Didn’t Democrats keep control of the Tennessee (or was it Kentucky?) state house a few years ago when the GOP had a one-vote majority, but when they voted for Speaker they had the Republicans vote alphabetically, and the last guy, a RINO named Williams, went last and voted for himself, and he became Speaker with the votes of all of the Democrats? I was joking that maybe we could find a CT DINO with a W surname to return the favor.
Yes, in the 2008 elections, the GOP got a 1-seat majority in the House (50-49). The caucus elected Jason Mumpower, the sitting party leader, as the Speaker-designate. As they were calling the roll, they got to one Kent Williams, a creepy sophomore RINO from East TN who had beaten a Conservative Eurasian Republican. Williams voted for himself and outgoing Democrat Speaker, Boss Hogg Naifeh, directed the entire Democrat caucus to vote for him, and the Dems stole the chamber by 1 vote and “Speaker” Williams turned around and created the new position of “Speaker Emeritus” and the 49+turncoat “elected” Naifeh to the position, from which Naifeh could continue to run the body through his puppet.
A month later, the GOP convened a special meeting and formally kicked Williams out of the party where he continued to serve as an “Independent.” The GOP increased its numbers in 2010 and deposed the Puppet Speaker. Unfortunately, Williams was replaced by a RINO Country-Clubber named Beth Harwell (who refused to endorse Trump), and she’s been running the body as ruthlessly as Boss Naifeh. She was just reelected in-caucus by a very narrow margin the other day.