The softer side of Connecticut politics was on display Monday in Hartford as Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, called Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven, an ally and friend, and Fasano praised Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy as a role model. Their common ground was bipartisan efforts to address learning dyslexia.
Len Fasano
Posted inMoney, Politics
GOP leader urges nonpartisan analysts to weigh in on CT budget controversy
The top Republican in the state Senate urged nonpartisan fiscal analysts Tuesday to complete their own assessment of the current state budget as soon as possible.
Posted inMoney
Fasano seeks AG’s opinion on cuts to watchdogs’ budget
Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven, requested a legal opinion from the attorney general Tuesday on the legality of the Malloy administration’s plan to cut the budgets of autonomous watchdog agencies.
Posted inPolitics
Control of the CT Senate at stake in battleground districts
If the GOP can gain four seats, it will turn a 21-15 Democratic advantage into a 19-17 Republican majority, giving them control of the chamber for the first time in 20 years.
Posted inPolitics
A Republican asks: What is party loyalty in the time of Trump?
The backlash experienced by a Republican councilman after endorsing Hillary Clinton illustrates why some GOP candidates might distance themselves from Donald J. Trump, but only a handful have crossed that very bright line to say the Democratic nominee would be preferable as president.
Posted inPolitics
Stakes grow in Malloy’s third challenge of watchdogs’ autonomy
The latest challenge to the fiscal autonomy of state’s watchdog agencies by the administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy is raising unprecedented legal questions likely to eventually require Attorney General George Jepsen and Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo to publicly contradict or confirm the administration’s position.
Posted inHealth
Five years after approval, cord blood program at a standstill
Despite the passage of legislation five years ago that authorized the creation of the state’s first public umbilical-cord blood collection bank, organizers say a state-sponsored effort to collect cord blood in Connecticut has stalled.
Posted inEducation
Legislative leaders call UConn ‘tone deaf’ over raises for top staff
Legislative leaders Thursday blasted hefty pay increases University of Connecticut President Susan Herbst awarded to four senior staff members as the state and public university grapple with big budget cuts.
Posted inJustice, Politics
Malloy zings GOP on bail reform, gets counter from Fasano
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the Connecticut leader of the NAACP pushed back Monday at Republican opposition to Malloy’s proposed bail reforms, casting them as an overdue blow for racial and economic equality. One GOP leader said Malloy was playing the race card, while another made a counter offer.
Posted inJustice, Politics
Senate postpones vote on Malloy’s ‘Second Chance 2.0’
The Senate postponed a plan to adopt Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s signature proposal to reform the bail and juvenile-justice systems after a tense day of negotiations Thursday over revisions aimed at bolstering Democratic support and blunting Republican opposition in an election year. The House now will make the first attempt at passing the bill.
Posted inJustice, Money, Politics
Looney says budget deal, ‘Second Chance’ are on for Thursday
The leader of the Connecticut Senate said Wednesday night he has the votes to pass Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s criminal justice reforms and last week’s budget deal when the Senate returns Thursday in special session. The House of Representatives has yet to schedule a vote.
Posted inMoney, Politics
CT budget details trickle out as partisan debate heats up
While Democratic legislative leaders released one key document tied to a tentative state budget deal, others remained under wraps. And Democratic leadership in the Senate, where a budget debate tentatively is expected to begin on Thursday, rebuffed a Republican call to delay any debate until all budget-related documents were available for public review.
Posted inMoney, Politics
GOP leaders insist they won’t stand for a rushed CT budget debate
As majority Democratic legislators scrambled in hopes of adopting a new state budget before Wednesday’s midnight deadline, Republicans warned they wouldn’t tolerate a rushed or incomplete debate on solutions to a nearly $1 billion deficit.
Posted inMoney, Politics
GOP’s Fasano: Dems hiding fine print on their budget plan
The top Republican in the state Senate charged majority Democrats in the legislature with keeping most crucial details of their new budget for 2016-17 under wraps.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Malloy, Democrats bring very different perspectives to budget crisis
While Gov. Dannel P. Malloy is challenging his fellow Democrats in the legislature to focus less on their re-election chances and more on Connecticut’s budget crisis, legislators respond that the Democratic governor did not lead by example when dealing with the budget during his last re-election bid.