Good grief. Douglas has made the choice for wavering lawmakers on whether or not to override his coming veto on the budget an easy one – whether those waverers are on the right or on the left. At least if they’re capable of paying attention.

For the left, this budget opens up on the full spectrum – medicare, education, the safety net (including welfare-to-work programs), more people thrown out of work – with Secretary of Administration Waylon Smithers Neale Lunderville justifying it with defensive, ideological cries of just how good all those poor, sick and unemployed folks have had it in Vermont for so long.

For the left and the right (and everyone in between) is the incomprehensible raid on the education fund and the massive shift of the burden to local communities. According to a press release from Appropriations Chairs Bartlett and Heath (emphasis added), “Governor Douglas is burdening an average $1,100 property tax increase on 13,000 middle income families. In fact, the actual impact on individual Vermont families could be as high as $8,000” (yes, I am a tapped-out property taxpayer, if that helps explain my ire this morning).

It begs the question as to whether or not Douglas is simply declaring war, not just on public schools, but on local government itself. This huge shift in the burden would simply be more than could be absorbed, even if they cut like fiends. This is not just Grover Norquist’s plan “to get (government) down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub”, this is tying an anvil around local government’s ankle and tossing it into the Mariana Trench. There is no way the result won’t be both a massive local tax increase as well as a virtual collapse of local and school services as we’ve known them. No politician – Democrat, Republican, Progressive, or Independent – wants to face their constituents after that depth charge hits.

Oh yes, and even more tax cuts for the wealthy then we’re already stuck with.

Of course, expect the usual suspects – Emerson Lynn, Vermont Tiger, and the one-bad-day-away-from-joining-a-militia editorial squad at the Caledonian Record to fall all over themselves stroking the Governor and using Wealth of Nations Cliff Notes they don’t really understand to sound smart in uncritically backing him up. This GOP Public Relations squad does its job well.

But the fact is, that the striking thing about this so-called budget can be summed up in one word, and its not “ideological,” – it’s incompetent. Jim Douglas dragged his feet on putting forward an alternative (as opposed to throwing out vague, half-baked ideas and trash-talking Dems) for months, and now we know why.

Because he’s in way over his head. This “budget,” coming as it is during a monumental financial downturn, would do to this state what his pal Bush did to the nation and the world; leave it (and us) in an economic shambles.

There is no further compromise to be had with incompetence. There are little PR gimmes included in the proposal, such as an increase in cigarette taxes, designed to make it possible to sell this to friendly news outlets as a “compromise” from the Governor (a “compromise” to a budget that is already far more of a compromise than many of us wanted to see in the first place).

Take the veto and do what it takes to override.

UPDATE: The following letter went to the Governor from the Legislative leadership:

Dear Governor Douglas:

Yesterday we received copies of your revised budget proposal.  In the coming weeks, we intend to give due diligence to your ideas outlined in the proposal.  Therefore, we respectfully request that you direct your staff to submit your new budget in bill form to us no later than Friday, May 29.  The actual language of your proposal is critical for all of our members and our staff to fully understand and evaluate your proposal.

Thank you in advance for the attention of your staff to this matter and please know that our doors remain open to you and your ideas.

Sincerely,

Representative Shap Smith                                          Senator Peter Shumlin

Speaker of the House                                                 Senate President Pro Tem

ROFL!! Douglas clearly has commitment issues.

Terri Hallenbeck outed him as a candidate, so there’s one less secret I have to sit on (5 zillion to go)…

VDB’s Philip Baroonth Baruth is diving into the 2010 candidate circus, and has filed to run for Chittenden State Senate. Current Senators from the County are Democrats Racine (who is running for Governor, opening up a slot), Lyons, Flanagan, Miller and Ashe (a Dem/Prog), along with Republican Diane Snelling.

An honest-to-goodness netroots candidate! How exciting. Civilization as we know it is almost certainly all downhill from here. We look forward to live blogging from the Senate chambers.

It’s safe to consider this my first endorsement of 2010.

What do you think?

“I am seriously thinking about running for lieutenant governor,” Nease confirmed Friday. “I believe the lieutenant governor has a unique opportunity to lead, to lead in the kind of efforts that are not gubernatorial, but are important to Vermonters.”

Nease said one example was then Lt. Gov. Howard Dean’s efforts to examine the causes of teen suicide.

“You need to be more than the state’s top cheerleader,” Nease said.

Nease has been the most active (at least openly active) Democratic legislator on this site (and it’s certainly great to be taken seriously). That’s very cool. It would be a shame to lose him in the Legislature, however.

