Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Ned Lamont Q&A

This post is for all conversation with prospective candidate Ned Lamont of Greenwich. The question and answer session will begin at 7:00.

Please remember to refresh your browser window frequently to be able to see new questions.

Welcome, Mr. Lamont, and thank you for taking time to talk with us today.

52 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Ned -

You mentioned elsewhere that you are an "active policy wonk with the Brookings Institution". I made an attempt to find references to you on their website. All I was able to come up with was an acknowledgement of you as a member of the "Business Advisory Group" in last year's "Restoring Fiscal Sanity".

Can you elaborate on your description of yourself as such, and specifically what areas of policy you would be considered more or less expert on.

Also, I am keenly interested in your thoughts on universally affordable health coverage or access, especially as it relates to the business environment. If you see universal health coverage as a boon to business formation and economic vitality, please explain why, and how this would work (e.g. single-payer, socialization of basic medical care, expansion of medicare eligibility, etceteras).

Aldon Hynes said...

Ned,

After you address Chris's question, I would be interested hearing some of your thoughts about the United States’ role and responsibilities in the international community. Your great grandfather was an unofficial advisor to Woodrow Wilson and was a supporter of the League of Nations.

For example, what should our relationship to the U.N. be? Where are your thoughts on various international treaties (Kyoto, CAFTA, etc)?

Mike said...

Ned,

Thank you so much for challenging Lieberman! I live in Illinois, but I have family in Connecticut and am very familiar with the state.

My question is, other than give money, what can those of us who live out of state do to help your campaign?

Genghis Conn said...

Aldon, please repost. I don't know why that didn't show up.

Ned, so you're aware, I will at times tonight be asking the questions of people who could not be here tonight.

Anonymous said...

It took awhile for Aldon's question to show up but it is there

Anonymous said...

Ned, do you have a website? I don't live in CT but would love to contribute to get rid of LIEberman.

Genghis Conn said...

daffy asks...

How do you plan to address the issue of ever escalating costs for healthcare in CT? What is your paln and how will you sell it to your fellow Senators so your legislation gets passed in the Congress?

Aldon Hynes said...

Ned, your great-uncle has great history fighting for civil liberties including standing up against Senator Joseph McCarthy. Can you tell us your thoughts about current threats to our civil liberties and how you would fight to protect them?

Genghis Conn said...

daffy also asks...

Sir, there is no such military tactic as cut and run (as some have said there is) and anybody familiar with the US presence in Iraq knows you simply can't pull out overninght. Even Colonel Murtha only talked about a pull back to the perimeter that would force the Iraqi's to provide for their own destiny and security. That said, you have said you oppose the war in Iraq but it's not clear to me what you want to do next so could you please explain your proposed strategy and tactics for Iraq as well as how you would propose to combat the terrorist threat on our soil.

Mike said...

Ned, I remember reading that you said you would oppose Alito if you were in the Senate today, but I don't remember if you said that you would support a filibuster.

Would you support a filibuster for the Alito nomination and would you not be afraid to do whatever you felt was right even if the Democratic leadership opposed it?

Anonymous said...

Mr. Lamont,

Thank you for considering a run. I hope I will have the opportunity to vote for you in a primary.

You have insisted tonight both that you haven't decided whether you will run (eg, "as part of my process in deciding whether to run") and that you will indeed run (eg, "first and foremost I will use the bully pulpit as a candidate.")

Have you decided?

Anonymous said...

Hello Mr Lamont,

Glad you're proposing to enter the race so a simple question or two:

Are you intending to win the Democratic primary in August or will you be content merely with "a good showing"?

Do you anticipate taking a leave of work and your business and devote yourself 100% to your campaign?

Anonymous said...

Hi Ned,

I'm sure you are aware of the interest and the vast potential support that exists in the local and national "netroots" for a primary challenge of Sen. Lieberman.

Of all the criticisms of Sen. Lieberman, the one that seems to unite the netroots the most is that he is a "Fox News" Democrat who has, time and again, needlessly weakened the party's position by reciting GOP talking points and providing them with cover.

Do you agree with this assessment of Sen. Lieberman? Do you consider youself a partisan Democrat? And are there any particular issues where you see yourself at odds with the Senate leadership or the national party, and if so, how would you deal with these issues?

