Tag Archives: Senator Dick Mazza

Campbell, Mazza, and Scott three-spot rules

local/regional, Uncategorized, , ,

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.

Matt Dunne wants a little Bernie buzz?

local/regional, , , ,

As of now, Matt Dunne is the one to beat, at least in terms of money raised. Vermont News Bureau’s Neal Goswami reports that Dunne now has more than $430,000 in cash-on-hand — the most of any gubernatorial candidate — for the remainder of the primary season and into the general election if he wins the nomination. Dunne’s Democratic primary opponent, Sue Minter,  currently has $328,500 cash on hand which is nothing to sneeze at, either. So this current advantage may not make Dunne a front-runner, but he can hang his hat on it for now.

Right now, it looks like the Dunne campaign hopes to piggy-back on turnout and fund raising among the Bernie Sanders voters. Should Sanders win or lose the nomination the enthusiasm for change he fueled is likely to spill over to some degree into November.newbuzzmenu

Dunne had already moved to mark out a share of that territory with his refusal of corporate donations. Said Dunne when he gave back about $16,000.00 in corporate donations “inspired by Bernie Sanders and his ability to compete with a people-powered campaign.” 

Good strategy, but the announcement likely produced fewer bangs for his bucks thanks to the scene-stealing skills of Peter Galbraith. At the news conference called by Dunne, Galbraith ‘reluctantly’ commented on whether he may or may not enter the gubernatorial primary race.

The other day Dunne’s campaign manager pitched or those voters again  – linking Bernie’s enthusiastic voter base with Dunne’s fundraising philosophy:

“There’s a wide mix, including a great deal of in-state Vermonters who have made small-dollar contributions,” Nick Charyk said. “We have contributions from Vermonters in every county in the state and a lot of Vermonters who have never made a contribution before who have said, ‘my first contribution was to Bernie [Sanders] and now I’m donating to Matt.’”

Whoever wins the gubernatorial primary – Dunne or Minter – better build a good turnout firewall: Republican Phil Scott not only has excellent statewide name recognition with all voters but can also count on support from some Democrats even in a presidential year. Senator Dick Mazza (D, alleged) is already fundraising for his favorite Republican friend. And Senator John Campbell, Scott’s other Democratic BFF may even be counted on to help out the Republican in a pinch.

And former state senator Peter Galbraith has warned us he is waiting in the wings and may enter the primary race – joining the performance already underway.

Dog Pack on the Hunt for Lt. Gov.

local/regional, , , ,

There is already almost half a dozen members of the pack in the hunt, by my count, and now one more will try to fit their collar and tags in the clutch to run for Lt. Governor. And now perhaps sniffing an opportunity Sen. John Rodgers (D-Essex/Orleans) is considering it.

The NEK’s Rodgers wants to see if a run for Lt. Gov. makes sense: “I’ve got some folks looking at numbers and figuring out a path forward. If it looks doable and feasible I’ve got to figure out if it fits into my personal life.”

The field as of today – Randy Brock will as of now is the only Republican. Boots Wardinski of Newbury will be running as a Progressive and Dr. Louis Meyers who is new to politics will run as an Independent.hatnring

On the Democratic side, current office holders Sen. David Zuckerman P/D,  Rep. Kesha Ram D have announced their candidacies. Brandon Riker of Marlboro who has never held elected office is reportedly also running. Earlier former Politico.com editor Garret Graff explored making a run but dropped out. The former Montpelier resident’s plans were disrupted when — to his shock — he discovered that he did not meet eligibility rules, after a ten-year absence from Vermont — a state he claims as his “mental home.”

Maine and New Hampshire are two of five states that find no reason to have an office of Lt. Gov. at all, but here in Vermont people are falling all over themselves to run for the part-time job. The official duties are limited but include being acting governor in the governor’s absence and being President of the Senate, except when exercising the office of Governor. And of course, in the event of the death of a serving governor, the Lt. Gov takes over.

