“Brian (Dubie) made comments on VPR last week that I am really concerned about… and I don’t think… they don’t reflect what we need from the next governor,” said Peter Shumlin, Democrat running for governor of Vermont.

Shumlin disagrees with Republican candidate Brian Dubie’s assessment of a new report about Vermont Yankee. The Public Oversight panel found last week the nuclear plant has a corporate culture problem and does not consistently spend enough on safety.

“What Brian indicated was that he trusts Entergy Louisiana, that he thinks they can change and that he thinks the report indicates that the problems are minor and can be overcome. That isn’t what the report says,” Shumlin said.

“I stand by what I said,” Dubie said. “I quoted the report.”

Republican Brian Dubie has stayed out of the spotlight. He does not have a primary race. Dubie supports Yankee and says if it’s proven safe it should keep operating and he thinks the report supports that.

“I’m not here to defend Entergy,” Dubie said. “What I’m here to say is we need to look at safety and we need to look at the importance of jobs, and when I give a pink slip to a fellow Vermonter I’m going to make sure all the questions are answered.”

All five Democrats for governor want Yankee to close in 2012. But Shumlin is the first to attack Dubie, trying to set the tone that he’s a frontrunner… already looking to the November election. But Shumlin needs to win the Democratic primary first on August 24. He admits it’s a tossup.

“It’s a wide open race,” he said.

Shumlin also said Tuesday that if Yankee closes in 2012, he would tax the plant to store its nuclear waste in Vernon. Brian Dubie’s campaign says it will have to study the issue but that Dubie supports having Entergy pay for clean up and maintenance of the site.

Kristin Carlson – WCAX News

http://www.wcax.com/global/video.asp?clipId=4979452&topVideoCatNo=63459&autoStart=true

Senator John Campbell (D-Windsor County)

By Daniel Barlow
Vermont Press Bureau – Published: July 20, 2010

MONTPELIER – More than 60 House members and 12 senators received perfect 100 percent rankings on the first legislative scorecard issued by the organization Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility.

The progressive business organization, which has more than 1200 members, ranked lawmakers on seven key legislative votes, such as Vermont Yankee’s relicensing, the establishment of same-sex marriage, health care reform and the fix for the state’s unemployment fund.

The scoring on those votes indicated strong support for the business group’s agenda at the Statehouse, with 62 House members receiving 100 percent rankings, meaning those lawmakers voted with VBSR on all the main issues the group identified.

Sen. Ann Cummings, D-Washington, was one of the 12 senators to have a perfect record with VBSR. She said she doesn’t consider rankings such as these when casting her votes, but she appreciates the support afterwards.

“I’m proud to have 100 percent ranking,” Cummings said. “It’s always a bit of a surprise. I vote my conscience. But Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility have been a very positive and proactive organization at the Statehouse.”

Will Patten, the executive director of VBSR, said the organization will do these scorecards every two years now for each Legislative biennium. Starting the scorecard was in response to member businesses that wanted to see how local lawmakers were voting on business issues the company’s cared about, he said.

“I think there are a lot of couragous legislators who are pro-business, but don’t neccesarily get acknowledged for that,” he said. “It’s worth pointing out their longterm support for businesses in Vermont.”

VBSR’s ranking is a lot different than the scorecards put out by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce, the other major business group in the state.

That organizations 2009-2010 rankings have not yet been released, but in its 2007-2008 rankings, for example, the Chamber gave Cummings a 50 percent score. Lawmakers with high scorings for the Chamber tend to be Republican; high scores for VBSR tend to be Democrats or Progressives.

Rep. Pat McDonald, R-Berlin, had a VBSR scoring of 17 percent – one of the lowest in Washington County, where she lives.

McDonald, who is retiring from the Legislature this year, said votes at the Statehouse on key issues are not always as cut and dried as the scorecards make them out to be. For example, she said she voted against S.88 – the health care reform bill – after the House added in new provisions.

“Small businesses are the backbone of Vermont and the votes I took supported small businesses in the state,” she said.

The VBSR scorecard ranked several lawmakers seeking higher office this year.

