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

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18 comments

  1. Great read. I will vote for Lamont at Black Rock. I feel Bpt will go huge for Lamont. I am not voting for Lamont because Testa wants the people to!!! I am voting for him because I want to!!!! Roach is my district leader and he is a good one!!! He is a nice guy and knows how to get out the vote at Black Rock. But this time I will not be taking his advice for gov.

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  2. Can someone help me in this circle jerk, I mean circle of jerks!

    Finch hires Sims, who is a protege of Ford. Finch is supporting Lamont and Ford is for Malloy. There is so much disarray in the DTC and City Government (sorry, they are the same, right), it’s like watching a old Laurel and Hardy film. A lot of running around by dumb asses.

    The inept leadership of this City is a disgrace. Too bad there is no one in the know who is willing to stand up and call these people on it. DTC politics sure does make strange bedfellows. Back to the circle jerk(s).

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  3. Sorry I didn’t get home in time from the Fore N’ Aft and turned into a pumpkin and can’t spell Cinderella. Who’s the ball washer in this Fairway to Heaven story?

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      1. Do any of the other towns in the state follow Bridgeport and New Haven’s lead? My sense is that the urban/suburban divide is far more pronounced in party politics than it is in the legislature, and that’s saying something.

        As best I could tell there was a serious effort to deny Lamont the 15%–a number of delegations were pressed to go unanimous for Malloy despite the prohibition against the unit rule.

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    1. Look in the mirror? Why should I hurt my own feelings?

      It’s a nice piece. Part of the problem some sites have is lack of a registration system. Much easier to police a site with one. Also, some folks such as city employees don’t want to use their name for fear of retribution. Many a good tip, news reporters have received, as a result of anonymous sources.

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  4. I thought the post/link above was interesting. Do any of us see ourselves there? I always thought a little introspection was good for the soul.

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  5. “It’s a nice piece … Many a good tip, news reporters have received, as a result of anonymous sources.”

    You’re speaking to the choir, Leonard.

    I seem to recall a former-copy-boy-promoted-to-reporter who came to me one day asking for the name of an anonymous source I used and going away mad when I wouldn’t tell him.

    (Did I just hear a mirror crack?)

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  6. My goodness John.

    How can you criticize the young lad for attempting to find out if you were a gold-plated idiot or not? It’s not his fault to find out you were solid brass.

    I can recall conversations at various halls of intellectual disputation where you attempted to use our friend John Jameson to pick my notebook.

    You never heard me say anything worse than, “Waiter, it’s his check.”

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