The attack press releases from politicians just kept coming yesterday and, busy putting out today's paper, we here at Off Message headquarters just couldn't keep up! Don't worry, though. We outsourced our coverage to other media outlets.

Here's a recap, in case you missed it:

Lindley v. Shumlin, re: Sorrell: Okay, so this actually started Monday. In a letter he sent to Gov. Peter Shumlin, Vermont GOP chairman Jack Lindley was all like: Hey dude, why don't you appoint an independent counsel to investigate illegal super PAC coordination between Attorney General Bill Sorrell and former governor Howard Dean? But on Tuesday, Shumlin's legal counsel, Sarah London, wrote Lindley back saying: Um, nah, dude. Go talk to Sorrell. Or that TJ Donovan guy. In response to which Lindley sent out another press release Tuesday afternoon calling Shumlin's decision, "an abdication of his duty to protect the rights and interests of Vermonters," allowing Sorrell "to conduct his campaign with impunity and in defiance of the law."

More after the jump...

Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Crawford today threw out a lawsuit two former city councilors filed against the city of Burlington seeking repayment of $17 million in taxpayer money illegally loaned to Burlington Telecom during Bob Kiss' tenure as mayor.

The lawsuit by Gene Shaver and Fred Osier sought to hold Jonathan Leopold (pictured), personaly liable for repaying the cash; Kiss's powerful chief administrative officer oversaw the loans to BT. According to the Burlington Free Press, Crawford ruled that the municipally owned Burlington Telecom had in fact violated its state license by failing to pay back loaned taxpayer money within 60 days, but ruled that Leopold wasn't on the hook.

Seven Days contributing writer Kevin J. Kelley caught up with Leopold by phone Tuesday evening; he had just returned from a short holiday with his family in Italy.

"I feel vindicated," Leopold told Kelley. "It's taken a long time for the facts to come out and I'm pleased with the decision."

At a dedication ceremony at the Sustainability Academy at Lawrence Barnes today, the Burlington magnet school celebrated the construction of its new outdoor classroom.

Students, teachers and parents — as well as a few representatives from Seventh Generation, which funded the project — crammed into and around the open-air veranda. It's a space that teachers and students dreamed up for outdoor classes and community gatherings.

We have a longer story about the Sustainability Academy in tomorrow's issue of Seven Days, focusing less on cosmetic updates to the once-neglected schoolyard and more on the growing momentum to transform a high-poverty elementary school into a leader in experimental education.

The school reopened as a magnet school in 2009, in large part because Burlington desperately needed a way to economically integrate its school. Ninety-five percent of Barnes students at that time lived in poverty, compared to roughly 48 percent district wide.

Today, that percentage at Barnes has dropped to 70 percent. Test scores are starting to improve. And under the leadership of interim principal Brian Williams — who labored on the outdoor classroom for six weeks alongside Burlington High School art teacher Chris Sharp — parents report that changes are coming rapidly to the Old North End elementary school. That's perhaps most obvious in the school yard, where school leaders envision constructing accessible tree houses and natural playgrounds in addition to the new outdoor classroom.

First they were on your tee-vee. Then they were in your mailbox. Now, Vermonters First, the conservative super PAC, is in your voice-mail.

Oh the humanity! Will it ever stop?!

As we reported Thursday, Vermonters First sent out a mailer last week with an absentee ballot request form — and a letter asking voters to fill it out and vote for Republican state treasurer candidate Wendy Wilton. This afternoon, a colleague of ours who received that mailer received a robo-call with a reminder to fill out the form and — in case you forgot — vote for Wilton.

Here's a recording of the phone call (sorry for the hiccup at the start):

We've spent a little time on the phone with Vermonters First treasurer Tayt Brooks lately, so we recognize the caller's voice as his. But, to be clear, Brooks did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

As you can hear, Brooks describes Vermonters First in the message as, "a brand new organization dedicated to restoring balance to Vermont government."

"You may have received an absentee ballot mailer recently encouraging you to vote for Wendy Wilton, a candidate for state treasurer," Brooks says in the recording. "I encourage you to fill out the application as soon as you can and return it to your town clerk. Wendy Wilton will be a results-oriented treasurer, who will bring fiscal sanity back to Montpelier."

What does this mean?

It means that, in addition to committing to another $100,000 worth of television ads this and next week (in addition to its first $100,000 buy), Vermonters First is now spending freely on a coordinated direct-mail and robo-call campaign. Which means Lenore Broughton, the wealthy Burlingtonian who single-handedly financed the super PAC's first round of ads, may be all-in 'til November.

Do you know Jack?

You might soon, if you own a TV.

That's because Jack McMullen, the Republican candidate for attorney general, has launched a television advertising campaign — and he plans to stay on the airwaves through Election Day. McMullen says he's planning to run five different ads, one of which will make light of his famous "teats on a cow" fumble in a 1998 debate.

