Thirty Years Is Long Enough:

For more than thirty years, Democrat-Progressives have controlled the Vermont Legislature. They have written the budgets, passed the laws, set the priorities, over-rode the Republican Governors vetos,  and directed the policies that shape our state. After three decades, the results belong to them. They are responsible, they are destroying our great little state of Vermont. 

So let me ask a simple question: Is Vermont more affordable today than it was thirty years ago?

Ask young families trying to buy their first home. Ask seniors struggling to pay ever-increasing property taxes. Ask farmers, small business owners, and working families facing higher health insurance premiums, rising energy bills, and a growing list of taxes, fees, and over-regulations. The answer is becoming harder to ignore.

Vermonters are paying more but getting less.

Our education system is one example. Vermont spends among the highest amounts per student in the nation, even as enrollment has declined substantially over the years, and test scores are in the tank. Additionally,  many in the public schoolsystem are applying DEI and queer theory. Taxpayers have every right to demand greater accountability and stronger academic outcomes. Spending more is not the same as achieving better results. We need Parents Rights in education, in the classroom.

Housing is another example. Everyone agrees Vermont needs more homes. Yet excessive over-regulations, lengthy permitting, and government red tape continue to slow construction and increase costs. Good intentions alone do not build homes. Cut regulations and the investors and developers will be knocking our doors down to do the right things. We need practical reforms do.

Public safety is also weighing heavily on the minds of many Vermonters. Communities deserve laws that protect victims, support law enforcement, and hold repeat offenders accountable. Repeal Fair & Impartial Policing policy, Cancel sanctuary jurisdictions, let Law Enforcement do their jobs. Citizens should have confidence that the justice system is fair, effective, and focused on keeping neighborhoods safe.

Rural Vermont deserves better as well. Too often, policies are crafted in Montpelier with too little consideration for the people who live outside Chittenden County and other population centers. Family farms, forestry, manufacturing, and small-town businesses are the backbone of our state’s economy and heritage. Repeal Act 250 for growth and stop Act 181.  They should not be burdened with policies that make it harder to survive and compete.

Meanwhile, government continues to grow. More agencies. More mandates. More regulations. More spending. Yet affordability remains the number one concern for Vermonters.

Albert Einstein is often credited with saying “that insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” Whether or not he actually said it, the point still applies. If we continue electing the same legislative majority, we should not be surprised if we continue getting the same outcomes.

Vermont does not need bigger government controls. It needs better hands-off leaders of government for “We The People!”

Common-sense Republicans believe government should live within its means, respect taxpayers, encourage private investment, reduce unnecessary regulations, support law enforcement, strengthen our local schools through accountability, and create an economy where our children and grandchildren can afford to stay and build their futures.

This election is not about ideology alone. It is about results. It is about whether Vermont can once again become a place where hard work is rewarded, businesses can succeed, families can afford to stay, and young people choose to build their lives instead of leaving for opportunities elsewhere.

Our Green Mountain State is worth fighting for. Vermont’s beauty, independence, and strong communities have always been its greatest strengths. But love for Vermont also means being honest when something isn’t working.

Thirty years of one-party control have given us today’s Vermont. If we want a different future—one that is more affordable, more accountable, safer, and filled with greater opportunity—then it is time for a different majority in Montpelier under the Gold Dome.

This November 3rd, Vermonters will go to the Polls and you have a choice. We can continue down the same road of tax, spend, over-regulate Vermonters, or you can choose common-sense leadership, fiscal responsibility, limited government, and a new direction. For the future of Vermont,  and for our children and our childrens-children. I believe that choice is clear.

-Gregory Thayer, MBA

My fellow readers:

Recent polling data identifies the challenge facing the White House and Republicans in Congress.  In the Senate races, North Carolina, Georgia, Texas, Ohio and Iowa are all underwater in some cases by double digits.  Dirty tricks are also having an effect in Alaska, Montana and Nebraska, but both sides are guilty of election trickery, In the House, every poll shows the Democrats winning but only with a small margin.  Polls this far from the election are rarely accurate but do indicate voids that have to be addressed by Republicans.

Trump certainly doesn’t help the cause, His unpopularity index is very low and though he tries to monopolize the airways, he’s not very convincing on why we’re in Iran, his endgame and the strength (affordability) of our economy.  Trump’s skirmishes with the Senate are only creating animosity and resistance with members.   Also, congressional leaders have not prepared their members with strong talking points to support what they have accomplished as well as emphasizing the Democrat’s agenda and how it will adversely affect the electorate.  If they have, it doesn’t say much about the motivation and/or competence of Republican members.

I copied the following critique of the Administration’s erratic Iran strategy.  It’s obvious to me Trump is getting bad advice and/or is operating by the seat of his pants.  If this trend continues in the next few weeks, the polling data above will be devastating to Republicans.  Our negotiating team in my opinion is weak compared to the Iranians who have mastered the Art of the Deal.

The $37 billion questionHow wired is Donald Trump to what’s really going on in Iran? That’s the million-dollar question (ahem, $37 billion) being raised by top congressional Republicans, who fear that two military officials in charge of the operation are being… less than forthcoming. Two MAGA-tied Republicans in Congress accused Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, of failing to relay to the President exactly what’s happening on the ground, as the war stretches into a sixth month. They told Jon Michael Raasch that Caine failed to connect the man in charge of Iran operations with the Commander in Chief directly. As for Hegseth? One GOP lawmaker says he’s just petrified of losing his job. The White House and Pentagon spokespersons dispute the claims

-Frank Mazur