Lite Gov race: Is Dick Mazza the “anti-Zuckerman”? (UPDATE: Just blue dog wishful thinking?)

UPDATE: This hubbub sounds likely to amount to wishful thinking on the part of some conservatives, as other insiders say that Mazza would never consider such a run – especially against Republican Senator and Lite Gov candidate Phil Scott, who is one of his best friends in the Senate.



Well-placed rumors have it that there may be some coalescing of conservative Democrats behind a Lieutenant Governor run for Grand Isle Senator Dick Mazza.

The conservative Mazza often runs afoul of the progressive wing of the party, but in recent years has even been known to act as a proxy for Governor Douglas within the caucus, placing himself in opposition even to the more middle-of-the-road Dems. Rumor is that he’s being encouraged to run by conservatives and traditionalists in the party structure who would be loathe to see Progressive David Zuckerman get the party’s official nod in the Democratic Primary.

While Zuckerman was well-received at the Washington County Democratic Committee, his (shall we say) oft-spoken distaste for the Democratic Party as an institution and “the Democrats” as a collective still rings fresh in the minds of many hardcore partisans. If anti-Zuckerman Dems are coalescing, one questions whether they could generate enough pique to scuttle the enthusiasm from those primary voters who see Zuckerman’s primary ambitions as a way to bring the left somewhat closer together.

Such a dynamic would also turn a primary run into even more of a rhetorical tightrope walk for Zuckerman, as Dem opponents will be looking for any turns of phrase that could be read as contemptuous of the very primary voters he would be trying to court.

If the rumors are true, it might also make those other Democrats considering a run – Rep. Steve Howard of Rutland and Tim Palmer of Burlington – feel a little like chopped liver. Howard’s odd history with the Party (presiding as Party Chair over an intra-Party schism in the 90s that seriously damaged the party’s finances) may tend to prevent many of the long-time Dem regulars from quickly moving to back him, although if he mobilizes his support effectively in Rutland County, that history will become moot. Palmer, on the other hand, seems to be doing no more than throwing out the possibility among his circles in Burlington, rather than taking any affirmative steps to create a campaign and work against his significant name recognition deficit. As such, he’s not currently taken seriously as a candidate by anyone I’ve spoken to. He clearly needs to step up right now, if he’s at all serious.

(Quick PS… I, like others, am assuming that Ed Flanagan won’t be running. Totten has reported that Ginny Lyons is considering a run, but I haven’t heard anything more about it.)

8 thoughts on “Lite Gov race: Is Dick Mazza the “anti-Zuckerman”? (UPDATE: Just blue dog wishful thinking?)

  1. re. your suggestion that Dick Mazza has been a proxy for Jim Douglas

    scene: a meeting of the ill-fated Commission on the Future of Economic Development a few years ago (CFED, I blogged about it)

    set-up: the CFED predictably invited Harlan Sylvester to “testify” [these groups never tire of hearing from the same people year after year regardless of the fact that they are partly responsible for our failed jobs policies (or is it because of that?) and in spite of the fact that they have no new ideas AND that their “testimony” is rarely fact-based but, rather, just self-serving, ideological “views”]; of course, Mr. Sylvester didn’t actually attend the meeting, he participated via speaker phone; BTW – he calls himself a Democrat and has been on the governor’s council of economic advisors for many years (back to Howard Dean at least)

    word: after rambling a while saying “taxes bad” every way he could think of, he actually said “the only thing standing between Vermont and Armageddon is Jim Douglas and Dick Mazza”

    I was there; I wrote it down

    priceless

  2. As someone who was pretty intimately involved in the Burlington P/D clashes last year (I worked for Kesha Ram), I’d support Dave in a heartbeat over Dick Mazza.  Maybe Mazza would have some level of appeal running against a Randy Brock in a general election, but no way in hell would he get through a contested primary.

  3. Odom,

    I love the blog.  Its the first thing I read every morning. I just want to clarify something for you. I was indeed the Chair of the Party, 12 years ago during a difficult time for Democrats.  The facts are important. When I became chair,  I inherited a party that was nearly $100,000 in debt, it was about to be sued by its former director and was on the verge of being kicked out of the HQ because the rent had not been paid.  All staff had been let go. We were in fact coming out a bruising Chair’s race, a battle in which some, I’ll say one or two well placed individuals on the losing side simply didn’t want to move past.  

    When I stepped down from the Chair,  The party had no debt.  We settled the lawsuit, built the first activist database the party ever had, opened a new HQ and worked to bring the factions of the Party at the time together.  If you remember the 90’s we were successfully electorally throughout the State.   14 years later, I have learned a lot from my successes and my failures during that time. I have also had many more experiences since then.  All and all, I would say for a Party Chair at the ripe age of 24, I did a pretty good job for my Party under the cirumstances. I certainly could have done more and better, but that is always the case.

    I have to say, as I make calls throughout the state asking for feedback and advice about the race for Lt. Governor, I am encouraged by the pledges of support, the enthusiasm by Democrats, and some Progressives not just in Rutland but throughout the state. Even more by my constituents in Rutland.   I am carefully considering the feedback I get, while its not universally positive, its pretty positive.  I certainly don’t feel like chopped liver based on the responses I have received to date.    

  4. I have enjoyed reading the post and comments throughout the day.

    I will be the last to say that anyone should get in or get out. If some folks want someone else to run, then that is what the primary is about.  Considering Bernie has won statewide over and over on progressive ideology I think it can be done again.  Bernie certainly burned bridges in his past, and even after winning the D nomination he has occasionally challenged the party and leadership in DC.  This can be done, and while I will be the first to admit, I (nor anyone else for that matter) am not Bernie, the same bridge can be built again.

    The biggest question is whether one can put together a winning race.  I think I can.  As a small business owner employing between 1 and 7 people throughout the year, I have to meet payroll, pay taxes, find new markets, and try to keep my employees happy.  I have to swallow if there is no money at the end of the pay cycle and “eat words” until we get through the tough spell.

    As a policy maker, I have been the leader, or part of a good team on a range of issues that ordinary Vermonters care about; universal healthcare, livable wages, affordable housing, marriage equality, progressive taxation, sustainable energy, medical marijuana, election reform, and a vibrant (and diversified) agricultural economy to name a few.

    Our state needs to grab these and other issues by the horns.  Our environment can no longer survive on promises and pledges for 2025 or 2050, we need to act now.  Our citizens can no longer wait for piecemeal healthcare reform, we need to implement universal coverage now (which will stimulate jobs), our rural citizens need investments in their communities to create jobs and make our state both carbon neutral as well as food secure.

    I am ready to run and work tirelessly to win, the opportunity is there and I think the will of the voters is there.  But I also want to make sure that folks across party lines are ready to take this plunge with me.  That is why I am taking the time to visit with some Democratic  County Comittees. That is why I am calling environmental, labor, choice, marriage, agriculture and economic leaders to discuss my ideas and glean ideas.  I am also taking the time to weigh whether my family and business can handle my hiatus from “normal” life.  That full commitment is what it will take to win this race.  Neither of the announced Republicans will be easy to beat.  It is not just a matter of P’s and D’s working together.  It is about the strongest candidate.  The person who can draw the most appeal while keeping focused and true to the issues.  Vermonters pay attention to the quality of character, the sense of fairness, the connection that the candidate makes with them on an individual level.

    These are the thoughts and positions I am going on at this time.  Whether Sen. Mazza runs or not is not what will determine my decision. And I doubt he will run given both his friendship with Sen. Scott and the power he wields in the Senate…why would he give that up?

    Please contact me anytime with your thoughts (pro or con) at davidz@together.net

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