|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
“The city has made their bed,” Scott’s top cop tells WCAX reporter
By Guy Page
A week and a day after three children ages 14-16 beat a man to death on Church Street in broad daylight August 11, Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak told a concerned audience of downtown business people that “Governor Phil Scott has not been a strong partner” in solving Burlington’s crime problem.
The Progressive mayor’s statement was repeated by WCAX reporter Ike Ben-David at Scott’s Wednesday, August 20 press conference in Montpelier. The reporter and the governor then engaged in a spirited back and forth, seasoned with questions by yours truly and a ‘don’t-point-fingers-at-the-governor’ lecture from Vermont’s top cop, Public Safety Commissioner Jennifer Morrison.
Lightly edited for brevity and readability, here’s their back-and-forth.
WCAX: State tax revenue shows Burlington retail and restaurants aren’t growing economically. What specifically are you doing to help Burlington?
Scott: The Canadian tariff situation isn’t helping the city at all. [He also mentioned the numerous downtown infrastructure construction projects.] And I would have to say the lack of enforcement of some of what we’re seeing in the city is impacting them. So I think it’s a combination that isn’t a good mix for economic vitality. Some of that will probably be repaired when the projects are completed, when the tariff situation with Canada, hopefully in a way that is conducive to Canadians coming back to visit Vermont.
And if they put more emphasis on enforcement of some of the laws in regards to drug use. I think that would help.
WCAX: Well, what specifically are you doing? It’s the economic engine, one might say, of the state.
Scott: Well, I wouldn’t say it’s the economic engine. There’s a lot of other areas throughout the state, throughout Chittenden County and Franklin County and Lamoille County and Washington County. We haven’t been asked to do anything. We would be happy to assist in any way we possibly can. We are all ears in terms of what the request would be.
WCAX: Yesterday at a town hall with hundreds of businesses the mayor and I quote said, “I want you to hear that Governor Scott has not been a strong partner in this.” Is that true?
Scott: I haven’t been a partner to what they’re doing. If they need some help with law enforcement, be happy to talk about that, but it would be under some conditions.
WCAX She says she’s reached out. she’s invited you to speak…..
Scott: I don’t recall any of that, but we’ll look back and see what correspondence we’ve received.
WCAX: When was the last time you walked down Church Street or through City Hall Park?
Scott: I’d say it’s been a while up Church Street. I don’t know. I’ve been to Burlington a number of times over the last few years. You know, in between floods and pandemics.
WCAX: But have you walked through City Hall Park, Church Street yourself recently?
Scott: I can’t say that I’ve been recently. I think the last time I was at City Hall was when Hamas invaded Israel [October, 2023].
WCAX: You haven’t seen what it currently looks like, with what many businesses are saying is open drug use and open crime. You have not seen that.
Scott: Heard that but I haven’t seen that myself. Correct.
WCAX: What’s that message to Vermonters?
Scott: I think there’s a lot of other Vermonters that are avoiding Burlington as well. I think that’s what it says.
WCAX: Are you saying you’re avoiding Burlington?
Scott: No, I’m just saying that I haven’t visited there. I haven’t visited, I haven’t walked down Barre and through Barry or Montpelier lately either. I haven’t been to Rutland City and walked through their downtown. So, I don’t think it’s any different than any other major city we have in the state.
At this point, Ben-David’s extended line of questioning prompted me to ask:
VDC: Is she [Mulvaney-Stanak] just blaming you? She trying to shift blame for her own policies?
Gov. Scott: I think it’s easy to blame others when some of your strategies are failing.
VDC reporter Paul Bean: The president just took law enforcement in DC, or at least with the National Guard. Is that a strategy you would want to see in Burlington?
Gov. Scott: Not without working with the local community. I don’t think the National Guard is appropriate for Burlington. They have their struggles, but we’re not at that level at this point. I think a step up enforcement is necessary, but I don’t think the National Guard is the answer. Nor do I for Washington DC.
