The Last Track

As you may have noticed, dear reader, the writing stopped in Freyne Land two weeks ago, both here in cyberspace and over there in the print edition of Seven Days in the "Inside Track."

Here's why.

Been covering the Vermont political/news/media scene since autumn 1979. Way back before Bernie Sanders ever won an election and nobody had heard of Howard Dean M.D. other than his patients.

And for most of that time, I simply could not believe they were actually paying me to have so much fun!

But in the last few years, what had been pure pleasure had turned into work - drudgery, in fact.

Not good.

Depression set in. Cancer followed. And, surprise! surprise! - beating the darn cancer did not change things. The depression, which those who've been there know is utter misery, came back. Why?

Because being "successful" at one's job does not mean being "happy" with one's life.

It has not been easy, mes amis, but the lesson learned in the last month has been positively enlightening.

I deserve to be happy - as do you -  and if that means putting the period down, ending the paragraph on the last "Inside Track" then so be it!

Life is short. As my ol' pal Mike always said, "We're not here for a long time, we're here for a good time." And as I've come to realize, one cannot begin that new chapter of life until one closes the page on the current one. It's a big step to take, a risky one, but until one takes it, the misery reigns supreme.

Health-wise, things haven't been this good in Freyne Land in decades. And the writer within - the non-political columnist - has a whole lot of material that's been waiting much too long to get out.

Stay tuned. We continue our good relationship with Seven Days as contributing editor and blogger and who knows what's next?

The simple fact is that life is good...and getting better.

And I haven't been able to say that in years!

Obama Wins Vermont!

The only question is - how large Obama's Vermont win will be?

"I understand the numbers are good here in Ward 5," Burlington, Vermont's Progressive Party Mayor Bob Kiss told yours truly and Reporter Anya Huneke from NECN during lunchtime at Burlington Electric on Pine Street.

"I voted earlier today," said Kiss, "and I did vote for Barack Obama for president."

Why?

"I tried to think back to 1968," said Da' Mayor of Burlap. "I voted for Eugene McCarthy over then-president Johnson. McCarthy was an agent of change [and] in some respects, I hope that Barack Obama measures up to that as well."

Actually, Sen. McCarthy lost the Democratic nomination to Hubert Humphrey, who lost the presidential race in November to Republican Richard Nixon.

What would an Obama win mean?

"I think he’s bringing this message of change," said the Ol' Kisser. "Whether he can deliver on that, I think it’s a good message for this state and time."

Howard Dean voted in Ward 5 around 8:30 this morning. The press wasn't there. But the chairman of the DNC did appear on CNN via satellite this afternoon from WCAX-TV. Wolf Blitzer asked Dr. Dean if he was getting concerned things were getting “too nasty” between Hillary and Barack?

DEAN: This is a pleasant walk in the park between what’s going to go on between the Democratic nominee and the Republican nominee. The two candidates are very close on the issues They’re incredibly articulate. Both are well-qualified to be president of the United States. The real fight’s going to start when we have the nominee.

Who did Ho-Ho vote for?

DEAN: I didn’t take a presidential ballot. If I’m gonna be neutral, you really have to be neutral all the way. So I voted for the school budget and so forth and so on, but did not take a ballot for the presidency.

Who's gonna win?

DEAN: Let’s see what the voters do. The voters are the key . The voters will make this decision. It will not be made by Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi and myself. It will be made by the people of America voting in these primaries. We’ve had 20 million people turn out and vote so far. That’s a 50 percent greater turnout than the Republicans. That’s incredible, and apparently it’s a record turnout today. Two million people voted early in Texas. That’s unbelievable!

P.S. Yours truly's taking a week off from the "Inside Track" print edition. Squeezing in a little vacation week. Check back for online updates.

A Bernie Monday

Sen. Bernie Sanders held a presser on health care at his Burlington office Monday morning before flying back to Washington and the budget battles ahead this week.

The folks joining him represented the seven Federally Qualified Health Centers, FQHCs, across Vermont. Five years ago there were just two, and the application process is currently underway for three more. FQHCs provide medical and dental care to Vermonters in need on a sliding scale.

Sanders: "We are making progress in the state of Vermont. In the last five years tens and tens of thousands of Vermonters have access on a sliding-scale basis to high quality healthcare and high-quality dental care, and we are trying to move forward even further. Today we’re looking at Springfield and Windham County. We’re looking at Addison County. Within a couple years we hope to be down in Bennington County.

"We’re gonna continue to fight to increase funding for the FQHCs so that the day will come, not only in Vermont  but all over America when any person regardless of income will be able to walk into a  high-quality community health center  and get the health and dental care, mental-health counseling, low-cost prescription drugs that they need.  That’s the point."

Q. And when do you think that day might be, within 10 years?  20 years?

Sanders: Well, that has something to do with politics and I suspect has something to do with who’s the president....

And yes, Ol' Bernardo said he is voting in the presidential primary. Casting an absentee ballot before flying back to Washington on Monday afternoon. He'll vote in the Democratic Presidential Primary, but declined to say which candidate will get his vote.

Sanders: "I am an Independent. I happen to think that the current administration will go down in history as one of the worst administrations in American history. They’re moving us in the wrong direction in almost every single area of public life. I hope our country will elect Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton as the next president.  As an Independent I’m not going to be involved in the primary, but when the Democrats do select their nominee, I’m going to campaign as hard as I can to elect Obama or Clinton because I think this country must move in a very different direction."

Chelsea Morning

Remember the Joni Mitchell song?

"Woke up it was a Chelsea morning and the first thing that I heard,
was a song outside my window and the traffic wrote the words..."

It was freezing - around zero - on Church Street in downtown Burlington early this morning. At 9:15 AM when it had been broadcast Chelsea Clinton would arrive on Church Street to shake some hands, there were 250 people huddling in the cold hoping to meet and greet the famous daughter of Bill and Hillary.

"We want to see the Clintons, any Clinton we can," said Connie Ramsey of Burlington. "I'm supporting Hillary, but I’ll take either one, her or Barack."

Is it because she’s a woman?

"No," replied Ramsey. "I find that insulting, actually, that people assume if you’re a woman you’ll back the female candidate."

Different story for Valerie Parauka from St. Albans.

"I’m voting for Hillary because I want to see a woman in the White House," Parauka told us. "I think she’s capable. I think she’s more capable that Barack. She has the experience and the strength to deal with our country and other countries."

Is her gender a key factor?

"It shouldn’t be a factor, but unfortunately in today’s society, it is a factor," said Valerie, "and people do look at her gender and she has to work twice as hard to overcome that.  I think it’s time for a woman president and I think after Bush’s fiasco, it’s a prime opportunity for her to pop into office."

