Over in West Hartford, one of the more colorful characters in Republican politics is a fellow named Joe Visconti.Visconti, who once rode a horse through West Hartford Center to try to rally support for whatever cause he was pushing at the moment, managed to get elected to the town council last fall, to the astonishment of most of the establishment politicians.
But it seems he's not content with a junior role on a town council.
I'm told that Visconti is planning to take on U.S. Rep. John Larson, an East Hartford Democrat whose 1st District includes both West Hartford and Bristol.
Visconti didn't call me back today, but when I asked the state Republican Party chairman, Chris Healy, for a comment about Visconti's possible candidacy, he sent me this from his always-at-the-ready Blackberry:
"If Joe Visconti plans to run, John Larson better get on the stair master. Joe Visconti. If he is the Republican nominee, will show many people they have a chance to elect someone who is more interested in them than the trappings of power in Washington, D.C." Joe Visconti is a business man, elected official. single parent and has fought for taxpayers. He brings a real life perspective."
Now that's not definitive. Healy doesn't say Visconti is running, only that if he runs, Larson better watch out.
For a Republican, the 1st District is a bitter, hard place. Democrats don't go down easily no matter how tough the challenger.
But Visconti would, at the very least, make it an interesting race.
And that's something.
Listen here to the first couple minutes of Visconti's song "America." Visconti bills himself as a musician. I'll let readers judge that for themselves.
Here's a story that ran not too long ago in The Hartford Advocate about Visconti, which gives you some flavor for the man. And here's a picture that ran with that story:
Update: Saturday, 3 p.m. -
From Art Mocabee, second vice chair for the Republicans in the 1st District:
Since you have done your homework and come up with Joe Viconti's name and a few other events, I now can confirm that Joe intends on seeking the Party's nomination as the Republican 1st Congressional District's candidate.
As you learn more about Joe, you will discover many refreshing things about him that will serve the constituents of the 1st. District far better then our current congressman. For example, Joe supports our Military and their efforts to keep terrorist out of our country and other countries around the world. This is good policy for us as Americans as well as for those of us who work in this state's defense industry which is quite large. To be anti- military in Connecticut is to be anti-job in Connecticut, which is a peculiar position for our current Congressman to represent us from.
Stay tuned as I am sure you will for more about Joe VISCONTI and his candidacy.
*******
Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
39 comments:
Collins, what's you problem?
Let's talk about more competitive races shall we?
Who's running against big-head Chris "raising taxes is great" Murphy in the 5th?
...little Joe Court-the-left-ney in the 2nd?
...and is that dumb blonde running againts Shays again?
Bristol is in Larson's district. That makes Larson's opponent news here.
The last Republican I saw in jeans was me. Interesting.
10:06, gosh, aren't prejudiced about republicans are you? looks as though visconti will not only have a horse to ride, he'll have some horse's butts that are naive enough to think that he can win.
Wow!!
This ought to encourage Geladno to run again.
Better than live TV.
If everyone deserves at least one shot to represent us in congress, I say we start with Visconti. That is, if he's willing to let his..er..music suffer.
No, Geladno has thrown in the towel
To be anti- military in Connecticut is to be anti-job in Connecticut
This has got to be, by far, the most rediculous and offensive statement Mocabee has every made!
How long do you think it will take before the State Republicans tell him he can't send out press releases without their clearance on them first?
I met Joe this morning.
He's bright, friendly, and (unlike the current occupant of the seat) AWAKE
What's even more attractive about him is he believes in the United States of America that will be different, huh?
Anonymous said...
"To be anti- military in Connecticut is to be anti-job in Connecticut"
This has got to be, by far, the most ridiculous and offensive statement Mocabee has every made!
Uh....you maybe want to take a look at just what it is we make here?
Submarines
Jet Engines
Guns
Lots and lots of guns!
Helicopters
Gyroscopes (they keep missiles on track)
Satellite stuff
Did I mention guns?
Classified gizmo's & gadgets
Parts that go into all of the above and more.
Mocabee's spot on with that remark.
Mocabee is an idiot - typical of him to twist the truth to suit his needs. But this went too far, even for Mocabee.
Larson supports our military and a plan for safely retreating our troops. Our troops are not overseas to stop terrorists from coming into the USA. We don't need to be over there to stop terrorists from coming over here.
