In the past week that was, there were a series of raids performed by National Immigration Control and Enforcement (“ICE”) with the object of removing illegal aliens from the once-proud working city of Danbury, CT. The political responses across the aisle were so predictable, you could set your watch to them.
Saturday, August 29, 2026
Walk Softly, Connecticut! Democrat Crime Is Here To Stay
Saturday, March 28, 2026
Connecticut: Moscow On The Connecticut River
Decades ago, the legendary “ABC Wide World Of Sports” chronicled the life of your average Russian citizen living behind the Iron Curtain in the USSR: Up in the morning in a dreary apartment. Off on a dismal public transit system to a dismal state-sponsored job. Return home. Clear the dinner dishes. For the evening’s entertainment you had your choice of several channels of grainy television as you opened a can of beer, being your only luxury. One channel played, with the continuous nattering of pompous, twisted, and prevaricating state officials telling you every night how wonderful everything was in Russia, only the state was telling you the truth, only they were the ones that cared for you, how blessed you were to be living in Communism, and how awful and terrible the USA was to its people. These assertions came with obedience, and never challenge from the media. The other channel featured all of the great Russian athletes of the past (Tretiak, Chipoulas, Alexiev, Tarasov) and reminded you that the Russian people were a superior race, and even though only the rich elite were able to attend the events, you were to be so appreciative for what these people were doing, and you should be grateful that so much of your money was spent on their care, feeding and training.
Consider: The Nutmeg state features either state-run (or limited) news leaving out truth and reason, a fawning attitude towards the elites, vile hatred and criticism for any policies that could help its citizens, the dictation of what citizens could (or should) do with their bodies or the education of their children, that the state itself is the largest employer, that the state union controls the political system, the continual erosion of freedom, and treating those that rightfully rail against the oppression as irrational far-right racist wing nuts who have no idea what they are talking about.
And as far as pompous, twisted, and prevaricating state officials are concerned, consider the following comments from our elected leaders:
“So you are right that that has been the Democratic strategy for 30 years, maybe, and it has failed to deliver for the people we care about most, the undocumented Americans that are in this country."
Connecticut Democrat Senator Chris Murphy to MSNBC Host Chris Hayes in 2024
"ICE agents at airports will only aggravate delays & lines—disrupting checks, interrogating travelers, dragging parents from children, detaining citizens, brutalizing families, shooting & even killing. "
Connecticut Democrat Senator Dick Blumenthal on X March 22,2026
“Trump’s message to Connecticut—fall in line with extreme MAGA ideology, or your families go hungry. Trump wants states to sign hateful pledges that have absolutely nothing to do with food assistance. These conditions are plainly unlawful, and we’re suing to ensure Connecticut gets every penny of USDA funding that our taxpayers paid for and our families need to put food on the table,”
Connecticut Democrat Attorney General William Tong March 23, 2026
“I AM PROUD OF CONNECTICUT! WE HAVE ONE OF THE TOP TEN ECONOMIES. WE BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER. WE ARE ALL CHILDREN OF GOD”
Governor Ned Lamont on X from New Britain, March 26, 2026: https://x.com/NedLamont/status/2037195050011050328?s=20
And as far as engendering a special quality of athletic program with no regard to expense, consider that the already debt-burdened University of Connecticut will begin a multi-million dollar renovation of its Gampel Pavilion. While the state unions are happily employed in the project, the debt burden will increase exponentially to citizens that could never afford to go to the game by selling more “UCONN 2000 Bonds” https://today.uconn.edu/2026/03/renovations-starting-at-gampel-to-enhance-the-fan-experience-add-new-revenue-sources/.
So taking all of the above into account, I believe the poor and beleaguered Connecticut citizen is forced to endure his life today as a Muscovite in Russia did decades back with the constant bombardment of “things are great here, you will own nothing and be happy, and our athletes are the best in the world, so we cannot spend enough of your money, on them” (inter-alia).
Again I submit unto you: Connecticut can now be called Moscow on the Connecticut River.
Need even more reinforcement? Connecticut's Democrat Ruling Elite no longer have any bounds. Two topical issues involving an overwhelming majority opinion against two ludicrous bills; (House Bill 5044 and Senate Bill 450) imposing state mandates for vaccines for all age groups in the state, you, be damned. Also consider House Bill 5468 which slams Connecticut's Home schooled children and parents with mandatory yearly registration of their children and a litany of other regulations to basically discourage this form of education. In the limited public hearing that was allowed, the testimony was overwhelming against both bills. but as in Connecticut's Democrat Party ruling elite non transparent government legislature, the results are predetermined. Ram a bill through the legislature, then claim it is in the best interest of Connecticut taxpayers to ram even more limits on their personal freedoms and raise taxes also. Spit and repeat the rape of Connecticut Taxpayers repeatedly. Democrat Ruling Elites will have it no other way.