The crowd has shrunk by the time Chelsea arrived around 10 o'clock. She was escorted by former Gov. Madeleine Kunin and Big Bill's EPA Secretary Carol Browner.

The First Daughter hit Uncommon Grounds for some java. Dropped into Banana Republic, too.

Well, at least she had one parent get elected president of the United States, eh?

For some nice video shot by Ch. 17 Producer Tuija Lindell go here.

Let it snow...

Up and at 'em and in 2008 that means up and "online." And the word on WGDR out of Plainfield is here comes da' snow. Yes, indeed. Despite all the global-warming talk, we're about to set the record for snowiest February on record.

Click over to WDEV and catch Eric Michaels getting the Statehouse story out of a sleepy-sounding Kristin Carlson. Kristin's a one-woman capital bureau for Ch. 3 (remember Tim Lewis?) and she was the fill-in anchorwoman on the Six O'Clock last night. Busy gal.

So, let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

The presidential primary heats up in the Green Mountains. Got an automated "Vote for Hillary Clinton" call last night from none other than former Governor/Ambassador Madeleine Kunin. Then I got one from a live person, a male, calling from an Obama for President office on North Street who wanted to urge me to vote for Obama.

Last week, Queen Madeleine and House Speaker Gaye Symington and Rep. Kathy Keenan did a Hillary for President conference call.

This morning the Obama Campaign is hosting a conference-call presser with three women for Barack.

And yes, Progressive Anthony Pollina does exist!

In fact, Tony the Prog's holding a Statehouse presser today at 12:30 in the Cedar Creek Room. This arrived a little after 5 o'clock on Monday. Unfortunately, we can't make it:

Pollina to hold press conference on Douglas' budget and promises to take the Governor to task for false promises and increasing cost of living for Vermonters, especially low-income families.  "Jim Douglas has built a reputation on keeping taxes low, but his budget increases fees for poor families while giving tax cuts to those on top. Plus, he's decreasing services badly needed by Vermont families," said Pollina.

Who are these guys?

Distinguished leaders of the Vermont State Senate, that's who. The Baby Boomer generation in power!

With one distinguished flash from the Statehouse past in the middle of them - the dude in the leather jacket.

Committee rooms and hallways - that's where the action occurs, information's exchanged, deals cut. It's all about communication, eh?

On the left is Sen. Jane Kitchell (D-Caledonia). On the right Sen. John Campbell (D-Windsor). [No relation to the soup.] To Campbell's right, Sen. Susan Bartlett (D-Lamoille). And strolling through the middle of them in bomber jacket and white scarf is a flash from the past: former-State Rep. John Freiden, a co-father of Act 60 [1997] which leveled the education property-tax playing field statewide.

Sen. Bartlett, first elected to the state senate in 1992, is one of the more unheralded, yet powerful political players in Montpeculiar. She's chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Sen. Kitchell was elected to the senate in 2004 - the first - no, the second Democrat - ever elected to a Caledonia County state senate seat (Scudder Parker was the first). Born in St. J and raised in Danville,  Sen. Jane has long been a Montpelier fixture for quite some time. She's a retired state worker - former secretary of the Agency of Human Services.

Sen. Campbell, a relative Montpeculiar newcomer compared to those two, didn't make it to Golden Dome Land until the 21st Century. He's the current Democrat Majority Leader. Was thinking about a gubernatorial bid, but that didn't get far.

In fact, the Vermont Democratic Party is still looking for a gubernatorial candidate to challenge Republican Jim Douglas.

And the point is?

Democratic House Speaker Gaye Symington's Friday "brown-bagger" with the Statehouse press is now being dubbed her "weekly press discussion."

I was the only one who ever brought a sandwich in a brown bag - to the first one, a few years back. One cannot, however, take notes with food in between one's paws. Gaye kept calling it a "brown-bagger," but no one ever brought food again. After all, it's her chance to counter the Guv's weekly presser, usually held on Thursdays.

Today's gathering in Speaker Gaye's office (a gathering Ch. 3, Ch. 5 and The Associated Press blew off), started 10 minutes late. In fact, with both Gov. Scissorhands and Lite-Gov Doobie-Doo out of state, Ol' Gaye was acting-governor!

When it was over, we were left wondering why she had bothered to call it in the first place. What was the Democratic Speaker of House's message?

Politics, mes amis, is a battle of messages. He/she who has the winning message ends up in power.

Despite his Republican jersey, Jim Douglas has had the winning message in Montpelier since taking office in 2003.

And despite their currently significantly superior numbers under the Golden Dome, Democrats have still been unable to deliver on the core issues they told Vermont voters were their priorities: major healthcare policy reform, serious climate-change legislation and major campaign-finance reform.

If the Democratic Speaker had a message today that she wanted to get out to the Vermont public through the Statehouse press, quite frankly it escaped us. So as the press ran out of questions and the Speaker ran out of anything she wanted to say,  yours truly tossed up the old softball, asking Madame Speaker if there, in fact,  was a particular message she wanted to get out to Vermont voters through today's press gathering?

Symington replied:

"The message that I began with was we’re beginning to write the budget and our priorities in the budget are not to put additional pressure on property taxes, not to put additional, shifting cost onto healthcare premiums for Vermonters, and to focus on the barriers and challenges that both our employers are facing and that Vermonters are facing in terms of being able to get to work and hold work and, you know, be reliable employees and that’s housing and transportation and child care and that we have tough budget choices ahead of us, but those are our priorities."

Wouldn't you agree that until Vermont Democrats can articulate a "message" more clearly and crisply and concisely, [i.e. get to the point!], Republican Gov. Jim Douglas' hold on power is quite secure?

P.S. Anybody see/hear Tony the Prog this week?

Vermont Cop Shortage

When I was a kid, being a cop was one of the desirable career choices in my adult future.

Heck, every little boy wanted to be a cop when they grew up. From Dragnet to Hill Street Blues, police work was noble, honorable, courageous work.

Nowadays there's a 10 percent vacancy-rate nationwide, and many of the best and the brightest are finding other career paths besides law enforcement.

Louis Porter has a story in today's Rutland Herald and Times Argus about the shortage in Vermont.

That's a shot we took of Louis with his pen and notebook yesterday in the Statehouse Ceremonial Office following Gov. Jim Douglas' uneventful weekly presser. Administration Secretary Mike Smith and Chief of Staff Tim Hayward are to his left.

Currently there are 27 unfilled positions at Vermont State Police. Another dozen are on sick leave and five more are on active duty with the US military in Iraq.

P.S. Our annual Statehouse Cafeteria food-fight cable TV program is back on the air - I think it's season #14. Time flies. [Whoopsie! Word from Jess Wilson at CCTV - yours truly's first Point-Counterpoint was in 1993. That makes this Season 16!]

