William Tong

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Tong earned his B.S. from Brown University and his J.D. from the University of Chicago.[1] His professional experience includes working as an associate with Finn Dixon and Herling, Limited Liability Partnership, as an associate with the Simpson Thacher and Bartlett, Limited Liability Partnership from 1999-2003, and as a management consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Limited Liability Partnership from 1995-1997. He became a member of the Person-to-Person Board in 2004.[2]

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What would be your top three priorities, if elected?

My first job is to protect Connecticut families. We are under tremendous pressure, and we're all

getting squeezed by big companies and powerful forces that make very difficult to raise a family, run a business, and retire comfortably here. Donald Trump makes it so much worse by attacking

women, immigrants, even Connecticut taxpayers. I will be the firewall that protects and defends all of us and our way of life.

I will immediately strengthen and assign additional resources to consumer protection. We will focus on protecting consumers from excessive health care and prescription drug costs, abusive and predatory lending practices, and telephone and internet scams.

I will expand our state's focus on consumer protection lawsuits on a larger scale, from the generic

drug price fixing suit to the the opioid investigation, the net neutrality suit, and investigations and

suits related to major data and privacy breaches.

And I will push the legislature to create a Civil Rights Division in the Attorney General's office to fight for Connecticut residents when their constitutional rights and fundamental liberties are threatened.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

This is a very personal campaign for me. As the son of immigrants who came to this country with almost nothing, I feel like my family and I have a target on our backs. The President has announced that he has formed a task force to de-naturalize American citizens, like my parents. And if you are like us, if you come from immigrants, or if you are a woman, or a member of a labor union, or a Connecticut taxpayer, it is clear that the President has declared war on your and your family. That is why I am running for Attorney General. The Attorney General is the first and the last line of defense to protect our way of life -- he or she is the firewall to protect Connecticut families.

Campaign website

Tong’s campaign website stated the following:

Gun Violence

As Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, William has primary responsibility for our state’s gun laws. William took on the NRA and the gun lobby and is one of the key architects of the strongest gun laws in the nation. He led the charge to pass Lori Jackson’s law that would take guns away from domestic abusers and is fighting to ban bump stocks and ghost guns. He also played a key role in the major overhaul of our state’s gun laws after the tragedy at Sandy Hook, and wrote and passed the Lost & Stolen Firearms laws to fight gun trafficking.

As Attorney General, William will continue fighting for common sense gun laws. He will hold the gun lobby and industry accountable for gun trafficking and the proliferation of guns into Connecticut’s communities. William will resist and take legal action against any federal laws that encroach on Connecticut’s sovereign right to pass its own gun laws, including any “concealed carry” law that purports to force Connecticut to recognize gun permits from other states.

Protecting Families

As Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, William wrote and passed a tough new law that holds teachers and school officials accountable for failing to report instances when teachers and administrators engage in abuse or sexual misconduct against children.

As Attorney General, Tong will protect children from predators. He will champion legislative initiatives and work with the Office of the Child Advocate to protect children everywhere in the state of Connecticut.

Criminal Justice Reform

William has taken on a system of mass incarceration and is a key leader in building a Second Chance Society here in Connecticut. William knows that Connecticut must be a state that gives ex-offenders – particularly young people who make mistakes – a second chance and real opportunity to lead productive lives. That’s why he fought to pass nationally recognized criminal justice reforms including reforming a bail system that criminalizes poverty, ending mandatory sentencing for non-violent drug possession, requiring police to wear body cameras, and repairing a broken pardon and parole process. William was the lead legislator responsible for writing and passing the Second Chance Society Law, the Excessive Use of Force Law, the Bail Reform Law, and he’s played a major role in passing many laws to build a fairer and more effective juvenile justice system.

As Attorney General, William will continue his work with community advocates, legislative leaders, prosecutors, public defenders, law enforcement, and public safety and corrections officials to advance criminal justice reforms across the state.

Opioid and Prescription Drug Crisis

William will take on what he considers an “Addiction Industry” responsible for the opioid crisis and the scourge of addiction, and hold accountable the pharmaceutical industry, the drug distributors, the pharmacy chains, hospitals and health care providers, and treatment centers for any wrongdoing that contributes to the opioid and addiction crisis.

In the legislature, William worked with his colleagues to combat the opioid crisis in Connecticut by establishing tough new prescription standards to avoid abuse and funding additional doses of anti-overdose medication to all state police officers.