Please remember that Ned Lamont is running for re-election again based on this corruption, and as of the time of this writing, no candidate has taken him to task on any of that.
So, this is what Connecticut's State Government has evolved into. And we are now apparently at the point where legal Connecticut voters and taxpayers no longer have any say in their state government. Bad legislation is a given, so long as it supports and profits Connecticut's Democrat Ruling Elite. High taxes, an excessive cost of living, massive state spending and state debt are of no concern. It is business as usual. And what can be done about it? It is a simple, yet complex answer. Take voting. Let us start with no more absentee ballots unless they have been researched and approved completely. Let us continue with no more same day voter registration using your grocery store customer card. Let us add Photo ID required for voting on the same day of the election. And finally, let us have a world with fully transparent vote counting after election polls closed. But the Democrat Ruling Elite will fight that tooth and nail as it challenges their insular, controlled, controlling, and harassing world, crying for the poor as they increase in riches, and attempting to challenge truth, reason, freedom, and initiative. For after all, someone in the state might do better than they do using honest means. And that would be a horrible thing, as you can't control those kinds of people.
Moscow on the Connecticut River. Before you laugh and shake your head, I respectfully ask for you to reread the article again. If you do that, I will guarantee you that you will no longer be laughing any more.
Saturday, November 01, 2025
"SNAP" Goes The Government
For many years, I have written about the tax, spend, borrow, and waste death spiral of government, particularly evident in poorly run states such as Connecticut. For many years regardless of sound admonition, government has proceeded in taxing more, spending more, and creating more useless and redundant programs and non-jobs for the politically connected. Meanwhile, legitimate tax-paying businesses asking for no aid but wishing only for low taxes, friendly government and safe and clean communities are driven out of states like Connecticut by experiencing exactly the opposite of that. When the rate of legitimate business departures increases as the governmental and administrative state monster metastasizes, jobs become scarce, and welfare and dependency need increase. When joblessness continues for a protracted period, people become skillfully obsolete and unemployable. Rather than seeing the problems and righting the ship, visionless politicians with no sense or clue of what is necessary to fix a bad state and a bad economy cry and scream and pound the table concerning man’s inhumanity to man due to some intelligent men and women questioning this constant giant sucking mess that has effectively become the government. But the real man’s inhumanity to man factually rests with these same politicians complaining. Even a high-school graduate in his first apartment knows that he or she must generate enough inflow to exceed outflow. But this lesson is lost on about every politician, especially in places like Connecticut. So, what is the inevitable result? The dire situation becomes worse and continues to mushroom and then, something snaps.
To add to the pitiful nature of the Connecticut economy having over 25% of its population on Medicaid, over 360,000 Connecticut residents receive SNAP benefits (or roughly 11% of the state’s population). But if you read and believe the state-run propaganda that passes for reporting you are led to believe that President Donald J. Trump is cruel and inhumane for insisting that government finally clean itself out of waste, fraud, inefficiency and fiscal abuse, and that Connecticut is a state with a heart for the poor and downtrodden that its own political system has created. As one example, Governor Ned Lamont recently gave “Connecticut Foodshare” $3 million dollars to help offset the loss of SNAP benefits as cries of Trumpian cruelty reverberated across social media in the background. “This $3 million investment will make a real difference for families across Connecticut who are facing an impossible choice between paying rent and putting food on the table,” Connecticut Foodshare CEO Jason Jakubowski said. “While we recognize this funding cannot replace the full scale of federal SNAP benefits, it will help us to buy more food for agency partners and mobile pantries across the state over the next two weeks. We are grateful for the state’s leadership and commitment to protecting Connecticut’s most vulnerable residents.” (https://portal.ct.gov/governor/news/press-releases/2025/10-2025/governor-lamont-announces-emergency-funding-for-connecticut-foodshare?language=en_US).
