Lamont a welcome cheerleader for Conn.
If we could rewrite anything in Gov. Ned Lamont’s address to open the 2022 session of the General Assembly Wednesday, it would be to redact the phrase “the Connecticut Difference,” which aspires to be a slogan. Connecticut has never been good at slogans. Exhibit A: “The Land of Steady Habits.” Exhibit B: “Connecticut. Full of surprises.” Exhibit C: “Still Revolutionary.”
“Difference” summons thoughts of subtraction as well as addition. Lamont was — and rightfully so — celebrating Connecticut’s successes over the last 12 months, the second year of a pandemic that left most states on their heels.
Two years ago, just before COVID-19 changed the world’s script, Lamont stood on the same stage and stressed “optimism can be contagious.”
He sounded just as upbeat after 23 months of facing blowback from some quarters for shuttering schools and businesses when needed and making the tough calls on mask mandates and social distancing.
Lamont was ever a cheerleader seeking to unite players from both benches. He seemed rusty at times in front of a live audience and took a while to address the issue of the pandemic that was right under (and over) everyone’s noses in the room.
But he shouted out names of Connecticut towns like whistle stops: Shelton, Beacon Falls, Bridgeport, Waterbury, Naugatuck, New London, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook, Hartford and Harwinton.
He dispersed kudos to Democrats and Republicans as early Valentine’s Day cards. It was a stark enough contrast to the paralyzed U.S. Congress to suggest an alternate slogan: “Connecticut, We’re Not D.C.”
In an alternate universe, the governor could have been delivering a plea to residents to hang on after the cruel turn of the past 23 months. No, not everything has gone right in Connecticut, but we need to embrace possibilities of moving forward rather than striving to catch up with the past.
Several of the governor’s proposals targeted needs that can make a difference in everyday lives: Enhance fiber-optic cable and Wi-Fi in the state. Reduce the costs of prescription drugs.
Cut car taxes.
Eliminate the income tax on pension and 401K income for most households.
Lamont didn’t ignore criticism about crime rates in the state, repeating his mantra that “you can’t be tough on crime if you’re weak on guns.” But critics of Connecticut’s gun laws — which Lamont hopes to make even tougher — reliably lean on the alternate solution of mental health services. The governor made it clear he doesn’t see it as an either-or remedy.
“We are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in education, workforce development and mental health ...”
Straying from his script, Lamont repeated “mental health” four times.
It’s a vital priority, because everyone’s mental health has been strained since March 2020. It’s also one that can easily be shuffled out of the budget by lawmakers in the hectic days of a session.
By the time they pass, state budgets usually become unrecognizable from their origins. But we appreciate that Lamont is striving to serve residents who desperately need to heal.
The governor was immediately criticized by rivals and critics for not offering enough. A genuine bipartisan effort toward that goal would be novel. That would truly be a “Connecticut Difference.”
Lamont was ever a cheerleader seeking to unite players from both benches. He seemed rusty at times in front of a live audience and took a while to address the issue of the pandemic that was right under (and over) everyone’s noses in the room.