Dear oh dear. One of the three fringey Republican candidates for Congress, Mark Donka, has his knickers in a big ol’ twist.

This is the same Mark Donka who lost badly to Peter Welch in 2012. How badly? Try 72-23. And now we know why: the media is conspiring against him.

Last week, Paul “The Huntsman” Heintz posted a piece about a rather offensive item on Donka’s Facebook page. Donka had posted a link to a far-right-wing hit piece entitled “Why are all the mass murderers Democrats?”

After Heintz took note of the post, there was a quick kerfuffle, and then Donka removed it from his Facebook page — even while offering a very conditional, tortuous rationalization for the post along with the tiniest dollop of regret.

A few days after that, Donka came up with a novel justification for the whole event: he was trolling the media, AND IT WORKED!

Last week I posted a link to an article that was very far out as an experiment.

You see, when I ran for office in 2012 I sent out press releases on an almost weekly basis with not one mainstream media outlet in Vermont publishing even one of them. They included topics such as a plan to reduce tuition costs and actual effective methods of reducing the cost of healthcare. Just recently I sent out a press release calling for the justice department to lead the investigation into the VA problems. No surprise that no one followed through in printing that either.

So I wondered if it was because I am not considered to be a legitimate candidate worthy of mention by the media or because I am a conservative and challenging one of their good old boys. Well I posted the link and waited to see what would happen and I got my answer. This article I linked was so outlandish that it is incomprehensible that anyone would take it seriously. But that is exactly what happened. I even fed Paul Heinz at Seven Days a few quotes just to make it seem a little legitimate.

So at least as far as Seven Days and The Valley News are concerned they are willing to give me coverage as long as it is negative coverage and not informing people that there are better ideas out there than the lame, worn out, and ineffective ideas that our current people in Washington have.

What ever happened to responsible journalism?

See? He didn’t agree with the offensive piece, not at all; he deliberately posted it in order to reveal the media’s hypocrisy: they refused to cover his serious campaign, but pounced at the chance to report a scandal.

It’s just The Man tryin’ to keep Mark Donka down.

Well, a couple of teeny-tiny problems with his great conspiracy theory. Maybe three.

First and foremost, this late-blooming rationalization is pretty transparent. When first confronted with the “mass murderers” post, Donka danced all over the place, offering tentative justifications and pullbacks in quick succession. He gave no indication that he’d just sprung a trap on the media. It took him a few more days to fabricate that story.

Second, it wasn’t the entire Vermont media. Heintz wrote a single online story. The Valley News, which is Donka’s local daily paper, understandably picked it up. And that, as far as I know, is it. Nothing in the Freeploid or Mitchell Family Organ or VPR or WCAX or WPTZ or Fox 22 or WDEV or VTDigger. Even the poo-flinging monkeys of Green Mountain Daily ignored it, because as far as we’re concerned, Mark Donka is pretty close to irrelevant. Except when he goes this far out of his way to make a spectacle of himself.

Third, it’s not unusual for a politician’s press releases to be ignored by the media. It’s done far more often than not. You should see all the stuff sent out by Shumlin, Sanders, Leahy, Welch, and the two major parties. The vast majority are quickly deleted. Just because a politician makes an announcement, or wants to generate publicity about an issues, doesn’t mean it’s actual news. It’s usually not.

Third and a half, it’s not the media’s job to help you create interest and momentum in your campaign. The media focuses most of its attention on candidates who have an actual chance to win. They don’t completely ignore others — witness the Freeploid’s front page story on Emily Peyton a few weeks ago. But the focus of the coverage is on those with a real chance at being elected. Even more of the coverage goes to incumbents, whether Democrats, Progressives, or Republicans, because they’re the ones actually doing stuff and moving the debate.

Besides, when you’re a minor candidate with fringey ideas, no amount of media coverage would change people’s minds. As someone who’s spent his professional life in media, and felt a great sense of responsibility for the quality of my work, I can tell you that virtually all of it makes not a single bit of difference. Most people, even most voters, pay little or no attention to The News. Those who do pay attention don’t allow The News to interfere with their established opinions and beliefs. (Indeed, there’s evidence to show that a story disproving your beliefs can somehow wind up reinforcing your beliefs. Such is the power of the mind.)

Mark Donka didn’t lose in 2012 because the media failed to report his positions. He lost because he had no campaign organization, no money, and no appeal to most voters.

