Thursday, January 21, 2010

Next Meeting: Saturday, Jan. 23rd at 9:00 am (Village PIzza)

Join us to talk about plans for town meeting day, updates on the state budget, and other announcements/plans/ideas for the months leading up to election day 2010!

At the holiday party/December meeting we agreed to hold another fundraiser/bakesale for CERV at town meeting day.

Please come to Village Pizza (formerly the Red Kettle - and yes, they serve breakfast) this Saturday, January 23 @ 9:00 am. Come for breakfast, a cup of coffee, or just to catch up. I don't expect the meeting to take longer than an hour. Hope to see you then.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Updates on Race for Vermont Governor

Recently 200 Vermonters turned out in Windsor County for a Democratic candidate's forum in Hartland, Vermont. You can read about the forum here. This is great news for Vermont Democrats and shows the level of enthusiasm for all the excellent candidates we have to choose from.

But, it got me thinking that I should put together a brief synopsis on what our candidates have been up to recently. This is not exhaustive (check their respective websites for scheduled events and more details). But, here is at least a cursory effort to provide you with one-stop shopping with respect to the latest from Vermont's Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls (in alphabetical order):

Sen. Susan Bartlett is promoting "Challenges for Change" on Green Mountain Daily. Read her post here. This is the plan put together by consultants and promoted by Gov. Douglas, Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, and House Speaker Shap Smith. The goal is to save $38 million in Vermont's budget through streamlining and efficiency measures. Is it possible? You decide. You can read the report here. More information at the website: www.bartlettforgovernor.com.

Former Senator Matt Dunne wrote recent articles on Vermont Yankee and has an op-ed reflecting on Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the importance of community service in today's Burlington Free Press: Honor King With Service. He will be doing community service work at CEDO sites in Burlington on Monday. More information at the website: http://www.mattdunne.com/.




Secretary of State Deb Markowitz was endorsed by Emily's List and is promoting a fundraiser directed to her supporters. She has also been active on the issue of moving Vermont's primary election date. More information at the website: http://www.debforvermont.com/.




Sen. Doug Racine worked with his House committee counterparts to convene a public hearing on health care reform. Over 400 Vermonters turned out last week to Vermont's statehouse to make their views known on this issue. You can read about it in the Times Argus and VPR. He's also formally kicking off his campaign on Saturday, January 23, 2010 at various sites around Vermont. More information at the website: http://www.dougracine.com/.





Sen. Peter Shumlin has been in the news with respect to the latest revelations about Vermont Yankee, and told over 100 marchers opposing Vermont Yankee relicensing that he opposes relicensing it if it comes to a vote this year. He was also present for the unveiling of the "Challenges for Change" report referenced above. More information at the website: http://www.shumlinforgovernor.com/.



** Also, there was news about the Douglas Administration's efforts to allow ATV's onto state lands. At a recent candidate's forum before VASA, the sports group representing ATV riders, Senators Bartlett, Racine, and Shumlin all made statements on the issue (Sec. of State Markowitz and former Sen. Dunne were unavailable, or did not appear) - all opposed the way the Douglas Administration is attempting to implement a rule change to allow ATV's on state lands. Sen. Shumlin flatly opposed allowing ATVs on state lands. Senators Bartlett and Racine said they might be open to limited ridership, but not the way the Administration has proposed. You can read the article here, and an editorial on the issue, here.

Finally, a word about the presumptive Republican nominee, Brian Dubie. Apparently, he's kicked off something he's calling a "Jobs Tour" to kickstart his campaign. It's good that the Republicans are trying to figure out how to create jobs. After seven years holding the Governor's office, they have failed on their promise of providing jobs or a positive economic climate. Don't forget the Douglas-Dubie team were prime cheerleaders of the failed economic policies of the Bush Administration that squandered the budget surpluses left by the Clinton Administration. Maybe Dubie's effort would be more appropriately called a "Jobless" Tour?