Vermont’s display on the National Mall during America’s 250th birthday celebration was a significant embarrassment on many levels.
Holt: Vermont deserved better
Timothy Page
VT Headlines: Vermont scientists use Lake Champlain boat ride to study cyanobacteria blooms
Two men fined $35k for cutting down 300+ trees to build illegal mountain bike trail in Stowe; Montpelier man arrested after reported assault; Vermont man pleads not guilty after truck crash and gunfire incident
Ellis: I am American
Why we should care about the country
83 year old man shoots at contractor parked in his driveway
When the contractor did not respond to Provost’s demands to move the van, Provost presented a small caliber handgun and fired two rounds into the ground near the van.
11-year-old aspiring doctor Lilly stays calm and steady, helping rescue her Dad on Sterling Pond Trail
“We had the joy of meeting young Lilly, who blew us away with her maturity.”
Letter: VT’s anti-Catholic dogpile
You don’t have to be Catholic to realize something is very wrong with our legal and judicial systems to allow these cases to continue to bankrupt The Diocese of Burlington.
Thayer: State should put America first
The Governor’ claims the decision came down to cost and time, but that explanation rings hollow. They had 45 days to prepare, and this was not a surprise invitation to a backyard picnic. It was a national celebration.
Woman charged with stealing family’s dog, stealing two cars, and leading police on car chase
Berlin Police say Ashley M. Lynch, 26, of Barre City, entered a home in the area of Vermont Route 12 and Muzzy Road on July 5 and took the family’s dog – identified in WCAX coverage as Fiona, a 16-year-old pit bull lab mix.
Community helps family send their drowned children home to Ecuador
Friends and neighbors of a Cambridge family who lost two siblings to drowning last week have raised over $87,000 online to send their bodies home to Ecuador.
State’s Attorney DiSabito resolves DUI case through Court Diversion
Grand Isle County State’s Attorney Doug DiSabito has agreed to participate in the Court Diversion program as an alternative way to resolve his off-duty arrest for driving while under the influence in Franklin County on April 14.
This Day in History: July 8, 1777, The adoption of the first Vermont Constitution
On July 8, 1777, delegates meeting at Elijah West’s tavern in Windsor adopted the first Constitution of the Free and Independent State of Vermont, nearly five months after declaring independence. The document established the framework for governing what became the Vermont Republic, an independent nation that existed for 14 years before joining the United States in 1791 as the 14th state.
Bernie Sanders bows to political pressure, bails on Platner
Sanders was among Platner’s earliest supporters in Maine’s senate race, endorsing the Democrat nominee long before other party luminaries reluctantly decided they could live with him.
High levels of uranium found in Newport water
State health officials are encouraging private well owners in the Newport Center area to test their well water after a collaborative study found elevated levels of naturally occurring uranium and gross alpha radiation in some wells on the north side of Vance Hill Road.
App renter insurance offers cheap coverage — if your address passes its test
A downtown Burlington apartment produced a $15.16 monthly quote, a $500 deductible, and an offer to start coverage the next day, while an older home in rural Vermont was rejected.
CLG: U.S. resumes ‘powerful strikes’ on Iran after tanker attacks
U.S. revokes Iran oil sales authorization after tanker attacks; Secret Service knew Trump’s shooter had a rifle and was ON THE ROOF and never told his own detail, bombshell intelligence report reveals; U.S. troops headed back to Poland
VT Headlines: Stolen dog reunited with family after Berlin burglary, police chase
Former Vt. lawmaker died of asphyxiation, death certificate shows; Chittenden Solid Waste District to recover $2.27M lost in cyberscam; Two injured after falling off cliff on Lake Bomoseen;; Kayakers rescued from rapids in Missisquoi River
Fetterman asks Bernie to apologize for pushing ‘predator’ Platner
“I would really call Bernie Sanders to apologize for pushing this kind of predator more than anyone he helped,” Fetterman told Fox News host Laura Ingraham in an interview.
Candidate for governor raised one-third of campaign funds from non-profit network
Campaign fundraising and funding sources have been a major focus for many Vermonters since the 2024 election. Groups like Americans for Prosperity drew heat from Democrats last year over concerns about outside organizations influencing Vermont politics and state government policies. Now, a July 1 campaign finance report indicates that the donor network behind one of the state’s most influential advocacy nonprofits has become a major financial force in the Democratic gubernatorial primary.
