Flipped Senate and White House means changes coming for CT delegation

U.S. Senator Chris Murphy has a post-Election Day message from his usual victory spot, Capitol Lunch in New Britain.

“I feel like the luckiest guy in the world that I get to do this job for another six years,” Murphy said.

He handedly beat Republican Matt Corey on election night. But his job is about to undergo changes with the landscape changing in Washington post-election.

NBC News projects Republicans are regaining control of the Senate majority and the Oval Office. The house remains up for grabs as of Wednesday.

Despite Connecticut’s delegation taking home victories on election night, the losses are still a blow as they prepare to head down to DC.

“We lost a lot of good colleagues in the Senate and Donald Trump seems poised to be back in the White House which is really bad news for Connecticut,” Murphy said.

He noted his intention is to continue bipartisan work, but anticipates that will be rendered more difficult in a Republican-controlled Senate and White House.

“I will work with President Trump wherever we have overlap that helps Connecticut, but I think that is really limited overlap,” Murphy said.

One of his concerns is around rules protecting the minority voice like the filibuster. So he is also anticipating his role could change.

“It’s more likely I will be like I did in his first term; help lead the fight against the policies that he supports that hurt Connecticut,” he said.

But the Yankee Institute, a local conservative think tank, doesn’t believe Republicans will be so quick to change up Senate conduct.

“The way the Senate operates, it has always been the branch of the legislature most concerned with protecting minority rights, the rights of the party that holds fewer seats,” Carol Platt Liebau said.

Senator Richard Blumenthal also pledges a fight around abortion access and gun legislation - both topics Democrats anticipate will surface in the Senate.

“I intend to do what I have always done, and that’s fight for the people of Connecticut and hold accountable anyone that abuses their power,” Blumenthal said.

The Connecticut GOP is excited to see what Republicans can do with a fresh opportunity.

“It’s going to be incumbent on the Trump administration together with the Senate and the House to move the agenda over the next two years,” CT GOP Chair Ben Proto said.

He anticipates the agenda won’t involve what he described as rhetoric around human or civil rights like abortion access, but rather will revolve around immigration and the economy.

Both issues he said our elected officials, meaning Blumenthal and Murphy, have pledged to work on and can get involved in, and he calls on them to come to the table.

“I hope they will be able to find some common ground and to be able to support things that are good for the American people or good for the people of Connecticut,” Proto said.

As we approach administrative change, Murphy said there's legislation he would like to see get across the finish line.

He notes there will need to be bipartisan work done to legislation including the Farm Bill.