Politics makes strange bedfellows in Greenwich

The irony of Greenwich First Selectman Camillo honoring a person whose position was ruled illegitimate, is why they say politics makes strange bedfellows. The Connecticut Centinal provides an illuminating history below of how this irony came about:

Honoring outgoing board members - even rogue ones. This week and last, Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo honored the Board of Education (BOE) members whose terms just ended, including those involved in what he personally described as the "mother of all power grabs." Camillo hand-signed proclamations to honor the three departing Board members, along with the "imposter" BOE member, [Jen Behette], and designated a special day for each of them.

It started with a sham emergency meeting to fill an opening. This whole mess started after former Republican BOE member Karen Kowalski resigned because she moved out of town. It took months to vet candidates. When Camillo finally provided notice of his appointment of Republican Paul Cappiali to take Kowalski's place, the Democrats called a "sham emergency meeting" on October 21, 2024, in order to install their own preferred candidate [Jen Behette]—the only candidate that Republican BOE members opposed for their caucus—as the replacement for Kowalski.

Democrats block participation from sworn-in member. Meanwhile, even though Town Clerk Jackie Budkins swore in Cappiali as a BOE member, Acting Chair Karen Hirsh (D) barred him from participating in any BOE meetings, pretending that his appointment was illegitimate. At the same time, the Democrats allowed Jen Behette, a republican in name only, to cosplay as a BOE member, giving her access to sensitive information and allowing her to vote, despite never being officially sworn in as a BOE member. The BOE Democrats even had the nerve to conduct "sham officer elections", putting themselves, along with Behette, into positions of power.

Lawsuit filed against the power grab. This farce went on for a solid year. Camillo called it "the mother of all power grabs" on November 26, 2024, and subsequently filed a lawsuit after receiving a legal letter from the Democrats on the Board. The Board Democrats responded to the news of the lawsuit by accusing Camillo of a "blatant power grab" and "flagrantly" violating the law, a well-known deflection tactic of the left to accuse Republicans of their own misdeeds.

One year later court rules Democrats did not act in good faith. The first step in the legal process required a ruling from the Freedom of Information Commission (FOIC) to determine the validity of the "sham emergency meeting" called by the Board Democrats on October 21, 2024. The FOIC took 11 months to issue a ruling. When it finally did issue the preliminary ruling on October 10, 2025, the FOIC found that the Democrats had "deprived the public of access to the appointment of an official who ... would otherwise have been chosen to serve by the public." It was further found that the Democrats did not act in good faith to comply with the notice requirements of the FOI Act with respect to the "sham emergency meeting" when the Democrats launched the coup.

Subsequent deciding votes may be declared null and void. The Commission recognized that nullification "may call into question the legality of any actions by the respondent board in which Ms. Behette's vote constituted a deciding vote" and indicated the "proper remedy" would be to "declare null and void the action taken" at the October 21, 2024, meeting.

BOE Democrats continue to ignore court ruling. The Board Democrats, along with the imposter BOE member, then chose to ignore the FOIC ruling, effectively doubling down on their coup. Additionally, Behette continued her cosplay as the BOE Vice Chair for the remainder of her "term" along with Board Democrats who kept pretending that their sham officer elections were legitimate. Cappiali was still denied the right to participate in meetings, even though he was a certified member of the Greenwich BOE.

All's well that ends well? That more or less brings us up today, December 9th, aka "Jen Behette Day" ... a day to recognize and thank the imposter member for the year she "faithfully served" as Vice Chair—an odd term to use considering the FOIC ruled the Democrats "did not act in good faith" when calling the "sham emergency meeting" on October 21, 2024, and declared the actions taken at that meeting, which included Behette's appointment, "null and void."

Between the Lines: Per William Pitt the Elder: "Where law ends, tyranny begins."

Story here