After further discussion of the governor’s presumed role in the Burlington crime problem, Departy of Public Safety (DPS) Commissioner and former Burlington police chief Jennifer Morrison stepped up to the mike to have her say. Directing her comments to WCAX’s Ben-David, she said:
Morrison: So, I don’t know how long you’ve been tracking the situation in Burlington, but none of this happened overnight.This is years and years and years of policy decisions, budgetary decisions, the city council decisions that have led to the situation in Burlington.
And to come around on point and somehow point a finger at the governor belies the reality for the people who lived through that as city employees.
My colleagues at AHS (Agency of Human Services) and at DPS and others across state government do engage with the city of Burlington quite regularly. We recently paid for, out of a federal grant, to bring a project to the city of Burlington called the Situation Table that brings together stakeholders to solve complex cases of people who are at acutely elevated risk of harm or overdosing or recidivism.
We are bringing tools to that community. We do talk to them on the regular.
The problems in Burlington did not occur overnight. They will not be fixed overnight. And it requires that everybody commit to principles of accountability. shifting the pendulum back to the middle so that the use of public spaces is just as important for lawabiding people and businesses to thrive as it is for service resistant people who make others afraid or commit crimes.
We also need commitments to prosecute and detain people who continue to harm the community. It frustrates me, as somebody who spent 23 years policing that city, and as the interim chief in 2020, to hear people somehow point the finger at a governor when I lived through the decisions that got us to where we are now. And it was not the fault of the police chief or the police chief after me. And it certainly was not the fault of this governor.
The city has made their bed and they are going to have to ask for specifics to help turn the corner. We are here to partner with the city of Burlington just as we are in Brattleboro, Bennington, Springfield, Rutland, St. Johnsbury, Barre and Montpelier and now in Woodstock and Hartford.
We are willing to engage in crime reduction strategies but we can’t be the ones directing the work. We don’t come in and do something to a community. We work in partnership with communities who need state level resources because they’ve exhausted the local resources. So that’s how this works.
I really resent the implication, whether it’s your implication or the mayor’s, that somehow Governor Scott is responsible for anything that has happened in the Queen City.
WCAX: And to be clear, I quoted the mayor earlier.
Morrison: Okay – just – good. Well, then we’re good.
The exchange, reported on WCAX and elsewhere, has resulted in intensive social media commentary, including these remarks by Rep. Zak Harvey (R-Castleton): “Burlington is on the brink. The current situation has been years in the making at the hands of the city’s mayor and its city council. Citizens and businesses are pleading for help — when will Burlington’s leaders answer their cries and address this public safety crisis?”
Discover more from Vermont Daily Chronicle
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Categories: Burlington, Public Safety
Wouldn’t go to Burlington if you asked me. So Burlington, maybe, but no where near Church St or City Hall Park. Ugh!
Burlington will continue to slide further into a fecal abbiss as long as the left wing loonies rule there. It’s not the fault of the rest of the state. Why should the taxpayers in the rest of the state have to pony up ANY money to bail out these ignorant socialist loons ? Let them ferment in their own cesspool until they figure it out themselves. I just hope that other municipalities learn from the mistakes of this once beautiful city. (Montpelier)
Looking back at the comments, I don’t see where anyone mentions Burlington’s City Council. The council surely deserves a good share of the “credit”.The downhill slide of this city started long before Ms. Stanak’s attempt to ruin the city. Miro did nothing to restore Burlington to it’s former glory days. Then there was Bob Kiss, Peter Clavelle, and don’t forget everybody’s favorite Commie, Uncle Boinie. Burlington has been flushing itself down the crapper for a long, long time.
They will use this to get Scott out and a more Marxist leader in office. Blame him for what they did and have their people come in to “fix” it. Then things will get really bad, which is their goal. Then they double down even more, replacing good people with who they want, people with no allegiance toward their state or republic. And suddenly they have total control, no shots fired, their people elected, no more republic, but a new colony for the United Nations, in act and deed.
I think they call it a color revolution.
Headline fixed:
Crime-ridden Burlington’s mayor blames God for not being ‘strong partner’
I don’t think Scott was part of the defund the police movement.
