Jack Orchulli Makes Second Bid for U.S. Senate

Profile On Republican U.S. Senate Contender Jack Orchulli
By Scott Benjamin

Republican Jack Orchulli says unlike his first bid for the U.S. Senate in 2004, which was a “status quo” election, voters this year are “energized,” and Facebook and Twitter, which weren’t part of the vernacular then, have become outlets that can cost-effectively connect with the grass roots.

“What got me in is what is happening nationally,” said Orchulli, a former fashion design executive from Darien, on the impact of Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump.

“Whether you like Trump or not - and I don’t agree with some of the positions he has taken against women - he has energized the populace,” he added. “[Voters] finally have a candidate who is speaking out and is addressing their concerns. Too often, politicians don’t want to say anything that would upset anyone.”

He self-funded about two-third of his campaign 12 years ago when Democrat Chris Dodd of East Haddam scored a 66-33 percent victory and became the first U.S. senator from Connecticut to capture a fifth term.

Orchulli, who also lost in his bid for state comptroller in 2010, just entered the race weeks ago, reportedly at the urging of some state GOP leaders who were concerned about the status of Augie Wolf’s campaign. The financial manager and former Olympic shot-putter has had a high staff turnover since entering the campaign about a year ago. State Rep. Dan Carter (R-2) of Bethel formally entered last month.

“Hands down, I’m the most accomplished. I’ve run state campaigns and I’m a successful businessman,” Orchulli said regarding the credentials he will bring to the delegates at next Monday night’s convention in Hartford.

He said it would be best to avoid a primary and have the party coalesce behind one candidate and harness its resources to defeat first-term Democrat Richard Blumenthal of Greenwich, who became a household name during his 20 years as state attorney general.

However, Orchulli said that if he finishes a close second at the convention he would consider plunging forward and have the party’s rank and file determine the nomination in August.

He said the advent of Facebook and Twitter fits in with his experience in marketing fashion merchandise.
“Social media will be a great way for people to know who I am,” Orchulli said. “I don’t think I need to do the very expensive television advertising to a big extent.”

Regarding issues, he said Connecticut’s “severe” economic crisis is largely due to a Democratic-controlled General Assembly that has appeased the public employee unions for decades and the uncertainties that businesses face as the national economy has slowly recovered from the Great Recession.

“Connecticut has been running on auto control for some time,” Orchulli said, indicating that the recurring state budget deficits have stifled business development.

He acknowledged that nationally unemployment and the budget deficits have improved under Democratic President Barack Obama, but that the statistics are deceiving because many people have stopped looking for jobs or are working at low-wage positions.

In Connecticut, he declared, for example, the financial services sector in the Fairfield County Gold Coast has “been laying people off,” partly because the lower interest rates have “made their profit margins tighter.”
Orchulli said there should be more vocational training since some major Connecticut employers can’t find suitable workers, and the federal government could provide tax incentives so that business call centers would be staffed by low-income inner-city workers instead of college students in India.

He said he has reservations about reinstating the huge across-the-board tax cuts signed in 2001 by former Republican President George W. Bush, which lasted for 12 years.

“Under Clinton we were paying off the debt,” he said of the four budget surpluses during former Democratic President Bill Clinton’s second term.

“Under George the deficits increased,” Orchulli added. “I believe it is best to put more money in people’s pockets. But just as when there was discussion of possibly having the Value Added Tax, You have to ask: What is the impact? You should be judicious.”

He said he supports “international trade” but has concerns about the proposed 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership, which has been negotiated but awaits congressional action. The pact, which has been one of Obama’s priorities, covers 40 percent of the global economy, including the United States, which ranks first in gross domestic product, and Japan, which ranks third.

“The purpose of it is wrong,” Orchulli said. “It is to contain China’s influence in the Pacific. When you try to do that, you go out of your way to appease other countries, which is not a good thing.”

China, which ranks second in gross domestic product, is negotiating a similar agreement with 15 other nations.

On a separate topic, Orchulli said, if elected, he would seek to reduce the gridlock in Washington. “I made compromises when I was in business. I’m harkening back to the days of Tip O’Neill when people reasoned out their problems” he added, referring to the former Democratic House Speaker of a generation ago.

Regarding foreign policy, he said the United States should amass a broad coalition of countries to combat ISIS instead of putting a massive number of American soldiers on the ground.