Connecticut Republican Party: The Epitome of Dysfunction

If press reports are accurate, the CTGOP
could set a new fashion style in 2014
before this is over

Well, you knew this was coming, didn't you?

Before we begin, let's get one thing straight - for years now, and in these very pages, The King has warned the Connecticut Republican Party of it's endless flirtation with calamity and corruption.  If the last two months of full mainstream press exposure hasn't convinced readers that there's a cancer crippling our Party than nothing else will.

Even liberals agree that Governor Dan Malloy and the Democrat-owned legislature have done an exceedingly poor job of handling our economy.  For years, Democrats have successfully chased businesses and jobs away through regulation and tax increases, raised spending to record levels, and turned Connecticut into little more than a social experiment laboratory - pushing the envelope every session to the point where social norms are nearly unrecognizable to the average Nutmegger (legalizing transgender bathrooms, ending the death penalty for murderers, forcing Common Core standards on children, and eroding first and second amendment rights; even Republicans admit that last month's marginal victory over liberals on assisted suicide may be only a temporary victory - as the devil reassesses and regroups, and plots and waits for the next round).

But believe it or not, the problem - or more specifically our problem - isn't with the Democrats. They're going to be what they've always been  - liberal, intrusive, and progressive to the point of madness. And it's not like they have anyone standing in their way to challenge them, or point out their flaws.

If Jerry Labriola were a UConn basketball
player, he'd be "self-checked"

The problem lies with the CTGOP which over the last 10 years has become the epitome of dysfunction. Our current chairman - Jerry Labriola, Jr. hasn't the foggiest idea of what he's doing - anywhere or at any time. Instead of rallying troops from the front like a leader, he's relegated himself to a whispering ghost who nobody actually sees or hears; many of our own candidates can't even pick him out of a crowd (I've actually witnessed this first-hand).

Labriola rarely does television appearances (like he should), and you can count the number of press releases that he's produced over the course of his chairmanship on one, maybe two hands. Jerry is persona-non-grata so much so that Democrat opposition leader Nancy DiNardo has been able to go on vacation mode since Labriola's took office. Aside from a few canned paragraphs he might issue from time to time, she never worries about pressure from a guy who'd much rather spend his evenings in a smoky hotel lounge at his keyboard pretending he's Stevie Wonder.

Oh, he'll tell you he does a lot behind the scenes - but that's the role of the Treasurer, or Secretary, or the Party Twitterina - and not the role of the Party Chairman.  And he does get it, folks.  It's just that he just doesn't want to do the real work.  And you can see that a minimalist effort reaps minimalist results.

I think the final straw came for The King this week when he described recently indicted villains Lisa and Brian Foley as "good friends" who'm he hopes can put this "unfortunate episode" behind them.  Unfortunate episode? Behind them? Really? He certainly wasn't good friends when he was a willing accomplice to help push Andrew Roraback over the line to defeat Lisa Wilson-Foley at the 2012 State Convention. Talk about revisionist history!

Look, Jerry Labriola is a fabulous family man, a good coach, and a decent person. Deep down he probably cares about winning, but it's just that when it comes to leadership -  he's inept. And for those of you who want to make poor Jerry out to be just another victim of this blog - Save it!  Between the Healy years and the Labriola years - there's no where to go but up.  Our last two Chairmen have marginalized our brand to the point where it is unrecognizable to the electorate. We are in the game to win elections, and our Party's record is dismal.

Moreover, Connecticut Republicans have become so irrelevant to the Republican National Committee that Connecticut Republicans had to create a volunteer phone bank to beg local RTC Chairmen for money just to purchase Mitt Romney signs - I think that tells you that there's something seriously wrong.

If Jerry Labriola were a product in store; you'd agree that he didn't come as advertised.  He's not suited for the Chairman role. The CTGOP needs a strong leader who is going to lead from the front, set the tone, and work to coordinate political activity on a statewide basis.

And someone please tell the CTGOP to stop bragging about fundraising totals over Twitter. While we appreciate the hard work and effort, it gives everyone the impression that the CTGOP Headquarters is oblivious to the current crisis.  Few people are going to be distracted by Yea-Rah-Rah-Sis-Boom-Bah,  As someone wrote in a email to The King, "What the F--- is wrong with these people?"

It's hard to explain to people who are probably well-meaning that success isn't determined by how many dollars you raise, or by the number of shots you can do at the bar - but rather but by how many Republican seats you win

Bottom Line:  For the good of the Connecticut Republican Party, Jerry Labriola, Jr. must resign.  And a visible, activist Chairman must be elected in his place immediately following the Prescott-Bush Dinner. State Central must cast a vote of no confidence, or be willing to accept the squandering of limited funds, and the consequence of further electoral defeat in 2014.

If Republicans want to rebuild our brand, and confidence with voters we need to make a few more things happen:

1. Fire Jerry Labriola, Jr. - and most of the CTGOP officer corps (they are no better than he is). Term limits for the same old faces might make way for new ideas, and a new approach.
2. Publicly condemn those Republican individuals who have been indicted, or found an accessory to political improprieties and crimes.  Refusing to do so implies approval of their actions and pursuit of the status quo. And the media, and our opponents have already taken note of the CTGOPs hunker down strategy, and will exploit this fact for all the mileage they can get out of it.

   

   There aren't enough of these to pass out to everyone in an
   elected or leadership position in the Connecticut Republican
   Party. Time to end CTGOP corruption before things get worse 

   
   
3. Adopt a more conservative platform and promote conservative candidates - which was once the key to Republican victories in Connecticut before it became fashionable to emulate Democrats on both fiscal and social issues. Democrat-lite is a sure way to guarantee Democrat majorities for the next 100 years.
4. Stop promoting corrupt former Republican candidates, elected officials and party chairmen to serve as CTGOP spokesmen (and women) - for they have comprised our position, ethics, political process, and integrity.  Every time Governor Rowland squawks on radio, or Chris Healy makes sarcastic comments on Capitol Report, Republicans want to puke. An ex-felon and a failed chairman are the last people we want to take advice from (and the latter couldn't even find a Republican attorney to defend his pathetic ass - guess there were none available - so much for keeping business in the family).  The Curse of Chris Healy is alive and well.
5. Discourage candidates from hiring long-time Party hacks with failed win-loss records from managing Republican campaigns. It's frankly embarrassing how some of our profiteers weasel their way onto campaigns promising everything and delivering nothing!
6. Stop relying on candidates to build the Party apparatus. Create a state-wide organization to  build the brand, and coordinate activities, and formulate a get-out-the-vote campaign.  Today, there is nothing in place!
7. Require all candidates to show up for televised debates. Again real leaders don't cower out of fear of saying the wrong thing, or believing they're not quick enough on their feet to debate publicly with members of their own Party. It's kind of pathetic if you think about it!
8. Work to end the wasteful and rigged State Convention Process and move to a direct primary. Think of all the money we could be saving while the State GOP boozes it up at Mohegan Sun. Donors should think about that when they get mailers asking members to fork over $30/$50/$100 a pop.
9. End Radio Silence! Put the Democrats on the defense! With a record like theirs we should have a field day. Daily emails, tweets, press releases, Facebook posts, mailers, etc. Make Nancy Dinardo sweat!
10. Condemn fringe candidates like Martha Dean who think Sandy Hook is a hoax and think there's an NSA Agent hiding behind every tree. This Party has a hard enough time operating in the real world without public candidates venturing into fantasy and delusion.  It's hard to quantify the level of anger the public feels when a Sandy Hook Truther who wants to train kids to fire guns in school takes to a Mic. (Oh, and Chris Healy's quasi-endorsement of her entrance into the race tells the rest of us that he's ready to be put out to pasture, or take his place at Club-Fed. Get Out! Funny, the political genius didn't mention that Dean has no money and only a few Facebook advocates who surf the web and sit around watching TV in their sweatpants)
11. Stop using the Prescott-Bush award dinner as a platform to prop up billionaire donors, and failed candidates who campaign with the opposition President, or tries to take selfies with the enemy, or does anything else that serves to promote our disgraceful big-government, anti-Republican President. 

