Tag Archives: Lt.Gov. Phil Scott

Phil Scott’s partisan “wedgie” from the past

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Lt. Governor  and Republican gubernatorial candidate Phil Scott tweeted the following from the NBC5 debate between himself, Democrat Sue Minter and Bill Lee last night: “It’s so unfortunate that people create these wedges between us to distract people from looking into the truth about us.”philtweetwedge2

But whoa! Steady up on that high’n mighty horse yer ridin’ there, Phil. Some voters who listened to the debate may recall back in fall 2011 when you, Mr. Scott, clumsily wedged partisanship into what had been a politics-free zone for the Irene recovery efforts.

Here’s what he told his fellow Republicans at a fundraising dinner that he observed – or thought he observed – during the Irene recovery effort: “…. As I crisscrossed the state and witnessed recovery efforts, and saw the truck drivers, the equipment operators, the law enforcement personnel, the National Guard members, the municipal leaders … and it may have been my imagination, but I do believe most of them who were doing the work were Republicans.”

philxthreePerhaps caught up in the moment, alone with GOP buddies at last, he continued hammering the wedge home, for his Republican teammates, making it personal:

“… We are the doers. We’re the ones that get the work done … Isn’t it ironic that with the majority of Vermonters declaring themselves Democrats, that Governor Shumlin would have to lean on Republicans like myself and Neale Lunderville to help steer the ship, to come up with common sense solutions during adversity to get things done.”

Several days after his 2011 remarks and a flurry of criticism, Scott clumsily backtracked. He suggested that he didn’t really mean it and probably wasn’t a good thing to say.

That was then and this is now. Back then, alone with his GOP team Scott thought “…most of them doing the work were Republicans.” Now Phil is shocked – shocked – by such partisan talk and soft-pedals it, since most of them doing the voting are Democrats.

Blind trust in Phil Scott

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Anyone who has had a radio on in the past couple days has probably heard Phil Scott moaning and sounding sooo hurt over how mean his gubernatorial primary opponent Bruce Lisman is being to him. Says Scott’s campaign: “For month’s Bruce Lisman has lied to voters about Phil’s record.” Philscottphilscott

In aggressive campaign ads, Lisman is raising the appearance  of a conflict of interest over Scott’s ownership in Dubois Construction company should he win election to the Governor’s office. Dubois does millions of dollars in contracted State of Vermont business: Since 2001, DuBois Construction has received $3.785 million  in payments from the state Agency of Transportation, The Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, and the Departments of Buildings and General Services  and Fish & Wildlife.

If elected, Scott says, he is planning to form a blind trust to handle his interest in the business, but Lisman and others are skeptical that this maneuver adequately addresses the ethical implications. The Vermont Democratic Party commented: “Scott would still be completely aware of where his private profits were coming from and which policies could increase them while he collects a state salary.”

I wrote a diary in May about how Scott has handled the issue in his past.  When he began his campaign Scott commented on his contracting ethics to Vtdigger.com:  When a project he has supported as an elected official goes out to bid, Scott said he makes sure his company does not seek the contract. So he said. But a closer look reveals that this hasn’t exactly been his practice.

As a state senator Scott served on the Senate Transportation Committee and successfully lobbied Senator James Jeffords (PDF p. 10) to put a certain provision in Federal  legislation for specific transportation funding.  Vermont (USA) Senator Jim Jeffords (I-VT) credited Vermont State Senator Phil Scott (R-Washington County) with the provision in the new federal transportation legislation adding modern roundabout projects to the list of safety improvements eligible nationwide for 100 percent federal transportation funding.

And then, first while Scott was a state senator and later as Lt. Governor, Dubois Construction  submitted bids on contracts  receiving this particular federal funding when the monies became available in Vermont. Total potential worth of the bids on these projects: $15 million.

Over several years, Dubois Construction bid on at least three Vermont state roundabout projects, including two since he became Lt. Governor.

