Wow...Godfrey has NO shame...and apparently the desperate State Rep.'s campaign in in FULL meltdown mode as there is no other excuse for his latest excuse to the media regarding his callous comment regarding poor people and minorities in downtown Danbury.

Here's what the State Rep. for downtown Danbury is NOW saying about his infamous callous remark in which he stated "we need to take care of the cities and stop using them as dumping grounds for poor people and ethnic minorities and bring them up to the levels that attract businesses."

Danbury Daily Voice, 11.04.16

One of the accusations made against Godfrey pertains to a video taken at a recent debate at Broadview Middle School hosted by the Citywide PTO and being circulated on social media.

In the video, Godfrey said he is accused of calling cities dumping grounds for the poor people and ethnic minorities.

But Godfrey said this was not, in fact, what he said. “I was making a statement about stopping some of the consequences of racism and they edited it to take the ‘stop’ part out.

While can view video of Godfrey's complete comment at the following link, here's an video excerpt of Godfrey's statement provided by Palmares' campaign that has gotten Deputy Speaker in hot water with members of the downtown community.

"...I'm working and having a great time with dealing with Hackerspace in Danbury on the Connecticut Next program we are trying to put together a business incubator in downtown Danbury...ah, and, and we can actually go into another half an hour on we need to take care of the cities and stop using them as dumping grounds for poor people and ethnic minorities and bring them up to the levels that attract businesses.

(Moderator bell sounds)

Everyone talks about the GE moving yet they move to a place that is more expensive and has a higher tax rate and at the same time, and people forget this, left Wisconsin because of the austerity budgets and moved to Canada..."

NO WHERE in his full statement or in the above excerpt did Godfrey mention anything regarding "the consequences of racism"...and as you'll see in the now infamous web video from the Emanuela Palmares campaign, she DID NOT edit the word "stop" out from his comment.

This latest round of whining from Godfrey is the most offensive one yet and every "poor and ethnic minority" member of the 110th district should be deeply insulted and outraged by their State Representative's inability to tell the truth.

Personally, I think this is a a little over the top...

Homeowners could be fined for unmowed lawns under an amendment the town is considering to its blight ordinance. The target of the change is banks who have foreclosed on properties and aren’t maintaining them.

The amendment would allow the town to fine homeowners whose grass is longer than 12 inches and left that way for 30 days or more. But First Selectman Matt Knickerbocker said these specifics could change as officials are working on the language of the amendment for a public hearing before the end of December.

The town’s current blight ordinance was passed in 2013 and had originally included language that would have enforced lawn maintenance. Residents requested this language be removed because they did not want the “grass police” telling them to mow their lawn, Knickerbocker said.

But this amendment, while it would affect all property owners, is meant to prevent banks from ignoring maintenance at foreclosed properties.

[...]

With the amendment, neighbors would be able to file a complaint to the town, and a blight control officer would inspect the property to see whether it is a problem. The owner would then receive a letter saying the property was out of compliance, then a warning notice saying he or she could be fined, followed by potential fines.

The town might be better off if they focused their attention on unkept lawns on foreclosed properties and not place law-abiding taxpayers owners under this "lawn maintenance" umbrella that many describe as government overreach.

Unreal...simply unreal.

Bob Godfrey is a real piece of work. His campaign is still spinning the discredited LIE that his offensive and insensitive "dumping ground" comment was taken out of context! Here's what Godfrey's campaign said about his ugly remark and the response to his insulting rant.

Godfrey’s campaign manager accused Palmares of using the incumbent’s words out of context on purpose to twist the truth. “Anything could be misconstrued when something is cherry-picked and selectively edited to make it sound like something it isn’t,” said Joseph DaSilva Jr. “The nature of Bob’s comment is that too often the state government has treated the inner cities like that, and it is wrong, and we need to invest in them.” [...]

Godfrey on Monday responded that the Palmares ad was fashioned after the GOP’s national strategy that distorts Democratic positions and weakens voter confidence in the integrity of campaign messages.

“I am so disappointed in the way this attack ad plays fast and loose with my reputation and my career and what I stand for,” Godfrey said. “Voters are not buying this negativity and cynicism and the Republicans’ complete lack of alternative plans.”

I call bullshit...COMPLETE bullshit. Godfery is a BOLDFACE liar because:

• The report Godfrey cited in his after the fact excuse (Connecticut Economic Competitiveness Diagnostic Summary Results) was NEVER EVER citied or mentioned in his comment at the candidate forum. NOT AT ALL.

