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Well, technically it’s not their fault. Richard Blumenthal’s the guy who put his foot in his mouth. But if these folks hadn’t INVITED him to their event in the first place…

So here’s the deal. That infamous video posted by the New York Times of Attorney General Richard Blumenthal falsely claiming (he says mistakenly, his critics say it’s a pattern) about serving in Vietnam?

The Times only referred to it in the accompanying story vaguely as a March, 2008 ceremony in Norwalk “honoring veterans and senior citizens who sent presents to soldiers overseas.”

And there is nothing in the video itself to identify where the ceremony was held, why or by whom.

Well, mystery solved. According to the March 7, 2008 issue of the weekly Norwalk Citizen News (which is now a Hearst sister paper of the Stamford Advocate, where I technically work) Blumenthal was speaking at a recognition ceremony the prior Sunday at The Marvin senior housing development.

Specifically Marvin residents since 2005 had been sewing handmade fleece blankets for wounded service personnel in the United States and abroad, and had just completed their 1,000th blanket.

The Citizen News did not make any mention of Blumenthal but two other local elected officials who were quoted in the article – state Sen. Bob Duff, D-Norwalk and Norwalk Republican Mayor Richard Moccia – confirmed that was the setting for the controversial comments which two years later have come back to haunt Blumenthal’s bid for U.S. Senate.

“It was a nice event. Lot of people there,” said Duff, who immediately recognized the setting when he watched the video.

But Duff said he did not recall what Blumenthal said and did not know who taped the festivities.

Moccia said he had not watched the video but knew immediately what I was referring to.

“The Times called me and said ‘do you remember what he (Blumenthal) said?’ I said I don’t even remember what I said two years ago,” Moccia told me. “I knew he was there, I knew he talked about his service in the Marines. I don’t know if he said he was in Vietnam, not in Vietnam.”

So there you have it. Blumenthal attends a simple blanket ceremony and now stands accused of, well, wrapping himself in a blanket of lies. Yes, I went there. Sorry. Couldn’t help it.

UPDATE: Just spoke a little while ago to Mary Windt, The Marvin’s executive director, who said she feels awful about what was supposed to be a non-partisan event getting caught up in a national political controversy.

“I went on-line and saw the video. I have no idea how they got it,” said Windt.

She did confirm the video was made by The Marvin and distributed to the various politicians who attended the ceremony – Blumenthal, Duff, Moccia, House Minority Leader Lawrence Cafero, R-Norwalk (a Simmons backer), state Sen. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton, Lt. Governor Michael Fedele, then-Republican U.S. Congressman Chris Shays (who today is telling the press he has witnessed Blumenthal exaggerating his record at other events).

“And there may have been some residents’ families who had videos, but really nobody looked at this in two years,” Windt said.

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During a phone interview this morning on WNPR’s “Where We Live” about the New York Times’ piece on whether Richard Blumenthal has mislead the public about his military service during Vietnam, I was asked a smart question and gave a stupid answer.

Colin McEnroe, himself a radio personality and Hartford Courant columnist who was a guest on the show, asked me who else the Democratic Party might nominate this weekend for U.S. Senate?

My answer was basically: “Duh. I have no idea. Good question, Colin. Um, can I slink off of the air now?”

Sure, Merrick Alpert of Mystic has been making a lot of noise for months that he is the best man for the job, but he has also turned off Democrats who have for years been hoping Blumenthal would leave the Attorney General’s office to run for either Governor or Congress.

Well, I just had a nice little talk with a political insider and they planted this seed in my head – Ned Lamont.

Lamont, a Greenwich businessman/millionaire, ran the upstart 2006, anti-Iraq War campaign against Democratic Senator Joseph Lieberman of Stamford, made political history by besting Lieberman, but lost the general election when Lieberman formed his own party.

Lamont is now the party’s front-runner for the gubernatorial nomination, along with recently retired Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy.

So you have a scenario where Lamont, who was clearly four years ago interested in a Senate seat and knows how that kind of a campaign works, steps in for the politically humbled Blumenthal, Malloy is nominated for Governor, and the party avoids a primary.

But Lamont spokesman Justine Sessions said: “Ned is fully committed to running for Governor (and) looking forward to working with Senator Blumenthal.”

Tom Swan, who managed Lamont’s 2006 campaign but has not chosen a side in the gubernatorial race, said he understands the source of the Lamont-to-replace-Blumenthal rumor is actually Malloy.

“Malloy’s people are really good at spin,” said Swan, who believes Lamont is more interested in the Governor’s office.

“I think he believes he is more of the executive type,” Swan said.

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And this is why people are so cynical about politics and politicians.

Just a few hours after the New York Times made waves in the Connecticut Senate race with a potentially devastating piece questioning whether Democratic contender Richard Blumenthal has mislead the public on his military service, Republican opponent Linda McMahon’s campaign shot out the following e-mail TAKING CREDIT FOR IT.

