I took the push-poll!
by Rob Roper
My cellphone binged with a request to take a poll about Vermont issues. Sure, why not? They might be curious about what’s on my mind, but I was equally curious about what was on the minds of the pollsters — and who they’re working for.
The answer to my latter question is they are working for Vermont State Treasurer and, salivatingly-so, governor wannabe, Mike Pieciak. And the answer to my first question is they want to know if Vermonters will buy a bunch of negative attacks on Phil Scott linking our governor to President Trump. Here’s a sampling of the kind of messaging we can expect from a Pieciak for Governor campaign:
Now [Pieciak] is running for Governor because we cannot afford leaders who cave to Donald Trump – we need strong leaders who fight back. As Treasurer, Pieciak is going after Trump’s corruption and helping take the Trump Administration to court….
Trump is posing a greater threat to our democracy than ever before, and the only way to protect Vermonters is to fight back.
As Governor, Pieciak will bring new energy and will fight back against Donald Trump’s attacks on Vermont.
Another question slams Scott for “refus[ing] to stand up to Trump’s tariffs.” Of course, whether you agree or disagree with the tariffs, there’s really nothing a governor can do to “fight back” against them. Congress can. The courts can. But a governor? Not so much.
All Vermont Republicans should take note, because this is going to be the general line of attack on every candidate with an R next to their name in 2026. That’s the bad news.
The good news is that it’s the same attack that the Democrat gubernatorial candidate in New Jersey, Mikie Sherrill, is currently using against her Republican opponent, Jack Ciattarelli, and it ain’t working. Less than a month away until the election, Ciattarelli has pulled into a dead heat with the Democrat in the deep blue state by reminding voters that Trump doesn’t affect their property tax bills or their energy prices – two issue Vermont voters can also identify with – but Democrats in state government do. Very much so.
Similarly, in New York Governor Kathy Hochel, who has been fighting ferociously against the president alongside prominent NY pols such as Chuck Schumer and AOC, finds herself with just a five point lead over Republican Elise Stefanik — who has not even announced her candidacy for a 2026 run. Turns out housing costs and so-called “green” energy policies that are driving up prices of fuel and electricity matter more to normal people that personality clashes between giant political egos.
If you look at the Virgina gubernatorial race, it would appear voters are more interested in seeing Democrats fight back against their own psychopathically violent base than against the president. Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, recently staring down a hopeless double-digit polling deficit, has narrowed the gap to spitting distance against Democrat Abigail Spanberger after the latter refused to un-endorse the Democrat Attorney General candidate following his disturbing fantasies about murdering his political opponents came to light. That, and Spanberger’s refusal to stand up to some school boards defiantly allowing biological boys into girls’ locker rooms and showers.
All this would indicate that the “We’re fighting Trump!” narrative is an attempted distraction from the issues that actually matter to voters at the household level. While the radical leftist base in the Democrat party may insist on this line of attack, moderates and working people across party lines seem to be seeing through the smokescreen, and are not buying it.
Which brings us to the other line of attack in the Pieciak poll: All the unaffordable stuff in Vermont is Scott’s fault!
Healthcare costs, housing costs, childcare costs and prices for everything are higher in Vermont than ever before. All while homelessness and opioid crises in our state get worse and worse. Scott himself has acknowledged that under his leadership the state is moving in the “wrong direction” and that it’s worse off than when he entered office almost a decade ago.
Ummm… I’m not sure what the source is for that Scott “acknowledgement” is but I think we can all can safely assume Pieciak is taking something wildly out of context.
Of course, the statement ignores the fact that all of those issues mentioned are the result of Democrat policies, many of which were implemented over Governor Scott’s veto. Homelessness? Giving out free hotel rooms to all comers at around $400 million of taxpayers’ expense, defunding police departments, and implementing lax drug laws were not Republican policies. Housing? High costs and lack of availability are the result of Democrats’ anti-development, “save the planet!” environmental policies. Scott has been a supporter of Act 250 reform; Democrat majorities have blocked those efforts. Childcare? We can trace back skyrocketing costs and lack of availability to the Democrats’ 2015 law that – by design – crushed numerous in-home childcare providers across the state in favor of fewer, more expensive, government controlled childcare centers.
Will Pieciak run for governor? Time will tell. If he does, this polling indicates it will be a nasty, negative, and dishonest campaign not focused on Vermont issues. If he doesn’t, it will signal that the “Fight Trump!” message is a loser, even in Vermont, and not worth trying. Either way, Vermont Republicans need to work hard to keep voters’ attention focused on the issues state government is capable of affecting: property taxes (and taxes in general), energy costs, crime, housing regulations, and healthcare, becase the other side will be desperately trying to change the subject.
Rob Roper is a freelance writer who has been involved with Vermont politics and policy for over 20 years. This article reprinted with permission from Behind the Lines: Rob Roper on Vermont Politics, robertroper.substack.com