I just love the Democratic/Progressive/Socialist stance of Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, and the rest at City Hall. Between her control and micromanaging of the BPD of reducing police numbers (which equates to safety in the Queen City), to the point the last Police Chief resigned, due to City Hall wanted to run things without and Police training. Now that she has things broken, she wants to blame the Governor ❗ I am not a fan of Scott, but even he knows that Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak caused the problems. I am not sure what she was expecting him to do apart from pushing the Mayor out of her seat to become Mayor and Governor. BPD Chief serves at the pleasure of the Mayor not the Governor. City Hall sets the budget for the amount of Police they employ. Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak unfortunately is a train wreck when it comes to running a city. It’s time for her to put her big girl pants on and take ownership of her own mistakes. Hopefully the next election Burlington will use some intelligence when voting.
Burlington, a once beautiful and relaxing city wanted to play with the big boys, likes of Boston, NYC, Chicago, etc. with their policies and now realize they are too poor to do anything about the downturn those policies caused. Too bad, the remainder of us in the State should not be on the hook for their bad Socialist choices.
I refuse to patronize Burlington. We used to patronize Burlington weekly: dinners, bars, shopping, etc. No more. We also encourage our family and friends to avoid Burlington at all costs for their personal safety. Sorry Burlington businesses. Your Mayor and City council keep doubling down on Progressive policies that make Burlington less safe. Fix it and we’ll return.
No murders in DC for a week but several in Vermont. Finally, we are worse than the Capitol. Good job.
So i get it may not directly be the Governors fault Burlington is the way it is. However, I don’t remember a stance against defending police either. Saying nothing is just as bad as saying the wrong thing. Oh, and crap runs downhill from the top. Weinburger got tou to where you are Burlington, maybe give that genius a call and see if he has any bright ideas!
As a somewhat moderate democrat, Weinberg represented the extreme right wing of Burlington politics, and his opinions are not welcome. He must be part of the “patriarchy”…
I’m sorry, but “directly” ? I, in good faith can not lay any of Burlington’s problems on Phil Scot, any more than I can blame a State Rep from Luenburg, or Chester. This ship is named the S.S. Burlington, and the Captains keep shooting holes in it. Let the Captain figure out why the ship is sinking, and 1st, stop shooting holes in it, and 2nd figure out how to plug the holes . Burlington should not expect the Captain of another ship to give them corks while they are still intent on filling their ship with holes . Let them figure it out themselves, or they will never learn !
Agreed. Enabling on a grand scale.
Vermonters ,Travelers ,and Canadian visitors are not going to downtown Burlington because it’s unsafe and has turned into a cesspool . The decline has been ongoing for quite some time .Blame game not effective at this juncture but the solution strategies are .Lax criminal laws and justice ,open immigration provisions,(we are not a sanctuary state wink wink )have almost completely destroyed Burlington . Make the changes now before it’s a complete encampment for despair .
Liberal’s motto “IT’S YOUR FAULT”
Phil Scott is “popular” because Vermonters like a person who is a “nice” guy. To say that he has taken a leadership role in addressing the homeless and drug problems ACROSS THE STATE is a stretch. The governor admits that he has not been in Vermont’s largest city in two years! What else need to be said regarding his leadership?
Burlington is getting what they deserve.
Brian, Bingo ! The chickens, (druggies, bums, criminals, and Marxists) have come home to roost ! The only people that can change Burlington’s direction are those that set the course they are on now. They navigated this ship of fools towards the iceberg . They should put up,or shut up. They are getting precisely what they voted these morons into office to do.
Could this be the primary reason Canadian tourist travel to Vermont is declining?
No. the precipitous decline of Canadian tourists occured when trump said he wanted to take over their country. That’s not a mystery because they are saying so. I take them at their word. And their decline is not just Vermont, it’s NH, ME, WA, OR, NV, WI, FL, etc.
You’re right, Nick. Hell hath no fury like a Canadian scorned.
