Hey, look what I got in the mail today! It’s a piece of junk mail from Vermonters First, the conservative superPAC bankrolled by Lenore “Miss Daisy” Broughton, and fronted by Tayt Brooks, International Man of Mystery.
It starts by reminding me of the freedom-threatening fact of Democratic dominance in state government:
As you know, Democrats currently control the Governor’s office, Treasurer’s office, Attorney General’s office, Secretary of State’s office and hold veto-proof majorities in BOTH chambers of the Legislature*. It’s no wonder they aren’t listening to the needs of average Vermonters. With so much power in the hands of one party, they are free to advance their agenda of more government control and higher taxes without regard for the devastating impact on working Vermonters.
*Addendum: Received a note from Shap Smith, pointing out that the Dems do not, in fact, have a veto-proof majority in the House. The Dems have 94 seats, six short of veto-proof.
Oh, noes! Who shall save us from this plague of big-governmentalism? And, I can’t help but add, who let these dastardly Dems get such a stranglehold on power in the first place? Oh yeah, that would be the feckless VTGOP of the post-Douglas era, a.k.a. The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight, Or Find Any Good Candidates, Or Craft a Platform that Actually Appeals to Voters.
But never mind. The VTGOP remains feckless, not to mention just about flat broke, but our hero the International Man of Mystery is coming to the rescue!
And, mirabile dictu, this is one piece of political mail that doesn’t include a fundraising pitch. That’s because “Vermonters First” is entirely underwritten by Miss Daisy, and her manservant doesn’t need any of your dirty money. Instead of a pitch,
Enclosed is an absentee ballot request form to make voting easy and convenient. When we stand together and vote for commonsense (sic) in Montpelier, we can pushback (sic) on the policies that hurt families and businesses and start making progress again.
And yes indeed, behind the cover letter is an absentee ballot request form, with my name, address, and town of residence already typed in. I feel just a little tiny bit creeped out by that, but never mind. Moving on, here’s where Vermonters First ties to manufacture its own equivalent of hot-button hellholes like Boston, San Francisco, and Chicago:
The super-majority in Montpelier has a plan that involves a government take-over of your healthcare. That’s right, Montpelier has selected five bureaucratic strangers to decide what coverage you and your family will receive and how you will receive it.
Ah, Montpelier, the fount of all evil. This is, by the way, the same usage employed by Bruce Lisman’s Campaign for Vermont; he doesn’t want to identify the Democrats as the bad guys because he’s positioning himself as a nonpartisan, so he uses “Montpelier” as a synonym for Big Bad Government. And here is Tayt Brooks, aping the Lisman nomenclature. Hmm.
As for those “bureaucratic strangers,” I, for one, would prefer them to the private-sector “bureaucratic strangers” who currently control our health care system and decide what coverage I and my family will receive and how I will receive it.
And the program will cost a staggering $5 BILLION paid for in the form of new taxes on all of us. Even though this new program will result in the largest tax increase in Vermont history, NO ONE will tell us how this will be paid for until after the election.
Okay, so he repeats Wendy Wilton’s $5 billion lie. $5 billion is the total cost of all health care in Vermont. The Republicans make it seem like this is a brand-new additional $5 billion on top of everything else, which is demagoguery of the rankest order.
And then, first they assert that this mythical $5 billion will be paid for by new taxes, and then they say that no one knows how it will be paid for. Bit of a contradiction?
Now, we get to the action pitch. Italicized and underlined, just in case your reading comprehension is a little lacking.
That is why we are asking you to return the enclosed absentee ballot request to your Town Clerk today so that together we can stand up to these job-killing, anti-freedom policies and get some commonsense back in Montpelier.
Well, Tayt, I might well take advantage of the absentee ballot request, but I don’t think you’re gonna like how I’ll vote. Methinks your mailing list could use some tightening.
But tell me Tayt, how should I fill out my ballot? You know, to block the job-killing, anti-freedom stuff and restore balance to Montpelier and free candy for everyone?
That’s why I am encouraging you to vote for:
Buddy Barnett for State Senator
Huh? That’s it? One little vote for “Buddy” is going to break the dictatorial rule of “Montpelier” and prevent me from getting a $5 billion tax increase? That Buddy must be quite a guy.
The I.M.O.M. closes the letter with a final exhortation to “bring balance back to the healthcare debate,” followed by Tayt’s alleged signature. Looks more like “Tze Brunch” to me, but what do I know.
And finally, a P.S., just in case the message about one-party rule was just too damn subtle.
P.S. Democrats in Vermont currently control the Governor’s office, Attorney General’s office, Secretary of State’s office and hold veto-proof majorities in BOTH chambers of the Legislature*.
Yeah, I think you said that already.
*And again I point out that the Dems do not have a veto-proof majority in the House. They have 94 seats. It takes 100 to be veto-proof.
They are free to advance their agenda without regard for the devastating impact on working Vermonters. Please return the enclosed absentee ballot request to your Town Clerk today so that together we can stand up to these job-killing, anti-freedom policies and get some commonsense (sic0 back in Montpelier.
Yeah, you already said that too. Y’know, for an organization that wants to bring “balance” back to Vermont politics, its message is remarkably free of the least little hint of what its own viewpoint is, or what policies it would promote. So we’re supposed to restore balance without knowing who wants to be given a seat on the other side of the teeter-totter and what their intentions are?
Cheapskates didn’t provide a stamp for the envelope, though.
I received the same piece of mail, and was equally perplexed. The front is all about how awful the legislature is, how bad the Democrats are, and why the $5 BILLION health care plan was passed “…without regard for the devastating impact on Working Vermonters.” It then goes on with the identical write-in request.
So what can we do about the horrible situation in Montpelier? Turn the page over and…
“That is why it is so important that we elect Wendy Wilton as State Treasurer.” It then goes on with a couple of paragraphs about Ms. Wilton and how she cut a $5.8 million Rutland deficit to a $3.8 million surplus, all by herself I assume. It says she “has been a strong voice in the healthcare debate, analyzing data, asking tough questions and exposing the Montpelier agenda for what it is; poorly developed and irresponsible.”
It appears to be a very targeted mailing in terms of races they hope to influence, but not at all targeted in terms of voters. The front page appears to be generic, and the back page appears to be the targeted element.
In my district their are no competitive local races for House or Senate that involve Republicans, but there is a House race with two independents, one of whom is a Republican’s-Republican, but I guess either they didn’t know that he will be their supporter if elected, or he wisely declined to be involved in this campaign. My guess is that this is a well coordinated effort and he decided not to associate with the partisan rhetoric.
Interestingly, the voter targeting is genuinely terrible. Not only do I appreciate the work of the Democrats and value the overall approach to health care, but I have also already received my absentee ballot. That should be obvious to any political operative that has done any targeting research.
But heck, if they want to wast their money sending junk mail to supporters of their opponents and get them jazzed to vote against their candidates, that’s fine with me. At least now I know something about Ms. Wilton.
Dunno. Maybe by exercising government’s power to tax? Taking some of those premiums that go to private, inefficient coverage and applying them to the common good?
It is indeed a puzzle.