Federal grant finishes a Route 7 rebuild three decades in the making
$19.7 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law completes the Pittsford-to-Brandon reconstruction — a project whose roots run to 1996, and to bypass talk from the 1950s.
Bernie Sanders’ Maine U.S. Senate Candidate of choice quitting under fire, sources say
Platner, accused Monday of having raped a former “friend,” was an unknown name who became a leading candidate due in no small measure to the early support of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont.
Teamsters Union investigating closure Of St. Albans Milk Plant
Vermont dairy closing under fire
Coester: Without help from government, Vermonters rep VT at Great American State Fair
For anyone planning to attend, you can find the Vermont booth at the end of the Fair grounds closest to the Capital on the northeast side of the Mall.
VT Headlines: Vermont Green FC women’s soccer clinches Eastern Conference title
State authorities search for missing Rutland man; The Velomont bike trail is getting more accessible — one turn at a time; What does the rise of Democratic Socialism mean for midterms?
McGuinness: Where are the debates on Article 23 (Prop 4) “Equality of Rights” Amendment?
Perhaps the Democrat majority doesn’t want you to find out that Prop 4 is actually an UNequal rights amendment that intends to provide the legal framework to defend Vermont’s existing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs and implement even more DEI programs, all at taxpayer expense.
Clark: Post Office demand for voter list unconstitutional
Clark and the others AGs say the “Ballot Mail for Federal Elections” rule would unconstitutionally interfere with state-run elections. They are calling for the immediate withdrawal, arguing it would create a “one size fits all” federal mandate that ignores the unique voting laws of states like Vermont.
Body recovered from Arrowhead Mountain Lake in Georgia
The deceased individual is believed to be the man who jumped into the Lamoille River upstream of the lake Wednesday evening to attempt to rescue a young relative who fell into the water.
Soulia: Vermont: The Amber Mountain State
Amber is striking because it preserves a moment forever—a leaf, a wing, a fragment of life suspended in golden resin. It allows us to look backward through time, capturing a world exactly as it once was. But what makes amber so mesmerizing is also what makes it dead. The moment inside can never change again.
Soulia: When cooling becomes a luxury
Vermont should watch the air-conditioning fight carefully
Watching from above: The story of Vermont’s fire towers
The steel towers still stand, a reminder of the decades when Vermonters climbed into the clouds each morning, scanning the tree line for smoke.
“Environmentalist” Bernie Sanders defends using private jets
“No Apologies,” Sen. Sanders says, invoking Trump
VSP: Derby man arrested after crash, gunshots and resisting
David Gendreau, 46, was lodged at the Northern State Correctional Facility in Newport on charges of recklessly endangering another person, resisting arrest, unlawful mischief and disorderly conduct, state police said.
Hinesburg man jailed for mini crime spree in Chittenden County
Ryan S. Orvis, 38, of Hinesburg, is facing various criminal charges, including the theft of $8,000 in tools during a burglary at a construction project inside Mater Christi School on Mansfield Avenue in Burlington, the sheriff’s department said.
VT Headlines: Vermont Green Women’s FC hits the playoffs in its first year
New court filing raises questions about lead-up to fatal shooting of Border Patrol agent; Two people badly burned in Essex boat fire; Vermonters rally to support Venezuela earthquake relief
Vermonters react to SCOTUS support for state transgender sports bans
“I am very excited to see women’s rights take the forefront in this new fight for legislation. I am a woman, a mother to daughters, a feminist, and an American. I have watched women’s rights get destroyed for far too long,” Nicole Cota of Moms for Liberty said.
Thayer: Revolution ended rule by birthright
They believed future generations deserved something better. They believed in a nation where government answers to the people—not the other way around.
Flannery: How to think about the American Revolution
How should we think about the American Revolution on the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence? The American revolutionaries can help us answer this question.
Why Vermont won’t just relocate a problem bear
Fish & Wildlife fields the question constantly. Its answer comes down to geography, biology, and thousands of bears already on the landscape.
America’s 250th in Vermont: Weekend guide
Two hundred fifty years in, and Vermont still celebrates the way it always has — with a parade down Main Street, a band in the park, and the whole town looking up at the same sky. Pack a blanket, bring the kids, and go find your fireworks.
Green: Two Founding Giants ascended together on the Glorious Fourth
The occasion of their estrangement was the differing opinions each held in regard to the French Revolution, intense political opposition, and acrimonious personal attacks against each other during the election campaign of 1800.
