Letter: Would this candidate really rock the boat at the Statehouse?

Posted 10/18/18

Doug Gablinske wrote in his political statement last week that politicians have become “devoted to ideology and philosophy and not you.” It was an odd statement coming from the former …

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Letter: Would this candidate really rock the boat at the Statehouse?

Posted

Doug Gablinske wrote in his political statement last week that politicians have become “devoted to ideology and philosophy and not you.” It was an odd statement coming from the former state representative when you look at his record.

As state representative, Mr. Gablinske voted in support of changing our state school funding formula. His vote for that change stripped out millions of dollars in state support to our school district every year. That funding reduction is a major reason property taxes have gone up, and, as the cuts continue and deepen, his vote likely will be a key cause of continued property tax increases.

This vote was good for other communities, but definitely wasn’t good for Bristol. Why then did he vote this way? We can guess from his calling public school teachers “pigs at the trough” in a committee hearing at the State House that it could have been driven by his “ideology and philosophy,” but he certainly didn’t vote that way to protect the people of Bristol. The much more likely explanation is that he did exactly what he is now critical of: he voted for it because House leadership asked him to.

So, would Mr. Gablinske rock the boat at the State House? I’m guessing not, considering Mr. Gablinske has spent the last few years as a paid State House lobbyist for fossil fuel special interests. He has pushed bills that would slash funding that allows homeowners to weatherize their homes and has advocated to make solar more expensive. He even told the ProJo that House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello is a “friend” and bragged that “I have all the access I want to Nick.” Does that sound like someone who will challenge the State House?

We do have a problem in our government. Politicians like Mr. Gablinske are more concerned with what State House leaders think of them than their neighbors. As a representative, he showed that he’s more loyal to house leadership than to constituents. And more recently as a lobbyist, he has shown that he’s willing to put special interests ahead of real people. This is not who we need representing District 69.

Tracy Ramos
Bristol

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