horrific assault on Sandy Hook Elementary School, providing tantalizing hints and clues, but no answers about what launched the bloodiest primary school shooting in U.S. history. Lanza killed 26 children and educators in less than five minutes, firing 154 rounds from a Bushmaster […]
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At 87, Prague is named commissioner of aging
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Thursday named former state Sen. Edith Prague of Columbia as the commissioner of the new State Department on Aging, a rebuke to those who insist there are no second acts in American life — never mind a third and a fourth. Prague is 87. Prague returns to state government after […]
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Boosting public financing for campaigns is off the table
If Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy runs for re-election as a publicly financed candidate next year, he can expect a state grant of only $6 million, less than half the $12.8 million spent by his Republican opponent, Tom Foley, in 2010. With the state struggling to balance the budget, Malloy has ruled out a repeat […]
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An inventory of carnage: Newtown warrants unsealed
Search warrant documents released today offer new details of Adam Lanza’s troubled life and his horrific assault on Sandy Hook Elementary School. They are an inventory of carnage and a life seemingly consumed with weapons. They offer stark details: Lanza died in the middle of three classrooms he attacked, clad in military gear and a […]
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A type A governor lays back on guns, for now
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy seems to be following the unlikely example of Goldilocks in dealing with the legislature on gun-control after Sandy Hook. He is looking for an approach that is just right after first being too soft, then too hard. He wants the legislature to pass a strict ban on the sale and possession […]
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Lumaj an early entrant in 2014 race for GOP underticket
Peter Lumaj, a businessman who enjoyed making waves last year as he ran a longshot race for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, declared his candidacy Monday for the 2014 contest for secretary of the state. Lumaj, an Albanian immigrant who described himself as the only across-the-board conservative in the Senate race, dismissed the eventual […]
