On Tuesday May 1, the Vermont Sierra Club and dozens of other organizations, such as the Vermont Workers Center, 350.org, Rural Vermont, and the VT AFL-CIO, will take a stand for our environment and the well-being of all of Vermont’s working families!

Will you take this stand with us?

Sign up to attend and march with the Sierra Club at the “Put the People and the Planet First” Rally on May 1 by going to the below link!

http://action.sierraclub.org/s…

The “Put the People and the Planet First” Rally will build a popular front of grassroots movements across the state. For our part, the Sierra Club and the Nulhegan Abenaki will march in support of comprehensive conservation through the creation of new Tribal and Town Forests. The Sierra Club will also be supporting green renewable energy for all Vermonters.

This will be a great family-friendly event with kids’ activities, music, and speakers including: U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, Bill McKibben of 350.org, and Luke Willard, Nulhegan Abenaki Leader and VT Sierra Club Organizer.

Join the Vermont Sierra Club and thousands of other Vermonters for this historic rally!

Here are the details:

WHAT: “Put the People and the Planet First Rally”

WHO: You and your fellow Vermonters

WHERE: We’ll meet under the Sierra Club banner in front of Montpelier City Hall at 39 Main Street (map)

WHEN: 12:00 noon sharp to march with us to the Statehouse!

Questions: Contact David Van Deusen at david.vandeusen@sierraclub.org

This will be a great afternoon of community action to support the human rights of all Vermonters! Bring your friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers. Together we are strong!

Join us and our allies for  “Put the People and the Planet First Rally,” the biggest weekday rally Montpelier has ever seen!

In solidarity,

David Van Deusen

Vermont Sierra Club

 Seven U.S. House Republicans, Speaker John Boehner and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell are doing some creative worrying. They fear that President Obama, while waiting for President-elect Romney to be sworn in would run through a flurry of “midnight regulations” that would be at odds with the new administrations philosophy. To guard against this they have crafted The Midnight Rule Relief Act, H.R. 4607.

H.R. 4607 is designed to prevent "significant" regulations from being promulgated from the day after the November election through Jan. 20, Obama's last day in office should he lose.  

Republican supporters of the bill said an outgoing president should not have the authority to issue these rules, which the bill defines as those having an impact on the economy of $100 million or more.

Speaker Boehner and Minority Leader Sen. McConnell have asked President Obama not to initiate any such regulations should he lose the election. They say this would be inconsistent with his 2009 pledge to transparency and accountability in the rule making process.  

What did George W. do at midnight?

It is unclear whether Boehner, McConnell and the seven worried Republican Congressmen may or may not recall that before he left office in January 2009 George W. Bush passed a remarkable number of “midnight regulations”. Bush reportedly passed more “midnight regulations” than either Bill Clinton or his father George H.W. Bush.  

(December 2008) Dozens of new rules have already been introduced which critics say will diminish worker safety, pollute the environment, promote gun use and curtail abortion rights. Many rules promote the interests of large industries, such as coal mining or energy, which have energetically supported Bush during his two terms as president. More are expected this week.

Some of the last minute Bush regulations included business friendly changes that eased mountain top removal mining rules, coal industry air pollution equipment upgrading, endangered species protection and much more.

So Boehner and company may not actually worry that President Obama won’t honor his own pledge but instead fear he might act as their man George W. Bush did when he left office.

Todays’ Republican message: “Do as we now say not as we once did.”  

Here’s a nice little Hump Day waker-upper.

On Monday, at the Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield, a prisoner was nearly killed by another inmate. The victim, 19-year-old Ryan John, is in critical condition after an encounter with 21-year-old Dakota Gardner. Security video shows John entering Gardner’s cell and closing the door; then…

Eight minutes later – after prison officials discovered paper over the window of Gardner’s cell door and a team of guards intervened – inmate Ryan John was found near death, a sheet wrapped around his neck. Gardner, 21, of Springfield was inside, standing calmly against a wall.