I suspect his prospects (and possibly his decision?) will be mightily impacted by the result of the June 2 special session, and whether or not the budget veto can be overridden.

It’s on!

The same day Doug Racine received coverage in the Free Press regarding his appearance before the Progressive State Committee looking for support in his bid for Governor, Secretary of State Deb Markowitz fires a shot right at Racine, indicating that this primary election, much as many would like to see otherwise, will likely include Dems running straight at each other (emphasis added).

Dear xxx,

Thank you for your service to our Party, and thank you for taking the time to talk to me as I begin to organize a campaign for Governor…

…One of the issues I hear every day, especially from our fellow Democrats, is they are looking for a candidate who will not repeat the mistakes of the past and who has a real shot at winning. I couldn’t agree more. I would not have formed a committee, and begun organizing if I wasn’t confident I could run a campaign capable of defeating any other candidate in the race…

…This is also the time when we start to hear a lot of talk about what the Progressive Party will do.  I think we learned in 2008 that the Progressive party will make its own decisions about whether or not to run a candidate for governor – that is not something we can control.  Our focus has to be on building the strongest, most energetic and idea-oriented campaign possible…

…My leadership style is to welcome everyone to the table to help be a part of the solution – Democrats – Progressives – Independents. Even open minded Republicans.

Racine boosters have been complaining to me that Markowitz has been talking down Racine off the record. Pumping up the “he had his chance” and “he’s unelectable” rumblings. I wasn’t sure how much of that was simply boiler plate election grumbling, but from this letter, it seems clear that this will be part of her strategy from the get-go, as opposed to simply working through a campaign construction phase pretending she has no opponents in September ’10. I mean, one would have to be completely out of it not to see who she is referring to here, especially given the timing. There are no coincidences in politics.

The earliness of this pointed shot by one of the candidates at a rival really surprises me every bit as much as Racine’s appearance before the Prog state committee did. I’ve been in and around Democratic Party politics in this state for some time, and it’s clear we are in uncharted territory at this early date in the cycle.

Looking at this email, as well as the calendar, it’s hard not to think that this is gonna get ugly. Complete letter follows below the fold.

Dear xxx,

Thank you for your service to our Party, and thank you for taking the time to talk to me as I begin to organize a campaign for Governor. I have found these conversations very helpful and would like to continue that dialogue with you and other members of our Party. To that end, this is the first of my monthly emails to State Committee members. My goal is to address the issues and ideas that come up in my campaign and to welcome any feedback or advice you may have. As the new campaign cycle begins to unfold, and we begin to choose our Party’s candidates for elected office, I think these sorts of communication will be important to all of us.

As you know, both through my office and other activities, I speak with hundreds of Vermonters from around the state every month. Based on these conversations I believe we have a real opportunity in 2010. Vermonters from across the political spectrum are voicing serious concern over the direction of our state government – particularly the leadership of the current Governor.  They know our state can do better, and they are eager to hear fresh approaches and new ideas to address the common issues we face.

One of the issues I hear every day, especially from our fellow Democrats, is they are looking for a candidate who will not repeat the mistakes of the past and who has a real shot at winning. I couldn’t agree more. I would not have formed a committee, and begun organizing if I wasn’t confident I could run a campaign capable of defeating any other candidate in the race.

For that reason, in the weeks and months ahead, I am focused on giving Vermonters a clear sense of my vision for our state – and on building a campaign that can withstand whatever comes my way. There may be a Democratic Primary. I welcome that as a sign of the strength of our party and our commitment to electing a new Governor.

As we’ve learned from past campaigns, an early start is essential, as is early fundraising. The current Governor has a long record and deep pockets; I don’t intend to let either go unchallenged.

This is also the time when we start to hear a lot of talk about what the Progressive Party will do.  I think we learned in 2008 that the Progressive party will make its own decisions about whether or not to run a candidate for governor – that is not something we can control.  Our focus has to be on building the strongest, most energetic and idea-oriented campaign possible.

That being said, what we learned in 2009 is that working together the Democrats and Progressives can make history. Think about it:  Marriage Equality would not have passed without the Democrats and Progressives coming together. If there is a chance to over-ride a potential budget veto by the Governor and spare Vermonters further devastating cuts, it will come because Progressives and Democrats work together. And it is my sincere hope that this summer, and into next year, we can work together to make more historic, progressive changes in Vermont government.

