Hartford Courant: Connecticut Democratic Legislators cuaght playig solitarie

[heyholetsgogrant]

By CHRISTOPHER KEATING The Hartford Courant

September 4, 2009

It all started with late-night solitaire at the state Capitol Monday.

And the fallout still hasn't stopped.

Two Democratic legislators were playing solitaire on their state-issued computers Monday night during a late-night debate on the state budget, and an Associated Press photo that showed the solitaire games soon whipped around the nation on the Internet.

From there it was a short hop to national cable TV news.

Now there are calls for apologies — and for new rules regarding computer games at the Capitol.

Republican Thomas Foley, the former U.S. ambassador to Ireland who hopes to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd, has sent a letter asking state Democratic legislative leaders to adopt a new rule banning the use of laptops and electronic BlackBerry devices during formal House and Senate sessions.

"I hope you share with me the sense of outrage felt by the people of Connecticut over the embarrassing spectacle of Democratic legislators playing solitaire on laptop computers while important debate was taking place on the state budget," Foley wrote in a letter to House Speaker Christopher Donovan and Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams.

Foley said that the photo "has subjected our state legislature to national shame and controversy."

Williams declined to comment on Foley's letter. Donovan's spokesman, Doug Whiting, said that Donovan had not seen Foley's letter and had no comment.

Milford Republicans are calling upon Democratic state Rep. Barbara Lambert to apologize for playing solitaire as House Republican leader Larry Cafero was speaking about the state budget. The chairman of the Milford Republican Town Committee, Tom Jagodzinski, said that voters "expect their elected officials to represent their interests, not be preoccupied with putting the red five on the black six. They expect their elected officials to listen to others' ideas, not to be sitting in the people's chamber looking for alternatives to Minesweeper."

Source: Hartford Courant

Full Article Click Here: http://www.courant.com/news/politics/hc-solitaire-0904.artsep04,0,3439180.story

:hysterical: LOL! This sounds more like an article out of The Onion than a real newspaper.

[Cooked Crack]

What political party does the guy on ESPN.com represent? I need to know!

[haithman]

lol looks like a college lecture

[Larry]

You mean, members of the state legislature aren't attentive when other members of the state legislature are publicly posturing for the cameras, when discussing the budget?

Obviously, what they should do is leave the room during Senator Lardbutt's speech.

[stevenaa]

Better than falling asleep, snoring and disrupting the meeting.

[techboy]

Isn't that Freeell, not Solitaire?

[ACW]

Spider solitaire?

Either way, if Congress did this, it'd be MUCH better.

[The Brave Little Toaster Oven]

The other dude is on ESPN.com, and he gets a free pass :hysterical:

[Duckus]

Hahah - that is awesome. Hilarious.