2 April—It must be said at the outset that all political parties and virtually all politicians the world over perform stupid political tricks. Political trickery is their bread and butter, after all, what gets them the power they crave, keeps it coming, and allows (and encourages) them to grow it, usually to the detriment of constituents. So, when you get down to it, are successful political tricks really stupid? Only to the opposition.

On the other hand, especially in Connecticut, Republican political tricks really are stupid. Embarrassingly stupid, in fact. It’s not just that Democrats pull off their legerdemain more successfully than Republicans. Everybody knows the Democrats’ old tried and true tricks to hoodwink the voters. And that’s precisely why they work.

I’m particularly critical of Connecticut Republicans not only because I’m a registered Republican and have been able to observe the political chicanery within our little state and party, but because the Connecticut Republican Party as a statewide entity has proven itself through the decades I’ve been a part of it to be inept, incompetent, and just a bunch of losers. Connecticut Republicans’ tricks? They’re just plain stupid, clearly desperate, destined to fail from the moment of conception.

The less local Republicans have had to do with Connecticut Republicans, the better off the local ones have been for decades.

Losing and consequently being powerless is so ingrained in Connecticut Republicans in and around the Capitol that they wouldn’t know what to do should the unthinkable happen, allowing them to wrest control of even one of the houses of the General Assembly or the governor’s office.

Remember that Connecticut had two Republican governors from 1995 to 2011. With Democrat legislatures and constitutional officers, of course. So at least the Democrat General Assembly couldn’t get away with much. But neither could the Republican governors. And that’s not bad.

It’s always safer and better to have at least one of the three legislative entities—senate, house, executive—of a different party, lest the ruling party always get its way, as we’ve seen and are seeing in Washington and many states in addition to Connecticut.

But with over a decade of concentrated Democrat in the Capitol, Connecticut is slowly but surely flowing down the sewer of irresponsible legislation (not just limited to spending) and governance, thanks to an eternally entrenched, unstoppable, arrogant majority. No doubt about that. Connecticut Democrats certainly do terrible things, but they do them so well.

Connecticut Democrats’ stupid political trick is simply kissing the right asses at the right times. And that’s anything but stupid. Whores come to mind, but I shouldn’t want to insult them.

So Connecticut Republicans are waiting for their chance to undo all the damage wreaked by the Democrats. And looking at the really stupid political tricks Connecticut Republicans have already performed—like kissing the wrong asses at the wrong times—they’ll be waiting at least another two years . . .