They have stopped pretending. Democratic senators squeeze lobbyists for $1,000 contributions to Fonfara campaign for mayor.

A dozen Democratic state senators and their leader want lobbyists to make maximum $1,000 contributions to state Senator John Fonfara’s campaign for mayor of Hartford. The event to which lobbyists have been summoned will be held at the Officer’s Club in Capitol complex on Thursday, March 16th from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Pigs-in-a-blanket will be on platters, sitting and standing.

The event is a grotesque violation of the spirit of the state’s ethics laws. Observe life in the loophole. State ethics laws have for decades banned legislators during the legislative session from soliciting lobbyists for contributions to campaigns for state office. The ban has never been extended to legislators running for municipal or federal office during the legislative session.

As legislative committees begin to vote on bills, lobbyists have an urgent need to please Democratic senators. Fonfara’s list of contributors will be public–and lobbyists who give in to this tawdry solicitation will want senators to know they made their maximum effort. Fonfara, of course, is co-chair of the legislature’s finance committee–seen as one of the two more powerful committees at the legislature. A lobbyist who has no business before Fonfara must have no clients.

The invitation lists as sponsors Senate President Martin Looney Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, Senators Cathy Osten, Saud Anwar, Jorge Cabrera, Joan Hartley, Rick Lopes, James Maroney, Patricia Billie Miller, Marilyn Moore, Norm Needleman, Derek Slap, and first among the not-so-equal Senate Democrats Vincent Mauro, who also serves as chair of the New Haven Democratic Town Committee.

This is wrong on a simple reading of the invitation. What makes it worse is that many of those senators drink from their bottomless well of jumped-up righteousness. They garishly parade their own rectitude at every opportunity. And then they go and spoil it all by telling lobbyists with business before them to handover $1,000 to their buddy John Fanfara.

Only a few weeks ago, one sponsor of the shakedown, Anwar, purposed legislation to browbeat and fine voters who exercise their right not to vote. The purpose is to “incentivize civic engagement.” If anyone wonders why many choose not to cast a vote, look at the Fonfara ransom note from Senate Democrats to lobbyists.

Published March 10, 2023.