Senate President Peter Shumlin of Windham County and Sen. Doug Racine of Chittenden County got 100 percent rankings and Sen. Susan Bartlett of Lamoille County got 83 percent. All three are Democratic candidates for governor in the Aug. 24 primary.

Sen. Ed Flanagan, D-Chittenden, a candidate for state auditor, scored 83 percent. Sen. Phil Scott, R-Washington, a candidate for lietenant governor, scored 33 percent. Rep. Steve Howard, D-Rutland, also a lieutenant governor candidate, scored 83 percent.

Rep. Chris Bray, D-New Haven, a candidate for secretary of state, had an 83 percent score.

Full Article: http://www.timesargus.com/article/20100720/NEWS02/707209909/1003/NEWS02

Daniel.Barlow@timesargus.com

In a break from their union brothers and sisters, the Teamsters Local 597 — a 1,000-member union headquartered in Barre — endorsed Senate President Peter Shumlin in the Democratic primary for governor.

Three of the state’s largest labor unions are backing Sen. Doug Racine (D-Chittenden).

At a midday press conference in front of Champlain Cable in Colchester, Teamsters Principal Officer and Treasurer Ron Rabideau said the union chose Shumlin because the senate leader had been a true friend to labor groups throughout his career.

“Over the years I have personally appreciated Peter Shumlin’s leadership as he is a straight-forward politician. With Peter, you always know where you stand,” said Rabideau of the Windham County Democrat.

The Teamsters met with Shumlin about a month ago to talk about an endorsement. Rabideau said Shumlin’s support for a variety of labor issues — from worker misclassification to state-focused version of the so-called employee free choice act — were crucial to their members.

“I welcome this endorsement,” said Shumlin. “I am the only candidate in this race who has both business experience and as a leader for 10 years in the senate with a track record of getting tough things done.”

This past session, Rabideau noted, Shumlin helped shine a light on the fact that the administration of Gov. Jim Douglas didn’t want to sign onto a public “project labor agreement” as part of the Champlain Bridge reconstruction. The PLA gives preferential hiring to local, union workers and the unions estimated it would save taxpayers almost $3 million by helping to keep the project on schedule.

“He called for public hearings on the issue and even though we didn’t get the PLA, it did get people’s attention and put enough public pressure on the issue that we’ve recently signed a private PLA with the construction firm,” said Rabideau.

A private PLA means any of the savings realized from the contract will flow to the contractor’s bottom line, not to the taxpayers. But, it does mean that if the contractor — Flatiron Construction out of Lafayette, CO — has to hire skilled labor they must do so through one of the local unions, said Rabideau.

That said, the local workers who do get hired over the next 18 months will earn high wages and received top-notch benefits — and that money will stay local. The firm will not have to import much skilled labor.

“People have this impression that politicians at the statehouse are working for the ‘big labor bosses’, but there are lots of issues that we work on that help every worker in the state,” said Rabideau.

The Teamsters endorsement is Shumlin’s first from a labor group. The previous three major union endorsements have gone to Racine, who has picked up the backing from the Vermont AFL-CIO, of which Teamsters 597 is a member, the Vermont chapter of the National Education Association and the Vermont State Employees Association. Combined, those three unions represent about 30,000 workers.

Two other major unions — the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Professional Firefighers of Vermont — are also determining whether to endorse in the primary.

This week, too, Racine earned the endorsement of the Vermont League of Conservation Voters. The endorsement surprised political observers who thought Shumlin was a shoe-in for the support given his push to close down Vermont Yankee in 2012 and his legislative focus on climate change.

Shumlin has been endorsed by a number of “green” business leaders, including Jeffrey Hollender of Seventh Generation, Jeff Wolfe of GroSolar and David Blittersdorf of AllEarth Renewables.

This isn’t the first time the Teamsters have broken ranks with other labor groups when it comes to a gubernatorial endorsement. In 2008, the union backed Democrat Gaye Symington over Progressive-turned-Independent Anthony Pollina in the general election.

The Teamsters do plan on endorsing in other races, but not until after the primary.

In a five-way primary that may only lure 50,000 voters to the polls, union endorsements can provide candidates with needed volunteers as they ramp up door-knocking and get-out-the-vote efforts.

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.

Patrick Doran, Montpelier