I was left speechless

When joining my fellow former Stratford High classmates for a "mini-reunion" at Stephen's Pub on Friday night, I bumped into Laura Hoydick, my state representative.

I asked her about the vote on gun control that happened the day before. She said that the vote was "difficult." Since she didn't offer how she voted, I asked her point blank. 

"So, how did you vote?" People had predicted that she would vote yes, as my Republican state senator, Kevin Kelly, had. 

She flippantly replied "I voted no," while getting her drink. 

I was truly shocked, not only at her vote, but at the callousness of her reply.  

The Sandy Hook tragedy is still fresh and its impact continues to ripple. Last month, I saw Stratford's police chief on Piers Morgan on CNN explain to a national audience that he thought that the part of the (then proposed) legislation that would have the biggest impact is universal background checks.

In voting against the legislation, Laura Hoydick voted against the universal background checks that Stratford's police chief and 91 percent of Americans support.  

On Friday night, I spoke with another Stratford High alumnus, who lives in Newtown and was visibly shaken by the massacre. His child was in the school at the time of the massacre. The Sandy Hook parents have strongly supported the legislation, calling it "common sense" legislation on 60 Minutes on Sunday. The State House Republican minority leader, John McKinney, helped draft the legislation, which he supported.

So no matter how Laura Hoydick rationalizes voting against the common sense legislation, her vote continues to leave me speechless. It astounds me that my state representative voted against the will of the people she is supposed to represent.