One bid in 2008 was worth $1,388,412.00 [CONTRACT ID : 04B198], one in 2011 worth $1,754,788.83 [CONTRACT ID : 08B126], and in 2013 (what would have been a biggie) worth $11,953,592.58 [CONTRACT ID : 78D082]. All his bids were in the middle of the pack, but not being the lowest bid, none was awarded to Scott’s company.

But the important point is he did bid on them  after lobbying for specific funding; taken together, the three bids would have been worth over 15 million dollars to Phil Scott and Dubois Construction.

Scott’s tax returns indicate that the bulk of his wealth is tied up in Dubois Construction. He has said he would temporarily distance himself from his construction business should he become governor, but he wants to return to it afterward.

Phil Scott may not like Lisman questioning his possible business conflict in the primary, but it is fair game. And regardless of his promised temporary blind trust arrangement, a good hard look at his company’s past and future state bidding is likely inevitable in the general election.

And, as Phil Scott himself asks in his response tv ad to Lisman’s attack, “Who are you going to trust?” wherein he cites Governor Jim Douglas’s support as proof of his trustworthiness. Shall we trust Phil Scott, who promised his company wouldn’t bid on contracts he was politically involved in? Or the record of Dubois Construction’s bids on at least three such major contracts?

Trust shouldn’t be blind.

Phil Scott and Donald the “misguided missile”

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You might think every savvy GOP politician would have been paying attention six months ago when Republican strategist Ward Baker spelled out strategies to deal with Trump the “misguided missile.” The widely leaked National Republican Senatorial Committee memo warned Republicans to prepare and guard against collateral damage should Trump prevail and win the GOP presidential nomination.

Scott supporter Kurt Wright (R-Burlington) isn’t worried about Trump at the top of their party’s ticket harming the VTGOP. Wright is counting on what he believes is the provincial nature of Vermont voters.

Wright said. “They [voters] don’t care about the national politics. Vermonters are great at separating out what Vermonters do … as opposed to what’s going on in Washington.”

But Wright’s response kind of ignores that much of Trump’s appeal is that he claims not to be a Washington creature.

I guess putting distance between yourself and your own party’s presumptive “misguided missile” candidate is a tough task.scottwhome

At a press event Thursday Scott tried hard to keep the topic orbiting around the state budget. However only a couple days after Trump crushed all opponents in the Indiana primary, he was pressed to respond to the obvious question: Do you now or will you ever support Donald Trump for President?

Scott deserves credit for declaring he will not vote for Trump. Unlike Bruce Lisman who unbelievably says he intends to “[…] carefully evaluate Donald Trump’s candidacy and listen to what he has to say.” That leaves me more than a little curious over what on earth Trump might say to win over Lisman.

But with six months’ lead time to prepare a winning strategy for coping with Trump’s run at the White House, couldn’t Scott have done better than this?

Scott, who declared he would not vote for Trump, revealed later Thursday he has decided to write in former Republican Gov. Jim Douglas as his presidential choice in the November election.

“He’d make a great president,” Scott said about the four-term governor.

Aww, isn’t that just precious VTGOP fandom! I’m sure Jim thinks you could be a dandy Governor too, Phil! You could be the Governor Dubie Jim Douglas never had.

But it is still pretty early in the game for Scott to put down his Jim Douglas trump card — we’re not even through the primary yet! I’ll bet he’ll need to play that one a few more times before November.

Candidate Phil Scott’s roundabout bid

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By now every voter in Vermont must know that Lt. Gov. Phil Scott is the longtime co-owner of Dubois Construction – a company that competes for and receives millions in state highway contracts. Considering his position as an elected official, it is surprising that this issue has only been raised a few times during his 15 years as a state senator (on the Transportation Committee) and his time as Lt. Governor.

roundaboutconflict 1Early on when Scott was about to enter the race for governor, he attempted to preclude any discussion of conflict of interest and told Vtdigger.com he would temporarily distance himself from his highway construction business, should he become governor.   “When a project he has supported as an elected official goes out to bid, Scott said he makes sure his company does not seek the contract.”

