Tuesday, February 26, 2019
The Senate Government Operations Committee approved the bill in a 4–1 vote Tuesday afternoon, with only Sen. Brian Collamore (R-Rutland) opposing it. The full Senate is likely to take it up later this week.
The legislation would allow individuals, PACs and political parties to contribute directly to candidates and parties, but it would bar private companies, nonprofit organizations, trade associations and labor unions from doing so. Sen. Anthony Pollina (P/D-Washington) sponsored the legislation in an effort to limit corporate influence in politics and increase transparency in campaign financing.
Tags: elections , campaign finance , money in politics , Citizens United , corporate contributions , Anthony Pollina , Alison Clarkson , Brian Collamore , Statehouse , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
Gov. Phil Scott announced Tuesday that he will appoint Winooski City Councilor Hal Colston to fill the vacant Chittenden 6-7 House seat.
Colston will be sworn in Wednesday to represent all of Winooski and a small portion of Burlington. He'll replace Clem Bissonnette, who announced his resignation last month.
"Hal has dedicated much of his life to public service and improving the lives of people in his community,” Scott said in a statement. “As a city councilor and executive director of SerVermont, Hal has made it his mission to advocate for equity and justice for all, and I look forward to working with him in the Legislature.”
Tags: Hal Colston , Vermont , House , legislature , Phil Scott , governor , Winooski , Clem Bissonnette , Image , Web Only
Sunday, December 9, 2018
The former vice president and senator avoided all but an ambiguous hint when it came to discussing a possible 2020 presidential run, and he steered clear of any direct attacks on President Donald Trump — even as he came to the home turf of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a possible 2020 competitor.
Instead the 76-year-old appeared intent on offering a more personal message. For those who are grieving or bereaved, he told a packed house at the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, "There's a reason for hope, believe it or not."
Tags: Joe Biden , Flynn Center for the Performing Arts , 2020 presidential campaign , Jodi Picoult , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
The vote will allow the Winooski City Council to explore funding sources, including state and federal grants, as well as a 1 percent local options tax on rooms, meals and alcohol. An increase in municipal taxes and water rates could also fund the work.
After the votes were counted Tuesday evening, Mayor Seth Leonard took to Twitter.
Official numbers for Main Street Revitalization vote.....63% approval! Thank you #Winooski community for your support!!!
— Seth Leonard (@sethforwinooski) May 8, 2018
Other public officials also expressed gratitude to voters.
Tags: Winooski , Seth Leonard , Winooski City Council , Main Street , Image , Web Only
Friday, April 20, 2018
The House Government Operations Committee held its first hearing on the bill Friday morning. Both Democrats and Republicans appeared to be skeptical that the bill would accomplish its purpose: to keep Vermont immune from the effects of big-money politics. That’s because corporations would still be able to donate unlimited funds through political action committees and independent organizations.
“Many of us have gotten lots of calls asking us to get corporate money out of Vermont politics,” said committee chair Rep. Maida Townsend (D-South Burlington). “This bill, the PACs would collect the money and put it into our political system. If it’s direct from corporation to candidate it’s not OK, but if it goes from corporation to PAC to candidate, it is OK?”
Rep. Jim Harrison (R-Chittenden) wondered, half-jokingly, if S.120 didn’t simply create “a way to launder the money,” and pointed out that “any candidate could set up a PAC and accept corporate contributions.”
Tags: Maida Townsend , John Gannon , Jim Harrison , Chris Winters , S.120 , campaign finance , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, April 11, 2018
The state GOP urged supporters in an email Wednesday to “MAKE VERMONT GREAT AGAIN!" — a riff on President Donald Trump’s campaign slogan. Sent several hours before Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, signed a package of gun reform bills, the email evoked the language of gun rights supporters, many of whom are furious with Scott. The message also used a color scheme associated with the pro-gun contingent — hunter orange and green.
“In recent years,” the email read, “our state has been co-opted by the liberal elite. Out-of-touch politicians have been hell bent on stripping away every right and freedom that Vermonters hold dear.”
But, it continued, "Now is not the time to surrender ... 2018 is a critical year for conservatism in Vermont. If we are ever going to return Vermont back to its former glory, we need to band together to toss out every last liberal elitist politician in Montpelier."
Tags: Vermont Republican Party , Donald Trump , Phil Scott , Don Turner , Heidi Scheuermann , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, April 10, 2018
“There’s a lot of support out there,” Rodgers said. “I’m definitely thinking about it.”
The right-leaning Democrat from Glover could capitalize on a wave of anger directed at Republican Gov. Phil Scott, who is poised to sign a package of gun control bills Wednesday. Previously a stalwart opponent of such measures, Scott reversed his stance in February after learning of an alleged school shooting plot in Fair Haven.
At a Statehouse press conference held with other lawmakers Tuesday, Rodgers reiterated his opposition to S.55, a bill that would mandate universal background checks, raise the purchasing age for guns from 18 to 21, limit high-capacity magazines and ban bump stocks.
Tags: Phil Scott , John Rodgers , gun control , Vermont , hemp , governor , Image , Web Only
Thursday, April 5, 2018
An infamous white nationalist troll who went by the online moniker "Ricky Vaughn" is a 28-year-old Waterbury native whose father is a prominent Montpelier lobbyist, the Huffington Post reported Thursday.
The man known as Ricky Vaughn, whose online profile grew during the 2016 general election, is actually Douglass Mackey. He graduated from Harwood Union High School and Middlebury College, and now lives in Manhattan, the Huffington Post reported.
His father, Scott Mackey, is a partner at Leonine Public Affairs and served on the Harwood Union School Board.
“We were devastated to learn this week of Doug's beliefs and on-line activities as reported in the Huffington Post," Scott Mackey said in a statement released Friday. "They are antithetical to the values we hold and with which he was raised. We are still trying to understand how he could have done something like this and hope he will find some way to make amends for the harm he has caused.”
Tags: Douglass Mackey , Scott Mackey , Huffington Post , white nationalism , Ricky Vaughn , Image , Web Only
Thursday, November 9, 2017
The activist group, which seeks to elect Democrats involved in difficult state-level races, was preparing to launch a soup CSA, modeled after community supported agriculture programs that provide patrons farm-fresh fruits, veggies and meats. The money the group raised in the Brattleboro-Putney area was earmarked for John Bell, an incumbent Democrat in Virginia’s House of Delegates.
On Tuesday, Bell rolled to victory, winning 62 percent of the vote to retain his seat in the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. In the campaign, he spent nearly $300,000 more than his Republican challenger, according to data provided by the Virginia Public Access Project.
The results delighted Peg Alden, the cocaptain of the southern Vermont group.
“I’m just thrilled and inspired to see, in these state-level races, what small amounts of cash can do,” she told Seven Days on Thursday.
Tags: Sister District , Peg Alden , soup CSA , Virginia , Image , Web Only
Thursday, October 26, 2017
At least two candidates are vying to replace David Sunderland as chair of the Vermont Republican Party.
Michael Donohue, who moved with his family to Shelburne in 2016, announced his bid in an email Wednesday. Deb Billado of Essex Junction is also putting her hat in the ring.
Party members will gather at the Capitol Plaza Hotel & Conference Center in Montpelier on November 4 to elect leadership positions, including state committee chair, vice chair, secretary and treasurer.
Sunderland, who’s led the party since 2013, said he isn’t running for reelection because he needs to devote more time to his job and his family.
Tags: Vermont Republican Party , David Sunderland , Michael Donohue , Republican National Committee , Deb Billado , Image , Web Only