Vote for the American Dream

An Open Letter from Former State Representative Kimberly Fiorello

Vote for the American Dream

To Republicans in Greenwich who will be voting in town committee primaries on Tuesday, March 5, I wholeheartedly urge you to vote for the Republicans listed below who will stand in the gap and fight for you against the harmful policies coming out of Hartford.

The vast scope of bad bills that favored special interest groups, overburdened taxpayers, violated property rights, usurped parental authority, frustrated police work, drove up energy costs, and doubled down on benefits to undocumented migrants as a sanctuary state was simply staggering to me as the new state representative for the 149th district back in 2021.

Democrats in Hartford were figuratively and literally drunk on power then.

And they still are now. Currently, Democratic leadership is working to expand HUSKY Medicaid to include more undocumented residents than it already does and to make Connecticut drivers licenses issued to undocumented migrants indistinguishable from those of legal citizens.

Democrats who lambast the lack of housing being built in the state also heed activists calling for the prohibition of evictions of tenants when their leases end.

In the state with among the highest average annual health care costs in the country, Democrats are proud of its first-state-inthe-nation status to use the force of government and taxpayer money to “erase” $1 billion in medical debt for some residents and not others, picking winners and losers, and further distorting healthcare pricing in Connecticut and driving up costs for everyone.

Also, “baby bonds” just got funded this year. It is another first-state-in-thenation experiment, whereby babies in Connecticut born to mothers using HUSKY Medicaid are entitled to a taxpayerfunded lump sum when they turn 18 years of age.

Most brazenly, despite a national headline-making absentee ballot stuffing scandal in Bridgeport Democrats have made “zero” efforts to strengthen Connecticut’s election integrity, says state Sen. Rob Sampson, ranking member of the government administration committee. Instead, opening wide the door to even more mail-in voting in Connecticut, this November there will be a referendum to change the state constitution to allow “no excuse absentee ballots.” Facts:

Greenwich is immune to the repercussions of policies emanating from Hartford;

Opposing the Democratic agenda in Hartford starts with a strong Republican Town Committee in every town; and

Conforming and collaborating Republicans inadvertently aid Democrats by compromising on core principles.

Love her or hate her, there’s no doubt the current Republican Town Committee chair, Beth MacGillivray, a mother of four and former top-performing Wall Street investment sales professional from 1985 to 1998 during a high-flying, male-dominated era, has the fortitude and determination to lead the Republican party in Greenwich — a historic community that combines affluence with diversity and complexity.

Her energy has invigorated the Greenwich Republican Town Committee and brought a new group of previously unengaged Republican voters into the political process.

The RTC leadership, including Jane Sprung, Joe Montanaro, Gail Lauridsen, Cheryl Resnick, Joe Solari and the many volunteers who have been putting in the hard work and rolling up their sleeves, are sending a clear message to Democrats that Greenwich Republicans will not be silent and will not stand idly by as the middle class is crushed, fundamental freedoms are eroded, and the pillars of capitalism are dismantled in Connecticut.

In a culture hostile to common sense, these Republicans stand in the gap for others who will not or cannot. For that, they have faced unwarranted criticism and unjust attacks.

I lost my re-election in November 2022, as did other Greenwich Republican incumbents before me. Not long before, in 2018, Republican state Sen. Scott Frantz and Republican state Rep. Mike Bocchino, both incumbents, lost their seats.

All such losses are heart-breaking and soulsearching. Still, elections represent the transient nature of politics. The enduring purpose and steadfast objective for Republicans must be to ensure the Republican Party is a fighting force to keep the American Dream alive even in Democratic strongholds such as Connecticut.

Your understanding of the significant stakes involved in this primary election on Tuesday, March 5, is greatly appreciated. Please consider supporting the Republicans listed below with your vote.

Lastly, some of you may know that my husband and I decided last summer to move from Connecticut for reasons related to our children.

I will be forever grateful for the many happy years we had fixing up our historic Grove Lane home, for the lifelong friends we made in Connecticut, and for the honor of having represented Greenwich and Stamford as a Republican state representative in the General Assembly.

From speaking to other Nutmeggers who have also left Connecticut, I can tell you, many of us still care and our hearts cheer for you who are fighting the good fight in the Constitution state. Go Team Freedom!