Monthly Archives: September 2014

The (rotten) apple doesn’t fall far from the (poisoned) tree

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Hey, good morning, everybody! What say we get the blood circulating with a brisk round of dumpster diving, led by Your Vermont Republican Party Vice Chair Brady Toensing?

We’re talking about the Jane Sanders brouhaha, which re-entered our attention yesterday with the release of Skip Vallee’s attack ad against Jane and Bernie. Skippy’s ad focuses on Jane Sanders’ severance deal with Burlington College: after her departure as President, she received about $200,000 in salary and benefits. Which The Gas Man characterized as a “golden parachute.”

Well, apparently Mr. Vallee didn’t come up with this idea on his own.

The Sanders Severance (by Robert Ludlum?) was reported by the media at the time of her departure, but it’s come back amidst the ollege’s latest troubles, including the sudden resignation of Sanders’ successor, Christine Plunkett. And, as VTDigger reports:

[Burlington College’s] financial struggles surfaced in the media last month when Brady Toensing, the vice chairman of the Vermont GOP, passed financial audits of the college to local media.

Oh Brady, you little scamp you.

Toensing’s backdoor mudslinging, I hear, included references to Jane Sanders’ “golden parachute.” In sharing the BC audits, he was clearly trying to highlight Sanders’ alleged role in the college’s current difficulties. Unfortunately, he didn’t get the bang he was expecting for his buck:

The severance pay of $200,000 was a year’s worth of earned but unused sabbatical, she said Wednesday. That pay and her title of president emeritus were announced when she resigned, and were covered in media accounts at the time.

Yeah, sorry, Brady. No scandal here.

Okay, this is pretty standard political hardball — conducting opposition research and slipping tidbits to the media in hopes of generating negative press for your opponents. I’ve gotten my share of tips from both sides of the metaphorical aisle; some have panned out, some have not. However, there’s a difference between sliming a politician and going after a spouse.

And it’s worth pointing out that Toensing’s activities are of a piece with his parents’ notorious scandalmongering on the national scale. Mom and Pop — Victoria Toensing and Joe diGenova by name — are frequent guests on Fox News, flogging various Obama conspiracy theories. Vic and Joe are D.C. lawyers, and Brady is a partner in their well-connected (in conservative circles) law firm.  (Details in this Golden Oldie post from Green Mountain Daily, which also details Brady’s political relationship with putative good guy Brian Dubie.)

Apparently he learned his stuff rom Mom and Pop. We look forward to more of Mr. Toensing’s political statesmanship. And maybe putative nice guy Phil Scott can explain why he thinks the junior Toensing is a proper representation of Vermont Republican values. Seems like not quite The Vermont Way, eh?

Metapost: Hello, Stranger

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This humble politiblog has experienced a record spike in pageviews and unique visitors in the last 48 hours, thanks in large part to my coverage of ex-Governor Jim Douglas’ incendiary comments about his successor Peter Shumlin and state Supreme Court Justice Beth Robinson.

For those just joining us, thanks for stopping by. You’re welcome anytime. But perhaps a little background is in order.

This is not a news website. It’s a personal blog with a distinct point of view. I’m a liberal, but not always a conventional one. For instance, I believe that economic development is a good and necessary thing, and we need to implement renewable energy as broadly as possible. On the other hand, I strongly believe that Vermont’s tax system is too gentle with top earners and needs rebalancing.

But the main focus of theVPO isn’t public policy — it’s politics. It’s the process, the punch and counterpunch, the strategy and tactics of earning the public’s support and exercising political power. And often, it’s the foibles, missteps, and overreaches. It’s the hubris, the politicians with a highly developed sense of entitlement.

Those guys drive me nuts. (And they’re pretty much all “guys.”)

It’s also about the media that cover Vermont politics. As a longtime journalist, I’m keenly aware of the profession’s standards and the social obligation it presumes to bear. I criticize the media when they fall short, and give them due credit when they perform well. 

Although I’m a liberal, I’m an equal opportunity critic. Democrat, Republican, Progressive; officeholder, candidate, operative, advocate, or activist. I want my liberal politicians to succeed; whenever they fall short, they’re imperiling the cause, so I hold them to a high standard. I’ve even — clutch pearls — said some unflattering things about St. Patrick Leahy.

All I can offer is the quality of my insights and the entertainment value of my writing. If you like what you read, please come back. And let other people know. If you want to keep informed of new posts, I offer an RSS feed over in the right-hand column. It’s simple, quick, and your email Will Not Be Sold To Nigerian Princes. Or anyone else.

Finally, a note about Comments. I employ Comment Moderation, which means when you write a comment, it goes into limbo until I review it. I’m very generous with approval; I only disapprove spam, personal attacks, and irrelevance. I’m happy to approve comments that disagree with me. I do reserve the right to reply.

That’s it. Again, thanks for stopping by. And don’t be a stranger.

Shorter Feliciano: Money is Bad, when it’s not mine

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One of the lesser pieces of flotsam to hit the beach after Governor Shumlin’s first campaign commercial went on the air was a written statement from Libertarian candidate Dan Feliciano. (I guess Scott Milne was too busy doing… something… to issue a stattement, so Feliciano seized the token-response space.)

And here it is, in all its hypocritical glory:

The reality is Governor Shumlin’s failed leadership is what is hurting Vermonters, but Peter Shumlin will reach into his million dollar war chest and run endless ads spinning a false narrative and trying to convince hard working Vermonters that his big Government programs are the solutions to their problems.

Oh, that’s rich. Dan Feliciano thinks that the Governor will use his big honkin’ bankroll to pull the wool over Vermonters’ eyes.

This, from a guy who believes that money is speech, and there should be no limits on campaign contributions. Stop it, Dan: you’re embarrassing yourself and undermining your own principles.

Your own narrative of the political process should lead you to congratulate the Governor for going out, working hard, and convincing people to give money to his campaign. It’s the American Dream, right?

Reminds me of a time a few years back when I was listening to professional Liberty Puppet Rob Roper flappin’ his gums on WDEV Radio. He was complaining about the imbalance in Vermont’s nonprofit community — that those on the left were far stronger and deeper-pocketed than those on the right. The Robster, at the time, was fronting his own struggling nonprofit, so you might say he had a conflict of interest. But I certainly never heard him complain about the vast Koch Brothers nonprofit network. Nor will he complain about the Kochs’ money underwriting his current gig at the Ethan Allen Institute.

But in the case of Vermont nonprofits, as with gubernatorial warchests, the shoe’s on the wrong foot for our doughty, independent Vermont conservatives. To put it another way, it’s not fair when liberals have the money.

Skip Vallee is a bitter man

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Oh, Rodolphe. Why can’t you just tend to your knitting? I actually like stopping at your gas stations, with their clean (!) restrooms tastefully decorated with fake flowers and chairs nobody ever sits in.

But please, let go of your Bernie Sanders fetish.

As you may recall, Our Junior Senator has made a big stink about high gas prices in Chittenden County, pointing the finger at the cartel that owns most of the area’s gas stations. Skippy, the frustrated politician wannabe, fired back — challenging Bernie to a debate. Bernie, rightfully, ignored him.

And wouldn’t you know it, after Bernie’s public splash, Burlington-area gas Skipprices came down. At least for a while. Now, as the Burlington Free Press reported, they’ve gone back up. Gotta pay for all those plastic flowers somehow.

Well, now Skip has turned his grudge into a political ad criticizing Bernie over the Burlington College mess. Bernie’s wife Jane is a former BC president, and it’s fair to say that her grandiose expansion plans played a part in the college’s current financial difficulties. The ad is on YouTube now, but Vallee plans to run it on local TV. The ad ad blasts Bernie and Jane for getting a “golden parachute” from Burlington College.

A “golden parachute” worth… wait for it…

… $200,000.

Really more of a zinc parachute, isn’t it?

Not that 200 G’s is anything to sneeze at, but it’s perfectly reasonable in comparison to severance packages given to top executives — even at nonprofits. And by corporate standards, well, it’s pocket change.

But that’s not my real point here. The main thing is, Vallee spending thousands of dollars to run an ad with no real purpose. Bernie’s not up for re-election until 2018, for God’s sake.

Skip’s spending Your Gas-Buying Dollars to toss a little gratuitous mud at Bernie Sanders, apparently because Bernie dared to point out that Vallee and his cronies were profiting from artificially high gas prices. And because Bernie’s campaign worked — forcing Skippy and Friends to, at least temporarily, bring their prices down.

