IT IS TIME FOR THE CONNECTICUT REPUBLICAN PARTY TO FINALLY GET REAL ABOUT STATE CORRUPTION.

 

It has finally happened. Connecticut Major Parties have picked their candidates for the upcoming election in November. However, sitting Governor Ned Lamont faces a primary challenge by a new breed young Democrat (Josh Elliott) who has grand Communist and Socialist ideas that we have heard all before and have failed all before in every other place in the world. Given past practices, I am confident that Lamont will cut a deal with this ideological wizard to preserve his gravy train of income and profits from Connecticut taxpayers.

Speaking of corruption, and as I discussed last week, Citizen Journalist Kristi Talmadge wrote a brilliant summary of the myriad and complex wrongdoings of Ned and his sidekick spouse Annie Lamont for the Connecticut Centinal (https://connecticutcentinal.com/opinion/2026/05/15/connecticuts-untouchable-democrat-power-couple/). Kristi has recapped precisely what my colleague Tony De Angelo has discussing since the beginning of the never ending Covid crisis in the state back in 2021. I highly recommend everyone to read this concise discussion of outright fraud that has taken place in the state.

Here are some major points to refresh our readers memories taken from the article, including (but in no way limited to) both Lamont’s governing the state via the use of a private family-office e mail server:

While Governor Ned Lamont publicly released his 2021 tax returns in October 2022, revealing an eye-popping $54 million in adjusted gross income, the vast majority from investment and capital gains, the public remains completely in the dark about First Lady Annie Lamont’s finances. Because the couple files separately (“Married Filing Separately”), Annie Lamont’s substantial earnings, distributions, and partnership income as co-founder and managing partner of OAK HC/FT Partners stay entirely shielded from disclosure.

This convenient arrangement lets Ned project selective transparency while the full scope of the family’s wealth, and any potential profits tied to the very venture capital firm at the center of no-bid COVID contracts, offshore vehicles, and state-favor allegations, remains hidden from Connecticut taxpayers.

This is not “gotcha” politics. It is a systemic failure of accountability that erodes trust in government. Every Connecticut family struggling with high taxes, crumbling infrastructure, and post-COVID economic fallout has a right to know whether public dollars were steered to enrich the First Family’s venture capital empire.

The call is clear:

• The FBI’s New Haven field office and U.S. Attorney must open a public corruption probe into potential wire fraud, honest-services fraud, and conflicts involving state contracts, the private server, and offshore flows.

• The Connecticut State Auditor and Legislature must immediately subpoena the family server (or what remains), full OAK portfolio vs. state spending cross-checks, UConn Foundation investment records, and Advance CT meeting logs.

• Forensic IT recovery experts should examine the private server for deletions and backups.

• All OAK HC/FT portfolio companies must be mapped against every state grant, loan, contract, or policy favor since 2019.

 As I stated in my blog last week:

My colleague Tony De Angelo and I have been asking repeatedly for information on the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development dealings and audits as they relate to his family's hedge fund profits and other concerns/affiliations. Also how much did his family's hedge fund profit from Infosys Limited, Digital Currency Group and its affiliates, "ADVANCECT", Boston Consulting Group, UNITE US (CT), Mt. Sinai Genomics, "Thermo Fisher Scientific", "Sema 4", " Core Informatics", "Ocrulus", "Urjanet", "1life Healthcare", "Galileo Health", "Castlight Health", "Paladina Health", "4-CT", and "VillageMD ““The Horsebarn Hill Investment Fund”, McKinsey, “CT Next”, and the Tidal River Fund, to name a few?  Since we know there are Lamont family investments in the state pension, where might they be resident in the “Baby Bonds” portfolio or the UCONN Foundation? What family transactions take place in the secret Cayman Islands where no one can see them? Where are the Governor's tax returns and why hasn't he made them public in this election year or in any year since he has been in office? (https://swickspeak.blogspot.com/2026/05/connecticut-politics-corruption-is-our.html)

 Over the course of the weekend of May 15, great talk and anticipation of a brave new Republican world spread throughout the party and the state. However, being one who has either been involved or has observed the failures of the CT GOP for decades I have one  simple question for the Republican Gubernatorial/Lt. Governor nominees Ryan Fazio and Matt Corey: Will these gentlemen ask and pursue these same questions during the upcoming campaign and get to the bottom of this corruption once and for all?  Will we finally see FOIA granted to the myriad and surreptitious nonprofits that are funded with Connecticut tax dollars? Or does the corruption get swept under the rug for another four years with the third term of embezzlement of Taxpayers monies for the Lamont’s’? Or, are Connecticut Taxpayers subject to more weak and wan Republican statements against corruption, where nothing meaningful will ever be done.

 Legitimate questions deserve legitimate answers. The corruption of Connecticut's government and rip off of the Connecticut Taxpayers needs to be stopped. 

The trail is more than established, There are no longer any excuses. I call upon the Fazio/Corey ticket to act on it.

The next Swick Speak column will be on June 6th. Have a nice holiday. 

Connecticut Politics: Corruption Is Our Currency

 Politics is an art. In Connecticut, politics seems to be a way to enhance one's power and wealth. Increasingly, it is a profession that when one enters it, one never leaves it. It also is a profession where one can gain and develop great wealth over short periods of time while those in oversight either screw-up repeatedly or look the other way, all at your expense. It is a very closed circle where new ideas are shunned in many ways regardless of whether the ideas would be a great improvement for the status quo. Generally in politics, failed social and economic policies are embraced without any regard for the actual costs to the Taxpayers who must fund this horrific form of governance. And in Connecticut, all of that is significantly worse.

In Connecticut, it is evident that corruption runs rampantly and does not seem to end any time soon. It also seems that Republicans involved in corruption seem to get caught at all costs  and Democrats avoid any punishment for their alleged violations, that are brazen in their disregard for the rule of law. But for those on the political side, they really do not care. They see the takings from you accruing to their benefit as allowing them to serve you better. And regardless of your outcry towards this they will do the same thing over and over, provided they get re-elected for the next cycle, which is the sole reason for their "service", you, be damned.

 

The sordid political history of political corruption in Connecticut goes back decades, to John Mandanici in Bridgeport and John Rowland in the state house, and John Rowland after the state house. But sadly, none of these lessons were learned by subsequent participants. Currently, Bridgeport has a convicted felon serving the city again after jail time and supposed repayment of what he stole from the city, Mayor Joe Ganim. Trying to find evidence that Mayor Joe Ganim repaid the city for his pilfering is virtually nonexistent. That is just the way it is. He will obtain a city taxpayer funded pension if and when he ever retires and also had the audacity to run for Governor of Connecticut. Bridgeport also had/has massive voter fraud that I have written about in the past that in the opinion of many will never be resolved. The closest operating assistant to Mayor Joe Ganim is the Nationally Known Wanda the Ballot Stuffer who has done whatever Mayor Joe Ganim has commanded her to do. The Republican Party is virtually unknown in the city. But all of this is a shrug-your-shoulders accepted way of life in the corrupt Connecticut cesspool.

But why stop there? Connecticut Democrat State Senator Doug McCrory still holds his prominent paid State Senate seat as the corruption he is tied to between  the “Blue Hills Civic Association”, other myriad “nonprofit” organizations, and the should-be-abolished Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development reflect the alleged steering of money to his close associates. The “Blue Hills Civic Association” was poorly run with corrective audit findings being basically disregarded. This failed Democrat-led Association failed to report a $300,000 cyber theft, and over $1,700,000 in funds was apparently funneled to so called “consultants” that are associated with the Democrat State Senator. Absent any cry whatsoever in the political universe for just restitution and the impounding of assets, and appreciative and grateful of an FBI investigation and a Federal Grand Jury, Connecticut taxpayers await eagerly some sort of response as to how and when they will be paid back for this rip-off. 

