Copyright Hartford Courant
A demand by state Senate Democrats that Republicans challenge President Donald J. Trump over the suspension of the SNAP food assistance program is a harbinger of the challenges Trump could pose for Republican candidates next year in blue states like Connecticut. His administration’s plan to cut off SNAP on Saturday and deny food aid to 42 million Americans is a step Trump did not take during the longer federal government shutdown during his first term, buttressing a Democratic claim that the suspension is a tactic, not a fiscal necessity. “This crisis is being precipitated needlessly in order to inflict more suffering on people,” Senate President Pro Tem Martin M. Looney, D-New Haven, said Wednesday, flanked by a half-dozen other Democratic senators. Are elected Republicans in Connecticut supporting the move? Looney asked. His immediate goal was to cause discomfort for Republican state senators, who dismissed the press conference as a stunt. It will be harder for Republican candidates for governor to be similarly dismissive once the 2026 campaign is fully underway. Polling points to two factors problematic for blue-state Republicans: Given his popularity among Republican voters, criticizing Trump is unthinkable for any Republican planning on competing in a GOP primary. But standing with him on a growing list of controversial positions carries risk in a general election. An Economist/YouGov Poll released Wednesday showed Trump hitting a new low: 39% approve and 58% disapprove, a net negative rating of 19 points. The same poll, however, showed 86% of Republicans still backing him. Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat on the verge of announcing his candidacy for a third term in 2026, notes the aversion of his two would-be Republican challengers, Sen. Ryan Fazio of Greenwich and Mayor Erin Stewart of New Britain, to differences with Trump. Do they agree with the suspension of SNAP and other aid programs during the budget impasse in Washington, which sparked a partial federal shutdown that begins its second month Saturday? Are they in agreement with the president? Those are questions Lamont says Fazio and Stewart won’t answer now, even though they are unavoidable for a sitting governor. “I know these guys are going to embrace Trump like there’s no tomorrow, right up until somebody wins the primary. Then they’re going to show their feisty independent streak,” Lamont said, smiling. “Don’t be fooled.” Stewart opened an exploratory campaign in January, a step that allowed her to begin raising money. She is not seeking reelection as mayor and will leave office on Nov. 11, a week after the municipal election. A gubernatorial campaign announcement is expected soon after. Ryan declared his candidacy for governor two months ago. Fazio and Stewart previously had kept a respectful distance from Trump. Until recently, Fazio had declined to say if he had voted for Trump in any of his three runs for president. In 2018, Stewart accepted an invitation to visit Trump but stressed her independence of the MAGA movement. “I have no ties to them, and I’ve been pretty outspoken about not supporting Trump and about not supporting or being in favor of a lot of what he’s done and his approach,” Stewart said then. “If I was out there wearing ‘Go Trump’ stuff, I’m sure that they would be using that against me. But I haven’t been. I never have been.” Both have dropped their reticence, praising the president and sharing that they had, indeed, voted for him. Ben Proto, the chair of the Connecticut Republican Party, said leaning one way in a primary then moving to the center is hardly unique to Republicans. He said he expected Lamont, who angered the Democratic left with his veto of an omnibus housing bill intended to promote affordable housing, to be more attentive to liberals on housing until their anger subsides. “And then once we get past all of this, suddenly he’s going to become Uncle Ned again, and back in the middle, right? That’s what he’s going to do. Why? Because the vast majority of Connecticut lives in the middle,” Proto said. “And so, yeah, he’s going to do the same thing, just on his side of the aisle.” One difference is that Lamont, to a large degree, can choose the issues where he takes on liberals in his party. Fazio and Stewart have no say over what issues Trump will put over every front page, newscast and social media feed. Trump has leaned into controversy since the opening hours of his new term, pardoning the Jan. 6 rioters, declaring an end to birthright citizenship, barring leasing for new offshore wind projects, suspending refugee resettlement and curtailing federal funding for humanitarian aid and medical and scientific research. In late August, the administration ordered a stop-work order on the nearly completed Revolution Wind, an offshore wind project largely staged from the State Pier in New London. It was expected to provide carbon-free power the New England electric grid, supported by power-purchase agreements with utilities in Connecticut and Rhode Island. Connecticut, among others, sued, and a federal judge lifted the stop-work order. The episode was a stark example of the potential for conflict between a Connecticut governor and the president. One prominent Republican, House Minority Leader Vincent J. Candelora, R-North Branford, spoke against the order and the administration’s failure to offer a clear rationale for the action or a path to go forward. Fazio, the ranking Republican on the legislature’s Energy and Technology Committee, did not. “If I was running to be a member of Congress or the U.S. Senate, then I should be answering for every single issue that is a federal issue,” Fazio said. He sidestepped saying whether he agreed with the Trump administration’s suspension of SNAP. “My opinion is our U.S. senators should be voting for legislation to fund SNAP,” Fazio said. Democratic senators have refused to vote for the continuing resolution to fund government operations unless Republicans agree to preserve at least some of the subsidies created during the COVID pandemic to bring down the cost of health coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Stewart did not respond to a request for comment. Candelora, who has endorsed Fazio, said he well understands the reluctance to go down the “rabbit hole of trying to score political points on every issue coming out of Washington.” But he believes some of those issues must be addressed by elected officials and candidates in Connecticut. “I think in the end, people in Connecticut are starving for leadership. I don’t let a sitting president define my principles and who I am as a leader. Any candidate should lead on their own and let the chips fall where they may,” Candelora said. He added a postscript: “President Trump can pose a challenge, especially to those who need to survive a primary.” Mark Pazniokas is a reporter for the Connecticut Mirror. Copyright 2025 @ CT Mirror (ctmirror.org).
