Thursday, May 5, 2016
But the crowd of GOP legislators appeared uninterested in weighing in on the the man who became their party’s de facto presidential nominee a day earlier: New York reality television star Donald Trump.
When Seven Days asked for a show of hands of those who would vote for Trump in November, Scott quickly intervened.
“I will say that this press conference is about electing me,” he said. “So I would like to ask everybody that’s going to vote for me to raise their hands.”
Scott’s fellow Republicans cheered and raised their hands.
Tags: Phil Scott , Bruce Lisman , Donald Trump , Image , Video , Web Only
The move came three weeks after federal and state officials charged Stenger and his business partner, Ariel Quiros, with misappropriating more than $200 million worth of foreign investment raised for a series of Northeast Kingdom development projects. Stenger and Quiros have both denied the charges.
Shumlin spokesman and deputy chief of staff Scott Coriell said the governor removed Stenger from the volunteer advisory board after Seven Days requested an updated copy of its membership.
“They serve at the pleasure of the governor,” Coriell said. “I became aware that he was on the list when you made your request. He shouldn’t have been on there, so as a consequence we updated the list.”
Tags: Peter Shumlin , Bill Stenger , Council of Economic Advisers , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, May 4, 2016
In its initial advertisements, the Republican State Leadership Committee focused its attention on House Speaker Shap Smith (D-Morristown), Sen. Mark MacDonald (D-Orange) and Rep. Stephen Carr (D-Brandon). But according to RSLC spokeswoman Ellie Wallace, “every incumbent Democrat who votes to make Vermont less affordable should be on notice” that they could be targeted next.
In a digital advertisement and new website, the RSLC used a mugshot of Carr snapped by the Berlin Police Department in January, when the second-term lawmaker was charged with driving under the influence. Carr settled the case last week by pleading guilty to a reduced charged of negligent driving.
According to Smith, use of the photograph was utterly inappropriate.
“I think it’s about the lowest thing I’ve seen in my time in politics,” he said. “The fact that they would use somebody’s mugshot is, I think, beneath the Vermont level of politics.”
Tags: Republican State Leadership Committee , Shap Smith , Mark MacDonald , Stephen Carr , Image , Web Only
The legislation codifies in Vermont law the guarantee in the federal Affordable Care Act that women will have access to free contraception — in case the federal law gets repealed.
It also expands the federal birth control guarantee by requiring insurance companies to offer vasectomies to men without requiring co-payments or other forms of cost-sharing. Vermont is the first state to mandate this benefit.
The bill also makes Vermont the second state to allow women to obtain up to 12 months of hormonal contraceptives in a single visit.
Tags: Catholic Diocese , Rep. Ann Pugh , Planned Parenthood , Blue Cross Blue Shield , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, May 3, 2016
But on Tuesday, he outperformed the polls and pulled off a surprise victory in Indiana. With 93 percent of the state’s precincts reporting, Sanders was leading former secretary of state Hillary Clinton 52.7 percent to 47.3 percent.
“The Clinton campaign thinks this campaign is over. They’re wrong,” Sanders said Tuesday night. “Maybe it’s over for the insiders and the party establishment, but the voters in Indiana had a different idea. The campaign wasn’t over for them.”
Sanders’ victory came as New York businessman Donald Trump all but locked up the Republican nomination. After Trump walked away with Indiana, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) suspended his campaign, leaving only Ohio Gov. John Kasich to challenge the front-runner.
Earlier Tuesday, Clinton told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell that she was “really focused on moving into the general election.” But in his post-primary remarks, Sanders made clear he would not let her, vowing once again to fight on through the June 7 California contest.
Tags: Senator , Bernie Sanders , Hillary Clinton , presidential campaign , Indiana , Image , Recommended Reading , Web Only
Monday, May 2, 2016
Galbraith traveled to the nation’s capital for a fundraiser at the Kalorama Heights home of former World Nuclear Association director general John Ritch and his wife, Christina. According to an invitation the campaign provided Seven Days, suggested donation levels ranged from $250 to $4,000.
Galbraith campaign manager Ian Moskowitz said the candidate and Ritch worked together on the staff of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee earlier in their careers. When Galbraith served as ambassador to Croatia, Ritch was ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Tags: Peter Galbraith , fundraiser , Washington , D.C. , John Ritch , Image , Web Only
Scott, a Berlin Republican, was the last of five Vermont gubernatorial candidates to voluntarily disclose personal financial information. Two of his opponents, Republican Bruce Lisman and Democrat Peter Galbraith, released their 2014 tax returns but said they filed for extensions in 2015 and would not provide those returns until later this year.
“We encourage you to continue to ask all candidates to release their 2015 taxes prior to the primary election,” Scott’s campaign coordinator, Brittney Larrabee Wilson wrote in a note to reporters late Friday afternoon as she released her boss’ financial information.
According to a list of assets Larrabee provided, much of Scott’s wealth is tied up in DuBois Construction, a Middlesex excavation company he co-owns with cousin Don DuBois. Scott said his 50 percent stake was worth $2.5 million. The lieutenant governor said his Berlin home was worth $350,000 and that his retirement and savings accounts amounted to $192,290.
Tags: Phil Scott , financial disclosure , net worth , 2015 tax return , Image , Web Only
Sunday, May 1, 2016
“In other words, it will be a contested convention,” he told reporters at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.
In a 17-minute address, Sanders turned his attention to those he said would have to push either candidate over the finish line: the Democratic Party’s 719 superdelegates. Unlike pledged delegates, those elected officials and party leaders can vote for whichever candidate they choose.
Sanders made two distinct appeals: First, he said that those hailing from states that voted overwhelmingly for him should “seriously reflect on whether they should cast their superdelegate vote in line with the wishes of the people in their states.”
Second, he said, “It is incumbent upon every superdelegate to take a hard and objective look at which candidate stands the better chance of defeating [Republican front-runner] Donald Trump. And in that regard, I think the evidence is extremely clear that I would be the stronger candidate to defeat Trump or any other Republican.”
Tags: Senator , Bernie Sanders , Hillary Clinton , presidential campaign , superdelegates , Image , Recommended Reading , Web Only
Thursday, April 28, 2016
The legislation sets guidelines for how and when the police may use drones, and it reauthorizes police use of cameras that capture photos of license plates and establishes the procedures that law enforcement agencies must follow to gain access to electronic communications.
“What is important is the balance between protecting individual privacy and enhancing public safety,” said Rep. Maxine Grad (D-Moretown), chair of the committee.
Tags: ACLU of Vermont , drones , Vermont Police Association , House Judiciary Committee , Rep. Maxine Grad , Rep , Willem Jewett , Rep. Gary Viens , Rep. Vicki Strong , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
A day after losing four out of five East Coast primaries, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) told the New York Times that he would lay off “hundreds” of presidential campaign staffers and turn his attention to winning California.
“We have had a very large staff, which was designed to deal with 50 states in this country,” Sanders told the Times’ Yamiche Alcindor. “Forty of the states are now behind us.”
The campaign will move many of its remaining employees to California, where the candidate said he planned to hold rallies for “hundreds of thousands” of people. California, which awards 546 Democratic delegates, does not vote until June 7.
Tags: Senator , Bernie Sanders , presidential campaign , Recommended Reading , Image , Web Only