by
P.G. Behr
Politics in the New Year should be interesting. Will the Vermont Legislature face reality? With indisputable evidence that our state is facing unprecedented fiscal problems, will our politicians get serious about reducing government spending?
The race for the Democratic nomination for governor will bring many promises from the candidates. Peter Shumlin tells us he already has a website, a Facebook page and will be communicating via Twitter, the better to tell us about his optimism (?) for 2010, his plan for creating new jobs (green ones, of course) and the need for more Vermont health care, since he isn’t sure the federal health care bill will serve Vermonters adequately! But not a word, thus far, about how he believes Vermont’s indebtedness, which is now measured in billions, can be paid off. Hopefully, the other Democrats aspiring to the governorship will be more realistic.
Willem Post, of Woodstock, has been analyzing the Legislature’s
giveaway to renewable energy promoters, and his work has drawn
attention from the media and the general public. It shows that Vermont
businesses and the general public will pay millions in additional
charges for electricity from the systems (mainly solar, some wind), to
the benefit of the promoters. The idea that the public benefits from
this “investment” of tax money is a farce. But so far, the politicians
who foisted this legislation on us refuse to look at the numbers.
“Don’t bother me with the facts,” they say. These are the same people
who want to shut down Vermont Yankee, which supplies our lowest cost,
cleanest power.
On the national scene, Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska has taken a lot of heat for his last minute bargaining with senate leader Harry Reid, selling his vote for passage of the health care bill for special federal support for Medicaid in his state, not available to other states. It appears, however, that Bernie Sanders extracted the same deal for our state, in payment for his vote. (He stated earlier that he would not vote for the bill unless it contained the public option.) Liberal supporters of Bernie are incensed, with the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, represented by AJ Van Tassel-Sweet of Northfield, whoever he or she is, calling for Senator Sanders to recant.
Vermonters will continue to be interested in President Obama’s performance. Most media sages are predicting a rough second year for him, with his liberal supporters disenchanted by his escalation of the war in Afghanistan and his compromises on national healthcare legislation, and his opponents holding his feet to the fire on bailouts of banks and the auto industry.
But as our harsh winter wears on, our citizens will have to face the reality that Vermont’s economy is far from bright, and we cannot sustain the present level of government spending. The Ethan Allen Letter says “…any realistic analysis must begin with the stark realization that forty years of Vermont’s liberal politics has created a government spending machine that is now far outstripping the capacity of already overburdened Vermont taxpayers to keep it running.”
On the national scene, Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska has taken a lot of heat for his last minute bargaining with senate leader Harry Reid, selling his vote for passage of the health care bill for special federal support for Medicaid in his state, not available to other states. It appears, however, that Bernie Sanders extracted the same deal for our state, in payment for his vote. (He stated earlier that he would not vote for the bill unless it contained the public option.) Liberal supporters of Bernie are incensed, with the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, represented by AJ Van Tassel-Sweet of Northfield, whoever he or she is, calling for Senator Sanders to recant.
Vermonters will continue to be interested in President Obama’s performance. Most media sages are predicting a rough second year for him, with his liberal supporters disenchanted by his escalation of the war in Afghanistan and his compromises on national healthcare legislation, and his opponents holding his feet to the fire on bailouts of banks and the auto industry.
But as our harsh winter wears on, our citizens will have to face the reality that Vermont’s economy is far from bright, and we cannot sustain the present level of government spending. The Ethan Allen Letter says “…any realistic analysis must begin with the stark realization that forty years of Vermont’s liberal politics has created a government spending machine that is now far outstripping the capacity of already overburdened Vermont taxpayers to keep it running.”
The numbers don’t lie. Comparing Vermont to our neighboring state of
New Hampshire, shows that sound tax policy and a business-friendly
climate pay off in job creation and higher wages. We have some
successes, like the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory (how about a working
bear, called Shovel Ready Teddy?), and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters,
but they don’t compare to the high-tech companies which thrive in New
Hampshire. Peter Shumlin is celebrating the 40th anniversary of Act
250. He should look across the river, where the landscape is just as
green, but taxes are lower and salaries are higher, and state
government costs a lot less.
Wake up, Vermont!
(Mr. Behr's essay first appeared in the Vermont Standard. We republish with his permission.)
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