Full text of Markowitz announcement speech: “Douglas has created a culture that is anti-business”

Secretary of State Deb Markowitz

Candidacy Announcement Speech

March 8, 2010

Thank you. Thank you for being here. It’s great to see you. I have known many of you for a good long time. Lots of you are friends and colleagues I’ve worked with during the past 12 years. It’s been great serving as your Secretary of State. I have felt honored by your trust in me , and I have never taken it for granted. I am humbled by your support.

But, I am under no illusion that you came here today just for me or for this campaign. I know you have come here for more than that. You have come here because we need to infuse our state with new energy. You have come here for your sons and daughters, your grandchildren and your great grandchildren.

You have come here for our future.

You have come here for Vermont.

We live in the most beautiful state in America. Don’t you feel the difference every time you cross the border and see the sign “Welcome to Vermont”? Our farms and forests – our rivers and lakes – our neat village centers and rugged mountains are all part of the landscape of Vermont. But so, also, is our old fashioned Vermont spirit –tough, self-sufficient and practical – valuing the importance of community – of working together towards common purpose.

Vermont’s motto truly speaks volumes: Freedom and Unity. We value individual freedom and hard work.

We also believe in strong communities—that we all do better when we work together – when we take care of each other and our environment.

It’s these values that have enabled us to preserve our way of life, our hopes and dreams. It’s these values that will help us to succeed during these tough times.

It’s these values that will also help us to answer those kitchen-table questions families and small businesses are asking these days: How can we pay the heating bill? Can we afford the increase in health insurance? What can we cut out of the monthly budget now? Will we have to close the store and lay off our employees? Will I lose my job?

These questions are all too common right now. Families, farmers, small businesses have been struggling. And, rather than providing answers, these questions have too often been met by politicians with false starts and broken promises.

The failure of leadership has been stark. The gridlock in Montpelier has undermined our ability to move forward as a state. I understand the challenges are great.

Some folks have asked why I would even want to be Governor right now – with all of the challenges we are facing. Well, I am here to tell you today and to tell all Vermonters: I want to be your governor.

I am ready to lead this state; and, together, with lots of energy, lots of smarts, lots of hard work and a little luck: we can jump start Vermont, change Montpelier, grow jobs and build a strong future for our children.

Today, I officially accept this challenge and ask for your support as I run for governor of the state of Vermont.

I know Vermont in a lot of unique ways. As a college student at UVM, I learned how to think independently.

I pushed myself academically and experienced the value of giving back by volunteering in Burlington.

I even fell in love along the way. Paul and I had our first date under a tree just off Prospect St. on the UVM campus.

Paul likes to think of that part of my UVM record as most important. (laugh line). It is honey, really…

But I had another important influence driving me at that time: my friend and mentor Madeleine Kunin: Many people don’t know this, but I got to know Madeleine Kunin in college, because I was her waitress.

I can still remember Madeleine’s advice to me.  She said:  “Deb you have to promise me that if you ever get the chance to run for office, you’ll do it.

“Because Deb, it isn’t enough for women to be at the table; we aren’t going to change things for women and families until we’re at the head of the table.”

Many years later, when I was thinking about taking on a two-term incumbent Secretary of State, these words came back to me. Madeleine’s words had a tremendous impact.

Paul and I moved to Washington DC, a little begrudgingly, so I could go to law school. I would miss Vermont, but I wanted to learn how to serve and how to advocate.

I came back to Vermont ready to put ideals into action. I clerked with one of Vermont’s most conservative Supreme Court Justices, Louis Peck, and then I went to work for Langrock, Sperry and Wool, the law firm that led our state to be the first in the nation to provide true equality to gay and lesbian couples.

Then, I went to work for the Vermont League of Cities and Towns – where I learned to love public service by working with the local elected officials who run our towns across Vermont.

When Paul and I returned to Vermont we expected to be active in our community – but he and I never thought it would lead me to run for public office.

I am not a professional politician.  I ran for statewide office having never been elected to anything.  I had never had a photo op schmoozed, networked, kissed babies—other than my own—or plotted out a ten year plan to be elected governor of VT.

Instead,  I ran for statewide office because I was working to help state and local governments around VT, and realized the Secretary of States’ office wasn’t providing  services worthy our people.

