WASHINGTON — Rep. Rosa DeLauro on Tuesday accused Republican members of an appropriations committee of “cowardice” because they postponed consideration of a bill Democrats planned to amend with provisions targeting the separation of immigrant families at the border. A GOP spokeswoman said there just hasn’t been enough time to consider the bill.
Rosa DeLauro
Rosa DeLauro, a Democrat, has served as the U.S. representative for Connecticut’s third congressional district since 1991.
Posted inPolitics
CT Dems ‘shocked’ about condition of immigrant detentions at border
WASHINGTON — Connecticut lawmakers at the U.S.-Mexico border this weekend said they were moved, and even shocked, by what they saw up close as the effect of the Trump administration’s immigration policy. “It was worse than we ever thought,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3rd District.
Posted inEducation
U.S. House bill cuts thousands from Connecticut’s free school lunch program
WASHINGTON – The U.S. House on Thursday narrowly approved a massive farm bill that would cut thousands of children from free school meals in Connecticut. That bill, opposed by every House Democrat, would curb eligibility for food stamps, too.
Posted inNews
CT Dems to travel to border as Congress stumbles on immigration
WASHINGTON – Sen. Richard Blumenthal is the latest Connecticut lawmaker to announce plans to travel to the U.S.-Mexico border this weekend to visit with immigrant children who have been forcibly separated from their undocumented parents. Meanwhile, a hardline immigration bill failed in the U.S. House Wednesday and GOP leaders postponed a vote on another immigration bill.
Posted inPolitics
CT Dems pan Trump’s move to end separations, but keep immigrant kids in detention
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s reversal of his administration’s policy of separating immigrant families at the border was panned Wednesday by Connecticut Democrats and immigration advocates in the state. “Family separation cannot be replaced by family incarceration and imprisonment,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal.
Posted inPolitics
DeLauro: Splitting immigrant kids from parents is ‘child abuse’
WASHINGTON – At a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Rep. Rosa DeLauro sought support for her resolution condemning the separation of immigrant children from their parents at the border. DeLauro’s resolution has an uphill climb in a GOP Congress, but her effort amplifies the Democratic outcry over the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” policy on immigration.
Posted inHealth
Connecticut fighting Texas in legal battle over Obamacare
WASHINGTON – Connecticut supporters of the Affordable Care Act and the nation’s health insurers on Friday condemned the Trump administration’s decision against defending the health law from a lawsuit filed by Texas and a coalition of Republican states. Connecticut is part of a rival coalition of states fighting to keep the ACA in place.
Posted inHealth
Study pegs Hurricane Maria deaths at 4,645. Gov’t count: 64
Federal lawmakers and advocates in Connecticut are calling for action after a new study’s results indicate that the official death count of 64 in Puerto Rico “is a substantial underestimate of the true burden of mortality after Hurricane Maria.”The study’s death count: 4,645.
Posted inPolitics
DeLauro: Cut farm bill handouts to the wealthy, not food stamps
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House is about to vote on a farm bill that will reduce eligibility for food stamps, a move that has caused a partisan split, with most Democratic lawmakers opposing the legislation. If the changes become law, they could impact tens of thousands of food stamp recipients in the state.
Posted inHealth
CT lawmakers ask Malloy to help shore up Obamacare
WASHINGTON — With little hope of shoring up the Affordable Care Act in Washington, congressional Democrats, including the members of Connecticut’s delegation to the U.S. House, are asking governors and state legislatures to help. But Connecticut may be limited in what it will do to strengthen Obamacare or shield it from attempts to gut it.
Posted inPolitics
Congress moves to tighten food stamp rules
Updated at 7:10 p.m.
WASHINGTON — A massive farm bill approved by the House Agriculture Committee Wednesday would end food stamp benefits for many childless adults in 114 Connecticut towns, unless those beneficiaries get a job or work training. Republicans said the change would encourage more recipients to move out of poverty while Democrats said it was a mean-spirited degradation of a critical part of the social safety net.
Posted inPolitics
Esty leads in fundraising, but will have to give most money away
WASHINGTON — Rep. Elizabeth Esty, who had to reach into her own pockets to help fund her first bid to represent the 5th District, will leave Congress with a hefty war chest. Since she is not running for re-election, Esty will have to return some of those donations, and give the rest of the money away.
Posted inPolitics
Esty writes mea culpa to colleagues; GOP calls for resignation
WASHINGTON – Republicans on Friday called on Rep. Elizabeth Esty to resign over her handling of a former chief-of-staff accused of abusive behavior, while the Democratic congresswoman sought damage control within her own party.
Posted inMoney, News, Politics
CT lawmakers help pass massive spending bill
Updated at 12:55 a.m. Friday
WASHINGTON — Connecticut’s entire congressional delegation voted for a massive, $1.3 trillion federal budget bill that will provide the state with millions of additional dollars for education, health care and transportation and boost production in the state’s defense industry.
Posted inMoney
CT lawmakers differ on Trump tariff plan
WASHINGTON — Connecticut lawmakers had different reactions to President Donald Trump’s plan to impose new tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on aluminum, ranging from praise to condemnation.