Revenge is a dish best served out of a convenience-store microwave. Am I right, Skippy?

Shumlin’s strategy is focused on 2015

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The Shumlin Administration’s decision to shut down the Vermont Health Connect website drew the predictable response from his opponents.  “Catastrophic failure,” said Scott Milne. “I still think it’s going to be a disaster,” said Dan Feliciano. And VTGOP chair “Super Dave” Sunderland floated a conspiracy theory: VHC “will be shut down for repairs until after the election” (Italics mine), implying that Shumlin is trying to run out the clock and put off his Day of Reckoning until after he is safely re-elected.

Sorry, not buying it. The timing appears convenient, and Sunderland is well within his rights to make as much hay about it as he can. But the timing makes perfect sense in a non-conspiratorial way: Harry Chen came on board as Human Services Secretary a month ago. His top priorities were (1) trouble in the Department of Children and Families, and (2) review of VHC implementation. He’s had a month, and now he’s got a plan.

But even more importantly, the mid-November relaunch has far less to do with the election than with the open enrollment period. The VHC website has to be back online by November 15.  Repairs have to happen either before then, or after the enrollment period closes in February. It’s a lot easier to do repairs during a shutdown.

Besides, the truth is, Republican (and Libertarian) attacks are irrelevant. The Governor knows he’s going to win the election, and he doesn’t care what they say. His goal is the 2015 legislative session, when he will (finally) roll out his single-payer health care plan.

And in order to do that, he needs to have a functional VHC website. He can’t wait until February to start the repairs because that’s when he’ll be trying to convince lawmakers to vote for single-payer — and he can’t expect them to take that step if VHC is still dysfunctional.

The Governor does, to be sure, have a goal for the campaign: he has to activate the Dem/Prog base. He needs a decent margin of victory and, more crucially, he needs as many Dems and Progs in the Legislature as possible. As Vermont Pundit Emeritus Eric Davis points out, his worst enemy is an enthusiasm gap.

A fully-functional VHC website before Election Day would be the best thing for his base. But failing that, a robust response to its problems and an action plan with a completion date is second best. That’s what Shumlin has delivered. And, Republican snark notwithstanding, I’ll bet you dollars to donuts that the Administration will have very good news to report before Election Day. In fact, I expect to see a VHC relaunch on or about November 1.

That requires solid progress on the IT front, of course. But I’m sure that’s the plan.

Thanks to the organizational decrepitude of the VTGOP, the ineptitude of Scott Milne, and the fundamentally fringey nature of Dan Feliciano’s appeal, Shumlin doesn’t have to worry about re-election. He can’t say so, of course; but his goal is to activate his base and set the stage for the single-payer debate next year.

By that standard, the VHC shutdown is a short-term tactical setback, but it makes all the strategic sense in the world.

Jim Douglas: It gets worse

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As I reported a couple days ago in this space, Jim Douglas’ new memoir includes a passage that accuses Governor Shumlin of public corruption — of giving a seat on the Vermont Supreme Court to Beth Robinson, a political ally, as a reward to her and to an important constituency. Here it is again:

“The Senate leader, who succeeded me in the governorship, was a strong proponent of gay marriage. Since he was nominated by a scant 200 votes in the Democratic primary, their support may well have provided the margin of victory. He later reciprocated by appointing one of the leading lobbyists of the movement to the Vermont Supreme Court.”

The key word there is “reciprocated.” Douglas is saying that there was a quid pro quo — one of the state’s highest offices was bartered away as a political reward.

Well, on September 11, Douglas was a guest on WDEV’s Mark Johnson Show. When Johnson asked him about the passage, Douglas doubled down — claiming that Robinson is unqualified:

With all due respect to the Justice, I think it’s hard for most Vermonters to believe that she would have risen to the top of the pack but for her leadership on that issue.

“With all due respect,” my ass. Jim Douglas is saying that Beth Robinson had no business being chosen to the high court, and that this is so obviously true that “most Vermonters” would have a hard time believing she was nominated on merit.

Johnson, taken aback by this rather bold assertion, asked if Douglas really believed she was appointed because of her work on the marriage equality court case.

