Who’s your guber horse? What saddle is that, you say? Your horse for governor.
The gubernatorial campaign is headed for the earliest start that I can recall. Former House Speaker Jammin’ Jim Amann, less the $120K advisory role the new House Speaker Chris Donovan had offered then pulled back following a media spew, will announce his candidacy next week in the city of his birth at The Klein.
It appears that Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy who lost a tight Democratic gubernatorial primary to New Haven Mayor John DeStefano in 2006 is not far behind.
They’ve been waiting on Attorney General Richard Blumenthal to complete his insufferable gubernatorial strip tease again. Dick does this every cycle. But now that Barack is president it has opened up options for Dick for the federal bench and who knows, if U.S. Senator Chris Dodd continues his public hemorrhaging and goes away, perhaps Dick runs for Dodd’s seat. Then there’s always Joe Liebermaniacal in 2012.
Where will the liberals’ liberals line up such as OIB friends John from Black Rock and Jon Kantrowitz? My guess is Malloy, although he’s not cut to the far left such as former gubernatorial candidate Bill Curry.
Amann is also more centrist than most Democratic candidates for governor. Liberal Dems such as Curry, two-time nominee, two-time general election loser, perform great when the unions, progressives and serial primary voters turn out. Then the general comes around and it’s a different story, they fail to appeal to a broader audience without betraying promises to liberal interests.
And you wonder why a Democrat has not been elected governor since Bill O’Neill, conservative as Dems go, since 1986? Yup, it’s been that long. Independent Lowell Weicker 1990, Republican John Rowland in 1994, 1998 and 2002 and Republican Jodi Rell in 2006.
Rell, still popular with the electorate, is poised for another run. But her popularity could drift in this messy budget cycle. Rell is a funny pol. The electorate likes her, but Republican pols do not. She doesn’t reach out to party regulars the way Rowland did. And Jodi never pushes the party brand. She prefers to transcend the party, and that certainly helped her when she croaked DeStefano in 2006 while tanking Alan Schlessinger, the GOP candidate for U.S. Senate, to help Lieberman’s reelection. Can you hear me sticking fingers down my throat. And, yeah, Amann supported Lieberman as well.
But the party cannot ditch her so they’re stuck with Rell and her Chief of Staff Lisa Moody, who’s like the dragon protecting the castle. You want Jodi? You gotta go through Lisa.
Malloy is an interesting candidate. Gregarious, smart and successful managing the largest grand list in the state. (Wish Bridgeport had Stamford’s corporate-rich taxable property.)
Then, there’s always Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz, a relentless self-promoter and fundraiser. Maybe SuBy jumps into it.
They’ll all be making the rounds schmoozing party regulars from far-off towns in the state, and all likely to participate in the state’s public financing: $1.250 million spending cap for a primary, $3 million for a general election for governor.
And how will they all juggle the labyrinth that is Bridgeport Democratic politics? How to schmooze this one without pissing off that one? Former Dem Chair John Stafstrom was a Malloy guy in 2006, and John still has a segment of the party behind him including Mayor Bill Finch. Candidates will also court Mario Testa, the man that dethroned Stafstrom. Is Mario winking early? One thing’s for sure, they had better learn the protocol: do not call Mario’s restaurant during his nap time generally between 1:30 and 4:30. Next time they visit he might plant a cleaver in their skull.
Another variable to the Dem guber race and potential primary locally in 2010 is Probate Judge Paul Ganim’s seat. Does City Council President Tom McCarthy look at a primary? State Rep. Auden Grogins? Mary-Jane Foster who knows all about foster care as OIB friend Tommy Kelly says? Who will get the party endorsement? Stay tuned.
Wyman > Williams > Blumenthal > Bysiewicz > Malloy > Amann
Those damn Dems need to get behind one candidate. Come out of the convention with one person and no primary. Betty Crocker has a yeast infection and won’t be able to beat a unified party in 2010.
Are you saying that M. Jodi Rell won’t be able to rise to the occasion?
I prefer Raisinets and make my cakes with Duncan Hines.
Warren
I thought you would be more into Dunkin’ Himes!
Thanks for asking–I like Marlys’ chart–I am hoping for a true progressive to enter the race–a primary is inevitable but doesn’t have to split the party.