Martha Dean and her flying monkeys 

are doing permanent damage to the Connecticut 

Republican Party; she's tearing apart the 

conservative wing for personal gain and ego

Wicked is the best way to describe this one!

It's been said so many times before - when it comes to the Connecticut Republican Party - we are our own worst enemy. The best thing we can do is cut our losses by removing our poor leadership, change direction, and start anew.  Do what's necessary, or anticipate that 2014 will be another banner year for Dan Malloy and his Democrat henchmen. And trust me - Republicans, Democrats, and Independents deserve a viable option for their families, their businesses and themselves - and it's up to Republicans to deliver that option.

I AM

THE KING

Republicans Give McMahon Fake Fairytale Ending

How many disasters can we create in a month?

Last week Republican insiders were angered to read the headline that federal agents were swarming the capitol city, interrogating members for evidence that CTGOP officials directed candidates to hire a Clearwater, Florida direct mail and printing firm to the tune of nearly $2 million dollars with an alleged kickback scheme.  As if that wasn't bad enough, we heard the news that the Feds are working with Brian "The Rat" Foley (chief conspirator of the Lisa-Wilson Foley-Rowland-Healy gang) to help return ex-Governor John G. Rowland to The Big House.  The timing of these scandals couldn't be worse - as they come on the heels of Republican Candidate Tom Foley launching his gubernatorial bid by leveling ethics charges at Governor Dan Malloy's administration.  Now that strategy looks to be a hard-sell with the CTGOP mired in it's own mega-controversy.

All of this negative press is very frustrating given that Republican gubernatorial candidates had just finally begun to get their message out to eager constituents.  Well, at least there was some good news - as it turned out - neither John Rowland nor Lisa Wilson-Foley were going to be roasted recipients of this year's Prescott Bush Award.  For that would have almost been worth paying the outrageous $250 a head ticket to attend that media circus.

Knowing full well that two of the CTGOPs biggest stars were about to go Super-Nova, Chairman Jerry Labriola, Jr. and his near-sighted group of politicos decided to chose Connecticut's least-effective candidate - Linda McMahon to receive the Connecticut Republican Party's highest honor.  When announced, Republicans statewide shook their collective heads in unison, screaming: "Do we ever learn from our mistakes?"

The CTGOP has become a lot like Disney's Dumbo Ride:
It goes round and round and never manages to get anywhere

With many of the Party faithful calling for his head - Chairman Labriola, Jr. was quick to defend his selection.  In a rare statement to the press, he wrote:

"Linda McMahon has shown tremendous leadership, both as a candidate herself and as a tireless advocate for Republicans at all levels of local, state and federal government,” Labriola said. “Her experience creating, building and running a business has helped shine a light on the need for government to help, not hinder, the creation of jobs in order to help our state and our economy prosper.” 

Leave it to Jerry Labriola, Jr. and CTGOP to completely rewrite the historical fact.  The truth is that Linda McMahon only advocated for Republican Candidates and Town Committees which endorsed her candidacy over both Rob Simmons, and Christopher Shays.  Anyone else who was found supporting her opposition, or playing neutral, was isolated, ridiculed and harshly, and personally attacked from the word "go".  The only thing "tireless" about Linda McMahon was her campaign for self-promotion, and desire for adulation from her supporters who were all too unwilling to see both campaigns for what they were - pure political calamity; void of content, ideology, or ideas.  Her inability to communicate specific solutions on any issue during her many interviews and debates was enough to expose her candidacy for what it was - shallow theatre.

Moreover, it's very hard for us lifelong Republicans to watch our Chairman (who was punished by McMahon and her minions for quietly, but openly supporting her primary opponents) crawl on all fours, beg her forgiveness, and reward her after she's had a history of donating to Democrats, and spent millions of dollars on door hangers, mailers, and television commercials encouraging voter turnout for Barack Obama.  How humiliating for Labriola!  How humiliating for  Connecticut Republicans! Only the seal-clapping elite at CTGOP Headquarters would both excuse wholesale betrayal of our Republican Presidential Candidate, and then kiss her arse after the fact.  Has the Connecticut Republican Party lost all it's self-respect?

As for Labriola's comments regarding her business - Republicans have long established that the wrestling business it's not the kind of pro-family, pro-traditional values organization which our own GOP brand claims to champion.  It was tough seeing some activists at the Family Institute of Connecticut endorse a candidate who made her millions promoting a raunchy, anything goes mentality which the FIC purports to fight against. Based on the past two campaign cycles, its hard to determine if it was - as Labriola suggests - a shining light that Linda was waving, or a lit fuse of dynamite which twice annihilated our GOP Senate hopes, and destroyed the Party under-ticket.  If there's something the CTGOP does very well - it's that it has a habit of repeatedly rewarding failure.

It will take a cast of characters to explain how McMahon earned this award

Party insiders agree that handing the Prescott Bush Award to McMahon is pay-off for Linda's personal contribution of thousands, and thousands, and thousands of dollars to rescue CTGOP coffers from complete bankruptcy.  It's long been established that RTCs, delegates, state central members, convention votes, and now even awards can be indirectly purchased by those with the deepest pockets (Tom Foley's Convention is likely next). And sadly, now the effects of behind-the-curtain party corruption has been brought to public light; exposing that the CTGOPs internal battle with ethics is more than just a matter of 'inside baseball'.   

Handing the Prescott Bush Award to Linda McMahon is wrong, but its just another chapter in the CTGOPs endless identity crisis. The King supposes that this crime may seem minor when compared with FBI agents turning over Republican desks, or ex-cons acting as head of Party from the WTIC broadcast booth while our Chairman goes AWOL. At the end of the day, the problem for the Connecticut Republican Party is that neither principle, integrity or elections can be bought.  Until that lesson is learned, and we clean up our own house - it's very unlikely that the public will see Republicans as a viable option now or in the near future.

I AM 

THE KING

Retro Recap of the August 14 Primary; What Next?

I realize that it’s been several weeks since the August 14 Primary. And my view at the time was that there wasn’t a sense of urgency to publish a post about the outcome – which was always predictable, offering few, if any surprises, whatsoever. I also believed that there wasn’t much of a reason to go bonkers; pounding the daylights out of our opponents given that the die was cast perhaps as early as June (maybe much earlier in some races). It’s not that I gave up, but with summer as short as it is, I believed that time was better spent enjoying the great weather and company of good friends rather than getting all wound up and frazzled about a fleet of run-away trains headed over the cliff. Looking at it from purely a mathematical perspective, the delta between the victors and the defeated proves my thinking right. There were no close outcomes; instead, lambs were put to the slaughter in every race.

Of course, I knew I would eventually publish something. I drafted an early version of this post, shelved it for over a week under the guise of a cooling off period, with the plan to come back later on to modify it - had my opinions changed. I figured why not let the smoke settle a bit before pouring gas on a blazing fire. I expect that as usual my views will clash with conventional wisdom and the thinking of CTGOP Party hacks, and that’s perfectly fine. I continue to write what people think and seem to be afraid to say, and more often than not - I predict the outcome long before it happens. For me it’s not about “being right”, as much as it’s about praying that one day the CTGOP will take the extraordinary step of altering its usual self-destructive course, and make the voters (a.k.a. taxpayers) winners again. From the looks of things, it’s not likely now or in the future. But anyway… buckle up, here we go….

