by Tom Evslin
Ron DeSantis won newly red Florida by 19 points. Republican Governor Phil Scott won reelection here in Vermont with an historic 47-point margin over his Democrat opponent!
This was apparently the highest margin for any Republican governor in the country and a modern-day record for a Republican in Vermont. In 2020 Vermont was the first state to be called for Joe Biden and gave him a larger percentage of its vote, 66%, than any other state. The first senate race called in the country last Tuesday was the election of Peter Welch (D) as Vermont senator. The Green Mountain State, home to Bernie Sanders, elected all Democrats to other statewide offices. Abortion rights were on the ballot here and won overwhelmingly. But none of this stopped Republican Scott from being reelected with an even greater margin than he had two years ago after leading the state calmly and excellently through the pandemic and being one of the first governors to terminate his own emergency powers.
Scott is scarcely a Trump Republican. As early as 2016 he made clear that he would not vote for the Donald even though he was his party’s nominee. He spoke in favor of the abortion rights amendment to the Vermont constitution. He has signed some tighter gun control legislation as well as opposing some. He worked hard to prevent masking and school closures from becoming divisive social issues.
Scott is quoted in VTDigger: “Vermonters spoke loudly, and clearly. They want their leaders to focus on the economy, affordability and protecting the vulnerable. They want centrists, moderation and balance. They want us to be able to debate the issues with civility, seek consensus where possible, compromise when necessary, and agree to disagree when no compromise can be found.”
Vermonters apparently also want some balance. Scott cast a record number of vetoes as governor. Amazingly some were upheld even though Democrats and Progressives together had a “veto-proof” majority in both the house and the Senate. At the same time that Vermonters gave Scott his huge victory, they also increased the Democratic and Progressive majority in the House of Representatives and maintained an overwhelming left-leaning Senate majority.
These majorities are why it will be very hard for Scott over the next two years. The Democrats and allies are already discussing, of course, the legislation they plan to pass without having to worry about a veto. This legislation includes potentially huge unfunded mandates, “environmental” legislation which will both drive up energy costs significantly and, IMO, be bad for the environment, and housing schemes which will result in higher housing costs and less availability of housing.
In the past there was some negotiation between the Governor’s office and legislative leaders over potential legislation since there was always a chance that a Scott veto would be upheld – as some were. With an even larger majority, there will be less inducement to compromise; and legislation will be more partisan and ideologically driven. Initiatives from the Governor are not likely to receive much attention but are needed to provide positive solutions to very real environmental, workforce, and housing problems.
We Vermonters must let our legislators know that we do want thoughtful rather than ideological legislating. Hopefully we’ll get the “moderation and balance” that Scott talked about. And hopefully the rest of the country will as well.
The author, an author, entrepreneur, former Vermont state cabinet officer, lives in Stowe. He founded NG Advantage, a natural gas truck delivery company. This commentary is republished with permission from his blog, Fractals of Change.
Categories: Commentary
Huge margin because he is not really a Republican and definitely not a Conservative.
I would disagree that Vermont Voters are in agreement with Scott’s quoted statement.
First and most important, Scott is NOT a Republican. His views and values line up with Democrats OR Progressives, but the broken Republican Party in Vermont continues to claim Scott in spite of his opposing actions and beliefs.
It’s laughable that Scott is using the 2022 General Election Numbers to claim certain and clear victory. We can thank Scott for our broken and untrustworthy Vermont Election System. If he thinks that Vermonters spoke loudly and clearly, he should first take a look at the number of Vermont Voters who didn’t bother to vote at all, even though an unrequested ballot was delivered to their doorstep.
Let’s not forget that Scott supported the disenfranchisement of Vermont Voters and ALL candidates, by signing legislation in May of 2021 to make the emergency voting system used for Covid in Vermont a permanent system. The Vermont Election System no longer requires “a chain of custody” for ballots, so who knows who is really voting or not voting? Are all the supposed non-voted ballots accounted for?
Vermont’s change to an all mail ballot system, 24 hour ballot drop boxes, unrestricted ballot harvesting, no voter ID’s, unrestricted voter registrations, mandated tabulator machine vote counting and the change of voting day to a 40 day plus voting time period, has made voting in Vermont very untrustworthy.
Who knows for sure what the results are, should be or would be, if we had a Constitutionally Declared, Free and Fair Election System with no room for Corruption?
If I ever used the word “huger” my mother would have washed my mouth out with soap.
Vermonters spoke loudly about wanting centrists, moderation, & balance??? If you want balance, you do NOT vote for a one-party system that wipes away checks & balances! If you want moderation, you don’t elect “progressives” & socialists! And if you want centrists in office, try politicians who aren’t seeking to legalize prostitution, diminish parental rights, and take away gun rights….in a state that once had almost no gun crime until BLM, prosecutors who don’t prosecute, & gangs came to this state.