Well, one of his “quiet accomplishments over the years” (listed under ‘transportation’ on his campaign website) may conflict just a bit with that statement.

In 2005 (five years before he became Lite Governor) while serving on the Senate Transportation committee, Scott successfully lobbied U.S.Senator James Jeffords to place  a specific type of funded project  in a Federal transportation bill.

Vermont (USA) Senator Jim Jeffords (I-VT) credited Vermont State Senator Phil Scott (R-Washington County) with the provision in the new federal transportation legislation adding modern roundabout projects to the list of safety improvements eligible nationwide for 100 percent federal transportation funding.

Modern traffic roundabouts are recognized safety improvements for traffic and pedestrians, and usually significantly improve intersections. They’re also pricey, so in 2005, getting the Feds to cough up 100% of the cost of building them was significant.

It also turns out Scott’s Dubois Construction Company made several attempts to get a piece of that federal roundabout funding he had arranged.

Over several years, Dubois Construction bid on at least three roundabout projects including two since he became Lt. Governor.

One bid [CONTRACT ID : 04B198] in 2008 was worth $1,388,412.00, one in 2011 worth $1,754,788.83 [CONTRACT ID : 08B126], and in 2013 (what would have been a biggie) worth $11,953,592.58 [CONTRACT ID : 78D082]

. All his bids were in the middle of the pack, but not being the lowest bid, none were awarded to Scott’s company. Taken together, the three bids would have been worth over 15 million dollars to Scott and Dubois Construction.

Up until recently, it was accepted as gospel that Vermont’s government was uniquely honest. But with the EB-5 Regional Program now under fire over Jay Peak’s alleged “ponzi scheme,” an overly active government-to-business revolving door, and finally the state Senate’s embarrassing efforts at (not) passing any ethics regulations, this bit of bogus gospel is due for a revision. One longtime Vermont commentator recently declared that “Vermont state government is still pretty squeaky clean.”  Kind of an ethical gray area — you know, like, being “sort of” honest?

At least in a ’roundabout’ way, Phil Scott may have provided a road map of how, if elected governor, his ethics will intersect with his private business interests.

Scott to visit community affected by toxic chemicals

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Republican gubernatorial candidate Phil Scott will attend, according to his published schedule the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation community meeting for residents of Bennington, North Bennington, and Shaftsbury.

When the PFOA well contamination first came to light, Lt. Gov. Scott initially referred to the contamination as a “spill” and did not mention monitoring private or public wells and only suggested “We should start by helping municipalities upgrade systems to prevent spills of raw sewage and untreated wastewater.”

I’d be surprised if Scott has any legislative recommendations to propose that might help prevent a disaster like this happening to Vermont families. That is because the Lt. Gov. had a chance in 2015 to improve regulation of toxic chemicals and chose not to.Philscottphilscott

Scott cast a tie breaking vote last session in the legislature that killed a bill designed to expanded existing rules governing chemicals allowed in children’s toys. The lieutenant governor said he sided with the business community, which opposed the changes, so as not to create uncertainty for them.

No small irony then that he is on the road today to campaign …err I mean to visit a community suffering from toxic chemical exposure. I wonder if Scott would go back and change his veto on chemicals in children’s toys -or maybe he just hopes voters won’t look back too far at his record on chemical regulation.

Campbell, Mazza, and Scott three-spot rules

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Lt. Gov. Phil Scott (R), Senator Dick Mazza (faux D) and Senate president pro tem John Campbell (D) are the powerful Senate Committee on Committees. The C of C’s is the three member Senate group charged with choosing senate committee assignments, chairs of committees and “personnel,” as Campbell says.