The programs are available around the state on public access cable and on Ch. 17 on Comcast in beautiful Burlington. Also available online right here.

Thanks to Vermont Yankee, CVPS and Associated Industries of Vermont for their underwriting grants.

Bernie in the House?

Spoke to the enviro committees at 11 AM.

Upbeat was he. Incredibly upbeat!

{The Guv didn't even know he was in the building when we asked Jimbo at his 1 PM presser.]

More later...

*************

later....

Vermont's Independent US Sen. Bernie Sanders told lawmakers gathered in the Vermont House chamber, that global warming is "a very, very serious problem," one that scientists have underestimated and, he added, it is “absolutely beyond comprehension”  that the Bush administration has refused to address it.

That’s the bad news.

However, Ol' Bernardo was upbeat with good news about global warming. I'm not making this up.

And the good news - said Sanders - is that we actually do know how to reverse global warming by moving boldly on energy efficiency and promoting sustainable energy sources such as wind, solar, geothermal and biomass. We can reverse global warming and in the process, he said, create millions of new jobs!

Said Bernie:

"On this issue I’m upbeat because we know the answers. We have seen it. We know what energy efficiency can do. We know the potential of solar, the potential of wind and geothermal. The question is to put into action -  make real what already exists.

"We don't have to think of what to do, we know what to do. It's a question of implementing what we know."

Sanders said we have the potential right now to create dozens of solar/thermal power facilities in the nation’s Southwest that could meet one-third of America’s energy demand - without producing  greenhouse gases.

All that’s required, said Sanders, is a change in priorities in Washington, so such projects get funding, rather than having tax breaks lavished on Exxon-Mobil, a corporation that reported a $40 billion profit last year.

Vermont roots...

Did a Monday Montpeculiar run - police headquarters.

St. Patrick, aka U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy was having a presser. Announced an extra $1 million earmark for the Vermont Drug Task Force. All the TVs showed up: Ch. 3, Ch.5 and Fox 44!

That's John Patrick Tracy, a Leahy Vermont staffer and former Democratic leader-type under the Golden Dome, joining the senator. Tracy remains a future something-or-other, eh?

In case you were wondering what his duties currently include, among other things, Tracy "staffs" pressers such as these and when required puts his body in between the journalist/blogger (moi) with the camera and the New York license plate on the vehicle the senior senator from Vermont, his boss, is driving.

"It's a rental," said St. Patrick, that he'd picked up at the Burlington Airport. No big deal, but he sure didn't like the sight of me and the camera. Touchy, touchy.

During the presser, Sen. Leahy mentioned at least three times that his father had been born in Barre, Vermont.

Then he hit Burlington for an "I Love Obama" presser with Ben & Jerry. And he "unveiled" the new Obama radio ad he made with his better half - wife Marcelle Leahy.

Yours truly went over to a friend's place for some tea and a lovely little nap.

Freeps gives Bernie his due

Let's see now. Bernie Sanders [taking a call at right on Church Street] has lived in Vermont since the mid-1960s. Got involved with that left-wing, commie/pinko Liberty Union Party in 1971. First ran statewide in 1972.

And it's only taken 37 years for The Burlington Free Press, the state's largest daily, to write a favorable story about the guy!

It's titled "Sanders makes impact in U.S. Senate."

And Gannett Washington writer Erin Kelly, who has covered Vermont's Washington delegation for quite some time, hit the bullseye in her lead: the fact that the Bernie Sanders you see and hear today hasn't changed his tune one bit from the Bernie you heard way back when. His consistency and his indefatigable persistence are his trademarks. He was the champion of "poor people, working people and the elderly" back then, and he's the champion of "poor people, working people and the elderly" today...."and the environment!"

Yours truly first personally encountered Ol' Bernardo in January 1981. Corner of College and Church. He was a candidate for mayor. In March he pulled off the 10-vote upset that certainly shook this town up.

My job is to ask the questions the pols don't want to hear. Sorry, but it's my job - a 1st Amendment thing. Use it or lose it! It took us only about 15 years to warm up, but we did!

Mayor Bernie was at the helm in Burlington through the 1980s - a crucial and exciting time for change in this old dusty, bedraggled town with a rundown, dirty waterfront.

Statewide, he's won landslide victories every two years for more than a decade. Beat Republican Gazillionaire Ritchie Rich Tarrant 2 to 1 to win Jeezum Jim Jeffords' vacant seat. And seeing him today, in the thick of it in the United States Senate, a champion of the have-nots, of "poor people, working people and the elderly" and an effective one, has at long-last won the appropriate recognition from The Burlington Free Press!

What do you think?

Bernie's best years still ahead of him?

Rendezvous with destiny?

What are these folks doing on a rather chilly Church Street Marketplace in Burlap on Saturday afternoon?

"We are giving away Barack Obama bumper stickers and buttons and information and encouraging people to vote in the primary on March 4," said Laura Cary of South Burlington.

What’s the response been?

“Fantastic! Unbelievable! Overwhelming!” she said.

Added her partner Michael Ancel, "One guy came up and said I just want to stand here and talk to you and tell you how good I think this guy is. They think this is a transformational opportunity for them to vote for somebody new," said Michael, "to change the world!"

Indeed, many folks were stopping by their Obama table to take a bumper sticker or ask what they could do to help.

"We talked to someone who said he was a lifelong Vermonter and a lifelong Republican," said Laura. "He has voted for president since Ronald Reagan and he’s going to vote for Obama."

One sure does get that "Times they are a changin'" feeling.

DOYLE POLL - 2008!

Veteran State Senator Bill Doyle (R-Washington) paused as he rolled through the Cedar Creek Room on his walker Friday and hit me with a copy of this year's Town Meeting Day "Doyle Poll."

The annual Vermont political poll is an institution. Some "hot" questions this year,

Check it out:

Town Meeting Day Survey

Yes- No -Not Sure
                                                   
1) SHOULD DRIVERS BE PROHIBITED FROM USING CELL PHONES WHILE DRIVING?

2) DO YOU SUPPORT SAME SEX MARRIAGE?

3) SHOULD VT TAKE THE LEAD IN ADDRESSING CLIMATE CHANGE?

4) SHOULD VERMONT LEASE ITS LOTTERY?

5) ARE YOU OPTIMISTIC ABOUT VERMONT’S ECONOMY?

6) DO YOU SUPPORT THE LEGALIZATION OF HEMP?

7) SHOULD JAIL TIME  BE REMOVED FOR THE POSSESSION OF ONE          
OUNCE OF MARIJUANA?

8) DO YOU SUPPORT A 4-YEAR TERM FOR GOVERNOR?

