Shhhh … Connecticut. It’s a secret budget deal … Don’t talk about it.
Last summer the Connecticut General Assembly adopted, and Governor Dannel Malloy signed into law, a new state budget that policymakers knew, or should have known, wasn’t remotely balanced.
A few weeks later the Malloy administration begrudgingly admitted that a significant budget deficit had opened up and was expanding quickly.
Initially Malloy announced he series of controversial and major budget cuts to a variety of vital services, including programs that support the most vulnerable in our society.
Republican and Democrats legislators voiced their concerns about the cuts and the governor’s plans, but Malloy pledged to stay the course.
Then, as the magnitude of the fiscal crisis become more apparent, Malloy “invited” Democratic and Republican legislative leaders to sit down and “negotiate” a deal to balance the budget.
After weeks of behind closed door discussions, the bi-partisan negotiations amicably ended on Thursday with no “acceptable budget deal” in place and Malloy followed up by calling the General Assembly to Hartford next Tuesday to vote on a “Democratic budget deal” … a deal that doesn’t yet exist.
On Friday, the members of the House Democratic Caucus met, behind closed doors, but as Shhhh … Connecticut. It’s a secret budget deal … Don’t talk about it. - Wait What?:
