Connecticut
At Trump’s insistence, GOP’s abortion platform reflects ‘CT values’
The political interests of Donald J. Trump and blue-state Republicans aligned Monday in a Republican platform provision supporting a woman’s right to the in vitro fertilization treatments opposed by some evangelicals in the anti-abortion movement.
The platform dictated by the Trump campaign ends the GOP’s longstanding call for a national ban on abortion, instead embracing the post-Roe v. Wade reality that returned decisions over abortion restrictions to the states. It also endorses the use of IVF treatments that can result in the destruction of unused embryos.
Ben Proto, the Connecticut Republican chair and a member of the platform committee, said he expected the softer language on reproductive rights demanded by the Trump campaign will be welcomed in northeastern states.
“That provision is very reflective of Connecticut values,” Proto said.
Proto and Leora Levy, another Connecticut Republican on the platform committee, both supported Trump’s platform language in a meeting in Milwaukee, where the Republican National Convention opens Monday.
The platform hardly blurs the bright line separating Trump from President Joe Biden on abortion: The Republican challenger celebrates the reversal of Roe, while the Democratic incumbent favors the restoration of a national right to abortion access.
But GOP platforms often have been deeply problematic for northeastern Republicans by deferring to red states in branding the GOP as deeply conservative on social issues, abortion among them.
Connecticut has codified in state law the general tenets of Roe, the landmark decision that for nearly 50 years had guaranteed a woman’s right to abortion prior to fetal viability.
Rep. Jillian Gilchrest, D-West Hartford, a leader in a General Assembly reproductive rights caucus dominated by Democrats, said the new GOP language was a tactical retreat, not a statement of principles.
“The Republican Party is the party that overturned Roe,” a decision that has sparked a backlash, Gilchrest said. “I see this as a strategical political move and nothing more.”
Rep. Nicole Klarides-Ditria, R-Seymour, one of the Republican women in the reproductive rights caucus, said Connecticut’s law should remain intact and she welcomed the platform change.
“A woman has a right to choose,” said Klarides-Ditria, who is not attending the convention. “Anything that supports that, I think is good.”
Her sister, former Rep. Themis Klarides, lost a U.S. Senate primary to Levy in 2022. One of the wedge issues was Klarides’ support of abortion rights and Levy’s opposition.
“Despite my personal views, abortion is a state issue and I do not support a federal ban, which was my position when I ran for U.S. Senate,” Levy said. “I hope to continue to work to change people’s hearts and minds on the issue and to support women who need support to give their precious babies the gift of life.”
Levy said she opposes abortions with the exceptions of cases involving rape, incest or threats to the life of a pregnant woman. She has no objections to IVF treatments, which became a flashpoint this year for many in the anti-abortion movement.
Southern Baptists, the largest Protestant denomination, voted last month to oppose in vitro fertilization, breaking with many of its adherents.
The GOP’s sensitivity to a backlash by abortion opponents on the new abortion language was reflected in a motion Proto made at the behest of the Trump campaign: The securing of smart phones and other digital devices during the committee meeting.
Proto acknowledged that the motion was a defensive measure against digital lobbying by abortion opponents during the closed proceedings. Proto also made a motion to “call the question,” limiting the ability of opponents to turn the tide during a protracted debate.
The Republican Party has had anti-abortion planks since 1976, with Democrats pledging support for a woman’s right to choose.
This story was originally published by The Connecticut Mirror.
Connecticut
Body recovered after Bloomfield house fire and explosion
A body was recovered after a house explosion resulting in a house fire in the area of Banbury Lane on Monday night.
Fire Marshal Roger Nelson says they recovered a body around 1:15 on Tuesday morning. The identity of the body found will not be released at this time.
When officers arrived around 6:11 p.m. they encountered the house fully in flames, police said.
According to police, the fire department was able to extinguish the fire, but the house sustained devastating damage.
There are no criminal aspects related to this incident at this time.
The incident was contained to the one house.
Connecticut
Exclusive | Ex-CBS anchor Josh Elliott back on Connecticut dating scene after ugly Liz Cho split
Ex-CBS host Josh Elliott is looking for love eight months after he filed for divorce from “Eyewitness News” anchor Liz Cho.
“Josh is out and about on the dating scene in Fairfield County,” a spy exclusively tells Page Six. “He’s been seen at the bars in the area where middle-aged singles congregate.”
A second source tells Page Six, “Josh isn’t dating anyone, but he is open to meeting people. His daughter is his priority.”
Page Six can also reveal that Elliott moved out of his and Cho’s estimated $4.2 million Connecticut marital home in January.
In court papers dated Jan. 29 and obtained by Page Six, Cho revealed Elliott moved out of their home and into a new residence without her knowledge.
Cho claimed she was notified by Optimum on Jan. 21, regarding her ex installing internet at his new home.
“The Defendant learned for the first time from said communication that on or about January 15, 2026, the Plaintiff secured an unfurnished rental residence located in Southport, Connecticut,” the filing read.
“It is now clear that the Plaintiff surreptitiously entered a new lease…” the court papers continued.
A rep for Elliott did not respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
Page Six broke the ousted CBS anchor filed for divorce from Cho after a decade of marriage on June 20, 2025.
“The marriage of the parties has broken down irretrievably,” the court papers read. Elliott asked for a “dissolution of the marriage” and for “an equitable distribution of all property, both real and personal.”
Cho responded to her estranged husband’s complaint on Nov. 6 and filed a cross-complaint against him. She also stated their marriage “has broken down irretrievably.”
The divorce became messy when Cho requested “copies of written correspondence, emails, cards, WeChat messages, Facebook messages, social media messaging, instant messaging, telephonic text messages, transcribed voicemail messages or any written forms of communication” between Elliott and “any person, other than the defendant, with whom [Elliott] have or have had a romantic and/or sexual relationship, from July 11, 2015, to the present.”
Elliott objected the request on the “grounds that the time frame of the request for production is unreasonable, unnecessary, harassing and not likely to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence.”
Cho also requested “monies spent for the benefit of any person with whom you have had a romantic and/or sexual relationship, other than the defendant,” “property given or transferred by you to any person with whom you have had a romantic and/or sexual relationship, other than the defendant,” “monies spent for your benefit by any person with whom you have had a romantic and/or sexual relationship with, other than the defendant.”
The TV personality in addition requested financial records, documentation proving Elliott’s search for employment — as he was ousted from CBS in 2017 — travel invoices, and more. Elliott objected to the requests.
A source close to the couple previously told Page Six, “This is standard in a divorce. Her lawyer is doing a thorough document request. The documents she is requesting are standard.” The insider also insisted there is no evidence Elliott had a relationship with anyone outside the marriage.
Also in the Jan. 29 court filing, Cho filed a motion for contempt against Elliott regarding their jointly owned marital Connecticut mansion.
Cho claimed Elliott arranged for a moving truck to come to the marital residence while she was on vacation with her daughter on Jan. 19.
Cho claimed Elliott moved a “significant amount of furniture and furnishings from the marital residence,” and their “two Portuguese water dogs,” which she alleged at the time of the filing were not returned.
The court docs continued to allege, “On Tuesday, January 6, 2026, [Cho] realized that she was missing a valuable watch and earrings from her jewelry bag. As [Elliott] is the only other person who had access to the missing watch and jewelry, [Cho] believes [Elliott] is in possession of such personal property.”
She claimed his alleged actions are a “willful violation” of the court’s orders.
The insider alleged Elliott was the one to take care of the dogs and that he took “a small amount of furniture.”
In Elliott’s response to her filing, he objected to her request and claimed her allegations are “false and inflammatory.”
He claimed in court papers, “[Cho] alleges [Elliott] ‘ransacked’ and ‘abandoned’ the marital residence — claims that are patently false and intended to annoy, harass and intimidate [Elliott].
“[Elliott] did not ransack the marital home. He did not damage the property. He did not render the residence uninhabitable. He removed limited personal property and furnishings so he would have a safe haven from [Cho’s] escalating and erratic behavior direct at not only [Elliott], but his minor child as well.”
In a separate filing, he continued to defend his actions by alleging, “[Elliott] removed only limited furniture items and furnishings, many from the basement, solely to furnish a new residence after removing himself and his child from a hostile environment created by [Cho]. All property remains intact and subject to equitable distribution.”
In regard to the jewelry claim, Elliott said, “Perhaps most egregious is [Cho’s] baseless accusation that [Elliott] stole her jewelry. This allegation is made without evidence, without corroboration and without even a good-faith attempt to verify the truth.”
He then accused her of “monitoring and listening to [Elliott’s] private phone calls; rifling through [Elliott’s] personal belongings and closet; leaving the marital residence for extended periods without communication despite the presence of two dogs requiring daily care” and more claims.
He is requesting that the court deny her motion for contempt and they are due in court on March 20.
Lawyers for Cho and Elliott did not respond to Page Six’s request for comment regarding the divorce.
Elliott, 54, and Cho, 55, met while working for ABC and got married in July 2015.
This was the second marriage for both, as they each share a daughter from their previous relationships.
Cho has been with ABC on “Eyewitness News” since 2003, while Elliott was with ABC’s “Good Morning America” from 2011 to 2014.
After a brief stint with NBC, he joined CBSN as lead daytime anchor in March 2016. Nearly a year later, he was let go from the company.
Elliott has been out of the spotlight in recent years, but is now in talks to join Gayle King and Nate Burleson on “CBS Mornings,” Awful Announcing reported.
Connecticut
Man charged with murder in Hartford
A man was charged with murder and interfering with police on Sunday night.
According to police, officers were dispatched to an apartment on Washington Street for a wellness check of a woman who was reportedly unconscious and not breathing.
When officers arrived, they made contact with a man in the apartment who refused to cooperate and would not allow officers access. They then had to force entry into the apartment where they located the victim suffering from severe head trauma as well as the aggressive male, police said.
The man was secured and transported to the Hartford Police Detention Facility and is being held on a million-dollar bond.
The victim was revealed to be 76-year-old Linda Anthony and was pronounced deceased on scene.
The Hartford Police Major Crimes and Crime Scene Divisions responded to the scene and assumed the investigation.
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