Who’s Your Caddie? Plus: Schiff On Ballot

An interesting configuration of local pols, sometimes friends, sometimes not, are lining up behind their respective Democratic candidates for governor.

Ned Lamont received the backing of the entire Bridgeport delegation at the state party convention last month. Some delegates went with the flow to be cooperating members of Team Lamont led by Mayor Bill Finch and Democratic Party Chair Mario Testa, even though Malloy was a preference. There is a compelling risk-reward approach in the Team Lamont strategy much in the way golfers sized up several of the holes on Sunday’s U.S. Open final. Go for the green or lay up? Finch and Mario are standing in the middle of the fairway clutching three woods. They’re going for the green. (Ned has lots of green.) Bill and Mario want to reach that par five in two with a chance for an eagle.

The upside is tremendous if Ned defeats Malloy in the primary and goes on to become governor. The city of New Haven, led by Mayor John DeStefano, is in the same position. Take away the delegate support of Bridgeport and New Haven and Ned is hard pressed to win 15 percent of the delegates to get his name on the ballot short of a petition effort. So a premium has been placed on turning out big wins in Bridgeport and New Haven. Bill and Mario know this so they’ll make a huge push to deliver. In fact they must deliver, their necks are out there, in what is expected to be a low-turnout primary. And their chances could be made easier with Ned financing a Bridgeport operation. Line ’em up boys, it’s a payday for lots of political animals.

But every golfer, every pol, needs a caddie to make sure approach shots are measured. Okay, let’s take the fat side of the green. Don’t short side yourself. The mayor’s chief of staff Adam Wood is a veteran of city campaign operations. He’ll be directing traffic.

Malloy is not without his support. Testa foe former Party Chair John Stafstrom, the pol who recruited Finch to run for mayor when he feared former Mayor John Fabrizi could not defeat State Rep. Chris Caruso in a mayoral primary, is supporting Malloy. So are Black Rock District Leader Danny Roach, State Rep. Auden Grogins, State Rep. Andres Ayala, East End District Leader Ralph Ford and former City Council President Lisa Parziale. Roach is one of several delegates who supported Lamont at the convention (to be with the team) who are openly supporting Malloy. It’s gonna be fun to watch this.

And a new generation of Finch, Bill’s son Chris, a recent college grad, is organizing the vote for Lamont in several communities.

So the game is on with the August 10 primary seven weeks away.

From Peter Schiff:

Schiff Earns Spot on Primary Ballot

Best-selling Author Lauds Volunteers for Successful Statewide Efforts

MILFORD, CT – U.S. Senate candidate and economy expert Peter Schiff today announced he earned a spot on the August 10th Republican primary ballot. Schiff exceeded the 8,268 signatures required by state law and received confirmation from Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz.

“We are thrilled to hear the news that our efforts have proved successful,” said Peter Schiff. “Connecticut Republicans now have a alternative: a wrestling promoter or a businessman and economist. Given the state of our economy, I think the choice is clear.”

“I look forward to waging a competitive campaign and defeating Linda McMahon August 10th,” Schiff added. “I am confident as voters learn more about me, they will like what they see and hear. From fighting to remove the government roadblocks preventing employers from creating jobs to keeping taxes low, I am the only one in the race with the skill-set necessary to help get our economy back on track.”

A staunch believer that America can no longer borrow to live beyond its means, Schiff pledges to use expertise garnered from building a successful investment company to stop growing the government and start growing our economy.

From Dan Malloy:

WYWS

The following is a statement from Dan Kelly, Campaign Manager for the Dan Malloy for Governor Campaign:

“You’re probably used to getting ICYMI or, ‘in case you missed it’ emails. Well, this is a new version of ICYMI. This one stands for ‘while you were sleeping.’

“‘While You Were Sleeping’ was a movie about a beautiful love story. This version of WYWS is not a love story. It’s a story about how Ned Lamont tried to slip one by the voters while he thought they were sleeping.

“While you were sleeping on Friday night (okay, maybe only some of you were sleeping) Ned Lamont’s campaign tried to bury the fact that it had concealed a $1 million donation – a potential violation of campaign finance law – by releasing the news late in the evening when it hoped no one was paying attention. Unfortunately for Ned, not everyone was asleep, and some people were paying attention.

“The way the Lamont campaign has handled the public disclosure of its finances stands in stark contrast to the way Dan Malloy has handled his campaign finances. When Dan qualified for the Citizens’ Election Program he held a public event on a beautiful Sunday afternoon outside the State Capitol, invited press and supporters to come, and answered every question that was asked.

“I think that kind of openness is exactly what Connecticut needs in its next Governor – someone ready to stand publicly by their values and their principles, to answer tough questions openly and honestly, and to let their actions speak as loudly as their words.”

 From Ned Lamont

Lamont Campaign Files Report with SEEC

New Haven, CT – Ned Lamont’s campaign for governor filed a report with the State Elections Enforcement Commission showing that the campaign has received contributions in excess of 175% of the expenditure limit for participating statewide candidates in the primary election.

“Late last week, our campaign received contributions that will trigger the release of the last supplemental grant in the Democratic gubernatorial primary,” said Lamont’s Communications Director Justine Sessions. “Due to an inadvertent oversight, the report was not filed within 48 hours of the triggering event. When we discovered that error, we immediately contacted the SEEC and worked directly with them to file the report today.”

Write On, From The Bridgeport Public Library

The Bridgeport Public Library teams up with International & New York Times Bestselling author Steve Berry to present a writers workshop – a benefit for the Bridgeport History Center.

New York Times bestselling author Steve Berry will teach the craft of writing, including the Four “C’s” of story structure, effective dialogue, point of view, and the all-important 10 Rules of Writing in three 50-minute sessions. This will be followed by a Questions and Answers session.

All proceeds from this event will go to the Bridgeport History Center, Bridgeport Public Library, to assist in the cost of preserving local history materials and funding the Barnum circus poster conservation project. They are celebrating P.T. Barnum’s 200th birthday on July 5, 2010, as well as the 75th anniversary of the Bridgeport History Center. P.T. Barnum was a resident and entrepreneur in Bridgeport, Connecticut and Mayor in 1875.

Mr. Berry is donating his time and expenses.

Please join us at the:

Bridgeport Public Library’s

North Branch
3455 Madison Avenue

Attendance is reserved with your contribution of:

____ $85 Early Bird Registration until June 22

____ $100 after June 22

For more information, contact Mary Witkowski, Bridgeport City Historian, at 203-576-7417 or mwitkowski@bridgeportpubliclibrary.org