That’s a lot to happen in eight minutes. Entry, confrontation, attack, and asphyxiation prolonged enough to almost kill. John’s injuries were so severe that he may well face permanent impairment — if he survives. Corrections Commissioner Andrew Pallito said “we won’t know the extent of the asphyxiation for several days.” So, how does this happen in a “secure” facility?

Pallito said the prison has 130 security cameras, but staff do not monitor the cameras individually. He said it was an infraction for an inmate to be in another inmate’s cell with the door closed.

And obviously, no staffers were actually on the unit, or they would have noticed something. My inference, and it may be unfair, is that the prison relies heavily on video monitoring — but doesn’t keep watch of the cameras. Big money-saver; staffing is expensive, cameras are cheap.

And so, apparently, is human life.

After the jump: Sixth Amendment? We don’t need no stinkin’ Sixth Amendment.

Here’s something else that should make you grind your teeth: John had not been convicted of any crime. He’d been behind bars for 18 months, awaiting trial on a charge of lewd and lascivious conduct. Does that seem a little excessive? An 18-mointh imprisonment for an offense that probably wouldn’t draw an 18-month sentence upon conviction does not appear to jibe with the Sixth Amendment’s promise of a “speedy and public trial” for all offenders.

The name “Dakota Gardner” may ring a bell; last week, he was indicted by a federal grand jury for threatening to kill President Obama and injury Governor Shumlin. He was in prison for a probation-violation charge related to an alleged aggravated assault.

So. How does something like this happen? Is it acceptable? Have we cut so many corners that our criminal justice system no longer lives up to our ideals? I think the answer to that last one is obvious.  

(This is an important event that everyone should know about.  Front paging it is the least we can do! – promoted by Sue Prent)

Written by the Vermont Workers Center

PUT PEOPLE FIRST!

Healthcare is a Human Right!

One Movement for People and the Planet!

Join us for the biggest weekday rally Montpelier has ever seen!

Tuesday May 1st 2012

Gather at noon at City Hall in Montpelier for a march to the State House!

Kids friendly activities, music, fun and rallying for our human rights!

FEATURING Bernie Sanders, Bill McKibben and many other inspiring speakers!!

11:30am-Noon: The Build Up – drumming, music, skits (bring your own instruments!!)

Noon-12:30: Rally Kick-Off – chants, speakers, songs and more

12:30-1pm: March – As part of a national day of action thousands of VTers will converge on the Statehouse in Montpelier to connect our struggles for universal healthcare, [environmental justice] education, housing, childcare, workers’ rights, women’s rights, disability rights, migrant justice and a healthy environment and livable planet into one huge march! Join nurses, farmers, farm workers, teachers and people from every corner of the state for this exciting march!

1-2pm: Rally featuring Senator Bernie Sanders, Bill McKibben of 350, Shela Linton of the Put People First Campaign, Sandy Gaffney of Mobile Home Residents for Fairness and Equality, Luke Willard of the Nulhegan Abenaki Tribe and Vermont Sierra Club, Vermont Parents United, healthcare providers, music, skits and much more.

2-3pm: 10 Piece Salsa Band Afinque performs while we organize and visit the “Take Action Fair” featuring a Pie-the-Lobbyist booth, kids activities, free health screening with Fletcher Allen Nurses,  opportunities to connect and get organized and much, much more!!

3-6pm: Occupy Vermont groups from throughout the state come together for A Labor Speak Out from the 99%- Bringing Capitalism to trial! (3-4pm) and Statewide General Assembly (4-6pm)

______________________________________

You can park at the Department of Labor and take the Shuttle to the Statehouse.

Other parking lots can be found here.

For information about carpools call (802) 861-4892

Many organizations are joining us to make this event a true movement building opportunity. Contact kate@workerscenter.org if you are interested in finding out more.

(Keep it in mind: noon Tuesday in Montpelier. Bumped, bulk of content moved sub folda.   – promoted by kestrel9000)

The response to the devastation of Tropical Storm Irene should make us proud to be Vermonters. Thousands of people volunteered and contributed to efforts to get communities back on their feet. The new “I Am Vermont Strong” campaign has tapped into this community pride with the goal of rebuilding stronger than before the storm. To me, stronger communities means communities where we no longer have policies that leave so many people vulnerable or threaten the livability of the planet.

