1. “Shall there be a Constitutional Convention to amend or revise the Constitution of the State?”

This is the important one. Right now the Connecticut State Constitution can only be changed by a yes vote on an amendment in the General Assembly followed by a yes vote from the voters of the state. However, if this ballot question passes there would be a Constitutional Convention during which the delegates (who would be chosen by state legislators) would be able to change the State Constitution without further input from regular voters.

Not surprisingly, a yes vote on this question is supported by organizations that want to ban gay marriage, get rid of abortion rights, add special tax breaks for businesses, and take away rights for workers. All things that would not pass if the citizens of Connecticut were able to vote on them directly during the regular amendment process.

In addition, the Constitutional Convention process will be expensive, and the state government certainly has better things on which to be spending its limited resources.

If you’re a Connecticut voter, vote NO on Question 1, and make sure your friends and family understand what’s truly at stake. On it’s face, the idea of a Constitutional Convention doesn’t sound like a bad idea, but once you understand what’s truly involved it’s easy to see why a no vote is the way to go. Read more at: http://ctvoteno.org

2. “Shall the constitution of the state be amended to permit any person who will have attained the age of eighteen years on or before the day of a regular election to vote in the primary for such regular election?”

In other words, seventeen year olds would be able to vote in the primaries if they would be of legal voting age in time for the general election. This one’s an easy yes, as it certainly makes sense that first-time voters should be able to participate in the primary process as well as the general election.

The hero of the day is Senator Chris Dodd, as he stopped the Senate from approving retroactive immunity for the telecom companies, at least for now:

Throughout the day Senator Dodd stood on the Senate floor and spoke out against the Bush administration’s abuse of executive powers. He spoke out against granting retroactive immunity for telecom companies who helped the Bush administration spy on Americans without warrant – noting that if we grant immunity now, we may never know the full extent of what happened behind closed doors and what arguments were used to justify warrantless surveillance.

For now, the FISA debate is over. It will come up again down the road, but for now everyone who supported Senator Dodd’s leadership against retroactive immunity and supported his promise to filibuster should be proud of their work to defend the Constitution and the rule of law.

See some of Senator Dodd’s floor speech here.

And yes, it does feel odd to actually be proud of a politician. If only the rest of the Democratic party could follow Dodd’s example.

I’m not holding my breath though.

Does anyone else find it supremely ironic that a guy who usually sides with the people who want to make the U.S. a Christian theocracy is calling those who oppose them the Taliban?

If you’re a registered Democrat in Connecticut, be sure to vote!

Way back in 1988, I sided with then-Senator Lowell Weicker when he was challenged by Joe Lieberman, who, despite being the Democrat in the race, attacked Weiker from the right. Lieberman won the day, thanks in large part to support from Republicans who thought Weiker was too liberal, and he’s been an embarrassment ever since.

In the elections that have followed, I’ve had to choose between voting for Liberman or voting for his even more conservative Republican opponent. This time though I have a choice, and I’m supporting Ned Lamont’s primary challenge. It’s about time we had an actual Democrat as the junior Senator from Connecticut, and kicking out people like Lieberman is the first step to pulling the Democratic Party back to the left where it belongs.