Such a gesture on its face seems selfless and noble until one digs more at the ugly backside of the tax and spend economy, being multiple highly compensated and redundant nonprofit managers sitting in well-paid state-supported non-jobs consuming the resources intended for the poor. So, let’s examine Mr. Jason Jakubowski, a politically-connected former Barack Obama delegate and a man with no particular experience in either the private sector nor in the food industry. For Fiscal Year 2024, Jason Jakubowski received Compensation of $292,739 and Other Compensation of $53,514 for a total of $346,253 a year. (https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/61063025). This is inexplicably double his first-year salary as covered by my friend Tony De Angelo on his October 30 THIRTY WITH TONY show. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERBrM_zue1A) Due to the circulation of truthful information, many have asked if Jacob Jakubowski would refuse his pay so that money would go to feeding these hungry people during this crisis? But charity need not end at home! How about Ned and Annie Lamont picking up the tab for these benefits as a charitable donation? Forbes magazine has recently estimated their net family worth as $650 million dollars. Or in going National, Senator Richard Blumenthal and his family's net worth of a mere $85 million cam certainly kick in a few shekels. (https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-politicians/democrats/richard-blumenthal-net-worth/) . Actually, many liberal Democrat politicians could start to compassion for their treasured poor folk by giving their money to help fund this cause until their party would vote for either a budget and or a continuing resolution to reopen Washington. They could also refuse their salaries since many people in government are working without pay and what better way to show your solidarity with the unwashed masses?
But even so, more questions come to mind regarding SNAP benefits. Why are so many individuals in need of these benefits costing our country over $100 billion dollars- plus a year? Is there fraud and non-legal citizens receiving these benefits? In a country as wealthy as the United States why are so many individuals this much in need?
But once again, the poor slob taxpayer in places like Connecticut has no luxuries such as a shutdown. Please note that we are still paying Federal Taxes to our unopened government during this crisis but are not getting all the services we are paying for. That is fine with the minority Democrat Party in Congress and pitiful and ineffective bodies such as the Democrat-controlled Connecticut State Legislature. We are still hearing the daily bashing of all things President Trump by the state-run media. And we still see waste and fraud going unchecked at all levels of government as it arrogantly continues as a God-given right. Maybe those truly in need should continue to receive these benefits via a tougher litmus test while those using them fraudulently should flush out. Maybe nonprofit organizations feeding hungry people should not have paid employees nor politically connected executives. Maybe charities falling above the 25% of operating expenses-to-income ratio benchmark of “Charity Navigator” should not be able to bid for funding until they get their fiscal houses in order. Maybe charities that perform well should be expanded while others failing to meet the mark be disbanded. But the biggest “maybe” in enacting reforms would be to find politicians with enough courage to suggest even one such improvement and reform. Hope is not great in that regard, regardless of party label.
Saturday, May 17, 2025
Connecticut. The Crisis-Driven Disaster.
Well-run states and organizations govern objectives and goals. However, Connecticut continually governs by crisis. There just has to be one. There is always a crisis in Connecticut. No matter which party controls Washington, the continual omnipotent Democrat iron-fist one party rule in Hartford always makes sure that there is some self-perpetuated failure, somewhere, where a Democrat can stand on as a soap box to remind us as to how badly we need Democrats. Take any time, place, or date and just change the crisis, and there is always one present. The pathetic state government could have an infinite amount of cash flow and would still need more money and never touch the $100-$150 billion dollars in short- and long-term debt along with unfunded liabilities looming over the state like a tarpaulin. For a crisis must be created. It never ends.
As the 47th President of the United States Donald J. Trump is causing a whirlwind of national opportunity and enthusiasm in word, action, thought and vision, you can set your watch to Connecticut Democrats manufacturing yet another crisis in response to that . A new and continuing crisis is the supposed lack of "affordable" food in the state. Due to the cratered Connecticut economy and the lack of industry and leadership, many families with school aged children can't afford food, thus the state and town must provide free/low-cost breakfasts/snacks/lunches. The food in theory should be "nutritional" and be healthy. Apparently Connecticut has been receiving federal funds through a Biden-era program; the “Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program” and the “Local Food for Schools Program” which paid schools and food banks to buy "healthier" food options from local farmers (https://www.ams.usda.gov/selling-food-to-usda/lfs). This program apparently has its roots from Covid-19 funding and is being cut by the Trump Administration since the pandemic is over and the economy should be able to function without it given normal circumstances. This is normal thinking. But when you are a beggarly, welfare-dependent state like Connecticut, you depend on government assistance as a way of life. You know nothing different and you do not care to learn anything different.
