Support the state's liberal values

By Josh Kagan

This fall's Democratic candidates for governor, Congress, and a host of state and local offices best represent Connecticut's liberal values. Supporting them will best support the Yale and New Haven communities.

Gubernatorial candidate Barbara Kennelly (D-Conn.), Senator Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.), and the rest of candidates on the Democratic ticket addressing the issues of equal opportunity. Kennelly believes that all people should have equal access to health care, education, employment, and the political system, and that all people should contribute their fair share to these causes. On each issue, Kennelly has articulated the more liberal and more caring position than incumbent Republican Governor John Rowland.

Both Kennelly and Dodd have led the fight to reform HMOs in order to prevent abuses, take medical decisions away from corporate bureaucrats, and return them to doctors and patients. While Republicans have supported health insurance corporations (and receive millions of dollars in campaign contributions from them), Democrats have made humanizing HMOs a national issue.

The Democratic record shows a dedication to providing education at all levels to all Connecticut residents. In order to provide an equal chance to succeed in an increasingly competitive job market (especially after Rowland's reactionary welfare reform), our government must create strong public schools and universities. Kennelly understands this and has proposed increased funding for Connecticut public education. Part of Kennelly's platform is a scholarship to help students pay for the costs of college and prevent a brain drain of Connecticut residents to out-of-state schools and jobs.

Kennelly has supported campaign finance reform in Congress, meeting Republican opposition at every turn. Rowland has been silent on the issue. Democrats understand the need to rid politics of the influence of big money.

Kennelly also champions tax reform in Connecticut. With a low income tax rate and a high property tax rate, working class residents pay a disproportionate share of the revenue base because of the regressive nature of property taxes. While Rowland irresponsibly cut income taxes, Kennelly advocates property tax relief, which benefits middle class homeowners and urban areas. Cities, which bear a disproportionate burden for paying for social services, have had to raise property taxes in order to compensate the a lack in state support. In contrast, Rowland vowed to eliminate the income tax in 1994 (something Democrats prevented) and paid for government operations with borrowed money. This lowers the state's credit rating and will damage Connecticut's ability to serve its citizens in the future. Even a bleeding-heart liberal understands the long-term need for fiscal order, but apparently Rowland does not.

To his credit, Governor Rowland has played a very slick game. During the first three years of his term, his department of environmental protection came under attack for failing to enforce environmental regulations, he cut education funds, he cut funds to cities, and he opposed several progressive social legislation. This year, Rowland has signed Democratic-sponsered legislation and pretended to be liberal. He signed a minimum wage increase written by Democrats, and then announced his concern for working families. Rowland has attempted to claim credit for providing health insurance to low-income children in Connecticut. No example could more clearly show Rowland's misleading rhetoric: the Democratic party is responsible for passing federal legislation calling for funds to go to the states in order to provide this health care. Rowland proceeds to pretend that he should be dearly thanked for merely enforcing a law written by Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) and supported in the House by Kennelly.

Connecticut needs elected officials who will be liberal for four years, not just during an election year. Connecticut needs elected officials who understand the need for health reform, for education funding, for campaign reform, and for tax reform. Connecticut needs to elect Barbara Kennelly and the Democratic ticket.

Josh Kagan, president of Yale College Democrats, is a junior in Silliman.

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