Services that could mean the difference between a business succeeding or failing, services that could  mean consumers being cheated or voting rights left unprotected.  I knew we could do better, and I was the Vermonter who could make this happen

And it has been a great 12 years as Secretary of State. I have accomplished so much with all of you by my side, but my greatest accomplishment these past years are the people standing next to me now. Paul and I wanted to raise Aviva, Sandra and Ari in a place that shared our values.

(Aviva sends her regards – but she is in Georgia right now – spring training for her ultimate Frisbee team).

Paul and I wanted to make a home where our kids would receive an excellent public education; where quality of life mattered; where our children would be surrounded and grow up appreciating the beauty of the outdoors and the safety of our communities.

The very reasons we moved here and made a commitment to raise our family here are the same reasons I am now running for Governor.

I am running for Governor to get Vermont working again. I am running so all Vermont kids will get an education that prepares them to thrive and trains them for good paying jobs right here. I am running to protect what makes us great. Our strong communities, our quality of life, our natural environment, and our hardworking, independent spirit.

Now, all that sounds good. But maybe you’re thinking, “I’ve heard all this before.” A long string of candidates for office have said similar things—and many of them even meant it! We all know, that words are meaningless without action.

For the past decade, business in Montpelier often seemed like one logjam after another. People often ask me if politicians can really get anything done – even kids ask me this when I go into schools to talk about government and politics.

My answer to them, and to you, is YES! I know that elected officials can make a positive difference in people’s lives. But I also know we haven’t seen this for a while. I may be running against four other Democrats in the primary, but what I’m really running against is “business as usual” in our state.

Those in the legislature and the administration have run things the same old way for a long time now. Don’t get me wrong; they’re good people–elected to do important things. But there has too often been a lack of leadership – a focus on politics rather than on practical solutions.

But these times are different—tougher and more complex. There’s just not enough creative thinking from the legislature—and the administration—to address our state’s most pressing need: to get Vermont working again. We can’t keep doing the same things over and over again and expect different results.

Things need to be shaken up. We need an infusion of energy – of new leadership. One of the things I have learned from spending the last two decades working with every town in Vermont and with small businesses across the state, is that not all of our answers come from Montpelier.

So let’s get to work.

Our current administration has created a culture that is, frankly, anti-business.

I don’t buy into the false choice we’ve been sold, that pro-environment is anti-jobs.

We will succeed as a state precisely because of our quality of life – the fact that we have preserved our environment, that we still have village centers, that we value community involvement.

Recently, Brian Dubie was in Burlington meeting business leaders. They voiced their frustration with the Douglas administration and with the high cost of doing business in Vermont. How did Dubie respond? He said he vowed to look every business leader in the eye.

Well, I vow to do a lot more than look you in the eye. I’ll get to work….to get us back to work.

To re-energize our state and jump start job creation, my administration will focus on investment, innovation, and infrastructure. We will invest in our workforce, support innovation and make sure we have the infrastructure for success.

As Governor, I’ll make sure we maintain our roads and bridges, but I will also get us back on track with investment in rail.

But my first priority—will be to make sure affordable high speed internet is available across the state.

High speed internet is no longer a luxury – it is a necessity. Areas of Vermont still on dial up will be completely left out of our economic recovery. There have been a lot of empty promises about high speed internet in Vermont.

In fact, the Governor first promised that he would get fast internet across Vermont by 2007 – later he promised 2010.

The problem is that we have been relying on Comcast and Fairpoint to get this done. I think we need a new approach. High speed internet must be treated like a public utility – it is the electricity of today.

Last summer, friends who own a Bed and Breakfast in North Bennington almost went under because their internet service was unreliable – they had Fairpoint – and their website went down, and with it their online reservations for the fall foliage season.

Also – there is a lot of talk about keeping our kids in Vermont. If we want our kids to stay here – or to move back after getting an education and seeing the world – we must have high speed internet. Right kids? You aren’t moving back to a place where you can’t get on facebook or you-tube?

Just like I did as Secretary of State, we need to innovate. We need to change from a culture of red tape and bureaucracy to a culture of customer service.

As governor, I will be committed to addressing the inequities in our tax system that makes it harder for small businesses to succeed.

Across Vermont, I hear from our struggling small businesses about the effect of property taxes, unemployment taxes, workers compensation taxes and the corporate income tax on their ability to grow and thrive.

It is time to take a look at what kind of incentives our tax code creates – to make sure our taxes are fair and effective.