Connecticut is typically the lead participant of free money programs and its never-ending giving/redistribution of Taxpayers monies. Connecticut's Covid-19 crisis was intentionally prolonged in order to receive more "free" money to get and spend. But what happens when that money gets cut off as in this case? It is the usual rhetoric and disgust as far as the cuts are concerned. Senator Chris Murphy stated: "most people who depend on food assistance in Connecticut work, adding that stagnant wages are not high enough to help them pay the bills...By ending these two programs, all you’re doing is hurting farmers and jeopardizing the food security of our families,” Murphy said. “These programs don’t save big amounts of money for the federal government; they don’t balance the budget.” (https://ctmirror.org/2025/03/17/ct-schools-food-banks-local-farms/) It is inarguable that any savings would help balance the budget and lower the country’s $36 Trillion-dollar National Debt. Not to be outdone in crying the poor mouth, Senator Richard Blumenthal chimed in: "And while the pandemic exacerbated food insecurity across the U.S., (multi-millionaire Vietnam Combat Veteran) Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., argued that the White House is “taking the food off the table from working families so that the ultra-wealthy can have tax cuts.” (https://ctmirror.org/2025/03/17/ct-schools-food-banks-local-farms/) Can Senator Blumenthal directly trace the cuts in this program's funding with "Wealthy...tax cuts"? I find it hard to draw this correlation between the two, especially with a $36 Trillion-dollar National Debt. And wouldn’t job creation be the result of lowered taxes providing more free cash for spending? But again, these two fiscally incoherent Senators have been huffing and puffing for years and offer no solutions to our $36 Trillion-dollar National Debt and or the massive problems of the people they supposedly represent with affording food in Connecticut, other than to continually begging Washington.
Perhaps we can find some hope and perspective from the nonprofit and agency heads across the state! Like Jason Jakubowski, President and CEO of Connecticut Foodshare, whose last known salary was $291,114, other compensation of $54,529 and total compensation is $345,643 (https://givefreely.com/charity-directory/nonprofit/ein-061063025/)."Connecticut Foodshare was one of the largest participants in the program that had received about $3 million over the past few years. The group was set to receive another $1 million before the (pandemic) initiative was terminated." (https://ctmirror.org/2025/03/17/ct-schools-food-banks-local-farms/). One may wonder why Jakubowski is paid so much to "run" this nonprofit? Comparable private-sector executives with much greater responsibility and managerial accountability can look forward to half of his salary. His salary and those of his administrative staff if decreased, could be used to help feed people. But why do so many people in Connecticut need food assistance? Is it the excessively inflated cost of living due to high state and local taxes, high housing costs, high transportation costs, high insurance costs due to high crime rates and high electric costs? Does the bloated and politically connected state-run government contribute to the nanny state that distorts and destroys Connecticut's free market economy along with the state's affordability to live? Wasn't the above equilibrium minimum wage and state paid health/family leave insurance passed by Democrat legislative geniuses going to solve most of the state's affordability issues? And wasn’t taxing/taxing more the "rich" through the Utopian state income tax going to resolve once and for all the state's affordability issues so people could buy food on their own? Why is this not happening? And why has the economic gap between the Connecticut state government, its state employees, and its programs fail year-in and year-out to resolve these pressing economic and social problems over the past 35 years? Just look at the costs of Connecticut's state government for salaries, benefits and pensions compared to the rest of the population that is not connected to government.
But to be fair, Connecticut does have a vision for economic growth and job development! There is a Connecticut Department of Economic Development! (“DECD”). The DECD serves officially as the state's primary agency for fostering economic growth and community development and is supposedly tasked with a broad mandate that includes economic development, housing, community development, transportation, education, and arts and culture. Its mission is supposedly to strengthen Connecticut’s economy by supporting businesses, promoting tourism, and fostering vibrant communities. The DECD employs approximately 100 full-time staff members. Daniel H. O'Keefe has been the commissioner of DECD since November 2023, earns more than his predecessor's $215,000 annual salary. However regardless of the bulbous spending of the DECD, Connecticut continually ranks last or near last in any reputable state poll comparing economic viability between states. A real economic development agency would be creating a business-favorable and job creating environment as opposed to consuming and wasting taxpayer dollars with little to no aggregate results. In fact, it is certainly a safe statement to say that the economic ranking of Connecticut would not be changed by one percentage point should the entire failed DECD model be dissolved and the funding expended be used to feed the hungry. This of course would not be the right answer. But neither is the continued wasting of tax dollars by crisis-driven leaders for little reason along with no vision or plan for real economic incentive and job growth.