Gubernatorial hopeful
Tom Foley
Photo Credit: Tom Foley for Governor campaign
Posted 12/7/09
Last week two Republicans stopped “exploring” or “considering” the contest for the 2010 GOP gubernatorial nomination and formally jumped into the race. They are Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele, and former U.S. Ambassador Tom Foley. Fedele’s entry was expected. Foley however played a game of “switcheroo”, dropping his bid for the 2010 Republican U.S. Senate nomination, opting instead for the gubernatorial race.
Fedele announced his intentions before a friendly audience—a Connecticut Business and Industry Association forum in Cromwell. He received a standing ovation from the CBIA crowd when he tossed his hat into the ring, though Fedele was careful to say this was not a formal endorsement from the organization.
Ironically, Fedele panned Connecticut’s economic status saying the state is “in the danger zone”, perhaps forgetting that it has been under the rule of Republican governors since 1995. Moving past that pesky detail, Fedele vowed that, if elected governor, he would turn himself into “the economic development job creator cheerleader for the state.” He believes attracting new companies and growing jobs is the only real way out of Connecticut’s economic funk.
In a separate interview, Fedele recalled a trip he made to Dusseldorf where he hoped to impress European officials as a lieutenant governor pitching Connecticut. He was promptly told officials from 16 other U.S. states, including some governors, had beat him to the punch. No one can accuse Republican Gov. Jodi Rell of being a “globetrotter.”
Fedele vowed to fight higher taxes because he believes taxes contribute to the expensive nature of Connecticut’s business climate, inhibiting job growth, or worse, forcing companies to move elsewhere.
One day after Fedele’s entry, Foley called a Hartford press conference to announce his move from the Senate battle to the gubernatorial fray. He claims the move was not an opportunistic switch caused by Rell’s decision not to run for reelection and increased competition in the GOP U.S. Senate field. Foley said he thought about the governorship months ago, but figured Rell would run again and took aim at the Senate seat.
Though he has no elective experience in Connecticut, Foley claims state voters are “skeptical of career politicians and believe our next governor should be someone who is new to Hartford.” Foley said voters “long for leaders who are in tune with their concerns and who they can trust to fix their problems.”
Foley is such a new face in town he apparently hasn’t learned that when you seek high office, the press corps expects you to answer questions about how you will handle the issues. After his campaign announcement in a Hartford hotel conference room, Foley left the podium. When a reporter asked about taking questions, Foley said: “This actually was not a news conference.”
Pressed by the press, Foley later came back to answer a few questions.
By contrast, Fedele’s staff quickly booked him on last weekend’s radio and TV interview shows, including a sitdown with me on the Connecticut Radio Network program “Dialogue 2009”.
In that radio Q&A, Fedele said part of his strategy will be to work for the election of more Republican legislators as well as his own election as governor. If he succeeds in both efforts, Fedele believes he can break the Democrats “veto-proof” majorities in the House and Senate, giving the governor more power to negotiate on key issues such as the budget and taxes.
Both new Republican gubernatorial hopefuls want to tell voters their life experience makes them the best choice for the state’s top job. They will stress their success in the business world and government.
Fedele is CEO of Connecticut-based Pinnacle Group, a firm that delivers information technology services through a network of offices across the nation. Previous to being elected lieutenant governor, Fedele logged 10 years as a state representative from Stamford.
Foley heads up the NTC Group, an investment firm specializing in long-term equity investments in operating companies. His government experience is on the federal side, as U.S Ambassador to Ireland, for President George W. Bush, and in a Bush assignment in Iraq in 2003-04 working on private-sector development in that war-torn country.
There will likely be other contenders in the GOP gubernatorial field in the coming weeks, but for now, Fedele and Foley are making it two for the road on the Connecticut campaign trail.