 However, the inarguable Gold Standard in Connecticut Corruption is Democrat Governor Ned Lamont and his intrepid sidekick spouse and de-facto Lieutenant Governor Ann H. Lamont. Team Lamont leads the state in unanswered corruption questions. My colleague Tony De Angelo and I have been asking repeatedly for information on the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development dealings and audits as they relate to his family's hedge fund profits and other concerns/affiliations. Also how much did his family's hedge fund profit from Infosys Limited, Digital Currency Group and its affiliates, "ADVANCECT", Boston Consulting Group, UNITE US (CT), Mt. Sinai Genomics, "Thermo Fisher Scientific", "Sema 4", " Core Informatics", "Ocrulus", "Urjanet", "1life Healthcare", "Galileo Health", "Castlight Health", "Paladina Health", "4-CT", and "VillageMD"“The Horsebarn Hill Investment Fund”, McKinsey, “CT Next”, and the Tidal River Fund, to name a few?  Since we know there are Lamont family investments in the state pension, where might they be resident in the “Baby Bonds” portfolio or the UCONN Foundation? What family transactions take place in the secret Cayman Islands where no one can see them? Where are the Governor's tax returns and why hasn't he made them public in this election year or in any year since he has been in office? Why haven't these grey areas been researched as well as the alleged irregularities of former Republican candidate for Governor Mayor Erin Stewart? Is it because this is all planned Connecticut Democrat Political theater to preempt the above-mentioned questions on the Governor? It is evident what former disgraced Republican Governor John Rowland did years back, although entirely wrong, pales in comparison to what the Lamonts have done for years with no political criticism whatsoever.

 

And hope sprigs eternal! For at least six years, many citizens have hoped that the Connecticut Republican Party would aggressively police and fix any internal failings it may have and champion a full-throttle assault against serial Democrat corruption. But many of these same citizens were shocked and saddened this week when the ostensible champion of the Republican Connecticut Comeback was seen to have a glass jaw and to be totally unready for higher office. Former Republican candidate for Governor Erin Stewart has stepped out of the race for Governor. Many voters are very disappointed in her candidacy and how poorly she handled it. Many voters were amazed at her arrogance, vulgarity, carelessness, flippant attitude, and self-indulgence. Many voters never thought that she had issues with the misuse of city funds and Amazon procurement cards. Questions abound over what happened. Why all of a sudden in an election year, as Stewart was running for Governor, did these alleged problems come about? Wasn't she vetted as a candidate? Why wasn't Connecticut Republican Party Chairman Ben Proto made known of her issues or was he and chose to avoid them at all costs to preserve his legacy? How did her city audits not see any of these problems, but a hired Democrat Mayor's audit uncovered everything? And how was this abusive situation never an issue in any New Britain Mayor's election? What did Democrat Mayor Bobby Sanchez know and why didn't he make this a campaign issue? And how did Erin Stewart not believe these purchases and her partial pension would become campaign issues? It is the same sad, sordid, sick, and abusive situation regardless of political party in Connecticut. In private industry, firings would be automatic and departments would be eliminated. In Connecticut, pensions are preserved and rewarded at all costs to Taxpayers, and abusive politicians are anointed as “victims,” deserving of a reinstatement to office so that they can do it all over again.

  

But now due to the reach of social media, radio, online newspapers, and blogs, truthful information is finally circulating where the humble citizen of Connecticut is realizing that he or she has been screwed and tattooed by the formerly imperious political class. And the game is indeed over. Both parties really need to come clean in this election. Voters are fast realizing that Connecticut's Democrat elected officials have a great deal of baggage and corruption that they are embracing. It is time call all of them out from the Murphy/Blumenthal Comedy Hour, to the ranting and raving incoherent gibberish of a very old Rosa DeLauro, to the Connecticut Republican Party never being serious and focused about getting the delusional Rosa out of office, to the never ending/hidden corruption of the Ned Lamont Administration and the cesspool of supposed Republican Party leadership that could end up costing the party even greater losses in November.  Connecticut has a putrefied government and political party system in which voters can see this rot much more clearly in this election than ever before. 

If there ever could be a vote of no confidence in Connecticut's government, it is happening now and will not stop until this political septic tank in finally pumped out once and for all. Once again, God save the once-Great State Of Connecticut.

Is An “Election” A Mythological Term In Connecticut?

 Since we had such a fun time in last week’s Chris Murphy article using definitions of terms, I decided to start in like manner this week.

1)  ELECTION: An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population or group freely votes to choose an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office or other position of responsibility.

 

2)  CANDIDATE: A candidate is a person who petitions to run for public office.

 

3)  POLITICAL PARTY: A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in elections and participate in governance. It is common for the members of a party to coalesce around similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or policy goals.

 

4)  REPRESENTATIVE: A representative is a person chosen to speak or act on behalf of others, especially in government.

 

5)  DISENFRANCHISEMENT: Disenfranchisement means taking away someone’s right to vote or making it very hard for them to vote. This can happen in many ways including voter discouragement, where people are not directly blocked from voting but are pushed not to vote by removing their input and opinion from the process.

 

6)  43% OF CONNECTICUT VOTERS THAT VOTED FOR TRUMP IN 2024:  Cannot relate to any number above, (but for 5)

In review of just several of the horrors of this past month concerning elections and the conduct of those in political high places this week, I am forced to wonder: Does voting and elections matter anymore in Connecticut? Many wonder if their votes even count any more in Connecticut in any type of election given the mass amount of deception, fraud and lies that Connecticut Taxpayers are force fed daily. This upcoming state election is yet another case in point as over 43% of the voting public wonder if anyone will ever represent them and not even caring what their feelings and sentiments may be. Unbelievably, not everyone in Connecticut agrees with Omnipotent One-Party Socialist Democrat Party diatribes and jeremiads that are blabbered on a daily basis over the should-be starved out state run and paid for media channels. Many people turn off such drivel and are searching for vision, boldness, and aggressiveness heretofore unseen in the land of the established Connecticut political system.

And in the words of the late ABC Sportscaster Howard Cosell, this, is a sick scene, that speaks for itself.

We were once told that Connecticut Governor King Ned Lamont The Unaccountable was both beloved and un-defeatable. However, reality has this nasty habit of being (well), real, and this reality is finally catching up to The Unaccountable. We now see storm clouds brewing over what was once the Lamont Sea of tranquility as The Unaccountable is doing everything he can to appease the radical left that the Connecticut Democrat Party has transformed into in addition to protecting his wife's cash flow into their Oak HC/FT hedge fund place in state-connected business and pension assets. Crossing over, the Republican Party front runner against Lamont, Mayor Erin Stewart is imploding with new revelations of her Administration and questionable dealing with both back dated taxes and her boorish ad entitled request for a partial pension for 14 years of service to the city of New Britain (https://ctmirror.org/2026/04/30/ct-erin-stewart-mayor-pension-benefit/). Many workers in Connecticut in that 43% block have worked for many years with NO PENSIONS after any number of years and have to deal with it.  Many workers in Connecticut in that 43% block continue to question why Connecticut state workers and elected officials are so deserving of massive pensions for their work? Meanwhile, many workers in Connecticut in that 43% bloc are fast concluding that elected officials view them only as a means to fatten their wallets and to bankroll their farcical conduct while masquerading in something called “representative government”.