I just spotted Lennie, gnoshing on a French Knish, while kibbitzing with a literary friend, in a window seat awash with a wonderful white whine.
Warren, I like my whine red.
That wasn’t Lennie, it was his cat Stinky.
It wasn’t white wine, just milk.
Lennie based on the list of potential candidates you have here it looks like we will be in trouble again when it comes time to elect a governor.
We are dancing out the same old tired list of politicians.
Malloy received the Bridgeport’s delegate vote from Stafstrom in return for a big job for Murphy. Well Murphy’s no longer in Stamford and at present Stafstrom is the ghost leader of a portion of the Bridgeport delegation.
DeStefano is busy raising and lowering the Mexican flag in New Haven and besides he already got his ass kicked by Rell.
Amann committed suicide with his latest greedy ploy at grabbing free state money at a difficult time. Besides he backed a non-party-endorsed candidate during Bridgeport’s last mayoral election.
I hope Blementhal runs against that miserable SOB Dodd who is at least partially responsible for the housing mortgage problems. He can also stick his stand on Gitmo where the sun does not shine.
So there it stands.
As far as McCarthy goes I hope he runs and wins the race for probate. That will be a double win for Bridgeport. He will get off the council where he is a Finch errand boy and he will leave labor relations where we can take his $91,000 and help erase the deficit.
Whatever beef Bridgeport had with Malloy in the past, they’d be cutting off their nose to spite their face. Malloy is a real CEO; he has made a success of Stamford over the past 13 years. I remember when Stamford was a poor stepchild of Connecticut cities. Malloy developed Stamford so that his region supports most of Connecticut. It is a testament to him and his management, keeping staffing down, efficiency in departments and managing the budget.
If Bridgeport wants someone who understands the needs of Cities, and what kind of support the state needs to give all municipalities, Malloy is the only one in the bunch. Finch was a legislator, he was actually pretty good, but he was not a CEO. Hey, Stamford was a hell of a lot bigger than Wasilla and almost the population of Alaska.
I really like Nancy and Susan, but they do not have the experience to turn this state around. Amann should just be locked up and put in a closet if his latest move is a true showing of his political acumen. No one really thinks Dick will run; I’d rather have him as a judge or Senator, he’d be really great at that. A Governor like a Mayor needs to address everything that comes across his desk, not like a legislator or even a Constitutional Officer who can pick what battles they take on. That’s why I am supporting Malloy, I think he is the best person for the job.
Amann may have blown his voter credibility for even considering the $120,000.00-a-year job as Donovan’s majordomo. Malloy looks like a contender, but he has a skeleton or two in his closet.
The GOP has had a conservative ideology for the past forty years. The only Republican president that was anywhere near the middle of the road was Richard M. Nixon. (I’m not making this up! He signed the Clean Water and Clean Air Acts, environmental legislation, into law. Reagan and both Bushes made lax enforcement and/or the roll-back of environmental protection laws and policies a priority. All of those corporate campaign donors wanted some kind of bang for their bucks.) What has bedeviled the Democratic Party, at least on the national level, is the inability of the party leadership to agree on political philosophy and unified party platforms during election cycles. Bleeding-heart liberals (of which Senator Chris Dodd is one of the last) have no place in the contemporary American political firmament. The Democratic Party has no ideology, per se. It does have many shared ideals. Bill Clinton brought the federal legislature back to the middle of the road, which is where it really belongs. President Obama is working to do the same thing. He’s also working to restore America’s image to glory, no easy task after eight years of Bush Lite.
On the local and state levels, eh … This is Bridgeport. The DTC is an entrenched political machine, very similar to Tamany Hall. Chris Caruso was right on that point. He was also right that the machine ought to be dismantled because it is not representing the best interests of Bridgeport’s residents, not working towards the greater common good. The State Democratric Party is basically neutered and ineffective.
Hey Kid
I have a dress or two in my closet.
You are right on with your observations. The State Democratic party has a lot of cocks that have no balls. Do you remember that disco place in New Haven called “The Neutered Rooster”? Cherche La Femme you old Buzzard.