With only one exception, primary night’s results were certainly not all that unexpected. Everything that you’ve ever known about politics came true – moderates win when conservatives split their votes, and television ads and print media trump digital-free grassroots campaigning - even when aided by big-time endorsements. In truth, the only bright spot for Connecticut’s badly fractured Republican Party, was watching Lisa Wilson-Foley’s campaign crash and burn after months of nasty campaigning and personal attacks by her surrogates on (former) friends, and foes. If there was any surprise, it might have been the fact that no one expected Speaker Chris Donovan to become embroiled in a massive scandal which all but resulted in Elizabeth Esty getting the Democrat nomination (Update: as of this writing bitter Donovan has decided to withdraw from the Working Families Party line). Esty’s win is a plus for Republicans because she harbors some extreme views, which enough to make even the most moderate Republican like Andrew Roraback look appealing to those in the middle, and hopefully to the right (a future post is in the works on that point!). Whether Roraback can survive the long negative shadow cast by Linda McMahon being atop of ticket is yet to be determined. But it certainly won’t help.

If you don’t want to read the rest of the detail below, I can save you some time. In November, there will be few surprises here in Connecticut. While I still believe National Republicans will muster enough voter dissatisfaction to remove an ineffective and arrogant Barack Obama, we will be likely beaten across the board here in the Nutmeg State. And to make matters worse, the results of the U.S. Senate Race primary have all but guaranteed that Mitt Romney will avoid Connecticut. Connecticut will become the ultimate flyover state thanks to Linda McMahon, a fact brought to you by our Connecticut Republican State Central Membership and many of our RTC officers – who played their parts well in McMahon’s scripted storyline - it’s unfortunate for all of us [Republicans] that the song and dance we are about to encounter will result in a sorrowful ending.

Shays v McMahon

Now I’m not going to get into a long diatribe about what went wrong with the Shays campaign; I could easily write six volumes. But I’ll point out a few things that clearly helped destroy his campaign from the start – before it ever really got going (that’s if it ever got going at all). I like and admire Chris Shays even though he’s far more liberal on several issues than I am, but I respect his service, and the manner in which he conducted himself during his tenure in Congress. I remain steadfast in the belief that he was our best and only chance of a Republican winning a U.S. Senate Seat for decades to come. Of course, none of that matters now, and as we know – nice guys tend to finish last, and the disorganized and inept campaigners – dead last. When it came to the Shays campaign strategy, you almost had the sense that he was doomed from the very start. What struck me most was that he had already been briefed about the McMahon strategy first hand by her last opponent Rob Simmons. Simmons had warned Shays repeatedly about what to expect, and what was required to beat his ambiguous foe. Shays seemed to ignore all counsel, and he ran his campaign as if it were a local contest for State Rep; he rarely ventured out of his home district, and when he did, he appeared uninterested and tired, as if he was forced to do so.

"All I wanted was my F*&^%ing Country Back, You Wrestling *&^?!" Got it??!!

I don’t know when Shays made his decision to run. But from all signs, the whole misadventure appears to have been a last minute deal. After being ahead of McMahon in the Quinnipiac public opinion poll in February, he walked into a hostile CT State Convention and took a drumming that was hard to swallow. The problem was that the majority of convention delegates and town committees had been bought off months in advance; the Convention was simply the final act of a well-orchestrated show by the McMahon team. Worse, McMahon’s surrogates worked hard to humiliate Shays by working the floor to turn the remaining delegates to their side for nearly an hour after the first vote was taken (a classless and unforgiveable act) in order to try and reach the three-fourths threshold, and force him to collect signatures to ballot. After that fateful night, everything turned south, and Shays never rebounded.

Shays enlisted the help of a fundraising outfit, PierceZappi to help him raise funds, and plainly speaking, they fell flat on their rears. Nice people, but clearly exceedingly poor results. Complaints have circulated that the mixing of candidate lists may have resulted in fewer dollars raised by Shays (and more by other candidates they were working for). This compounded Shays’ problem since he didn’t have the capital to produce mailers, campaign signs, and most importantly - run televisions commercials to promote his public recognition. Some estimates were that to every one sign of Shays, Linda McMahon had 200. On television, he was persona non grata. In the final analysis, Linda McMahon’s job was made much easier by the fact that she was running against a ghost. This was far more than her campaign could have ever hoped for. Not even fundraising visits by Republican Strategist Carl Rove, or a public snub of McMahon by Mitt Romney in Hartford helped booster Shays.

It’s clear that the Shays campaign didn’t know how to use the weapons they had at their disposal until the last few hours of the campaign when they put out a few robo-calls – of course, by then - it was too late. Losing by 27% is one thing, but gaining only 27% of the vote is a far more shameful a result than could ever be imagined. Conspiracy theorists have already begun to cast Campaign Manager Matt Wylie and his team as insiders paid by Linda to run his campaign into the ground citing that no-one person, or one team could be this incompetent. Indeed. Whatever the case may be, smart candidates won’t be reaching out to this crew if they do their homework. Effort is Admirable, Achievement is valuable. In this case, both components are missing.

By late July there wasn’t much else that could be done. Unfortunately, there are quite a few CTGOP leaders, like Larry Cafero and John McKinney who stuck their necks out and put their reputations on the line to help Chris Shays. It must have been horrific for these guys to watch events unfold. They must have been saying, “What the F-- is he doing?” - Because I know that’s what I was saying. From my perspective, I could see the writing on the wall in early June. And the Quinnipiac poll which he had earlier been touting as the be-all-end-all, flipped direction in her favor the second time around. It was as if an Australian Boomerang had come back around and clocked him square in the head. Live by the polls, die by the polls – Shays had painted himself into a corner of defeat.

Shays performances in the debates were ok; he got better as time went on, but of course time wasn’t on his side. My view is that the debates didn’t help either him or her, but they certainly helped Chris Murphy and the Democrats. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I was taunted about “your likely nominee” from my light-hearted friends on the left. Everyone watching them could see exactly how shallow a candidate Linda McMahon truly is – rehearsed, unknowledgeable, static, boring, and incompetent. None of that will change now that August 14th has passed. And they don’t make the kind of Cliff Notes which will enable her to cram or absorb twenty volumes worth of basic understanding of economics, public policy or Government functions. If you haven’t figured it out by now - her avoidance of newspaper editorial boards wasn’t due to scheduling conflicts, it was because for someone like Linda – who doesn’t know anything – they are simply an intellectual death trap. Well, guess what? – She won’t get to pull the same trick in the coming months. And since she’s pretty much declared war on the media, it’s bound to become very interesting soon enough.

Lastly, I was disappointed to see Chris Shays jump onto Linda’s bandwagon so quickly and put out a press release saying he’d vote for her and even work for her in the November Election. Not that I expected him to show sour grapes either. So I have to surmise that he got a pretty sweet deal from her - negotiated in advance - to cover his campaign debt, or he completely lost heart and soul. At one point in the campaign he said he wouldn’t support or vote for her because of some of the campaign tactics she had used against him. To many Chris Shays supporters, his quick act of contrition might have earned him a few temporary points with McMahon supporters, but to his own supporters who rooted him on, and worked their arses off for him – he left them all feeling rather empty. He could have at least looked respectable by waiting a few days before getting down on his hands and knees and bowing before her. Rushing out to make that announcement made him look weak, and unprincipled. It was a sad final moment on a long and pointless campaign.

Linda McMahon never stopped campaigning from the moment she was defeated by Richard Blumenthal. What she lacks in policy knowledge, personality, and charisma, she makes up for in being able to follow a carefully crafted script; part of her trade, of course. The problem is just that those scripts don’t work against a population that is already in large part suspect of you, and the industry in which you made your millions from. You can’t undo a lifetime of hypocrisy; it’s just not going to happen.

