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Marketing image from Pabst Brewing Co.

Back in November,  state officials helped to KO the alcoholic energy drink Four Loko.

Now, officials across the country, including Attorney General George Jepsen, are opposing a new drink that spawned in Four Loko’s absence, Colt 45′s Blast, which is  produced by the Pabst Brewing Company.

The attorneys general are asking the company to reduce the product’s alcohol content and work to prevent underage drinkers from acquiring it.

Pabst is owned by Greenwich-based Metropoulous & Co. after being purchased from an Illinois company in June 2010.

The product was launched earlier this month, but has not yet been licensed to be sold in Connecticut. Jepsen is trying to prevent if from ever hitting the market here.

“The health risks pose a particular threat to youth, given that about 90 percent of the alcohol consumed by Americans under age 21 is while binge drinking,” Jepsen said in a press release.

Blast is sold in bright-colored 23.5 ounce cans that Jepsen said appeal to younger audiences. The alcohol content in one can is 12 percent by volume, which is equivalent to 4.7 servings of alcohol.

Jepsen said drinking one can in less than a hour would qualify as binge drinking by public health standards.

“A product that makes it easier for young people to drink to excess, particularly a high alcohol, “binge-in-a-can” product like Pabst Blast, does not encourage responsible drinking,” he said.

It is promoted by rapper Snoop Dogg on social media sites, which Jepsen and the 15 other AGs who sent the letter to Pabst CEO Dean Metropoulos, said contributes to underage drinking of the product.

Jepsen and the other AGs said in the letter to the brewing company that it is irresponsible to put out a product that contains such a high level of alcohol in a one-serving can.

“Despite the company’s admonition to purchasers to drink responsibly, the product’s design promotes excessive consumption,” he wrote.

Pabst responded in a statement by chief marketing officer Jon Sayer.

“Blast is only meant to be consumed by those above legal drinking age,” Sayer said in the statement, posted online by CNN. “As with all Pabst products, our marketing efforts for Blast are focused on conveying the message of drinking responsibly.”

“To that end, the alcohol content of Blast is clearly marked on its packaging,” Sayer stated.

The full letter addressed to Metropoulos can be viewed here.

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The leaders of the Connecticut GOP had to figure there would be some people upset with their alternative budget. But they probably didn’t expect it to be for a turn of phrase instead of a proposed cut.

According to NBC Connecticut, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe – which operates the Foxwoods Casino and MGM Grand – said they took exception to “insensitive remarks” in the Republican budget presentation.

In discussing their proposal to cut more than 1,300 state managerial jobs, the GOP said, “organizations that are ‘top heavy’ or have ‘too many chiefs and not enough Indians’ are rarely successful and almost never efficient”

The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Council was dismayed to learn that the Republican’s proposed budget was published without any regard for the inappropriate reference contained therein,” the Council said in a statement Tuesday posted by NBC Connecticut. “Though perhaps an oversight, the Council sincerely hopes that this matter will be swiftly eradicated, accompanied by appropriate amends to all those who may have been equally affronted.”

It did not take long for the GOP leadership to apologize by issuing the following statement: “It was brought to our attention that a phrase included in the budget materials we presented today were offensive to Native Americans and should not have been used … It was an unintentional mistake but insensitive none-the-less and will not be repeated. We apologize to Native Americans and anyone else who lightly takes offense.”

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You can tell a lot about a person from their cell phone ring-tone.

Connecticut GOP Chairman Christopher Healy recently went with the theme from “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” for his ring-back-tone, the one callers hear when they dial his cell phone.

Could it be a metaphor for the political climate in Hartford or tense budget negotiations?

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Some say the white clam pie at Sally’s Apizza is to die for, but 30 Rock put a spin on that claim in last night’s ‘I Heart Connecticut’ episode — and takes a shot at the state’s film-tax credits in the process.

As Jenna’s character is strapped to a medieval torture device and about to be murdered on the set of her new horror-porn flick, Take My Hand, she pleads “please don’t kill me, I still haven’t tried the famous seafood pizza at Sally’s in New Haven.”

The fictional movie-within-a-tv-show was being filmed in Stamford to take advantage of the state’s film-tax credits. But apparently, Connecticut wasn’t happy with the content of Jenna’s movie:

“…our budget depends on getting a tax break from Connecticut and they say we aren’t portraying the state in a positive light…it’s just that we’re spending tax payer money saying there’s a veterinarian running Connecticut trying to make a house out of breasts for the governor to live in.”

JENNA ADDS: “We just got shut down because Connecticut’s being a [d-bag], they won’t give us a tax break unless the movie promotes tourism.”

If only the state could institute some quality control over the productions filmed here…there have been a couple of decent features to come out of the tax credit program (Revolutionary Road, for one) but we’ve also seen sub-par films like Righteous Kill bomb despite having casts with the likes of Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino.

I’m not sure a dead body wearing a UConn Huskies shirt would really help though.

WATCH THE FULL EPISODE:

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Democrat Dan Fox

Petitioning candidate John Mallozzi

Last fall’s election season may now seem like a distant memory, but the final picture of what the General Assembly lo

Greeny Party candidate Rolf Maurer

Republican Charles Pia

Independent Monique Thomas

oks like in the aftermath of the November elections won’t be fully painted until late tonight.

Voters in the Glenbrook and Cove sections of Stamford are headed to the polls today to elect a General Assembly representative in the 148th district — a vacancy created when former Rep. Carlo Leone won a special election in February to replace the outgoing Andrew McDonald in the state senate. McDonald had left the seat to serve as the general counsel in the Malloy administration.