Even after we recover from Irene, we will still face an ongoing crisis. The economic crisis and the climate crisis both stem from the breakdown of democracy – the health of people and the planet have been undermined so that a tiny fraction of the population can accumulate enormous wealth.

Strong and healthy communities cannot exist in the presence of poverty and extreme inequality. If our neighbors are not safe and healthy, it affects us all. We need bold policies that ensure everyone has access to the health care, safe housing, nutritious food, healthy natural environment, education and child care they need. In the wake of Irene, we acted immediately to make sure people’s needs were met. This same primary goal should guide all our public policy: meet the fundamental needs of the people.

We must also recognize that climate change and severe weather events are upon us and will likely escalate. Vermont must lead the way – as we have begun to do in economic and social justice – by adopting necessary policy solutions to address the climate crisis, end our dependence on fossil fuels and find sustainable energy solutions.

These deep-seated problems need to be addressed at their roots. For too long, our policies have addressed symptoms, not causes, of the problems. For example, our health care system treats health care as a commodity. Some people can afford to buy health insurance while many cannot or are underinsured. The “solutions” have been to expand taxpayer supported programs and attempt to regulate insurance companies. Yet this approach does not solve the root problem. Insurance companies can continue to pocket premiums, avoid paying for care when people get sick, and then shift the costs onto taxpayers. In Vermont, we have realized that the only real solution is to put the health of everybody first – to treat health care as a public good. We can do this by getting rid of the health care insurance companies and other profiteers and by investing health care dollars into healing people and keeping Vermonters healthy.

What’s next? The Vermont Workers’ Center has joined with organizations across the state in a new initiative called Put People First. Put People First means working to realize a universal health care system, fighting for workers’ rights and putting the needs of our communities and the planet first. It includes creating a People’s Budget in which state spending and revenue policies reflect the true values of our communities and are based on the human rights principles of universality, equity, accountability, transparency and participation.

We are demanding that our elected representatives put people first, but policy makers will not be able to stand up against powerful corporate interests until we organize enough people power to give them the strength to do it.

I am asking you to join thousands of Vermonters at noon on Tuesday, May 1, to make our democracy Vermont Strong. Join us for a major statewide march and rally in Montpelier, beginning at noon at City Hall. This year’s rally is also part of an international day of action called for by the Occupy Wall Street movement – “A Day Without the 99%” – for people to come together across all those lines which too often divide and weaken us, to build a better world. Bring your family, friends, co-workers and neighbors as we join together to make Vermont stronger by demanding that our elected representatives put people first.

—

James Haslam is the director of the Vermont Workers’ Center. More details about the May 1 rally can be found at www.workerscenter.org.

The Wall St Journal is reporting that the USDA found a new case of mad cow disease in a California dairy cow. First US case since 2006.

Having weathered a brutal and unsuccessful struggle to stop a permit for the largest Walmart superstore in the State of Vermont, those of us who are members of the Northwest Citizens for Responsible Growth received this week’s news of Walmart’s Mexican permit scandal with little surprise.  

That this scandal is affecting the company’s stock value and putting pressure on Congress to investigate its implications under US law makes us cautiously optimistic that the troubled company, already suffering from lagging U.S.sales, may never occupy the St. Albans site.

There is speculation that some of Walmart’s U.S. executives may face criminal charges over the Mexican bribery and cover-up incidents:

“The allegations that Wal-Mart officials in Mexico may have broken U.S. laws by bribing officials to get their stores built faster raise serious concerns,” Rep. Cummings said in a statement to TPM. “But I am even more alarmed by reports that top company executives in the U.S. tried to cover-up these abuses. We need to ensure that US corporations comply fully with the law, and we need to determine the full scope of these alleged abuses.”

Under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act it is

“…unlawful to bribe foreign government officials to obtain or retain business.”

