As we work to keep open the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Birthing Center, and our families and neighbors safe, and as we face a governor who has sold out to the White House – Remember how he handed over Vermonters’ sensitive data to the feds? – we need leaders who will stand up for us.
I invite you to join me in voting in the Democratic primary here in Vermont for Amanda Janoo for governor, and Molly Gray for lieutenant governor, on or before Tuesday, August 11. As a member of the Brattleboro Selectboard, I see how our government needs leaders who are willing to speak up for the public. I’m supporting Amanda and Molly because of their bravery and leadership at a pivotal time.
As an economist, Amanda Janoo communicates a clear-eyed assessment of the connection between extreme wealth inequality, authoritarianism, and affordability. She has been willing to strongly commit to solutions where other candidates have waffled. Specifically, she has clearly differentiated herself from her opponent in her readiness to 1) Increase taxes on the very wealthiest Vermonters and 2) Require congressional authorization prior to deployment of our Vermont National Guard to the president’s wars.
I have been similarly impressed by Molly Gray’s readiness to stand up against the Trump administration’s devastating policies. Molly, a human rights lawyer, and our former Vermont lieutenant governor, consistently speaks out.
Both Amanda Janoo and Molly Gray have spent time over the past many months getting to know southern Vermont residents and our needs. Prior to the race, in Molly’s work as the executive director of the Vermont Afghan Alliance, she traveled the state, working in solidarity with our refugee neighbors and their allies here in Windham and Bennington Counties.
I recently crossed paths with Amanda and Molly at a demonstration in Burlington in response to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)’s heinous violence. ICE had killed a community member in nearby Maine, and in the week prior, had detained five people here in Vermont, sowing terror among our immigrant neighbors. Of all the statewide candidates, Amanda and Molly were the two who showed up to stand side-by-side with our neighbors in the face of fear and violence.
During the recent debates on Vermont Public, the moderator asked the candidates about their support for the Vermont Defend the Guard Act. This bill would require congressional approval prior to deployment of the Vermont National Guard to overseas combat, in line with Article I, Section 8, of the U.S. Constitution, which assigns the power to launch a war exclusively to Congress.
In their respective debates, both Amanda and Molly expressed support for the legislation – as did Esther Charlestin also running in Molly’s race. Unfortunately neither Aly Richards nor Ryan McLaren, the other candidates, were willing to take such a stand.
Many Guard members privately support the Defend the Guard Act, but have remained silent because speaking out for it jeopardizes their careers. That is why we need candidates such as Amanda and Molly who are willing to show courage and speak up. We need leaders who won’t wait for someone else’s leadership.
More of the same – more kowtowing to President Trump, more trying to lay low and hope that we don’t get too much blowback – will not serve us. History has shown that is not a winning strategy against fascism. What has proven successful is people standing up for one another and fighting back. That’s what Amanda and Molly are doing now, and what they’ll do as our elected leaders.
If you too are looking for leaders who will work to protect Vermonters against President Trump’s devastating policies, who will speak up when their voices are most needed, I encourage you to join me in voting for Amanda Janoo for governor, and Molly Gray for lieutenant governor in the Vermont Democratic primary election on Tuesday, August 11. You can find voting information at https://vote.vermont.gov/public/dashboard.
Isaac Evans-Frantz
