IS THERE ANY INTEGRITY LEFT IN POLITICS?

I don't typically venture much outside Hartford's City limits in my critique of dirty politics, but this one seems pretty clear to me.

A special Election is planned for next week in Bloomfield to elect a replacement State Representative  in the 15th District for the current Stet Rep who was elected locally as the Probate Judge.

The candidate endorsed by the Bloomfield Democratic Town Committee , by his own recent actions , has shown he may not be the right person for the job. and in my opinion  definitely not a proper role model to represent the District, and that says a lot for me coming from Hartford.

Bobby Gibson was supported as the endorsed candidate, beating out long time Bloomfield resident Joseph Suggs. According to sources familiar with the process, Suggs lost out, apparently, because he supported a challenge slate of new politicians that were breaking out of the political mold and promised to bring new ideas to the Bloomfield Town Council. The challenge slate eventually prevailed in the election and dethroned the long time Council.

Apparently Suggs support was not appreciated by the Democratic loyalists who were not thrilled over losing their stranglehold on local power. Suggs reportedly needed to be taught a lesson by his local Democratic Town Committee and was punished for supporting the challenge slate, thus the endorsement of Gibson.

Now typically, the local endorsement pretty much guarantees a win to the endorsed candidate. Unless of course that candidate goes out and gets himself arrested on a DUI charge in the same town he wishes to represent in the Legislature, while driving at almost twice the legal limit. Compound that with the fact that the allegedly intoxicated driver is also a schoolteacher dealing with children and his credibility would normally be called into question under those circumstances.

Add to the top of everything, the allegedly Drunk Driver giving a phony address of residence to Police at the time of his arrest. I can imagine too much alcohol does different things to people, but not remembering where you live, or was it more of an effort to avoid detection of your deeds with an election coming up.

Joe Suggs has served the people of Bloomfield and the State of Connecticut with honor and distinction for years. In 1989 Mr. Suggs was elected as the first African-American  Mayor of Bloomfield and eventually went on to become the Treasurer of the State of Connecticut. All without any questions of his character or allegations of any improprieties. Now that's a role model worthy of representing Bloomfield in the Legislature.

The document below is the information Gibson gave to Police at the time of his arrest, even though he actually lives in Bloomfield . The address he gave is a Hartford rental unit he apparently owns, but is not his residence. And he ran for office previously using his Bloomfield address.

Integrity needs to be restored to our political system. Positions of public trust can not be awarded based on dirty deals and underhanded backroom politics. Actions like this only undermine our Democracy more and do nothing to encourage voters confidence in the system.

Gibson False Residence Address by  on Scribd