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WFSB Democratic Senate Debate Draws Reaction From State’s Catholic Bishops.

Sunday’s WFSB  debate among the five candidates for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate found the state’s five Catholic bishops more vexed than the candidates. The morning encounter featured the contenders in an early round setting forth some confusing views on abortion, contraception, health insurance, and the First Amendment. The two contenders headed for a primary showdown in August, United States Representative Christopher Murphy and former Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz, staying that the Roman Catholic church and other religious organizations should have to cover contraception and abortion services in their health insurance plans for employees. The clash between health insurance and religious tenets received little attention. The bishops provided a scathing response that you can read on debate host Dennis House’s blog.

The debate provided proof that Murphy believes he is far ahead of perennial candidate Bysiewicz, who let loose with some howlers during the 60 minute encounter. The Middletown Democrat lost her way on campaign finance. She said she wants to bring the Connecticut taxpayer funded campaign finance program to Washington if she’s in the Senate. Bysiewicz, however, declined to participate in that system during her disastrous bid for attorney general in 2010, the first year it was available for statewide candidates. She wanted nothing to do with it, but she claims now to be a champion of it.

Bysiewicz also said she has stood up to special interests. When she sued herself and lost in 2010, evidence in the case over her qualifications to serve as attorney general revealed she did little other than visit Democratic town committees around the state. Someone in her office, it was never clear who, stayed busy compiling contacts for her political operation. Bysiewicz herself was known to spend hours calling people who had business with her office for political donations.

Murphy, who can be a chameleon, often decries the state of discourse in American politics. He’s part of some dodgy bipartisan group of congressmen. He announced at the start of the debate that Republicans are trying to bring the country to its knees. He sees disagreement at destruction. The third term representative provided a moment of candor. He knows the Republicans have missiles in silos aimed at him, and he’ll fire some at them if he wins his party’s nomination.

Stamford state Representative William Tong added some incongruous moments the debate. One was his cringe-inducing mention of the care his father (that’s right, the one who arrived in the United States with 57 cents) received at St. Francis Hospital as he gave one of the answers that vexed the bishops. Tong bemoaned being 40 years old and still owing college loans. Somehow this is a fault of our system. No mention that he owns a home assessed for tax purposes at more than $500,000. We all make choices–like those $6 gallons of milk he said he purchases in response to a lighting round of questions to test a candidate’s grasp on reality. . Tong may be a trifle out of touch with the experiences of regular folks in Connecticut–or anywhere outside certain tony precincts.

The Republican Senate candidates meet at WFSB this Sunday at 11 a.m. We’ll see who they vex with their answers.