The following rhetoric from a campaign email (dated the Sunday before the override session) is typical:
As I criss-crossed the state people voiced their concern about the budget stand-off between the Governor and legislature. Vermonters know that these are challenging times for the state and that some combination of spending cuts and tax increases will be required to balance the state budget.
Instead of gamesmanship, Vermonters want real leadership in Montpelier. They want the Governor and legislative leaders to have an honest dialogue and work out their differences. The budget is not a political football to pass back and forth – we are talking about the lives of ordinary Vermonters and the future of our state.
Although the bulk of the email focuses on Governor Douglas, this is another case where Markowitz has been positioning herself to run against the Governor and the legislature (trying to grab the grownup-among-the-children meme… In light of current events (specifically the real leadership that has been shown by legislative Democrats) this might seem to come off as a bit out-of-touch (or worse) to primary voters, who are unaccustomed to feeling so proud of – and empowered by – their state Representatives and Senators…
Contrast this with the lead paragraph of this week’s fundraising letter from Markowitz, dated June 11th (emphasis added):
Governor Douglas made history twice this spring – first when he vetoed the same sex marriage bill, and again when he vetoed the state’s budget for the first time in our history. I am certain that this isn’t the kind of history-making Vermonters are looking for in a governor. We need a governor who will work with the legislature to get things done.
There ya go.
All the candidates should keep their eyes on GMD. We’ll work all your kinks out between now and primary day, so whichever one of you goes on to face Big Jimbo will be in full, fighting trim.