9) DO YOU SUPPORT A 4-YEAR TERM FOR LEGISLATORS?

10) SHOULD VERMONT YANKEE’S LICENSE BE RENEWED IN 2012?

11) SHOULD THE GAS TAX BE INCREASED TO IMPROVE OUR ROADS            
AND BRIDGES?

12) DO YOU BELIEVE THE VT LEGISLATURE IS DOING A GOOD JOB?

13) DO YOU BELIEVE GOVERNOR DOULGAS IS DOING A  GOOD JOB?

14) CONSIDER EXPRESSING YOUR PREFERENCE FOR THE 2008 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION:               
    ___ HILLARY CLINTON          ___ MIKE HUCKABEE
    ___ BARACK OBAMA              ___ JOHN McCAIN

City or Town of Residence:                                                 
Name and Postal Address: (optional)                                                                                                             
E-mail Address:                                                         
Return to: Town/City Clerk, Local Legislator OR
Mail Sen. Bill Doyle, State House, Montpelier, VT 05602

Fax: 828-2424 – Cell Phone:  371-7898
E-mail wdoyle@leg.state.vt.us

A Mayoral Valentine

Bumped into the Progressive mayor of the Queen City of Burlington, Vermont at College and Church on Wednesday [after 5 pm].  He was returning to city hall carrying his freshly-purchased Valentine’s Day rose.

Just one.

Some might think that now that he’s hauling in the biggest paycheck of his life, he’d spring for a full dozen, but, hey, these Progressives are frugal. They're not in it for the money. It's the thought that counts.

Fortunately, "Freyne Land" had the camera and tape recorder in the backpack and the mayor of the largest city in the Green Mountain State, Mayor Bob Kiss, had a few minutes for a little impromptu street-corner presser.

Freyne: The rose is going to who, may we ask?

Mayor Bob Kiss: A good friend of mine. A very good friend of mine.

Freyne: Care to share with the people of Burlington just who?  No?  Gonna keep it a secret?

KISS:  Of course. Always a secret (he said with a smile and a wee blush).

Freyne: How many Valentine’s Days as mayor of Burlington?

KISS: This will probably be my second as mayor.

Freyne: How’s it going?

KISS: Good. I think we’re continuing to make progress in the city of Burlington.

Freyne: People ask me all the time - What’s the mayor doing? You’re kinda quiet, eh? That’s the perception. I’m not in City Hall like the old days. So, Mayor, what are you doing?

KISS: As a mayor and as a city we’re continuing to do good work and I think making Burlington a better place. One thing I want to talk about are items on the ballot in March.

Freyne: What’s the No. 1 thing? You only get time for one. What’s the most important item?

KISS: Most important is passing the Burlington Electric bond issue - $39.6 million. I think that really has a long-term benefit to the city.

Freyne: To do what?

KISS: It protects the security and reliability of the power in the City of Burlington. In addition, it buries the lines on the Waterfront. Right now power can come in, but without the loop, we could potentially go dark in order to keep the rest of the state lit. With the VELCO loop, that wouldn’t be the reality. We’ll be able to provide power to the city itself.

Freyne: Voters don’t know anything about that. I haven’t heard about it.

KISS: Well, it’s on the ballot. Another is...

Freyne: You only get one. OK, one more. [I'm a nice guy.]

KISS: A “yes” vote on redeveloping, reusing the Moran Power Plant. No matter what, the building is an important resource for the city of Burlington. Power plants have been redeveloped around the United States and the world successfully, and I think Moran is definitely in a place [on the Waterfront] to do that.

Freyne: A lot of people say, let’s just knock it down.

KISS: Well, I think it’s because they haven’t looked at the reality of the building. You know the industry itself now describes these buildings with interior cathedral space - that’s what we’ve got - five stories of interior space in a building that was built to last forever.

Freyne: Times change. Decriminalizing marijuana didn’t even get on the Burlington ballot. We’re the Woodstock Generation. People ask me, Mayor, what happened?

KISS: At the [city council] discussion itself, people deferred to the fact that it was already being brought up in Montpelier, and that’s what our resolution was asking for to happen. And so I think people felt, so, let’s let it happen there. There has been some discussion in Montpelier as a result.

Freyne: That’s just a diversion isn’t it? You’ve been in Montpelier. You know how things get lost there. Would you personally support decriminalizing?

KISS: There’s a longer discussion there. One of the reasons people say ‘Don’t Decriminalize” is because we could use restorative justice and eliminate a claim from their record, but you can only do that once. So there are bunches of issues that are worthy of discussion.

Freyne: You’ve smoked pot?

KISS: In my life, of course.

Freyne: Care to tell us how long ago it’s been?

KISS: Oh, a long time.

Freyne: Do you think it’s a good thing or a bad thing? A lot of people do it.

KISS: I don’t think people should be in jail for the use of marijuana. And that’s sort of the grim reality. In different parts of this country there are still people in jail for small amounts of marijuana.

Freyne: Not much in Vermont?

KISS:  No. Not much in Vermont.

Then Da' Mayor had to run...some meeting.

Needs to get out more, don't you think?

Might even spruce up his mayoral webpage, too?

And if no one's already told you - Happy Valentine's Day!

P.S. Gonna miss John McCain's airport visit. Booked to shoot a "Point-Counterpoint" at the Statehouse. Catch him on the Six O'Clock News.

Hillary Getting Worried?

Okay, okay, okay. It's a snowy day in Vermont and I’m starting to pay attention.

I give in. I give up!

There is nothing more important on Earth than the 2008 U.S. presidential election. Not even shoveling the driveway.

Besides, it’ll all be over in less than nine months, just like a pregnancy. Look, Pedro, you simply can't ignore the damn thing any longer.

Of course, we'll have to get through Town Meeting Day, the Republican and Democratic Conventions that could put a couple Vermonters in the spotlight of history. And then there’s the Olympic Games in Red China where they make everything these days. And the World Series. And the surprises as yet unimagined...

But from this little outpost on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, it appears the tide is turning...against Hillary Clinton. So much for the continuation of some royal-family torch-passing in the "Democratic" USA. Hillary looks like a woman who's had her last night in the Lincoln Bedroom.

Bush I was, after Clinton's reign, followed by a son, Bush II. But William Jefferson Clinton does not look like he’ll pass the torch to his wife after Dubya mercifully departs.

Why do I say this?

Because Freyne Land is all-of-a-sudden on the Clinton for President Campaign email list! They're noticing the March 4 Vermont Primary.

Just got one from Mark Penn, Ol’ Hillary’s “Chief Strategist.” Interesting chap. Do check him out here at SourceWatch.  Also here at his outfit Global Leadership.

