Bethwood Eye on the Beltway: DeLauro Defends Food Stamps

BLUMENTHAL: Safety regulations of rental trucks need to be improved, according to Sen. Richard Blumenthal. He is pushing for the adoption of a transportation bill that would require a review of federal oversight for rental trucks.

“Alarming reports of safety violations and, most recently, a tragic accident involving a rental truck in Connecticut, have raised serious concerns about the safety and reliability of rental trucks driven by millions of Americans each year,” Blumenthal said in a statement.

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LIEBERMAN: Sen. Joseph Lieberman tweeted a photo of himself with Sen. John McCain at the Turkish border. The politicians are visiting refugees from Syria.

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DELAURO: U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro penned an op-ed about the importance of food stamps and other social programs in the wake of a Republican-backed budget that passed the House of Representatives.

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HIMES: When it came time for the House of Representatives to vote on a budget, both parties mostly stuck to party lines to champion budgets with no chance of being adopted. Jim Himes was part of a 38-member bipartisan coalition that tried to pass a budget that addresses debt reduction. He and the other politicians were lauded in a USA Today editorial.

“The job of representatives in a democracy is to govern, which requires compromise. The fact that only 38 members of the House did so is shameful.”

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MURPHY:  U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy (D-5), on the campaign trail for U.S. Senate, met with seniors on Tuesday in Newtown and talked about reforming entitlement programs.

"It's not a Democratic problem or a Republican problem, it's an American problem,'' Murphy said, according to the News Times. "We've got to find a way to get both parties to work together.''

 “Eye on the Beltway” is a feature on your local Patch that looks each day at the activities of elected officials in our nation’s capitol from your town and other parts of southwestern Connecticut.

Those officials are:

• Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)
• Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT)
• Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-3), a Democrat representing Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Bethany, Branford, Derby, Durham, East Haven, Guilford, Hamden, Middlefield, Middletown, Milford, Naugatuck, New Haven, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Prospect, Seymour, Shelton, Stratford, Wallingford, Waterbury, West Haven and Woodbridge.
• Rep. Jim Himes (CT-4), a Democrat representing Bridgeport, Darien, Easton, Fairfield, Greenwich, Monroe, New Canaan, Norwalk, Oxford, Redding, Ridgefield, Shelton (part), Stamford, Trumbull, Weston, Westport and Wilton.
• Rep. Chris Murphy (CT-5), a Democrat representing Avon, Bethel, Bethlehem, Bridgewater, Brookfield, Burlington, Canaan, Canton, Cheshire, Cornwall, Danbury, Farmington, Goshen, Harwinton, Kent, Litchfield, Meriden, Middlebury, Morris, New Britain, New Fairfield, New Milford, Newtown, Norfolk, North Canaan, Plainville, Plymouth, Roxbury, Salisbury, Sharon, Sherman, Simsbury, Southbury, Thomaston, Torrington (part), Warren, Washington, Waterbury (part), Watertown, Wolcott and Woodbury.