Fasano, Klarides Respond to Rep. Abercrombie’s Statements re: Special Session

Hartford – Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano (R-North Haven) and House Republican Leader Themis Klarides (R-Derby) released the following statement in response to comments made by Representative Catherine Abercrombie, co-chair of the Human Services Committee, in support of a special session and restoring funding for health care and social services recently cut by the governor.

“We want to thank Representative Abercrombie for having the courage to stand up to the governor and legislative leadership and speak out for the constituents who are being harmed by these devastating budget cuts. We hope that spirit of courage and hope becomes contagious.

“The budget should not be balanced on the backs of the most vulnerable. Speaker Sharkey’s erroneous argument that a special session will not benefit anyone is clearly flawed. Lawmakers should do what is right for the people of our state. We cannot give up that fight so easily. We should go into a special session, with Democrats and Republicans around the table with one another, to find a better path together.

“If there are other Democrats who agree that we have to take action together to stand up for what is right, we invite them to sign a petition we will be circulating. If a majority of state lawmakers in each chamber signs this petition, we can trigger a special session. We can guarantee the signatures of every Republican lawmaker. It will be up to the Democrats to do their part.”

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