Aldon Hynes said...

Hmm, that's weird, I see the response to Daffy, but not daffy's question. The same applies to Mike's question about Alito....

So, I don't know if there are other questions I'm missing. If so, I apologize for asking lots of questions while there are other questions outstanding.

With that as a caveat, Ned, you are an executive of a telecommunications firm. Can you share with us any thoughts about telecom policy, for example on areas regulation of the Internet, copyright issues, peer-to-peer file sharing, CLEC’s providing DSL service, etc?

Anonymous said...

First, thanks for participating in an open forum. My question is: Who are your political heros?

Genghis Conn said...

Proud Moderate Dem asks...

Would you be able to ask mr lamont to give further detail how his environmental policy would be different than that of sen lieberman?

Genghis Conn said...

Comments are behaving a little oddly tonight, I'd guess because of heavy traffic. If a comment disappears, fear not, it should return.

ctkeith said...

Hello Mr. Lamont,

I've been trying to trackdown a rumor I've heard that you teach somewhere in the Bridgport School system in some capacity.
Is this true?

spazeboy said...

Ned,

Thanks for coming out to La Paloma Sabanera last night. I was really excited to meet you.

I was wondering if you're familiar with the tremendous popular support for whomever challenges the "Joementum"? For instance, www.timetogojoe.com has over $67k pledged by just shy of 500 donors.

I believe you're the right man for the job, and I'm willing to support your candidacy if you're willing to run.

Genghis Conn said...

We should probably cap questions here, as we are almost out of time.

Aldon Hynes said...

Ned, Thank you for taking time to speak with us. I look forward to hearing more of your thoughts over the coming weeks.

Anonymous said...

i find it such a sad reflection of the Democratic party that they want to kick Joe out of the Senate. Joe was only several hundred votes away from being our vice-president today, for the Democrats. Joe has been and is a leader of the Democratic party, and yet the Democrats are using the blanket litmus test of the War in Iraq to kick out all moderates from the party. The irony here is that even if you, Ned, do manage to beat Joe in the primaries, you won't get elected to the Senate. Connecticut likes Joe because he is a moderate who cares about the people. The only people who don't like him are the left-wing Democrats, like yourself, who are using one issue to purge the party to make it radically left. If the Democrats do kick out Joe, Connecticut as a whole will be disgusted by the radical liberalism of the Democrats and their choice candidate, and vote for the Republican candidate. Shouldn't that be the last thing you want, Ned?

So, my question for you is this. Would you rather beat Joe and have a Republican win the Senate? Or would you rather lose to Joe and keep the seat Democratic?

You can't pick the option "I will win both." Because you won't. Period. Don't try to say you will, and don't try to cop-out of the question by doing a variation of that. Pick one of the options, plain and simple. As simple as your views are on Iraq, right? You can only be for or against. You can't be a moderate anymore in the Democratic party. This will only spell the end of the Democrats and the rise of moderate Republicans, like McCain, Guiliani, Swarteneggar, Shays, Simmons, Johnson, like so many more.

Genghis Conn said...

All right, it is 8:00pm (this hour went by very quickly!). Thanks very much to Ned Lamont for coming on the site today, we all appreciate his willingness to answer our questions.

You may all be interested to know that I've been monitoring site statistics, and seeing that people have been signing on from all over the country. There is certainly national interest in Mr. Lamont's campaign.

Again, thanks to Ned Lamont, and thanks to everyone who participated!

Mike said...

Thanks for spending your time to do this. I will support you 100% and I hope that you will decide to run. I will spread the word about the race to other Democrats here in Illinois.

Anonymous said...

Why do Republicans love Joe Lieberman?

Anonymous said...

Ned-

You saw many comment. You saw my question. You posted twice after it. Why can't you respond? You have been fed easily questions all night about your background, your resume, etc etc etc. Why not answer a real question for once? Welcome to politics.

Thanks
Have a Nice Day

Anonymous said...

MDSRL,
Thanks for the comic relief!
"Tell me how you will feel about losing. Because you cannot win. Do not tell me or anyone else that you can win, because you cannot, because I said so!"

