After month of Trump, CT Democrats push back on federal cuts, chaos
Marking the one-month anniversary of President Donald Trump returning to the White House, top Connecticut Democrats gathered Monday to say they will continue fighting back.
State Attorney General William Tong joined with three other constitutional officers to say they will try to block Trump's actions and block federal funding freezes.
'This is a firewall — right here,' Tong said at a press conference in Hartford as he was surrounded by the state treasurer, comptroller, secretary of the state and about 40 legislators and advocates. 'No matter who the president is, our job is to fight for and protect Connecticut families and to look after each other. Here we are four weeks in — one month to the day — and we know a lot now after four weeks.'
He added, 'We know four weeks in that the president promised a program of mass deportation, and he has put a target on the backs of immigrants and immigrant families across Connecticut and across this country. But more than mass deportation, we're seeing his program for mass unemployment, for mass layoffs — thousands of federal of workers, some of whom work here in Connecticut and have families in Connecticut. … People are losing their jobs right now: FAA, law enforcement, Social Security office. Nonprofits are laying off people right now.'
In a sprawling system, officials said they did not have a precise number for the cuts or the direct impact on Connecticut.
The total amount of federal money coming to Connecticut during the 2024 fiscal year was $14.3 billion, which includes loans and grants that often go directly to day care centers, police departments, schools, and other organizations, said state comptroller Sean Scanlon. The federal grants in the state budget are $1.924 billion this year and are projected to be $1.847 billion next year, according to the latest consensus revenue estimates by top state budget analysts.
Scanlon said that he is trying to get a more precise number on the cuts by working with the state treasurer and Gov. Ned Lamont's budget office.
'We don't have a total scale or sense of what exactly has been paused versus what has not been paused,' Scanlon said when asked by The Courant. 'Sometimes the pauses are brief. Sometimes they are longer than that.'
It is difficult to calculate the numbers, Tong said, because new cuts are announced on a daily basis as Trump confidante Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency team target different government agencies.
'There's so much chaos because a lot of this data is being held by the federal government, Elon Musk and DOGE,' Tong said. 'It's hard to keep up with it all. I'll be very candid. Yes, I've given you fragments of information because that's what we're able to pick up every day while all of this flooding of the zone is happening.'
Joining with other Democratic attorneys general across the country, Tong has been able to obtain restraining orders that have blocked some of Trump's actions. But he and other Democrats said that more needs to be done.
'It's hard to believe that we're only a month into this new administration,' said state Treasurer Erick Russell. 'What we have seen very clearly is chaos and uncertainty. Most importantly, it's people and families in our state who are completely confused about what to expect. They are afraid. They're nervous. They're looking to us to be the backstop here to continue the fight that we have ahead.'
Christopher Keating can be reached at ckeating@courant.com
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