Tag Archives: Vermont Air National Guard

The Machine Will Eat What It Wants to Eat

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Well, Burlington City Council went ahead and did something that it had no good reason to do, and had no choice but to do.

The topic of this riddle: Council’s approval of a 25-year extension of the Vermont Air National Guard’s lease at Burlington International Airport. A lease that wasn’t due to expire until The Year Of Our Lord 2048, which is so far in the future that Gov. Phil Scott doesn’t mind planning to cut greenhouse gas emissions by then.

Now that the lease will run until 2073, I guess the VTANG can go ahead and buy green bananas and renew their magazine subscriptions. (Surely they’ve got a coffee table in the break room littered with old copies of Aviation Week & Space Technology, Janes Defence Weekly, Combat Aircraft Journal, and such.)

Really, it was pointless. But Council was forced to act by the rules about federal airbase spending. See, the feds won’t invest in ANG bases with less than 25 years remaining on their leases. And airports like St. Patrick Leahy Memorial International are dependent on the infrastructure improvements that money will buy.

It all works together, and not for the good of anyone outside the military-industrial-aviatic complex.

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Another Republican hopeful steps forward

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The industrious (and so far anonymous) folks behind RecruitFour, the drive to mount Republican write-in candidacies for Attorney General, Auditor, Secretary of State and Treasurer, has unveiled the second of its four.

The first, as reported in this space earlier today, is Burlington attorney Shane McCormack, who hopes to snag the AG nomination. The second, just announced, is Nicole Citro for Secretary of State.

Citro is co-owner of an insurance agency in South Burlington, but she’s best known as a public supporter of basing F35 jets at the Burlington airport. She’s the brains behind “Green Ribbons for the F35,” which foments support for the planes and the Vermont Air National Guard. From the Green Ribbons website:

Tie a Green Ribbon  on a tree in front of your home, on a porch railing, on your mailbox… some place where your neighbors will see you support The Vermont Air National Guard with the basing of the F35 in Burlington, Vermont.

The Green Ribbon campaign began in July of 2012 when Nicole Citro, a South Burlington business owner, felt frustrated with the way the debate over the basing of the F35 in Vermont was being waged.  It seemed all the attention was being given to the very small contingency of those in opposition. Yet all around her, Nicole was finding her friends, families and customers were expressing their support for the new jet.  … Much like the yellow ribbons used to show support for the troops in the Gulf War, Nicole determined green ribbons would be used to show support for the Green Mountain Boys.

Her advocacy won’t win her any points in liberal/progressive circles, but hell, they weren’t voting for a Republican anyway. Not that it matters much; even if she does get the nomination, she’ll be an underfunded unknown getting an extremely late start against established incumbent Jim Condos. And frankly, her credentials for the job seem a bit… er… slim. Here’s some of RecruitFour’s pitch:

We all know Nicole as the woman behind the Green Ribbons for the F35. And isn’t the point of elections, choosing individuals with leadership skills? Well just as Jim=Jobs, Nicole=Leadership. Nicole created a movement out of chaos.

Presently Nicole runs The Citro Agency with her sister. Nicole started at the agency 27 years ago and as with most things, she stays committed. … Let’s have Nicole run the Secretary of State’s office as well as she runs The Citro Agency and the Green Ribbons for the F35!

Um, yeah, well, there’s not much valid comparison there. It’s not even apples to oranges — it’s more like one apple to an orange grove. Managing a family business and launching a smallish grassroots organization is hardly adequate prep for becoming Secretary of State. Nonetheless, I applaud her willingness to step forward.

And, I assume, we can expect two more announcements from RecruitFour in the very near future. Perhaps at some point the organizers will step out from behind their nascent Facebook page and discuss their agenda and their plans to turn the Four into credible candidates rather than placeholders. I’m here if you want to talk, and I’ll give you a fair hearing.