Aspiring Senator Visits Ledyard

Susan Bysiewicz met Monday with Ledyard’s Democratic Town Committee to speak about her campaign for U.S. Senate.  Bysiewicz, who served as Connecticut’s Secretary of State for 12 years, attended the committee’s regular meeting in the Town Hall Annex.

There she spoke about her stance on issues including economic development, energy, infrastructure, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Economic growth and job development are particularly important to her, she said.

“The reason I’m running is simple: Connecticut is losing more young people than any other state,” she said. “We have a lot to do to turn that around,” adding that there are not enough jobs in the state to make them stay. She said the best solution is to support small businesses, which create the majority of new jobs.

Another issue is renewable energy. “As a country, if we hope to thrive, we have to have a national energy policy,” she said. The policy she envisions would support renewable energy. “It’s going to take a mix of things – wind, solar- and it’s going to take innovation.

“We also really need to focus on investment in infrastructure,” Bysiewicz said. “It’s really important, if we want to be a state that has a vibrant economy, to have our roads and bridges in good repair.” She believes Connecticut should invest more in mass transit, as well.

A final issue Bysiewicz touched on was that of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. These wars, she said, consume $2 billion every week.

“We could be redirecting those $2 billion to invest in the needs of our own country,” she said. “What we need is a sense of urgency in bringing our young people home… I have been a strong voice and will continue to be a strong voice for bringing them home as soon as possible.”

She spoke, too, of the need to see returning veterans taken care of.

Bysiewicz then addressed the style of her leadership. “I would be a senator who would be very visible in our state,” she said.

She said that America needs leaders who are willing to cooperate with members of the other party.

“I look at Washington and I just don’t see that happening,” she said. She claimed that she has a record for bipartisan cooperation, noting two of her past efforts.

In 1991, she helped ban Connecticut legislators from receiving gifts from lobbyists. In 2008, she worked to reverse a law against voter registration in veterans’ hospitals. In both cases, she sought and received help from Republicans.

At this point, Bysiewicz feels confident. “We feel like we’re in a very good place to be successful in this election,” she said, although her Republican competitor is still unknown.