WASHINGTON — Former West Hartford resident Brett McGurk is considered a leading expert at the State Department on the threats posed by the Islamic State and what the Obama administration is trying to do about them. But fighting international terrorism isn’t his only challenge. Now he’s been tasked to persuade skeptical lawmakers, including members of Connecticut’s congressional delegation, to back President Obama’s campaign against ISIS in Syria.
Elizabeth Esty
Posted inEducation, Politics
John Esty, education reformer and father-in-law of congresswoman, dies at 87
John Esty, the father of Daniel Esty and father-in-law of Congresswoman Elizabeth S. Esty, played significant roles in prying open the door to the exclusive club of elite prep schools and colleges in New England by pushing for the admission of women and minorities in the 1960s and 70s.
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CT lawmakers raising plenty of campaign cash
Washington – Although most of them are running unopposed, members of Connecticut’s delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives have raised plenty of campaign cash this year.
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Connecticut’s Week in Washington
Members of the Connecticut delegation weighed in this week on gun control, Medicare and Medicaid coverage for prostheses, and the looming sale of Plum Island in Long Island Sound. But the all-Democratic delegation just sat back and watched the GOP struggle over naming a new speaker of the House.
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Democrats pushing gun control into presidential campaign
Reflecting a national strategy to make gun control an issue in the presidential election, Democrats attacked earlier remarks by Republican candidate Jeb Bush during his fund-raising visit to Connecticut Thursday.
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Murphy to Congress: Hold the sympathy, pass gun law
A press conference to promote a relatively modest gun-control measure became a platform Friday for U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy to denounce the U.S. Congress for refusing to act in the wake of high-profile mass shootings like the one Thursday in Oregon or the quieter daily toll of gun violence in the U.S.
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Connecticut’s Washington Week
In the news: The Iran nuclear pact survives; GE lobbies for the Export-Import Bank; the number in Connecticut without health insurance drops; the delegation opposes defunding Planned Parenthood; and the UConn women’s basketball team shows up at the White House — again.
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DeLauro urges Pope to address social ills in speech to Congress
WASHINGTON — Rep. Rosa DeLauro has led an effort by congressional Democrats to urge Pope Francis to bring his social teachings to Congress when the pontiff makes his historic speech there on Sept. 24.
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Esty says she’ll support the Iran nuclear deal
WASHINGTON — Rep. Elizabeth Esty, D-5th District, said Tuesday that after “diligently and carefully” reviewing the Iran nuclear deal, she’s ready to support it.
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Himes latest CT lawmaker to back Iran nuclear pact
WASHINGTON – Rep. Jim Himes, D-4th District, on Thursday became the latest Connecticut lawmaker to voice support for the Iran nuclear pact. “I have concluded the risks of not doing the deal outweigh the risks of doing the deal,” he said.
Posted inNews
Iran nuclear pact is key topic as Esty travels to Israel
WASHINGTON – While President Obama was trying to sell the American public on a deal with Iran aimed at curbing that nation’s nuclear ambitions, Rep. Elizabeth Esty on Wednesday was receiving a very different message in Jerusalem.
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CT senators urge boycott of stores that don’t wait for gun checks
WASHINGTON – Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy want some of the nation’s largest sporting goods stores to wait for the FBI to complete background checks on gun purchasers in all cases – and hope customers boycott those stores if they don’t.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers hopeful, but adopt wait-and-see stance on Iran deal
WASHINGTON — Reaction in Congress to the historic Iran deal ranged from condemnation to hope it will curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Most Connecticut lawmakers praised President Obama for negotiating with Iran and other world powers, although former Sen. Joe Lieberman helped rally opposition to the deal.
Posted inPolitics
Confederate flag debate roils Congress
WASHINGTON – As South Carolina prepared to take the historic step of removing the Confederate battle flag from its capitol building, members of Congress on Thursday engaged in a bitter dispute over the controversial emblem. “It was bizarre,” said Rep. Jim Himes, D-4th District.
Posted inEducation, Politics
CT lawmakers join other Dems in opposing House education bill
WASHINGTON — A bill that would overhaul federal education law and replace the controversial No Child Left Behind Act was approved in the House of Representatives Thursday without a single Democratic vote. Rep Elizabeth Esty said the bill “guts education funding…and turns our back on our schools, our communities, and our children.”