{news} Ralph Ferrucci in CT Post

[David Bedell]

http://www.connpost.com/localnews/ci_10758072

Candidates vie for DeLauro's seat

By FRANK JULIANO
Staff writer
Article Last Updated: 10/19/2008 12:33:51 AM EDT

Bo and Ralph hope 3rd Congressional District voters are on a first-name
basis with them, as they have been with Rosa for the past 18 years.

While the heated race in the 4th Congressional District has grabbed the
lion's share of attention this election year, Republican Boaz ItsHaky and
Green Party candidate Ralph Ferrucci are also campaigning against a
well-funded incumbent in the 3rd District.

That incumbent is Rosa DeLauro, the New Haven Democrat seeking a 10th term
in the sprawling district that covers much of southern-central Connecticut
including Milford, the lower Naugatuck Valley and part of Stratford.

Neither ItsHaky, a licensed acupuncturist with an office in Orange, or
Ferrucci, a New Haven graphic artist and truck driver, have raised campaign
funds. "I'd rather not ask anyone else for money,'' Ferrucci said. "I know
how hard times are.'' ItsHaky admitted that he is getting almost no help
from his party. "I believe that no one should run unopposed in our democracy
so I asked the Republicans to nominate me.

"But I am not a traditional Republican. I am part of a new generation, not
of the old boys network. If I win I am going to set up an acupuncture table
on the floor of Congress so I can really needle all of them,'' ItsHaky said
with a smile.

Ferrucci already has a reputation for needling entrenched powers-that-be,
starting with his quixotic run for mayor of New Haven as the standard bearer
of The Guilty Party. He has since run for the U.S. House and Senate and
coordinated Ralph Nader's presidential campaign in the state.

"Every campaign is about putting the issues out there, and I'm running on
the issues that I feel are important in this district, including high fuel
prices and the economy that means some people can't pay their mortgage and
buy their medicine at the same time,'' Ferrucci said.

One of his issues is the two-party system that the self-described political
junkie said is "ruining'' the country. "Our Founding Fathers didn't want
political parties because they knew that people would end up thinking for
the party and not for themselves.''

DeLauro has worn her liberal Democrat label proudly through a career that
began when she served as U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd's chief of staff.

Once Dodd ended his presidential bid early this year, DeLauro threw her
support behind Sen. Barrack Obama.

"This is a critical election with historic implications on a number of
fronts,'' the congresswoman said. "We do see a new kind of politics taking
shape.'' DeLauro has seen many of her longtime legislative efforts finally
bear fruit, with her party in control of the House. A bill that would
require insurance companies to pay for an overnight hospital stay for a
woman having a mastectomy, that couldn't get a hearing for 11 years, was
passed earlier this year.

The New Haven native's bill to require equity in pay for both genders
languished for 12 years before winning House approval in this session. "That
is the power of being in the majority,'' DeLauro said.

"Now we've got to get the Senate to approve and the president to sign, which
I believe will happen after this election.'' Her bill to split the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration into two separate agencies is awaiting the same
circumstances.

She has also been credited with including a measure to increase the income
tax credit for children in the financial rescue package. That means that
19,600 children in Connecticut will be newly eligible for the credit and the
amount of the federal tax credit will increase for the parents of 13 million
children in the U.S., including 68,000 in the state.

But ItsHaky and Ferrucci slammed DeLauro for getting much of her campaign
funds from political action committees. Of the slightly more than $1 million
the incumbent has raised for this race, $641,128 or 64 percent has come from
PACs, according to the website OpenSecrets.org "Part of my philosophy is
that I take no money from special interest groups,'' said ItsHaky, a native
of Israel who emmigrated to the United States after completing his military
service there. "My only special interest group is 'we the people'.''

DeLauro dismissed the idea that her contributors can or should expect
anything from her except dedicated public service. "People who know me know
that I am not afraid to stand up to any special interest group.'' Ferrucci
said that had he been in Congress he'd have opposed the $700 billion
financial bailout plan. "In the 1930s (President Franklin D.) Roosevelt
didn't hand out money; he created jobs. Banks lost money, so we're going to
give them more?''

ItsHaky, too, said that "corporate cronyism'' and greed caused the banking
meltdown, but his solution is even less regulation.

"Regulations can have a very suffocating effect on business; we have to be
very careful how we apply it. Regulations are not going to replace good
management,'' the GOP candidate said.

DeLauro said that she opposed the first version of the rescue package,
"because it was a blank check,'' but supported the one that passed.
"Infusion of capital to banks is a good part of this.

"We have to get money to businesses so they can continue and grow,'' she
said. "Without it they may have to lay people off. And we also need to get
disposable income into people's pockets.'' ItsHaky said that part of his
restructuring plan would be to turn out all of the sitting members of the
House and Senate. "We need a fresh start in this country,'' he said.

The candidate said he modified the spelling of his name from the original
Hebrew to make it easier to pronounce. "Sometimes people would say "Its
Shaky,' which is not what you want when you're running for Congress,'' he
said with a laugh.

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Rosa DeLauro Democrat Age: 65 Hometown: New Haven Family: husband Stanley
Greenberg, three grown children and three grandchildren. Education:
Marymount College, B.A.; Columbia University, master's in International
Politics;; studied at the London School of Economics. Occupation: 3rd
District Congresswoman. Political background: seeking her 10th term in the
U.S. House; had been chief of staff to U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd and executive
director of Emily's List, a national organization dedicated to increasing
the number of women in elected office.

Boaz ItsHaky Republican Age: 49 Hometown: Bethany Family: divorced, no
children Education: Tri-State College, master's in Oriental medicine
Occupation: Acupuncturist Political background: ran unsuccessfully for
Bethany first selectman and for the 17th District seat in the state Senate.

Ralph Ferrucci Green Party Age: 36 Hometown: New Haven Family: Single.
Education: Paier College of Arts, BFA in illustration. Occupation: graphic
artist, Pepperidge Farm Co. franchisee. Political background: ran for mayor
of New Haven in 2003 (as the Guilty Party candidate) and in 2007; ran for
3rd District House seat in 2004 and for U.S. Senate in 2006; served as Ralph
Nader's state coordinator in 2004.