But perhaps there is hope after all! Providing a breath of fresh air to the Republican race is former New York Lieutenant Governor Betsy McCaughey and her no-nonsense approach to resolving Connecticut's never-ending problems. In true Connecticut politics fashion, McCaughey, a conservative, is being unapologetically shut out by the party's hierarchy https://x.com/ct_unite/status/2049316754514411701?s=20. Moreover, the Connecticut GOP is so inexplicably impotent that it refuses to capitalize on the national dismembering of Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro by EPA Secretary Lee Zeldin this past week https://x.com/epaleezeldin/status/2048895480151593427?s=20. But due to this ostensible lack of enthusiasm for the party, the outlying problem in the upcoming election is once again a lack of Republican candidates to run against the entrenched Democrat candidates in the State House and State Senate. Several non-Republican Party individuals have geared up to get candidates to run in these open seats. To many this should have been the first priority of the party right after their crushing state losses in 2024. The weakness and cowardice resonates as the call for a full investigation into Ned Lamont's financial streams and for a full disclosure of his income tax statements has never been made by Connecticut Republicans. We still have no answers to dealings with  "Thermo Fisher Scientific", "Sema 4", " Core Infomatics", “Centrellis”. "Ocrulus", "Urjanet", "1life Healthcare", "Galileo Health", "Castlight Health", "Paladina Health", and "VillageMD",  the Lamont-related Cayman Island partnerships, large Cayman Islands deals such as the "Horsebarn Hill Investment Fund" hiding in the UCONN Foundation,  and other deals working through “quasi-public” organizations such as Lamont-connected (and covert) “Connecticut Innovations”. No Republican candidate for his office ever raises these issues, which have all been documented since Tony De Angelo broke the stories of Sema4 and Digital Currency Group several years back. Why is this continuing to be hidden? And why are the Republicans so silent about it? Can these inroads be more entrenched than what we may have imagined previously?

Through  it all, Connecticut's problems have not cleared up in any way, shape, or form. Connecticut still has massive short- and long-term debt between 100 and 150 Billion dollars, an illegal immigrant problem, a massive crime problem, a huge corruption problem, a horrific illegal drug problem, an infrastructure problem, a gross incompetency problem in the Great Connecticut Administrative State,  and a critical crisis in the ethics, honesty, information sharing, and transparency of its state government, all of which are funded by Connecticut taxpayers.  Connecticut has one of the highest tax rates in the country, one of the highest electric rates in the country and one of the most toxic business climates in the country. These are all Republican campaign platforms that this state party should be about on a minute-by-minute basis.

Connecticut therefore needs a leader in the mold of a President Trump. Someone who is willing to make real decisions to improve the state in a variety of ways; economically, ethically, and socially. A leader who will reverse the down arrow. A leader who must confront the evil empire that the Connecticut's political system on both sides of the aisle has developed into. The Connecticut Republican Party and the remaining RINO's therein also need to be held accountable. Why do we not see filibusters and walking out on votes of 1000 page bills delivered 30 minutes prior to vote? This would be a start. Good old 1960’s tactics like sit-ins and pickets work wonders. How about bringing lawsuits against these putrid bills? This should be the norm. Tying up illegal and unconstitutional laws in courts for years to come is also essential. Given the horrific state of Connecticut's corrupted state government, this election should be an overwhelming victory for the Connecticut Republican Party and not the confusing morass we are witnessing.

Can anyone step up to this challenge and actually take back Connecticut to the once great state that it was? Or is it doomed to be a cesspool of socialist bombast and grandiloquence, turning the state into a permanent sewer of economic and social failure? Meanwhile, 43% of the state is crying for their voice. I respectfully ask the Republican Party not to blow this opportunity to connect with these folks, just like they have blown every opportunity hand-delivered to them previously. The future of Connecticut and all citizens born and unborn, depends on it.

The Affordability of Courage

What makes something affordable? How is that defined? And does affordability mean different things to different economic groups in our economy? And why has Connecticut become so unaffordable to those remaining legal, working, middle-class, law-abiding citizens who remain? These are all legitimate questions for the upcoming Connecticut Governor’s race, which is fast approaching.

The election is starting off as scripted. Several candidates have emerged from the minority Republican Party, each with very different ideas and political ideologies, while the Democrat Party begins its familiar, fanatical condemnation of all things President Trump. Meanwhile, Ned Lamont, the ruling/ unaccountable King/Governor has humbly announced that he is running yet again for another term. Left-wing, socialist, communist-leaning young Democrats may also enter the race, declaring that Lamont is unfit to serve any longer because he is too old and not liberal enough to govern. They will threaten him with a primary if he does not give them what they demand. This amounts to free universal health care, free rent, free public transportation, free public education from birth through graduate school, free cell phones, free food, and anything else that comes to mind over the next few months. If you are one of those humble working taxpaying citizens of Connecticut, you will be paying for this as the Federal government is on to the continual waste, fraud and abuse that is the Gold Standard of the omnipotent Connecticut Democrat Party. The spigot for all of that foolishness is about to be cut off by the Trump administration. Trump administration orders review of federal funding in more than a dozen Democratic states | CNN Politics.  

The line is being drawn in the sand for November 2026.

So how does this apply to affordability? Or does affordability have something to do with courage?

If a candidate for Governor, especially a Republican, would boldly state out loud that Connecticut is no longer affordable and present a coherent and genuine citizen-centric economic plan to reduce the economic stress and pain of living in this state, they might actually be heard and could win the election by an overwhelming margin. And if Republicans also ran a candidate for every State House and Senate district rather than leaving many uncontested and unrepresented, this would represent a radical shift in campaign strategy and indicate a seriousness heretofore not present in what has been a weak and disjointed Republican Party. With a gubernatorial candidate advancing such a genuine, citizen-centric plan, they could realistically win General Assembly seats along with statewide offices such as Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, Comptroller, and more. It really can be done if someone has the courage to address it, and clearly commit to ending the irritating deference to the state workforce and the Connecticut Administrative State.

Affordability in a one-party-ruled Democrat Connecticut, can easily become the ticket to real change in state government. Contrary to the daily deranged rhetoric of Connecticut Democrats and their paid followers, toadies, and lackeys, the reality is that they have made the state totally unaffordable. Excessive local and state taxes on nearly everything especially income taxes, high and excessive business taxes, user fees, vocational taxes, license taxes, gas taxes, electric taxes, natural gas taxes, and high sales taxes have all contributed greatly to the economic destruction of this once-prosperous state. It cannot be denied that the progressive, unyielding, anti-economic- tax rates and  administrative burdens and oppression of Connecticut have damaged the state to the point of becoming a bottom-five state in the country for business and economic performance.

Excessive and unchecked state spending driven by political nepotism with no transparency and sparse resistance at best, have helped nurture these high taxes that have vandalized the economy. This entire wretched mess could be stopped with a rational citizen-centric  Republican plan to cut the bloat of an ever-expanding state government that shows negative meaningful economic results year after year, especially when Connecticut has yet to recover from the Great Recession of 1989 thirty-six years later. Think about how poor that economic record is to run on in every election. But somehow, the omnipotent and incompetent Democrats remain in power, year after year (after year). How is that even possible?

2026 is really Custer’s Last Stand for the once-great state of Connecticut. If Connecticut is to survive both socially and economically, the Republican Party must reject its RINOs and all fealty to the administrative state and its agencies, and claim policies and programs that jump-start the state through lower state spending, lower state taxes, a real adult energy policy, and true transparency in how the state operates. Freedom of Information laws and requests should not be secrets from Connecticut taxpayers. The cries for a citizen DOGE must be heeded and propounded forthwith. The $100 to $150 billion in short- and long-term debt and unfunded liabilities should be discussed and debated daily, along with these real citizen-centric solutions presented.