Can’t say I’ve heard of a New Haven disco called “The Neutered Rooster” (or any other name, for that matter). The Elm City wasn’t my stomping grounds.
It’s not surprising that you would be familiar with a nightclub by that name …
I saw you walking out of that after-hours club on Fairfield Avenue in back of The Frame Shop. I think it’s called Dick Van Dykes.
Your wit is astounding.
Cliche
While I agree that Malloy is a very good CEO, he was not responsible for the growth of Stamford.
Location! Location!! Location!!!
I worked in downtown Stamford in the early ’80s at about the same time that Nancy Hadley was cutting her economic development teeth. She had about as much to do with the success of Stamford in those days as good guy Mike Freimuth has to do with Stamford’s development today. Stamford had the location and guys with funny names like Frank Mercedes and F.D. Rich.
Stamford also had problems with questionable elected officials, but had the location after corporations fled New York City after their economic meltdown.
At least they enacted the no-morons rule everyone on OIB talked about several months ago. Luck is where opportunity meets preparedness. If Dan Malloy were incompetent he would not have managed things so well, no matter where he was located. He also has been consistently re-elected. It’s like a job interview; someone may open the door to you, but you need to prove yourself to succeed. Well maybe not in Bridgeport, but I am just saying. I think DeStefano would be good at understanding what cities need too, however I am thinking Malloy is the most electable.
That is to Malloy’s credit. Stamford has quite a bit of taxable corporate property. The skyline is a sight to behold from I-95. What kind of image does Bridgeport give from the Connecticut Turnpike? The red-and-white striped smokestack of a coal-fired power plant, a rusted and decaying drawbridge stuck in the open position, etc.
I would rather have a little luck than a lot of smarts anytime. In fact if it weren’t for bad luck, I would have no luck at all.
Dan’s my Man!!
I considered voting for Caruso in the primary last year. I changed my mind after further consideration. As I said, he was correct on the “political machine.” Let’s face facts: it does exist here in Bridgeport. Mr. Caruso’s motivations gave me pause, however. He sounded like an angry, spiteful man bent on avenging past slights, pissed that he was voted off the DTC island. That happened years ago; Mr. Caruso ought to learn that a grudge should never be held for more than twenty seconds.
Whoever the next governor is will have to deal with a legislature that has grown apathetic and complacent.
Irish Alzheimer’s
That’s where you forget everything but the grudges.
Meet The Mayor
“Mayor Bill Finch will host his next Mayor’s Night Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at the City Hall Annex, 999 Broad Street on the first floor. All residents are welcome, according to the mayor’s office. Stop in and express your concerns.”
NAGE R1-200 had scheduled a membership meeting on the same date and time as the meeting above. Coincidence?
Here is a transcript of the handout provided by NAGE.
NAGE R1-200 Analysis of City’s off the record offer:
1) Immediate, permanent increase of Employee’s total yearly health contribution from 12 % to 17%
(Increase shown as a reduction of average employee’s total yearly salary) MINUS 2%
2) 5.5 days as giveback through furlough plan (1/1/09 – 7/1/09) No guarantees of no lay-offs past June 2009
(Pay lost as a percentage of average employee’s yearly salary estimate) Minus 2.13%
3)Year ONE contract (7/01/09 – 6/30/10) 2% raise on 1/01/2010. 2% raise MINUS 2% Health Cost Increase equals to 0%.
4)Year TWO contract (7/01/10 – (6/30/11) 0% raise on 7/01/2010. 0%(No raise) Minus 2% increse in health insurance contribution equals a MINUS 2%.
THE TOTAL ACTUAL PAY LOSS BASED ON THE TWO YEAR OFF THE RECORD OFFER EQUALS TO A MINUS 6.13%.
The City also required that all new employees from now on pay a huge 25% of the health share cost, eventually going to 50%- This would mean that new employees could be paying a substantial amount of their low salaries just to have health insurance. This would be one of the highest health insurance cost amount in the entire state.
During the question period, I asked two questions.
I first asked, “Was any of the other Unions asked to pay 25% to 50% of the health share cost for new employees?” NAGE attorney said that only one other Union was asked.
The Second question, “NAGE represents both City employees and B.O.E. employees, would this contract apply to both or only City employees?”
