Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has promised to “open up the libel laws” to weaken First Amendment protections for reporters who write negative stories about him. Now Connecticut Republican Party Chairman J.R. Romano is taking a page from Trump’s playbook and denying convention credentials to a well-respected Connecticut reporter.

In his best Trump impression, Romano said, “I question his motivations. Neil Vigdor is not treating us fairly. I just want to be treated fairly. I’m not being treated fairly.”

“The Connecticut Republican Party continues to learn new tricks from their standard-bearer Donald Trump. The Trump-Connecticut Republican Party playbook may try to obfuscate their motives with claims of ‘unfairness,’ but censorship by any other name still runs counter to our values as a state and a nation. While they resort to blocking reporters and attacking free speech and freedom of the press, Connecticut Democrats will fight for our First Amendment freedoms. Connecticut deserves better than J.R. Romano’s childish temper tantrums.” – Connecticut Democratic Party spokesman Leigh Appleby

P.S. Remember when J.R. Romano tried to accuse Connecticut Democrats of secretly plotting to “eliminate all newspapers”? SRSLY.