Polls are open from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m

You can click here to find your polling station.

Here’s a rundown of the candidates (in alphabetical order), compiled by The Advocate’s Kate King:

DAN FOX (DEMOCRAT)

Fox, who received the Democratic City Committee’s endorsement in early March, said he is eager to give back to the community he grew up in by serving as state representative. He has never held elected office but said he learned about local politics from his father, Wayne Fox, who served as state representative for District 144 for 24 years.

Fox said his primary focus in Hartford would be the state’s $3.3 billion budget deficit.

“Increasing revenue is a last resort, but it should at least be part of the conversation,” he said.

Fox said he opposes a repeal of the death penalty in Connecticut as well as changing state law to make marijuana possession a misdemeanor offense. If elected, he said he would support a widening of the intersection at Courtland Ave. and East Main St., work to minimize disruptions to small businesses during construction of the Stamford Urban Transitway and support the establishment of a bird sanctuary at Cove Island Park.

Fox, 34, is married with two young children and lives on Hamilton Ave. He works as a civil litigation attorney at the Stamford-based firm Curtis, Brinckerhoff and Barrett.

He is not related to state Representative Gerald Fox, who represents District 146.

JOHN MALLOZZI (PETITIONING CANDIDATE)

Mallozzi, a Democrat, joined the April 12 ballot as a petitioning candidate after losing the DCC’s nomination to Fox. He has been involved in Stamford politics for 27 years and has served on all three of the city’s elective boards as well as the 1995 Charter Review Commission. Mallozzi now serves on the Board of Representatives representing District 12.

“I’ve done a lot in Stamford,” he said. “I want to go up to Hartford to continue to do that.”

If elected, Mallozzi said he would advocate for mass transit improvements, support efforts to improve the Glenbrook railroad station and Holly Pond and work to correct the state’s tax structure. He said he would work well with the Malloy administration and his fellow legislators but would not hesitate to stand up for what he believes in.

“I’m not afraid to act up sometimes to save money,” Mallozzi said. “If it’s necessary, I’ll fight for it. I’m not tired, I’m not stale and I’m ready to move forward.”

Mallozzi, 60, is married with one daughter and lives on Hope St. He is a structural engineer and has lived in Stamford since he immigrated to the United States from Italy in 1966.

ROLF MAURER (GREEN PARTY):

Maurer will be making his second bid for District 148 Tuesday. Maurer, the Green Party candidate, ran for the seat in 2010 and also for the District 27 state Senate special election in February and the Stamford mayoral race in 2009.

The Advocate was unable to get in touch with Maurer, whose father recently died, for this story. In the past, however, Maurer has supported the establishment of a state public bank and promoted local agriculture. He has said single-payer health care for Connecticut residents would help develop a robust level of economic and material resilience in the face of financial collapse or a petroleum crisis.

Maurer, 48, is single and lives on Hope St. He has been a resident of Stamford since 1967. He works as a freelance copy editor and writer.

CHARLES PIA (REPUBLICAN)

As someone whose fledgling project management company failed to survive the recession, Pia said he understands the economic challenges District 148 constituents are facing.

“I stand for not raising taxes and not adding new taxes,” he said. “We do need to cut spending, but we have to watch where it’s cut. We can’t cut education spending.”

Pia is the Republican Town Committee’s endorsed candidate for Tuesday’s race. His uncle, Jerry Pia, was recently selected as the committee’s new chairman and serves on the Board of Education and Board of Representatives. Pia’s grandfather served on the Board of Representatives and now sits on the RTC.

Pia said he would oppose legislation that eliminates tax credits for small businesses. He supports widening the intersection at Courtland Ave. and East Main St., building a canopy for the Glenbrook railroad station and dredging Holly Pond.

“These are all things that Sen. Leone has started and I would gladly work hand in hand,” Pia said.

Pia, 27, is not married and lives on Windell Place. He is director of operations for his father’s company, Charles and Charles Remodeling and Renovations. He graduated from Stamford High in 2001 and UConn in 2005.

MONIQUE THOMAS (INDEPENDENT)

Thomas was inspired to run for state representative after losing her job as a bookkeeper for a small Stamford-based construction company about six months ago. Thomas, a co-founder of the Stamford-Greenwich Tea Party movement, said she opposes tax and spending increases.

“We have virtually no population growth, negative job growth and our spending has increased,” she said. “People and jobs are fleeing the state.”

Thomas, who was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Greenwich, said she has lived in the district on-and-off for several years. She said she is interested in streamlining state government, improving health care and allowing parents freedom to decide where their children attend school.

“Government, I guess, is kind of a necessary evil and the less we have of it, the better,” Thomas said. “The more money we have in our pockets the better off we’ll be.”

As an Independent, Thomas said she is willing to work with the Malloy administration and her fellow legislators in Hartford but would not “go up there and kowtow to any political party’s leanings.”

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A Capitol Hill insider tells Hearst Connecticut Newspapers that U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., raked in $1 million during the first three months of year for his 2012 bid to fill the Senate seat of the retiring Joe Lieberman.

Murphy’s campaign is expected to release its fundraising totals later today, but hinted that it cleaned up on the congressman’s Facebook page.

“We set a goal early on to have 1,000 contributors, and we kind of blew through that,” Kenny Curran, Murphy’s campaign manager, told Hearst.

Curran is holding off revealing the total until this afternoon.

Murphy’s impending announcement comes on the heels of former Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz, a fellow Democrat, trumpeting that she had raised more than $500,000 in the first quarter.