The 2021 legislative session at a glance.

Despite several months of saying that this would be a “very limited” legislative session due to the coronavirus pandemic, majority Democrats seem to be in overdrive mode, pushing a significant legislative agenda.

It’s a budget year, of course, which should have spelled great fear and trepidation.  However, the majority party is miraculously being bailed out by a huge federal stimulus that will allow them to temporarily avoid the chickens who were scheduled to roost on the mountains of red ink which decades of lousy budgeting created.

Legislative Democrats are pushing a so-called “public option” for insurance, which oddly turns the state comptroller–the guy who signs paychecks–into a powerful insurance czar.  The plan itself is pure wealth redistribution, except of course for the cut taken by the state; and it will spell doom for the state’s flagship industry and higher premiums for most everyone – if it actually passes.  The Democrats know this also, and I suspect they have little desire to see it actually become law.  Virtue signaling on healthcare? – check.

You’ve probably also heard about the “mileage tax” and the “mansion tax.”   It makes you wonder just how many taxes there would be without the federal government coming to the state’s rescue with a nice stack of grant dollars.  What about spending reductions in government? That would seem to be required, since the private sector is on shaky ground because of big government lockdown orders.  Well now, don’t hold your breath. Spending goes up several percentage points in both years of the biennium – and so does the deficit forecast in the out years.  Don’t fret though.  We live in the dawn of a new progressive era.

All of it makes me wonder why I am still in the game, shouting about the value of what actually makes America great – freedom and opportunity.  Even more important- a limited government that protects rights and stays out of the way of the pursuits and inevitable achievements of free citizens.

Possibly worse than the parade of bad policies is the method by which they will be pushed through.

Since the Governor’s first emergency executive order, I have been sounding the alarm that the majority party would use this pandemic to advance their political agenda. Not only have they continued to use the Governor’s expanded authority offensively, but they have eliminated people’s ability to participate in their government.

These virtual “zoom” sessions are an affront to the access to government our lawmaking process requires. Guilefully applied time limits on public hearings only add insult to injury when it comes to disenfranchising our public from participating in the lawmaking process.  So far this session, we have seen Democrat committee chairs:

• provide minimal notice ahead of important policy discussions to limit public input
• pack agendas for hearings prohibiting the chance for fruitful discussion
• stifle debate by cutting off commentary and questioning by members mid-hearing

They even turned away roughly 1800 of the 2100 people who wished to testify on a proposal removing religious freedom when it comes to vaccines for school children. Do those citizens not have the right to petition their government?

The news media has been mostly silent on these genuine concerns and the Democrat leadership is taking full advantage of that silence.  They saw they could use unconstitutional changes to our election process for advantage this past November, and I presume they see no reason to let up.

Speaking of which, nothing is more important to the preservation of our American way of life, the future voice of Republicans in Connecticut, and the integrity of election process in general, than keeping a close eye on the Government Administration and Elections committee over the coming months.

Democrats hope to expand voting to incarcerated persons and 16 year olds, and to further diminish checks and balances in the process by moving us away from in-person voting to expanding absentee and mail in balloting.  They even have a proposal to fine voters $20 for failure to participate in an election!

Unfortunately, if you are not well versed in some of these policies, early voting and no-excuse absentee voting seem harmless enough.  The problem is that when it comes to election law, the devil is most definitely in the details.  Nearly half the country has sincere doubts about the integrity of our election system.

Prudence would suggest we should be working on ways to increase public confidence, and that is where I am focused.  I will again push for audits of election day registrants, audits of absentee ballots, instituting some (since we currently have none) method of signature verification for absentee voting, and requiring a photo ID for voting.

If the majority gets their way and none of my proposals to keep the system honest are adopted–and instead they further expand early and absentee voting– you can bet that the problems we have had in the past (mass swearing in ceremonies, magically-appearing bags of ballots, polls not closing on time, as well as known and documented types of voter fraud) will seem insignificant in 2022.

Open and accurate elections are a cornerstone of our democracy.  Without them, what rights do we really have left?  I implore my fellow citizens in both parties to pay close attention to the details when it comes to these policies.  Expanding voting access is indeed important, but the public trust in the process must be restored.  I am committed to that goal.

As always you can reach me at www.senatorsampson.com.