This election, like the elections of the past 36 years, represents a true social and economic turning point for the state. This year, the Connecticut Democrat Party is out of deceptions, lies, and smokescreens to cover up its inability and lack of desire to represent the legal voters and taxpayers of the state. The Republican Party has a perfect opportunity to flush out the corruption, crime, deception, and fraud that the Democrat Party has utilized for personal and financial gain for years.The change is there for the taking. Does anyone have the vision and the courage to get Connecticut back on track? 

That is what Connecticut voters are voting for in November. And as of the time of this writing, this type of vision and courage is what we are still waiting for.

 

 

Is There Anyone Out There Capable Of The Job Of Being The Governor Of Connecticut?

What does Connecticut need in a Governor? It should be a simple question, but you will have difficulty in answering it.   What would it take for a Republican to be Governor? Is there a person on the horizon that possesses the character, intelligence, vision, and perspective necessary to turn around the total downward spiral of the Nutmeg State?

Believe it or not, Connecticut at one time had a functioning two party system.  In addition, Republicans did hold the Governor's office many times in the state's history. It is even more unbelievable to recall that Connecticut used to be a Conservative working-class state with a great deal of business and industry. Do you want to travel even more over to the dark side? Connecticut used to have a huge and thriving Black middle class with many of these folks working and owning homes due to secure employment in the firearms industry, an industry that was legislated out of existence by “sensitive” Democrat politicians that by “doing social good” threw families into drugs, poverty, fatherlessness, and ruin.  And there were better higher-character people than today on both sides of the aisle. Democrat Ella Grasso, Connecticut first Female Governor, who served from 1975 to 1980, was a working person, common sense Governor for the state and was loved by many on both sides of the aisle for her no-nonsense approach to governing. And there were bad people on both sides as well. Governor Grasso inherited a $70 million dollar plus budget deficit from Republican Governor Thomas Meskill. When taking office, she immediately laid off over 500 state employees, gave back her pay raise of $7,000 and sold the state's limousine and plane to pay down the debt. (https://museumofcthistory.org/2015/08/ella-giovanna-oliva-tambussi-grasso/) Fast forward 50 years later, and we see that Connecticut's short- and long-term debt along with its unfunded liabilities is roughly $100 to $150 billion dollars as politicians on either side of the aisle avoid dealing with this grievous situation like the plague.

After Governor Grasso passed, Connecticut shifted to Governor William "Bill" O'Neil who presided over the boom years of the 80's and subsequently led the state into the recession of 1990 when Connecticut's economy started its 35-year march to economic stupefaction and oblivion. Rather than deal with the matter at hand, the Democrat Party started believing that taxes, spending, running deficits, and the fire hosing of money would cure all ills. Lowell Weicker, a liberal Republican who turned Independent lied his way to get elected. Weicker accelerated Connecticut's economic downturn with his ill-gotten cash grab of Connecticut's first Income Tax, thus starting Connecticut down a path of welfare-state status.

After Weicker, Republican John Rowland became the next Governor in a term with some hope and vision that was later marred by arrogance, bulbous spending, inattention to deficits, and petty scandals. He was succeeded by Connecticut's second Female Governor Jodi Rell in an unremarkable term ending in 2011 that was somewhat liberal in social areas and somewhat conservative in economic matters.

Since that time, the landscape has strayed from all manners of  reasonable conduct, governance and fiduciary responsibility. Since Rell, Connecticut has had two very irrationally liberal and free spending Democrat Governors in Dan Malloy and Ned Lamont. I have written about them at length over the years and I am confident my readers understand and feel the brunt of their economic consequences and actions. However rather than creating a bright line and hammering home critical and sound Republican principles, the Republicans decided to run two sporting and wealthy individuals during the past four elections in Thomas Foley and Bob Stefanowski. In both of their first runs for Governor, third-party candidates seeing a lack of principles in the Republican campaigns moved to run, thus losing elections that otherwise would have been won on better Republican principles and policy. And the second campaigns for each gentleman were far worse than the first. In my opinion, the second Stefanowski campaign was a testimony in the state GOP trying for a muddled and moderate approach to all, thus losing voters on all sides. Hopefully after 16 years the Republican Party now realizes that it needs to get away from the wealthy person as-candidate approach to Governor.

So what does the upcoming election look like for the Connecticut Republican Party in their quest to become a bright-line alternative to the incoherent gibberish and societal decay that is force fed to the public on a daily basis by the Omnipotent (and Incompetent) One Party Rule of the Connecticut Democrat Party?  Looking down the bench of potential GOP candidates to date  I am reminded of Inspector Reynaud in the 1943 film “Casablanca” calling for the “usual suspects” as at the same time I am reminded of the late industrialist and Presidential candidate Ross Perot bellowing that “those who claim to be a part of the solution after being comfortable in the problem are still a part of the problem”. Curiously, no aspirant to date has aggressively championed the good and decent Republican policies of Connecticut residents first, there are only two sexes; male and female, schools need to teach again not be tools of failed and sick ideologies, reforming the white-collar crime of state energy utilities and policy, removal of sanctuary state status and prosecuting deportations, diluting the stranglehold of public unions, non-profit money laundering and fraud, accountability for rogue elected officials and pilfering department heads (followed if necessary by criminal charges) , removing tampon dispensers in boys rooms, dealing with voter fraud, crime, theft, social unrest and gender madness, and dealing with the need for a real balanced budget along with a comprehensive and extensive plan to pay off Connecticut's short and long-term debt along with its unfunded liabilities.  

More egregiously no aspirant to date has breathed a word about rooting out the “Fourth Branch” of Connecticut government, being racketeering and corruption emanating all of the way from the throne room of King Governor Ned Lamont The Unaccountable to just about every branch of elected and administrative government 

This is just a start.

So, who will this next Republican candidate be? That much is uncertain. But what is dead-on certain is that the non-state connected decent taxpaying voter of Connecticut is now well-aware of all of the Elephants in the state living room and will no longer tolerate weak, want to be liked pitty-pat candidates that will once again lead to failure as their well-paid consultants dealing in the profits of failure get paid regardless. The person who runs as the Republican candidate for Governor whether they are male or female, rich or poor, politician or non-politician needs to articulate that Connecticut can do much better than the current affliction and dysfunctional garbage called state government. 

And as my friend and colleague Tony De Angelo often says, it is simple as that, and unfortunately, just as difficult.

 

 

Bills, Laws And Destruction: The Connecticut Legislative Session of 2025

It has been said by many citizens and legal professionals that the General Statutes of Connecticut are among the most difficult state statutes to understand, adding needless confusion to many everyday issues. Connecticut has a long legal history, with statutes dating back to 1650, which means there is a significant amount of legal tradition and layering that make current laws complex and difficult. For instance, the General Statutes of Connecticut have been through numerous revisions, the most recent major one in 1958, with regular updates since then. This accumulation over time adds to the intricacy of the legal code. I do know that the State Statues consist of thirteen volumes and 978 chapters with thousands upon thousands of statues, rules, and regulations.  And. as is often said in Connecticut, the state laws are written for the state, by the state, on behalf of the state. And how many laws exist is anyone’s guess. (https://www.cga.ct.gov/current/pub/titles.htm). 