But to say that being anti military in connecticut is being anti job in connecticut is the worst statement he could ever make. How can he even relate the two in this way?
Connecticut needs a war to keep our people working? So Connecticut people should encourage an unnecessary war so that we can keep people employed?
Mocabee, this is the most disgraceful thing you could ever say.
Wanting out troops to come home does not make someone anti-military. It makes them smart enough to realize that it's time to come home. We aren't doing anyone any good fighting Bush's ego war.
Visconti is a joke, just like Mocabee. His website lists him as a political candidate and a recording artist.
I guess he's going to sing his way through the campaign.
Hope he knows the blues.
Just heard Visconti's recording.
He should give up both singing and politics.
Maybe Mocabee can give him a job selling investments.
>>Larson supports our military and a plan for safely retreating our troops
Could he maybe make up his mind?
I find that stance in total conflict with itself.
Further - thanks to Larson constantly voting against Connecticut jobs what on earth do we owe him?
Two or three days after 9/11 he's photographed drunk in DC with a pack of bimbos?
We all know he wishes he was born a Kennedy - but this is ridiculous.
>>Who's running against big-head Chris "raising taxes is great" Murphy in the 5th?
Tony Nania
Graduate Hotchkiss, Amherst, UCONN Law,
Middle School Teacher
Founder, Pres. Nania Construction
Member Board of Education
Practicing Attorney
Judge of Probate
Executive Director 1980 Reagan CT Primary Campaign
Reagan Delegate to 1980 Republican Convention
3 Term State Representative
Chairman, President, CEO Geer Corp. (healthcare)
Chairman, President, CEO NewMil Bancorp (banking)
1995 Bronze Award winner Financial World magazine’s “CEO of the Year”
Director Colt’s Manufacturing
Married 31 years, three children
PRIORITIES:
Develop energy independence
Enable business to promote job growth
Promote a proactive national defense
Seal border, enforce existing laws.
Champion the personal right to keep and bear arms
Protect the right to life and property
Defend traditional marriage.
Enable, initiative, self-reliance and accountability
Discourage victimhood. Expect success.
Ensure fair health care access.
Work for a balanced approached to environmental protection
Stress respect, patience, humor, and humility by example.
Restore civility to Congress
collins says: "Bristol is in Larson's district. That makes Larson's opponent news here"
Yeah but Collins, it's an uncompetitive race. And the Bristol Press serves Plymouth and Burlington which are in the 5th District. I see stories in the Press about that arrogant, leftist with an oversize skull (literally) Chris "I swear I like women for more than friends" Murphy.
My point is how many stories per week are you going to do about an uncompetitive race in the 1st. It's tiresome and boring.
The 5th District race is covered by my colleagues at the New Britain Herald. Their stories on the race almost always appear in the Press as well.
But since one anonymous poster says that a story a week on the 1st District race is overkill, even one that announces for the first time who's actually running, I guess I'm done with it for the year. Maybe I'll post the results the day after the election in November, but why bother even with that? I mean, some anonymous reader says it's "an uncompetitive race," and that's all there is to say.
So sorry, Joe, your moment in the sun, such as it is, is over. Let's not even go through the motions of democracy anymore because, well, I don't want to annoy that reader any further.
ACR better check his Nania bio closely...
Nania's law license is inactive, according to the CT Bar.
It looks like we have Blog Trolls. You're only allowed to talk about what the Blog Troll deems acceptable. All other conversation and/or opinions are suppressed.
>>Nania's law license is inactive, according to the CT Bar.
You might want to hang out at other bars; or limit posting to when you haven't just come home from one.
Nania's all set financially and no longer seeks clients; but his law license is just fine thanks.
ACR....
CT Judicial Branch, Attorney Look-Up....
Juris #: 101337
ANTHONY J NANIA
(Admitted: 11/16/1981)
Current Status: RETIRED
(05/19/2003)
Sounds like he is not practicing in CT.
ACR....
I also was reading Tony Nania's bio that you posted....
Kevin Rennie really nails Nania to the wall in his column this morning....
http://www.courant.com/news/opinion/hc-rennie0224.artfeb24,0,7088374.column
Authentic Republican - you may want to make the CT Bar aware of that. According to them his license is not longer active. Maybe you should correct them since you seem to know more than they do.
