All aboard the Trump train?

Sue! Sue!

It appears that Connecticut’s Republican gubernatorial nominee Bob Stefanowski (that’s him, above) intends to sue the Independent Party of Connecticut in order to gain that party’s endorsement.

Forgive me if you’re not in Connecticut and these names mean nothing to you, but the optics of this kind of legal challenge are not, as they say in whatever business in which they use words like “optics,” ideal.

Below is a letter from the candidate’s lawyers that signals they’re willing to go to court, and why:

Was the party’s endorsement protocol followed? That’s an interesting question, but that most likely will get lost in the bigger discussion. Instead, perhaps the best summation of this move comes from Independent party chair, Mike Telesca:

“I knew he was going to file a lawsuit no matter what. Whether it was a tie vote or he lost by 20, he was going to object to the results — sort of a Donald Trump move. ‘Either I win or I sue.’”

Is that true? We will never know. We do know that the Stefanowski’s campaign team is an ever-changing thing, and we know that if the candidate wins this relatively minor victory, it could be at the cost of losing vote. Rather than talk about the state GOP’s awesome plans to improve Connecticut (I’m waiting for that, too), Stefanowski will have to battle against charges of this, also from Telesca:

“Let’s just put it this way: It’s sour grapes. This is one more [example] of the very rich demanding their way.”

It’s understandable, the candidate wanting the endorsement. Losing it could be significant in November. But though Stefanowski has been careful to distance himself from the Dark Lord of the GOP, for moderate Republicans, this move may be too Trumpy. Should we assume the Stefanowski camp discussed this, and figured it was worth the battle?

For context, from Ballotpedia, the Independent Party platform aligns more with the national Republican party, than the Democratic one: