Musto, In Love Fest, Wins Endorsement

While all the action was at Testo’s Restaurant Monday night, the other Democratic State Senator representing Bridgeport, Anthony Musto, won his party’s endorsement unanimously in Trumbull. He will not have a primary. Musto’s district includes all of Trumbull and portions of Bridgeport and Monroe. His acceptance speech:

I would like to take this opportunity to announce I am running for the Connecticut Senate as a Democrat.

The last few years have been difficult to serve in the legislature. Connecticut was not spared the effects of the economic downturn.

Unemployment has been high, foreclosures have been increasing, and Connecticut has been unfairly viewed as unfriendly to business.

We’ve been working to change that. You may remember that we passed a bipartisan jobs bill in October and if you saw the Connecticut Post today you know that we are looking to improve upon that in special session.

It shows that our focus is on creating jobs and improving the economy. It shows that we are investing in companies that want to move or grow here. And we are helping companies invest in technology.

We’ve already heard about the successes. One person I spoke with has been working with several companies who are creating jobs right here in the 22nd senatorial district and investing in technology with the help of the State. He says the process is easy, the delays are few, and the state employees motivated to help these companies succeed.

But we aren’t done. As the Post said we need to pass this bill to expand the employment opportunities for our residents, and especially our veterans. Our focus remains on putting Connecticut back to work, and will continue to be on putting Connecticut back to work, and making sure that business finds a good partner here in the State of Connecticut.

I know I keep saying “we.” That’s because I’m not doing this alone. There are 36 senators, and I’m proud to say I have worked bipartisanly with them. For the last 3 years, every bill that I have supported out of a committee I chair has passed the Senate unanimously except for one, and that one passed with bipartisan support. It is this kind of cooperation that helps me get things done for the State and for the people of this district, and I’ll keep working with all members of the Senate as long as I have the privilege of representing this district.

For myself, I have proposed and pushed legislation on several issues. Some I am most proud of include giving towns and cities more leeway in their own tax policies and giving them more of a voice in cell tower siting. I proposed allowing businesses who incur penalties for violating state regulations to abate those penalties by fixing the problems quickly and permanently. I proposed mortgage foreclosure reform that would make banks play by the same rules we all have to.

And I have fought for help for those things that are important to this district. Money for Beardsley Zoo, school construction, Boys and Girls programs, Hillcrest pool, smoke alarms, and road maintenance. Right now, I am trying to help various projects in all three municipalities get help from the State. I’ll keep doing this work as long as I can, but I need your help.

We all know what’s coming. It’s a presidential election year, together with a U.S. Senate race that will cost many millions of dollars and a congressional race in a swing district. You will have your mailboxes and telephones and TVs filled with an insane amount of ads, and my small state senate voice will be drowned out. So I need your help.

If you agree that we need to help businesses find a home here in Connecticut, and if you agree that we need to give our cities and towns more autonomy while still helping to fund things like roads and schools, and if you agree that politics should be about more than having a D or an R after your name, then I need you to tell your friends and neighbors about the work I’ve done, about my ideas and my focus. With your help, I’ll have the honor to go back to Hartford and to keep representing the people of the 22nd district.