And Mark Donka is blowing smoke out his hindquarters with this “trapping the media” arglebargle. He posted that “mass murderers are Democrats” thing because he agreed with it to some extent, and he thought it would appeal to his Facebook friends. There’s other stuff on his Facebook page that’s almost as offensive: endless yammering about Benghazi, a sad bit of snark about Michelle Obama’s participation in the #saveourgirls campaign, a really misguided rant about how we’re spending billions on foreign aid while our own people go wanting, hate pieces from the likes of World Net Daily.

No, from the totality of Donka’s Facebook page, I conclude that he’s a far-right Fox News conspiracy theorist who’s so far out of step with the Vermont electorate that he has absolutely no chance of beating Peter Welch. And to ask the media to spend significant time on his beliefs is to ask the media to waste its resources and our time.  

Your friend & mine Jack McCullough has previously warned you of the pending arrival of Condoleezza Rice. The very next day, our fair land will welcome a much more constructive political figure, Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. She’s the featured speaker at the VDP’s annual David W. Curtis Awards dinner on Friday evening.

And hey, you remember the VTGOP’s endless crowing over the success of its Chris Christie fundraiser in December? Well, the Warren event is going to easily surpass it in attendance, and most likely in fundraising as well. Late last week, the VDP had to put a lid on ticket sales because they’d already sold more than 900 — nearing capacity at the Champlain Valley Expo. The party has already taken in more than $125,000, plus whatever additional funds they wangle out of attendees on Friday night. (There is still room for a few more folks, but VDP is asking anyone interested to call them for information at 802-229-1783.)

VDP Executive Director Julia Barnes tells me the Curtis event is “record-breaking.”

By comparison, the Republicans were practically orgasmic over a turnout of 650 for Christie. And remember, this was pre-Bridgegate, when Christie was widely considered the front-runner for the 2016 Presidential nomination.

Of course, a lot of folks would like to see Warren as the Democratic nominee… or, an intriguing prospect I heard recently, a Clinton/Warren ticket. Sounds good to me.

FYI, Warren will be doing a late-afternoon chat and book signing at Phoenix Books in downtown Burlington; I’m sure tickets for that event will go fast as well.

Clearly, the Democrats’ ceiling for enthusiasm and fundraising is far higher than the Republicans’. And clearly, there’s a whole lot of interest in a politician with a clear and positive liberal message. I look forward to finding out just how successful Friday night will be.  

The filing deadline has come and gone, and there were no stunning surprises as 4:59 ticked over to 5:00 p.m.

The Republicans, as expected, failed to find a single candidate for Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, or Auditor. The fact that Scott Milne came through and will, presumably, occupy the top of their ticket, should not diminish the shame or embarrassment of this moment. The Republicans are, thanks to the consistent support of voters through the years, one of our two major parties. This year they will fail to uphold their duty to inhabit their given space in our politics. And whether or not you or I planned to vote for any of them, they should feel a responsibility to represent themselves.

I don’t blame the current management; I blame their predecessors, for leaving the VTGOP in such a parlous state that it’s reduced to hoping for a handful of gains in the Legislature. I’m sure we’ll hear catcalls from the likes of Darcie Johnston and Jack Lindley; but this wretched state of affairs is their fault much more than it’s David Sunderland’s or Phil Scott’s. Lindley and Johnston and their fellows are the tenants who trash an apartment, move out, and then blame their successors for the mess.

To my great disappointment, there were no gadfly slash nutbar candidates taking advantage of the Republicans’ abdication. I’d love to have seen a Republican ticket full of Emily Peytons, but no such luck.

At least, not yet. There’s still the option of mounting a write-in campaign for one of the vacant Republican slots. Much easier than gathering hundreds of petition signatures.

And congratulations to the soon-tio-be re-elected Auditor Doug Hoffer, who will have no opposition from any major or minor party, barring a write-in. Not even the Liberty Union will challenge the man who was believed to be such an underdog two years ago against consummate insider Vince Illuzzi.  

There was a final-day flurry of filings for legislative offices, but those returns are not yet final. Candidates have the option of filing with their local clerks, and those functionaries have 72 hours to forward the petitions to the Secretary of State.

Now let’s ask for some voluntary crowd-sourcing. The Secretary of State’s candidate list is posted online; I invite you to give it a scan, and see if any names jump out at you. Let us know in the Comments. I’ll mention a couple right here:

— Marvin Malek is running for a State House seat in Washington County as both a Dem and a Prog. He’s a doctor, and one of the leading advocates of single-payer health care in the medical community.

— Designated shitkicker Rama Schneider is running as an Independent for the House in Orange County. He’d definitely enliven, and lengthen, the debates.

