It was with considerable interest that I watched Sean Scanlon's acceptance speech on GCTV following the recent Democratic convention to nominate a candidate to run in the 98th House district. Mr. Scanlon will be running against Republican nominee Cynthia Cartier.

Mr. Scanlon's speech was noteworthy in several respects. Scanlon stated that if elected, he intended to act in a bipartisan manner and reach across the aisle and work with the opposition (i.e. Republicans) to find common solutions to the myriad of problems facing Connecticut. As an example of this bipartisanship, he cited the example of his employer and mentor, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy.

This is an astounding statement. There are few more partisan members of either house of Congress than Chris Murphy. Since Mr. Scanlon has no public record of substance, it is anyone's guess as to what influence his relationship with Mr. Murphy will have on him should he be elected.

Mr. Scanlon referred to the bipartisan coalition "we" put together to build the new high school. What is he talking about? The high school project was not a bipartisan issue. It was a non-partisan issue. In fact, while serving as a Republican on the Board of Finance, I believe I was the first elected official in Guilford to publicly state support for this proposal. And that was long before the formation of any coalition to which Mr. Scanlon refers.

While every campaign has its share of hyperbole and exaggerations, I suggest that the voters of the 98th District pay very close attention to Mr. Scanlon's claims in the weeks ahead.

David EganGuilford