GOP governor hopefuls in focus after Capitol riot
The 2022 race for governor in Connecticut will hinge on economic growth in the most sluggish state of the 21st century, not COVID- 19, and certainly not the legacy of the disgraced Donald Trump.
But to win that battle, most likely against Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont, the three likely Republican entrants — none close to declaring yet — will have to reckon with the ghost of Trump.
Wednesday’s mob scene at the U. S. Capitol made
that scary graveyard walk easier for New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart; more complicated for former House GOP Leader Themis Klarides; and harder for 2018 party nominee Bob Stefanowski. That’s the surface view, at least.
The three appear to stack up nicely: Stewart least aligned with Trump and Trumpism; Klarides, a 2016 Trump delegate, in the middle and edging, perhaps sprinting, further from Trump; and businessman Stefanowski delivering less criticism of the exiting president and his views — though still some.
Their statements about the breach of the seat of American democracy — on Twitter and in more detail to me directly — show that alignment. It’s nice of them to give GOP voters some choices, understanding all too well that winning over Republicans in a primary and independents in a general election are two very different feats.
Still, it’s not a clean picture. This being deep- blue Connecticut, where any Republican not named Berthel must hedge or be hedged, all three would- be GOP combatants for governor bring shades of gray to the Trump question. All three tread very, very carefully through this graveyard.
“As I said that day, I was saddened and ashamed at what happened,” Stewart said in a 300- word statement her spokeswoman emailed to me Friday. “The acts of those people — and those who incited them — were not representative of the Republican Party that I know. The party of Reagan, Bush and Lincoln.”
Stewart extolled GOP virtues and added, “The road for Republicans in Connecticut has become much steeper since Wednesday but it has never been more crucial for those of us in office to demonstrate the values of the Republican Party that I know to our fellow citizens. Make no mistake, I have been critical of this President since the day he took office and what is most important right now is that our actions speak louder than our words.”
So, was that Stewart laying blame for the mob attack on the U. S. Capitol on Trump? Not directly but it seems clear. Her spokeswoman confirmed that, yes, the fourth- term mayor at least partly blames Trump for the siege.
Klarides is far more direct in blaming Trump.
“This is not America. There is no place for inciting violence and storming our nation’s Capitol. There is no place for this behavior. The President owns this and he needs to stop now,” she tweeted at 6: 32 p. m. Wednesday.
And Klarides, who didn’t run for reelection in November to the state House representing Derby and surrounding towns, didn’t leave any doubt when I talked with her Thursday.
“At this point by him not accepting the results he is continuing to incite people,” Klarides said of Trump.
Stewart and Klarides have both said as bluntly as possible that the election is over and Trump should concede. “Nobody likes to lose,” Klarides said, citing the 60- plus lawsuits over election results in various states that all failed, “but it’s time to move on. ... At a certain point, enough is enough.”
That reflected her comments in a story that appeared Wednesday, before the mob scene, by The CT Mirror’s Mark Pazniokas.
And Stewart said pretty much the same words.
Stefanowski, by contrast, declined to say in the story and in a statement to me that Trump should concede, and that the results of the election are legitimate.
Stefanowski, a Madison resident, also declined to blame Trump for the siege on the Capitol.
“The events in Washington on Wednesday will take some time to unpack. The lack of preparedness of Capitol Police to hold back the rioters, the subset of people from an otherwise peaceful protest who became violent, and the lack of action by the president or other leaders in government that could have prevented the travesty, all need to be reviewed.”
Likewise, in his tweet Wednesday, he decried the violence and added, “Our thoughts and prayers go out to all in harm’s way.”
The old thoughts- andprayers line — by now a motto for conservatives unwilling to lay blame, almost like these things are acts of God.
So we can see that Stefanowski’s strategy still calls for him to appeal to that segment of voters aligned with Trump against established institutions, as was the case when he ran against Lamont — and far outperformed expectations with 644,000 votes, more than any former governor ever collected except M. Jodi Rell in 2006.
Still, Stefanowski has criticized Trump’s behavior