Vermont news

• Leahy secures $2.6 million to conserve swath of forestland

  04-08-2018 04:00 via vtdigger.org
  Sen. Patrick Leahy announces $2.6 million in federal funds to conserve forestland during a press event in Waterbury Center on August 3. Photo by Xander Landen/VTDigger
  Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt, announced this week that he secured $2.6 million in federal funding to conserve 1,800 acres of forestland in the Hunger Mountain Headwaters bordering a state forest in Middlesex and Stowe.Conservationists expect the land, which was previously owned by Timbervest, a timber management company, will be offic
  
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• Governor ‘misspoke’ in denying support for health insurance mandate

  04-08-2018 03:42 via vtdigger.org
  Gov. Phil Scott, left, and challenger Keith Stern during a debate on July 25. Photo Bob LoCicero/VTDigger
  Gov. Phil Scott’s campaign says he “misspoke” during a Thursday debate when he mischaracterized his role in enacting an individual health insurance mandate earlier this year.
  Under questioning from Republican challenger Keith Stern during a Vermont Public Radio debate, Scott repeatedly said he had not signed a bill ordering mandatory health insurance in Vermont.Get all of V
  
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• Koch-backed PAC starts spending again on Scott’s campaign

  04-08-2018 03:21 via vtdigger.org
  Gov. Phil Scott at a press conference Wednesday. Photo by Mike Dougherty/VTDigger
  Just two weeks before the primaries, a political action committee funded by the Republican Governors’ Association has spent nearly $100,000 on TV ads for Gov. Phil Scott.
  The RGA, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that backs conservative gubernatorial candidates, has poured $225,000 into PAC called “A Stronger Vermont” this cycle, according to the latest filings with the Vermont Secretary of S
  
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• Father argues for son’s bail in Burlington bridge death case

  04-08-2018 02:36 via vtdigger.org
  The Costello Courthouse in Burlington, home to the Chittenden County criminal court. Creative Commons photo
  The father of Joshua Granger, who is charged with sending another man to his death over a romantic rivalry, urged the court on Friday to release his son on bail, but said he wouldn’t be staying into his house while awaiting trial.Richard Coosiero, Granger’s father, was one of five witnesses — including three police officers — who took the stand during a bail hearing
  
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• The Deeper Dig: Scott’s challengers take the stage

  04-08-2018 02:06 via vtdigger.org
  The Deeper Dig is a weekly podcast from the VTDigger newsroom. Listen below, and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts.Get all of VTDigger's political news.You'll never miss a political story with our weekly headlines in your inbox.Daily
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• Tom Evslin: The power of the primaries

  04-08-2018 01:05 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Tom Evslin, an entrepreneur, author and former Douglas administration official. This post first appeared on his blog, Fractals of Change.Primary voters rule the U.S. General election voters just get to do damage control.
  Did you like the final choice you had to make in the 2016 presidential election? I didn’t.Who’s to blame for the choice we ended up with? Hints: It’s not the “fake media” or the Russians; it’s not eve
  
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• Andrew Torre: God and the American Right

  04-08-2018 01:00 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: This commentary is by Andrew Torre, of Londonderry, a retired New York City advertising professional who writes progressive political commentary, which has appeared regularly in Vermont newspapers. He is a member of the Vermont Progressive Party.One segment of our politically divided nation consists of what is generally referred to as “the religious right” – an ultra-conservative minority group that forms the core support for President Donald Trump. There s
  
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• Gun rally organizer confident firearms giveaway is legal

  04-08-2018 00:57 via vtdigger.org
  Republican House candidate Kevin Hoyt had hosted a cable show called “The Future of Hunting. Courtesy photo
  BENNINGTON — Despite questions about a firearms giveaway during a pro-gun rally and voter registration event Saturday this afternoon, Republican candidate Kevin Hoyt is confident no state laws will be violated.
  The event is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. on sidewalks around the Four Corners intersection in the downtown and continue until 5 p.m.Get all of VTDigger's political news
  
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• Walt Amses: Tripped up by a travel bag

  04-08-2018 00:55 via vtdigger.org
  Editor’s note: Walt Amses is a writer and former educator who lives in North Calais.
  The travel bag was lying in the hall for days, seemingly innocent, on its way to the basement to join the other bags on the big, dusty shelf until called upon to disembark on our next adventure. But the carry-on was determined to carry on, no longer content serving as a mere receptacle or accessory. I could have moved it several times, choosing instead to pick up something else, or even head downstairs emp
  
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• State boosts Brattleboro Retreat payments

  04-08-2018 00:18 via vtdigger.org
  The Brattleboro Retreat. File photo by Zachary P. Stephens/Brattleboro Reformer
  When Art Nichols joined the Brattleboro Retreat as chief financial officer last year, one big question troubled him: How could a hospital that’s so busy be losing money?
  The root of the problem, Retreat administrators decided, was the amount of Medicaid money the hospital had been receiving from the state.Get all of VTDigger's health care news.You'll never miss our health care coverage with our weekly headlines
  
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