Like the rest of the country, Vermont is facing some real challenges – and unless we are all willing to come together we will not be able to move forward.  My leadership style is to welcome everyone to the table to help be a part of the solution – Democrats – Progressives – Independents. Even open minded Republicans. I am hoping that this approach will strengthen the campaign, and of course – it is a necessary approach for leading the state. It is going to take all of us working together to get Vermont back on track.

I know these are issues that many of you feel strongly about, and I look forward to continuing the discussion in the coming weeks and months.

You can contact me at debmarkowitz@gmail.com. Please feel free to contact my staff anytime as well, Jason’s cell phone number is 802-399-7298 (email jason@debforvermont.com). Finally, I hope you’ll also take time to visit my website at www.debforvermont.com.

Look forward to seeing you soon,

Deb

Long time GMD readers will recall that Daily Kos blogging sooperstar David Waldman (aka Kagro X) was a front pager for the site roundabout our second year. Well, our buddy David is getting higher profile all the time, and was recently on CNN…

David pulls no punches. Great stuff.

Shay:

With the legislative session now behind him, Chittenden County Democratic Senator Doug Racine is hitting the road to raise money and garner support in his run for governor.

On Saturday, Racine will break bread with the Progressive Party’s State Committee at its quarterly meeting. That confab will be at the Old Labor Hall in Barre at 10 a.m.

“I reached out to them,” said Racine, who met twice with Anthony Pollina, the Progressives’ 2008 candidate for governor (before he dropped the party moniker and ran as an independent). Pollina also ran under the Progressive banner for governor in 2000 and lieutenant governor in 2002.

“I told them I wanted to check in with him and asked for his support,” Racine said of his two meetings with Pollina. “He didn’t say no. And, he said the next step was to talk with the state committee. In talks with other Progressives, they’ve told me they are willing to consider the person, not just the party.”

Perhaps, after all, Progs & Dems can “get along” eh?

I expected Racine to start making big moves as soon as the session was over. I’ll admit, though, I wasn’t expecting this. Good on ‘im. As readers might recall, I went on record saying the Dem Committee should give Pollina a hearing last year. Also, the Progressive complaint against Racine last cycle (when he was thinking about a run) was that they had stepped aside for him in 2002, so he should step aside for Pollina.

Well…merits to that argument notwithstanding, he did step aside. Maybe that creates an opportunity for Racine to uniquely approach the Progressives with a clean slate.

Interesting. I may have to go and see what happens.

When police departments are trying to sell us on the value of adding tasers to their arsenals, we’re told that they will only be used sparingly, and that tasers are an alternative to deadly force.

By this reasoning, we should expect no more incidents of tasers being used than incidents of police firearms being used before tasers were available to them. Right?

Ha. Here’s the reality:

The family of a Burlington teenager has filed a formal complaint against a city police sergeant alleging the officer fired a stun gun at the boy while he was handcuffed and pinned to the ground this week….

…(Burlington Police Officer) Schirling said his department acquired Tasers about three years ago, has used them fairly frequently, and they have proved an effective law-enforcement tool. Initially a skeptic, Schirling said seeing the devices in action sold him on their usefulness.

“It is designed to minimize injuries to officers and to people the force is used on,” the chief said.

Funny, I don’t recall Burlington Police officers shooting people with their sidearms “fairly frequently” before the tasers came along.

Again, as an alternative to deadly force, I think most sane people would be all for these things. The problem is, of course, that police departments routinely BS us about how they actually intend to use them and – as in Burlington – choose instead to use these potentially lethal devices “fairly frequently” – sometimes just for the purpose of causing pain in order to coerce desired behavior (which, in more civilized nations, is considered torture and is frowned upon).

But, once again, we just celebrate this sort of thing at the highest levels in Vermont:

Shameful.

This is basically the Governor’s choice of moves regarding the budget:

1. Fold: Play it safe and cut his losses for the session. Choose not to veto it, despite his previous threats. This would  be another sign of weakness from the backpedaling alone (which may have already begun). Legislative leaders would firm up their empowerment narrative and criticism of the compromise budget from the left would fall off, as it would appear they absolutely nailed the fine line between veto and acceptance and got the best budget they could after all.

2. Go all in. Veto. A special session gets called. If the veto is upheld, Douglas has reaffirmed his power and legislative leaders are in deep doo-doo, as they already offered a “compromise” budget and will have absolutely no place to go. Liberals will be pissed at what comes next – and rightfully so.

If, on the other hand, the veto is overridden, the Governor has just graduated the hit he took from the rest of the session to a full-fledged knock-down wallop. Headlines will question his power and relevence – as well as his re-election prospects. It would be huge – and the legislature would, again, mitigate liberal complaints by being seen as finding the fine line representing the best we could expect to achieve. Plus the victory would be energizing.