To give you an idea, the Connecticut legislature has introduced over 34,442 bills from 2010 to 2025. Of that amount only a few passed every year since there is no conceivable way that all 34,442 bills were read completely.  (https://legiscan.com/CT/). It is also interesting to comprehend the amount of actual laws that have eroded personal and economic freedoms in the state while the state continues its protracted economic and social downward spiral starting since the enactment of the law creating the State Income Tax back in August 1991. This tax was supposed to resolve all the state's financial issues and would lead Connecticut to economic vibrancy that was Utopian in nature and did nothing more than to drive it into reckless spending and fiscal ruin.

But the farcical and shameful status of Connecticut on the world’s stage continues. Despite the almost parrot-like repetition that maintaining the “fiscal guardrails” will save the fiscal integrity of the state, not one elected official acknowledges that Connecticut still has $100-$150 billion dollars in short- and long-term debt along with myriad unfunded liabilities accruing interest daily. And it ranks in the bottom five states in the country with the highest taxes, poor business climate conditions, and the highest electricity rates in the country. Moreover to add some icing to a sickening cake, Connecticut made National News this week with Democrat United States Senator Richard (“Stolen Valor”) Blumenthal questioning Secretary of Defense Nominee (and Combat Veteran) Pete Hegseth on his nomination thus invoking the ire of national news personalities, most notably radio host Mike Gallagher, who called Connecticut voters “stupid” in front of millions of listeners for voting for such a sham as Dick Blumenthal.

But if you are a Connecticut legislator, the more irrational, unhinged, and delusional you are, the more attention you will receive for some of the worst law proposals ever to be penned to paper. Rest assured that in 2025 the Legislature is in full force introducing many such bills. Here are a few your legislators feel are essential to the state: 

(Senate Bill) SB00718 is "To prohibit the issuance of a drive-only motor vehicle operator's license to a person who cannot provide proof of legal United States residency or a Social Security number."  This bill implies drivers’ licenses for illegal immigrants in the state.

SB00523 "AN ACT CONCERNING THE CURATION AND RETENTION OF LITERARY MATERIALS CONTAINED IN PUBLIC AND SCHOOL LIBRARIES AND LEGAL PROTECTIONS AFFORDED TO LIBRARIANS AND STAFF WORKING IN SUCH LIBRARIES. To protect state residents by prohibiting public and school libraries from censoring the most sick and pornographic books and providing librarians and other library staff members with legal protections, including immunity from criminal and civil liability, for carrying out work-related duties in accordance with state law."  Thus, any type of questionable book including what amounts to being pornography for children is allowable in a school library and that librarians have legal immunity from any consequences of their actions in keeping those books in their library. Further as my friend and colleague Tony De Angelo pointed out this week on 94.9’s “Lee Elci Show” (https://www.949newsnow.com/) this bill allows a legally immune library worker to sue a rightfully complaining parent on the grounds of “causing emotional distress”, thus putting their livelihood and property at legal risk. This bill should sicken every parent in the state let alone the long-silent CT GOP who should be demanding that sponsor Democrat Senator Bob Duff read the texts of several of these so-called works into the official record in addition to being a national star on "Libs Of Tik Tok" as he parades around with this Bill. But more seriously, it is interesting to note that police in the state are not afforded the same immunity in their life-or-death actions since HB6004 from 2020 was passed. This bill limits qualified immunity for police officers in the state. This bill gave Connecticut the sobriquet "Crime Free Democrat Connecticut". since there is now rampant crime, rampant theft, and little prosecution of juvenile crime and or career criminals contrary to what the Connecticut Democrat Party wants you to believe.   Police, in the opinion of many in the state, are not able to do the job for which they were hired.

But right or wrong or decent of indecent, Democrat lunatics can pass whatever laws they wish since the Connecticut Democrat Party has a super majority in the State House and Senate. They will be able to push through bills with ease at any time day or night. And there is never an accounting for what laws would really matter to the taxpaying public. As one example, King Governor Ned Lamont The Unaccountable somehow is positioning himself to lower electric rates with an imbalanced magical formula that will never be able to appease the green energy cartel that runs the state's energy policy even if it were the least bit workable. The minority Republicans have offered SB647 "An Act Concerning Protections For Consumer Access To Affordable Electricity." This bill attempts to: "To reduce energy costs and increase energy supply."(https://legiscan.com/CT/bill/SB00647/2025). The Republicans have offered HB5356 "To discontinue the state's use of California vehicle emission standards and establish the state's use of such standards established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency."  This bill will tie to rational Trump based energy policy rather than California's economically unobtainable and laughable standards. I am confident that the Connecticut Democrat Party will eliminate all efforts to put forth these Republican bills, regardless of the soundness of any proposed policies contained in them.

With the hundreds of bills being introduced in Hartford I see nothing that addresses the massive fiscal debt of the state but I do see more pie-in-the-sky lunacy. The Democrat irrationality is so pervasive that there is a bill that was introduced to protect the legal rights of girls playing sports prohibiting biological males on their teams and from them using their bathrooms, being HB5352, a Republican sponsored bill "An Act Prohibiting Students Who Are Biological Males From Competing On Female-only Athletic Teams And Using Female-only Locker Rooms And Facilities."(https://legiscan.com/CT/bill/HB05352/2025). Can you imagine that a bill like this actually has to be brought forth to protect girls in our public schools? Yet this is Connecticut in 2025.

But fear not! There is hope! There has been a bill introduced HB5335 stating “That section 46b-21 of the general statutes be amended to prohibit marriage between first cousins. Statement of Purpose: To prohibit marriage between first cousins."(https://legiscan.com/CT/text/HB05335/2025). To me that summarizes the lost state of Connecticut for I did not realize that was such an issue in the state needing an actual bill to prevent it.

 But sick as that may be, the state has no problem with porn in school libraries, corruption in its elections, massive runaway debt, legal cannabis, and many more failed liberal experiments. Connecticut never changes and hope fades quickly for those who wish the Connecticut Democrat Party would stop its destruction of the once "Constitution State" to feed its sick, progressive, and destructive demons.

The Mythological Connecticut Republican Party

 If you were an ardent consumer of Connecticut State-run news sources this past year, you may not be aware that there was another election in Connecticut this November. Despite the microscopic and unenthusiastic endorsement from the Mythological Connecticut Republican Party, President Donald J. Trump gained a substantially higher vote count in the state than in previous elections, receiving almost 42% in 2024. However, despite the dogged efforts of the Mythological Connecticut Republican Party to deny the existence of anything relating to the obscene word “Trump,” no group of state Republican candidates came close to beating the ultra-liberal Democrat machine in 2024.

On a state level, Republicans lost even more ground in being a small minority in the Connecticut House, now holding only 49 seats to the Democrat Super Majority of 102 seats while in the Senate Republicans are down to 11 seats to the Democrat Super Majority of 25 seats. (excluding the results of the 8th District State Senate race). Sadly, things look poorly for the Mythical Connecticut Republican Party. 

As much are failures are continually attempted to be explained and excused away, it was more of the same in state Republican losses as have been seen year-in and year-out. It is argued that “all politics is local” However, it has become obvious that the state Republican message is ignored, lost, misspoken and or non-existent. What exactly is the message does the Mythical Connecticut Republican Party want to express to the Connecticut voting public? Is it less state governmental spending and the lowering of taxes? Is it a smaller, more efficient state government? Is it full transparency in state government along with a real check and balance mechanism? Is it more school choice and letting parents actually parent their children?  Is it liberty and personal freedoms? Is it a crackdown on crime and criminals with meaningful enforcement of laws to prosecute criminals? Is it the state taxpayer defunding of self-appointed sanctuary cities in the state? Is it enforcement of actual voting laws that would have prevented the ongoing crime in the city of Bridgeport's election and removed questions from other races? Is it the abolishment of dodgy “quasi-public” entities and opaque state-connected nonprofits that were most useful in the crooked Covid-19 machinations of King Governor Ned Lamont the Unaccountable? Is it enforcement of real ethics laws that govern state elected officials and state employees especially when state taxpayer funded contracts are involved? Is it criminal sanctions for law-breaking elected officials? Is it a “DOGE” type-effort in slashing the bloated and self-aggrandizing state workforce? Is it that state taxpayers have a real Bill Of Rights when dealing with state officials in Connecticut? Is it civil and criminal penalties when someone in that bloated workforce harms an innocent person?