Says the award-winning public relations spin-doctor once dubbed the “Master of the Message” by Time Magazine [did wonders for Bill]:

This election will come down to delegates.  Votes are still being counted and delegates apportioned, but Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are separated by approximately 40 delegates right now – that is, barely 1% of all the delegates to the Democratic convention.

Change Begins March 4th.  Hillary leads in the three largest, delegate rich states remaining: Texas, Ohio and Pennsylvania...

The reason Hillary is so strong in Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania is that her message of delivering solutions resonates strongly with voters in those states.  Hillary is the only candidate who can deliver the economic change voters want...

The demographics in these states also favor Hillary Clinton...

Hillary Clinton has shown that she has the ability and organization to compete financially and on the ground... 

Again and again, this race has shown that it is voters and delegates who matter, not the pundits or perceived “momentum.”    

Believe him?

Crunch Time for Credentials Committee

Hey, if DNC Chairman Howard Brush Dean III says you're on the 25-member Credentials Committee that decides who can vote at the Democratic Convention this summer, you're on the Credentials Committee!

And if the primary contest between New York Sen. Hillary Clinton and Illinois Sen. Barack Obama continues on a nip-and-tick course, those 25 votes, including four cast by Vermonters, will be biggies.

Those four Vermonters include three former members of Ho-Ho's gubernatorial staff [from back in the old days before he had the antiwar/political sex-change operation]: Kathy Hoyt, Kate O'Connor and Bob Rogan - and someone who for some reason gets her name left out of all the news stories and even today's editorial about the Credentials Committee in the Times Argus.

And that distinguished someone would be Jane Stetson of Norwich. Jane, wife of Bill Stetson, founding president of the Vermont Film Commission, is of the Watson/IBM lineage and, like Bill, a passionate Barack Obama supporter.

It was at her Norwich home last August that Obama-Wama had the big fundraiser that raised around $250,000 for the currently emerging Democratic front-runner.  Check out Mike Ives' story about it in Seven Days. Also Philip Barruth - an Obama supporter - blogged it up good in his Vermont Daily Briefing as "The Brigadoon Fundraiser of 2007."

Yours truly had a nice chat with one of those credentialed Democratic power-brokers late Tuesday - Mr. Rogan [at right]. Bob is currently chief of staff for Vermont Democratic Congressman Peter Welch - a man who appears unopposed in the 2008 race.

Freyne: Tough race ahead for Welchie?

Bob Rogan: Every day we wake up assuming we will have a competitive race. That’s what we’re planning for.

Freyne: Male or female?

Rogan: No idea. Lot’s of rumors come across the transom daily. We’re just assuming it’s going to be a competitive race and we’re planning for it.

Freyne: A lot of folks up here are thinking there isn’t going to be one. Are they crazy?

Rogan: You’ll have to ask them.

Freyne: Seen Howard lately?

Rogan: Yes. I  spoke to him three weeks ago on the phone. He’s in good shape and happy and enjoying the position he’s in.

Freyne: [Rogan and I go back a few years.] I remember the other Howard Dean.

Rogan: Which one was that?

Freyne: The one that was governor of Vermont. 

Rogan: [laughs] He’s come a long way.

Freyne:  Kate O’Connor, formerly on the campaign staff of right-wing Republican U.S. Senate candidate Ritchie Tarrant [ran against Bernie Sanders in 2006 and got creamed), is now on the Democratic Credentials Committee. Isn’t that a little funny?

Rogan: You’ll have to ask Howard and Kate about that. Kate is an old-time Vermonter with good political horse-sense. She’s someone who’s loyal to Howard Dean and a good friend of his and ours, but you’ll have to get someone else to comment on that.

Freyne: Do you have a horse?

Rogan: No. Haven’t written any checks; haven’t endorsed. I don’t have a dog in this one.

Freyne: The McCain people would like it to be Hillary.

Rogan: Unfortunately, that’s not going to be their choice...Everyone says this, but it’s what I truly believe. They’re both incredibly strong candidates and bring their own strengths to the table. And the party and the country will be served well by whoever ends up the nominee and the president.

Freyne: Well, that’s the standard rap.

Rogan: I honestly believe it. That’s why I’m having a tough time deciding.

Freyne: Let’s look at it from the other angle - their weaknesses. What is Hillary’s #1 weakness?

Rogan:  [chuckles] That’s not for me to say. They’re both strong candidates.

Freyne: She’s got baggage Obama doesn’t have. You’re not going to go there?

Rogan: Others will go there. I’m not.

[Mr. Rogan said all he knows is he got a call from Ho-Ho about three weeks ago and a follow-up letter.]

There’s going to be a meeting of the Credentials Committee sometime in July and, I assume, another meeting at the convention. This is the committee that will determine which delegates have the right to vote on the floor of the convention.

It’s going to be fun and a bit intense.

Freyne: Ever think you’d have this wild a life?

Rogan: [chuckles] I’m living on the edge, Peter.

Who are these guys?

Hey, about 200 hearty souls drove to the Sheraton-Burlap on Williston Road bright and early yesterday morning - before the traffic got too heavy - to hear "experts" talk about our transportation woes. A monthly legislative breakfast sponsored by the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce.

On the left (only in the photo) is "The Boy Wonder," a.k.a. Vermont's current Secretary of Transportation Neale Lunderville. Neale was but a twentysomething when he served as Jim Douglas' campaign manager in 2002. His prior training before assuming the transportation secretary post consisted of obtaining a driver's license.

So far, so good, eh?

To his right, Jeff Munger, a top aide to Independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. Previously,  Jeff served on U.S. Sen. Jim Jeffords' team.

And just like I've been hearing from transportation secretaries going back a quarter-century, Sec. Lunderville responded enthusiastically when asked by the 63-year-old M.C. if the CIRC is going to be built in her lifetime?

"Yes, the CIRC is going to be built!" said The Boy Wonder.

That's the "Chittenden County Circumferential Highway."

Yeah, sure. Whatever you say, Mr. Secretary. Let's pretend there are no such things as federal environmental laws.

Ol' Bernardo's aide was there because among the key committees Sanders sits on is Environment and Public Works. And Munger had a good line - a dose of reality.

"I just wanted to remind everybody, the Senator's committee is Environment and Public Works. So it's hard not to think of those two areas," he said. "You have to be conscious of global warming, you have to be conscious of our environment. That’s why it’s called the Environment and Public Works Committee."

Back in the 80s and 90s, an official  would have been booed for saying such at the Chamber of Commerce breakfast.

Times are changing...

Looking serious....

After catching Ol' Bernardo at Mt. Mansfield Union High School on Sunday morning, yours truly actually made the trip to the Statehouse where the state committee of the Vermont Progressive Party met from 1 PM until 4 PM.