"We intend to run a vigorous campaign here," McMullen says. "I have to overcome what appears to be the perception I'm not running a serious campaign. I think I am running a serious campaign. I think I'm a credible candidate, if you know my background."

To that end, McMullen on Saturday began airing a 30-second biographical ad on WCAX-TV and WPTZ-TV. The ad begins with a narrator asking, "Do you know Jack?" It then informs the viewer about "The Real Jack" — focusing on his working class roots, military career and Harvard education. It closes by briefly touching on McMullen's signature issue: crime.

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That's what happened Monday morning when the mayors of seven Vermont cities gathered on the steps of the Statehouse to endorse Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin's bid for a second term. That Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger (who worked for Shumlin in the '90s) and Montpelier Mayor John Hollar (a prominent Democratic lobbyist) support the gov's reelect ain't no thang.

But then there's Barre Mayor Thom Lauzon, an outspoken Republican who said during the 2010 gubernatorial campaign that Shumlin's corrections plan would put, um, murderers and rapists on the streets. But who then hinted to Seven Days this May that he might endorse Shumlin this time around. But who then, with his wife, gave Shumlin's opponent, Sen. Randy Brock (R-Franklin), a $4000 campaign contribution. But who then organized Monday's mayoral endorsement-a-thon.

Which made us reporters go all, like, what's the deal with that, bro?

"Listen, one thing you can always count on me to do is tell you the truth," Lauzon began.

And then he told us the truth.

What's happening in Vermont news and politics this week? A former presidential candidate leading the charge to repeal Citizens United returns to Vermont. Chittenden County Senate candidates speed date you. And Gov. Peter Shumlin and Republican challenger Randy Brock face off in debate No. 2.

Got an event you want listed in next week's calendar? Email us by Friday.

Monday, September 24

• U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) will greet the press at Burlington International Airport at 10 a.m. before jetting to New York for the United Nations general assembly session beginning today.
• Gov. Peter Shumlin will be making a "campaign announcement" on the Statehouse steps this morning. What is it? Stayed tuned to Off Message to find out.
• U.S. Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) holds a press conference at the University of Vermont at noon to announce legislation he says will "curb the skyrocketing cost" of college education, which climbed 8.3 percent last year.
• At 7 p.m., the Burlington City Council will take up, among other things, whether to put a $100,000 down payment on buying the Winooski One hydroelectric plant.

UPDATED WITH VIDEO: See below, "Who's He Fooling," one of three ads Brock is began airing Saturday morning.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Randy Brock will launch his general election television advertising campaign Saturday with a clip of his Democratic opponent, Gov. Peter Shumlin, singing the Beatles.

Brock says his campaign has invested $70,000 in the 10-day ad run, which starts Saturday morning.  According to public records obtained at WCAX-TV, Brock will spend $26,671 on 68 spots on the station during that time period. Brock's campaign says it also plans to go up on WPTZ-TV and Fox44.

Brock says the three ads in rotation, which will focus on the economy and health care, "are designed to show the contrast between my position and those of Gov. Shumlin."

He also confirmed that one of the ads will feature the governor singing the Beatles' classic, "Here Comes the Sun." The footage presumably comes from Shumlin's impromptu a capella performance of the song during the Burlington Business Association's annual dinner in April at the Hilton.

"I hope they'll be kind of fun and enjoyable," Brock says.

Is eCorp English the Green Mountain State's own little Solyndra? Not quite. But the Middlebury-based language training company did get lucrative state loans with the promise of creating 100 "well-paying jobs" by 2013 — only to go belly up and leave a trail of vendors and employees who haven't gotten paid for their work.

John Flowers has the scoop over at the Addison County Independent.

According to the Addy Indy, eCorp founder and president Deborah Schwarz said the company couldn't marshal the $750,000 to $1.25 million it needed to launch its new product — and had to close as a result.

The company had trouble making payroll and still owes about $150,000 to various local vendors for services ranging from furniture to electricity. That figure does not include more substantial sums owed to larger investors, creditors, lawyers and the state of Vermont, according to Schwarz.

As Seven Days reported back in February, eCorp received more than $500,000 in economic development loans from the state and was touted by Gov. Peter Shumlin at the company's ribbon-cutting as a business that would ensure "our kids and our neighbors have a bright economic future in this state.”

D'oh! Maybe something was lost in translation?

According to Flowers' report, the state is in line with other vendors and employees to get paid back by eCorp.

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After exhausting its first $100,000 worth of television spots at the end of this week, the super PAC is coming back for another round. And, this time, it's extending its reach from your television to your mailbox: The group has sent out new direct mail pieces, which hit the streets Thursday.

According to public records obtained at WCAX-TV, Vermonters First is spending another $47,167 for two more weeks on that station, starting Monday, Sept. 24. That's slightly more than the $45,390 it spent on the current, expiring round of ads.