What is it that the Mythical Connecticut State Republican Party bases itself on considering there is no doubt what is happening on the left. To this fact, it is quite clear that the Connecticut State Democrat Party stands for socialism, operative communism, government intervention at any and all costs, full term state taxpayer paid for abortion along with a state taxpayer funded abortion "hotline", minimal personal freedoms, election fraud, more and higher taxes, “creative ways” for finding employment for illegal students in state colleges, unobtainable clean/green energy conquests at any cost, more crime, less enforcement of laws that are actually legally binding, state run local planning and zoning law enforcement, and a crumbling bridge and highway system to just to name a few items.  In true Pravda style, the Connecticut State Democrat Party is able to achieve this with an obedient state run and state-supported media that echoes the Connecticut State Democrat Party rhetoric daily in its continual effort to help brainwash the public.

However, due to the efforts of a handful of independent reporters  and dogged ordinary citizens there are encouraging signs of political life in Connecticut with strong independent Libertarian and Conservative journalists and common citizens like my good friend Tony De Angelo and others who fight a daily battle in the state against this omnipotent one party machine's incoherent gibberish, effectively doing the work of what an opposing party should do.  Connecticut is in dire need of a vibrant, coherent Republican Party that no longer embraces the "coolness" of condemning all things Trump and all things Conservative while playing the continual patsy to the Connecticut State Democrat Party's hold.

The Mythical Connecticut Republican Party must end. It needs a functional and common-sense platform that embraces those who work and pay taxes in the state. It needs a functional and common-sense platform that embraces and relates to minorities especially the working Hispanic population that is found in many cities in the state. It needs new people from top to bottom in the party organization and not the perennially failed Republicans that embrace the Party's race to oblivion and stupefaction to nothingness and continual defeat. The Mythical Connecticut State Republican Party needs to emerge from myth to reality and generate a real candidate to run for Governor in 2026 and not another self-destructing unknown or benign party poster child running to be acceptable to all things wrong.

To emerge from obscurity, The Connecticut State Republican Party has time to prepare if it wants to. It must embrace the heart of the country that is rooted in strong American principles. It must be able to say the word MAGA and not run behind a tree in shame. It must show its dedication in fighting first for the non-state connected working person. It must champion a DOGE-based effort to shrink the monolith of state government and the administrative state. Or the Connecticut State Republican Party can continue in perpetual uselessness and defeat in becoming the new Whig Party of 2024.

To conclude, I will borrow one of Tony's favorite phrases. Change is simple as that, and just as difficult.

“Saudi Annie” and Her Saudi Profits

 Political scandals are woven into our everyday life, especially in Connecticut.  With the current Democrat Administration of His Royal Con Man, King Ned Lamont the Unaccountable, his wife Ann Lamont (aka “Saudi Annie”) and their family private equity partnership Oak HC/FT, Connecticut Taxpayers still have no clear answers to many questionable investments and arrangements tied to Sema-4, Digital Currency Group and its affiliates, ADVANCECT, 4-CT, Boston Consulting Group, UNITE US, Mt. Sinai Genomics, “The Horsebarn Hill Investment Fund”, Tidal River Fund, McKinsey, and the Lamont-based Cayman Islands shell companies even years later. To make matters even worse, not one political person to date has aggressively pursued how these arrangements impact the state, especially when all the homework has been previously completed for them to proceed.

Now let us add to that menagerie of companies and arrangements above the new Saudi Arabian connection as has been discovered and made public knowledge through the hard work of Journalist George Colli https://thectcapitalist.com/2023/07/31/saudi-annie-days-1-10/)  and continually followed up by Tony De Angelo on his weekly segment on the Lee Elci show (94.9 FM).  There is a disclosed investment of undetermined sum by the Saudi Arabia Private Investment Fund into its investment arm Sanabil Investments which in turn is investing in numerous United States venture capital firms including Oak HC/FT.  Again, Oak HC/FT is the Lamont family equity partnership.  Why are the Lamont's accepting investments from a country that has numerous ties to the slaughter of its enemies, terrorism, control of natural resources worldwide, control of the "green" electric vehicle markets and its batteries, and its atrocious human rights record especially with non-heterosexual people?  Since the Lamont’s have no comment whatsoever on this investment one must assume that they approve of it since it will likely bring more profit to the egregious Lamont family financial record.  How does it benefit our country when an elected Democrat Party official is allowed to gain profit for its' family by partnering with an enemy to our country?  How much of Connecticut Taxpayers monies were involved in this latest economic investment by Oak HC/FT?  Why is this information hidden from taxpayers? Why is the ethics system and financial disclosure system in Connecticut a total and complete failure with respect to providing disclosures in these matters?

Since “The Unaccountable” has never made a state financial policy decision that somehow did not benefit his family coffers, the obvious (but not pursued) question is how will this “Saudi Annie” deal imperil state policy? Will “E-Car-2035” be codified to the point where gas powered vehicles will not be allowed in state? After all, the Saudi Public Investment Fund is a huge investor in the genre (https://www.wsj.com/articles/lucid-electric-vehicle-losses-51035f63). Will all state vehicles now be electric to help bail out Lamont family investors that are losing money hand over fist in E-Car investments? Will this create a needless public safety crisis given the nature of E-vehicles? How about more wind power installations as the Saudis are heavily invested in that as well? How about the installation of Saudi- style “economic cities” in place of our poor pathetic wrecked Connecticut ones? All seems quite likely, but no questions are ever asked by those close to the Lamonts. This is a sickening and shameful indictment on the political system especially given the Lamont track record.

There is a strong possibility that Connecticut's Democrat/Socialist/Communist United States Senator and former faux Vietnam Combat Veteran Richard Blumenthal will actually get some answers to his recent probing of the Saudi's fund since he became very upset by their investments in golf in our country.  Will his newfound enthusiasm in actually finding truth in something actually uncover some harsh economic realities that paint the industrious spouse of Connecticut's Governor in a corrupted light by accident?  

The bigger question here that all Taxpayers must be asking themselves is why their hard-earned tax monies are going to sworn enemies such of our country?  Why are our elected officials allowed to invest in the antagonists and foes of America?  Did we not learn anything from history?  It seems we have long forgotten 9/11/01 and now 10/7/23 in Israel.  

Many people want answers to the Lamont's investments.  It would be nice to actually see accountability in Connecticut's state government.  It would be nice to see elected officials from both sides of the aisle demanding answers to these investments.  Ethics in government really do not exist anymore.  Just look at Joe Biden and his family.  But more importantly just look at His Royal Con Man, King Ned Lamont the Unaccountable, and his wife Saudi Annie and their resulting actions, where continual spin and avoidance are the orders of any day.  Those are all the answers you'll need to understand the complete breakdown of morals and governmental ethics in 2023.