Driving was a wee bit dicey - from 30 mph to Waterbury, then 50-55 mph the rest of the way. A few vehicles off the road. Word from Statehouse security was the Vermont State Police had stopped responding to vehicle accidents  - too damn many.

State Chair Martha Abbott of Underhill said the state committee had 85 members, though with the snow and ice, only about 25 made it to Montpeculiar.

They got to hear David T. Z. Mindich [speaking at right] talk about his book: Tuned Out - Why Americans Under 40 Don't Follow the News.

Scary.

David teaches journalism at St. Mike's. He told us he's a progressive "with a small 'p.'"

And they also got to see Anthony Pollina's new up and running website - which you can now see, too. Here.

Sunday with Bernie...

I confess - first time in my life I've been to Mt. Mansfield Union High School in Jericho. "Breakfast with Bernie" as in U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. More than 100 people turned out. Doors opened at 10 AM, Sanders started off at 10:30, introduced by Democratic State Sen. Jim Condos. 

Sometimes, Ol' Bernardo told the mostly baby-boomer crowd, "My wife tells me, 'You’re always preaching doom and gloom,'" getting folks "thoroughly depressed." But he insisted, "I really am optimistic in a lot of ways."

The American people, said Sanders, "are catching on. They want change. And I think they are prepared for significant change."

All the pundits agree, said Vermont's junior senator, the Democrats will pick up seats in Congress in November's election.

In the Senate, the key number is 60. Sanders, Lieberman and the Ds have 51. They need 60 to end debate and win on contentious legislation. Will they get 60?

Probably not. Will they go to 58 or 57?

Maybe.

In the House, everybody thinks the Democrats will gain more seats there as well.

In terms of the presidential election, what worries me is that, while Bush people understand how bad Bush is, I fear that you have somebody like [John] McCain whose politics are not radically different, but comes across as a nicer guy, and people will vote for him.

I think at the end of the day the Democratic candidate will probably win, but if you think that’s just a slam dunk, you’re wrong. It’ll take a lot of work.

Ol' Bernardo pointed to this evidence of how the winds have changed in Washington:

You’ll all be shocked to know, where is the business community now making their contributions?

To the Democrats!

Because the business community understands that the future in the House and Senate is certainly with the Democrats.They’re contributing more money now to the Democratic Party than the Republican Party.

Well, c'mon, Ol' Bernardo, no one ever said they were stupid, eh?

Bad-Hair-Day Approaching?

On the left, a Vermont legend - Art Gibb.

Art served in the Vermont House and Senate in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, a Republican who cared deeply about Vermont's environmental beauty and integrity and is one of the main reasons Vermont's roadways are not littered with billboard advertising like the other 49 states.

Thank you, Art.

He's also a key reason for Vermont's Act 250, the landmark environmental law that's held back commercial, anything-for-a-buck, development. Art Gibb was 97 when he passed away in 2005. More here.

On the right - the backside, or rather the ponytail of the Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, David Zuckerman (P-Burlington). We think it's the longest under the Golden Dome - male or female - not that size matters.

Wavy Davy's Ponytail made the blog because it isn't going to be around much longer. Tuesday afternoon it's going bye-bye. In fact, said Zuckerman, enough $$$ pledges come in and he's SHAVING IT ALL OFF!

To all State House colleagues, legislators, staff, lobbyists, guests:

Some of you may remember that a few years ago I cut some of my hair as a fundraiser for kids with hair loss diseases (locks-of-love). Your generosity helped provide over $3,500 to go along with my wife's and my ponytail “locks”.

This year, on February 12 at 3:30 in Room 10, I will have my hair cut, lopped, buzzed, or even shaved as another fundraiser. Rep. Denise Barnard has been kind enough to agree to do the job. This time I will again be sending my hair out of state, but the money raised will be used for youth services organizations within Vermont. The four groups are Spectrum Youth and Family Services in Burlington, Youth Services in Brattleboro, Northeast Kingdom Youth Services in St. Johnsbury, and 206 Depot in Bennington. The money raised will be divided equally...

Zuckerman says his longest measured hair strand was 35-inches long.

Just won't be the same without it...

Gaye on hemp...

Democrat House Speaker Gaye Symington didn't mince words Friday afternoon when asked if she cared to comment about GOP Gov. Jim Douglas' comment about the 127-9 passage of hemp legislation in the Vermont House. Lot of GOP "yes" votes in there, eh?

Gov. Scissorhands, while not talking "veto" [he doesn't have the votes on this baby], poo-poohed it Thursday as a waste of valuable legislative time.

Said Speaker Gaye of Jericho:

I think that bill took a couple days work and was based on solid experience in other states [sic] and will mean that at the point where the Feds move, we will be ready to go. And I can't imagine there's anything to lose by creating more opportunities for Vermont farmers.

Reminded hemp, since 1958, has been considered illegal because Uncle Sam considers it the same exact thing as marijuana, Symington predicted there will be a new Administration in the White House come January, and with a likely even stronger Democratic Congress, hemp should fly.

I think it would be good to be ready for that refocusing on the priorities of this country and a vibrant economy that's likely to come after the 2008 Election.

She's got a point, eh?

P.S. Got home from Montpeculiar and the last electrician was gone. The heat's on!

Back to the world of digitized button-hitting to obtain life's basics.

Progress, right?

From a distance

A little after 7 AM. Waiting for the electrician-guy. To get the new furnace [we think it was made in Germany - hey, what’s made in America anymore besides footballs for the Super Bowl?] and hot-water heater up and running. They had trouble getting it started last night, reading the manuals and instructions over and over.

It was on when they left around 8:30, but it didn’t last long. Got two little electric portables that worked just fine overnight.

Central heating is really such a 20th Century luxury. It put the hot-water-bottle industry, which some of you white-haired folks recall, out of business.

Saw Montpeculiar from a distance yesterday - like normal people do.  Bagged it due to the weather - smart, right?

So, what happened with the healthcare reformers’ Lobby Day #2?

WPTZ-TV had a little report, showed folks in some auditorium with Dr. Deb Richter talking. Couldn't tell where it was actually, but it wasn’t the Statehouse.

WCAX-TV, “Vermont’s Own”  had absolutely no coverage of it. Statehouse Reporter Kristin Carlson filed a piece on the Senate Judiciary Committee looking at relaxing the marijuana possession laws.

God forbid!

Then in HealthWatch, the other Kristin, Anchorwoman Kristin Kelly had this reefer-madness-style read-over:

A new study finds smoking pot triples the risk for gum disease. Researchers in New Zealand examined 9-hundred young adults. Of those with new cases of gum disease -- they say one-third was the result of smoking marijuana. The increased risk exists even for light smokers -- and for people who don't smoke cigarettes. The researchers say toxins in marijuana destroy circulation -- and prevent the gums from healing. Gum Disease can lead to tooth loss. It also increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.

