One story was the gravitational center of the news universe last week and will likely continue to be a political lightening rod: the Trump Administration’s separation of immigrant children from their undocumented parents at the border.

In politics and government, it often boils down to the money.  But when it doesn’t, things can get emotional, as they did last week.

Some things got done last week in Connecticut politics, and other things were undone. But mostly it was a week spent talking about things to be done… and, of course, toilets.

Owing partly to a holiday, it was a relatively quiet week in Connecticut – nowhere near as fraught as ABC’s abrupt cancellation of “Roseanne.” The role of race in Connecticut’s politics was a topic of concern, but it wasn’t until Gov. Dannel Malloy’s veto Friday that the knives came out.

It’s the run-up to Memorial Day, when parades and solemn ceremonies mark the sacrifices made by members of the American military. It is also a time for politicking, and there is no shortage of that as candidates for elective office maneuver to raise their public profiles both here and in Washington, D.C.

Political winds were blowing in Connecticut last week, though not nearly as hard as the tornadoes and violent thunderstorm that caused devastating damage, particularly in the western portion of the state, and took two lives.

The Connecticut General Assembly ended its 2018 session on schedule Wednesday by passing a $20.86 billion budget that restores aid for towns; reverses health care cuts for the elderly, poor and disabled; and defers a transportation crisis for another year. Then legislators turned their attention to getting re-elected for another term.

There was so much going on at the Connecticut State Capitol last week that the ricocheting statements about President Donald Trump’s payments (or not) to porn star Stormy Daniels seemed to be from another galaxy far, far away. Legislators in Connecticut were busily passing legislation on everything from the bump stocks to women’s pay equity.

It was a week of big achievements for some, big disappointments for others; and, in Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District, musical chairs.

As the Connecticut legislative season advances, there has been less talk and more voting at the State Capitol. (Well, more voting anyway — and some thinning of the political herd.)

President Donald Trump had a lot to be angry about last week, starting with an FBI raid on his lawyer Michael Cohen’s offices and finishing with the impending release of former FBI director James Comey’s book. Connecticut’s Congressional delegation members were not too happy, either.

The tectonic plates of Connecticut politics shifted last week when U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty, under fire from her own party for mishandling a case of alleged sexual abuse by her then-chief of staff, announced she would not seek re-election in November.

Who’s in, who’s out? It was an oft-repeated question in government circles in both Connecticut and Washington, D.C., last week as the political merry-go-round turned.

It’s legislative hearing season in Connecticut – when proposals meet counter-proposals, lobbyists work overtime, time is always running short and just about everyone wants something included in the budget.