McMahon, Blumenthal Enter the Ring for Third (and Final?) Round

Editor's Note: To view where candidates stand on topics relevant to Westport, and to add your comments, click here for the 2010 Patch Voter Guide.

U.S. Senate hopefuls Richard Blumenthal and Linda McMahon used most of their third—and possibly final—debate, Tuesday night at the Garde Arts Center in New London, to clear up their positions on issues affecting Connecticut residents, but not without leaving some time to sling a little mud.

The topic of job creation as a means of stimulating the sagging economy was at the forefront with Connecticut Attorney General Blumenthal reiterating his belief that the government needs to do a better job of taking away obstacles that prevent small businesses from hiring employees, as well as closing any loopholes that allow corporations to send jobs overseas.

"My opponent has a different approach," Blumenthal stated, "She supported the bailout. I opposed it because it does too much for the investment banks and not enough to aid those small businesses, which really create jobs."

McMahon seemed a bit amused by Blumenthal's slightly modified stance, which emphasized that small businesses, not the government, create jobs. "Mr. Blumenthal, I've very happy you have a better notion of how to create jobs this week than you had last week," she rebutted.

The heat steadily rose when a Connecticut resident (who nicknamed herself  "Grandma New Haven") wrote in and questioned McMahon's character because of her affiliation with a "sleazy business" like WWE.

"I'm incredibly proud of the company that I helped build from the ground up," McMahon answered. "The programming content of WWE, as has the company, has evolved from TV-14 to TV-PG as it is rated by the networks on which it's played, and I'm very happy and much more content today with the content that is part of WWE's soap opera."

Blumenthal took advantage of the opportunity and expressed how, throughout his career, he has fought to protect children from abuse, neglect and the influences of sex and violence. "My opponent has not only marketed sex and violence to children, but she actually paid hundreds of millions of dollars to lobby in Washington against penalties for sex and violence marketing to children," he said.

The debate then turned to the controversial issue of health care reform and the alarming increase in premiums by health insurance companies as a result, which Blumenthal described as "completely unjustified."

McMahon saw an opening and fired back at Blumenthal, who was a supporter of the health reform bill. "When you talk about fighting increasing premiums, I think that gets to the very heart of the issue—that you don't understand consequences that are imposed about regulation and laws that are passed," she stated. "Clearly, if you were adding people to the health care rules, and if you are increasing mandates on healthcare companies, then does it not stand to reason that premiums would go up?"

Perhaps the most amusing part of debate occurred when WTNH-TV anchor Ann Nyberg mistakenly referred to McMahon as "Mrs. Blumenthal," which caused an eruption of laughter among the audience and panel. Later on in the evening, WTNH-TV political correspondent Mark Davis stated that the two "do make a lovely couple."

WTHN-TV, along with The Day of New London, sponsored the debate.