Vermont Lieutenant Governor Brian Dubie announced this morning that he will run for governor. Ending weeks of speculation over his political future, Dubie said he was ready to take the next step in a political career which started out serving on local boards in his home town of Essex. Dubie has been seen as the most likely choice since Governor Jim Douglas, his Republican counterpart, surprisingly announced on August 27 that he would not seek re-election in 2010.
Dubie said in a press release, I have devoted the past few weeks to cross-checking my thoughts with the thoughts of other Vermonters thoughts about where we are as a state and about the challenges we face. I have measured my experience and my capabilities against those benchmarks and have taken a long look at how we could lead our state forward through difficult times.
Restoring jobs, restoring opportunity and restoring financial security are at the core of his agenda, he said. Every household in Vermont knows that you can t spend more money than you take in. Our state revenues have fallen precipitously. We need to rebuild our base and work to grow opportunity. We must reject deficits. We need to manage and reduce debt. And finally, we need to rebuild our reserves and work to reduce taxes.
He said that a recurring theme for the lieutenant governor is about finding common ground.
I tell Vermonters that I m the middle child in a family of six. My mother raised me to be a moderator, a peacemaker. Today, we need moderation in our state. The skill of bringing people with divergent views together has served me well as Lieutenant Governor. Whoever becomes our next Governor, that person will need the ability to bring people together.
Dubie said he will make a formal announcement at a later date.
Dubie is an airline pilot and former fighter pilot. His focus as lieutenant governor has been on economic development, especially in trying to get Vermont to reach beyond its borders and to develop the state's aviation industry. He has also been a champion of issues dealing with child welfare.
Long considered a conservative, he won the lieutenant governor's position to a great extent because of a three way vote that included a Democratic and Progressive candidate. Since then, however, his success has come easier and in the last election saw scant opposition.
Several Republicans had been chomping at the bit awaiting Dubie's decision. Despite Dubie's surprise success in winning the number two job behind Douglas in 2002, the choice of party insiders seemed to be state auditor Tom Salmon. Since Douglas announcement, Salmon has switched party affiliation from Democrat to Republican, citing irreconcilable differences, especially in how the Democratically controlled Legislature has dealt with the state's finances. Salmon has said all along, however, that he would defer to Dubie in any case. Also in the mix on the Republican side is state Senator Randy Brock, R-Franklin, whom Salmon, now ironically, defeated in a famous re-count for auditor in 2006, when it appeared at first that Brock had narrowly won re-election. Also mentioned is former House Speaker Walter Freed. Freed is not as well known as the two other candidates statewide despite serving two terms as the Legislature's most powerful man. Freed is a successful businessman from Dorset who is known as a hard-nosed politico and a party favorite.
The Democrats started lining up even before Douglas announced his decision. Former Lieutenant Governor and current state Senator Doug Racine, Secretary of State Deb Markowitz and state Senator Susan Bartlett have already announced, and Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin will almost certainly throw his hat into the ring as well.
Biography: Lieutenant Governor Brian Dubie
Brian E. Dubie of Essex Junction, Chittenden County, was born in Burlington, Vermont on March 9, 1959. He is married to Penny Bolio Dubie, and they have four children. Brian was educated in Essex Junction public schools, graduating from Essex Community Educational Center in 1977. Brian is a 1982 graduate of the University of Vermont with a BS in Mechanical Engineering.
While a student at UVM, Brian joined the Vermont Air National Guard. Upon graduation, he was trained by the US Air Force in the F-4 Phantom and later the F-16 Falcon fighter aircraft. He continued flying in the Air Guard, while employed by Goodrich Aerospace in Vergennes as a mechanical engineer. He later became an aerospace industry project manager.
All told, Brian logged more than 2,500 hours in fighter aircraft. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, and was a Commander in the Vermont Air Guard. In 1988, he joined American Airlines, where he is a Captain, flying the MD-80 aircraft. In 1998, he joined the US Air Force Reserve. He is currently an Emergency Preparedness Officer in the National Security Emergency Preparedness Agency. Serving in that role, he earned a Meritorious Service Medal, First Oak Cluster, for his actions in New York following Sept. 11, 2001. In Sept. 2005, Lt. Gov. Dubie served for 2 weeks on the Gulf Coast in the relief effort for victims of Hurricane Katrina, and for his service was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal, Second Oak leaf Cluster, and the Air Force Commendation Medal, First Oak Leaf Cluster, for outstanding achievement at 1st Air Force Hurricane Katrina Operations Center. He is currently a Colonel in the Air Force Reserve.
He served on the Essex Junction School Board from 1995 - 2000, and as Chair from 1996 - 2000. He served on the Essex Junction Community Drug Awareness Committee from 1993 - 1995, and as assistant coach for Youth Football and Little League. He has been on the Board of Directors for Vermont Systems, Inc. since 1995.
Brian Dubie was first sworn in as Vermont's 85th Lieutenant Governor on January 9, 2003. He began his fourth term on January 8, 2009.
In addition to his duties as presiding officer in the Vermont State Senate, Lt. Gov. Dubie chairs Governor Jim Douglas Homeland Security Advisory Council, made up of representatives of federal, state and local governments, the Vermont National Guard, first responders, law enforcement, emergency managers and public health officials.
In March 2005, Governor Douglas appointed Lt. Gov. Dubie as Chair of his newly-created Governor s Commission on Healthy Aging. The 15-member commission, composed of public and private experts from related fields, works to ensure focus and coordination as Vermont works to meet two important goals: containing health care costs and keeping elders active and productive in the community. Lt. Gov. Dubie was a delegate to the 2005 White House Conference on Aging.
In October 2006, Lt. Gov. Dubie was elected Chair of the Aerospace States Association, a Washington-based, non-partisan organization of Lieutenant Governors and Governor-appointed delegates, formed to promote a state-based perspective on federal aerospace and aviation policy. In August 2006, he founded the Vermont Aerospace and Aviation Association, whose twofold mission is to stimulate economic development and job growth within the state s aerospace and aviation sector, and to promote math, science and engineering education for Vermont students.
Lt. Gov. Dubie is also the Governor s liaison for International Relations, with a special focus on Asia, the nation of Canada and Province of Quebec, and the nation of Cuba, across a variety of areas, including commerce and tourism, environmental issues, agriculture, energy, education, transportation and border security.
Lt. Gov. Dubie is a member of the Executive Boards of the National Lieutenant Governors Association and the Green Mountain Chapter of the Boy Scouts of America, and has served on the boards of the Vermont Chapter of the American Lung Association, the and the Governor s Council on International Education. He is on St. Johnsbury Academy s Board of Trustees. He is one of five members of Vermont s State Board of National Forests, is a Certified Tree Farmer, and with his brother, Mark, is a co-owner and co-operator of a 20,000-tap maple sugaring operation, Dubie Family Sugarworks. He is an affiliate of the Vermont Association of Scientists and Engineers (VASE), and a recipient of the New England/Canada Business Council s Annual Leadership Award, the Vermont Chiefs of Police Association s Martin Award, and the National Guard Association of the United States 2007 Charles Dick Medal of Merit. He is a 2008 recipient of American Airlines Order of the Eagle and a 2009 Aspen-Rodel Fellow.
Biographical Source: vermont.gov.