Wall Street waves unsettle Connecticut
GREENWICH, Conn. -- Despite appearances, the worries of Main Street are being felt even here, in Wall Street's well-manicured backyard.
"I'm old and coming up to retirement," says Jeff Ramer, 64, an attorney who has lived more than half his life in this affluent community. "I'm concerned that the money we put aside for retirement has taken a great hit."
Through the years he has voted for more Republicans than Democrats, he says. But the financial crisis roiling Wall Street has solidified his desire for political change — and his support for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama. "It has a bearing for me," Ramer says of the economy.
The meltdown that has caused investment firms to fall, stocks to plunge and the credit markets to slow to a virtual standstill has made the economy the primary concern for many Americans as they prepare to select a new president in barely four weeks.
The tremors on Wall Street and fallout from the $700 billion rescue plan President Bush signed into law last week are felt acutely in this state. It is home to numerous hedge funds, Fortune 500 companies and residents who work in finance and related industries on Wall Street and elsewhere.
Connecticut draws 45% of its income tax revenue from Fairfield County, a finance center next door to New York. Greenwich alone, tucked in the county's southern end, paid more than $598 million in state income taxes in 2006, 12.7% of the statewide total, according to the governor's office.
Though the state has more unaffiliated voters than those who declare themselves Republican or Democrat, polls show Connecticut solidly in Obama's column. In a SurveyUSA poll taken Sept. 24-25 for New York's WABC-TV, 54% of those questioned support Obama, and 38% prefer Republican John McCain.
"The impact of the financial situation here is probably similar to that around the nation," says Ken Dautrich, public policy professor at the University of Connecticut. "(Voters) want change, which of course benefits Obama more than it does McCain."
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