Good grief. Did Scott truly think this was the message voters sent? It was not. And it was NOT largely because of a biased, partisan, discriminatory media who lies and omits facts KNOWING full well that the majority of the electorate will buy whatever they are currently spoon-feeding them. I mean, does VT PBS REALLY believe that if Article 22 wasn’t passed, no one in VT could receive an abortion? No. But they stated that as fact anyway.
Never underestimate the stupidity of the average American voter. Sad but quite accurate.
Mr. Evslin gleefully shouts with joy about the margin Scott won by.
Too bad he didn’t mention that Scott received 60 – 70% of the democrat vote.
No shock though, Mr. Evslin isn’t a Republican either. If he was he would be truthful about the multitude of times Scott has betrayed the VTGOP Platform.
Somehow he feels the need to call attention to Welch having the first Senate race called in the Country.
As a matter fact Mr. Evslin, it was called with ZERO percent of the vote calculated.
ZERO Percent, check the video.
Why would a Republican make this point ? Only one reason, see Mr. Evslin is trying to explain that Vermonters overwhelmingly elected a Republican Governor even though the overwhelmingly voted for Welch.
Mr. Evslin is flat out lying to Vermonters because of his Bromance with Scott.
Hey Mr. Evslin, do you think the fact that Scott has a 100% rating from planned parenthood has anything to do with the Democrats voting for him ?
How about the fact that he signed H 57 into law ? Abortion to the moment of Birth.
Scott had three options, Don’t sign it, let it pass without his signature or sign it.
Once again proving his Marxist agenda to destroy the unborn.
( Goes good with his agenda to destroy Girls and Women. The reason for the insanity at Randolph High School. )
You also point out that Scott has written and signed unconstitutional Gun Laws.
On the steps of the Statehouse no less. To use your illiterate terminology, making a huger point of sticking his middle finger in the face of the thousands of Vermonters he lied to when he campaigned on protecting our 2nd Amendment Rights.
To the applause of all the Marxist standing with him that day.
” Leading the State calmly and excellently through the pandemic….. ”
Your lies to protect this traitor increase exponentially.
Scott caused massive harm to individual Vermonters and small businesses with his illegal and unconstitutional mandates. Must be you forget Scott asking school children to rat out Mom and Dad for having Grand Ma over for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Hey Mr. Evslin, here’s another fact you conveniently left out…….. Scott kept every VT Liquor Store and planned parenthood open every day thru the plandemic.
As Billy Mays used to say, ” But wait, there’s more ! ”
Mr. Evslin says Scott ” worked hard to prevent masking and school closures from becoming divisive social issues. ”
An absolute lie. Scott created the mask and jab mandates illegally and then he Blackmailed school districts to increase the oppressive measures by rewarding the districts with high jab rates with covid money while withholding it from school districts where the Parents chose not to force their children to take the poisons.
Scott and Levine used Fauci as their source of info even while Fauci was tripping over one lie after another.
Scott immediately bought the poisons when they were made for children under the age of 5. Despite the proof that was a statistical ZERO% chance to that age group.
The children didn’t matter to Scott though, he cashed in on Biden’s cash cow every time.
In case you don’t remember, Scott said the eight Vermonter’s that died from the poisons ( verified by VARES ) as ” A speed bump. ”
None of these facts will bother Mr. Evslin though. Just as they don’t matter to VTGOP Chair Dame and Rules Committee Chair Koch.
You see they are complicit in the destruction of the Republican Party in Vermont.
They wanted their ” Big Tent ” and Madden gave it to them in Spades.
In fact Madden bragged about making sure there wasn’t a Republican running for Congress. And neither Dame, Koch or any member of the VTGOP called him out for that. And neither Dame or Koch ever called out Scott for all his betrayals and then bragging he would vote for Article 22. Just like they didn’t call him out for supporting Mazza for State Senate instead of the Real Republican candidate Stephen Bellows.
But Mr. Evslin takes it one step further, either willfully lying about the damage Scott has done to Vermonters and their children or ignorant of the facts.
( feel free to guess which one )
Hey Mr. Evslin, do you remember when Scott called the 116,000 Vermonters that voted for President Trump, White Supremacists and Racists ? No ?
I do, and I called him out for that two weeks ago. But like your article, Scott lied about that too. Might explain why you try to portray him as a Superhero.
The facts and his far left agenda prove otherwise.
Scott spits in the face of Real VT Republicans consistently.
But the Marxist trying to destroy VT love him.
Why wouldn’t they ?
He is one.
Please write another Article for VT Daily Chronicle.
I have so much more to share.