The Oped that Greenwich Time Refuses to Publish

by: thomashooker

Fri Oct 29, 2010 at 12:39:12 PM EDT

Greenwich's Republican incumbents in the General Assembly are running away from open debates on the issues before the voters with their Democratic challengers.  Greenwich Republicans are taking no chances to fool the voters with their silence, hoping their registration advantage is the only thing that matters.  The League of Women Voters has inexplicably asserted that it is unable to reschedule the debates with Democratic candidate Howard Richman, who is running for representative in the 149th district, and Claude Johnson, who is running for representative in the 151st. Apparently, the single debate on GCTV Channel 79 that Fred Camillo had with Claude Johnson was enough to convince these candidates that they did want any part of a widely attended public debate with their Democratic challengers.

Perhaps they understand that this town is quickly shifting away from the Republican dominance that prevailed for so many decades.  Since 2004,  Republican voter registration in Greenwich has fallen from 45% to just under 38%, while over that same period, Democratic voter registration has risen from 20% to nearly 28%.  That's tantamount to a seismic change in political orientation in a short time, and certainly a major reason that Republicans Floren and Camillo are looking  for cover, rather face the voters in free and open debate with their Democratic opponents.

Greenwich Time has stepped up and offered to sponsor debates and provide a moderator to fill the vacuum of LWV's refusal to reschedule the debates.  Yet despite repeated attempts to obtain commitments from the Republicans candidates, none has agreed to take part, choosing instead to hide from the voters.   Clearly, Camillo and Floren are attempting to run out the clock on debates, and close off any possibility of facing off against their Democratic opponents before the voters.

Floren and Camillo need to answer to the voters on a wide variety of issues.  Ms. Floren needs to explain to voters why she has missed fourteen roll call votes this session of the General Assembly, including votes on bills requiring seat belts on school buses, saving taxpayer funds by allowing towns to delay implementation of revaluations, and a bill raising minimum credits for high school graduation so that our students can compete in the workplace.  And she needs to explain to the voters why she has waffled on public financing of state elections.  Fred Camillo needs to tell voters why he deserves to be re-elected when he has yet to introduce a bill that has been passed into law, nor provide any significant input on any other legislation that has.  A debate would also bring out the fact that Camillo voted against public financing, yet went ahead and accepted public funds for his own campaign.  A debate would bring out the fact that with two  degrees in civil and mechanical engineering, Claude Johnson is well placed to help change the system that has made Connecticut's utility rates the highest in the continental United States.  Democratic candidate Howard Richman wants voters to know that he will push for Connecticut to be granted a seat on the MTA board that overseas operation of Metro-North, and that he supports Sustinet, the self-insured health plan that will provide affordable health insurance for Connecticut.

Apparently, Greenwich's Republican legislators just don't believe that the voters deserve to hear free and open debate between candidates who will represent them in Hartford, and they don't want to answer troublesome questions about their performances in office.  They just don't believe that after so many decades of Republicans' being automatically elected and re-elected to the General Assembly, they owe the voters a full discussion of the issues, or to answer questions from residents here in real time.