You can view the report here and read it for yourself...

Since Godfrey is desperately trying to make excuses for his callous remarks AND LYING TO THE PUBLIC about the true meaning of his true feelings regarding the poor and immigrants in his district, for your viewing pleasure, here's Godfrey's COMPLETE statement. One listen to what Godfrey said and it's CRYSTAL CLEAR that he was talking about his desire that Danbury not be a "dumping ground for poor and ethnic minorities" go it would be more "attractive" to businesses.

As you'll see in the video, Godfrey's "dumping ground" comment was NEVER taken out of context because it was out of context from the entire point he was attempting to make in the first place...in other words, Godfrey DID NOT have to make his "dumping ground" remark to make his point in his overall statement...his disgusting comment was more off of the cuff than something that was part of his original train of thought.

No matter how many shameless excuses the State Rep. for the "poor and ethnic minorities" in Danbury utter out of his mouth, EVERYONE knows what Godfrey meant in his comment...and after nearly thirty years in office, it's painfully clear that Godfrey is COMPLETELY out of touch with a large segment of his district that he swore to represent...and hopefully those people will remember what Godfrey REALLY feels about them when they cast their vote on Election Day.

UNreal...

As a former PROUD former resident of Sandy Hook who will NEVER EVER FORGET live blogging on the events on that horrific day in 2012, I simply can not respect ANY politicians who represents Newtown that does not agree with the notion that the country needs some level of REASONABLE gun control legislation.

If you're as mad as hell over Congress' inaction on gun control, then DO NOT SUPPORT candidates who reject REASONABLE gun control legislation on the Federal and State level. On the state level, in the 2nd district (which covers portions of Newtown), the choice is clear.

A challenge in representing the 2nd District is that it covers four towns — most of Bethel and parts of Danbury, Newtown and Redding. The seat is open after state Rep. Dan Carter, a Republican who had it for three terms, decided to run for the U.S. Senate.

Raghib Allie-Brennan, a Democrat, can best represent the sprawling district and we endorse him in this race.

[...]

Allie-Brennan, 25, was on the Bethel Inland Wetlands Commission, but gained his most experience as a legislative aid to two Congresswomen in Washington. Working in the minority party, he learned how to work in a bipartisan fashion. He does not intend to toe the party line.

The issue that separates the two candidates the greatest is gun violence prevention. Duff called the state’s post-Sandy Hook legislation “draconian;” Allie-Brennan would be a “strong gun safety” advocate.

[...]

Allie-Brennan promises to bring “new energy and ideas to Hartford.” He should be given the chance.

In the state's 106 district (which also covers Newtown) the choice is also a no-brainer...

Eva Bermudez Zimmerman, a 29-year-old community organizer who has lived in Newtown seven years, also understands the unique needs of the Newtown community and would continue the advocacy.

[...]

We would like to give Bermudez Zimmerman, a former Bernie Sanders supporter who has served one term on the Newtown Legislative Council, the chance to represent the community in Hartford. Unlike many first-time state candidates, she can talk about tax policy reform in detail. She promises to stand up to Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy.

The differences between the candidates are sharply defined along party lines, with the exception of gun violence prevention, which Bolinsky has supported. We appreciate his stand and his service.

We endorse Eva Bermudez Zimmerman to represent Newtown in the 106th District.

Food for thought when you cast your vote next Tuesday!

I'm putting the finishing touches on my breakdown on State Senate candidate Ken Gucker and why I believe that he was probably the worse choice for candidate of State Senate in the 24th district in recent memory.

As someone who has known this local gadfly and his antics for nearly ten years, I'll provide a inside look at the self-described "activist" and explain how when it comes to the REAL history of this particular individual, lets just say that the devil is in the details and I'll be skipping the State Senate potion of my ballot on Election Day.

In short...VOTERS BEWARE...although McLachlan is God-Awful, Gucker is not any better...in fact, in many ways, he's worse...MUCH worse. As a preview of things to come, here's a re-post I did on the soon to be least-qualified/losing candidate for Danbury's only State Senate seat.

You won't have to wait much longer!

In a preview of my series of upcoming posts on the race for State Senate in the 24th district, here's my latest TV appearance where I gave briefly described my thoughts on the campaign of the self-described "community-activist" Ken Gucker...