But the band is breaking up. John Campbell announced he will not seek re-election but will take a job as executive director with the legislatively created Vermont Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs. One duty of the executive director is to  represent the group’s views to the legislature. cofcsLt. Gov. Phil Scott will be moving out and/or up depending on the results of his run for governor. And who knows what “king maker” Dick Mazza may have in store for the next session.

On occasion in the past their collective wisdom has been questioned. The chairman they put in place as the head of the Senate Natural Resources Committee several years ago was what you might politely call unsure about climate change.

However, due to some end-of-session senate resignations that opened up committee seats last week, the gang of three was able to raise some eyebrows and hackles yet again with their unilateral decision making — maybe for the last time.

After a brief consultation with each other, Campbell, Scott and Mazza elevated Sen. Dustin Degree, (R-Franklin) from Senate Education to the powerful Senate Finance Committee. Then they named Degree’s Committee replacement without consulting or notifying Ed. Committee Chair Sen. Ann Cummings of their choice of “personnel.”

The Committee on Committees is in charge of “personnel,” as Campbell describes it, and does not hold public meetings. Decisions are often made unilaterally by the close-knit group of three men.

And in this instance, there actually was no meeting to vote on the matter — the decision was made in casual conversation before the Friday Senate session.

Campbell happened to be talking to Scott in front of Senate Transportation where Mazza is the chair and the subject came up. Scott then talked with Mazza and the deed was done.

“We made these appointments through individual conversations with each other over the past few days,” Scott said in a written statement. “It’s difficult to find a time when all three of us can meet, so we talk in pairs until we come to an agreement. No formal committee vote is needed, simply an agreement on the appointment between the three of us.”

Just more of that olde time, good ol’ boys’ we-know-what’s-best-for-Vermont style that comes so naturally to these three. So good they don’t even bother with a smoke-filled room!

Phil Scott opened his run for governor by declaring: “I saw a need for a leader who could bring people together.”  His history with Mazza and Campbell on the Committee on Committees says otherwise.

Unlike stocks, in Scott’s case, past performance may well predict future behavior: if elected governor, he will likely prefer to make his important decisions behind closed doors, just as he’s done here.

In the cards: Vermont captive insurance tax break

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Vermont’s specialized captive insurance businesses just got a gift in the form of a tax break from the State legislature. Captives are registered to be run out of Vermont, a few US states, Cayman Islands, Malta and Panama. The company we keep.inthecards

Now wouldn’t you think if a legislator gave out a break it would make headlines? Well this one will get a few, but likely most of them only in the sheltered world of corporate captives.

Vermont lawmakers Friday gave final approval to legislation to clarify that certain types of captives, such as sponsored and industrial insured captives that are not writing any business be allowed to enter a dormant status, exempting the captives from Vermont’s minimum annual premium tax.

The measure, H. 538, also allows for cells to be converted from a protected cell to an incorporated cell, allows cells to be transferred or sold, and allows cells to be converted to stand-alone captives of any type.

Vermont regulators provide a host of advantages to large corporations and wealthy families that form captives for modest licensing fees a small tax on premiums. But its  tough to compete with Panama and Malta for business .So now with this “house cleaning” legislation, the state is exempting their annual premium tax in some situations–discounting revenue the state would otherwise get from the captives. 

Corporations not only lower their insurance costs by forming captives but gain tax shelters and special tax benefits for them. A year ago the IRS took notice and placed some captive insurance on their “Dirty dozen” list of abusive tax scams. Commenting on corporate tax shelter benefits, a lawyer specializing in captives said: “[…] those are the icing on the cake – the cake is the numerous other non-tax advantages of captives”

But this cozy type of regulatory accommodation – tax break and rule adjustment on request is exactly what JV at the VPO says  Republican candidates Phil Scott and Randy Brock want to promote here in Vermont.

And Phil Scott is fond of saying “Imagine if we had a governor’s office that treated every sector in the same way”

For those who may have forgotten or may not know: A captive insurance business is a specialized company set up by (and captive to) a larger business to handle their own liability risk insurance needs. Essentially, an enterprise forms and manages its own insurance company as a subsidiary, and the enterprise’s other operating subsidiaries purchase insurance from the captive. 