VT Headlines: Judge blocks attorney from raising police misconduct as a defense in chase that killed Rutland officer
Brattleboro Memorial Hospital says it plans to close its birthing center; Montpelier police appoint new interim chief; Fire chiefs explain how Vermont’s Act 162 affects their depts.; Firefighters respond to fires in Grand Isle, South Hero
UPDATE: Girl’s body recovered from Arrowhead Mountain Lake
The incident was reported at about 7:50 p.m. near the intersection of Highbridge Road, also known as Route 104A, and Arrowhead Lake Road. Initial reports indicated a group of relatives were fishing along the shore when a young girl fell into the water, and a man jumped in to try to rescue her.
It’s the law, now: Size of pot purchase reaches new high, stiffer stuckage fines imposed
A number of new Vermont laws took effect July 1, affecting consumers, motorists, criminal justice and renewable energy.
Vermont baseball player projected to go high in MLB draft
A hard-throwing pitcher from the Windsor County town of Chester has a chance to become the highest drafted major league baseball player in Vermont history.
Cops, schools concerned as illegal, unsafe youth e-moto biking grows
Colchester school officials and the Colchester Police Department are urging families to learn the legal differences between electric bicycles and higher-powered motorized bikes as more youth use electric-powered vehicles to travel to and from school and for recreation.
Evslin: Our basic assumptions were wrong
Time to rethink almost everything
Reynolds: Vermont deserves more affordable health coverage options
Too many Vermonters are struggling under the weight of extraordinarily high health insurance costs, high health care prices, and too few choices.
Southern Vermont loses Red Sox broadcasts
Sports now history at WEEY
Cohen: Balint misstates U.S. Supreme Court transgender sports ruling
Vermont’s U.S. representative incorrectly interprets decision
VT Headlines: Cooling centers open as region’s temperatures rise
Beta Technologies plans big expansion of South Burlington facility; Brattleboro ‘citizen journalist’ attacked by subject of his coverage; New gear library in Rutland is making outdoor recreation more accessible this summer
UVM druggist solves perplexing health mystery
A ‘brain teaser’ at UVMMC and one pharmacist who refused to give up.
Scott popularity dips to new low, still leads against Dems
Sharp dip in governor’s popularity among Republicans
Price-gouging egg dealers must donate 915,000 eggs to Vermont Food Bank
Vermont will receive about 915,000 eggs – that’s 76,500 dozen – and $56,000 under a multistate settlement with three of the nation’s largest egg producers accused of illegally conspiring to inflate egg prices, Attorney General Charity Clark announced Tuesday.
Roper: Economic momentum, progressive taxation, and my argument with AI
Other organizations rank states for economic competitiveness, economic outlook…. But “momentum?” What’s that all about? So, I asked my new AI pal Claude to help me define the term, and, yeah, what is shows is Vermont is pretty screwed.
Vermont banned food from the landfill. Its haulers can’t believe how much of it people still throw away.
A federal estimate says a family of four wastes nearly $3,000 of food a year. Vermont is one of the only states that can tell you what happens to it next — and the men hauling the cans see how much of it still ends up in the trash.
Vermont Air Guard’s July 4 flyover returns — even as much of the wing stays deployed overseas
If your first reaction is “I thought they were all in the Middle East” — that’s a reasonable assumption, and not a wrong one.
UPDATE: Missing Troy woman’s body found
Subsequent investigation has revealed the death is not suspicious and is believed to be the result of an accidental drowning. Independent witness statements indicate Richardson voluntarily went into the river and was quickly overpowered by the swift current.
VT Headlines: Family of Scott Garvey files lawsuit against VSP following fatal shooting, despite AG clearance
Road reported clear after car fire on I-89; Vermont MLB Draft prospect pitches in Twin State All-Star Game; 60 people accused of illegal entry into the United States via Vermont, prosecutors say; Rare ‘extreme’ heat alert issued ahead of midweek heat and high humidity in Vermont, New York
Ribbon cut on contentious, 61-year long highway project
The 2.8-mile, $84 million, parkway opens new traffic access from Interstate 189 into Burlington’s South End, with the goal to ease congestion while shifting traffic onto Pine Street and bringing visitors into the city’s commercial district near the Farmer’s Market and Church Street.
