TOUR DETAILS:

*Tuesday, September 7: *

10:00 – 11:00 AM:  St. Albans
Cosmic Bakery, 30 Main St., St. Albans

12:00 – 1:00:  Shelburne
Wake Robin, 200 Wake Robin Drive, Shelburne

2:30 – 4:00:  Rutland
Vermont State Fair, President’s Building
175 South Main St, Rutland

5:00 – 6:30:  Bennington
Location: 190 North Main St.

*Wednesday, September 8: *

8:30 – 9:30 AM: Brattleboro
Pliny Park (on the corner of Rte 5 and Rte 9 in downtown Brattleboro)

10:30 – 11:00: White River Junction
GroSolar, 601 Old River Road, WRJ

12:30 – 1:30: Montpelier
Location: State House Lawn

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This morning the candidates had a status hearing at the Washington Superior Court regarding the recount. The primary election recount will begin on Wednesday, September 8th.  How long the process will take is uncertain at this point but all parties have agreed to do everything we can to make it go as quickly as possible.   The more volunteers we have, the faster this recount will take place!  While we have submitted a list of volunteers to the court, it is not too late to sign up!  Once we have a number of new volunteers we can submit another list!

SIGN UP HERE TO VOLUNTEER FOR THE RECOUNT!

Each county clerk will oversee a recount team, who will be responsible for counting all of the ballots in that county. Normally, each candidate would recruit their own volunteers in each county, but in order to make this process happen as quickly as possible, all five candidates have agreed to put out the call generally and nominate the volunteers together.

SIGN UP HERE TO VOLUNTEER FOR THE RECOUNT!

The more volunteers we can recruit in each county, the faster the recount can be completed. Please help if you can, especially if you have experience with elections or if you are on the Board of Civil Authority. Once we have a list of volunteers, we will submit a new list to Judge Crawford, so the process can go as quickly as possible.

Today I challenged Brian to stop hiding behind the Democratic Primary and release his plan.

In June I released my plan: a Vision for Vermont and the majority of the other Democratic candidates have released their plans as well. In these difficult economic times, Vermonters deserve to hear from every candidate who wants to be governor what his or her plan is to get Vermonters back to work. There can only be two reasons why Brian wouldn’t: either he doesn’t have a plan or he doesn’t want Vermonters to examine it for themselves. Either way, it serves as another example of the lack of leadership that Vermonters cannot afford.

If Brian doesn’t release his plan then Vermonters can assume that it is just more of the same. And the same isn’t very inspiring: running down the state as a place to do business to anyone who will listen instead of promoting it and hopping on a plane to Asia in search of a few prospects while ignoring struggling Vermont businesses and millions of people within a 3 hour drive. The results speak for themselves: over 10,000 private sector jobs and countless investment opportunities have been lost and Vermonters are feeling unprecedented economic pain.

Please tell Dubie to release his plan so the candidates can debate how the next governor can do better then the status quo by signing the petition here.

On the evening of November 4, 2008 when Barack Obama was elected President, I was so proud to be a citizen of this country.  Yet that very same evening, when I turned on CNN, I was outraged to see the same electorate take people’s rights away with the passage of Prop 8.  At that moment I realized that as Senate Preisdent of Vermont, I could do something about this injustice.  I brought people together and worked closely with Speaker Smith and thousands of hard working advocates to bring marriage equality to all Vermonters.  Vermont became the first state in the nation to pass marriage equality, not because a court told us we had to but because we knew it was the right thing to do.

This is the type of bold leadership you can expect from me as governor.

As governor, I will never stop pushing for the right thing. I will work with other state leaders and tell them Vermont’s story until all 50 states have marriage equality.  Whether it is standing up to Entergy Louisiana or insurance companies when they want to put their corporate profits before the health and safety of Vermonters, I will continue to take on the tough battles and win.  And that includes beating Brian Dubie in November!

“Peter has the leadership skills, business experience and vision to get our economy moving again and put Vermonters back to work,” said Senator John Campbell.  “Time and time again I have watched Peter take on tough issues and bring people together to win. Whether it is taking on the prescription drug companies to lower prices for Vermonters or challenging Entergy Louisiana to tell the truth about our aging nuclear power plant, Peter takes on the tough battles with tenacity.”

In addition to Senator Campbell, Representative Mark Mitchell and former legislators, Cheryl Rivers and Ann Seibert stood in support of Peter.

“Peter is a real leader,” said former Senator Cheryl Rivers.  “There is no one in politics that I would rather go into a difficult situation with than Peter.  In these times, we need a strong leader who is not afraid to take bold action and that is Peter Shumlin.”

“Yes, Peter Shumlin gets tough things done,” said Representative Mark Mitchell.  “But I am also supporting Peter because he has compassion, a quality that I believe is critical in a leader.”

The leaders all spoke of Peter’s ability to not only get Vermonters back to work but to be the candidate who can beat Brian Dubie in November.

“All of the candidates in the Democratic Primary for Governor are good people,” said former legislator Ann Seibert.  “But Peter Shumlin is the only one with the skills, experience and vision to win in November.”