It’s a first, at least in my limited history of covering politics. Usually campaigns feed ideas to the media and then try to take advantage of the fall out without actually having a story traced back to them.

But McMahon’s e-mail advertises Hartford Courant columnist Kevin Rennie’s “Daily Ructions” blog in which Rennie explains her self-funded campaign delivered the story to the Times on a platter.

Yay. So we have one candidate who might have intentionally puffed up his military record in order to score points with voters, and another who has baggage of her own (World Wrestling Entertainment, sex and steroids, anyone?) taking a public victory lap over the part her campaign played in the Times’ piece.

It’s a clear signal to all those Republican insiders who will be at the nominating convention this weekend that they don’t have to worry about the WWE maven’s ability to wage war against the popular Blumenthal.

But McMahon’s like a private detective who hands Connecticut an incriminating file on the state’s husband of over 20 years and then asks: “Sooooo, Connecticut. Now that I’ve told you the truth about Dick and you’re falling out of love, are you busy Friday night?”

Connecticut voters must feel so blessed these are two of their leading candidates …

Here’s the McMahon e-mail:

In Case You Missed It: McMahon Strikes Blumenthal In NYT Article

“The Blumenthal Bombshell Comes At The End Of More Than 2 Months Of Deep, Persistent Research By Republican Linda McMahon’s Senate Campaign.  It Gave The Explosive Norwalk Video Recording To The Times.  This Is What Comes Of  $16 Million, A Crack Opposition Research Operation And An Opponent Who, In The Words Of The President Blumenthal Worked For On A Draft Deferment, Who Gave Them The Sword.”

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The New York Times’ piece questioning whether Democratic U.S. Senate candidate/Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has mislead the public about his Vietnam service record focused on a two-year-old ceremony in Norwalk.

So I put in a call to Norwalk resident David Cole, who served two tours of duty in Vietnam, has been the marshal of the city’s Memorial Day Parade for almost a decade, and is currently vice-chairman of the Norwalk Veterans Memorial Committee. Cole is also an active Democrat in town, serving a few years back on the Norwalk Board of Education.

I knew David from my days covering Norwalk and remembered him as a pretty passionate guy when it comes to veterans’ issues. He can also be outspoken, and a few years back criticized the city’s efforts to honor a soldier killed in Iraq as excessive in contrast with how Norwalk has memorialized other fallen soldiers of wars past.

Cole had not yet heard about the NYTimes article, so I read him the key portions. How Blumenthal during a 2008 ceremony in Norwalk spoke of “the days that I served in Vietnam” but, according to the newspaper, actually obtained “at least” five military deferments from 1965 to 1970 before landing “a coveted spot in the Marine Reserve which virtually guaranteed that he would not be sent to Vietnam.”

Cole said he does not want to pass judgement on Blumenthal based solely on media allegations.

But…

“If they are true, I would frankly be very disappointed in Dick Blumenthal,” Cole said.

Cole said he has never had lengthy conversations with Blumenthal about his service.

“My conversations with him have always been kind of brief and perfunctory – me as the guy that served 20 years and he was a guy that ascended to fairly high office but had some Marine Corps background somewhere in the past. I never pressed him on this,” Cole said. “I’ve always liked him, respected him. But there’s an awful lot like this. We call them ‘wannabees’. I know several veterans – members of the American Legion, everything else. They refer to themselves as Korean War veterans when they really mean Korean War-era vets. I’m not trying to tar Dick with this brush but I see it all the time and it’s really bothersome.”

Cole said it might be enough to keep him from backing Blumenthal for U.S. Senate.

“If he has shamefully falsified his military service I would really be bothered by that,” Cole said.

UPDATE: Blumenthal’s campaign just issued the following statement:

The following is a statement from Mindy Myers, Blumenthal for Senate Campaign Manager:

“The New York Times story is an outrageous distortion of Dick Blumenthal’s record of service.  Unlike many of his peers, Dick Blumenthal voluntarily joined the Marine Corps Reserves in 1970 and served for six months in Parris Island, SC and six years in the reserves.  He received no special treatment from anyone.”

“Dick has a long record of standing up for veterans.  Tomorrow,  veterans will be standing up with Dick.”

Blumenthal will conduct a news conference with Connecticut veterans tomorrow.  Details will be announced tomorrow morning.

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Lt. Governor Michael Fedele of Stamford, who is pursuing the Republican Party’s nomination for Governor, today officially announced his choice of Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton as a running mate. Boughton had also been looking to succeed the retiring Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell before abandoning his campaign to be part of Fedele’s ticket.

Boughton has proven to be a candidate with legs both in Danbury and in the current gubernatorial contest, but he is also a potentially controversial choice for the general election.

Boughton generated headlines in 2005 with a proposal to deputize state police as federal immigration agents – an idea that was shot down by the state’s Public Safety Commissioner.

