Unsurprisingly – Connecticut Commentary predicted it nearly two weeks ago – the Hartford Courant has endorsed Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat, for the U.S. Senate and Dan Malloy for Governor. The Courant is a left of center paper that generally endorses incumbent Democrats or such Republicans as are indistinguishable from Democrats.
The kinds of politicians generally supported by the paper have given us this year a state deficit that some expect will expand in the near future to $4 billion, the only state in the nation that has lost population, a state and municipal tax burden that ranks 38th in the country, a property tax collection that is number two in the nation, the fourth highest gas tax in the country and a return on every dollar sent to Washington in taxes of 69 cents.
In the gubernatorial race, the paper is willing to wing it with Mr. Malloy. Voting for Mr. Malloy, the paper avers, “requires a leap of faith that he is not, as Mr. Foley charges, in the pocket of the public employees unions… Engaging the unions is not being rolled by them…” except when engaging the unions is being rolled by them. The Courant should sit down and have a candid chat with the outgoing much rolled Republican governor, a moderate, the only kind of Republican the paper is willing to tolerate.
Actually, Malloy, despite his credentials as a union conciliator, very likely will have the same problem as Rell with liberal Democrats tied to unions through sympathetic leaders in the legislature and campaign contributions, more about which later.
The kinds of politicians generally supported by the paper have given us this year a state deficit that some expect will expand in the near future to $4 billion, the only state in the nation that has lost population, a state and municipal tax burden that ranks 38th in the country, a property tax collection that is number two in the nation, the fourth highest gas tax in the country and a return on every dollar sent to Washington in taxes of 69 cents.
In the gubernatorial race, the paper is willing to wing it with Mr. Malloy. Voting for Mr. Malloy, the paper avers, “requires a leap of faith that he is not, as Mr. Foley charges, in the pocket of the public employees unions… Engaging the unions is not being rolled by them…” except when engaging the unions is being rolled by them. The Courant should sit down and have a candid chat with the outgoing much rolled Republican governor, a moderate, the only kind of Republican the paper is willing to tolerate.
Actually, Malloy, despite his credentials as a union conciliator, very likely will have the same problem as Rell with liberal Democrats tied to unions through sympathetic leaders in the legislature and campaign contributions, more about which later.
Comments
My own feeling – never very well hidden -- is that Rowland often enough danced to the tune of the Courant’s drummers to be considered a safe Republican. As usual, your comment is on the mark: The establishment press generally supposes establishment politicians. Rowland campaigned as a conservative. He even danced on the limb, promising in his campaign to eliminate the income tax that the Courant agitated for. That was abandoned as soon as he entered office. His administration was, I continue to insist, left of center, though I am perfectly willing top admit that where the center lies depends on one’s point of view. The Courant is “moderate” in the same sense that the New York Times is moderate; which is to say, it is not moderate at all.
Someone did some careful analysis of the question of news bias during one of the late Ronald Reagan’s presidential elections and found that while the general public voted Reagan in by a fair majority, a pitiful minority of members of the First Estate voted with the majority. There is an ocean of data showing that the Mainstream Media, a dreadful misnomer, is left of center. The Courant falls into this grouping. As for the other papers, by their endorsements shall ye know them.
The NYT is liberal certainly,though I always enjoy David Brooks' writings.The Courant as I said before,appears to me to be a mixed bag.