— Some guy named Don Russell is running for Congress as a Republican, one of three fringey candidates vying for the chance to get steamrolled by Peter Welch. I mention Russell because his campaign website is entertainingly over-the-top and is worth a visit. Looks like something out of the early days of Angelfire, with an ALL-CAPS HEADLINE IN A HUGE FONT and waving American flags and just about everything ugly and cheap in a website. His purpose in the race, I infer, is to make Mark Donka look mainstream.

Ooh, one of his pages is entitled “Don’s Poems.” Er, I mean “DON’S POEMS.” Here’s one about his campaign:

Doesn’t that just make you want to saddle up and take back this country? After all, I’d hate to lose my “this an’ that.” I believe that phrase was borrowed from James Madison’s Federalist Letters.

And that’s only the first half of this patriotic epic.

Ladies and gentlement, Don Russell, Real American(™).  

The last remaining shred of doubt has dissipated: Scott Milne, owner of Milne Travel, will run for Governor as a Republican… setting up what must certainly be the first Travel Agent vs. Travel Agent gubernatorial election in Vermont history.

Milne showed up at the Secretary of State’s office around 4 p.m. to turn in his petitions, and have his first media confab as a formal candidate.

He talked about running a grassroots campaign on “pocketbook issues,” with an emphasis on finding affordable solutions for health care reform and the public education system.

He was short on specific ideas. He allowed as to how Governor Shumlin’s refusal to actively campaign until September gives him some time to fashion policy initiatives. Job one for his newborn campaign is building an organization; he doesn’t even have a campaign manager yet. And his official announcement isn’t likely to happen until around the Fourth of July.  

He said he’d actually decided to be a candidate “about three weeks ago,” but rethought the situation after Randy Brock’s withdrawal. Milne was hoping for a strong primary that would give the Republicans the media spotlight throughout the summer. After concluding that victory was still possible — even though unlikely — he affirmed his earlier decision.

As of this writing, we’re still waiting for an updated candidate list from the Secretary of State; they’ve had their hands full processing petitions today.

Also, a footnote to my earlier post about John Bauer’s failure to qualify for public financing and subsequent withdrawal from the race for Lieutenant Governor. I put the blame on the Democratic Party for failing to give him the backing that the Progressive Party gave to Dean Corren. I talked with a well-connected Democrat who said that a lack of communication from Bauer’s side was part of the problem — that as of yesterday afternoon, party officials were being assured that Bauer would, in fact, qualify.

I don’t want to start a shitfight here. My sense is that there’s substantial goodwill between Bauer and the party. Maybe some bruised feelings, but nothing that will last. But the Dems — at least a lot of them — did want to see Bauer qualify for public financing, and were surprised that he didn’t.

One more note: we might very well see the Dems endorse Corren, which would be a positive thing.

Stay tuned, as they say.  

John Bauer, Democratic candidate for Lieutenant Governor, has announced he fell short of qualifying for public financing. Further, he’s withdrawing from the race, leaving Progressive Dean Corren to challenge Phil Scott.

It’s disappointing. Although Bauer and Corren are fairly similar policy-wise, I think a name-brand Democrat would have had an easier time than a Progressive in mounting an effective challenge to Scott.

And it’s disappointing that the Democratic Party failed — or didn’t try — to help Bauer qualify for public funds while the Progs did manage the trick.

No, wait. It’s not disappointing. It’s shameful. Limiting the influence of money in politics is supposed to be a Democratic issue. And in the post-Citizens United world, offering a robust public-financing option is one of the best ways to level the playing field. In this case, the Democratic Party failed to live up to its principles.

I have to suspect the Powers That Be didn’t really want a liberal Democrat on the ticket. They gave Bauer lip service, but was there any effort to get loyal party members to kick in a few bucks to Bauer’s campaign? I doubt it. Because if there had been, he could have qualified.

As it is, the Dems can leave the Lt. Gov. race alone and let Scott cruise to re-election and return to his cushy spot in the Shumlin Cabinet. Dirty deals done dirt cheap.

(Note to 80s rock devotees: Yes, I know it’s “deeds.” Accept the pun.)

Two of the larger questions for Deadline Day have been answered: Scott Milne and Shap Smith are in the running.

Milne finally announced that he’s in as a Republican candidate for Governor. He did so this morning on WDEV’s “Mark Johnson Show.” (Link is to interview podcast; following quotes are taken from Paul “The Huntsman” Heintz at Seven Days.) Curiously, he left the door very slightly open for a last-second change of heart:

You know, if [former governor] Jim Douglas calls me up and says, ‘Scott, I want you to step aside because I’m coming back’ or I get hit by lightning today or something like that, there’s always the chance something could change. But I have petitions ready and plan on being a full-fledged candidate for governor by the end of the day.

