The Vermont Democratic Party has launched a new excellent service called Speak Out which will allow Vermonters an easy way to send letters to the editor.
You just go here to start, click on “Participate” and you’ll see a box where you can enter your zip code to find the publications that are currently listed in the system.
I’ll let VDP Chair, Ian Carleton, do the talking on their first letter-writing campaign.
Speak out on the governor’s veto
We’ve been confused for a couple weeks now about Governor Douglas’s — how should we put this? — illogical and needlessly political veto of the budget adjustment bill. We’re pretty sure you’ve read about the governor’s reasoning: the budget adjustment bill doesn’t contain funding for scholarships, despite the fact that the governor himself did not put funding for scholarships in his own proposal. This week, we’re asking you to speak out on the issue.
The good news for Vermonters is the legislature just passed the Next Generation bill, which provides $4.4 million in scholarship funds, along with workforce training funding for employers and workers eager to fill high quality jobs. So, to review the governor’s logic: a budget bill he didn’t propose scholarship dollars for was worthy of a veto because it didn’t include scholarship dollars. All the while, a separate bill did propose scholarship funding — the same amount the governor requested — but the governor still decided to veto the budget bill.
We’re not the only ones scratching our heads: the Rutland Herald, among other observers, noted that "It’s a lot of theatrics for a bill that enjoys wide support. But it seems as if theatrics were part of the plan from the start."
Given the governor’s hands-off approach to leading the state, we shouldn’t be surprised that Douglas continues to choose theatrical politics over substance. But we still can’t help thinking that Vermont deserves better than a governor whose only interest seems to be playing the tough kid in the sandbox.
So, write a letter to the editor and Speak Out!