Before I became Secretary of State, businesses were required to jump through too many bureaucratic hoops—costing them precious time and money. But now, businesses are up and running quicker, because we cut red tape, reduced and even eliminated some fees, and, using the internet – we made Vermont open for business 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Our Community Business Connections project created a website with all the information Vermonters need to start or expand a business and partners with our communities to help small businesses succeed.

In 2009 alone, I helped over 8,000 businesses in Vermont open their doors. Over a hundred thousand businesses were helped by my office over the past 12 years.

But that’s not enough. There is so much more that can and must be done to get our economy back on track.

I know all of the answers to Vermont’s problems don’t lie in Montpelier. As governor, I’ll continue to roll up my sleeves and work with Vermonters across the state and across the political spectrum.

First off – we need to actually have a strategy or road map for economic development. For far too long we have had no plan. We flailed at job creation. Pouring millions of tax dollars into incentives for out-of-state companies— hoping to poach the next IBM or Husky.

Instead, we have seen unemployment rise over five points and layoffs approaching 20,000 Vermonters.

In my economic plan, we will be putting Vermont’s existing businesses first. That’s the best way to quickly expand our economy and create jobs.

We need to create capital investment funds to ensure that our businesses on Main St. can get the loans they need to meet a payroll, buy inventory or invest in the equipment that will foster job growth.

When we look outside of Vermont let’s focus on the industries where we know we can succeed – software development, green energy, wood products, healthy lifestyle-tourism, and bio-tech are all examples of industry sectors that are already here and ready to grow.

I’ll also be the chief marketing officer for our state. We’ve had eight years of a governor talking about how bad Vermont is for business. This kind of talk creates a self-fulfilling prophecy.

We should insist on better from our elected officials, especially the man — or woman — at the top.

In fact, the key to starting this economic turnaround might just be the positive message spoken time and time again by an energetic governor, that Vermont is ready and very much open for business.

Vermont’s brand is a major asset. When I travel to visit friends and family, I am encouraged and optimistic when I see Grafton and Cabot cheese, Green Mountain Coffee, and 7th Generation cleaning products front and center in their stores. Our value-added products must be part of our economic plan and I will make sure the governor’s office is a soap box for marketing Vermont products.

That includes what we produce from the farm, from the field and from the forest.

We must adopt smart policies that keep prices down, keep people healthy and keep farmers connected to our local communities.

One out of three children born today will develop diabetes. We need to ask why we are feeding our students sugar-filled foods when we produce healthy local foods on our farms?

Even the chocolate milk in our schools is from out of state and full of corn syrup unlike Vermont-made chocolate milk.

This may seem like small thing, but it is the symptom of a larger issue. Vermont lacks the bottling facilities to carton the milk. This is just more of the same. We need common sense planning that helps our farmers and makes our children healthier.

And speaking of milk, we must help our struggling dairy farmers. There are no easy answers to the challenges our family farmers face. I’ll work with the best congressional delegation in America, to protect their rights to compete, thrive and inspire a new generation of farmers.

In 12 years as Secretary of State, I never lost the energy to get things done. Whether it was ensuring that we have the best voting systems in the country – or protecting victims of domestic violence – or making sure consumers were protected from fraud and abuse.

I’m running for governor to continue to get things done for Vermont.

Speaking of not getting it done: the health care debate at the federal level is too filled with sniping and ideological back-biting. Our economic future depends on getting this right.

Vermont can show the country that single-payer works.

In Vermont, we are small enough to self- insure, so that everyone pays and everyone gets access to care.

This makes sense from a moral perspective – but it also is the only way to halt the escalating cost of health care that is literally bankrupting families and small businesses.

We also must plan for our energy future as a state: A future without Vermont Yankee.

With proper planning the transition from Vermont Yankee will create new jobs for Vermonters. That’s why I have already called for the creation of a Green Zone in Southern Vermont. We should be spurring development of a series of renewable energy business incubators for Vermont’s displaced workers.

Vermont has the technical expertise, the natural resources and, most importantly, the environmental ethic to play a significant role in the clean energy economy. We have some of the leading innovators in green energy right here in Vermont.

I know the cost of power matters for our businesses, families and communities. I pay the bills for my family and, for nearly 12 years, the Secretary of State’s office.

Right now, we can enter into short term contracts, with a good rate, that will benefit consumers, while we begin the transition to Vermont renewable energy – like solar, biomass, hydro-electric and wind.

