In the end, Bruce Lisman decided he could accomplish more outside of politics than inside.
Lisman, a former executive at the New York investment bank Bear Stearns and founder of the advocacy group Campaign for Vermont, said Wednesday that he will not run for governor and would instead focus on the promotion of “common-sense government reforms.”
Lisman said in an interview Wednesday that he listened to those who encouraged him to run against incumbent Gov. Peter Shumlin and decided “a little bit ago” not to run. He said his organization will focus on long-term solutions to Vermont’s problems through its lobbying and policy efforts.
“I think we need a different approach that is nonpartisan and moderate,” he said. “We want to spur a conversation (about Vermont issues) and being a candidate would undermine that notion and would obscure, not clarify, our effort.”
Lisman, who many speculated would have run as an independent, said Campaign for Vermont would not endorse any political candidates.
“I think we are better off not being connected with any political party,” he said.
His decision narrows the field of announced challengers for Shumlin to one, Emily Peyton of Putney, who announced last week that she had secured enough signatures to qualify for the Republican ballot. She does not have the backing of party officials, however, and North Pomfret businessman Scott Milne is weighing a run for the GOP nomination.
Lisman said his organization will propose “specific ideas to solve specific problems,” citing progress in lobbying for an ethics policy in the Vermont Legislature last session. Campaign for Vermont hired the Montpelier-based lobby firm Capital Connections to leads its Statehouse effort.
Lisman said the organization would focus on changes Vermonters have told him were needed.
Those issues include: job growth and economic development, the creation of ethics guidelines for public officials, the need for transparency on how a publicly funded health care system would be paid for in Vermont, and streamlining the state’s education governance structure.
“I will focus on showcasing the public’s growing frustration about these issues and the need to implement tangible solutions for true change, change that Vermonters are demanding,” Lisman said in a news release.
“Vermonters have made it clear they are not satisfied with the direction of the state and I will make it my mission to influence citizen-led forward progress.”
Lisman’s news release called for, among other things:
• “Need for Transparency with the Development of the Single-Payer Health Care System. With a projected cost of more than $2 billion annually for Vermonters, it is imperative that all financing aspects of Governor Shumlin’s health care plan be immediately disclosed to Vermonters and continue to be disclosed as they are developed. Lisman supports affordable, accessible universal health care for all Vermonters.”
• “Better Use of Education Dollars, Supporting an Exceptional Education System and Reducing Property Taxes. We’re at risk of breaking the intergenerational partnership. We spend a lot for only above average results. We can retain local control, reconnect local citizens with local budgets, streamline and refocus the educational infrastructure, and eliminate most of our supervisory unions, replacing them with 15 local education districts and realigning them with Career and Technical Education Centers.”
This article was updated at 3 p.m. Wednesday.
