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The joint mission of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribal nations to build a slot shack in East Windsor along I-91 is dead. The agreement reached by the tribes with the Lamont administration halts development of the gaming facility for the life of the agreement, 10 years.

East Windsor officials will want to know what MMCT, the joint tribal nations organization, intends to do with the empty parcel.

The Republican State Central Committee chose Susan Hatfield to serve as its chair until a new leader is elected to a full term in June. Hatfield was elected vice chair in 2019, after losing a 2018 bid for attorney general.

J.R. Romano abruptly resigned the chairmanship of the party organization in January after announcing in October he would not seek re-election. Hatfield became the favorite to fill the vacancy after Republican National Committee members Leora Levy and John Frey’s bid to take control of the state party came to grief by violating rules to prohibit the accumulation of power in too few hands.

What a day Wednesday was for money in Connecticut. Governor Ned Lamont released a proposed $46 billion balanced biennial budget. His recorded speech explaining parts of the document was broadcast at noon. Always a big day for a governor, especially when it’s likely the last major address before a re-election campaign begins.

Venture capital phenomenon Ann Huntress Lamont, the governor’s spouse and most powerful adviser, was enjoying a stunning win in her investment business. Mrs. Lamont is co-founder and managing partner of Oak HC/FT, which invests in healthcare and financial technology companies.

Oak HC/FT’s stake in Sema4 received some attention when the state entered into a contract for coronavirus testing services early in the pandemic. The Lamonts, as part of their ongoing management of the state’s ethics laws and their far-flung investments, pledged to donate to charity any benefit they might derive from the deal. Sema4 is merging with CM Life Sciences in a $2 billion deal that will see Sema4 snag $793 million when it closes in the second quarter of 2021.

Read the details of the complex deal here. There’s more here.

State Auditor Rob Kane has died. The Watertown Republican was found unresponsive at his home Friday afternoon after failing to answer attempts to reach him.

Kane served in the state Senate before becoming auditor in 2017, after declining to take the oath of office for another term in the Senate.

Muad Hrezi is running for Congress in Connecticut’s First Congressional District. Hrezi, a Democrat, is making the 2022 race “because we deserve a Representative in Washington who serves us. So as this journey unfolds, I look forward to hearing your concerns, earning your trust, and, ultimately, serving you in the halls of Congress.”

Hrezi offers the aggrieved view of life in 21st century United States from the left, but latches on to the same theme as those perpetually angry Trumpist. “[W]hile working in Congress, I witnessed firsthand how greedy special interests and politicians have rigged the system at our expense, furthering divisions and risking our democracy. It’s why I grew disillusioned and left.”

Hrezi describes himself on his Twitter profile as an educator, running coach, and proud Nutmegger. He is 26 years old, was born in Tripoli, and grew up in Naugatuck. Hrezi worked as a legislative correspondent in Senator Chris Murphy’s office from 2018 until September of last year. He is a substitute teacher at Southington High School and a patient companion for Independent Living Solutions Ltd.

Democratic incumbent John Larson won a 12th term in November.  

Republican Party chair J.R. Romano has resigned. Romano announced in the fall that he would not seek re-election in June. He sent an email to members of the state party committee Tuesday evening as the House of Representatives debated impeaching Donald Trump. Romano has been a vocal supporter of Trump and presided over two calamitous election cycles, 2018 and 2020, as state voters abandon Trump.

Angry Enfield Republican Mary Ann R. Turner enjoyed Wednesday in besieged Washington, D.C., while mourning “what little of America is left.” Turner turned to Facebook to lash out at four-term Republican state Representative Devin Carney for expressing his dismay at the coup attempt. Carney called the attack on democracy “The worst day I’ve ever seen.”

Turner, who was defeated for an Enfield state House seat in November, accused Carney of drinking Koolaid, declaring the gathering of weirdoes, kooks, and insurrectionists peaceful. Turner called on The shoreline Republican to resign his office “because you have proven you are easily manipulated.”

Senator Alexandra Kasser (D-Greenwich) has spoken at length about the marriage she is seeking to dissolve in an extended proceeding. Elected in 2018 as Alexandra Bergstein, she announced she had changed her last name to Kasser and took additional swipes at her husband Seth Bergstein. 

The wealthy Democrat declared war on privilege and the patriarchy in 2019. The patriarchy of her party has struck back in the first daily bulletin of the new session, listing Kasser as Bergstein.​

Republican fixture Dick Foley has died. Foley served in the House of Representatives for a decade, beginning in 1982, from the Naugatuck Valley.

He was elected to the job he enjoyed most, chairman of the state’s Republican Party organization, in 1989. Foley came to grief in 1993 when he was indicted on a corruption charge arising out of banking legislation and a $25,000 bribe paid to Foley to influence legislation. He was convicted by a federal jury later that year. His sentence was overturned on appeal, but not before he served time in prison.

Foley returned to politics as a lobbyist and prolific campaign consultant. Foley, who lived in Danbury at the time of his death, mounted a brief campaign for state chairman in 2019.

Books, books, books. Senator Chris Murphy tells us about his book “The Violence in Us.” Connecticut’s own Jeff Benedict we were more than a way for Robert Kraft to get the attention of Massachusetts politicians in his tussle over a stadium deal. Roxanne Coady of R.J. Julia, the independent booksellers, recommends political books for the holidays. Duby McDowell and I each add one to the list.

Join us Sunday at 8:30 a.m. on WFSB.