I don’t believe wind is appropriate everywhere – but it is appropriate in many places, especially with community buy-in.

We must also discuss a new long-term power contract with our other electricity partner – Hydro-Quebec.

Hydro-Quebec offers us a great opportunity to talk about a long term, low-rate contract in exchange for helping them bring power through Vermont to the rest of New England.

And finally, we must increase our investments in energy efficiency. The cheapest kilowatt is the one we don’t use.

Redoubling our investments in efficiency reduces costs for families and businesses, reduces our carbon footprint and creates good jobs.

Energy is important, but education is vital.

When I speak to employers I hear that we need to better prepare our kids for the jobs of today. Did you know that one out of five of our kids don’t graduate high school? What jobs can you think of today for the kids without the most basic of diplomas? We must not fail these kids.

We need to make sure our schools are preparing every child – even the ones who learn differently – for a good job. Even if our children work hard and get through high school, the cost of tuition at most colleges is just too high.

Paul and I have had to remortgage our house to pay for Aviva’s tuition and we have two more graduating from high school soon.

That’s what families across Vermont are facing. We have to support our institutions of higher learning and scholarship programs that make it possible for Vermont’s kids to get the education they need to succeed.

The future of education – and the future for our kids – will depend on our ability to bend the cost curve in education.

First, let me say that this is an area where I strongly disagree with Jim Douglas. Our cost problems are not because we are too generous to our teachers. With three kids who have gone through the Montpelier public schools, I know how hard teachers work to prepare our students to excel in either college or career. Our challenge is a challenge of demographics. With fewer students entering our schools we have the challenge of containing our costs. For every five students there is one adult in our schools. This is not sustainable.

62 supervisory unions create too much administrative overhead. I know that we can preserve local control, so school boards can concentrate on important local issues, while not worrying about every school district ordering its own envelopes and pencils.

As governor, I’ll make Montpelier move on education reform that is meaningful and lasting. We will reduce costs, while keeping our eye on what’s most important – our kids.

While I respect their service, of all the Democratic candidates, I stand here before you as the only candidate with executive experience in Vermont.

I have found inefficiencies in government and eliminated them. I cut a state budget, and improved services, while helping Vermont businesses and saving taxpayers millions.

We have to change the way we do business in Vermont plain and simple. We are running a deficit that nears $150 million. We can’t afford to waste a single tax dollar.

I understand budgets. I’ve managed an $8.5 million dollar office. We’ve gone up against budget cuts and I’ve found efficiencies, eliminated waste and reorganized to do more with less—and I’ll do it again as your governor. Last year, I took over Governor Douglas’ Public Records Division. I identified and eliminated work that was outdated and unnecessary. We had a whole department—nine employees—microfilming records. Of course these days – all of our records are digital.

No one ever asked if this made sense.

What was going on in the Department of Public Records—a little-known, behind-the-scenes office—is an example of what happens to government when no one is asking the question why?

And when no one is holding our government accountable. As Governor, I’ll be tough on waste. I’ll carry a big ruler into office and resize our government to put Vermont back on the right track.

As your Governor, we will do more with less, but we will not skimp on the services that make us a great state to live in—that keep us whole and prepare us for the future.

I was at the grocery store and an older man stopped me…he took my arm and he said:

“Deb, I’m 75years old. I’m on a fixed income. I’m worried about how I am going to heat my home this winter, afford my prescriptions and pay the bills. But forget me: What keeps me up at night is my son. He was just laid off. I am worried about him, his wife and my grand kids. Deb, something’s got to change.”

I am running for that gentleman at the grocery store, for his son, and for his grandkids.

We need more than ideas to help this man and get his son back to work. Others before me had ideas. But we need to win. I beat a two-term incumbent to become Secretary of State. I’ve won six statewide elections. I’ve won with Republicans and Progressives in the race. In fact, I have won every single town in this state. I have never lost a race and, with your help, I’m going to continue this winning streak.

Paul and I have loved living, working and raising our family here. And we are committed to ensuring that all of our children and grand children have the same opportunity for a good life in Vermont.

Vermont’s first Governor, Thomas Chittenden used the following words on his epitaph:

“Out of storm and manifold perils rose an enduring state, the home of freedom and unity.”

As your governor, I will lead us out of this storm and we will rise higher for what we have endured. We will continue our commitment to freedom and unity. I will bring energy and determination to the task, and I have confidence that, together, we can face the challenges of the new decade.

Thank you.