He acknowledged he would be an underfunded longshot against Governor Shumlin. He invoked the underdog’s favorite meme:

…We’ll be working on a grassroots organization enabling folks to get to know me and the folks I’m going to be surrounded with a little bit better.

He estimated he would try to raise and spend about $200,000. That would, indeed, be a different kind of campaign; Randy Brock spent more than 600K and his only regret was he ran out of money to pour on his political bonfire.  

Milne’s a different kind of politico, and he might actually make things interesting — in the abstract sense, not in the “he stands a chance” sense. He’s certainly a good person to make the case for a new, more inclusive Republican Party.

After the jump: Milne unconsciously criticizes Jim Douglas… and a little praise for the Speaker.

One other comment worthy of note: Milne dinged Shumlin as a career politician who only knows one thing:

I think Gov. Shumlin has been, I think, getting elected pretty much since he was 24 years old,” Milne said. “I think with folks that have been getting elected every two years or every four years for 10 or 20 or 30 years, in Gov. Shumlin’s case, your filters become more about what you need to do to be successful politically.

Unintentionally ironic on two levels: First of all, Shumlin was a successful businessman — in Milne’s own line of work, travel. And second, Milne could have said the very same thing about his own Patron Saint, Jim Douglas, who was first elected to public office at age 25 and stayed there, with one brief interruption, until he was sixty years old.

In other news, Shap Smith will run for another term. And presumably win, and retain the Speakership.

In the end, I realized I really like the job and I thought that there was work left to be done on education, education finance, health care and health care finance,” Smith told Seven Days. “And I really wanted to finish that work, if my constituents give me the opportunity.

Noble sentiments, although I doubt that any living soul is going to ever “finish that work.” There’s always more boulders to roll up the lawmaking mountain.

I’ve been critical of Shap often enough in the past, but I have a lot of respect for his political skills and his body of work as Speaker. He’s to my right on some key issues, but overall he’s been an asset to the Democratic agenda. He’s like the swimming duck, placid on the surface and paddling furiously underneath. If he weren’t Speaker, we might find out just how hard the job really is.  

(With apologies for the Eighties Earworm.)

It’s Deadline Day for Vermont candidates. And given the one-sidedness of our politics these days, this might be one of the more exciting days of the whole campaign season — including Election Day. Among the questions hanging fire:

— Will Scott Milne file as a Republican candidate for Governor? Will the alleged mystery Republican step up? Or will the party be forced into an embarrassing write-in campaign to keep Emily Peyton from grabbing the top spot on their ticket?

— Will anybody file for the Republican nomination for Attorney General, Secretary of State, Auditor, or Treasurer? We’re not expecting any actual Republicans, but I’m still hoping for a gadfly or two. (Probably the first, and only, time I’ll ever be rooting for Annette Smith.)

— Will Shap Smith run for re-election? He has yet to file, and at last check was still wrestling with the decision. (Having apparently collected petition signatures in case he decides to run.)

— Will there be any more surprise candidates and/or stealth candidates for the legislature, a la Roger Allbee?

— Will John Bauer join Dean Corren in qualifying for public financing? The Progressive Corren says he has done so; Bauer’s closing in, but still needs a last-minute burst of donations before 5 p.m. today. (Link to online donation option at his campaign website.)

In Other News, Phil Scott is being a dick about public financing.

I guess he’s uncomfortable with the prospect of facing financially competitive challengers for a change. Paul “The Huntsman” Heintz reports that Scott recently sent a red-meat fundraising pitch including this passage:

Whoever I end up running against will have a very formidable organization supporting them, with at least two of them seeking to use up to $200,000 of your tax dollars, known as ‘public financing,’ to fund their campaign.

When Heintz asked Everybody’s Buddy to elaborate, he was happy to do so:

“My reaction is that it’s just taking money from those that may not support you, and I just have a hard time wrapping my arms around that,” he said. “When I think of $200,000, I think of 5,000 or 6,000 potholes. I think of three or four [Department of Children and Families] folks that might be able to be out in the field. I just think there are better ways to spend taxpayer money than in a campaign.”

Dick.

Stay tuned for updates during the day and this evening!

Hey, remember the news about former Douglas Administration functionary Roger Allbee’s candidacy for State Senate… as a Democrat?

Well, the Brattleboro Reformer ran a story today about Allbee’s newly announced bid. And reporter Mike Faher (and his editors) did a remarkable thing.

Never once was Allbee’s lifelong Republicanism mentioned. And while there were two references to his service as Agriculture Secretary, the story did not say which administration he served in.  

