If you're at all interested in the tenor of relations within Gov. Jodi Rell's administration these days -- especially given that the retiring governor has pointedly declined to endorse Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele in his bid to succeed her -- read Greg Hladky's latest.

After all these years, it remains true that the concentration point of interest in the Rell administration, the emotional and ideological vortex around which all else swirls is not located in the governor's office at all, but down the leadership suite's interior hallway, at the desk of chief of staff M. Lisa Moody.

Hladky's sources place the basis of the administration's feelings for Fedele -- something between an older sibling's slighting disregard and outright animus -- right at Moody's feet. The steadfast protector of the governor's approval rating is also, this piece argues, the die-hard opponent of the lieutenant governor who would hope to succeed her.

Of course, the Rell administration has on occasion carved out a space onstage for Fedele. For instance, when debuting Rell's final budget reconciliation package, the lieutenant governor was invited to explain one proposal he had apparently championed, to raise $50 million over two years through vaguely described changes in the organizational structure of Bradley International Airport. (Never mind the fact that there were federal laws in place saying the administration probably couldn't do that.)

But in the waning months of the Rell administration, things are icy between the second and third floors in the Capitol, and Hladky's piece starts to bring out the frustration of the Rell administration insiders who are watching this quiet battle unfold.

"It’s so pathetic," one told Hladky. "So f***ing lame!"

Read the whole thing.