LETTER: ‘These are not national Republicans’
October 12, 2026To the Community:
I believe we all want the same things for Vermont. We want to make the cost of living more affordable, including the cost of healthcare, housing, and education, and we want a safe, clean environment. But we have different ideas about how to achieve those goals.
As a born-and-raised Vermonter, I’m very concerned about our future, and I’m asking voters to try something different.
For the last 30 years, the Vermont Legislature has been controlled by the Democratic/Progressive Party. Some folks will say, “The governor has been there for 10 years. Why hasn’t he done anything about it?”
My response is simple: during his time, the legislature has been controlled by the Democratic/Progressive Party. They control the committees, what bills are considered, debated, and ultimately what bills are passed.
Therefore, the governor’s primary option has been to veto bills that he believes will hurt Vermonters. Many times, his vetoes have been overridden. We often hear the talking point that Gov. Phil Scott has a record number of vetoes. But consider this: during his tenure, the legislature has also had a record number of veto overrides. Many of these decisions have hurt Vermonters, from a 13.8% property tax hike to Act 181.
Just imagine if you were the principal of a school or the president of a company, and your ideas were not even discussed by your leadership team because they had a different philosophy. The way to lead is to have ideas discussed, debated, and voted on. But that hasn’t been the case throughout the governor’s tenure.
For example, this year, the governor introduced a healthcare affordability bill that would have reduced costs. The Vermont House did not accept the vast majority of his ideas, and the full Senate didn’t even get a chance to hear them. That’s not how a legislature should work.
But if you look at the areas where the governor has been able to make decisions, we’re actually doing better. We have cleaner water than we used to. We have more support for our Vermont State Colleges and major universities to help stabilize tuition. We weathered both the pandemic and historic floods and came out stronger.
Now consider the areas in which the legislature has not been open to the governor’s ideas: property taxes, permitting reform, healthcare and housing. Those are the very same areas where Vermonters are struggling.
So why not try something different by voting for a local Vermont Republican legislative candidate?
These are not national Republicans. In fact, many, if not all, would be Democrats in most other states. Our governor and lieutenant governor have both been vocal about not supporting Trump.
If we don’t like what these legislators offer, we can vote them out in two years.
We must try something different. As the old saying goes, doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is the definition of insanity.
Jerry Tarrant
Colchester