The contract would apply to all NAGE members working for B.O.E. and the City.
The answer to the second question contradicts with what the administration has been saying. The mayor himself has stated, “I can’t do anything (as far a givebacks are concerned) about B.O.E. employees, that’s up to the Board of Education.”
I hope Amann doesn’t waste our time. We’ve had enough of his smoke and mirrors type of government. The $120k has the same effect as Johnny the Nose’s impassioned plea for the pedophile he stood up for in court.
Don’t leave Shays out of the equation.
My choices woud be Shays, Blumenthal and SuBy.
Yahooy, remember that Amann covered up for a State Representative accused of molesting a young girl years ago. My choices would be Shays and Ernie Newton.
Ernie Newton??? Who would be LT gov??? … Jordano??? Little Joe G??? How ’bout Rowland???
Joel
To be fair, it was actually under former Speaker Moira Lyons’ watch with the accusation of the former Winsted area legislator.
Shays is a true progressive assive agressive candidate.
Ernie Newton for Governor. Qué lástima which I hope means you are beaucoup dinky dow.
“Qué lástima” => what a pity
“beaucoup dinky dow (dien cai dau)” => plenty crazy
BTW
I had lunch today downtown. The latest buzz at the bar is that hizzoner has thus far amassed the biggest cost cutting (by percentage of actual cost) than any Mayor in the history of our fair city. Credible sources. Is it at all possible?
Well Lennie, you got it right. I will not be supporting Amann and as things stand right now, I will be supporting Malloy. As a “liberal’s liberal” Amann is just not my cup of tea. Beyond that, his recent $120k fiasco demonstrates that he is politically tone deaf. Lastly, and I know I should be a bigger person but I guess I’m not, I cannot get past his support of Lieberman AFTER Lamont won the dem. primary in ’06.
This should be interesting, as many of my usual political friends are in the Amann camp and I may find myself working with people I’m not generally allied with. Well, it won’t be the first time and what the hell, perhaps I’ll make some new friends.
However, come November should Amann be the Dem. candidate against Rell, I will be supporting him.
John what you seem to be saying is that no matter how bad the democratic candidate is you will vote for him/her because they are democrats. I thought you were smarter than that. I thought you would vote for the BEST person running regardless of party tag.
OK Wondering–Make a case for Rell and depending on who the dems. run, maybe you’ll convince me.
When it comes to Amann if I have to make a case for Rell then no matter what I say it will not matter. Amann has shown everything that is wrong with politics on both sides of the aisle. He has the balls to still seek the nomination after this latest fiasco.
My personal feelings as they relate to DeStefano and Malloy are if they are the best that the dems can offer then Connecticut is in trouble. Time will tell.
Can anyone explain to me how spending $2 Billion on Condoms as part of the new president’s stimulus package is going to stimulate (no pun intended) the economy? Does it mean there will be more jobs in the latex industry? Is it meant as a stimulus for the recreation industry? Is it something to keep people occupied while they wait for a job? Just Wondering.
Did you ever consider the federal and state entitlement costs associated with unwanted pregnancies and the treatment of STDs? More than 70% of minority births in this country are to single mothers who go on entitlement immediately and stay that way until the child is 18. Furthermore, a substantial number of non-minority births are to the unwed as well. Educating our youth as to the consequences associated with unprotected sex and providing the means to avoid pregnancies and disease can, theoretically, return a huge benefit in the form of saving entitlement costs. Bravo to his $2m “investment”.
Yahooy: it’s $2 Billion and it’s part of the stimulus package. This package is supposed to stimulate the economy and create jobs. Everything you say is true about the pregnancy issue and I agree with your assessment but that should not be part of the economic stimulus plan. If you start adding all the other social programs to the stimulus package the intent of the package will be lost.
Economic stimulus goes way beyond injecting money into sick industries. Concurrent planning (and effective implementation) to reduce and eliminate costs is absolutely essential in a combined effort to restore fiscal stability. I refer you to Paul Samuelson who correctly idealized hemorrhagic spending controls coupled with federal “investment” which has led to substantial recovery in past downturns and is the litmus test in most of the world.
