Politics & Government

Patch Voter Guide: The Race for Attorney General

Martha Dean and George Jepsen talk to Patch about their plans for the AG's Office.

Editor's Note: This is the fourth installment of Patch's interactive voter guide for the upcoming election. You can expect to see coverage here on every national, state and local race affecting Darien. Click here for instructions on how to use this guide. Click here for more articles in the 2010 Patch Voter Guide.

The Situation   

  • George Jepsen and Martha Dean are vying for the Attorney General's Office Nov. 2, a position vacated by AG Richard Blumenthal after 20 years in the post. Read on to see where the candidates stand on various issues.

Fast Facts:

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  • Jepsen, a former state representative and state senator, is running on a platform of creating a stable environment where businesses and consumers can compete on a level and open playing field, giving consumers a voice and protecting and advancing civil rights, among other issues.
  • Dean, a private practice attorney who ran against Richard Blumenthal in 2002, is running on a platform of creating a strong and competitive economy, ending federal or state practices that she says conflict with the U.S. Constitution, and educating the public on state laws, among other issues.

The Rundown

  • Candidate               George Jepsen             Martha Dean
  • Age                              55                                        51
  • Residence               Ridgefield                          Avon
  • Political Party       Democrat                           Republican
  • Website                    www.georgejepsen2010.com        www.deanag2010.com
  • Phone                        860-216-0705                    None provided
  • Family                      Married to Diana Sousa    Married to Malcolm McGough

                                                 Two sons                              One son

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  • E-Mail                      gjepsen2010@gmail.com campaign@marthadeanforattorneygeneral.com
  • Education:
    • Jepsen graduated from Greenwich High School in 1972. He attended Dartmouth University where he graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. degree in government. In 1982, Jepsen earned his J.D. degree, cum laude, from Harvard Law School and a Master's Degree in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    • Dean graduated from the Phillips Academy in Andover in 1977. She went on to graduate from Wellesley College in 1982 and the University of Connecticut School of Law in 1986.
  • Professional                     
    • Jepsen has been an attorney for more than 26 years and currently serves as counsel to the Hartford law firm of Cowdery, Ecker and Murphy, LLC. He served as a state representative in 1987, representing Stamford's 148th District. In 1990, he was elected state senator in the 27th Senate District, representing Stamford and Darien through 2003. Jepsen was a candidate for Governor, who became the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor in 2002. He also served as Democratic State Party chairman from 2003-2005.
    • Dean, a private practice attorney for the Law Offices of Martha A. Dean, ran for Attorney General in 2002 and earned the strongest showing of any Republican to run against Richard Blumenthal.

The Exchange

Patch posed the following questions to each candidate. Questions are in bold, and candidate responses are beneath them. The candidates were given a 200-word upper limit.

  • How will you work to protect Connecticut consumers?

Jepsen: The Attorney General is the legal advocate for the people of the state. If there are businesses that are illegal or anti-competitive, the Attorney General steps in to stop that anti-competitive behavior. When fly-by-night contractors cheat consumers, it is the Attorney General that brings the actions. When citizens don't have a voice in the process or a means to protect themselves, the Attorney General steps up to protect the legal rights of individuals, defend state government and protect the broad public interest. The decisions the Attorney General makes can have a real impact on people's lives in Connecticut. You need someone with hands-on experience as a practicing lawyer, someone with broad legal qualifications and you need someone who understands public policy, all the issues and all their complexity. I have a record of recognized leadership on consumer protection, civil rights, domestic violence, protecting a woman's right to choose, gun safety, including Connecticut's ban on assault weapons, clean water, clean air and open space preservation, living wills and end-of-life issues. I have been an effective advocate on issues that matter in day-to-day people's lives. I will continue to fight for consumers as Attorney General.

Dean: As Attorney General, I will vigorously litigate on behalf of consumers.  In my 22-year legal career, I have fought for consumers all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, working in tandem with the Attorney General's Office.

  • As the state struggles financially and works to attract new businesses to Connecticut, do you see a role for the Attorney General to help reform regulations that might deter new businesses from relocating here or existing businesses to expand? Why or why not?

Dean: As Attorney General, I will work closely with the state agencies to simplify and clarify state regulations that are known job-killers.  Connecticut needs to quickly eliminate much of the red tape and bureaucracy that state agencies have in place where those regulations fail to accomplish a legitimate state purpose or do so at too high a cost to taxpayers and jobs.

Jepsen:  I do see such a role. One way the Attorney General can play a more direct role in job creation and improving the business climate is promoting energy conservation. I support a state energy policy that increases investment in conservation and efficiency improvements. Reducing the amount of electricity we use can push down electricity prices and help make our air cleaner.  Using less natural gas, fuel oil and gasoline will help keep energy dollars here in Connecticut, rather than sending them to Louisiana, or Venezuela or Saudi Arabia. Keeping energy dollars in Connecticut will help drive the local economy, spur business and create jobs. Second, I would try to improve the competitive business environment. In many situations, the Attorney General has discretion and I am going to consider the impact on the economy and job creation when making those decisions. I want to protect honest businesses that have invested in our state, do the right thing and play by the rules from cheating businesses that don't. To keep competing interests in balance, Connecticut needs a true champion. With proper leadership, the Office of Attorney General really can be a force for positive change in our society.

  • Do you see any failures in the Attorney General Richard Blumenthal administration? What would you have done differently and, if elected, how will that affect your administration?

Jepsen: The Attorney General is an advocate for the people of Connecticut, to protect their rights and take on the tough fights and to protect the public interest. My approach tends to be more mediation and problem solving than litigation. As the majority leader of the state Senate, I found out that not every issue is black and white, right or wrong. If both sides work to solve a problem, it creates a better outcome. To Richard Blumental's credit, he has produced a body of accomplishment in his 20 years that exceeds every other Attorneys General in the 50 states. Some of the things that he's done: taking on the tobacco companies, forcing the social networking sites to police themselves to get out predators, going after coal-burning plants out of state to clean up our air were inspired and he deserves enormous credit for them. But sometimes you are going to make the wrong call.For example, I would not have sued when Boston College and Miami pulled out of the Big East.

Dean: To help Connecticut create a strong and competitive economy that benefits us all by:

  •  ensuring that law-abiding businesses are allowed to prosper in Connecticut
  •  ending the practice of trial by press release so that law-abiding companies are not driven away from, or out of, Connecticut
  •  vigorously enforcing consumer protection and environmental laws, since rebuilding our economy turns in part on Connecticut being a desirable place to live
  •  focusing on litigating only those enforcement actions that are supported by strong facts and clear law

To end federal or state practices that run afoul of the U.S. Constitution, namely by:

  •   working with the legislature to end eminent domain abuse to provide better protection of citizens' property rights
  •   ending the inappropriate use of the AG's office to raise revenue, since this is the exclusive province of the legislature under our separation of powers form of constitutional democracy
  •   challenging the part of Obamacare that forces every American citizen to purchase health insurance, since it is an inappropriate expansion of federal power

To provide common sense, timely and skilled legal advice to state agencies and officials by:

  •  working with the Governor, Treasurer, Comptroller and Secretary of State to accomplish the State's legal business efficiently while protecting the fundamental rights of the people
  •   identifying proposed legislation that does not appear to pass constitutional muster and working with the legislature to modify it appropriately.


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