Minority legislators back Malloy -- to a point
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Send to a friendWith time running short, the legislature's Black and Puerto Rican Caucus tried Thursday to nudge forward some of the education reforms that Gov. Dannel P. Malloy says are needed to turn around troubled urban schools.
But the caucus, which includes 22 of the General Assembly's 187 members, offered a mixed message at a press conference, embracing some reforms, while opposing or offering no opinion on areas most strongly fought by teacher unions.
Also undercutting the presentation was the absence of two key caucus members, Sen. Toni Harp and Rep. Toni Walker of New Haven, the co-chairwomen of the Appropriations Committee negotiating a final bill.
Rep. Gary Holder-Winfield, flanked by other Black and Puerto Rican Caucus members.
Still, the long-delayed statement by these Democratic legislators whose constituents could be most affected by the governor's struggling reform effort was applauded by the Malloy administration as a positive step.
"You can't have total agreement on everything, but there is a lot of common ground there," said Roy Occhiogrosso, the governor's