Cathy, Owen, and I are thrilled to welcome to the world Rider James Murphy (Rider is old family name on the Murphy side). Born on 11/11/11, he checked in at 7 lb, 7 oz - pretty big for arriving almost a month early. Owen is excited, and has already said he'll share his fire trucks (but his trains are off limits).

More at http://www.facebook.com/chrismurphyct

As I am sure you know, the House just voted to increase the debt limit. I voted against the bill.

I heard from many of you throughout this debate. The phones were ringing off the hook and emails flooded my inbox. In the end, what I heard from people across the state was that we needed to raise the debt ceiling, while making sure that any related deficit reduction was done in a way that shared the pain, protected our social safety net, and helped put people back to work.

Abby from Middlebury sent these thoughts:

"Please focus on extending the debt so we do not default AND protect Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security not only for the elderly today but for future generations. Don't let the Republicans eviscerate the social safety net!!!"

Tonight, I wanted to take a moment and share why I voted the way I did, and to ask for your thoughts.

First, there is no question that the debt limit needs to be increased. And there is no question that we need to make hard choices to dramatically bring down our deficit. But this crisis was totally manufactured by a small group of extreme right wingers who are intent not on simply reducing government spending, but on destroying government altogether. And the bill that resulted was rightly described by most political commentators as a victory for their cause.

I was willing to vote for a compromise. But this was not a compromise, it was a near complete capitulation.

Look, I work hard to promote bi-partisanship and cooperation across the aisle. I lead a group in the House called the Center-Aisle Caucus designed to bring Members - Republicans and Democrats - together to get to know each other and to start building the bonds that might make this place work better. In my work on the Buy American agenda, almost every effort I put forward is done with bipartisan support. If I believed this was a true compromise where both sides were giving up significant concessions, I would have voted for it.

But this bill didn't ask one corporation to give back a single tax break. This bill didn't ask one billionaire to pay a dime more in taxes. And all the spending on the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars were exempt from the spending caps in the bill. Without putting revenue on the table, and mandating the end to these wars, we can't be serious about real shared sacrifice.

And while I have long been willing to speak out on the need for spending cuts, the cuts in this bill - including major, arbitrary cuts to Medicare - fall disproportionately on the backs of seniors and the middle class.

I was hoping that I would have some time back home in Connecticut before voting on this bill to hear from even more of my neighbors and constituents (it's especially ironic that the party that complained that the health care bill was "jammed through" after one year of debate, didn't even allow for 24 hours of sunlight on this $2 trillion piece of legislation). But this false crisis meant that I had to make the call based on what I thought was right.

In the end, I could not support a bill that fed the extremist drive to kill off government one piece at a time. And I could not endorse a process that rewards legislative hostage-taking, resulting in hasty, under-informed decision making. That's what I think. But just as importantly, I want to know what you think. Please let me know by clicking here:

http://www.chrismurphy.com/debt-ceiling

While I certainly respect those who voted for this bill, I firmly believe this was not the right product or process for this great and compassionate nation.

Thank you for reading this. Now that we are past this manufactured crisis, I will continue to focus on what people tell me they care about most: creating jobs and opportunities for people across Connecticut and around the nation.

Sincerely,

Chris

Will you host a team meeting for Chris?

We're asking people to sign-up to host team meetings in their home for Chris.

Let us know you're interested and we'll be in touch with all the tools you need to make your event a success.

The three M's: money, message and mobilization.

As the campaign manager for Team Murphy, I spend a lot of time thinking about how to raise the money needed to win a competitive race, spread the campaign's message to voters across the state and mobilize enough supporters to deliver victory next November.

We're doing great on the money front. Powered by well over 2,500 individual contributions since we launched, our campaign hit its fundraising goals for the second straight quarter, collecting over 1,000 individual donations from Connecticut residents in the last three months alone.

We've generated a good deal of earned media, as well. You may have seen the big news that the Fire Fighters became the fourth statewide labor union to join Team Murphy yesterday.

Now it's time to focus on mobilization.

We're going to win this race by empowering supporters to get in the game and spread the word about Chris to their family, friends and neighbors.

Would you be willing to start that conversation by hosting a team meeting at your house for the campaign?

Sign-up to host a team meeting here:

http://www.chrismurphy.com/team-meeting

The team meetings promise to serve as the foundation for the kind of grassroots campaigns Chris has famously run in the past.

Only this time, instead of stopping at the doorstep to hold a conversation with a potential supporter, we'll come inside to have an old fashioned discussion about issues that affect your families and community.

