Larson Rebukes Anwar, Praises Lamont, Predicts Trump Bid for 3rd Term.
East Hartford Democrat Timothy Larson wrote to his Democratic town committee to criticize his successor in the 3rd State Senate district seat, Saud Anwar. The thin-skinned South Windsor Democrat, in his fourth term watching his bills die on the Senate calendar, wrote in a June 6th op-ed that popular Governor Ned Lamont ought to decline run for a third term to make run for a tax-and-spend Malloy Democrat.
Larson, a member of the Lamont administration as the clueless head of the Office of Higher Education (OHE), asked EHDTC chair Sabrina Wilson to read his statement to the committee. The statement, posted below, praises Lamont’s achievements, casting some as notably progressive. The former East Hartford mayor and airport administrator does not include how very, very good Lamont has been to the broader Larson family. He does slip in a critical reference to family nemesis Bill Curry.
Anwar comes in for shelling in Larson’s first paragraph. He may disagree most with Larson’s that debate is healthy. Anwar prefers speech he finds disagreeable to be silenced.
Others will debate whether Larson wrote his declaration, but the final paragraph does sound like him. It claims “we are likely to again face the chaos of Donald Trump at the top of the ballot…” as an urgent reason for party unity.
The statement:
I stand here today with deep concern and disappointment regarding State Senator Saud Anwar’s recent public suggestion that Governor Lamont should step aside to allow a more liberal candidate to enter the race. While healthy debate within our party is not only expected but necessary, undermining a popular proven Democratic governor at a moment of national and state-level urgency is both shortsighted and politically reckless.
Let us be clear: Governor Lamont holds one of the highest approval ratings among Democratic governors in the nation. That support is not accidental-it is the result of effective leadership, pragmatic policy, and a proven ability to govern in extraordinarily turbulent times. This is a leader who has already successfully navigated the state through a full presidential cycle under Donald Trump-protecting rights, expanding opportunity, and keeping our state anchored through chaos of a pandemic. That kind of experience is not theoretical, it is earned.
Under this governor’s watch, we’ve seen major progressive wins grounded in fiscal responsibility. Among the most impactful was the expansion of free childcare- a transformative policy that will lift families, empower working parents, and promote economic equity without triggering fiscal instability. This achievement alone puts Governor Lamont in the vanguard of progressive governance, not behind it.
While he calls for someone “more liberal” he overlooks the essential truth: progressive leadership is not measured by ideological slogans but by what gets done for working people. The governor’ ability to be both a fiscal moderate and a progressive reformer is exactly what voters across a diverse state have rewarded with trust. To suggest we cast that aside for a political gamble is not just ill-advised, it disrespects the people who voted for results over rhetoric.
And let’s not forget our history. Just two decades ago Democrats ran candidates for governor who checked every progressive box, but could not get elected. That vacuum of electability ushered in sixteen years of a Republican sitting in the Governor’s office. We must not repeat the mistakes of the past by sacrificing electability and steady governance in pursuit of purity tests that alienate the very voters we need to win.
At a time when democracy itself is under threat, and when we are likely to again face the chaos of Donald Trump at the top of the ballot, unity and stability within our party are not luxuries- they are imperatives. We should be rallying around proven leadership, not fracturing it for short-term political theater.
Respectfully,
Tim Larson, 2nd District EH DTC
Published June 21, 2025.