Right or wrong, Linda McMahon and her cronies deserve credit for formulating the solid strategy she needed to win the nomination: direct cash and indirect payments to Town Committees, and influential Individuals, including the buying of delegates, and bankrolling supporters help win the ground war. All of this helped her steamroll her lifeless opponent. The question is now what? The public can’t be bribed or bought, and are far more cynical of Republicans, especially fake ones at that. An eager media can’t wait to unleash their stored archive of unprinted documents, and stories about Mrs. McMahon, her bankruptcy, and her industry. What will be most interesting will be watching how much heat CTGOP Party officials will be willing to take by acting as human shields for Linda McMahon, which could lead to their own demise (particularly those who are in their own close races). Will John McKinney and Larry Cafero come running to her aid when the heat gets turned up in September? Will Busway Joe stick his neck out now that the primary is over? Or will they all waive from a distance, running in the opposite direction – getting as far away from her as possible? I suspect that those in safe districts will reap the mutual benefit of making public appearances with her, and those in swing districts will likely run for cover.

Looking ahead to next year, the larger question will be what will happen to Chairman Jerry Labriola, Jr, and the State Party after November’s dismal results. While those pages are yet to be written, it’s likely to be another internal bloodbath between the money-takers and the see, I told you so reformers. And from Labriola’s perspective, he’ll have to decide if it’s worth his time and energy to preside over the fallout when the majority of those leaders responsible for the conundrum will likely remain in power, and continue their backstabbing ways, undermining his every move. At this pooint, The CTGOP Chairman’s Position a double-edged sword that only a fool would grab twice!

One has to feel for Chairman Labriola, Jr. who won’t have to look very far to find the unappealing elephant in the room. Everyone in the State Party recognizes that on her best day, Linda McMahon will pull in the high 30s simply because her negatives are so extremely high. There is no way to turn around her public image, because there is no way to undo her past. When confronted with questions about her Pro Wrestling background, she can only utter that she’s proud of the Company she’s created, but when you get to the details about what that company promotes, she either pretends she didn’t hear the question, or changes the subject. Statistics about your opponent’s attendance record will only get you so far – particularly when you’re Linda McMahon. It’s an albatross around your neck to be able to claim some level of success, and then be unable to talk about it to curious public, or editorial board. Check and mate!

Fifth Congressional District

"Don't worry I'll fix ya a strong one to ease the pain!"

The attacks on real estate baron Mark Greenberg, orchestrated by ex-Chairman Chris Healy, will go down in the annals of CTGOP history as one of the most repugnant, and hateful campaigns of all time. Over two full weeks after Primary Day, people are still talking about the Wilson-Foley team’s effort to character-assassinate Greenberg in way considered unforgiveable by any reasonable standard (distributing libelous documents to thousands of homes in the Fifth Congressional District). Mark Greenberg didn't deserve that. And it's not "just politics"; it's personal and simply unacceptable.

Lisa Wilson-Foley has damaged the Republican brand to the Fifth Congressional District to the point where the winning candidate, Andrew Roraback, will need to work overtime to have a chance of defeating Democrat Elizabeth Esty in November. Karma has a way of circling back and clobbering those most deserving; a poor second to last place finish could be just the start if more turns up on her fraudulent business front. And as The King has learned, legal proceedings could be in the works if time doesn’t heal old wounds. We’ll have to see about that one – after the November election.  Better open up that checkbook, kid. In the meantime, we can enjoy the fact that Old Chris Healy has extended his record of defeat. Given the mathematics, The Curse of Chris Healy may now rival the Curse of the Bambino. Well at least you have to give Healy credit for at least one thing – he’s consistent.

What went wrong for Wilson-Foley? Everything. To be honest, those running her campaign (including her dimwitted husband) became preoccupied with side issues – like this blog, for example – and wasting valuable time and resources dedicated to attacking not only candidates, but going as far as to attack supporters of opposition candidates. What a pathetic group of failures at that pay rate. The simple fact is that Wilson-Foley’s dirty campaign schemes got her nowhere, and destroyed her chances of winning anything. Once she started down that road, she initiated a full scale war between all Republicans in the District – a war she lost badly. After failing badly, she announced that this would be the last campaign she would partake in – good, and take that media glutton Healy with you. He’s a menace. And as long as he continues to hang around, he’ll the best hope Democrats have of retaining Connecticut - for the next fifty years.

Lisa Wilson-Foley: The King accepts your white flag of surrender. Now Go! Just Go! Stop blaming Mike Clark, and Mark Greenburg. And take Fat Maria with you before she stuffs herself to death!

So whatever comes next ought to be somewhat interesting. The King sees an even matchup between Democrat Elizabeth Esty (Pipi Longstocking) v Andrew Roraback (Howdy Doody). It’s a battle made ripe for the heart and soul of the sleepy 5th District. I sort of liked the idea of Speaker Chris Donovan hanging around on the Working Families Party line and making life hellish for Elizabeth Longstocking. But as predicted any traitorous thinking of Donovan’s didn't last long – for Democrats almost always find a way to eventually work together while CT Republicans always find ways to hold grudges against each other for decades. Yep, that’s one of the negatives of having do or die principles – you stick by them regardless of whether they kill you or not.

It's Elizabeth "Pipi Longstocking" Esty vs Andrew "Howdy Doody" Roraback
in CT-5

Second Congressional District

To be honest, I have more concerns about the potential for an embarrassing campaign on behalf of Republican. Its The King’s View that the Paul Formica who dazzled and shined early on has seemingly fallen flat. Not long before the vote, there was YouTube video of a debate between Cap'n Paul and his maniacal opponent Daria Novak in which – to her credit – Novak obliterated Formica on every question for nearly an hour. The simple fact is that either you know the material or you don’t. Cable Access is reported to have continued to run the debate throughout CT-2 which may have a negative impact on Formica’s initial impressions on those who don’t know him. Simple case in point that that you have to appear to at least have capacity to formulate coherent answers to simple policy questions (Note to Formica: The correct answer on the threat question would have included North Korea and other nation states which possess either a nuclear arms program or nuclear arms – not just Iran). In all honesty, one would have expected a book-smart Novak - with her uncanny nack for being able to memorize and use the works of orthers - to have done quite well in a one-on-one contest, but one would have also expected a veteran politician like Formica to have waged an even fight in front of a televised audience.




Cap'n Paul Formica is going to have to step up his game in the next round!
(And make Porky Jenkins walk the plank!)

Word to The King is that there is a feeling of dread based on these results given that Formica will be forced to debate a clever and steady Joe Courtney. Of course, there is always time for Cap'n Paul to learn from his mistakes, so we’ll be hopeful that he’ll review his performance in depth and right the ship to get ready for the next series of debates. If there is any district in the state that needs a Republican fighting for them – it’s got to be the Congressional Second. On the way to the beach, you can see it’s beginning to look the way Rhode Island used to look ten years ago – in decay and with dozens of boarded up businesses along the route. Even Linda McMahon won’t go down there – probably afraid to get her limousine dirty or something.

Of final note, The King is dismayed to learn that Porky Jenkins is holding Formica's purse strings.  Further examination of that decision may be in order.  If there is anyone who might give the Democrats false claim that Republicans have a war on women merit, it could be this character.  I'll leave that one alone for now.  It just irks me to see our Party's worst creatures weasel their way into places where they don't belong.  What a shame!  This isn't a reflection on Paul Formica, its a reflection on his lack of judgement.

What’s next?