As goes New Zealand, so goes Earth!

Ah! 7:30 and the furnace guys are here and the electrician guy, too! Gonna get this baby running!

Associated Press Reporter David Gram went the pot-route, too. Filing a cannabis story on the world’s largest newswire, but unlike Ch. 3, he led with the Vermont House’s landslide approval of the Hemp Bill, and tacked the Senate Judiciary’s dalliance with the more potent strains of pot on the end.

Interesting.

Friday's Burlington Free Press had a Nancy Remsen front-pager on the House Commerce Committee hearing about the evils of junk mail! And inside, they had Terri Hallenbeck's version of the Senate committee on the marijuana roll. Didn’t see a peep online about the Hemp Landslide on the House floor, though.

The out-country newspaper “chain” - Rutland Herald and Times Argus - did not ignore the healthcare protesters. Let’s face it, the issue isn’t going away. They put it out front, too: “Sparks fly at Statehouse hearing on single-payer health care.”  Here.

In a phone interview last night, Dr. Richter told Freyne Land  that 100 people signed their “Healthcare for All” sheet under the Golden Dome on Thursday. Considering the weather - not bad, eh!

She said I’d missed a good one - the passions were flowing, as Dan Barlow reports. Richter said they wanted Health Committee Chairs Sen. Doug Racine and Rep. Steve Maier to agree to hold a public hearing on H.304 - the reform bill that would cost the insurance companies and hospital paper-pushes significant buckaroos, while covering all Vermonters hospitalization costs like governments do in the rest of civilization.

Chairman Doug and Chairman Steve, both Democrats, she said, declined.

Didn’t Racine run for governor once?

House Hemp Vote

The Vermont House of Representatives took a vote Thursday on a bill that would allow Vermont farmers to apply to the state for licenses to grow hemp.

Hemp, which the House Agriculture Committee was told is basically a strain of marijuana that doesn't pack the punch of the stuff that gets a smoker "high," still drew the strong opposition of Vermont State Police.

Nonetheless, that strong opposition carried absolutely no weight. The committee voted 11-0 in favor of H.267.

And today, the Hemp Bill hit the floor in the Vermont House for a vote on "second reading."

The envelope, please!

Yeas: 127
Neas:   9

H.267, the Hemp Bill now heads for "third reading" and obvious strong House approval.

Rural Vermont, a big promoter of the legislation, said in a press release issued late Thursday afternoon:

The debate on the floor centered around the issue of federal policy. Representative Will Stevens (I-Shoreham), who reported the bill for the Agriculture Committee, explained that technically, it's possible to grow hemp under federal law. However, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) refuses to give licenses to growers who have applied for them. Representative Patti Komline argued that it didn't make sense to pass a bill if Vermont farmers would not be allowed to grow hemp anyway.

Rural Vermont director Amy Shollenberger explained after the vote, "We want our farmers to have the first chance to take advantage of the market when DEA changes its position. Also, this bill will add to the growing pressure on DEA to issue permits to U.S. farmers who want to grow hemp." Rural Vermont backed the bill, and hopes to take it all the way to the governor's desk by Town Meeting Day in early March.

Dunne Done?

As in Matt Dunne.

You remember Matt Dunne, right?

Native Vermonter. The up-and-comer from Hartland?

A young, brilliant, bright and shining Vermont Democratic state representative - four terms. Elected at the age of 22. Remember 22?

Left in the late 1990s for the Washington, DC-scene as the director of AmeriCorps*Vista. Came back and played state senator for two terms, then ran for Lite-Gov in 2006.

Good "marketing" skills.

Very good.

Not good enough, however, to get him elected lieutenant-governor, but just fine for landing a said-to-be very lucrative marketing gig with Google.

Yes, that Google.

Matt Dunne emailed supporters Wednesday afternoon and Vermont Democratic Party Chairman Ian Carleton put out a press release.

Dunne told his fans that:

"...for reasons that will become clear in the near future, I have decided not to run for office in 2008.

"In this year away from the golden dome, I have enjoyed reentering the private sector as a consultant, spending time with my family and helping others who are passionate about the need for change in our state and country."

Sounds like a guy with a title waiting in President Barack Obama's Administration, doesn't he?

Two Surprises

The first was the snow. Started here in Burlap with a few flakes at 5:45 AM. And then things got real dicey for everyone playing the part of morning-commuter regardless of economic bracket or job. If you were driving to work this morning, you were f**ked.

This sidewalk plow was shooting up the block out front early. Not bad for a city with a socialist mayor, eh?

Maybe the snowstorm inspired the second surprise of the day - Progressive Party Gubernatorial Candidate Anthony Pollina of Middlesex put out what I think is his first gubernatorial campaign press release of 2008! A Pollina take on Gov. Scissorhands' proposed state budget. Rips it to sheds!

Unfortunately it's 538 words, single-spaced. A taste:

"Now that the dust has settled around Governor Jim Douglas' budget proposal it's clear he is promising too much in a budget that is more political than practical. While the economy is weak and money tight, Douglas promises to cut income tax rates for wealthy Vermonters and offer the rest of us a one time, election-year, cut in property taxes. He also proposes to increase spending over $60 million. This may sound good on the campaign trail but our state budget should be realistic. It should aim to strengthen our economy, support job growth and provide needed services for Vermonters struggling to make ends meet, not be a tool for re-election...

And closes with:

Ultimately, a state budget should be based on a commitment to Vermonters, not election year gimmicks. If there is a choice between cutting tax rates for the wealthiest or lowering property taxes and creating jobs for average Vermonters, I choose the jobs."

Don't have room for it all. And, unfortunately, it's not posted at anthonypollina.com...yet.

And wouldn't a serious gubernatorial candidate call a presser and take questions (get on the TV & radio) on something as big as his opponent, the Guv's, proposed VERMONT STATE BUDGET?

Just wondering...

Super Tuesday Watch

Voters in 24 states will cast their votes today in primaries and caucuses for their hopes and dreams for who occupies the White House starting next January.

In Vermont, we just watch.

For yours truly, it's "Inside Track" Day. Lot of balls and calls in the air....

But the first news of the day comes in the email pipeline from the office of the mayor of Vermont's largest city - Burlington - The Peoples Republic of Burlington. Mayor...whatshisname...the tall quiet guy....oh, yeah, Progressive Mayor Bob Kiss:

BURLINGTON NAMED ONE OF “AMERICA’S GREENEST CITIES” BY ORGANIC GARDENING MAGAZINE

February 5, 2008, Burlington, VT - The February-March issue of Organic Gardening magazine ranks Burlington as one of “America’s Greenest Cities” --  those U.S. cities “that are leading the way toward a more sustainable future.”  The magazine ranks Burlington second among small cities (less than 150,000 residents).

