Tom Scott (politician)

Thomas Scott
Tom Scott in blue shirt and dark jacket, looking down
Scott in 2010
Member of the Connecticut State Senate
from the 14th district
In office
January 7, 1981 – January 9, 1991
Preceded byJohn D. Prete
Succeeded byMax S. Case
Personal details
Born (1958-04-21) April 21, 1958 (age 66)
Connecticut
Occupation
  • Politician
  • radio show host
  • realtor

Thomas Scott (born April 21, 1958)[1] is an American politician, radio talk show host, and realtor.

Life and career

Born in 1958, Scott attended Southern Connecticut State University but did not graduate.[2]

He was first elected to the Connecticut Senate in 1980, becoming at 22 the youngest state senator ever seated.[3] He served in the Senate from 1981 to 1991 as a Republican from Milford.[2][4]

Scott was known for his vehement opposition to the income tax[5] and led a protest of 40,000 people against it in 1991.[3][6][7]

He sought a seat in the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut's 3rd congressional district in 1990, losing to Democrat Rosa DeLauro.[3][8] He then founded the Connecticut Taxpayers Committee.[3][9] Scott faced DeLauro in a re-match in 1992 and lost again.[10][11]

After leaving the state legislature, he worked as a real estate broker and, starting in 1993, a radio talk show host for WPOP.[12] He contested the 1994 Connecticut gubernatorial election as an independent and lost.[13][14] In January 1995, Scott returned to radio, hosting a show on WTIC;[15] he subsequently moved to WELI.[16] He hosted the radio show Off Center with Roger Vann, until Vann left the station in 1999.[17][18]

In July 2008, Scott rejoined WELI. That October, he interviewed United States Senator Chris Dodd. WELI chose not to air the interview due to disagreements between co-host and producer Ryan Gorman and Scott, which led to Scott leaving the station.[19] WERC in Birmingham, Alabama, another Clear Channel Communications affiliate station, later posted the interview to its website.[20]

In 2011, Scott aided the successful state Senate campaign of Len Suzio.[21] He joined Linda McMahon's second U.S. Senate campaign in February 2012.[22]

As of 2024, Scott is a realtor in Milford, Connecticut.[23]

References

  1. ^ "Our Campaigns - Candidate - Tom Scott".
  2. ^ a b "Tom Scott". Hartford Courant. October 3, 1994. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d Pazniokas, Mark (September 22, 1991). "Riding A Taxpayer Rebellion". Hartford Courant. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  4. ^ Madden, Richard L. (April 1, 1984). "Connecticut Senate pass tax bill and O'Neil signs it". New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  5. ^ Keating, Christopher (November 20, 2014). "Capitol Caldron: Hot Summer of '91 Gave Birth to Income Tax". Hartford Courant. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  6. ^ Johnson, Kirk (October 6, 1991). "Lawmakers Tell 40,000 at Rally Connecticut Income Tax Will Die". New York Times. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  7. ^ Greenberg, Brigitte (September 8, 1994). "Tom Scott jumps into governor's race". The Hour. Associated Press. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  8. ^ Ravo, Nick (November 7, 1990). "The 1990 Elections: Connecticut – Congressional Contests; Franks Wins House Seat, Spoiling Moffett's Comeback Effort". New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  9. ^ Pazniokas, Mark (July 1, 1992). "Scott Announces Run for Congressional Seat". Hartford Courant. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  10. ^ Davis, Richard; Owen, Diana Marie (1998). New Media and American Politics. Oxford University Press. p. 249. ISBN 9780195120608.
  11. ^ Hays, Constance L. (November 4, 1992). "The 1992 election: Connecticut–U. S. House races; Incumbents Stave Off Rivals Amid Economic Concerns". New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  12. ^ Lender, Jon (April 22, 1993). "Leading Income Tax Foe May Get Radio Talk Show". Hartford Courant. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  13. ^ "The 1994 campaign: Races in Connecticut for Governor, Other Statewide Offices and Congress". New York Times. November 6, 1994.
  14. ^ Rabinovitz, Jonathan (September 14, 1994). "The 1994 Campaign: Connecticut; Senate Leader Loses Governor Race to Comptroller in an Upset". New York Times.
  15. ^ Keveney, Bill (January 20, 1995). "Tom Scott Returns to the Airwaves". Hartford Courant. Archived from the original on August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  16. ^ Lender, Jon (February 8, 1996). "What Happened to Eliminating the Income Tax?". Hartford Courant. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  17. ^ Tuhus, Melinda (July 13, 1997). "Civil Rights, Elective Office, or What?". New York Times. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  18. ^ Weiss, Tara (June 4, 1999). "Talk Show Host Rejects 75% Pay Cut". Hartford Courant. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  19. ^ Bass, Paul (November 11, 2008). "Dodd interview censored". New Haven Independent. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  20. ^ Bass, Paul (November 13, 2008). "Clear Channel Runs Dodd Interview—In Alabama". New Haven Independent. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  21. ^ Pazniokas, Mark (February 28, 2011). "Tom Scott, a 90s tax protester, notches a win in Meriden". Connecticut Mirror. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  22. ^ Dixon, Ken (October 6, 2012). "McMahon, Murphy's inner circles a sharp contrast". Connecticut Post. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  23. ^ "About Thomas Scott". realtor.com. Retrieved March 5, 2024.