The intimacy of Walmart’s Mexican operation with its U.S. parent is illustrated by the fact that the newest CEO of the company, Mike Duke, who replaced Lee Scott in 2008, is the former vice-chair of the International Division which was responsible for the rapid expansion of Walmart in Mexico.

In that capacity, Mr. Duke apparently first learned of the bribery allegations in 2005, keeping the secret long after he accepted his current position at the helm of the mothership.

It takes no leap of imagination to guess that corporate practices in Mexico could be a reflection of practices closer to home.  Walmart has long had the reputation of being an “end justifies the means” kind of operation, engaging in questionable business ethics and even some bullying.

Construction permits are complex ballets of engagement, involving developers, local officials, concerned citizens and the retailer itself.  They play out in many acts and largely unnoticed by the greater population.  All kinds of negotiations take place and it would be naive to believe that money never changes hands .

Somehow the corporate giant has always managed to escape unscathed from most legal entanglements, either because the issue involved was too large in scale, (ie.discrimination against female employees); or, because its penny-pinching practices, widely believed to translate into bargain prices for consumers, make it politically inconvenient for lawmakers to challenge those practices or even to look too closely at the underlying legalities.

It seems the corporate behemoth’s luck may be changing.

Eight months and counting since the Supremes gave their go-ahead; and there is still no sign at the site of the “St. Albans Walmart.”

It’s been an interesting week-and-a-half for Our Man From Bennington, the Hon. Dick Sears. (Seen at right, possibly preparing delivery of a Wet Willy to Phil Baruth.) Lately, it seems like every time I read a story about the Legislature, Dick Sears is doing something strange, devious, obnoxious, or a combination thereof.

Jack McCullough has previously identified the Senator as a BKS* sufferer. I concur with the diagnosis, but I’d go even farther: I believe Sears is suffering from a rare and very painful case of Multi-Twist BKS, which is awfully tough on the ol’ twig-and-berries, and is known to cause outbursts of extreme crankiness. Or maybe it’s just Dick being Dick; longtime observers of the Golden Dome may have more insight to offer on that point.  

*”Bunched Knicker Syndrome,” most commonly expressing itself as peevish behavior on the part of a powerful individual.

Let’s go through the diagnosis… after the jump.  

Single twist: Sticking his nose into the House’s redistricting plan because of how it divvied up the Bennington area. That kind of bigfooting is generally considered poor form, as I understand it.

Double twist: His decision to shackle a marijuana decriminalization measure to a bill that would open the state’s prescription database to law enforcement officers — a blatant attempt to snag a few liberal-progressive votes for a regressive measure. And as Sears well knows, even if the Senate passed the database/decrim mashup, decrim would fail in the House because of Speaker Shap Smith’s opposition.

Triple twist, as reported by Jack: Sears threw a hissy on the Senate floor over a comment posted by Sen. Phil Baruth on this very website, in which Baruth expressed his disinclination to fall for Sears’ little ploy. Sears moaned that Senate collegiality has “sunk to new lows.” And actually, I see his point — but it has more to do with Sears himself than with Phil Baruth.

Quadruple twist (oh dear, this case is even worse than I thought): Last week, Sen. Hinda Miller tried to bring the end-of-life bill to the Senate floor (even though the Sears-chaired Judiciary Committee hadn’t passed it) by attaching it to another bill. Sears’ ill-tempered reaction:

“To hijack a bill out of committee is breaking the rules, and if we want to continue to break the rules in this building, there will be consequences for all of us,” he warned.

Yea verily, society shall crumble, children will be slaughtered in the streets, and there will be great wailing and gnashing of teeth. Unfortunately for Sears, that pesky Phil Baruth was on hand to point out that Miller’s maneuver was permissible under the Senate’s own rules. Damn blogger!

Quintuple twist (this is one for the medical journals): During Monday’s Senate debate on a bill to establish a state health insurance exchange, Sears got all hot and bothered about a House provision calling for high-school sports coaches to remove any player who may have had a concussion. Sears, who may well have played without a helmet back in the day, wanted to change the standard to “actual knowledge that a concussion had occurred.” I assume he’d include funding for the installation of MRI machines at all high school sports facilities. Otherwise, how in hell is a coach supposed to diagnose a concussion?