We no longer have an incompetent president who appointed less-than-capable advisers. I think the new guy knows what he is doing. Never in my lifetime have I ever been been comfortable in knowing that we have the right person at the helm at this time when our entire well-being could be in jeopardy.
Yahooy. I agree with you completely in your reference to Samuelson’s macro economic theory pertaining to the simultaneous efforts to reduce government spending while the government injects capital into the failing institutions. It is essential that the overall “package” include capital earmarked for programs that will stimulate a reduction in spending. A good example is the aforementioned condom program. Again, you are right to suggest that a better-informed youth equipped with condoms will lower the illegitimate birth rates AND will lower the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases thereby lowering entitlement costs.
I too am impressed with President Obama. I wish the people like him who live in our town would aspire to public office and rid us of the existing business as usual for lunch bunch.
*** If running, my personal picks for Gov. would be J. DeStefano(Dem.) or C. Shays(Rep.); both would bring experience & positive ideas that would be effective in moving Ct. into the future and working with the Obama Admin. in dealing with the national recession! If I had to pick between either of the two @ this time, I probably would go with DeStefano since he’s been here in Conn. on a day-to-day basis & seems to have a better understanding of the urban, suburban, etc. problems affecting Ct. @ this time. But with time & the right local people around Shays, it would not take him long with his connections to get the ball rolling in the right direction! Both men would make a good choice for Gov. of Conn. ***
I’m impressed with Obama. He’s demonstrating a fair amount of savvy concerning the Oval Office. He issued a Presidential Order closing Gitmo and restricting the use of torture in interrogations. It is a safe bet that Gitmo will be closed in a year, and remain closed. According to this morning’s New York Times, the G estimates that 50-100 of the remaining detainees could be tried in civilian courts or by military tribunals (albeit under different rules than the kangaroo regulations drafted by the Bush Administration). Upon conviction they would serve their sentences in U.S. prisons, like the supermax facility in Florence, Colorado. (A number of Senators and U.S. Representatives, mindful of voter reaction back home, expressed some concern over having admitted terrorists like Khalid Sheik Mohammed in their midst, even if he is behind several hundred tons of reinforced concrete and razor wire.) The issue of torture is, shall we say, a delicate one. Members of Al Qaeda and other jihadist groups are trained to kill, maim, and destroy. They are also willing to die for a cause. These men are not boy scouts. They will not give up intelligence information if a CIA officer asks them politely.
Senator Diane Feinstein was expressing a desire to prohibit the use of torture under federal law, and there’s the catch: A Presidential Order can be modified or rescinded at any time without the need to consult members of congress or the judiciary.
Got to go with Dick Blumenthal … after a hair and teeth makeover of course … just trust the guy and it’s a gut feeling.
Blumenthal would be the most successful candidate, with or without the hair/dental makeover. But does he really want to be governor? He’s been flirting with the idea for a long time, playing a will-I-or-won’t-I game with the electorate. He’s a skilled attorney, no question there; I’m guessing that he is angling for a federal judgeship, as someone noted earlier.
These killers that are at GITMO have nowhere to go if they escape. Their partners in crime that have not been arrested or captured can’t get to them. What is the big deal about closing Gitmo other than it gives liberals a warm fuzzy feeling?
I guess the liberals feel we should try them with all the constitutional guarantees afforded US citizens. There are over 250 of these dirtbags at Gitmo so we try 50 or 100 here, what do we do with the rest of them?
I suggest we put them in the general prison population and let the chips fall where they may.
We have released 600 plus back to their countries and 10% have gone back into combat. This is a documented figure. So I ask do you want one of these we release killing your son and daughters who may be in the military?
How about a “Line up” for this goober and his co-conspirators?
www .suntimes.com/news/metro/blagojevich
/1395678,CST-NWS-blago25.article
Geesh, most of you are worse than the “political pundits” on Fox News and CNN …
That said, here is the scoop on CT Governor in 2010 …
1- John DeStefano is a decent candidate, but CAN’T BEAT RELL!
2- Dan Malloy, a great candidate, but CAN’T BEAT RELL!
