Foley think tank walks fine line between politics & policy

By Hugh McQuaid

HARTFORD, Conn. – It was difficult to separate politics from policy Friday as a non-profit institute founded by Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Foley released a set of recommendations on urban policy after an introduction by the candidate.

The Connecticut Policy Institute’s report focuses on recommendations for job growth, crime reduction, neighborhood revitalization, and career education in the state’s urban centers. Ben Zimmer, the institute’s executive director, said his group works to formulate good policy and operates independently of Foley.

“In Connecticut and across the country, too often when we’re thinking about policy, it becomes submerged into the lens of politics,” Zimmer said.

Foley, the Republican nominee for governor in 2010 who lost a historically close race to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, introduced Zimmer at the press conference in the Legislative Office Building.

He said he was proud of the work of the institute, which he founded in 2011 just months after the gubernatorial election. He said the work has been non-partisan and research-based, but Foley did not discourage politics from entering the equation Friday. His campaign advised reporters of the event in an email under the “Tom Foley for Governor” letterhead.

See the complete story at CT News Junkie.