WASHINGTON – Opponents of the planned Aetna-Humana, Anthem-Cigna mergers have asked the U.S. Justice Department to block them in a letter that alludes to the controversy over Connecticut Insurance Commissioner Katharine Wade’s lead role in state regulatory approval of one of the deals.
Richard Blumenthal
Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut’s senior U.S. senator, was first elected in 2011. Sen. Blumenthal has supported stricter gun legislation and support for veterans.
Posted inJustice, Politics
Orlando victims look to Sandy Hook lawsuit against gun maker
WASHINGTON — Families of those massacred in an Orlando nightclub are weighing whether to follow the Sandy Hook families that have filed a lawsuit against makers of assault rifles like the one Adam Lanza used to kill 20 first graders and six adults.
Posted inPolitics
New gun laws virtually dead this year, CT lawmakers concede
After a 15-hour filibuster in the U.S. Senate and a 26-hour sit-in on the floor of the U.S. House in the past week and a half, members of Connecticut’s congressional delegation conceded Friday that new gun legislation is probably dead in 2016.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Blumenthal asks DOJ to stop Aetna-Humana, Anthem-Cigna mergers
WASHINGTON – Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and six other Democrats on the Judiciary Committee asked the Justice Department on Wednesday to block two proposed mergers involving Connecticut health insurers, Aetna-Humana and Anthem-Cigna.
Posted inPolitics
New chance for ‘terror gap’ gun bill
WASHINGTON – After the Senate voted down four gun control bills inspired by the Orlando massacre, a compromise emerged that would prevent those suspected of terrorist ties from purchasing weapons – and Connecticut’s senators say that’s encouraging.
Posted inPolitics
With parting shot at ‘insiders,’ August Wolf folds his campaign
The political adventure of former Olympic shot putter August Wolf ended in failure Tuesday, marked by an email acknowledging he lacks the signatures to force a Republican primary for U.S. Senate, leaving state Rep. Dan Carter as the GOP’s uncontested choice to oppose U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat.
Posted inPolitics
With talkathon, Murphy gambled – and won
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy gambled that he was up to the physical and intellectual rigors of an open-ended filibuster aimed at pressuring Senate GOP leaders to hold votes on gun safety issues – and he won. But there was always a risk of failure.
Posted inPolitics
Murphy ends filibuster saying two gun measures will get votes
WASHINGTON — Nearly 15 hours after he launched a filibuster to pressure GOP colleagues to allow votes on gun safety measures, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy said there had been an agreement to vote on measures barring those on a terrorist watch list from purchasing firearms and expanding background checks.
Posted inPolitics
Push intensifies for terror-list gun bill backed by CT lawmakers
WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats, including those representing Connecticut, escalated the pressure on GOP colleagues Tuesday to revisit and pass legislation that would prohibit those on the federal terror list from purchasing a gun.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers hope Orlando is a ‘tipping point’ on gun control
WASHINGTON — Gun control advocates in Congress, with Connecticut’s lawmakers taking a lead, are hoping the massacre in Orlando is a “tipping point” that overcomes the deep resistance in Congress to strengthening the nation’s federal gun law. Political points may be scored, but it’s not likely Congress will budge.
Posted inPolitics
After Orlando shooting, lawmakers renew push for gun reform
Less than 36 hours after a shooting at an Orlando nightclub left 50 people dead and more than 50 others injured, three Connecticut lawmakers renewed their calls for federal action to combat gun violence, including increased background checks, a ban on the sale of assault weapons and a ban on the purchase of any weapons while on the FBI’s terrorist watchlist.
Posted inJustice, Politics
Obama: ‘We will not give in to fear or turn against each other’
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy ordered flags lowered to half-staff Sunday as Connecticut joined President Obama and the nation in mourning the murders of 50 people in an Orlando, Fla., nightclub, an act of terror and the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. Some Democrats quickly called for Congress to strengthen measures aimed at preventing gun violence.
Posted inNews
Blumenthal, Murphy split over boost in defense spending
WASHINGTON — Democratic Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy split this week on whether to boost military spending by $18 billion – allowing the Pentagon to increase its purchase of Connecticut-made weaponry – without raising the amount of money spent on domestic programs as well.
Posted inPolitics
Blumenthal aims to help families who lost art to Nazis
WASHINGTON — Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Sen. Ted Cruz rarely see eye to eye on issues, but they are partners in an effort to change federal law to help victims of the greatt art theft – the massive Nazi confiscations during World War II. “The time is long past to return the ill-gotten gains of that unspeakable horror,” Blumenthal said.
Posted inNews
Connecticut tribe says it has made federal bid, hopes for casino
WASHINGTON — The Schaghticoke Indian Tribe of Kent says it filed a voluminous petition for federal recognition with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, a bid it hopes will result in the rights to open a casino in the Danbury area. But Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who has fought efforts by tribes to win acknowledgement, called the effort “frivolous.”