Trust me, you should stay tuned for the details on the race for State Senate in the 24th district as well as my take on all the races for State Rep in Greater Danbury...lets just say that I won't be holding back...

More to come very soon.

State Rep. Bob Godfrey is having a difficult week...

The State Representative for downtown Danbury has been placed on the defensive this week after making an ill-advised comment at a candidates forum last month in which he called cities, "dumping grounds for poor and ethnic minorities."

Godfrey's opponent, Emanuela Palmares, expressed outrage and offense over the his remark while others have have been more blunt with their anger with one critic labeling Godfrey as a "racist and elitist."

As Godfrey continues to attempt to dig himself out of the hole he made for himself, new questions have been raised about comments the State Rep. made about his opposition to granting undocumented immigrants drivers licenses that seem to contradict themselves.

Although Godfrey represents downtown Danbury, an area in which a majority of the city's poor and immigrant population reside, as The Vote Smart Project correctly notes, in recent years, the district's long term Representative and Deputy Speaker has voted against every major immigrant-related bills that has come before the State House of Representatives.

Godfrey opponent in his re-election bid, Emanuela Palmares, has been highly critical of Godfrey stating that he has not represented the interests of residents in downtown Danbury and at a meeting with the editorial board of The News-Times Palmares challenged Godfrey on his anti-immigration record:

(Newstimes: 10.16.16.):

"But Palmares challenged Godfrey for being on the wrong side of three legislative issues she said were important to Latinos:

The decision to cut funding for teaching English as a second language from the state education aid formula.

The decision to grant driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants.

The decision to allow college-age children of undocumented immigrants the option to pay in-state tuition.

“We have a district that is diverse not only in its ethnicity but diverse in its economic background, and its education, and all these issues need to be taken into consideration,” Palmares said. “And if Mr. Godfrey was truly out there knocking on doors and talking to every resident, I can assure you his voting record would have looked a lot different.”

In defending his vote against allowing undocumented immigrants driver licenses, State Rep. Godfrey said the following to the newspaper's editorial board:

Godfrey defended that record, saying he and the other members of Danbury’s delegation voted in the minority against the driver’s license for undocumented immigrants, in part over a concern the licenses could be misused to register to vote."

During Godfrey's appearance on WCSU's news show Election Connection on Tuesday night, when the topic of licenses undocumented immigrants and voting came up, the State Rep. appeared to directly contradict statements he made to the Newstimes Editorial board.

Looks like Godfrey is trying to have it both ways. In one breath, he states to the Newstimes editorial board that he voted against the granting licenses to undocumented immigrants because of "concern the licenses could be misused to register to vote" and in the next breath, he directly contradicts the rationale he stated days ago!

Can't wait for Godfrey's campaign to claim that everyone is taking his words out of context!

This is rich!

It seems like Richard Blumenthal's opponent in the US Senate campaign is trying to distance himself from Donald Trump...no, I'm not kidding, Blumenthal is running for re-election (Vigdor, Hearst Newspapers, 10.30.16:).

The reception at the train station for Carter grew warmer with the rising sun. That is, until the conversation turned toward the top of the ticket.

“Not a fan of Trump’s,” said one woman, who declined to give her name. “I don’t want to get blown up in three weeks or see someone impeached or an assassination. It’s not a reality TV show.”

Carter didn’t put up much of a defense for Donald Trump.

“It shouldn’t be a circus,” said Carter, who is married and has two children from a previous marriage.

It didn’t take much to get Joe Worthington, 58, a dentist and Republican from Fairfield, worked up about the election.

“Both individuals are horrific,” he told Carter of Trump and Clinton. “I don’t think (Trump) is an ideal person, but Hillary is going to destroy our country. I’m not thrilled with (Blumenthal).”

Unlike many Republicans in the state who do not support Trump and skipped his rally in Fairfield in August, Carter had no problem standing in solidarity with the state's most die-hard supporters of the GOP Presidential nominee. (Stuart, CT News Junkie, 08.13.16.)

Unlike Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s first rallies in Connecticut in April, Saturday’s event at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield included remarks from the Republican establishment.

[...]

Other Republicans at the rally joined in criticizing Clinton, including state Rep. Dan Carter, R-Bethel, who is challenging Democratic U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal this fall. Carter spent much of his speech comparing Blumenthal to Clinton, saying both candidates are untrustworthy.

Carter panned Clinton as being “more of the same.”