Why is the Vermont General Assembly on the verge of allocating $150 million to yet-to-be-defined broadband construction projects which won’t be completed for five years, but refusing to allocate even $5 million to low-income Vermonters who could be brought online immediately? Frankly, I don’t know.
Those voting yes on the Strong Amendment believe it is irresponsible to execute vote-by-mail elections before options for ballot security provisions are even studied by the Secretary of State’s office. Those voting no believe absentee ballot security measures are not necessary in Vermont.
President Biden’s successful 2020 bid for the White House benefited from a record-breaking $145 million in dark-money donations to groups supporting him, compared to $28 million spent to help President Donald Trump.
It’s not enough to have a thriving tourism industry and universal broadband access in our state. Tourism is important, but most of its jobs are low-wage with limited growth opportunity. Broadband is an important for a whole host of reasons, but it won’t solve all of our problems.
Randi Weingarten, president of one of the largest teachers’ unions in the country, is set to change course Thursday and call for the full reopening of schools by the fall.
“Ultimately here’s the rub. I don’t know whether it came from the lab. But who could be culpable? Dr. Fauci could be culpable for the entire pandemic.”
It is not uncommon to see crows attacking ravens, a much larger bird, especially in springtime. This strange interspecies conflict is common and well-documented. In human political or other conflict, we also often see this same strange inversion.
Supporters of S.15 and all-mail voting have been arguing that vote-by-mail is a measure to address “voter suppression” and to make voting more equitable. But evidence shows this not only to be a Big Lie, but exactly the opposite of the truth.
S.15 passed in the state House of Representatives on May 11, 2021, by a vote of 119-30. The overriding purpose of this bill is to make permanent the Covid-19 emergency measure of mailing “live” ballots to all active voters on the statewide checklist regardless of request.
In the May 5 episode of “It’s News to Us,” host Steve Merrill brings you news stories that other local publications don’t. He gives his views and opinions on the political and social issues of the day.
The consumer price index has jumped 4.2% over the last 12 months, the fastest pace of inflation since 2008. Democrats have pushed trillions of dollars worth of new government programs as jobs growth has slowed, consumer prices rise and a large labor shortage continues to hit much of the country.
The House gave preliminary approval on Tuesday to a bill that would make universal vote-by-mail a permanent feature of Vermont’s election system.