Nice business if you can get it or make it — and get the state legislature to “protect” its benefits from the state’s own tax laws. And who is on the hook for every dime these “captives” don’t pay in taxes? Why, of course! It’s the rest of us taxpayers.

Phil Scott swims with the GOP

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Last November Phil Scott was reported to support the growing call for stopping planned Syrian refugee immigration. Shortly thereafter he had to clarify his position to say that he had meant “pause.” Scott’s awkward swing at the anti-immigration issue didn’t look too good for a first-time gubernatorial candidate.

Not that he was the only state executive to weigh in. In the panic and unease following the early-winter terrorist attack in Paris, amid reports and rumors of a connection to the Syrian conflict, the Republican governors of Maine and Massachusetts and others said they would halt efforts to relocate Syrian refugees to their states.

Phil Scott and Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Lisman both expressed a similar desire to hold off allowing Syrian resettlement in Vermont. Both were rebuked by supporters of allowing vetted war refugee immigrants to come to Vermont. Among the critics was Governor Shumlin, Democratic gubernatorial candidates Sue Minter and Matt Dunne, who said Scott and Lisman were “playing to our worst fears.”

Scott responded, saying in part “[…] I probably should have gone a little further to explain that I don’t understand the situation and I certainly don’t feel like we can pause or stop the refugee program in its entirety,” and from there proceeded to backtrack.

In very short order, Scott also suggested his position had been “misinterpreted” (VPR published the transcript of the interview), and found himself clarifying that he didn’t understand the refugee vetting process, was worried about security and wanted a “pause” not a “ stop.” He even helpfully added that “pause” meant “to stop, take a breath, explain the process and then resume.”

Belatedly he arranged for Vermont Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn to “get a couple of people together to explain it [security vetting process] to me.”

I say he backtracked, but looking back to last November it appears more like he just squiggled around awkwardly after sticking his neck out a bit and luckily for him finessed the issue –down the memory hole — away in a few news cycles.

So what might cause the normally cautious Lt. Governor to uncharacteristically speak out against I mean, come out in favor of a “pause” on war refugee immigration to Vermont? In this particular bit of clumsy international-state policy pronouncement, he may have spent down a little of the Phil-Scott-is-a-great-guy credit he accumulated with Democratic crossover voters.

It should now be obvious that while Phil Scott and Donald J. Trump are very different politicians, they both belong to the same Republican Party.

And since national polls show Republicans were twice as likely as Democrats to say that some religions’ teachings promote violence, there is broad support in the party for these views.

In a survey conducted in January, Pew found that 65 percent of Republicans or those who lean Republican want to hear blunt talk about Islam, even if it includes blanket statements about the faith, while 29 percent prefer that politicians be careful not to criticize the faith as a whole.

Only 22 percent of Democrats and those who lean Democratic want politicians to use sweeping statements to criticize Islam, while 70 percent prefer more nuanced approaches.

So Donald J. can go around the country yowling “I think Islam hates us.” and find himself soaring in the polls. Vermonter Phil Scott hasn’t done that, but given Trump’s primary victory here, you can make the case that even in Vermont Scott is now swimming in the same fetid pool of GOP voters. And to win the governorship he must appeal to those Trump voters.

Multiple choice: Snyder, Lisman or Scott

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Okay time for a pop quiz:

Who said the following?“It is time for a new model.  It is time for customer service government.  The role of government is to treat you, the citizen, as the customer and look at life through your eyes and say ‘How can we help you succeed and how can we get out of your way.’”

A.) Bruce Lisman (R, Wall Street)  wsi 1

B.) Rollo Tamasi

C.) Gov. Rick Snyder (R, MN)

D.) Lt. Gov. Phil Scott (R, VT)

E.) none of the above

Answer:  C.)

