by Ryan McKeen
Two weeks ago, I had dinner with Dan Malloy at Chaplins in New London. It was a small affair. There were maybe a dozen voters from across the state and Dan.
In May, I was a delegate to the Democratic State Convention where I cast my vote for Ned Lamont. I liked Ned then and I like him now but on Tuesday, I’ll be voting for Dan Malloy.
Malloy arrived on time for our 8:30 dinner and stayed until about 10:30.
We began our conversation talking about New London. Dan keyed in on New London’s revolutionary war history. The conversation then moved to Connecticut’s revolutionary and civil war history. We ended up discussing how Connecticut history is taught or not taught in schools. Dan said that Connecticut doesn’t know or value it’s history enough. Then he went a step further and said it’s hurting our economy.
Malloy said “look at Massachusetts, they understand and celebrate their role in the founding of our nation. Painting a red line through the streets of Boston has probably generated over a billion dollars in economic growth”.
Talking with Malloy was interesting. There were no cameras just a small group of strangers and a candidate.
If you had told me I was talking with Bill Clinton, I would have believed you. Malloy is a policy wonk. No matter what the subject, he had numbers, knew laws, had identified problems and benefits with various solutions. The man loved talking about and listening to the nuts and bolts details of policy that matter.
If Connecticut puts Malloy in the Governor’s mansion, it would be easy to imagine late night, non-stop policy discussions about the issues facing our state. Something that’s been sorely missing for a long time.
It would have been easy for Dan to stop by and say hi and leave. He had been campaigning since 5:30 in the morning. Dan had spent the day criss crossing the state. Instead, Dan stayed late into the night and engaged voters in a conversation that he embraced.
He had his blackberry but he rarely checked it. He had his staffers but they were at another table. He spent 2 hours talking about taxes, education, affordable housing, and environmental issues. I asked him about taking the bar exam orally. He said his learning disability forced him to work harder and learn differently.
We also talked about affordable housing. Affordable housing is a contentious issue, especially in Fairfield County. Malloy talked about how he sees affordable housing as a necessary driver of economic growth. He talked about the various initiatives that Stamford has employed in this regard.
If ever Connecticut needs a fully engaged Governor it is now. We need someone who sees connections between the problems facing the state. Someone who understands that Connecticut is a state rich in resources.
On Tuesday, I’ll cast my vote for Dan Malloy because I believe Connecticut needs Dan Malloy.