She obviously became well known because of that, and, um… [long pause] who knows?

A wonderful piece of passive-aggressive political attack. Johnson asked “What do you base that on?” Douglas offered no evidence; instead he quickly changed the subject.

His comments about Robinson were baseless and mean-spirited. They’re of a piece with his allegation that Shumlin made a corrupt deal to put her on the high court.

Which, I say again, should have been the top headline news out of Douglas’ memoir. I remain stunned that, with the exception of Mark Johnson, no one in the media has mentioned it at all.

 

Vermont Health Connect Triggers Zombie Apocalypse; Milne Camp Issues Press Release

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Earlier today, the Shumlin Administration announced that the Vermont Health Connect website had been taken offline until mid-November to repair its functionality. Fine. A good step, managerially speaking.

It does, of course, create a prime opportunity for the Governor’s Republican challenger to launch an all-out attack on VHC’s failures. Unfortunately for the VTGOP, its “challenger” is Scott Milne. Who, instead of organizing his own news conference and blasting Shumlin with (cough) a “laser-like focus,” what did he do?

He issued a lame, predictable press release. (Which I can’t link to because it’s not posted on his website.)  (Oh wait, there it is. Took him a while.)

No, no, NOOOO.

Don’t crank out a few unmemorable paragraphs of partisan bumpf! Get out in front of the cameras! Get your face and your attack on the teevee news! Gitcher pitcher in the papers!

Well, admittedly, if Milne held a news conference he’d have to answer questions. And as usual, he has no answers.

“I’ve been meeting with some of the top health care leaders in the state throughout my campaign, discussing the right path for Vermont moving forward. I will continue to do what Gov. Shumlin should have been doing: engaging medical professionals, Vermonters looking for affordable care, and insurance providers to develop a solution to healthcare that expands access and provides more options to consumers.”

Mahatma Milne, The Man Without A Plan.

Lasers, lasers everywhere

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This morning, the Shumlin Administration did a very good thing. It announced that the Vermont Health Connect website will go offline for several weeks, to try to fix its problems before the start of the next open-enrollment period on November 15. In the meantime, VHC access will be offered through a call center.

If the Administration hadn’t taken this drastic step, the repairs would have had to be postponed until after the open enrollment period —  in February, right at the time when lawmakers will be asked to approve single-payer health care. And how could they do so, if VHC wasn’t yet working properly?

So yes, this is a positive development. I hope we get progress reports in the interim, and I really hope they can pull it off by mid-November. That’d clear the decks for single-payer.

Also today, while the Governor didn’t take my advice (shocking, I know) and “fire some folks,” he did shuffle Health Access Commissioner Mark Larson off to the side:

Shumlin moved oversight for the insurance program from Larson’s department and placed it under the leadership of Miller, the governor’s longtime troubleshooter and former secretary of commerce.

… Larson appeared at the press conference but did not speak.

I’ve been told that the Governor is loyal to those who are loyal to him, and is loath to let people go. (Didn’t apply, obvs., to Doug Racine.) Which is a laudable trait, but can sometimes go too far.

Anyway, give Larson other stuff to do. Fine.

I do have one other suggestion for the Governor: find a new metaphor. Today:

“We have more work to do to make sure Vermonters have a well-functioning website by November 15,” Shumlin said at a press conference in Winooski. “I’m focused on that goal like a laser.”

That “laser focus” thing sounds great, but not when he uses it every time he faces a challenge. December 2012:

“There isn’t a Democratic governor who doesn’t understand climate change is the challenge we must focus on like a laser,” he said.

Also December 2012: 

Shumlin also told House Democrats to “focus like a laser” on health care implementation.

At the September launch of his 2012 re-election bid:

“When I ran two years ago I promised that I would focus like a laser on getting tough things done to create jobs and better economic opportunities for Vermonters.

This past June, signing a bill promoting clean heating technologies:

“For years, through Efficiency Vermont and other organizations, our state has focused like a laser on reducing our electric energy consumption.

Old Habits Die Hard: Back in 2002 when he was running for Lieutenant Governor, Shumlin promised a three-for-one deal:

There are three things I’m going to focus on like a laser beam. The first is bringing about fair prices for prescription drugs. …The second issue is juvenile justice. …The third is job creation.