And you can support the military without supporting this war. The two down't go hand in hand.
Many will agree that supporting our military in fact means setting a safe plan to bring them home. Our military personnel shouldn't be used to fight this war. We are risking their lives unnecessarily.
11:18 Where were you on 9/11?
>>Kevin Rennie really nails Nania to the wall in his column this morning....
As he does all those disagree with him as it regards Gay marriage.
He refuses to own up to it nor come out of the closet; but it takes no genius to figure out just where Rennie's coming from as he has chosen his targets with great care and only attacks those that fail to embrace homosexual matrimony.
>>And you can support the military without supporting this war. The two don't go hand in hand.
Anyone can see you spend too much time reading leftist websites.
Collins: If your headlines were a little less provocative; "watch out Larson, Visconti's coming to get you", it might be easier for me to digest.
To be honest, you sound like you're either making fun of Republicans (because you're actually a liberal Democrat) or you're making fun of Italians (because you're an Irish bigot).
You're absolutely right. it's news. It's how you approach the news that annoys me.
And now you say because you've heard some critiques of your story that you have the power now to completely ignore the race completely and out of spite? Perhaps you need to find a new occupation?
Sarcasm is lost on some people.
Steve Collins said...
Sarcasm is lost on some people.
Only the terminally stupid - and there's just no help available for them!
Gee ACR...
Kind of troubling that you are making homophobic inferences about Rennie.
Rennie is a respected former member of the General Assembly.
Interesting, you fail to defend Nania on the merits of what Rennie said in his column.
How sad it is that when one has nothing to say, he resorts to name calling.
Really pathetic!
Usually sarcasm is unprofessional.
Leave that for the pundits and the columnists.
>>Kind of troubling that you are making homophobic inferences about Rennie.
Rennie has a history of this behavior going back a few years now.
I knew him in Hartford and thought he was ok at the time; but he's chosen to attack (never bringing up Gay anything of course) every and any Republican who dares to oppose total equality for Gays.
That I don't blog anonymously (while you do) hold office and have the nerve to take on someone with access to "ink by the barrel" should illustrate well enough that there's probably something there.
To anaon 9:39:
You're aware Murphy is married so you're little crack just isn't viable. To the poster asking about other races. No Diane Farell is not running against Shays again. His opponent this go round is a man by the name of Jim Himes.
February 24, 2008 5:40 PM:
That's right, Murphy paraded some chick that was supposedly his girlfriend/fiance after he upset Johnson. Because she was never seen on his campaign trail many of us thought he might be gay (and many of us still do).
Oh well that's life, it's not taboo to be a gay Democrat Congressman anyhow, just a gay Republican one (especially according to the "liberal" media which supports the gay agenda, which even some gay Republcians and Democrats don't).
Whether he's staight or gay I still can't stand Murphy, his politics and his policy ideas and I hope greatly they find someone to beat him soon.
Have another cigarette !! It'll calm you down!
Murphy recently was married.
Does this mean that Mocabee won't be runnning for Congress?
Oh well, there still is State Senator.
Fair warning to our Bristol neighbors... Joe Visconti managed to squeak in to the WH Town Council with all sorts of promises of what he would do. Now he's already headed out? What has he done? Take a look back at Joe's history to see how his public tantrums have tainted his candidacy and why he is not taken seriously by anyone in WH who was paying attention.
He is rather famous for his rants and his opposition to our public education system on the WH Blog. He was very flip, sarcastic and often down right rude... right up to when he chose to run for office. Certainly he wasn't the only one, but consider if you want that type of personality in office representing you. If you have time for some "light" reading about the WH budget referendum in '07:
http://whdad.wordpress.com/2007/06/08/taxpayer-group-lies/
http://whdad.wordpress.com/2007/06/11/tax-revolt-or-just-revolting-a-yes-vote-is-key/
And though he pokes fun at the anonymnous posters... it's pretty evident that some of them are him! Especially once he announced his candidacy for TC. He toned down the ones he posted his name on, but the old Joe flair was there with other names on it.
I'm not supporting Larson necessarily, but I oppose Joe Visconti in any office - though if it gets him outta WH maybe I shouldn't be so concerned...
Fleischmann got married too, but, does it mean that he's not gay?
Larson married his high school sweetheart...he was her teacher.
Chris Murphy doesn't care about black people.
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