Everyone constantly asks “King, when push comes to shove, will you vote for Linda McMahon in November?” If I answered that question about two weeks ago, I might have said “No” which is why I wanted to wait a few weeks before firing off an article that I might regret later on. So my answer now is “I’m not sure. We will wait to see what happens.” It’s pretty clear to all concerned that I’m not particularly fond of Mrs. McMahon. But I’m not a fan of Chris Murphy either. Linda is an embarrassment to my Party, and I don’t like the fact that she turned my State Party into both a laughing stock, and the Party of Patronage and Payoffs.

That being said, it’s very hard to simply say don’t vote for her because she’s corrupt – both candidates are corrupt creeps in my book – not one different from the other on either side of the fence. If it came down to a swing vote that would mean ending ObamaCare, and I could be guaranteed McMahon wouldn’t go back on her word, I might be inclined to vote for her. The problem is that she doesn’t seem to hold convictions on anything, and she won’t tell us where she stands specifically on most issues. Her previous donations to Democrats, and her ambiguous stance on most issues casts a shadow of doubt that she would vote any differently than opposition Democrats on key issues; this point still bothers me. Remember that she went out of her way to say that she thought Richard Blumenthal would be a great guy to work with? Well, he’s on the other side, remember?

Then you have to wonder where there are other matters where a Party line vote “yeah” or “nay” could mean the difference between a good Republican Bill passing or a bad Democrat Bill failing, and you also have to wonder if Linda would barter for her own power-play as a hold-out centrist, or if she would actually tow the Republican line. Make no mistake – I had questions about Chris Shays in such cases as well, but he would have been Republican-strong on economic and foreign policy matters while letting social issues slide (and in that case he’s no different than Linda McMahon who is not less liberal than Shays on these matters).

Some have urged me to support a third party candidate, but that’s not my cup of tea. I don’t believe in protest votes; it’s just not in my nature to waste my vote supporting someone who I disagree with 50% of the time to get back at someone I disagree with only 30% of the time. Such thinking is a bit moronic if you ask me as it sort of defeats the purpose. I also don’t believe I need to be the one to “Teach the Party a Lesson”. I can appreciate that line of thinking by some of you, but I think the General Public will do just that in November when Linda isn’t elected. If CTGOP loses big with her atop of ticket, there will be plenty of people coming out of the woodwork screaming “I told you so.” And they will call for Chairman Labriola’s and everyone’s head from their RTC Chairman to the lowly phone banker – and it will likely result in little change because most of these people are like unmovable concrete fixtures – so utterly convinced of their own correctness that they couldn’t be persuaded to any other course of action even if given the opportunity to go back in time and change it. Sometimes I think we should change the CTGOP logo to a mule because it certainly fits our nature perfectly.

It’s funny watching the massive logo atop of the Republican National Convention which reads in large letters, “We Can Change It” and how such a simple slogan carries so much weight in the minds of our national movement to rid ourselves of Barack Obama. Yet if given the chance to establish a moto in Connecticut, our CTGOP slogan would read, “We Can’t Do That!”  because any new and bright idea is DOA if it doesn’t come from one of the self-anointed, rehashed Dinosaurs who roam from campaign to campaign, year after year, and deliver us nothing but defeat, and a bag full of excuses when it’s all said and done.

Whatever people want to do on Election Day, I won’t fault you. I know many of you are discouraged and frustrated. I totally get that. I really do. But I would ask you to at least show up and support those Republicans who have earned your support and trust – whether it's Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, or local candidates running for the Statehouse, or those running in special elections where-ever they may be. There are a lot of people with R’s next to their names who aren’t rolling in c-notes like Linda McMahon or Tom Foley, these folks are on their own dime pounding the pavement every day - trying to get elected in order to eradicate the liberal infestation in Hartford which is eating away at Connecticut’s economy under Dannel Malloy and his friends. Taking your anger out on these good people because our State Party apparatus is corrupt and broken isn’t the answer. Do what you must in the booth to settle the score you need to settle, but please don’t no-show and penalize the innocent who are honestly running for office to make a difference for all of us.

Thanks for your emails and continued visits, although less frequent - there is a lot more to come.

I AM

THE KING

This original blog entry can be found at http://www.thekingsview.blogspot.com/

Disclaimer: This entry and others will be modified/updated at a future date. All entries are for the sole purpose of entertainment. This article does not imply endorsement of the candidate mentioned above, nor has this article been solicited for publication by any political candidate, campaign, or PAC.

The Arrogance of Lies and Deceit

It's getting to the point these days where it's hard to even pick up a newspaper for fear that the third or fourth shoe might drop in Connecticut's ongoing epic drama: Scandals and the Scandalous.  The problem with the whole damn thing is that this isn't your typical Reality TV show which usually ends with a rags-to-riches multi-million dollar prize winner, or the princess winding up with the prince and living happily ever after.  No, it's a real story about how Connecticut residents aren't being served by either political party - one no better than the other, and which have lost - their way, and the public confidence.  In other words, those being nominated as Connecticut's alleged best are in actuality Connecticut's very worst, and the public is getting screwed.

Now, I'm not really concerned with the Democrat Party and what happens to its collection of retreaded has-beens as they crumble in the press.  One doesn't have to look very far to see their head of Party - Governor Dannel Malloy place politics over reason when he went out of his way last month to support ex-con Ernie Newton.  Governor Malloy could have saved face and elevated his office by standing up for public decency and declaring that there isn't room anywhere in Connecticut politics for corrupt cretins like Newton.  So instead of taking the opportunity to inspire and rise above it all by preaching that crime doesn't pay, our incredible shrinking Governor got up on his high horse and declared that everyone deserves a second chance - everyone except former Republican Governor John Rowland, that is.  Could Party or Politics have played a role in such an unwavering endorsement? Oh, of course not!

Then we have Connecticut House Speaker Chris Donovan's finance scandal which continues to rock the scene and fill up our newspapers with tales of corruption and shady dealings.  Boy, what a credit to the State of  Connecticut - FBI agents showing up on doorsteps to visit our politicians still in their bathrobes while they sip lattes from their golden mugs.  How quaint. Amusing stuff to yuck up on Face The State right Brendan Sharkey? Sharkey told Dennis House this past Sunday: "Hahaha.  Well... it was a little embarrassing, because they asked about this bill, this roll your own bill.. I thought there were talking about the medical marijuana bill.. hahahaha.  Not the actual bill".  What a knee-slapping moment to share with the peanut gallery.  I mean it was so funny, I almost forgot to laugh. 

And special thanks for Themis Klarides for doing such a nice job supporting Donovan on behalf of the CTGOP, "I agree with Brendan about how we feel about Chris, his character and integrity.... a man of his word and honor."  Hey, that's great! Why don't you campaign for him in CT-5 too while you're at it?  All week long, the Democrats shut Republicans out of the legislative process and our so-called leader just kissed the rear of the guy who helped orchestrate the shut-out.  Brilliant!  Republicans are self-checked with this kind of hair-brained leadership.  Amazing!

Connecticut Democrats can take pride in turning the Legislative Office Building into a scene from CSI.  It must have been a relief for the Democrat Party's key constituents - city dwellers, to see the cops crawling all over Party bigwigs instead of them for a change.  Of course, Governor Malloy couldn't keep his big mouth shut and let due process take its course - he had to run out and defend Donovan - "guilty until proven innocent,"  barked Malloy.  Man o' Man, this guy must have been some prosecutor.  But its no surprise to see Malloy defend bad guys like Donovan and Newton, because he repeated the same act a few months ago when he supported Komisarjevsky and Hayes - albeit indirectly through elimination of the Death Penalty.

The sad thing in all of this madness is that Connecticut Republicans aren't positioned to take advantage of Democrats getting pummelled on the ropes.  And that's because we're too busy bumping Democrats from the front page with our own own dirty scandals filled with tales of corruption and dishonesty.  Or we're too busy running candidates like the well-scripted Linda McMahon who can't even talk about - let alone defend - the dirty industry that she's made her millions from - which makes her a non-starter in the first place against even the worst Democrat the opposition might field in November.