One of the rules of handling metaphors: they lose their impact with repeated use.

Mr. Empty Suit steps to the mic

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“I’ve got plenty of great ideas.”

So said Republican Scott Milne during Saturday’s gubernatorial debate. His comment came after Governor Shumlin repeatedly slammed his failure to give “us one single plan” on a variety of issues.

And then Milne, predictably, failed to name any ideas.

Well, he did have one: a two-year cap on property taxes, which would put public school into a dire budget situation because many of their costs will continue to rise. It’d force spending cuts from the top down, the very opposite of his claim to be in favor of local decision-making. But hey, at least it was an idea.

Otherwise, nothing much. At another point he said “I’ve got two ideas.” The first was that the Governor had spent too much time out of state. Which is not an idea; it’s an attack.. The second was the property tax cap.

Sigh.

As I said in an earlier comment, Milne managed to exceed the minimal standard of competence, e.g. he didn’t poop his pants. Shows you how dismal his campaign has been, that keeping his shorts clean seems like an accomplishment.

As for actually putting forward an inspiring message, nope. Not at all. He hammered repeatedly on the same old attack lines he’s used since launching his campaign: Shumlin is “the most progressive, radical Governor” who insists on pursing single-payer health care. Milne’s idea for health care reform?

“I will be working very hard with people to get something figured out.”

That is, word for word, what Scott Milne actually said.

On trying to keep young people in Vermont, his only contribution was to assert that the Shumlin Administration “has not been business friendly,” and Vermont needs “a new tone” in its dealings with business. F-sharp, perhaps?

When asked about problems at the Agency for Human Services, he pivoted back to his attack on the troubled rollout of Vermont Health Connect, and cited it as an example of poor management. When he actually addressed AHS, he said we need an agency that “puts the family first.” How imaginative.

When asked about cutting state spending, he gave a halfhearted shoutout to the discredited Challenges for Change initiative, then said “I’m not into cutting,” and then said property taxes are too high.

Confused?

In his closing statement, Milne referenced his late mother Marion’s run for State House in 1994 when, as Milne tells it, a local politico gave her no chance to win. But she ran anyway and won. And so can Scott Milne, if people only believe. And he closed with a bombshell: “Vermont needs a different path. I believe it needs a more moderate path.”

Having, once again, failed to give any real hint of his preferred path for Vermont. It’s been defined almost entirely in the negative: He wouldn’t repeat the alleged mistakes of Governor Shumlin.

And, as I reported earlier, he’s postponed a meeting with VTDigger’s editorial board because his platform isn’t ready yet.

Scott MIlne’s campaign is very close to flat broke. Its campaign manager just resigned. The best you can say about Milne’s debate performance is that he didn’t flame out. But he did nothing to advance his campaign, to provide a substantive option to Shumlin. Or to Dan Feliciano, for that matter.

He did okay by his standards, but that’s not nearly good enough.

Milne Campaign: The Cloud of Doom grows thicker

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As I said on Twitter, “Holy stinkin’ crap.”

Two months after Brent Burns signed on to manage Republican Scott Milne’s gubernatorial campaign, he is gone.

“I resigned Friday,” Burns confirmed Monday.

The Freeploid’s Nancy Remsen quotes Burns as saying he “wanted to take a step back” after “working in super high stress jobs” for six years straight.

I have to wonder if a negative financial balance had anything to do with the sudden onset of stress fatigue. The Milne campaign’s most recent finance report showed that it had spent more than it had received in donations. Only a loan from Milne himself had kept the lights on and the checks from bouncing.

Both Burns and Milne say they will have no further comment on the departure, which only adds to the irrespsonsible speculation about rats leaving burning ships and such. But Milne insists his campaign won’t miss a beat — probably true, if not in the way he puts it.

As to being able to operate without a designated campaign manager, Milne said in a telephone interview, “We are a flat organization. Everyone has ownership and responsibilities.”

Yeah, “flat” as in roadkill.

Vermont Pundit Emeritus Eric Davis puts it more eloquently than I:

“My sense of the Milne campaign is it is running on fumes right now and depending on free media,” Davis said.

It’s getting to the point where you don’t know whether to laugh or cry.