3- Chris Shays, not a candidate for Governor, his life is in DC, his wife works there and his daughter as well …
4- Blumenthal, well the Dick just isn’t so keen on fighting for anything other than major lawsuits … May have his eye on a Senate seat, as long as there is no primary …
5- Bysiewicz, please a JOKE … DEF CAN’T BEAT RELL …
6- Amann, HAH, another JOKE, that CAN’T BEAT RELL …
What the CT Dem Party needs if they want to BEAT RELL, is to FIND a candidate NOW … And here is what the candidate should be like …
– A Charismatic and eloquent speaker
– Strong Business and Financial Background
– Strong Business Connections
– But also with a heart and passion for inner cities and is willing to improve the dire issues of urban CT
– and not an Elected Official
We need a breath of fresh air, someone new with the ability to take CT in a new direction, attracting new businesses, keeping what we have and work to close the socio-economic gap that exists in CT …
Could we find this candidate???
Celia … I have a crazy idea … but then it’s a cold Sunday with no football … you have almost … again almost … described Bill Finch … Finch for governor … we might like the sound of that someday in the future.
A red-letter day. I agree with Yahooy! A lot! Blumenthal would be a great candidate and most of the rest of the field would drop out if he ran. But he is not going to run; if he does run, the first beer at the next OIB party is on me. I also don’t think DeStefano will run, but he is a very smart man.
Celia, Malloy is a great candidate and I think he can beat Rell. I believe he posses the qualities you listed, and the knowledge and understanding of what municipalities need. He has strong leadership skills, and he speaks his mind and keeps his word. He can create economic development and will work to help fix the broken system of running cities and towns on property taxes.
As to Finch, he had no–Strong Business and Financial Background or–Strong Business Connections. His charisma went out the door when he let Wood and Nunn put him in his ivory tower. Bill forgot how to be a people’s man. He should have gotten out of his office, gone to different departments, popped in people’s offices to say hello and built relationships. That was his strength, he let people call him Bill and he was convinced to change. He got caught up in the pomp and power and instead he built a Wood fortress around him, no e-mail, no phone calls, no cup of coffee got through unless it went through Wood who has the personality of a badger. Bill was over his head and instead of listening to people with proven track records and experience he got sucked into a vortex of political patronage.
Back to Governor, Amann is absolutely the worst choice. He hasn’t helped Bridgeport or his Bridgeport buddies for the last 4 years. He promised this and that and Bridgeport only received token attention. Susan is a nice lady but she doesn’t have the business acumen or understanding of how to govern. Nancy is an even nicer woman and she understands money, but she is still not well-rounded enough to be the “CEO” of CT.
I think Rell’s days are limited and she won’t run in 2010. Anyone tainted with the mess that comes out of Hartford the next two years will be hard pressed to inspire any confidence for a brighter future.
Cliche … one thing to remember about Finch … he is cutting payroll and doing the tough things that needs to be done and is picking up momentum as time is going by … he has time left on this term and if he works on the public image that you have pointed out he could have enough momentum to be considered for higher office … who woulda thought 2 years ago we would have a African-american president??? … anything is possible.
I went to Épernay last night. Interesting. I hope they make it. Nice people. Must be good … Miguel and his lovely wife from Taco Loco were there. We enjoyed it. Only 4 entrees??? What’s that all about? Went there looking for Irish stew … they ran out by 7:30p. So we began to order from the pickies. We started with a meat tray and an order of mussels. Then we had a double order of escargot and the french onion soup. Although we were going to share the lamb sandwich we maxed by the time it arrived. It’ll be lunch today. No rush. We stayed almost 3 hours attentively cared for by capable staff. A little chintzy on the vodka although my wife thought her Goose martinis were ample. All in all I think the evening was pleasant albeit a bit pricey. Really liked running into some old Bridgeport friends. We were too full to even think about ordering that chocolate thing Lennie so eloquently described but I did take pause when I noticed the lady sitting at the next table scarfing down a crème brûlée.
PS … Governor Finch??? … You have got to be f@#*ing kidding me. Wake up Bridgeport!!! No more morons … no more machinists. Qué lástima … you are all beacoup dinky dow.