It is Snyder’s governing philosophy as he explained when he first became Michigan governor. He also issued assurances that  radical streamlining of regulations aka ‘getting government out of the way’ wouldn’t be detrimental to the health and safety of the public or to the environment.

The city of Flint Michigan’s lead tainted drinking water, caused in part by Snyder’s administration, probably was in the back of many people’s mind when reports surfaced that we are having a toxic water crisis right here in Vermont. It is much smaller scale but just as bad for those affected.

We are already seeing how our state agencies and government officials will cope with the short term issues-supplying drinking water, testing wells, etc. In the long run an examination of how the contamination was allowed to happen and future regulatory policy corrections will likely be explored by the next governor we elect.

It is probably worth noting that both Vermont Republican primary candidates for governor are expressing strategies for governing eerily similar  to Snyder’s.

In fact Lisman’s recent editorial about what he calls the “valued customer citizen” could have been cribbed directly from the Michigan Governor’s remarks. “First, I’d ask you to re-imagine our state’s government – one that treats its constituents as valued customers and sees employers as strategic partners,” said Lisman.

And  like Lisman, Lt. Governor Scott has a vivid imagination. “Imagine if we had a governor’s office that treated every sector in the same way,” he says. But all sectors are not the same.

Financial sector regulations are designed to guard against poisoning the economic wellbeing of the state. However, in a different sector, say the chemical industry, unique rules must prevent poisoning people, water, and the economy. There was plenty of bailing out done but there was no need to distribute bottled water during the credit default swap crisis.

And speaking of the chemical industry: Lt. Gov. Scott had a chance to practice the industry-friendly philosophy he preaches when he cast a rare tie-breaking vote in the Senate. That 2015 vote probably pleased the chemical industry. His “Yes” vote killed a bill that would have strengthened recently enacted regulations (Act 188) controlling toxic chemicals used in children’s toys.

Scott opposed the changes, so as not to ‘create uncertainty’ for the industry, and suggested the existing weaker regulations should be “given a chance” so we could “see what happens.” It is worth stressing his choice was between strengthening the existing rules governing “chemicals of high concern to children” in toys or keep the law in its present form, which is considered weaker.

Hard to know exactly what form governor Lisman or governor Scott’s re-imagined government might take, but a quick glimpse at the havoc wrought from Snyder’s Flint-style customer service gives a frightening preview of the experiment.

Re-imagine that.

VTGOP, Rubio flunk at Trump U.

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Marco Rubio finished third yesterday behind Donald Trump and John Kasich. And thirty Vermont GOP leaders may be a little red in face today after deciding at the last minute to back Marco Rubio for President “because of his uplifting message”.havinalaugh

Phil Scott briefly seemed to wiggle toward Kasich but followed that with a barely visible, embarrassed nod from a distance to conservative Marco Rubio.

History could have guided them. Had they given it any thought beforehand they might have looked back in the state’s Republican past: “What would Calvin Coolidge do?” Vermont’s famous taciturn Republican  would likely have kept his mouth shut .

Rubio’s supposedly positive message the VTGOP thought they heard quickly proved an illusion.The endorsement risks alienating centrist Vermont voters in the general election due to Rubio’s conservative positions on women’s issue and climate change.

Today the New York Times describes Rubio (and Ted Cruz) in no uncertain terms:

Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio — are not only to the right of Mr. Trump on many issues, but are embracing the same game of exclusion, bigotry and character assassination. That Mr. Rubio would make double entendres about the size of Mr. Trump’s hands and talk about Mr. Trump wetting his pants shows how much his influence has permeated this race and how willingly his rivals are copying his tactics.

Coolidge once said, “I have noticed that nothing I have never said ever did me any harm.”  

Vermont’s gang of Rubio supporters might update Silent Cal’s observation : “No one we never endorsed could ever do us any harm.”   Phil Scott, Kurt Wright, and Randy Brock failed history at Trump U.