Good morning and welcome back to the Tip Sheet, a weekly newsletter from Tom Dudchik’s Capitol Report written by Mike Cerulli.

This week, we’re diving into the latest developments in the ongoing responses in Connecticut to the whiplash-inducing moves out of Washington. The governor is trying to reframe the narrative, and he’s drawing on a play that’s worked for him before.

Plus, fundraising numbers are in for the first quarter of the year. How did the Republican hopefuls do?

Let’s dive in…

“Crisis Ned” is back

You know the saying. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

That adage seems to be on the minds of Gov. Ned Lamont and the folks running his comms shop.

Last Thursday, the governor was seated at a conference table with a large screen behind him, flanked by commissioners briefing the Capitol press corps. The optics of the press conference were unmistakable.

“Remember @GovNedLamont’s old pandemic press conferences?” John Craven, News 12's veteran political reporter, tweeted. “They’re back today – but with a new topic.”

The governor’s office billed Thursday’s press conference as “the first in a series of news briefings that Governor Lamont intends to hold” on the “ongoing defunding of programs and services by the federal government.”

The tea leaf reading was instantaneous…

Here are just a few reactions texted to the Tip Sheet in the day’s before and after Lamont rolled-out his new strategy to move at the “Speed of Trump” to respond to the deluge of news from Washington:

“He’s shifting into 'Crisis Ned' mode.”

“He must be running again.”

“Blanchard’s fingerprints are all over this.”

The wisdom of reviving the pandemic-era press conference format is obvious. When the history books are written, Lamont’s soaring post-pandemic approval will undoubtedly be attributed not just to his administration’s operational response to the crisis but also to the manner in which he communicated that response on a daily basis.

If the newly-released Morning Consult poll is to be believed, Lamont is still riding that initial high to the tune of a 62% approval rating. Only Kentucky’s Andy Beshear outperforms him among Democratic governors.

Like the classic rockers he so adores, the governor is playing the hits. But will the crowd still sing along more than five years after that first briefing?

It’s an understatement to say that a lot has changed since the early days of the pandemic, and it’s an equally elementary observation that the present moment is much different from the crisis that confronted the state when the first Covid-19 cases were reported. Try as he might to frame his response to the second Trump administration as a nonpartisan effort, the 736,918 Nutmeggers who voted for the president last year aren’t likely to receive Lamont’s message with open hearts and minds. And in his own party, there are already calls for an aggressive response to the second Trump administration.

On Tuesday, state House Speaker Matt Ritter joined his counterpart in the State Senate, President pro tempore Marty Looney, in openly suggesting that Connecticut should declare a state of fiscal emergency – sooner rather than later. Ritter matter-of-factly told a crowd of union members, constituents, and members of the Greater Hartford Interfaith Action Alliance (GHIAA) that there would be no fiscal guardrails in the upcoming fiscal year. The speaker reiterated in a press conference last Wednesday that he would counsel his caucus that it is wise to hit “pause” on the guardrails so that the state has more options to respond to future cuts from Washington. But the governor has signaled more of a “wait and see” approach. He is by no means closed off to the idea that drastic fiscal maneuvers might be needed, but he’s also not fully in sync with the tenor of Ritter and Looney’s appeals for action.

One thing there is no disagreement among the state's three principal Democrats on: This moment requires all hands on deck. State leaders are already on their heels responding to a rapid succession of federal actions. Nearly $200 million in cancelled public health grants and more than $10 million in clawed-back federal education funding could be just the beginning, leading Democrats have warned, even as Attorney General William Tong wages a campaign of legal Whack-a-Mole to fend off the president’s cuts. Should U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and his caucus follow through on the budget framework they passed earlier this year, hundreds of billions of dollars could be slashed from Medicaid. Hanging over the prospect of any future cuts to the social safety net is the threat that state revenues could take a hit from the market downturn induced by Trump’s on again, off again tariffs.

While Lamont and the Democratic leaders in the legislature see the same storm clouds on the horizon, there are hints of daylight in between their positions on how exactly to respond. Looney and Ritter seem to prefer a more expedited timeline. Lamont may prefer to wait a bit longer to hit “pause” on the guardrails.

The governor’s “wait and see” approach may very well be rooted primarily in a legitimate desire to scope out the specifics of the rapidly-shifting budget talks in Washington. But an added side effect of that approach is that it could place the governor more firmly in control of the state’s response – just like he was during the pandemic. Taken in the context of the apparent disagreement on the timeline of declaring a fiscal emergency, Lamont’s decision to revive his Covid-style press briefings can be interpreted as a thinly-veiled message not just to the public and to the president, but also to the legislature: I’m in the driver's seat. I declare a fiscal emergency, not you.

