HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Republican governor candidate Bob Stefanowski attempted to paint both his Democratic and independent rivals as fans of big spending and taxes during their second appearance together on a debate stage. In return, they accused the businessman and political newcomer on Thursday of providing few specifics on his policy proposals.
The hourlong match-up marked the feistiest debate yet among the top three candidates hoping to fill the job being vacated by Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. Two other candidates are also on the ballot.
“I think Ned and Oz are one in the same,” Stefanowski told reporters after the debate, referring to Democratic candidate Ned Lamont and petitioning independent candidate Oz Griebel. “Think about their positions. They both want to put up tolls. They both want bigger government. They both want to increase taxes. They’re both career politicians. I love the contrast.”
Griebel shook his head in disagreement at such claims during the debate, saying afterward that he believes his standing in the latest Quinnipiac University Poll is why Stefanowski targeted him and Lamont with sharp criticisms. During the trio’s prior debate, Stefanowski barely acknowledged Griebel’s presence. The latest survey of likely Connecticut voters shows 11 percent would support Griebel, 47 percent would support Lamont and 39 percent would back Stefanowski if the election were held today. The poll has a margin of sample error of 5 percentage points. Twenty-one percent of voters who named a candidate said they might change their mind.
“I have to say, you know the poll numbers are going in the wrong direction because he didn’t mention me at all up at UConn,” Griebel said. “So my view is, somebody’s taking a look at a poll number that’s getting them a little concerned.”
Several times during Thursday’s debate, sponsored by the Connecticut Broadcasters Association, Lamont and Griebel pressed Stefanowski to offer more details about his plans for the state budget and how he would pay for transportation improvements. They both doubted the feasibility of Stefanowski’s proposal to phase out the personal income tax over eight years. And Lamont questioned Stefanowski’s claim that he would reduce the roughly $20 billion a year state budget by 5 percent to 10 percent by eliminating waste, fraud and abuse.
“Give us some examples,” Lamont demanded.
Afterward, Lamont further questioned Stefanowski’s call for “zero-based budgeting,” essentially requiring agency heads to build their new budgets from $0.
“Bob says zero-based budgeting. You know what that’s French for? Zero. There’s nothing on that piece of paper,” he said. “And I’m going to have to have a budget ready to go in about 115 days.”
Griebel, who questioned how Stefawnoski would pay for transportation projects if he won’t consider some form of tolling, said both major party candidates haven’t offered much in specifics for voters.
“All the so-called solutions are poll-tested. Who doesn’t want to see the income tax go away? I’d put my hand up to see it go away. Just tell me how you’re going to do it,” said Griebel, who criticized Lamont for claiming his plan to restore a local property tax credit against the income tax would not solve the problem of high property taxes. “To me, there’s absence of specificity from both Bob and Ned.”
Lamont countered by saying Griebel’s specifics for addressing Connecticut’s projected one-year budget deficit of more than $2 billion includes borrowing from the state’s reserve account and temporarily deferring pension payments, “which got us into this mess.” Lamont said he’s talking specifically about ways to reduce state health care costs and requiring municipalities to share more services.
The three candidates are scheduled to appear Oct. 30 in a final debate organized by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities. Libertarian Rod Hanscomb and Mark Stewart Greenstein, co-founder of Americans for Minimal Government Party, were not invited to participate.
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