By Guy Page
As a public service during an election season uniquely challenged by lack of traditional, face-to-face access to voters, Vermont Daily today publishes the first in a series of interviews with little-known challengers to Vermont Senate seats.
Charles Wilson of Lyndon is a challenger in a two-seat district now served by incumbents Joe Benning (R) and Jane Kitchel (D), both running for re-election. Matt Choate (D) is also challenging for a seat.
1. Please provide a photograph and a paragraph on your work, family, and public service and background, briefly telling readers who you are.
My youth was spent in Allentown, Pa. I attended and graduated from Fishburne Military School in Virginia and then went on to two years of college which led me then to pursue various employment, management and business opportunities.
In 1986, I moved to East Burke and worked in the ski industry and started my own contract painting business of Wilson Enterprises which I owned and operated for thirty years. After our marriage, my wife and I bought and worked a 60 acre gentleman’s farm in Sheffield.
We now live in Lyndon and own a small business called Cottage Work. Last year I served as a volunteer at NVRH in St. Johnsbury and also established a teaching and helps ministry as a service to the community. We both love and treasure our life in the Northeast Kingdom and wish to preserve the wonderful, peaceful, country life afforded to us here.
2. Why are you a better choice for the residents of your county than the other candidates?
As a conservative Republican, I am very interested in what N.E.Kingdom citizens are concerned about. I am not a politician, “politically correct”, do not adhere to the “new normal” socialism. I am a constitutionalist, standing firm on state and federal law which establishes without question or bias, freedom of speech, religion, and the right to LIFE, LIBERTY and the PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS.
3. Please explain how you might vote on legislation dealing with these issues:
– State taxation and spending
– Second Amendment right to bear arms
– Abortion
– State-enforced carbon emissions reduction
– One other issue of your choice
State taxation and spending. We must reduce the huge bureaucratic machine that exists in our state government and which keeps getting bigger. Citizens are weary and distrustful of government pressure in their lives and want the freedom of less regulation on their businesses and the extreme burden of taxation without balanced representation. I would vote against any new expansion of government bureaucracies and look for reduction measures, and common-sense and prudent expenditure of tax dollars.
Second Amendment right to bear arms – Chapter 1- Article 16 of the Vermont State Constitution states: ” That the people have a right to bear arms for the defense of themselves and the State— and as a standing armies in time of peace are dangerous to liberty, they ought not to be kept up; and that the military should be kept under strict subordination to and governed by the CIVIL power”….(Civil or We the people) Anything less than this is unconstitutional and therefore unlawful. I would vote against any gun-control.
Abortion – Abortion is murder ( willful killing) and the heinous practice of selling fetus body parts is immoral and unconscienable before God. I would try to reverse this horrific writing ( Prop 5 ) by speaking clearly so our citizens know the scope of this before it goes to the referendum vote of the people in 2022. It allows the taking of a life without mercy up to the time of birth and which has not been fully understood by the people. It would also be enacted as a dangerous constitutional amendment which is far weightier. We cannot call ourselves a “Brave little state” with this blood on our hands. I would always vote for the right to ALL life.
State-enforced carbon emissions reduction – The General Assembly will most likely pass H.-688, the Global Warming Solutions Act on Tuesday, with once again, no real voice of the people and this is not the time to pass such a huge, wide sweeping law which will be an enormous tax and economic burden on our citizenry. This bill is unlawful and citizens should not comply until they have a complete understanding of the cost and changes this will inflict on them. I would also call that this bill should go to a vote of the people.
Issue of choice: education – If we are to advance our youth to security of employment, civic responsibility and prosperity for their lives and the state of Vermont, we must consider options to our current overall public education system. This past year has opened up these options for choice in allowing parents and guardians to take responsibility for their children’s education and for them to receive the very best learning possible. Charter, religious and home schooling have all proven to be excellent alternatives to public education which, at present, is economically unsustainable; Vermont has the highest tuition rates in the nation at over $20,000 a year per child. This is a tax burden that many will not be able to shoulder. I would vote and support school choice which also benefits all by allowing merit based hiring for teachers and staff being a positive step forward for everyone.
Non-incumbents of any party or no party are welcome to submit answers to the questions below, include a photo, and email to news@vermontdailychronicle.com. We will do our best to print them on a first-come, first-serve basis without political prejudice.
Unfortunately we simply cannot offer the same service to House seat challengers this year – Vermont Daily is a small, developing news organization and (this year, anyway) lacks the staffing bandwidth. However, press releases and letters to the editor for all legislative and statewide candidates are welcome, and will be published as the harried editor’s time permits.
Read more of Guy Page’s reports. Vermont Daily is sponsored by True North Media.
