Campaign Spices Up The Session

[Nutmegger]

Gov. M. Jodi Rell has established in 19 months in office that she shares at least one trait with her disgraced predecessor and fellow Republican, John G. Rowland: a hardnosed pragmatism in dealing with the opposing party at the expense of her own.

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Whether a Republican governor or Democratic majority lawmaker, incumbents campaign on records of accomplishment. Challengers and legislative minorities run on incumbents' failures.

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"There's clearly a tension that's there, and has always been there, when we've had a Republican governor," said Rep. Robert Farr, R-West Hartford. "On the one hand we want to scream about everything that is wrong with government, but we don't want to taint our governor."

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Last year, Rell surprised Republicans by endorsing an increased minimum wage, even as the GOP argued it was anti-business. The move probably was good politics for a Republican who needs to run statewide in a Democratic state, but it undercut the legislative minority.

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But Rell reminded Republicans last week she will not hesitate to abandon them without so much as a friendly warning in order to pass legislation she believes in or neutralize a potential problem.

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Her administration signed off on compromise legislation to ban the sale of soda in schools and encourage healthier snacks and meals by offering increased lunch subsidies to school districts that adhere to state nutritional standards. The sponsor of the bill is Senate President Pro Tem Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn.

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Last year, Rell had vetoed a similar bill - to the applause of Ward and most legislative Republicans. But Rell also took heat from child advocates, pediatricians and nutrition experts, some of whom suggested that the governor had bowed to business lobbyists

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Rell and the Democratic majority in both houses are working independently on job-creation initiatives to deal with what the polls says is the most important election issue: Connecticut's poor record of generating new jobs.

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DeStefano, who announced his job initiative Friday, and Malloy would benefit if nothing is passed. Both have claimed Rell has no vision for improving the business climate, but the Democratic legislature may help Rell prove her challengers wrong.

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On the burgeoning surplus, now estimated at $661 million for the current year, Rell probably will have to decide whether to fight for a Republican plan to use the money to cut taxes or accede to Democratic desire to reduce the unfunded teachers' pension liability.

Read the full article: http://www.courant.com/news/politics/hc-session0205.artfeb05,0,621081.story?coll=hc-headlines-politics-state