So Lisa Wilson-Foley takes center stage as the CTGOPs corrupt candidate of the year.  Lisa Wilson-Foley told the press, "This is all a distraction.  I'm focused on the issues."  Yeah, well newsflash, Babe - YOU are the distraction, and YOU are the issue!  You, Mr. Tuesday, Apple Rehab, and former Governor John Rowland.  It's sort of amazing to listen to John Rowland on WTIC these days - acting completely and utterly oblivious to all of this as he rages on against organized labor - he has some nerve.  It's like he's living in a parallel universe somewhere totally aloof to his role in helping the Wilson-Foley-Healy campaign crash and burn, and helping to create a level-playing field for Democrats in the Fifth Congressional District who should be sucking wind at this point in the game.  Can you imagine how many screeners TIC callers probably have to go through to get to The Guv?  I wouldn't be surprised if WTIC has a 4 minute delay just so they can beep out, or drop any caller who starts to go down the "wrong road" with unapproved questioning. 

A friend of mine called me the other day to taunt me over the latest Republican headlines.  He said, "King, you have to agree that your team isn't any better than our team.  And in a Blue State where Democrats usually win - you guys are screwed because the public doesn't see you as decent alternative.  They'll stick with our cronies over your upstart crooks.  And Linda McMahon - she's a real gas.  Good luck with that one. Hahaha."



"Look fellas, no commercials, but at least Chris Shays has
his plane in the air. Formica, Obstinek, you're next!"

You have to feel bad for our stealth Chairman Jerry Labriola, Jr.  Here Democrats are coming apart at the seams, yet our ex-Governor fueled by our ex-Chairman turn our Party into a totally mockery, and a non-factor.  On the one hand, you have Mrs. 38%  running around thinking she's going to be U.S. Senator, Lisa the Millionaire Barbie pretending that no part of the scandal has anything to do with her, and the rest of Republican field seems to be bouncing on and off the ground at 15 mph in their biplanes as CTGOP's worst candidates scream by in Jumbo Jets showering manure on the frustrated public below.  The whole thing is a living nightmare. 

Just to think, tonight is the eve of the one year anniversary of Jerry Labriola, Jr. announcing he was running for State Chairman - if only he had crystal ball to see what fate had in-store for him: crooks, by-offs, bribes, and self-destructing candidates.  And party insiders who were willing to disregard polls prior to the State Convention, and then later buy-into polls showing favor toward their palm-greasing benefactor.  You can't make this stuff up.  And you can't prop up the unelectable either.  It's self-fulfilling prophecy - what has happened before will happen again.  And the Pat Sullivans of the world will laugh all the way to the bank regardless of the outcome while the rest of us can only dream of what might have been.

And one final note, The Norwich Bulletin's Ray Hackett surmised in his latest piece that that neither delegates nor voters care about the WWE.  It's not that, Ray.  It really isn't that.  It's that given the overall state of our political climate in Connecticut, and the pathetic and unqualified choices voters have been given to choose from - simply put - it's that no-one cares.  And that's a tough place to be in when you're wanting to turn a Blue State partially Red after nearly 23 years.

Someone remind me why I'm Republican again?

I AM

THE KING

This original blog entry can be found at http://www.thekingsview.blogspot.com/

Disclaimer: This entry and others will be modified/updated at a future date. All entries are for the sole purpose of entertainment. This article does not imply endorsement of the candidate mentioned above, nor has this article been solicited for publication by any political candidate, campaign, or PAC

13 Questions that Lisa Wilson-Foley Must Answer / Comment on Dr. Petit's email

Here we are on the cusp of yet another CTGOP Convention.   As Republican Delegates gather their thoughts, and try to find their scruples, we thought we'd pass along one of the many emails that The King's View has received over the past 48 hours.  This particular email stuck out because the questions posed to Lisa Wilson-Foley might be just as relevant during the Primary and in the General Election (should she make it that far) as they will be this afternoon/evening when delegates decide who will be the formal nominee on behalf of 5th Congressional District Republicans.

I'm told an email was sent to various campaigns and outlets, so its possible that this information may be duplicated somewhere already, or distributed during the course of the day by other means, and venues.

The email was drafted by Mr. Philip R. Dunn, who is a member of the Farmington RTC, and was a staunch supporter of Mike Clark's candidacy until Mike took the high road earlier this week, placing Party before ego, and withdrawing his name from consideration based on a realistic appraisal of the state of his campaign.  I appreciate Mr. Dunn's willingness to allow me to share his name; he is also a delegate to the State Convention and offered that if anyone would like clarity on the questions he is asking below, he would be more that willing to discuss them in detail. 

Dunn writes: "There seems to be a “fear factor” relative to going after her [Lisa Wilson-Foley] which escapes me as the questions I have are not only fair game, but they MUST be answered before she can ever become our standard bearer and suffer the slings and arrows the Dems will toss her way in a general election."

Aptly put.  All too often we don't vet our own candidates, and wind up stuck with person who ends up dead in the water by the Fall because of a scandal that insiders knew about, but kept secret in order to propel their buddy across the nomination finish line.  This might be one the reasons that the CTGOP does so poorly in General Elections.  As Dunn sums up, if we don't vet our own, surely our enemies across the aisle will be more than happy to in October.

Here are the questions/documents that must be produced:

1.    Provide information regarding the identity of “Apple’s Ownership” that had a twenty (20) year relationship with Mr. Rowland as alleged in Mr. Foley’s statement.

2.    Provide a list of all owners of Apple Health Care, Inc. stock for the last twenty years.

3.    Identify any labor contracts that Apple Health Care, Inc. negotiated with Mr. Rowland’s assistance and further identify all union negotiators involved in any such negotiations.

4.    Provide copies of Board meeting minutes demonstrating that Mr. Rowland attended any meetings of the Apple Health Care, Inc. Board of Directors.  If the meeting minutes do not list the attendees I request that you provide a list of all persons who attended any such meetings including their names and business addresses.

5.    Identify any consultants ever hired by Apple Health Care, Inc. through Christian Shelton, Esquire or any other lawyer/intermediary and provide copies of any such contracts.

6.    Provide bank documents including but not limited to cancelled checks and wire transfer information that demonstrate how Apple Health Care, Inc. paid Mr. Rowland and/or Attorney Shelton.

7.    Provide copies of cancelled checks that were used to pay Mr. Rowland pursuant to his agreement with Attorney Shelton.

8.    Provide a copy of any and all 1099 tax forms reflecting payments to Mr. Rowland for 2011 and 2012.

9.    Provide a copy of the schedules from Apple Health Care, Inc.’s 2011 Federal Income Tax Return wherein any and all payments to Mr. Rowland and/or Attorney Shelton are listed.

10. Provide copies of any emails or correspondence between Apple Health Care, Inc. and John G. Rowland reflecting any work preformed for Apple Healthcare, Inc. by Mr. Rowland.  This includes any work that Mr. Rowland may have Performed for any subsidiary or affiliated companies of Apple Health Care, Inc.

11.  Provide a copy of any fee agreement or other documents that detail Attorney Shelton’s relationship with Apple Health Care, Inc and/or Brian Foley and/or Lisa Wilson-Foley.
  
12.  Request from Mr. Rowland his “work product” that was developed in performing his consulting services.

13. Provide a list of donations made by Brian Foley and Lisa Wilson-Foley to all candidates for Governor from 1994 through 2002.

