Suddenly, the 118th is exciting!

In the first 24 hours after Jim Amann's surprise announcement, there's a lot of interesting stuff happening here in little ol' Milford.

First, independent candidate Rocco Frank was the early front runner for the Speaker's seat, but only because he was the only person running when Jim made his announcement.

Within hours, Republican challengers for the seat began stirring in their burrows, cautiously poking their noses out to sniff the political winds. I'd imagine we'll see a couple exploratory committees forming very soon.

I was briefly encouraged by some of my well-intentioned but seriously misguided friends to throw my hat in the ring; but my hat is out being blocked, so I guess I'll have to sit this one out.

(Do people still get their hats blocked? It seems like an old timey kind of expression!)

Besides, there are plenty of other local Democrats with actual experience and true leadership abilities, which are qualities I sorely lack. Along with motivation, inspiration, and much of a work ethic.

Fortunately there are quite a few potential candidates here in the 118th who meet those criteria, and would be much more capable of filling Jim Amann's shoes than I could ever hope to be.

The deadline for coming up with a solid candidate is May 28th (I think), so we only have about a month to propose, discuss, vet, nominate, and select a candidate. It's going to be a busy month!

And of course, any potential candidates would do well to attempt to curry favor with me as quickly as possible, because we all know that an endorsement by "Connecticut Bob" will all but guarantee an election victory! Free pizza and beer will get you to the table.

From there, it's all up to you.

The "CT Bob Bump" is a well known political phenomenon. Just ask Jim Amann. Only TWO weeks after my exclusive video of him hit the Internet, he "crushed" his way to a huge victory in the 2006 election.

Voila! The "CT Bob Bump!"

Of course, it helps to be running unopposed. This time around, because of public campaign funding, there will be a lot less uncontested seats. Citizen representatives was the original concept in Connecticut, and the even playing field will ensure many more incumbents being held accountable for their actions by contesting their seats.

And regardless of the election results, we ALL win.