"What?! You did not repond to my insulting rant! How dare you? Run away, run away!"

Aldon Hynes said...

MDSRL

As was noted by posts by chris mc, genghis and myself, there was lag with the comments. I cannot speak for Mr. Lamont, but at least on my screen, your question did not appear until after Mr. Lamont answered his final question.

From a psychotherapy viewpoint, you have asked a doorknob question, waiting until the very last moment to ask it, and then being upset that there wasn't time to explore the question. Hopefully, next time you can engage in the process.

Beyond that, I would encourage you to think a little more deeply and carefully about what you are saying. It seems to me that you are falling victim to the black and white, left vs right, war or no war thinking that is debilitative political discourse in our country.

It seems as if you are arguing against a democratic process which includes primaries and includes a discussion of the issues. Whether or not Mr. Lamont decides to challenge Sen. Lieberman to a primary and whether or not he is successful, he has stood up and fought for democracy in a way that we need more of.

Please join with us in encouraging debate and in strengthening democracy, not only in Iraq, but also here in our country.

Genghis Conn said...

Well put, Aldon. Agree or disagree, the democratic process is always good and healthy to engage in.

Anonymous said...

G.C.: thanks for asking my questions; I wasn't satisfied he answered them though.

On healthcare: Mr. Lamont said I will use the bully pulpit as a candidate and hopefully as a senator to make universal affordable healthcare a priority for this country. but I have no idea what "universal affordable healthcare" is.

On Iraq, he said i was right but he didn't lay out a plan from there. And on comabating terrorism on our soil, there was no answer.

daffy may run for the senate

Anonymous said...

Second that, sorry to say. Unfortunately, a missed opportunity.

Hopefully, Senator Lieberman will accept your invitation and take better advantage of the forum to share his views.

Anonymous said...

I must say i was disappointed with the substance of mr lamont once again. he's for peace, civil liberties, healthcare for all, the environment and is against bridges in alaska. the only problem is he offers very little in ideas on how to actually accomplish these things (for instance, my question regarding the environment was not answered by mr lamont, instead he chose to answer the question after mine). i know the majority on this blog are happy with him bc he is just not joe lieberman, but i ask that you start demanding real answers, this guy is running for the US Senate, not grand puba of the local lodge.

Genghis Conn said...

I must agree with the comments posted thus far. Mr. Lamont, if he is to debate Lieberman (who is an encyclopedia of policy knowledge), needs to delve into the details. I imagine that if and when his campaign forms, "taking him to school" (as was said by someone on an earlier thread) will be a priority.

Aldon Hynes said...

Let me make a couple comments on this. I would have liked to have seen long well thought out comments about the various issues presented here as well.

However, I don't believe that comments on blogs are a suitable medium for such statements. Some of you may be able to type pretty fast. I don't know how quickly Mr. Lamont can type, but typing a detailed position off the top of your head on any of these issues during a barrage of online questions isn't something that I could do, and I do a lot of online typing.

Nor, do I think that such a typing test is a valid way of measuring ones ability to be a Senator.

Instead, as I've often commented elsewhere, this should give you a taste. If you like the taste (anti-war, pro health care, pro civil liberties), then you should come out and hear what he has to say, in person, where you have a greater chance of going into detail.

As always, my two cents.

Anonymous said...

G.C.: It looks like you had a number of different types asking questions. If all Mr. Lamont is going to be is the Howard Dean of CT simply being anti-this and anti-that without any substance, he'll at the end of the day wind up nowhere. And I was serious about a run but I wanted to hear what Mr. Lamont had to say. It sounds to me like he wants to be a Senator but he hasn't thought about what he'd have to do as one.

Aldon Hynes said...

Side note to daffy

Part of being part of the oppostion, is to be against the failed policies of the incumbent. It is kind of basic politics 101.

Granted people who support the status quo will generalize and dismiss that. Again, politics 101.

So, if we are going to resort to this sort of politics, I'll observe that Lamont appears to have much more substance than you have, even though you spend much more time here.

Come on, let's be real for a little bit.

Anonymous said...