(He was joined in this absurd argument by none other than Prog/Dem Senator Tim Ashe, who’s been spending a lot of his time cozying up to Senate conservatives lately. As reported by Dave Gram of the AP, Ashe argued that the House’s concussion rule would reduce tackle football to “two-hand touch”, and force ice hockey to be played on rubber mats. Now that’s an argument I never expected to hear from a Progressive. Yeah, Tim, let’s keep on letting our kids play contact sports when they’re concussed! Gotta stop the creeping wussification of our society, don’t we? Hock, spit.)

As an occasional sufferer of Single Twist BKS myself (mostly in traffic), I can only imagine Dick Sears’ discomfort at this critical time. Somebody get this man to a hospital — or at least to a clothing store for a nice roomy pair of undies.

Last night T.J. Donovan announced a list of over one hundred Vermont lawyers who have already endorsed his candidacy. The list contains leading members of the bar from Democratic firms, seasoned prosecutors and defense attorneys, and leading public sector lawyers. The group is chaired by Ellen Mercer Fallon, a partner with Langrock, Sperry, and Wool, the firm where Supreme Court Justice Beth Robinson was a partner before her ascension to the Supremes; and L. Randolph Amis, an attorney in private practice in Burlington.

If you read the press release, reprinted at VtDigger.org, you'll see that the list is dominated by Chittenden County lawyers, although  the list contains lawyers from around the state.

Some of the more interesting names:

Former Republican Attorney General and recent Democratic State Senate candidate Kim Cheney.

Former Sanderista John Franco.

Former State Senator Steve Reynes and former Representative Sandy Baird.

Ritchie Berger of Dinse, Knapp, and McAndrew, who blew up the sexual harassment case against the former UVM hockey coach and who represented David Blittersdorf in a libel suit against Brian Dubie and his campaign.

Big name defense attorney David Sleigh.

This is another move that shows how serious TJ is about his campaign. Nobody's going to win this election with 100 votes, but the fact that TJ has been able to enlist such a wide-ranging list of lawyers in just a few weeks is the first step in an effective organization.

This is starting to look interesting.

Addendum by jvwalt: 

Co-chair Ellen Mercer Fallon was also former Counsel to Governor Madeleine Kunin and former head of the state bar; co-chair L. Randolph Amis is a former Burlington City Councilor who's held a number of party posts at the local and state levels.

A cursory glance at the list also reveals two lawyers named Obuchowski — Joe and Raymond. Relatives of a certain former House Speaker and current member of Governor Shumlin's cabinet. I presume? 

Additional detail about attorney Ritchie Berger, mentioned above by Jack: One of his partners in Dinse Knapp is none other than Shapleigh Smith, our current Speaker of the House who, as you may recall, gave a lot of thought to running for AG himself.

(cross-posted to Vermont Watch, here)

Yesterday (Monday, April 23, 2012), the political campaign of TJ Donovan, who is challenging incumbent Bill Sorrell in the Democratic primary for the office of Attorney General of Vermont, declared about how:

Donovan announces more than 100 attorneys join “Lawyers for Donovan”

Wow, stop the presses!

Gotta love the early throes of the forthcoming political campaign season, as if it truly means anything real to most voters right now and especially when it would appear to be far too early to take either it or those campaigning for a given office seriously enough to bother paying attention yet, other than to observe how these sort of announcements make rather good gist for jokes, save possibly for what might be something for the press and news media to report about on a slow news day of course.

After coming across the press release on this (via vtdigger), it made one wonder what would be the next in line of lists of 100 or more supporters of candidates running for the office of Attorney General?

Will it be 100 (fill in category: view below examples) for (fill in candidates name here)?: e.g.,

… jay walkers …

… disturbers of the peace …

… those possessing less than an ounce of marijuana …

… people who have been Tasered …

… drunk drivers …

… Identity thieves …

… various (other) convicted felons …

Any other suggestions for a list of 100 or more campaign supporters … !?

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