Connecticut Politics

Hartford CourantWTC 1 Surpasses Empire State, Becomes NYC's Tallest BuildingHartford CourantOne World Trade Center surpassed the Empire State Building Monday, becoming the tallest building in New York and achieving a significant milestone in the re-building of Lower Manhattan. The tower skyrocketed past the 1250-foot Empire State Building ...Read Full Story

Flesh-Eating BacteriaHartford CourantATLANTA (Reuters) - A Georgia college student who has already lost a leg to a rare, flesh-eating bacterial infection is now expected to suffer the loss of her fingers too, her father said. Aimee Copeland, 24, was kayaking and zip-lining along the ...Read Full Story

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats have not abandoned the idea of taxing large financial firms to cover the costs of winding down those that are in trouble, Democratic Senator Christopher Dodd said on Friday.Republicans had insisted that a proposed $50 billion "orderly liquidation" fund, financed by fees on large firms, be removed from a proposed sweeping overhaul of Wall Street regulation as a condition for allowing the bill to come up for debate.But when asked if the fund was still on the...Read Full Story

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senator Christopher Dodd, chief negotiator for the Democrats in talks on a bipartisan financial reform bill in the Senate, on Thursday called for creating a new government "office" with the power to craft and enforce rules to protect financial consumers.In a statement that conspicuously omitted any call for an independent agency on consumer protection, Dodd said:"A lot of attention is being paid to what address the new consumer watchdog will have, but the critical...Read Full Story

Rose out for season after tearing ACL in Game 1 winHartford CourantBy KC Johnson Tribune Reporter Saturday's Game 1 win was marred by the sight of Derrick Rose crumpling to the ground, clutching his left knee, and being helped to the locker room by both trainers. Rose hurt his knee as he came to a jump stop with just ...Read Full Story

BOSTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's Democratic Party, which lost two state governorships last week, drew hope for winning the governor's office in Connecticut next year after the Republican incumbent said she would not run for re-election.Jodi Rell, in office since 2004, said on Monday she would not seek another term, setting the stage for a wide-open contest between a field of Democrats led by Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz and Republicans including Rell's No. 2, Michael Fedele...Read Full Story

by Eric DonderoConnecticut Multi-Millionaire Ned Lamont is not a United States Senator today. He lost the general election in 2006 badly to Independent-Democrat incumbent Joe Lieberman. Lamont first beat Lieberman in the Democrat primary with massive support, both financial and grass roots, from the Leftwing Blogosphere including Daily Kos. But he went on to lose badly to Blue-Collar Pro-Defense Centrist Joe Lieberman. Could we be seeing the same exact scenario playing out today? Obama is the...Read Full Story

Ned Lamont is poised to announce his candidacy for Connecticut governor.Lamont, the political upstart who challenged U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman four years ago, is expected to announce his bid for governor Tuesday at the Old State House in Hartford.Lamont won the 2006 Democratic primary against Lieberman, but the senator ran in the general election as an independent and won. The Greenwich businessman spent $16 million of his own money and was able to tap into the discontent among many Democrats...Read Full Story

DODD'S REFORM PLAN Senator Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.), head of the Banking Committee, staked out a tough position on Nov. 10 when he unveiled his 1,136-page financial reform package. It would combine banking regulation into a single new agency, stripping the Fed of some powers and handing oversight of "systemically risky" institutions to a panel of regulators. Other ideas, including derivatives reform and a consumer protection agency, resemble those in pending House legislation. The plan...Read Full Story

Spurs set for top seed, blow to World Peace in LA winHartford CourantOklahoma City sustained a blow in their 114-106 loss to the Lakers in a physical battle that saw Los Angeles forward Metta World Peace ejected after hitting James Harden with an elbow to the head in the second quarter. World Peace was celebrating a ...Read Full Story