Inside the red brick walls of the Vermont College of Fine Arts’ Alumni Hall, Sanders preached to a choir of roughly 475 supporters about his vision for Vermont. The ideal Vermont, he said, would offer universal health care, more educational opportunities and a civil political environment.
“We can be the model for America,” Sanders proclaimed to wild cheers. “To create that vision, to become that model, we need high quality leadership.”
At the rally, Sanders officially offered a thumbs up to every Democrat running statewide this year.
The lineup included incumbents like U.S. Rep. Peter Welch and Auditor Doug Hoffer, as well as first-time statewide candidates Sue Minter, who is running for governor on the Democratic ticket, and David Zuckerman, a Progressive/Democrat making a bid for lieutenant governor.
Sanders even endorsed Patrick Leahy, the senior senator who in the presidential election endorsed Clinton for president.
Between endorsement announcements, candidates took turns sharing their visions for the future at a microphone on a long blue table. Many ideas fell in line with Sanders’ way of thinking.
Treasurer Beth Pearce — who is running for another two years — thanked Sanders for suggesting more progressive investment strategies. Pearce got some of the most raucous applause of the evening for her spunky presentation of the state’s wonky investment portfolio.
“We’ve got 33 million — we call that 10 percent in Vermont — we’ve got $33 million, we take it out of Wall Street, bring it here,” Pearce said to thunderous applause. “Investment in farms, invest in childcare, invest in housing and energy, investing in all the important pieces of our — of our — legacy. Our state, the fabric of our state.”
Sanders praised attorney general candidate T.J. Donovan for his work on criminal justice reform while serving as Chittenden County state’s attorney.
“As a Burlington boy who grew up in the Queen City during your terms as a mayor of that city, it is an honor to have your support,” Donovan told Sanders with nervous appreciation.
Speaking about Zuckerman, Sanders highlighted the candidate’s days as a political activist at the University of Vermont.
“I must confess that I have known David Zuckerman for a very, very long time,” Sanders said. “And when I first met him in Burlington he was busy registering thousands of young people to vote.”
While Sanders’ endorsement of Minter may be the most consequential, it was brief. Sanders didn’t expound on Minter’s policy proposals for the state, instead he assured the crowd that she would steer the state in a generally progressive direction.
Still, Minter beamed throughout Sanders’ remarks about her. In return, she showered praise on Sanders.
“Bernie, it’s your vision and your tenacity that has inspired me throughout my public service,” she said.
Minter didn’t endorse Sanders’ presidential bid until March, and Sanders’ recent endorsement of her and other Democrats also came rather late in the game — on October 13. (Sanders’ campaign manager Jeff Weaver, endorsed Matt Dunne in the Democratic primary.)
Still, the VPR poll has Minter in a virtual dead heat against Scott. Even a slightly-more-than tepid endorsement could give Minter the edge she needs.
In addition to the Friday event in Montpelier, Sanders will continue to boost Minter and the other statewide candidates in a weekend tour from Bennington to Burlington in an effort to ratchet up support for her in rural areas. Scott is leading in every part of the state, according to the VPR poll besides Chittenden County.
While Minter may not have been quite as progressive as Dunne in the primary, she articulated many of the same views Sanders expressed during his presidential run, from paid family leave measures to a plan aimed at making college accessible for more people.
“We cannot afford a governor who wants to put the pause button on progress,” Minter said in her speech.
She cast her opponent, Phil Scott, as a fairly conservative Republican, and she criticized the millions of dollars in ads for Scott paid bankrolled by the Republican Governors Association.
“Over $2 million already spent, and you know what, we have a message for them, Vermont is not for sale,” Minter said.
Minter has benefited from nearly $1 million in outside spending by the Democratic Governors Association.
Minter repeated to the crowd that “The polls are neck and neck” and “we absolutely cannot let up know.”
“The greatest resource in this election is you, and we need your help now more than ever,” Minter urged. “We need your contributions, we need you to sign up tonight to volunteer to make phone calls, to door knock. We are doing it all over the state, every single night and it is the way we are going to win this election.”
After Sanders’ endorsement of Minter, Sen. Leahy offered his own kind words for the former transportation secretary. Leahy said that he trusted Minter as he advocated in the Senate for a large federal recovery package after Tropical Storm Irene.
“I knew that Sue would make sure it was spent in a way that we could trust to get more money,” Leahy said. “Anyone impacted by that Tropical Storm Irene will tell you, ‘Sue delivers, she gets things done.’”
At the end of his remarks, Leahy added that Vice President Joe Biden — who spent Friday talking about his Cancer Moonshot project in Burlington — also believed that Minter was the right choice for the job.
Leahy and his wife, Marcelle, ate breakfast with Minter and Biden Friday morning.
In a subsequent car ride to the University of Vermont, Leahy recalled that the Vice President asked, “You two really like Sue Minter, don’t you?”
“Joe,” Leahy replied, “we are Vermonters, we live here, we want the best.”
“I think you’ve got the best,” Biden responded.
President Barack Obama also evidently thinks Minter is worthy of the job, as he has recently cut radio ads in support of her, according to the Washington Post.