The professionals spoke of how they see, firsthand, the dysfunction of our current health care system and   how desperately we need change.  The group of Doctors and Nurses stated clearly that Peter Shumlin is the candidate best suited to address the system’s problems.

“We are appalled at the excessive profits earned by the insurance companies and the drug makers, said Dr. Deb Richter.  “Peter Shumlin is the candidate for Governor who is best suited to address these problems.  He is the only candidate who has shown unwavering support for a publicly financed universal health care system in Vermont.”

“While other candidates have spoken of the need for change, Peter Shumlin has gone further,” said Dr. Marvin Malek.  “He has repeatedly pledged himself to the task of enacting a state single payer system.”

The health care professionals spoke of their support for Peter due to his record of getting tough things done.

“Peter Shumlin has proven that he is not afraid of taking political risks in the interests of furthering the public good,” said Dr. Sue Deppe.  “He is the person we need at the top of the executive branch if we are to enact meaningful health care reform.”

The following health care professionals endorsed Peter:

Deborah Richter, MD (family physician)

Jack Mayer, MD  (pediatrician)

Bill Eichner, MD (ophthalmologist)

Bruce Talmadge, MD (retired internist)

Peggy Carey, MD (family Physician)

Alice Silverman, MD (psychiatrist)

Marvin Malek, MD (internist)

Sue Deppe, MD (psychiatrist)

Adam Sorscher, MD (family physician)

Joseph Lasek, MD (psychiatrist)

Dorothy Malone Rising, NP

Patricia Towle, NP

Augusta Wilson, RN

Maggie Newton, MD  retired internist)

Paul Bertocci, MD (family physician)

Richard Norman, MD (family physician)

Laura Norris, MD  (family physician)

Jim Greenleaf, APRN

Ellen Chrisman, NP

Alma Mueller, NP

Suzie Lynn, LPN

John Gundy, MD  (Pediatrician)

Richard Kast, MD (psychiatrist)

“No candidate has done more to advance marriage equality than Peter Shumlin.  Without his efforts, same-sex couples would not be able to marry in Vermont today.”

The announcement, made in an email to VFMAC supporters, describes Peter’s vital role in bringing the bill to allow same-sex couples to legally marry to a vote in 2009, as well as his creation of a commission in 2007 to hold public hearings about the issue, as key factors in the bill’s ultimate passage.  Robinson noted that both of these actions required considerable political courage, and concluded  “Senator Shumlin stuck his neck out for us in a big way, and he’s earned our support.”

Peter made a promise to himself after watching families getting their rights taken away from them during the passage of proposition 8 that he would do everything in his power to do the right thing and deliver equal rights to all Vermont families.  It wasn’t easy but Peter has established a record of getting tough things done and this was no exception.  Working with thousands of Vermonters, Peter led the effort to make Vermont the first state in the nation to pass marriage equality without a court order.

Senator Dick Sears, the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee talked about his experience working with Peter in the legislature.  He then listed four primary reasons why he is endorsing Peter for Governor.

1)    Peter is the candidate that can beat Brian Dubie in November

2)    He understands that we can’t tax or cut our way out of this recession and we need our focus to be on economic development

3)    Peter has the even-keeled temperament of a leader

4)    He understands the issues confronting the Southern part of the state.

Representative Sarah Edwards of Brattleboro spoke of how Vermont is at a crossroads concerning energy, education and economic development.  “Peter is the candidate with the leadership skills to strengthen Vermont’s economy and create jobs during this critical time.”

The following legislators endorsed Peter:

Senator Bob Hartwell, Bennington

Senator Dick Sears, Bennington

Senator Jeanette White, Windham

Representative Mollie Burke, Windham

Representative Sarah Edwards, Windham

Representative Mike Mrowicki, Windham

Representative David Deen, Windham

Vision for Vermont: A Strategic Plan to Get Vermonters Back to Work

Download PDF

Peter has been recognized by the Teamsters for his vigorous efforts to put Vermonters back to work and help working Vermonters and their families. Peter received the endorsement from the Teamster’s leadership team, led by Ron Rabideau, the principle officer of the Teamsters at Champlain Cable in Colchester. Champlain Cable recently received a multi-million dollar contract that will create dozens of jobs at the plant and give a boost to the local economy.

“I have personally appreciated Peter Shumlin’s leadership as he is a straight-forward politician, said Ron Rabideau. “With Peter, you always know where you stand and that’s the kind of leadership we need in order to tackle the tough challenges that face Vermont. Peter has a record of getting tough things done while considering working Vermonters lives and livelihoods.”

After the endorsement, Peter took a tour with members of the Teamsters of Champlain Cable and saw a great deal of the work that this local Vermont business with international reach was doing to create jobs and a fantastic product for the American work force.

Peter’s strong record on universal health care, creating good paying jobs in Vermont and supporting Vermont workers is why organized labor and small business owners are uniting to support our campaign to get our economy moving again.