by Mike Smith It’s popular to combine the names of famous couples. In Hollywood, there’s Kimye (Kim Kardashian and Kanye West) and Brangelina (Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie). In national politics, we’ve heard of Billary (Bill and Hillary Clinton). The uni-name suggests a unified brand — a team.
| WDEV Radio 96.1 FM and 550 AM announced Monday morning that Mike Smith will be the new host of its public affairs program previously hosted by Mark Johnson. Smith will start September 8. The program runs daily from 9-11 am. |
Governor Peter Shumlin and House Speaker Shap Smith have been pegged as politically close. Shumlin’s transportation secretary, and a former state representative, Sue Minter has proven to be a Shumlin loyalist. And former state senator Matt Dunne, currently a manager at Google, has a voting record and has taken previous positions as a candidate that are very similar to Shumlin’s, Smith’s and Minter’s. Smith has already announced that he’s a candidate for governor. Dunne and Minter are likely to announce soon that they will challenge Smith in the primary for the Democratic nomination.
It is fair to say they share many positions with Shumlin. Their political views align close enough that some feel if Smith, Minter or Dunne were elected governor the result would be the equivalent of another Shumlin term. That may not be true, but it would most certainly result in another term of the one-party rule Vermont has had over the six years since Jim Douglas left office.
Since Shumlin has become somewhat unpopular, it is important for Democrat candidates to avoid being uni-named with the outgoing governor. ShumShap. Shaplin. Dunlin. Minlin. (There are likely many more creative variations.)
Smith understands this risk. He has recently cited his opposition to Shumlin’s earned income tax credit proposal as an example of opposing the governor. Dunne is talking about a “new direction.” It’s undoubtedly on Minter’s mind, too.
The question is: Is there really a substantive difference between each of these Democrats on property taxes, making health care more affordable and reducing the cost of living and doing business in Vermont? And if not, will small differences be enough for voters?
Probably not. Vermonters are seemingly looking for meaningful change.
Democrat candidates for governor will need to show real distance between themselves and Shumlin — and perhaps even the Democratic Legislature — on many issues.
Besides the Shumlin connection, the road to being Vermont’s next governor has another political challenge for Democrats. In a competitive primary, they will have to stay politically left. This will make it more difficult to persuade centrist and independent voters — the largest block of voters in a general election — that they are moderates capable of reducing the costs of living in this state and growing the economy. Economic concerns are always at the top of public opinion polls in Vermont.
Democrats who want to be governor will need to prove they are offering something different. Without such an offering — and after 12 years of controlling the Legislature and six years of total control of state government — voters may decide they want a change. If change becomes the prevailing sentiment, it will be a very difficult for a Democratic candidate for governor to be elected, even with the higher turnout of a presidential election year.
Republicans will need to develop a clear vision for Vermont’s future as well. Antics like calling on Smith to resign his speakership because he is running for governor only detract from their core message of affordability. It’s a preposterous claim. Elected officials in one office frequently run for higher office.
At this point in time Republicans in the House should be focusing on the issues that help add to their ranks in the next election.
And speaking of Republicans — Roger Ailes, the president and CEO of Fox News had it right. There is something disturbing about Donald Trump’s behavior. In fact, there is something dangerous about Trump’s behavior.
Trump enjoys being a bully. It stokes his ego. That’s why he has a habit — a mean-spirited appetite — of verbally assaulting people, especially those who don’t have the resources to stand up to him.
Meghan Kelly, the gutsy Fox News reporter, asked a now famously hard-hitting but relevant question about Trump’s history of derogatory and sexist comments about women. Trump handled the question poorly, acting like a spoiled child after the debate by attacking Kelly for asking the question. She’s standing her ground. And she should.
So what happens if Vladimir Putin, the Russian leader, tells Trump to “go pound sand”? Does he stomp his feet and say Putin isn’t playing fair or call him an idiot or moron? Or — and here is where it gets dangerous — does his ego demand that he escalate the disagreement to the point where there is disastrous economic, or worse, armed conflict?
Trump is nothing but ego. Every issue, every circumstance is about how it affects him — not his newly found political party or his country. When you combine disturbing and dangerous narcissism with the volatility of world affairs, it could prove devastating for Republicans, but more importantly, for the United States.
Mike Smith was secretary of administration and secretary of human services under former Governor Jim Douglas. He is a political analyst for WCAX-TV and WVMT radio and a regular contributor to The Times Argus, Rutland Herald and Vermont Business Magazine.