But unlike the days of ubiquitous masks and Zoom meetings, the governor might find a legislature that is not as willing to defer to him in a time of crisis.

There’s a big energy bill…in the Finance Committee

In the latest twist in the political war over the future of electric rates in Connecticut, a sweeping energy policy bill has just been unveiled. And it’s being run in the Finance Committee.

It hasn’t exactly been a secret that an energy bill would be introduced in the committee co-chaired by State Sen. John Fonfara, the longtime leader of the Energy & Technology Committee and expected appointee to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA). Word of an energy bill conceived by Fonfara has been bouncing around the Senate Democratic Office and beyond for weeks now. Late last week, the text of that long-awaited bill was released.

As folks digest the 80-page bill, there are many unanswered questions about the politics of this proposal.

How will the Republicans respond? Will any of them publicly back the proposal, which includes at least one key point from the energy plan they’ve touted for more than a year?

And what about Fonfara’s fellow Senate Democrats? How will they respond to what seems like an encroachment onto the turf of the committee co-chaired by State Sen. Norm Needleman? Just as Fonfara’s plans to pen an energy bill weren’t a well-kept secret, neither is the friction that exists between him and Needleman.

The bill is slated for a public hearing on Wednesday.

How’d the ‘26 GOP field do in Q1?

The numbers are in.

The Republican hopefuls in next year’s statewide election have posted their first fundraising documents of the cycle.

We’ve already seen the topline figure from outgoing New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart’s exploratory committee, which she touted in a press release. Stewart’s documents confirm that she hauled in just over $132,000. Of that, she spent about $12,000.

Westport First Selectwoman Jen Tooker, the only declared candidate in the race, was Stewart’s nearest fundraising rival. Tooker posted just over $66,000 in receipts. Of that, $20,000 came from Tooker’s personal funds. Her campaign burned through about $17,000.

Peter Lumaj, the conservative Fairfield attorney, brought in about $23,000. Matt Corey, a perennial candidate who upset the party-endorsed U.S. Senate candidate last year, raised $100. Interestingly, Corey and Lumaj share the same treasurer as they explore bids for statewide office.

Though Tooker, Lumaj, and Corey all trail Stewart widely in initial fundraising, make no mistake: those inside the fractious world of Connecticut Republican politics believe the outcome of a potential fight for the nomination is still very much up in the air. Stewart’s operation is carefully keeping tabs on Lumaj, Corey, and other potential threats from the right. There’s also a roster of potentially formidable candidates who have yet to make their intentions clear. And, of course, the threat of a completely unknown self-funder looms.

Three interesting stories to start your week

Speaking of Erin Stewart, Kevin Rennie recently scooped a rather interesting conversation she had with members of the Republican State Central Committee. Stewart, Rennie reports, assured her fellow Republicans that she would have the all-important endorsement of President Trump. Stewart recently visited the White House and attended the signing of an executive order promoting the coal industry. She made the trek to Washington as part of a three-person delegation that also included State Senate Minority Leader Steve Harding and John Healey, Stewart’s former chief of staff and Harding’s current top staffer. The trip yielded a photo of Harding and Stewart with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and a rather West Wing-esque shot of Harding and Healey. Harding said he shared the briefest of moments with the president. No word yet on whether or not a conversation between Trump and Stewart took place, but stay tuned for more.

A well-known progressive congressman is heading to the Elm City this week. Rep. Ro Khanna will deliver a speech at Yale Law School on Tuesday. Khanna has made waves as an emerging leader in the so-called “resistance” to the second Trump administration. The New York Times recently chronicled his crusade against his fellow YLS alum, Vice President JD Vance. Khanna’s speech is titled “Defense of the Constitution and University.” Unfortunately, that speech on defending constitutional principles won’t be heard by any of the journalists protected by the Constitution’s First Amendment. Like the tables at Mory’s, Khanna’s speech is open only to members of the Yale community and closed to press.

One of the Capitol’s most powerful lobbyists has taken up a personal cause this session. Linda Kowalski is throwing her considerable political weight behind a proposal to promote pancreatic cancer screening. Kowalski lost her husband, Mark Gilhuly, to pancreatic cancer. She penned an op-ed in the Courant encouraging the passage of S.B. 1191.

We’ll be back next week with another edition of the Tip Sheet.