Protecting Personal Data

With the rise of big technology that have access to our personal data and companies like Cambridge Analytica that are abusing that data for their own business purposes, Connecticut residents need someone to fight back.

William will bring action against any technology company, no matter the size, if they are abusing their terms of service to sell personal data. William Tong will fight back on behalf of Connecticut consumers.

Consumer Protection and Financial Fraud

The Attorney General’s number one job is to protect Connecticut consumers from unfair business practices.

When he was Chairman of the Banking Committee, William took on the big banks at the height of the foreclosure crisis. He passed legislation that changed Connecticut’s foreclosure laws to help struggling families stay in their homes.

President Trump and his administration are now trying to gut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that was created by President Obama. William will fight back by creating a state consumer financial protection bureau and financial fraud task force to step in and take action against any company that takes advantage of Connecticut families. William will use the powers granted to state Attorneys General under the Dodd-Frank Act to protect Connecticut residents from financial fraud and abuse from payday lenders, student loan lenders, high-interest consumer lenders, and large banks and financial institutions.

Immigration

William is the son of immigrants and a first-generation American. His parents came to this country to seek opportunity for their children. That’s why he fought hard to pass the TRUST Act in Connecticut to protect immigrant families and undocumented residents from action by the Trump administration.

As Attorney General, William will stand up for immigrant families and vigorously defend the TRUST Act and the right of Connecticut localities to declare themselves sanctuary cities to protect undocumented immigrants from unfair deportation. William will join with other Attorneys General to fight unjust laws like the so-called travel or “Muslim” ban and lawsuits by the federal government to impair or attack Connecticut laws to protect immigrants.

A Harassment-Free Workplace

William has worked in the General Assembly to pass new strict standards for sexual harassment in the legislative branch. William recently led the Judiciary Committee in passing groundbreaking new bills to combat sexual harassment and sexual assault, and he’s been a leader in fighting human trafficking. As Attorney General, he will hold his office to the highest standards to have a harassment-free workplace.

Reproductive Freedom

Over the past several years, William has personally stopped every major encroachment on a woman’s right to choose on the Judiciary Committee. William has been a steadfast supporter of reproductive freedom for women. As Attorney General, he will defend that right in court everywhere.

Workers’ Rights and the Right to Organize

William believes strongly in the right to organize and collectively bargain for better wages and benefits. That’s why William has the highest AFL-CIO rating of any candidate for Attorney General. He will vigorously defend collective bargaining and pension rights for workers across Connecticut.

Like Attorneys General Blumenthal and Jepsen, William will use the Attorney General’s office and its platform to oppose Right to Work legislation. He will support labor organizing efforts, and use his relationships and experience as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and a state legislator to support:

A law to ban “Captive Audience” meetings to prevent workers from organizing;

A $15 minimum wage;

Policies that advance steady, full-time jobs with benefits instead of temporary or part-time work;

Paid family and medical leave.

Civil Rights

William has been a leader in most of the major civil rights battles of the last decade, including marriage equality, the transgender rights bill, the repeal of the death penalty, and the TRUST Act. He recently wrote a major overhaul strengthening our state’s hate crimes laws.

As Attorney General, William will leverage his relationships in the legislature and executive branch to strengthen our state’s civil rights laws and protections, and vigorously defend all Connecticut residents when our rights and liberties are at risk.

Crumbling Foundations

William is a strong, proactive leader on investigating and remedying the crisis of crumbling foundations in Eastern Connecticut. He led the way in introducing legislation in the Judiciary Committee, and is leading an investigation into how language changes in homeowners’ insurance policies concerning the “perils of collapse” may have affected coverage.

As Attorney General, William will continue to investigate the causes of crumbling foundations and the failure of any responsible parties to help families who are at risk of losing their homes.

Net Neutrality

Attorney General Jepsen’s decision to join 20 other Attorneys General to oppose the FCC decision on net neutrality is the right one. The Trump administration’s proposal to allow big multinational companies to gain further control over the internet’s free flow of information is harmful to the country and Connecticut residents. Here in Connecticut, we will stand opposed to the harmful policies coming out of Washington.

As Attorney General, William will continue Attorney General Jepsen's participation in this lawsuit and join any further actions that keeps the internet open and free from additional restrictions and corporate influence.

[13]

—William Tong’s campaign website (2018)[14]

Campaign advertisements

The following is an example of an ad from Tong's 2018 election campaign.

"William Tong for Attorney General" - Tong campaign ad, released April 24, 2018