Student loan subsidy ends tomorrow. Bernie’s bummed
Because the question isn’t whether some borrowers are struggling. The question is whether taxpayers who never borrowed for college—or who worked multiple jobs to pay their own tuition, or who already sacrificed to repay their loans—should now be asked to pay someone else’s bills.
Elevated tornado risk looms over Vermont as state sees unusual activity
Forecasters from the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center (SPC) indicate that while the primary tornado probabilities remain low across the Northeast, isolated severe thunderstorms capable of producing brief tornadoes, damaging winds, and hail are possible on Tuesday, June 30, and into Wednesday, July 1.
Soulia: Flooding in the Age of Act 121
As the state pours money into flood resilience, the historical record and the latest science complicate a familiar story.
AI is planning Vermont vacations and Canadians are vanishing from the Kingdom: 7 takeaways from the State’s new visitor study
The tourism economy is, to a striking degree, the same loyal travelers coming back year after year. That loyalty is an asset, but it’s also a quiet vulnerability.
Can Vermont ever clean up 480 million pounds of legacy phosphorus?
Can Vermont ever clean up 480 million pounds of legacy phosphorus?
Boat strikes object in Lake Champlain, passengers ejected
The operator, Jireth Guardado, 27, of Essex, told police he was navigating north on Lake Champlain from the Burlington area when he struck an unknown object in the lake.
Morrow: Scott vetos missed opportunities
A member of the House energy committee says the subject of wind power never came up when H.710 was discussed.
Letters: Vermont’s absence from the Great American State Fair
Also, something is rotten in the state of Woodstock.
VT Headlines: People rescued following rafting accident on Otter Creek
Coast Guard rescues person from water in Burlington; Driver rescued after reported truck crash into Black River; 3 pets dead after house fire in Hinsdale; Vermont Green F.C keep undefeated season alive; defeat Black Rock FC, 3-1
Shorts: Giving birth costlier in VT and NY than NH
According to a FairHealth state tracker map, it costs more to give birth, both in hospital network and out–of-network, in Vermont and New York compared to New Hampshire. The tracker shows median costs for vaginal and c-section births.
Vermont taxpayer debt among worst in nation
Unfunded public pensions killing Vermont, much as Gov. Scott predicted.
Foresters adapt as insects become driving force in tree mortality
A recent University of Vermont study found that natural causes, including invasive insects, are killing more trees than logging in the Northeast.
Breaking: Man convicted for killing mom in DUI crash arrested again for DUI
A Windsor County man, who authorities say killed his mother while driving under the influence of drugs in 2017, was arrested again on Saturday on a felony charge of DUI — drugs, third offense, after crashing into a Highgate motel.
Cohen: Inviting tragedy on a Vermont lake
It’s no wonder people die on the water.
Nurse at VA Hospital steals meds from psych patients, tampers with drugs
A New Hampshire registered nurse pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Burlington on Friday to diverting drugs from psychiatric ward patients and tampering with medications at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in White River Junction for at least nine months last year.
New Hampshire and Vermont: A tale of two states, thirty years later
Three decades have passed. Vermont’s policymakers had every opportunity to read the data and adjust course. They didn’t.
Vermont couple caught up in Maine zoning fight
Rooster lawn ornaments aren’t passing muster in pricey Maine beach town
Legislators say Act 181 repeal online group ‘threatening,’ bot-driven
Four Washington County legislators are being taken to task on the Rural Vermont Rising Facebook group for what a poster says is their negative characterization of the grassroots organization’s successful efforts this year to repeal Act 181 and promote legislation protecting property rights.
VT Headlines: Mosquitoes in Charlotte test positive for Jamestown Canyon Virus
Committee moves to bring $500M parish assets into Burlington Diocese bankruptcy case; Vermont man tried to use axe to break into ATM in Middlebury, police say; Williamstown teenager charged with threatening homeless person
Newport yet to gain control of EB-5 ‘pit,’ must deal with contamination
“I prefer to call it the development opportunity block,” the Newport mayor said. “But we all hate it, and we all want to know what’s going to happen to it.”
Balloon, strawberry festivals draw crowds this weekend
Summer is finally hitting its stride, and the calendar shows it — balloons over Stowe, a Renaissance faire in Essex Junction, a small-town strawberry festival in the Kingdom, and the kind of street parties and porch-music Sundays that make late June in Vermont worth sticking around for.
