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May 07, 2007
Congressman Shays visits Darien
On Friday, Congressman Chris Shays visited the Darien Library to meet constituents and discuss current issues. Approximately 50 citizens met him in the Library's program room. Jim Cameron taped the event for TV 79.
Congressman Shays began by saying he wanted to talk about Iraq, Islamist terrorism, global warming, and the environment. He then asked the audience what else they would like to talk about. They quickly reponded with: FAA, federal flooding assistance, immigration, how Congress sets priorities, transportation, taxes, the Broadwater LNG project and challenges facing the state. Over the next hour and a half, they engaged in honest discussion of the issues. Here are a few highlights:
First Selectwoman Klein and several residents explained their concerns about flooding and briefed the Congressman on the current state of the town.
The audience wanted to know what Congressman Shays is doing about the FAA's plan to alter flight paths. The Congressman explained that he is working with the chair of the Transportation Committee's Aviation subcommittee on the flight path issue because currently there is no requirement that FAA provide noise mitigation to affected communities.
In the area of global warming, the Congressman emphasized the need to increase CAFE standards. He also explained that Connecticut residents need to have an honest discussion about energy.
By far the most contentious issue was Iraq. Audience members held many different opinions about whether and when the U.S. should withdraw its troops. The Congressman explained that we have a moral obligation to the Iraqis and any timelines should be based on the capability of Iraqis to be fully trained.
For complete coverage of the Congressman's visit, watch TV 79 at 6:45 a.m, 1 p.m., or 12:45 a.m.
Posted by EmilyW at May 7, 2007 02:38 PM