U.S. Rep. John B. Larson, D-1st District, called a press conference outside town hall in West Hartford to denounce Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and demand the release of Seyo Cecunjanin, the owner of Portobello, a restaurant on the Park Road business corridor connecting Hartford and West Hartford.
Community Support
Larson was accompanied by U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, state lawmakers, municipal officials, a Park Road business leader, and an immigration advocate, all present to signal their support for the Cecunjanin family and question the tactics of federal immigration agents.
Tracy Flater, a co-founder of Playhouse on Park in West Hartford and the co-president of the Park Road business association, said Cecunjanin was a friend, neighbor, and integral player on Park Road. "Park Road is not just a street. It's a community," she said. "And communities are built by people, people who show up, who invest, who give back, who make the place around them simply better — simply by being a part of it. Seyo is exactly that kind of person."
Confrontation at the Press Conference
Reese Hopkins, the evening drive-time host of "Reese on the Radio" on WTIC, and his personal manager, Adam Laird, waited to push back at what they say is the reflexive denunciation of the Trump administration. Hopkins acknowledged later that his option for politicians who won’t come on his show is confrontation.
Hopkins pounced when Larson welcomed questions, suggesting the press conference was premature, given that the congressman had no precise information about why Cecunjanin had been detained. Larson replied it was part of a pattern. They argued, speaking over each other.
Blumenthal interjected, his voice calm. "You know, you ask a good question," he said. "Why isn’t the immigration system working? And the answer is this administration has failed to provide the resources," Blumenthal said, noting that the ranks of immigration judges have been thinned. "And the system is so gridlocked, so dysfunctional, that they can’t resolve their legal status and they go on living in this country, contributing and working and raising families."
Original reporting: The Connecticut Mirror — read the source article.