How a Vermont fishing death from 2001 became the case for a new DNA law
A drowning at Sumner Falls went unsolved for 24 years. The technology that finally identified Brian Canfield is now at the center of a bill Sen. Peter Welch is moving through Congress.
Beck: 50/50 votes and vetoes
Bills that will impact Vermonters are difficult by nature, and part of the serious business of a legislature. But votes shouldn’t be difficult because we don’t know how they will impact Vermonters or whether they will at all. None of these three bills should have made it to the Governor’s desk.
Batchelder: A fed bear is a dead bear
If the past few years are any indication, by the end of summer we will have had to put down or provide similar authorizations for dozens more bears to end acute conflicts that threaten human safety.
Green: The Great Awakening that built the Constitution
The rugged Christian faith of the heroic founders was vitally interwoven with their patriotism and is inextricably linked by a sacred thread of purpose to the Great Awakening.
VT Headlines: Alburgh Fire Dept. stops water deliveries, residents panicking
Lippa’s Estate and Fine Jewelry moving from Burlington to Colchester after 93 years downtown; Vermont bans paraquat, weed killer linked to Parkinson’s; Person caught driving 106 miles per hour in Williamstown; Michelle Zajko charged in the killings of her parents in Pennsylvania
Across Lake Champlain, MAGA candidate wins primary, punishes press
What a difference a lake makes!
States that won’t obey Trump order will have their mail ballots halted, postmaster says
Postmaster General David Steiner defended the rule at a Senate hearing and dismissed accusations that the Postal Service was acting politically after President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March restricting voting by mail.
New gothic horror novel plays with sonnet structure
Cindy Ellen Hill’s new novel, “Leeds Point,” will be released on June 26.
Man arrested for third time at same property in Lyndonville
Officers entered the building and found Gilman hiding in a small closet or crawl space off an upstairs bedroom.
After video of daytime City Hall Park OD, skepticism about mayor’s ‘Burlington is back” statements
A day after the mayor of Vermont’s largest city proclaimed “the city is back,” a local videographer featured footage of an apparent drug overdose in the park behind City Hall.
Is Vermont’s Sharp Cheddar going soft? We asked a cheese chemist
The hunch that the sharpest cheddars don’t bite the way they used to is everywhere in Vermont. The science says the answer is more complicated than “they ruined it” — and partly about you.
White supremacist denies biting U.S. deputy marshal in Vermont
Court records show Palermo attempted to flee and resist arrest when confronted by the U.S. Marshals Service and Vermont State Police as they executed two extraditable warrants from New Hampshire on April 24 in Groton. State and federal investigators had tracked Palermo to a house at 100 Tinkham Road when they confronted him on the front porch, state police said.
Cop shooting of mentally ill man justified, AG says
Also, the Attorney General’s Office also announced charges in two separate Medicaid fraud cases as part of a nationwide health care fraud crackdown.
Klar: Welcome to the Revolution!
The MAHA movement is going strong…
VT Headlines: $2.9 million will help expand college education in Vermont prisons
Vermont attorney general says trooper justified in fatal shooting during standoff; Anti-Bullying Rally Overshadowed by Criticism of Organizer’s Past Conduct; Vermont State Police release photo of suspected hit-and-run driver in Swanton; City of Burlington forms hiring committee to help choose next police chief
Crisis hotline cutback, broadband signup changes coming
Help count Vermont’s wild turkeys
Steidler: Data centers start to drive residential electricity bills down
Several major electric utilities have recently announced that their residential customers will have lower electric bills because of major investments in new power plants and the electric grid, enabled by data centers.
CLG: U.S. lifts sanctions on Iranian oil
Iran to set up Hormuz hotline with U.S.; Trump says Iran will be allowed to have missiles as part of peace deal: ‘They don’t blow up the planet’; Trump on Israeli military action in Lebanon: ‘You don’t have to knock down an apartment house every time you’re looking for somebody’
Scott signed the Forensic Facility Bill. Now Vermont has to build it.
The five-year fight over who runs it is settled. The fight over whether it gets built just started.
Only 1 in 5 high school seniors Is proficient in math. Where does Vermont land?
A fresh national snapshot puts U.S. math proficiency in plain numbers — and Vermont right around the middle of the pack. There’s also a quiz. See how you’d do.
Chelsea fire fatalities ID’ed
Both victims were residents of the home.