Hosting a team meeting is easy, but the first step is indicating your willingness to do so.

Once you sign-up we'll be in touch with all the tools you need to host and promote your team meeting to family, friends and neighbors in your community.

Sign-up here to host a Chris Murphy team meeting:

http://www.chrismurphy.com/team-meeting

You won't be alone on the big day either. Let us know if you're interested in having Chris or someone from the campaign stop by or call into your meeting.

We'll do everything we can to help ensure a successful event.

Hope to hear from you soon,

Kenny Curran
Campaign Manager, Team Murphy

So, I wanted to let you know first - I'll be voting against the bill.

The Patriot Act does not strike the right balance between protecting our nation while safeguarding the cherished civil liberties we hold dear. I have voted to give Congress time to find an appropriate balance in the past, but extending the most unjustifiable provisions in the act with no additional oversight for an additional four years is a bridge too far for me.

I'll get attacked for this vote; Republicans believe they smell blood in the water every time I vote to defend civil liberties - it's happened in almost every one of my federal campaigns.

Can you make a contribution of $5 right now to make sure we can respond to the attacks as soon as they come?

http://www.chrismurphy.com/patriotact

Remember this ridiculous television ad national Republicans ran against me in 2006? They all but accused me of wanting to aid those who would do our country harm.

http://www.chrismurphy.com/patriotact

Remember this ridiculous television ad national Republicans ran against me in 2006? They all but accused me of wanting to aid those who would do our country harm.



Or when the "Defense of Democracies" 501-c4 group ran ads against me in 2008 during the misnamed "Protect America Act" debate?

Expect to see attacks like these again.

But you can send a powerful message by standing with me in the belief that America need not choose between protecting its citizens and their rights.

Can you contribute $5 to help us spread that message when the attacks come for my vote against the Patriot Act?

http://www.chrismurphy.com/patriotact

You can rest assured I'll do my best to organize even more bipartisan opposition to the bill.

I'll be in touch.

All the best,

Chris

Team Murphy was out in force Monday night as Democrats from across the state descended on Hartford, CT for the 63rd annual Jefferson, Jackson, Bailey dinner. Supporters gathered outside of the event and provided the only visibility presence as attendees drove into the Convention Center for the evening's festivities.

Here are some photos and video from the event.

Working with Chris over the past few years and watching him fight in DC, I have been particularly impressed with his focus on manufacturing in CT. In a bipartisan way, he is working to keep jobs in the US, particularly military defense manufacturing jobs. This approach is good national defense policy and smart job growth policy for Connecticut.

Keep checking back in for the latest from the trail.

The questions were inspired by Wisconsin's Republican State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald's comments about the real motivation behind their attempts to strip workers collective bargaining rights from working families.

"If we win this battle, and the money is not there under the auspices of the unions, certainly what you’re going to find is President Obama is going to have a much difficult, much more difficult time getting elected and winning the state of Wisconsin."

Chris Murphy (D): 40
Susan Bysiewicz (D): 38
Undecided: 21
(MoE: ±4.9%)

Susan Bysiewicz (D): 44
Mark Boughton (R): 34
Undecided: 22

Chris Murphy (D): 52
Mark Boughton (R): 29
Undecided: 19

Susan Bysiewicz (D): 45
Michael Fedele (R): 35
Undecided: 20

Chris Murphy (D): 51
Michael Fedele (R): 29
Undecided: 20

Susan Bysiewicz (D): 45
Scott Frantz (R): 30
Undecided: 24

Chris Murphy (D): 51
Scott Frantz (R): 27
Undecided: 22

Susan Bysiewicz (D): 50
Linda McMahon (R): 39
Undecided: 12

Chris Murphy (D): 54
Linda McMahon (R): 38
Undecided: 9

Susan Bysiewicz (D): 42
Rob Simmons (R): 39
Undecided: 19

Chris Murphy (D): 49
Rob Simmons (R): 34
Undecided: 18
(MoE: ±3.4%)

Daily Kos Political Director, David NYC, added

But if I were Chris Murphy, I'd be even more stoked, and it's not hard to see why: He crushes the nobodies by twenty-plus-point margins, bodyslams Linda McMahon by sixteen and hold even the semi-popular Rob Simmons to a fifteen point spread. Again, the difference lies in the favorables: Statewide, all voters like Murphy by a 40-27 spread. Bysiewicz, on the other hand, is under water at 31-41.

Some good news we wanted to share here first.