As the Guard-The-Leaf guy, in the video you posted, reiterated over and over and over again. It’s not economic. It’s not public safety. Canadian feelings have been hurt by what they perceive is American arrogance. It doesn’t matter what anyone says or that some Americans try to be nice. They don’t believe anything Americans say anyway.
Canadians apparently have a vast national inferiority complex, and I sometimes (on rare occasions, mind you) wonder why they care so much about what Americans think of them. I can almost hear them singing now….
‘Nobody likes me, everybody hates me.
I think I’ll go eat worms!’
The Guard-The-Leaf guy says it will take generations for Americans to repair the lost Canadian good will. We’ll see. If it’s not our improving economy, stable southern border, and soon to be safer streets, I suspect that one good, cold Canadian winter, away from Florida, will do wonders for our foreign relations.
WCAX: What’s that message to Vermonters?
Scott: I think there’s a lot of other Vermonters that are avoiding Burlington as well. I think that’s what it says.
I’ve had an amazing summer hiking, off-roading, canoeing and fishing in support of Red communities in the NEK. Appears I’m not alone.
Burlington is what the rest of Vermont,will become. Marxist in Montpelier, rule. Power is there only goal. Marxist only care about controlling everything paid in taxes. The people can eat cake and fend for themselves.
Hey patriot
Per the editor: Real, full names are now required. All comments without real full names will be unapproved or trashed.
Gee whiz governor, does that feel like a punch in the gut or a kick in the jingles? Some governors would be inclined to send in their own National Guard troops to clean the incompetant government mess in B-town. But no, we’ll wait and see how it plays out. Perhaps you’ll all come come up with a little Chy-NA magic. Stay tuned.
jingles, for sure. In jest, I say it’s because the mayor doesn’t like playing with jingles.
I used to make 70% of my living selling woodwork at the burlington farmer’s market at city hall park. A significant portion from tourists. The crowds were packed most weekends throughout the spring, summer and fall. Enter Weinberger who wanted to comb-over the park and make it pretty. He set hurdles too high for the market to return after construction so now the market sets up in a dusty parking lot on Pine street. I remember one issue the town had was maintaining the quality of the grass. You see, previously, locations where vendors set up their booths to sell goods showed worn grass, which was an eyesore. Consumers’ shoes would wear the grass thin as they stood at vendor’s booths. The town wanted the market to reduce the number of vendors to accommodate the new aesthetic and reduce the foot traffic to keep their lush lawn. Well, now the quality of the grass is determined by how high it gets you. And if that doesn’t satisfy, get a needle full of some juice and discard it on the lawn. City policies are to blame. I’ll cheer on Gov. Scott tonight at Thunder Road, even though he hasn’t finished top 10 all year. Maybe someone from burlington can get him some nitrous oxide.
I find it shameful that Mulvaney-Stanak blames Phil Scott for the crime problems in Burlington. She needs to look in the mirror to see where the true blame lies. SHE continues to defund the police. SHE has gag ordered that same department. HER response to drug users was creating safe zones to shoot up and clean needles. SHE and Sarah George are the reason why the crime rate is so bad. Uncuff the police, Stanak, and prosecute the bad guys, George, if you want people to visit the city. There was nothing more disturbing then walking into a movie theater with my wife for a night out and watching an employee “shooting up” as we walked in and nothing was done about it.
WCAX should be ashamed as well. *shakes head* Blaming the governor for not visiting Church Street. A lot of us won’t anymore. When employees are afraid to go to their cars at night after closing because they might get mugged, there is a problem, a problem that Mulvaney-Stanak and Sarah George are responsible for.
” a problem that Mulvaney-Stanak and Sarah George are responsible for.” And so many others ! The city council, and the idiot voters that keep enabling them, have blood on their hands as well . Until these morons realize that 2+2=4, always has, and always will, the people of Burlington are doomed to keep coming up with the same ill fated solutions .
A reporter’s recent question for Governor Scott “State tax revenue shows Burlington retail and restaurants aren’t growing economically. What specifically are you doing to help Burlington?” We Vermonters did not elect Gov Scott to specifically help Burlington!!
Washington D.C. has fewer murders than Vermont has since Trump stepped up the law enforcement.