 

Connecticut Elections Do Matter

Elections do matter.  No matter what you might hear or see, they do matter.  They matter more than you can imagine.  Unbelievably they also matter in Connecticut.  I still wonder why any sane person would vote for a Democrat, yet they did in droves this past Tuesday.  On election night, I commented that there has been a mass exodus of people from Connecticut who in many cases were Conservative and voted Republican in local elections.  As we saw during the pandemic, many people moved from New York and New Jersey into Connecticut replacing those conservative traditional voters and appear to have embraced the failed social and economic policies they fled from those states.  As such, several towns and cities leaned Democrat on election day for the first time in years.  That should be no surprise to the faux-Rockefeller-type moderate feel good Connecticut Republican Party that pompously runs against all things President Trump.  If one mentions his very name to some in the party, they will transform in front of your eyes into Democrats.  However. there are still some conservatives in the Republican Party who hold the line and deemed "hard right" (whatever that term means to liberals and socialists and why it is so offensive to them).  These same "hard right" conservatives are immediately written off by the party as being not electable yet are popular with like-minded citizens and are elected in some towns and cities.

Bridgeport is a vile and corrupt Democrat led city that continues to be an economic failure and a national laughingstock.  The city is a cesspool of Democrat corruption.  It is hard to believe that Mayor Ganim somehow  found enough absentee votes to amazingly win his election once again.  The obvious absentee ballot stuffing that took place on camera should have been enough evidence to have postponed the election entirely and voided all absentee ballots that were "delivered".   

What happened in Bridgeport was a stolen election, as it was illegitimate any way it is sugarcoated and spun.  What happened was illegal and still needs to be addressed, especially given its farcical nature. And predictably, the leadership position of His Royal Con Man, King Ned Lamont the Unaccountable, is that the system worked simply fine in Bridgeport and anything untoward was caught. Anyone with just minimal common sense would know that the wretched situation in Bridgeport cannot be an isolated incident in any way and that the Lamont position is an insult to any responsible citizen of the state.

Through it all, there are towns in Connecticut that remain strong Republican and have been for years.   Look at the strengths of the Republican Party in Wallingford. Look at the strengths of the Republican Party in Shelton. Look at the strengths of the Republican Party in Orange.  Look at Bristol and some small towns in the state.  Look at what happened in Greenwich, where a well thought out, comprehensive Republican campaign took place that also addressed each lame attack from the Democrats running.  The Greenwich Republican plan should be adopted by the state Republican Party as a blueprint for success in future elections.  However, it sadly will not as infighting between the Rockefeller-lite and conservative parts of the Republican Party will continue in the massively important election of 2024.  

To run as a Connecticut Republican in 2024 will a prerequisite to do so be the condemnation and renunciation of President Trump and all of the policies he stands for?  These policies brought border security, energy independence, stable food prices, small business growth, and Middle East stability. This weakness cannot continue if the GOP ever hopes again to be a force in the state or the country.

There are many conservative Republicans who live in Connecticut and are fed up with their state leadership and constant losses.  They will vote for President Trump in 2024 regardless of anyone wanting to influence them otherwise.  They are fed up with the destruction of America's economy and society by a corrupt, pathetic Democrat President and his incoherent handlers. They would also be drawn to service should they see a party modeled on policy and principles rather than accepting defeat in the name of victory.

Connecticut after Tuesday successfully continues its path towards socialism and communism with the burdens of several new towns that will now be controlled by an omnipotent state Democrat Party.  The further erosion of these towns and cities will be embraced through higher taxes, yet even more crime, more economic turmoil, homelessness, cluelessness, incompetency, Marxism, addiction, more businesses closing and moving out of state, less practical teaching with much more educational brainwashing and indoctrination of false premises, ideas, and political ideologies.   There are two vastly different and unique paths politically in Connecticut.  Let us hope and pray that the demolition and ruination of this once great state stops at some point with ethical and honest leaders stepping forward to lead once again.  Connecticut simply cannot go on like this.

 

Ned's Covid-19 Un-Ethical "Conn-Job"

Connecticut Democrat Governor Ned Lamont is handled cleverly.  So cleverly that transparency does not exist nor can the common Connecticut Taxpayer ever get his or her questions answered especially with regard to the Lamont induced Covid-19 economic debacle taxpayers have lived with through for well over three years.  The Connecticut taxpayers who have survived this economic and socialist nightmare just can not get answers to any questions. 

Let us start at the beginning of this economic debacle and follow the orchestration of this deliberate plan of ethical deception.

To begin, we see an "Advisory Ethics Opinion" issued on May 16, 2019 that basically placed hazy restrictions upon Lamont as Governor and his family's hedge fund.  For example, quoting from Page 4 of this document (https://www.wtnh.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/100/2021/12/Lamont-Ethics-Opinion2.pdf) : "To better identify the need for any necessary recusal, the Governor would periodically arrange to provide his office with a list of individual investments held by himself, Mrs. Lamont or any associated business that have not already been made-subject to the exclusive control of an independent intermediary. The Governor's office would use that list as a checklist on a case-by-case basis to assist in identifying instances where recusal by the Governor or Mrs. Lamont would be necessary." When was this checklist created and where can it be found?  Was this a monthly case by case analysis?  Or was it completely ignored? Finally, after four years whatever happened to this "independent intermediary" that is supposed to ride hard on team Lamont  in order to stop them from any greedy desire it may have to trade with the State?

On Page 8 of this same document: I read that "the Governor and Mrs. Lamont wish to retain direct ownership and control of a handful of investments as to which they have special knowledge and background. All such investments would be listed on the schedule delivered to a designated official in the Governor’s office, which schedule would be periodically updated as necessary, in order that the Governor and his staff may better “police” whether any official action that either the Governor or Mrs. Lamont may contemplate could reasonably be expected to result in a direct financial benefit or harm to themselves or to an associated business to a degree that is different from or greater than the universe of individuals or businesses that would be affected generally by such official action and, therefore, require recusal by the Governor and Mrs. Lamont."  A poor and humble citizen might ask the following questions: What is the Lamont definition of "reasonable belief" in this case? How does the Governor get to first "contemplate" the issues to "police" himself upon? What does the word "police"even mean? Can this "policing" result in a consequent "arrest"?  Where are the reports issued with regards to the Sema-4 investment and the subsequent contracts with state? Identical questions also remain for Digital Currency Group and UNITE CT.

The report concluded on Page 16: "We conclude that the steps taken by Governor Lamont and Mrs. Lamont concerning their financial assets and associated businesses, as set forth in this opinion, are adequate to better ensure compliance with the Code, particularly its conflict-of-interests provisions and disclosure requirements."  Feeling somewhat better after reading that, we are never allowed to assume that this maze of legal gibberish cleared the way for a profit train for the Lamont family "legally" and with "no conflict of interest".  

If any of the sham language above holds true, why did the Oak HC/FT hedge fund set up investments in Sema-4 and $800 million dollars in investments in the Cayman Islands LP on August 1, 2019?  Why did the state authorize on June 1, 2020 a no bid Covid-19 contract with Sema-4?  Wouldn't this be a direct violation of this ethics ruling of May 16, 2019?  Where was the overview of the contract?  Where was the oversight by the well paid but functionally incompetent state agencies who were supposed to "police" the Governor's financial investments?  Wasn't the Governor's family hedge fund heavily invested in Sema-4 at this time?

The actual investigation has been done for three years now by Tony De Angelo on his weekly segment on the Lee Elci Show on 94.9FM radio.  He has been precise in his analysis and facts he has presented weekly.  Conversely we have never seen any analysis or investigation on this matter completed by the state.  Tony was the first to point out that this "Advisory Ethics Opinion" is nothing but a deceptive sham agreement cleverly designed to mislead the reader that an actual act of compliance and ethics is in fact taking place, where in fact there is none.