Significant in terms of the Senate, the Lt. Gov. also serves as the third member on the powerful Committee on Committees. The three-member leadership Committee on Committees hand-picks senators to serve as chair-people on standing committees. The chairs in turn influence much of what gets a hearing in the legislative sessions. Currently the C of C’s is made up of alleged Democrats Dick Mazza (Grand Isle) and Senate President Pro Tem John Campbell (Windsor) and their BFF, Republican Lt. Gov. Phil Scott.

Although he may not be well known outside of the Northeast Kingdom, Senator Rodgers previously served in the State House for 8 years. He achieved some notoriety around the state in 2015 when he introduced legislation to designate the beagle the official state dog of Vermont.

In the Senate, his “Beagle bill” was called “a source of amusement if nothing else.” However PETA (People for Ethical Treatment of Animals) expressed concern over whether naming a specific breed was “a step backwards” and worried the designation would encourage the growth of “puppy mills.”

Senator Rogers defended the bill and explained how else he intends to spend his time in the Senate:

“the Beagle Bill” that I introduced for a constituent. I assure you that it literally took about two minutes. If you want to talk about a waste of time let’s talk about the new gun control proposal that I am busy trying to stop. […].

In addition to shouldering the burden of naming a state dog and stonewalling gun control, Senator Rodgers sits on the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy, as well as being vice chair of the Committee on Institutions. According to the American Conservative Union, Rodgers is one of two highest-rated Democrats on conservative issues. At 43% he is a top conservative dog compared to other Democratic senators, to whom the ACU inaccurately refers as a “coalition of the radical left.”

All the actual and potential candidates a for Lt. Governor stress the agenda-setting capacity of the job. If Rodgers chooses to run he might be the perfect boutique candidate for Democratic beagle fans with a strong conservative bent.

It’s not clear what kind of state dog might be favored by Committee on Committee heads Senators Mazza and Campbell. For now at least, there is a wide array of possible future Lt. Governors seeking to wear the collar.

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the VT Senate Rules Committee

local/regional, , , ,

Wednesday’s Vermont Senate Rules Committee meeting on ethics and disclosure ended in a minute and huff. Well maybe it ran longer than a minute — but it did end in a huff. The meeting, called  to discuss new ethics disclosure rules for those serving in the Vermont Senate, ended with an abrupt adjournment on Wednesday.

The finger-pointing, heated conclusion to the Senate Rules Committee meeting came after an exchange between two of the chamber’s leaders, Sen. Philip Baruth, D-Chittenden, and the Senate President Pro Tem, John Campbell, D-Windsor, who was backed up by veteran and influential Sen. Richard Mazza, D[?] -Grand Isle/Colchester.

The dust-up between the party leaders peaked when Baruth, the Senate Majority Leader, felt the other two Democrats were not taking him seriously, while Campbell, who holds the most powerful post, and Mazza, a senator for more than 30 years, were offended and thought Baruth was accusing them of “hiding something.”

Senate President Pro Tem, John Campbell, D-Windsor walked out after a “dust-up “with Senator Phillip Baruth.

Said Campbell: “Wait. I didn’t say it’s laughable,” Campbell shot back, then talking over Baruth said. “No, no, don’t. You have reporters here. Do not, Do not…”

VTethicsbowl

Campbell’s unease at openly discussing ethics and financial disclosure with reporters present recalls the classic admonition from Dr. Strangelove “Gentlemen, we can’t fight here: this is the war room.”  We can’t discuss disclosure — you have reporters here.

The fact that the discussion, limited as it was, is taking place at all perhaps shows Senate leader Campbell’s views may have evolved since 2014. When asked then to react to actions the Vermont House successfully took to formalize ethics guidelines Senator Campbell saw no need to make similar efforts in the Vermont Senate. “I think most people are ethical,” Campbell said “Hopefully, you elect people you trust.”

Sure, Senator Campbell, hopefully most people are ethical but, gentlemen, this is the Senate rules committee isn’t it?