At the Windham County Democratic Committee meeting last night (I happen to be a representative to the WCDC from the town of Jamaica), after much discussion and debate, the group voted unanimously (with two abstentions) to recommend to the State Democratic Committee that they allow Anthony Pollina to address them, at their next meeting, to ask the party to support his candidacy for governor in a two-way race, with Jim Douglas, for Governor.
This was not an endorsement of Mr. Pollina by the County Committee but an expression that we like what he says and what he stands for, and we think that support for his candidacy as a Progressive (ultimately it would become a fusion Democratic-Progressive candidacy) should be given serious consideration. This is in view of the fact that the only candidate of its own that the Democratic Party has shown interest in, Peter Galbraith, has not stepped up to say he wants to run.
In my own opinion, Anthony Pollina knows a lot more in depth about Vermont than Peter Galbraith, has worked for decades as a community activist across the state with farmers and others, and would be an excellent and exciting governor who could make Vermont proud.
I am hopeful that we will rise above party lines and work together to get Jim Douglas out, who everybody seems to agree is holding back the whole state with a "can't do" philosophy. (Pollina told us, by the way, that Douglas wanted to use a potential $20 million a year that would be saved by putting our state capital gains tax in line with that of other states, to give all of it back as a tax break to high income folks in the state. Whereas Pollina had other plans for that money: $5 million to leverage $75 million that could be used as loans to small and start-up businesses, etc.)