Fasano, McLachlan: Gov. Malloy Should Release Campaign Emails

Hartford – Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano (R-North Haven) and Senator Michael McLachlan (R-Danbury), ranking member of the state’s Government Administration and Elections Committee, released the following statement calling on Gov. Malloy to release the emails subpoenaed by the State Elections Enforcement Commission (SEEC) as part of their investigation into illegal usage of campaign funds to pay for a 2014 gubernatorial reelection mailer. This case was settled last week by an agreement between the SEEC and state Democratic Party.

“If those who agreed to this settlement have any intention of improving Connecticut’s laws and strengthening clean election protections then the emails must be released. The settlement is in no way sufficient to clarify and strengthen state law. This agreement obstructs transparency and prevents the whole truth from being shared with the public.

“Gov. Malloy should stand up to his party and demand they do the right thing and release the emails immediately. The litigation is now over, so the state Democratic Party does not have to worry about further action being taken against them in this case. By having the emails in hand, lawmakers could continue the fact finding so that we can close the perceived ‘loophole.’ Releasing these emails will provide us with the whole picture, so that we as legislators can determine what legislative changes we need to prevent the same violation from occurring again.

“Had the SEEC fully investigated this case and allowed it to go to a ruling, the public would have a clear and complete picture of what can and cannot be done under current law, no matter which side the court ruled in favor of. Had the SEEC won, we would know the state law was airtight. Had the Democratic Party won, lawmakers would know exactly what happened that allowed for this violation, which would help us craft legislation to prevent it from happening again. But instead we are in limbo. We have no admission of wrongdoing and no direction. The SEEC bailed on taxpayers when they entered into this toothless settlement. Now lawmakers should take action. Gov. Malloy should call for transparency and allow us to do our jobs, protect the taxpayers, and preserve the integrity of our campaign finance system,” said Fasano and McLachlan.