U.S. congressional, senatorial hopefuls meet voters in BF

By DARRY MADDEN, Brattleboro Reformer Staff

July 24, 2006

BELLOWS FALLS -- Four hopefuls for the U.S. congressional seat being vacated by Rep. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., gathered Sunday evening for the second in four summer conversations designed to give voters a chance to ask questions and get to know the candidates.

A fifth candidate for the seat, Republican Martha Rainville, declined the invitation to attend.

A similar conversation between Vermont's senatorial hopefuls afterwards was canceled as only Republican Richard Tarrant attended. Tarrant and independent Rep. Bernard Sanders are vying for the seat held now by Sen. Jim Jefford, who is not seeking re-election. Sanders declined the invitation.

Moderator and former Gov. Thomas Salmon introduced the men by calling this a "critically important year in the life of the U.S. Congress."

Each candidate introduced himself to the crowd of about 50. Dennis Morrisseau, an independent from the Burlington area, is making his fourth bid for the seat. He ran three times during the Vietnam era, and was a vocal opponent of the war even as an officer in uniform, he said.

"I was opposed to that war and I'm opposed to this war," said Morrisseau.

"Since those years, I've watched. I have some experience in the area of confronting presidents, generals and war policies. You will not find someone more effective on the floor, or in a fight or in a streetfight," said Morrisseau.

Morrisseau identified three priorities: getting rid of the president, fixing the financial problems in Washington and "getting this war behind us."

Mark Shepard, a Republican and state senator from Bennington County, spoke to the need for campaign finance reform. "Politics in the Vermont is held hostage by special interests, and I see that in this race," said Shepard.

Shepard also pointed to the lack of economic opportunity in Vermont as driving away its young people. Shepard reiterated that permitting the young to purchase health insurance out of state would allow them to stay put in Vermont.

Keith Stern, an independent from Springfield, proposes a radical change in the tax code.

"My proposal is that the first $75,000 is exempt from taxes with a flat tax above that," said Stern.

Stern also proposed a new foreign policy which he called a "treaty of nonaggression," and a two-year freeze on government spending to "ferret out the waste."

Democrat Peter Welch, the president pro tem of the Vermont State Senate, said that it was time to hand over Iraq to the Iraqi people, to invest in alternative energies, to develop a health insurance plan.

"Do we want one more vote for the Bush administration in the Bush Congress," he asked.

Questions from the crowd ranged from the candidates' positions on instant runoff voting, illegal immigration, gun control, abortion and the quality of the workforce in Vermont.

The last generated a lot of response from the candidates.

"There has to be education and workforce training that's not piling debt onto kids," said Welch, adding that, at the state level, the emphasis should be on workforce training and scholarship programs.

"But we need more kids here to get into that situation," said Welch.

Stern was appalled at federal allocation of resources. "We have $1.2 million to give to Italy to have a toilet festival, but not enough money for training," said Stern.

Shepard called it "one of the most important questions for Vermont," and said it was a matter of realigning regulations at the state level.

Morrisseau called it "immensely difficult and very large," and not unique to Vermont.

"What we have here is a vast, overwhelming, frightening dumbing down that has been going on in this society. We are going to have a crash," said Morrisseau. "It's going to happen. This economy's hollowed out beyond belief."

On Iraq, Welch called for a timetable to remove the troops. Stern said that the United States was "delaying the inevitable. There is going to be a civil war."

"The time has come to get our boys out of there and let this thing sort itself out," said Morrisseau.

Shepard was the only voice not calling for bringing the troops home. He said that the three factions in conflict, the Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds were communicating with each other well, and that to "yank out and let it fall" would be immoral.

A question on abortion, and whether the candidates would have voted against partial birth abortions, revealed two camps.

Morrisseau and Welch would not have voted in favor of the ban, Welch quoting the Clinton-era "safe, legal and rare," and Morrisseau saying that he was "completely unwilling to dictate to a woman her decision in the matter."

Stern and Shepard said that were in favor of the ban, and would have voted for it. Stern qualified his statement by saying that banning abortions all together would only drive them underground.

[ Darry Madden can be reached at dmadden@reformer.com, or (802) 254-2311, ext. 273]

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"... many politicians talk the talk about doing something tangible about new jobs and it doesn't go much further. Sen. Shepard walked the walk."
"Sen. Shepard's big accomplishment, and it is a significant one, lies in the major role he played in bringing the Bennington Microtech Center into being."

Bennington Banner State Senator Endorsement Editorial, October 29, 2004

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