Solitaire-Playing Lawmakers Draw Criticism

By JASON DUSETT
Updated 11:31 AM EST, Fri, Sep 4, 2009

TWITTER FACEBOOK

Jessica Hill/AP

You've probably seen it.

A photo captured by an Associated Press photographer showed two lawmakers playing solitaire online during a special session to pass a two-year budget in the state.

The games took place as lawmakers met late Monday night and into Tuesday morning  to pass a budget, which was already three months late.

The picture caused quite a stir, and found itself on several Web sites, including nbcconnecticut.com and The Drudge Report.

Now, a Republican candidate planning a run for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Senator Christopher Dodd in 2010 has called for a change in policy.

In a letter written to Connecticut Senate President Donald Williams and House Speaker Christopher Donovan, Tom Foley is calling for a ban on Blackberries and laptops during formal Connecticut House and Senate sessions.

"It's bad enough that taxes and spending are going up," Foley said in a letter, which he also posted on his campaign Web site.  "It's even worse to think that our elected representatives would rather play computer games than listen to arguments against their reckless tax-and-spend philosophy."

Williams and Donovan have yet to respond.

First Published: Sep 3, 2009 11:28 PM EST

TWITTER FACEBOOK

  • 80% furious 1088
  • 11% laughing 148
  • 5% sad 74
  • 2% bored 29
  • 1% thrilled 13
  • 1% intrigued 13
processing
          No comments have been posted yet.

          You have 2000 characters left

          processing
          So My City

          You are posting in (change)

          550/550 characters

          (jpg, pngs, or gifs allowed)

          (jpg, pngs, or gifs allowed)
          *Tip: You can also post moments via email or Twitter.

          processing

          View Your Moment in

          Posted by | 1 second ago

          Don't Miss

          politics

          Nov 20, 2009

          Obama in Asia: Style Over Substance

          President Barack Obama returns from his maiden Asian swing with none of the concrete accomplishments that White Houses typically put in place before big trips.

          Read It

          local_beat

          4 hours ago

          Sick Horses Now Better and Up For Adoption

          It’s been a long recovery process for dozens of horses and goats in Storrs.

          Read It

          local_beat

          4 hours ago

          Finally a Family

          Nick and Silvia sign the adoption papers to officially make Nicole their legal daughter.

          Loading...
          Birthdate:
          You must be at least 13 to sign up.
          Gender:
          invalid

          By clicking the button below, I accept the terms of use and privacy policy

          Already Signed Up? Login Below.

          processing
          Here's what we're posting:

          *Only used for verification. We do not store your password.
          processing