When a person runs for elected office, is a multi-millionaire, and basically buys his way into office it is a severe conflict of interest for the Taxpayers he is supposed to represent.  Ned Lamont is the poster man for this.  Please remember former Republican Governor John Rowland was forced to resign for basically having house repairs done on his weekend home by a contractor at no charge, a minimal amount of money involved.  That was and is illegal and unethical.  However when we fast forward to 2019, Democrat Ned Lamont is a shining example of creating a corrupted administration that services few in the state other than his hedge fund, friends of his family's hedge fund and the Democrat/Socialist based splinter fringe groups that have all had a hand in destroying the state and its communities with their radical demands and laws.  Democrat corruption in the opinion of many has been happening in the state since 2019.  The red-herring Advisory Board Opinion gave a green light to a no holds barred takeover of profits over people by the Lamont's.  A theme that seems to be the cornerstone of a Democrat Governor earning $54 million dollars a year that can not be revealed.  And four years later we are left only with dead silence by an obedient and self serving state run media on these issues. 

There is a great deal more to the story.  It really should be investigated and made public. A real working media would pepper Lamont with queries on this daily. Don't you think?  It is 1776 all over again.

These Are Meaningful Tax Cuts?

 Tax cuts are usually hailed by our elected officials as being manna from the heavens.  Tax cuts are finally voted on and then presented as being thoughtful and Utopian in nature.  When there are tax cuts In Connecticut,  it is an indicator that there has been over taxation taking place and a state election is on the horizon.  In the case of the infinitesimal tax cuts that were given to Connecticut Taxpayers this year, it shows again the imbalance in economic reality for Connecticut's elected officials and for the Connecticut Taxpayers who must pay for Connecticut's ineffective, inept, bloated and corrupted state government.

This year's "bipartisan" state income tax cuts were comical in nature given the Democrat Party runaway inflation and loss of personal wealth Connecticut Taxpayers had to endure since Democrat President Biden took office in 2021.  The state income tax cuts may be summarized as follows:  A family of four earning $125,000 a year will get a $600 cut in taxes, a single-parent family with two children earning $80,000 a year will get a $300 cut in taxes, a single man or woman earning $40,000 a year will get a $250 cut in taxes, and a single parent with one child earning $30,000 a year a year will get a $220 cut in taxes.  Connecticut's Governor "King Ned Lamont, the Unaccountable" expressed great joy for these tax cuts.  Both parties commented on the importance and great tax cuts that were passed as well.  Placing these cuts into perspective, the last announcement of Ned Lamont's yearly income was a yearly total of $54,000,000 publicly or roughly $147,945 a day.  His income is not disclosed as to how it was earned as the public was not shown the actual tax return nor can gain transparency into it either.  Nor does it shed light on "The Unaccountable's" financial family benefit from SEC-verified documents reflecting interests owned in secret tax havens. In juxtaposition, these puny tax cuts in no way, shape, or form will economically help Connecticut's Taxpayers, since the unending runaway inflation of the Democrat Party rolls on unabated and unchecked in 2023. 

Placing another perspective on these tax cuts, how do they promote a more "tax friendly" state?  There was no meaningful tax reform passed in 2023.  Connecticut still ranks as a top five- highest taxed state in the country along with a bottom-five state in business and economic development.  Connecticut Taxpayers monies are given away daily in futile programs that supposedly create jobs, get politically connected companies to move into the state and to invest into companies, some of which have documented political connections to Ned Lamont's family hedge fund.  Can we draw a possible parallel to the Governor's $147,945. daily income to some of the Connecticut Taxpayers tax monies?  We will never know as that is forbidden to be seen nor investigated by Connecticut's largely obedient  and fawning  state run media.

What will you do with your tax cut for the year?  In the opinion of many not much, as it does little to offset the Democrat Party induced runaway inflation you must deal with on a daily basis.  Empty promises, a lack of transparency, a lack of accountability, a lack of ethics and daily incoherent economic gibberish is the "real"tax cut you get as a Connecticut Taxpayer governed by multi-millionaire politicians like Ned Lamont.  No more and much less.  Remember that $147,945 daily your Governor is making as you toil day-to-day being a honest Connecticut Taxpayer getting your $600 or less in tax cuts.  Connecticut's economic and governmental failures live on for another year , as it is 1776 all over again.

Connecticut's Constant and Continual Debt Crisis

Democrat Connecticut's euphoria of its recently passed $51.1 billion dollar "we cut taxes!" biennial budget is endemic of the 33 year political tango of fiscal denial where the state will certainly face fiscal Armageddon in the near future.  Contrary to the shouts of joy from Ned Lamont and his Connecticut Democrat Party, Connecticut has a massive spending and debt problem.  This economic downward spiral started with the advent of the Utopian state income tax in 1990-91 in the opinion of many. Debts continue to pile up for Connecticut to a point of no return.

How does a state as small as Connecticut and with as small a population of legal citizens as Connecticut, spend as much as it does?  Yearly,  the state spends a massive amount of money each year on state employee salaries, benefits and pensions for both its management and non management employees along with interest on its' debt.  It also has borrowed and bonded enormous sums of money.  Bonds get paid off and then are immediately renewed into new bonds.  It is fascinating to see that Connecticut will spend a mere $823.3 million dollars of Connecticut taxpayers monies in its new budget for "economic development". Much of this bulbous sum will be uselessly paid to a failed and non-transparent "quasi-public" entity oxymoronically known as the "Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development". Even with this massive amount of money that is spent for such "economic development", Connecticut continues to rank at the bottom or near the bottom in most business and economic categories in the country, and still can not pull itself out of the 2008 recession level of job formation, since so many businesses have closed and or moved out of state.

What is Connecticut's actual debt?  I can only estimate it since hard figures seem to be in short supply when analyzing this debt.   In this year's budget (https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/OPM/Budget/2024_2025_Biennial_Budget/Budget_WebPage/GovBudget_2024-25_Final-Web-Version.pdf-A18,19)  the summary of principal and interest that the state has outstanding through 2043 for bonding functions is a mere $24,174,979,627 billion dollars.  There is also outstanding principal and interest on this fiscal nut through 2043 for special tax obligations is $9,935,799,580 billion dollars.  It is difficult to find more figures from the state budget as to a "true" amount of how much actual short and long term debt along with unfunded liabilities exist.  Estimates may range from $100 to $150 billion dollars.  Here, the major problem is the actual amount of unfunded state pension debt.  How much is it?  Does anyone know? This was magically resolved by an economically irrational and fiscally illiterate Democrat Party plan to lower current payments and have future generations figure out how to pay for it.  State pension reform seems to be an issue that one is forbidden to discuss in the state legislature by either political party, as both parties are on record for cheering this faux "pension reform", neither willing to bite the bullet necessary to change this drastically bad course.

What is the plan (if any) to pay off this debt?  I have seen nothing mentioned about it over the years.  Connecticut spends a massive amount of money each year.  There would seem to be a great deal of wasted spending in the budget each year also since there is an excessive amount of debt in the state.  The state budget is also unexamined at any real length since the Connecticut Democrat Party introduces it with little time to even read the hundreds of pages of accounting information and check for accurate figures at the last minutes of the legislative session.  The marching orders are simple: Just vote on it and make sure the politically connected of Connecticut are rewarded and have their palms greased by grants, subsidies and other types of goodies funded by Connecticut Taxpayers with no oversight or accountability.  These are the same taxpayers who have absolutely no say whatsoever in where their hard earned monies go.   Taxpayer- be-damned seems to have been the common theme of the Democrat Party controlled State Legislature for years now.  It is truly taxation without representation and the identical reason as to why the Colonists threw the tea in the river in Boston some years ago.  It is 1776 all over again.