It’s great to see Jim Condos getting such broad support among labor organizations in his bid for the office of Secretary of State. No state office is more of a hub for integrating the concerns of business in Vermont with those of a vibrant labor community on whom the health of the economy depends so much. Jim Condos’ commitment to providing an effective and efficient Secretary’s office, dedicated to transparency and accountability, is built on a solid foundation of experience over the years in service to Vermonters. He has pledged to demand greater accountability from public officials and to strengthen campaign finance laws. The roster of labor endorsements for the Condos campaign is impressive:
Vermont AFL-CIO
Vermont State Employees’ Association
Vermont State Building Trades Council
Northeast Kingdom Central Labor Council
UA Local 693 Plumbers and Pipefitters
Vermont Troopers’ Association
Sheet Metal Workers Local Union 63
Professional Fire Fighters of Vermont
VT-NEA
VT League of Conservation Voters
United Profession AFT Vermont
VT Teamsters Local 597
More about these endorsements appears in the Condos press release diary in the sidebar.
And that intersection is exactly where all this hubbub about transparency comes in: what records are available and should be available, and whether agency officials can make them de facto unavailable by charging inflated fees for ‘searching’ and ‘copying.’ The Secretary of State’s office plays a role in determining what records are public. And that, my friends, is exactly where Jim Condos and Jason Gibbs part ways, despite Gibbs’ glib assurances that he ‘believes’ in transparency.
Gibbs has been the golden boy of an administration that routinely attempts to withhold information from the public and from parties it doesn’t like (unions, Democrats). It has made ‘streamlining’ permit procedures a code word for excluding public input and preventing public access to information.
Condos deserves our votes.
NanuqFC
In a Time of Universal Deceit, TELLING the TRUTH Is a Revolutionary Act. – George Orwell