Nothing whatsoever to indicate that Roger Allbee was, until very recently, a Republican. Quite literally, the article ignores the elephant in the room.

I’m sure Allbee appreciates the Reformer’s contortionist act, since Windham County is solidly Democratic and his best hope is that voters will recognize his name but not clearly recall the details of his past service.  

The article starts off with Allbee’s self-encomiums about his leadership and experience, cites his “long history of interest in agricultural issues,” and lists his educational background. Yeah, I think Faher basically retyped Allbee’s resume.

Allbee runs through a comprehensive and unsurprising list of key issues; his positions on same are the extremely generic sort of stuff you could hear from almost any candidate in either party.

The story also covers his interest in health care and his current post, as CEO of Grace Cottage Hospital. The story does NOT mention the fact that Grace Cottage Hospital just had a very close call with losing its eligibility for Medicare reimbursement.

Which is doubly fascinating because the Reformer’s story about Grace’s near-disaster was written about two weeks ago by… Mike Faher.

You’d think that little detail would be fresh in his mind, and might be considered relevant to a piece that touts his “first-hand experience” as a hospital administrator.  But no.

Looks like a hometown whitewash to me. Or, should I say, tongue bath.  

Oh boy. That deal Governor Shumlin made with IBM for cheap electricity? Yeah, that’ll do the trick.

Bloomberg News reports that IBM “is nearing a deal with Globalfoundries Inc. for its chip-manufacturing business… after searching for a buyer for the money-losing unit since last year.”

The deal would be very bad news for Essex Junction and the northwest Vermont economy, because GF isn’t interested in the Essex plant.

Globalfoundries is primarily interested in acquiring IBM’s engineers and intellectual property rather than manufacturing facilities, which have little value as they are more than a decade old, said people with knowledge of the matter…

“Little value,” ouch!

If the deal goes down and GF consolidates production at its existing plant in New York, I’m sure the Republicans will be screaming that it’s all Shumlin’s fault. But it’s not, not at all.

Two facts:  

— The Essex plant is, according to Bloomberg, “of little value” because it’s too old. Not because of expensive electricity or any other factor related to Vermont or Essex.

— IBM’s been ruthlessly divesting itself of businesses and product lines, not to mention tens of thousands of domestic employees, in an all-out effort to meet very ambitious earnings goals. Farmers call that “selling the seed corn,” but it makes Wall Street happy. This process has been going on for years at a global level, and has nothing whatsoever to do with Vermont state policies, regulations, taxes, or electricity prices. As El Jefe General would say, it’s the free market at work, bucko.

Ironically, according to Bloomberg, the IBM chip-making business “has been a successful developer of fundamental process technology, yet failed to deliver the level of sales and profit that [other firms] have achieved.”  

Makes me pine for the good old days, when IBM became a global titan based on its heavy investments in R&D.

I’ve been writing about IBM’s future in Vermont — or lack thereof — for two years now, starting with a diary entitled “Expect IBM to leave Vermont within three years. No matter what we do.”

Nothing’s changed; the corporation is shedding jobs and productive units, and our state’s economy is just collateral damage. And no amount of tax breaks, utility deals, regulatory relaxations, or Republican officeholders would make the slightest bit of difference.  

Dean Corren, Progressive candidate for Lieutenant Governor, announced this morning that he will qualify for public financing, having collected donations from more than 800 Vermoters totaling more than $18,000. The public financing will allow Corren to run a financially competitive race with incumbent Repubilcan Phil Scott. The public funding will bring his total campaign kitty to $200,000.

Now, time for the Democrats to step up. John Bauer has until tomorrow afternoon to qualify. He’s speeding down the homestretch, but isn’t there yet. Secure online donations can be made via ActBlue. Every donation of $50 or less — even a buck or two — counts toward the goal.

C’mon now, Democrats. You don’t want to fail where the Progs succeeded, do you?

That aside, it’s great news for a competitive race and for the very concept of public financing that at least one candidate has qualified. It’s a very high bar to reach — at least 750 donations from registered Vermont voters, each donation no more than $50, totaling at least $17,500.  Indeed, it’d be best for the system if the bar were lowered just a bit. Still, nice to know that the system can work.

Corren released this statement:

I am deeply gratified and inspired by everyone who stepped up so quickly, not only to contribute, but to help us gather small contributions from friends and neighbors. It was a terrific group effort. …Our campaign will now be fully competitive, and free to focus entirely on the critical issues facing Vermont. In particular, I look forward to advancing our state’s healthcare reforms in the months ahead.

Congratulations to Dean Corren and the Progs for an impressive organizational feat. Will the Dems be able to say the same?