Crazy as it sounds … and it does … he is guiding Bpt through the toughest economic time in many years and he has trimmed the deficit like no mayor since little Joey G. … instead of adding to the problems or creating them like Johnny Fabs did … he is providing answers and is picking up momentum … think about it instead of just spewing hate.
Sorry Finest, Finch will be lucky he if gets re-elected mayor. I think his political days are over, at least no higher office. He made too many serious enemies, no one trusts him. He lied to so many people that they have no confidence in him. He’s making tough choices now, but they really aren’t choices they are a necessity. He has to do what he is doing or go bankrupt and maybe if he figured out how to do it right before he went crazy closing libraries and laying off people he couldn’t lay off we wouldn’t be as bad now. If his plan was to be Mayor for 2 years then start campaigning for Governor he blew it. Mayors of Bridgeport historically don’t go any further and he has way too much baggage. Even Amann would be better than him. Do you really want Wood as the new Lisa Moody???
PS I don’t hate Finch. I feel sorry for him. He screwed up with patronage jobs and has let the City flounder for more than year because no one really knew what they were doing (or those that did, left).
Finch is doing something about the deficit finally but he took too long in doing it. What Bill really did wrong was let Wood and Nunn keep him away from his supporters and the people that worked for him. Wood has managed to piss off more people in one year than anyone I can remember. If Bill were running in Bridgeport today I don’t believe he would be elected again. Bill at his core is a good guy but somewhere along the line he lost his nerve and his guts and barricaded himself in his office.
He has also been talked into some questionable decisions like the Monroe sewer deal, selling M&F Bank and resuming a friendship with a local developer he badmouthed to no end when he took office. I believe he can get over that dumb-ass campaign promise of a $600 tax cut. I don’t see how he will get over the coming tax incease unless Uncle Sam sends us some money. If Bill ever had ambitions to run for governor he should have stayed away from the mayor’s job.
Governor Finch … balderdash!!!
*** Blumenthal seems set on a judgeship or Fed. state’s attorney job in D.C., not an economically overburdened Gov.’s job in Conn. I forgot & left out Rell in my last blog with the other 2 people I feel would be good for Conn. as Govs. (DeStefano & Shays). But regardless of who it is they would have a tough time beating Gov. Rell; who I think is doing a good job under the circumstances due to the economy. *** Locally, I don’t believe that after all the layoffs with more to come, concessions by the unions, $ furloughs by workers, sale of city props. also city taxes & city revenues in general, B.O.E. savings, etc. that the city is still about $20,000,000. in the “red.” I believe Finch is creating a cushion for the next city budget and a possibility of the mil rate staying the same or being lowered by maybe 2.5 mils. *** Remember, there are city elections this year for the council, B.O.E., city sheriffs and maybe city clerks, though I don’t remember if that position is 2 or 4 yrs. in office; which means doing something positive for the district voters! Also, Finch would love to have a city prop. tax savings, even if just for 1 budget year, “close” to that $300. savings election promise he made! Add some type of stimulus development down the pike & last-minute revenue & it’s a very good possibility indeed. Well, only time will tell and hopefully “OIB” will be here to critique it! ***
Aside from the Union Contracts, much of what Finch is saying he is doing is simply a Press Release. The most recent BS PR stunt was the Cutback on City take-home cars … It was all a show … Most of the cars he identified in his press release were take-home cars eliminated prior to his administration and the rest were some police cars that are no longer take-home …
Someone please explain why the following people have take-home cars …
– Adam Wood, who drives all over the state with his car
– Andy Nunn, his car can be spotted all over Monroe
– Tom Sherwood, mind you, he hit someone driving off route 8 a few years ago, we footed the lawsuit bill
– Mike Feeney, who doesn’t live in Bpt
– Alanna Kabel, no clue why she needs a car
– Mark Anastasi, who no longer “really” runs the City attorney’s office, some dumb arrangement by Finch that is NOT saving us any money
– Charles Carroll, also spent city $$$ on office renovations
– Bobby Kennedy
Then there is the BOE,
– John Ramos, this genius still lives in WATERTOWN
– Allan Wallack, this guy spends gas to Bloomfield
I am sure there are more, but, I am not sure who else there is, these are the ones I have seen …
Can’t count on the city to disclose a REAL list with names, they definitely don’t like transparency …