It seems to me that although there are many questions, none of them appear to be out of line, or questionable.  You would think that after everything that has happened over the last few weeks that the Wilson-Foley Campaign would have gone the extra mile to assure committed delegates (and uncommitted delegates) that Lisa Wilson-Foley (and her husband) have been and are operating above board.  It seems that there are still more questions than answers.

Chris Healy's decision to pull Lisa from her interview on NPR's Where We Live with John Dankoski was not the confidence booster that people were looking for.  This hunker down and muddle through approach might be a great temporary political strategy, but eventually Wilson-Foley will have to face the music in real-time and there won't be weapon in Healy's bag of tricks to stop the damage to the CTGOP, it's brand, or her nomination should something come out over the next several months.

Thank you Mr. Dunn for sharing your concerns.

Dr. Petit's email

As everyone knows, I've been a very strong supporter of the Petit, Chapman and Renn families over the last several years given the horrific 2007 Cheshire Invasion Murders.  I've also made it quite clear that I'm in favor of the Death Penalty, and the repeal action taken last month by Connecticut Democrats was a violation of the public trust given the clear support that Connecticut residents have for the keeping the Death Penalty in place.

Prior to this year's vote on the Death Penalty, I was very critical of Andrew Roraback for his previous vote when the anti-Death Penalty Bill came up the first time.  I also took Mr. Roraback to task for a few other social positions he holds not in keeping with the expected Republican standard.  I don't make any apology for that post; my feelings remain the same.  But I also realize that - Mr. Roraback, regardless of his personal agenda, did cast a vote against repeal this year.  Now, I could speculate as to the underlying reason for his vote, but the fact is that Roraback voted against repeal and that is the fact.  He may be a hypocrite of sorts, but he did well by me, his constituents, and Dr. Petit whether they like it or not.  If he voted in support of repeal this year - I'd have a different opinion, I'm sure.

I was more than surprised to see Chris Healy (who is a personal friend of Dr. Petit's) use Dr. Petit as a political campaign prop to attack Candidate Roraback.  Quite frankly it was in bad taste to drag the Petit family into Republican Party politics, and to ask them to expend their remaining political capital to support Lisa Wilson-Foley - who is without a doubt, considered scandalous to the point where she is even afraid to answer basic questions about her past.  There was no need to turn Dr. Petit and Hannah Chapman into political hacks for such an important cause.  While I'm disappointed in Dr. Petit, my anger is with Chris Healy who cares only about himself and nothing about who he hurts while trying to achieve his status objective.  This is the kind of judgement that time after time Healy has made which has placed the CTGOP in a disgraceful light election after election.  And the mistakes continue to pile up on top of each other to the point were at times victory seems nearly unachievable.

Lastly, the Death Penalty debate will likely continue as we struggle through the repeal process for all of villains on Death Row eager to find a loophole by virtue of the passage of Gov. Malloy's new law.  I'm hoping that Dr. Petit and his family have not caused themselves any  collateral damage with the public by engaging in inter-party politics over a dirty federal office-seeker and an issue that has nothing to do with the outcome of the Convention or even the Congressional Campaign; the issue being strictly a State's matter.

Make no mistake, I still remain a strong supporter of Dr. Petit and have immense respect for him, his sister, and the entire family, and will likely be a supporter of theirs forever more.  I'm just a little disappointed. But I'll get over it.

I AM

THE KING

This original blog entry can be found at http://www.thekingsview.blogspot.com/

Disclaimer: This entry and others will be modified/updated at a future date. All entries are for the sole purpose of entertainment. This article does not imply endorsement of the candidate mentioned above, nor has this article been solicited for publication by any political candidate, campaign, or PAC

The Lisa Wilson-Rowland Scandal

Part of what we do at The King's View is to honestly size-up certain political situations, and assess the state of various races in Connecticut from a neutral Republican point of view.  The operative word - honestly - is what irks some readers who are unable to see beyond their own personal allegiances (or alliances)  - which includes some who've already been purchased through candidate gifts and favors, or others who've already placed their bets (via campaign donations) on a winning horse, and thus have a vested interest in the outcome. 

The Faces of Fear
Wilson-Foley could cost the CTGOP a Congressional
Seat if she's allowed to continue her scandalous practices

I've long held the belief that there is nothing wrong with backing the candidate of your choosing - so long as your decision is made without strings attached, or without cause for personal gain.  The King has plenty of friends who support candidates who aren't my cup of tea - but I also know that those decisions are based on a specific hot-button issue or perspective that's rooted in reason (in their own crazy minds, of course).  For those like that, we raise our glass, cheer with a smirk of ridicule, drink, and go our separate ways on Election Day.

Then there are those who we detest.  The real political opportunists among us who care more about their personal stake in the game then in the public interest.  Sadly, there are several candidates and political operatives within our own ranks who are multi-millionaires and see politics as a way of advancing their names and position in society (yes, yes - I know  they exist on both sides of the aisle).  Common sense tells you that a person with a net worth of $600 million dollars (or husband worth that) doesn't need a measly $125K a year Senate job to keep themselves afloat.  Nope. Many of these folks have been griped by boredom, or are inspired by advancing themselves to make up for that empty space in their lives - failed marriage, loneliness, personal drive for power and privilege, or to out-do their spouse -on who's success they've always relied upon.  These are the selfish ones among us who we can see coming  from a mile away with their merry band of bottom-feeding opportunists.

Obviously, we can't deny people a livelihood. Some people, like ex-Chairman Chris Healy for example, aren't capable of doing much else.  Their real jobs are merely a cover for their political aspirations.  And quite frankly, many full-time operatives don't need their real jobs because they're independently wealthy based on ties to old money.  Rehashing poor strategists like Healy has led to a string of losses that even Democrats can't take credit for. It's not a shock that King Tut is right, smack dab in the middle of latest campaign controversy.

The last few weeks have been pretty miserable for the overall CTGOP brand in the 5th Congressional District.  It wasn't a surprise to me that Chairman Jerry Labriola made calls last week to try and quell the shelling between waring camps.  It's also no surprise, that the media jackals latched on to every press release, and every word - at times - retweeting and blogging each missile as it exploded over each campaign.  It was not a pretty sight.

And like the rest of you, I've been watching all this with a smirk of amusement, but also with some disgust - opting to reserve comment until the dust settled.

First, I'd like to discuss my take on Former Governor John G. Rowland. His past and present situation, and how it impacts our Party.  Be warned - traditional supporters of this blog may not agree with this unique take on our former Governor; my perspective is a personal one; probably not in keeping with the majority opinion.

Over the course of time, I helped out on several of John Rowland's campaigns - some we lost and some we won.  I admired candidate Rowland for his straight-forward positions and adherence to Republican principles, which I find clearly absent from many of today's shallow, wishy-washy candidates.  And I admired Congressman Rowland for his commitment to his constituents and steadfast support of Republican opposition leaders.  This was back in a time when Connecticut Republicans could brag that they actually held three Congressional seats.  John Rowland's demeanor and perceived strength of character won him public support and successful promotion to the Governor's Office.  Few would argue that most Connecticut residents did pretty well under Governor Rowland - certainly better than under either Governor Rell or current Governor Dannel Malloy.  And the partnerships between himself and opposition leaders were cordial, and yielded progress on behalf of Connecticut on many fronts, and kept the public unions at bay - a stark contrast from today's Gubernatorial advocation from Dannel88.

But then something went wrong. Terribly wrong. Or had it always gone wrong and we just didn't see it?  To this day, I'm still not sure.  

The man - our man - who might have gone on to become Vice President , or even President was caught up in a slimy scandal that destroyed his reputation, ruined his legacy, and placed him behind bars.  For those of us who really liked John Rowland - we felt gutted.  We spent most days after his resignation in a state of denial; defending him, and cursing the liberal media, particularly The Hartford Courant for their relentless, politically-inspired conspiracy to remove a Republican office holder who they knew they couldn't beat fair and square (of course, Bill Curry was no daisy), and deny our Republican Champion an even brighter future.