But, more importantly, even as he promises to be “Mike’s full partner in managing the state,” Boughton and his administration continue to be embroiled in a federal civil lawsuit filed in 2007 by Yale Law School professors and students on behalf of eight day laborers arrested in Danbury.

In fact the Danbury mayor, according to Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, the New York law firm working with Yale on the case, is scheduled to be deposed at the end of June.

The lawsuit, which can be read here, claims that under Boughton’s watch Danbury police made civil immigration arrests despite not having the authority to do so.

“The arrival of new Latino immigrants, and the failure of the federal government to address immigration’s local effects, has sparked a backlash from Mayor Boughton’s administration, which has targeted, harassed, and intimidated these new city residents through a number of discriminatory policies,” read the lawsuit. “These policies aim ultimately to drive unwanted immigrants from Danbury and to deter future immigrants from making Danbury their home.”

Boughton when the lawsuit was filed argued Danbury police provided support to federal operations, that they complied with the Constitution, and added: “We are not going to be bullied by Yale or by anybody else as it relates to the equal application and the neutral applications of the laws of the city of Danbury.”

Which brings me back to Fedele’s decision to choose Boughton. Part of Fedele’s allure as a candidate, both when he was tapped as Rell’s running mate in 2006 and during his current bid to succeed Rell, is his story – immigrant-turned-successful businessman/politician.

As the very first sentence of Fedele’s website reads, “Republican Mike Fedele has lived in Stamford since coming to Connecticut from Minturno, Italy with his parents and siblings when he was three years old.”

Fedele also mentions his Italian roots at the start of this campaign ad.

So when I learned Fedele had chosen Boughton, my first thought was not: “Wow, shrewd move heading into the GOP convention.” It was: “Huh. The proud immigrant who often talks about realizing the American dream is partnering with the mayor under fire for allegedly harassing illegal immigrants in his city.”

Whatever your opinion of how the state and federal government should deal with illegal immigrants, by tapping Boughton, Fedele has injected the issue into the Connecticut gubernatorial race. Not only is his running mate dealing with a lawsuit related to his current job, but it’s about a politically volatile topic.

Earlier today I e-mailed Fedele’s campaign a copy of the aforementioned lawsuit against Boughton. I asked if Fedele has “any concerns about the issues raised” and if his partnering with Boughton should be viewed as an endorsement of Danbury’s policies toward illegal immigrants?

Fedele responded: “I am a proud immigrant to America and a proud citizen and I believe legal immigration is one of the core underpinnings of America as a place of opportunity.  However, I also believe that existing laws should be followed now, just as they were to be followed when my parents and I came to this country.”

Not, I’m certain, the end.

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With the Democratic and Republican nominating conventions scheduled for next weekend, candidates for various statewide offices and for Congress are announcing endorsements, hoping to build momentum in these final days.

Elected officials running for new jobs are endorsing candidates to take over their current positions. People who were running or thinking about running for an office and then decided now’s not the right time are endorsing the candidates they believe are second-best-suited for the role. Current or former state officials and political insiders you’ve never heard of or could care less about are throwing what weight they have behind candidates. And unions and other groups with initials for names are choosing sides.

So it’s understandable some of you regular folks out there are feeling endorsement fever and frustration because you have no way to channel it.

I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to leave the endorsements to the political insiders.

Next time you greet your significant other, instead of saying “I love you!” tell him or her “Baby, I endorse you! I endorse you so much!”

Got a pet? Scratch it behind the ears and say “you’re so endorseable! Yes you are!” Come to think of it, that works for babies and small children as well.

Preparing to pop the question? Do something different. Pull out the ring, get down on one knee and ask your sweetheart if she will endorse YOU!

See. You don’t have to be left out during endorsement season.

And thanks for reading. I endorse you all!!!

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Nearly three years after legislation was passed establishing a Contracting Standards Board to upgrade the state’s procurement policies and safeguard taxpayer dollars against corruption, the group has only met once, lawmakers recently gutted the board’s budget, and state union leaders want the just-appointed chairman ousted.

Read our full story here.

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Ridgefield First Selectman Rudy Marconi used his just-abandoned bid for Governor to make the case for the return of tolls to Connecticut’s highways again … and again … and again.

It really became a running joke of the campaign season, but you had to give the guy credit for taking a relatively unpopular position and sticking with it throughout various public appearances and debates.

And yet the candidate he’s decided to endorse – Democrat Ned Lamont of Greenwich – while on “Face the State” a few months ago said he opposes tolls.

This morning I e-mailed the Lamont camp asking if he’d assured Marconi he would reconsider tolls if elected Governor. 

Lamont spokesman Justine Sessions in a brief e-mail responded: “As Ned has said throughout this campaign, the technology isn’t there yet when it comes to tolls.”

Oh Rudy. Couldn’t you have at least gotten the Nedster to soften his opposition in return for your endorsement?

Here’s more on Lamont’s appearance on “Face the State” from host Dennis House’s blog:

Lamont: no tolls, but won’t rule out new taxes, new focus on cities