Aldon, if you want to be real, please do not say that the reason mr lamont did not offer details is because he is not a fast typer. at a number of different venues he has offered zero to little substance on his actual policy ideas. and purposely skipped over questions asking for specific ideas (ie how he differs with joe on the environment). please do not insult our inteligence and suggest we are saying that the man should be judged by his typing skills.

Anonymous said...

TrueBlue, electing a United States Senator isnt about issues????? my black lab is pretty loyal but i am not putting her up for US Senate. Public Service should always be about issues and ideas. those who think otherwise do so at their own peril.

Gabe said...

Disclosure: I am generally in favor of a primary challenge to Joe and will be voting against him almost regardless of who the other candidate is. So take this with a grain of salt:

I too would have liked to seen more specific substantive answers in this Q and A, but are we really acting shocked, SHOCKED, that someone who hasn't declared, or even formed their campaign committee yet isn't providing substantive, detailed answers to policy questions?

I would hope that detailed positions would follow in short order, but I'm not going to get too lathered up about the lack of them before he even declares his candidacy.

Anonymous said...

Aldon: I'm hurt. I had an open mind about Lamont. Getting in, or even considering it, is about opposing the staus quo but the blog interview was supposed to be about who Mr. Lamont was and what he stood for and how he would do his job. At least that was my expectation. Politics 102 is that an exploratory committee, or interview, is about running. I don't like Joe's politics and many of his policies; and I was looking for an alternative and found none.
I spend time here, and probably much less than you, because I'm interested in learning and sometimes that means asking questions and challenging answers when they do not make any sense.

Anonymous said...

And another thing Aldon: I thought my questions of Mr. Lamont were quite objective. I wasn't resorting to any knd of politics other than trying to get to the truth.

Anonymous said...

Daffy, Aldon:

OK, my two cents, for exctly what they're worth ...

Daffy, I don't think Aldon really meant to be hurtful (look at me, defending Aldon!). I think he used a poor choice of words to make a point he's made elsewhere, that we are all better off seeing and hearing candidates in the flesh.

Aldon, I think that's a good point. But I will say I think it gets stretched some times, and I'll go on to say I think many candidates, Mayor DeStefano among them, tend to make grand pronouncements (i.e., "we need better transportation solutions for Connecticut") but offer absolutely zilch in the way of specifics - and I have scoured his campaign website in search of same.

And let me add, by way of tsk tsk, that chiding Daffy as you did was not in keeping with your call for civility on blogs, pot-calling-the-kettle-black though I may sometimes be.

Finally, I think a lot of people were underwhelmed with Lamont's answers. Maybe it was the forum, maybe it was his typing skills, maybe it was his newness to campaigning. Whatever the real answer, he'll have to spin up fast to be competitive.

Anonymous said...

No different etc.: Thanks for standing up for me; I've actually stood up for Aldon, a good guy, in the past but that may have been when I was just another anonymous but now I'm the duck.

The transportation issue is about putting somebody in charge to develop a plan (consolidate the competing ones that are out there really) and then prioritze the phase in of all the components. There's a lot of talk these days about increasing density around the transpo centers but it's really too late for that. All that will do is bring more people in to an already congested area. The people touting this are city planners that don't understand what CT is really about. But whatever happens it is going to take a leader to step forward.

Aldon Hynes said...

Daffy: I don’t mean to dig too deeply at you. Your questions were very good, and we need to have questions like that asked. However, I do think it is unrealistic to expect detailed policy positions in the comments of a blog. As far as I know, Lamont has not even set up an exploratory committee yet.

You are right, politics 102 is about getting the message out. Personally, I got a pretty good understanding of what Lamont thinks from the discussion here. Let’s see. He typed around 500 words in this thread and spoke briefly on the importance of universal affordable healthcare to the United States and the business community, he spoke about how he believes the rush to war hurt our relations with our allies. He spoke about Bush playing fast and loose with our civil liberties. He spoke out against Alito and against Gonzales. Pretty good for 500 words, and they sound like a real alternative to Lieberman.

Now PMD maintains that Lamont has “offered zero to little substance on his actual policy ideas” at “a number of different venues”. I must admit, I haven’t been following Lamont as closely as PMD. I know that Lamont provided about 600 words in a Q&A here. I know of his appearance in Hartford. The transcript on My Left Nutmeg is about 2000 words. As a meet and greet function, it is more focused on biography than issues.