Sad day when large inner cities have less crime than “bucolic” Vermont.
Clearly, we are heading in the wrong direction.
Mulvaney-Stanak has only perpetuated and accelerated the problems caused by years of Progressive and Democrat policies (Republicans and Moderates haven’t had any power in Burlington for years so there is no question who has caused the problems.) Under Sarah George the criminals that the BPD catch are not held accountable for their actions and have no reason not to reoffend. I have heard anecdotally that one of the reasons that BPD cannot hire officers is because the police have no confidence that the politicians will have their back. Who wants to work in a job where you have to make life and death split-second decisions knowing that you will be presumed to be the bad guy? The city and the police are in a lose-lose-lose situation and I don’t see how they are going to change anything without changing the people in city government and in the court system. Our legislators could help some by passing laws with some teeth and appointing judges who believe in justice for the citizenry. The idea that thieves can steal hundreds of dollars in merchandise before they face serious charges is like an invitation to steal. We need government that has some common sense. Ultimately, it comes down to the citizens of Burlington and who they are going to elect.
Daddy, your supposed to help us fix our problems.
Maybe President Trump or maybe even Rudy Giuliani can give Burlington a few ideas on what they may be doing wrong.
This is what people in Burlington voted for, this is what they got. The Mamdani playbook isn’t the answer.
I just want to thank all the hard working law enforcement officers in the State of Vermont. You are certainly greatly appreciated.
I’m not a big fan of Governor Scott, and less of a fan of Burlington’s Mayor. Burlington’s crime issues have NOTHING to do with the Governor. It’s all on the city council and the mayor…no one else! Nothing will change until the people vote in new leadership. Until then we can only hope for some citizens to begin exercising their 2nd amendment rights.
The Vermont political blame game – a game of no boundaries and seemingly, has no end. The good cop/bad cop script flipping between Feds vs. States, Governors vs. Mayors – the show must go on!
What do these incentivized, installed, well compensated empty suits have in common? They have no trouble affording their bills or groceries these days. No honor among thieves – yet they throw shade at each other to make it all look plausible – all with a wink and a nod.
The USA debt currently stands at $37.2 trillion and climbing. What that figure means is every child is leveraged, bound and yoked to debt before they are out of the womb or their diapers. Bonds extended out 40 years? We are toasted, baked and fried – yet no one standing at a pulpit or podium will admit or confess. If only Truth was lucrative and profitable.
Once a peaceful charming New England town …
Then they built the highway .
Slowly burlington became Cambridge Mass.
Now the flatlanders have her by
The neck …and it’s turning more and more into Dresden on the lake .
They never should have built the highway
Whats missing in this conversation is Chittenden Countys criminally negligent States Attorney who is refusing to effectively prosecute cases. You can have all the police (local, VSP, Natl Guard etc) you want but without a strong prosecution nothing will ever improve.
The Progressive Way !
Instead of Figuring Out How to Resolve the Problem the Progressive Governmental Hive Has Created and Requesting Help from Governor Scott – They Decide to Blame Him for Their Whole Mess and Call It a Day !
Mayor Emma-Hyphen wanted to open a free campground on Lake Champlain, only to reverse course a day later, after realizing that it would attract vagrants like birds to a feeder. Birds may poop around the feeder to reward your generosity, but at least they dont leave behind needles with pathogenic blood residue. Following the mayor’s train of thought, a person of common sense would perhaps back off on some of the other taxpayer-funded amenities offered to anyone who asks. Unfortunately, common sense is not a trait shared by hard-core leftists. City Hall Park continues to resemble Mogadishu and Burlington keeps rolling out the incentives for vagrants to want to call it home.
No worries Burlington, free help is on the way soon. Your streets and hopefully those responsible for leaving a once fine city in such a Corrupt mess will soon be removed to confines much more suitable for them. Go National Guard!
Stanak is showing her true colors…Is she a rainbow progressive socialist or a Democrat? They are all in the same shameful cauldron…blame somebody else for the problems you yourself created or are endorsing.