But the truth is that although the Hartford-based media created the frenzy, the crimes Governor Rowland committed were wrong.  Like so many other politicians before him, the taste of power became his poison and led to his utter downfall.  And if you want to know the truth, that moment kicked off a downward spiral for the entire CTGOP that we've still not recovered from.

But time passed, and it was like Governor Rowland never existed.  He was part of a bad dream, pretty much forgotten.  Since Rowland's exit, the CTGOPs failures have been of our own making - mediocre candidates - including some on the fringe of Old Yankee Thinking, a string of clueless chairmen (current one excluded, of course), and the same old second place strategy which made Democrat held federal offices seem impenetrable to Republicans.

"$30K is the going price to buy
John Rowland; we can double
it! and triple our fortune!"

Then Rowland landed a job on WTIC 1080 as a talk-show host.  It was a clever gig - teaming up with Pastor Will Marotti under the name State and Church.  At first, I was concerned about how the public would take to our newly reformed Governor preaching ethical Government, and his new found faith in the Lord from a 10,000 watt transmitter (Can I get an Amen?).  My first impression was that Pastor Will's job was to serve as life size, on-air, Jiminy Cricket to former Governor Pinocchio.  I thought that perhaps Pastor Will had a special contract with the Blue Fairy to drive the wayward Rowland to and from the studio each day to make certain that he didn't accidentally bump into Honest John or Gideon on the way home, or worse - field a suggestive call from one of them on the air.

For a while the show seemed interesting, but has since trailed off into a tedious, 3-hour long union-bashing filibuster.  Praise God for Traffic and Weather. It's now to the point where the show is impossible to listen to - unless it's hosted solely by Pastor Will who is at least willing to discuss a diverse scope of topics.

But it seems that neither the conscience of Good Pastor Will, or Our Ever-living God could keep Governor Rowland out of trouble.  Just by way of timing, Pastor Will has suddenly become too busy to share the mic with the Ex-Gov.  Can you blame him?

As everyone is aware, we learned from Press reports that Governor Rowland recently found his way back into the world of Connecticut politics.  On the surface, seeing a successful political executive advising candidates from time to time is not unexpected.  But the problem for Lisa Wilson-Foley is that her connection to John Rowland damaged her campaign because of Rowland's criminal past (and possible criminal future); which further soiled her public image.

Lisa Wilson-Foley already has a negative image problem on the street.  The stories about how she acquired her wealth abound in political circles - they also fill my inbox to the point where I feel a need to take a shower after reading them.  It's true, the details are way to filthy for even this blog - and best left for The National Enquirer to exploit.  Sex, lies and scandal are just a way of life for the millionaire elite among us.  And gold-digging isn't a crime in itself, but hubby-hopping is not exactly on par with any respectable candidate that I know.  But maybe I'm just old fashioned, right?  In a day where might makes right - if you can steal some one's family fortune - more power to you.  Or perhaps not.  I don't know.  This is as far as I will go with this story.  Now everyone in the other camps stop accusing me of running cover for Lisa Wilson-Foley.

As we know from how the political game is played - the loopholes in the way something is done allows people to tell half-truths which in their own minds become full truths.  It's sort of like Lisa Wilson-Foley saying that John Rowland never worked on her campaign as a paid employee - well sure... not officially.... but by the miracle of coincidence it was learned that he was paid $30,000 by Apple Rehab which it just so happens that Lisa Wilson-Foley runs.  I'm going to go out on limb and guess that John Rowland wasn't emptying bedpans, or advising nurses on to train old ladies to use walkers. 

See, that's how the game is played.  Nothing to see here claims Chris Healy, time to move forward and send out emails with links to warm and fuzzy videos of Lisa Wilson-Foley as a loving mom and wife and Blah, Blah, Blah.  Lisa wants to create jobs -  Blah, Blah, Blah. Lisa wants to clean up Washington? Blah, Blah, Blah. Are you **itting me?  It's too late.  It's just too f'n late for that revisionist history. How about - cleaning up your own life, never mind Washington.

And you have to give credit to Mark Greenberg for having the courage to stand up and call Rowland out for suggesting that Greenberg pay Rowland through an animal shelter for political consulting.  Greenberg could smell a scandal brewing and had the decency to decide that he was going to run a respectable campaign - without help from the establishment and without controversy. 

"You won't believe who got
caught behind Door No. 2"

The biggest credit goes to Mike Clark who exposed Lisa Wilson-Foley's scandalous payments (via her husband) to John Rowland.  As everyone knows, the G-Man has a long history with John Rowland - after all, he was responsible for overseeing the criminal investigation of Rowland and sending him to prison for 10 months.  You would really have to wonder what went through the minds of Lisa Wilson-Foley, Chris Healy, and others to make such a blunderous mistake by engaging in a money laundering type scheme - and do it while in the midst of competing for a Congressional Seat against the very FBI Agent who put Rowland away?  Are they just THAT stupid??

And not that Mike Clark would ever cross the line, but don't you think that his old FBI friends are watching all of this with great interest?  If a well-grounded Mike Clark is expressing outrage then perhaps there is more to this than simply what is political?

Considering direct connection between Rowland's payoff and Apple Rehab, perhaps authorities might be keen to take a closer look at Apple Rehab's books to find out where else the money trail might lead to.  Let's not forget that Apple Rehab likely has government contracts which obligate them to strict adherence to certain federal laws.  This again begs the question as to why Apple Rehab would hire/pay a convicted felon in the first place.

If any of you think that after all that's transpired that federal authorities are done investigating the questionable practices of Lisa Wilson-Foley's campaign, then those associated with Scandal, Inc. shouldn't bother watching what you put in print or text, or say over phone.  

Keep talking; you've given everyone a reason to listen.

Want more? Did you hear the latest?  Yesterday, Candidate Ken Krayeske filed and Federal Elections Commission complaint against Lisa Wilson-Foley's campaign for "acceptance of valuable air-time as a contribution that benefited the campaign and for failing to report this contribution of air-time by CBS Radio Inc. and its agent John Rowland since it appears to have benefited her campaign." (from the article linked). 

The fact that Lisa Wilson-Foley continues to rack up endorsements from Town Committees and certain members of the establishment - even after her lack of judgment has been exposed in the press - goes to show EVERYONE just how deep-rooted the corruption is within the CTGOP.  If Chairman Labriola thought the shady tactics of the Linda McMahon camp were going to be his only problem, he was wrong.  But he has to stay awake at night wondering, what am I going to do with all of these self-sabotaging imbeciles? 

Don't you think Democrats are licking their chops at the prospect of watching Lisa Wilson-Foley collapse under the weight of her own scandalous campaign?

You know with all the criticism that can be laid at Justin Bernier for trying to hijack the process, or at Andrew Roraback for his moderate positions, you'd have to hope that somehow, somewhere - the other candidates in the 5th District do everything in their power to combine forces at the State Convention to make certain that Lisa Wilson-Foley crashes and burns before she can embarrass the Party by receiving nomination by paid-delegates.   If not, you guys might as well just save time and endorse Donovan for Congress - because a nomination for Lisa Wilson-Foley all but guarantees that result.

Well, Lisa can always look on the bright side. She can always go back to donating to Democrats.

Stay tuned, there's much more to come...

I AM

THE KING

This original blog entry can be found at http://www.thekingsview.blogspot.com

Disclaimer: This entry and others will be modified/updated at a future date. All entries are for the sole purpose of entertainment. This article does not imply endorsement of the candidate mentioned above, nor has this article been solicited for publication by any political candidate, campaign, or PAC.