Then there is the interview with Bradfordboy at My Left Nutmeg. There’s another 300 words.

I’m told he was on the “Bruce and Colin” show, but can’t find a transcript. I seem to recall something about him being briefly on Channel 61 as well, but I can’t find references or a transcript.

So yes, Lamont has been at a number of different venues. As far as I can tell, the number is currently six, and most of these are meet and greet type gatherings. If people know of other venues, and particularly transcripts, please let me know.

One final comment, if Lamont had of gone into detail on specific policy issues, I believe some of the same people would be complaining about how long winded he is, how wonkish he is and how he spent all his time on one or two issues and didn’t get to other more important issues.

Anonymous said...

Aldon, i really do respect your zeal in defending your candidates but at times it is exhausting. listen, your guy hasnt offered any policy ideas and skipped over a question regarding the environment. meet and greets offer a great opportunity to tell the voting public why we should put our trust in mr lamont to represent us in the United States Senate. he seems like a really good guy. i'd love to have a beer with him. but i have a much higher threshold in electing someone to the US Senate.

Anonymous said...

Can't agree Aldon. The stuff he was asked could have been responded to with cut-and-paste statements. What he offered was nothing more. Nothing I asked, for example, wasn't based on something he hasn't already said he is about. No curveballs.

He gave nothing on the "active policy wonk at Brookings" for example. Coulda done something with that.

He gave nothing on health care. He shoulda (/you shoulda made sure he) had a hundred and fifty words in a document ready to go.

Sorry, but it is really a no-pass.

All in all, this being Februrary - and I say this wanting very much a real debate rather than a coronation with some jeering from the peanut gallery - this doesn't appear to have any legs.

But, prove me wrong.

Aldon Hynes said...

PMD: A few more exhaustive comments. Mr. Lamont isn’t ‘my guy’, yet. As far as I know, he isn’t anyone’s candidate yet. If he does decide to run, I am likely to support him because his positions, as expressed here, and in transcripts of other events are closer to my views than Senator Lieberman’s.

Your comment about him not spending time more time talking about specific issues and not getting to the environment at all, I think illustrates my point. An online chat isn’t the venue for detailed discussions. If he had of spent more time going into details on the war, or health care, he wouldn’t have had time to touch on other issues.

Yes, I have a high threshold in electing someone to the U.S. Senate. I also have enough insight to know that you cannot tell if a person meets this high threshold by shaking their hand at a cocktail party, by reading a few comments on a blog, or by relying on sound bytes from a TV broadcast.

Aldon Hynes said...

Chris, personally, I'm glad that Mr. Lamont didn't cut and paste policy statements here, and instead treated this more like the Q&A at a Meet and Greet. I'm not keen on cut and paste type politicians.

I do hope that a good in depth discussions about the issues happens. However, I don't think it blogs are where it is likely to happen.

Anonymous said...

genghis, there was an interesting article with subsquent comments in the new republic (jan 5 or jan 16) about the lieberman issue and further contratsing somments on www.newdonkey.com. you have to register to read it (the new republic), but regitration is free if you want to check it out.

Anonymous said...

To all-

Looks like Connecticut Conservative posted some thoughts and observations about the Q and A. Its one of the best posts I've ever read on that blog, perhaps on any blog, period, so I thought I'd let you guys know because it is so relevant to what we are discussing.

Anonymous said...

Response to "A Moderate Dem. Sick of Radical Liberalism said..."

Moderate, your post upthread is way off. You need to research Joe's votes and be more informed. He has sold out to corporations, voted against our basic rights, and has tried to silence the opposition Party he represents. The war is only one issue, and for some of us, it is NOT the main issue. I am looking at candidate voting records and as far as Joe is concerned...we CAN DO BETTER! I voted for Joe for VP. Never, ever, ever again.

Anonymous said...

By the way, there is no such thing as a 'moderate Dem'. Labels are labels. You either support civil liberties, the environment, corporations paying their share of taxes or you don't. CT has been on the downslide for awhile. Joe has voted too close to a Republican he might as well be one.