More here in the organic garden!

Now, back to Track Land....

The Key to Compromise?

Democrat House Speaker Gaye Symington [left] was the guest on Ch. 3's "You Can Quote Me" which aired Super Bowl Sunday morning.

In case you didn't tune in, I watched for you.

News Director Marselis Parsons and Statehouse Reporter Kristin Carlson asked the questions. One zeroed in on the apparent quick compromise between the Democrats in the Legislature and the Republican - Jim Douglas - in the Governor's Office on one hot topic.

Last year, Symington and the Dems could not muster the votes to override Douglas' veto of their big "fight global warming" energy-efficiency legislation. Funding derived from a tax on the profits of Entergy's Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station were unacceptable to a certain governor.

Carlson: What do you think changed from last year to this year to sort of make this all come together because last year it was so divisive... and this year we’re just a few weeks into the session, the same players, the same people at the table, and now we have an idea that’s really close to coming out as a bill in the committee?

SYMINGTON: Well, I’d say it’s fuel prices!

Vermonters are in a lot of pain around fuel prices and I could show you a graph: property tax increase is here, and municipal taxes here and healthcare costs up this much. And then there’s a bar for the increase in fuel prices [which] is enormous and is really affecting Vermonters.

And I think it’s a shame we’re a year behind where we could have been if we had passed that bill last year.

Vermont This Week?

Made the panel out at the Colchester studios of Vermont Public Television. Ch. 5's Stewart Ledbetter was the host. Terri Hallenbeck from the Freeps and Dan Barlow from the Vermont Press Bureau, who made the dodgy drive from Montpelier together, were with me on the panel. Got to talk about marijuana and hemp and Howard Dean, Madeleine Kunin and the National Guard among other items.

And about the possibility of Vermont's March 4 Town Meeting Day presidential primary making a difference in the race for the Democrat Party nomination that's down to Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

Really?

St. Patrick, excuse me, U.S. Senator Patrick J. Leahy has endorsed Barack Obama. So, too, has Vermont's Democratic Congressman Peter Welch.

But what about America's best-loved socialist - U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders?

Just checked with Sanders' Press Secretary Michael Briggs.

Michael went and rechecked with his boss and came back with this latest statement from Ol' Bernardo:

"As an Independent, I do not plan to be involved in the primary process. After a nominee is selected, I will do everything I can to make sure he or she is elected president."
  

Worlds Apart!

Back when the Baby Boomer Generation, the generation of Gov. Jim Douglas, was young, the White House had the "Selective Service System" - THE DRAFT - to provide the bodies to fill the bags in South Vietnam.

To pull off the current quagmire in Iraq, this White House didn't have the draft to rely on.

Instead, President Bush, who "dodged" the Vietnam-era draft by getting a special placement in the Texas Air National Guard, had to count on the Reserves and the weekend warriors of the states' National Guard forces.

National Guard troops can be federalized to protect the nation's security, but as Sen. Peter Shumlin pointed out on "Charlie & Ernie" this morning [see item below], the reasons President Bush cited to do so were bold lies and hold no water whatsoever. The nation's security was not being threatened by Iraq,

At his official weekly presser today, Gov. Scissorhands was informed of Shummy's comments on the morning radio and their connection to the bill, H.746, that  Rep. Mike Fisher (D-Lincoln) and 27 co-sponsors introduced in the House on that point. Said Vermont's reigning and apparently invincible King James:

"I share every Vermonter’s concern about the continuation of the war. I hope that we can find an exit strategy. That is the responsibility of our national leaders so that no one from Vermont or any other state is called upon to serve.

"But in the meantime, the Congress not only authorized the use of force, but continues to fund the war efforts and it’s really a question that’s best put to those who represent us in the Congress.

"I think it’s important for the Legislature to focus on the agenda they can affect, because they can’t affect the power, constitutionally and statutorily, of the President to federalize the National Guard. It’s been clarified by the Congress. It’s been litigated throughout the centuries and that power is quite clear.

"I hope the Legislature will focus on economic growth, on housing, on healthcare, on reducing property taxes, on matters that are within their provence."

Q. Do you think there's justification for Vermont Guard members to continue to be on the firing line in Iraq?

Douglas: "Well, the President has that authority."

Q. And you don’t question that?

Douglas: "No. It’s been resolved by the court system repeatedly."

Informed afterward of Douglas' remarks, the bearded Rep. Fisher told yours truly:

"It’s clear to me that the governor and the governor’s staff have not looked at this issue. We’re putting a very serious question on the table about the continued illegality of the President’s federalizing of the Guard. I hope that the Governor and his staff will take a good serious look at the questions we’re raising and invite him to the policy table.

"I think when his staff does take a look at it, they’ll realize there is a role for states to play with respect to the governing of the Guard."

One thing's clear: these guys are worlds apart on this one!

Charlie & Shummy

Got wind the other day - from a Montpeculiar business lobbyist, as a matter of fact - that 620 WVMT-AM morning radio jock Charlie Papillo, of "Charlie & Ernie" fame, was whining on the radio airwaves about the fact I'd snapped his picture at the Great Harvest Bread Store on Pine Street, but never published it in this blog.

Poor baby!

Charlie, so sorry. The opportunity simply hasn't presented itself. Haven't been tuning in.

But with the Vermont Legislature back in session and you having guests like Senate President pro tem Peter Shumlin, I tuned in this morning.

So here's the shot of your handsome self at long last!

Mr. Papillo leans to the political right. And he challenged Shummy about his support for Rep. Mike Fisher's bill declaring that President George "WMD" Bush's authority to federalize the Vermont National Guard for Iraq duty has terminated.

"The Governor’s already come out and said that any bill that would suggest that, he would veto it in a minute. You’re going to continue on that fight?" asked Charlie.

Shumlin: I have really strong feelings about the war in Iraq. I also think it’s a great example of why Americans are turned off by politics-as-usual. All these folks running around saying we’ve got to get out of Iraq, we’ve got to end this war. Nothing happens.

And the fact is the Vermont Guard has made the most extraordinary sacrifice for their country and they are fighting hard in Iraq and I think Adjutant General Dubie has done an extraordinary job. I am proud of the families and the Vermont Guard.

However, the resolution that was passed by Congress six years ago, in my judgment, has expired. It was based upon three tenets:

1. That the government of Iraq was a threat to the United States. Well guess what? Saddam Hussein is not longer a threat to the United States.

2. We had to get those weapons of mass destruction. Well, haven’t found them yet [because they do not exist].

3. That it was punishment, in effect, for their complicity in 9-11, which we know als