And the prospects are there for an override. It was suggested to me the other day that there may be five republicans who may vote for an override. Why? Because at this point, the Governor’s budget would represent higher tax increases by shifting a greater burden onto local property taxes by dipping further into the education fund. Add to that, the momentum-stealing argument that a special session would be an unexpected extra cost to taxpayers, and the Governor (despite his best efforts otherwise) will have the responsibility for that expense squarely in his lap – and that responsibility will be compounded exponentially if the veto is overridden, which will give the appearance of Douglas simply flushing money down the toilet in a pique of vanity and futility.

PS: On another note, I couldn’t help but notice this quote from Douglas at the announcement of the retirement of Marselis Parsons of WCAX, which has been colloquially known as WGOP (ht Freyne) for some time, given its often routine bias towards all things Republican (emphasis added):

“As a reporter, then anchor and news director, he has shaped Vermont history with intelligent coverage and piercing insight.

Reporting the news? Sometimes.

“Shaping” the news. Yep, that’s what he did all right. And I’m sure the Governor is sincere in his praise of Parsons’ success in that department.

I, for one, am glad to see a change. Good luck to the new guy. I’ll be rooting for ya.

There were a few priorities that emerged from the net activist meeting we held late last year. One of them was a package of changes to the electoral system. Any hopes for IRV soon foundered after a Burlington mayoral election revealed its shortcomings, allowing opponents to make the perfect into the enemy of the good and sink its prospects. Moving the primary earlier in the year got watered down and ultimately shoved into a corner to die in the House. And nobody even brought up a return to campaign finance reform (though I’m a little more sympathetic there as every attempt gets vetoed or sued into oblivion). In terms of making our electoral system more fair going into the all important election that will determine who holds the redistricting cards, this legislature gets a big fat ‘F’ (okay – the Senate gets big extra credit for passing something – maybe a B-?).

But there were a couple other priorities of the group that I want to honor before putting together another meeting – and with the legislature in recess, now seems like the time.

The big dynamic that works against us in trying to take the Governorship is, as often mentioned, the primary election, coming so close as it does to the general – especially if you feel, as many of us on the left and engaged with the netroots do – that a primary contest is an absolute necessity to put together the voter interest and media attention necessary to win in November, as well as to have an opportunity to choose the best candidate, rather than have one chosen for us by the political illuminati (such as they are) or simply by default. And one way that it hurts us is by leaving little time for raising competitive funding after spending on a primary battle.

So, here’s my solution. I’ve created a Facebook group: 1000 Vermonters for Change. My goal is to get 1000 people to join over the next year – 1000 people who commit to sending a $100 contribution to whoever wins the Democratic primary, the day after the primary election. That’s $100,000 and its a pretty big boost.

Now obviously, this won’t be for those folks who would never support a Democratic candidate. And its not a suicide pact either – if we elect our own Zell Miller, nobody’s gonna show up at your door with a crowbar demanding the cash. Still, it’d be something powerful and meaningful that we could do right now. Folks who give large amounts of money can afford a hundred more. Folks like me who cant afford squat can commit to putting the occasional $5 bill into a jar to build it up to $100 by September of 2010.

It’s not too early to step up to the plate and do this.

Now I know not everyone is on Facebook, but it has such powerful (and growing) viral qualities, that it makes sense to do it there. Here, again, is a link to the group, and I encourage you to join Facebook if you haven’t by clicking here, and then returning to this diary to click on the group link. Send it areound to everyone you know. I’ll put a permanent link on the sidebar and include some banner links soon that can be used for other blogs or personal webpages.

1000 people. In more than a year. We can do this.

"We are in a situation now where it is not only too expensive to live in Vermont, it is too expensive to die in Vermont and now it is too expensive to leave. –Sen. Randy Brock (R-Florida)

They mocked him in the halls of liberalism, but he was right. And the roadsign in Colchester was roundly dismissed as a harmless prank – but they knew, oh god they knew. 

Brock was right. It's too expensive to live – its too expensive to leave – and its too expensive to die. Everyone thought it was a silly comment – even a mind-numbingly dumb thing to say. 

But it was true, heaven help us it was true. All that remains for us from Brock’s equation is pain, suffering, and an eternity as the undead. For gods sake – anyone who reads this – stay away from Vermont… its now really bad for business… oh, god, if only I'd…voted….Republican…. arrrrrrrgghh!!!!!