Recent polls show that Connecticut voters want a change in policy direction for the state. An anemic economy, continued high unemployment, record numbers of business closings ”“ along with a state Legislature that has so far avoided confronting our enormous structural budget deficits and often seems out of touch with public sentiment ”“ have engendered widespread public dissatisfaction with the performance of our elected officials.
CBIA”™s public opinion poll taken in July confirms this. It also shows quite definitively that Connecticut voters and the business community are of like mind when it comes to choosing the best solutions for the state”™s most pressing problems. Most agree on the need for a smaller, less expensive state government and policies to spur private-sector growth and job creation.
The respondents are real people voicing real concerns, and we believe they will be an engaged, informed electorate who will take their desire for change to the voting booth. The candidates would do well to take heed, to pay attention to our poll results and develop concrete plans for downsizing state government and promoting business investment and private-sector jobs.
Once Nov. 2 has come and gone, voters will be watching to see whether our elected officials make good on their campaign pledges to focus on jobs and the economy. CBIA will also be watching and we”™ll be reporting on their performance, because we”™re determined to bring greater accountability to the political process.
This an exceptionally advantageous time for business leaders and organizations to become politically active. To encourage you to become involved, CBIA and some of the state”™s largest chambers of commerce have formed the Partnership for Connecticut”™s Future, a bipartisan group of citizens, business organizations, and community and business leaders committed to bringing good jobs, economic growth and accountable state government back to Connecticut. I urge every voter to visit www.partnershipct.com, sign up and learn more about how you can participate in the election process.
John R. Rathgeber is president and CEO of the Connecticut Business & Industry Association in Hartford.
