[S]OUTH BURLINGTON — Vermont Republican Party officials and legislative leaders aimed to project unity at their state convention Saturday, but their two gubernatorial hopefuls apparently didn’t get the memo.
“Ours is a message of hope, it is a message of individuality,” said Vermont GOP Chair David Sunderland in remarks laying out an ideal Republican world where smaller state government, fiscal responsibility and personal freedoms are prioritized.
“It can happen,” Sunderland added. “But to happen, it has to be all of us working together, and I know that it will be.”
Soon after, the party’s two gubernatorial primary candidates — Phil Scott and Bruce Lisman — tore at each other in blistering remarks.
Scott spoke first.
“I always treat people the way I want to be treated,” the lieutenant governor said, adding he had never run negative campaign ads in an election.
He then held up a piece of campaign literature circulated by Lisman’s organization. Scott called the mailer — which aimed to portray him as an ally to Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin — an example of tactics that are “not the Vermont way.”
“This is D.C. tactics at its worst, and it’s not something we need in Vermont,” Scott continued. “I gave Bruce a pass when he did the opposition research on me initially and said he had no idea who paid for it.”
“But I can’t give him a pass on this,” Scott said. “At least he’s showing me his stripes.”
Scott then tossed the mailer on the ground, where it remained when Lisman approached the podium for his own remarks to the crowd.
“No one, and I mean no one, in government has listened to you or your neighbors,” Lisman began.
“Phil is a nice guy, he has good intentions,” Lisman continued. “I supported him in his runs for lieutenant governor. But good intentions won’t move us in a new direction. Simply getting along isn’t the formula for success. He’s had 15 years to make a difference, to make a mark, and I believe he hasn’t.”
The fiery remarks were short, and the two gubernatorial candidates spent most of their time criticizing Democrats.
They each offered conservative ideas they said were absent from state policy, including lower taxes, budget reform and competent leadership. Scott reiterated his calls for 90-day legislative sessions and a two-year budget cycle. Both the candidates said budget growth should be limited over the next few years to bring spending in line with revenue.
In their remarks neither Scott nor Lisman spoke about the party division and controversy surrounding Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, who narrowly won the Vermont Republican primary in March.
But while the two have tried to avoid entanglement in the national scuffle, Scott and Lisman have come to serve totem roles for the split in Vermont over how to approach Trump’s candidacy.
Scott has said he wouldn’t support Trump, while Lisman hasn’t yet given an answer, though his statements on the matter have stressed national party unity.
“Nationally, voters have said, ‘Enough is enough, let’s choose a different direction,’” Lisman said Saturday. “Now isn’t the time to go with the flow.”
Nearly every Republican legislator has endorsed Scott — 56 of the 61, to be exact — and many of them have followed Scott in their attitudes toward Trump.
One of them, Senate Minority Leader Joe Benning, R-Caledonia, said he saw no issue with Scott’s decision to distance himself from Trump, and he offered his own criticism of the party’s standard bearer.
“I don’t know whether or not we are going to see some attempt at training (Trump), or something,” Benning said. “This is the leader of the free world — that carries a big burden. Not only do they represent themselves, they represent us, and America, to the world at large.”
Rep. Paul Dame, R-Essex Junction, reiterated his pledge not to vote for Trump, saying he was eyeing the Libertarian ticket. He added that maybe he would write in former Gov. Jim Douglas, as Scott has pledged to do.
Dame said Republicans on the state and national levels get into trouble by building the party around personality, not policy.
“The party here in Vermont was built around Jim Douglas,” Dame said. “And when Douglas left the party it started to wither away.”
Legislators at the convention wore Phil Scott stickers, and a number even ripped off the lower half of their convention credentials, which bore $5,000 paid advertisements from the Lisman and Trump campaigns.
Although every Republican candidate who spoke Saturday was given a warm reception, Scott and lieutenant gubernatorial candidate Randy Brock were the only two who received standing ovations from the crowd of roughly 350 committed party volunteers and activists.
Amid his sharp remarks criticizing the current leadership on issues from energy policy to the Vermont Health Connect website, Brock noted very bluntly that the lieutenant governor takes over should the governor die.
“The job of the lieutenant governor, of course, is to wake up every morning and inquire about the health of the governor,” Brock said. “Which is why both of our candidates have said the first person they are going to appoint if I’m elected is a food taster.”
“But you know, it’s a deadly serious issue,” Brock continued. “Because five times in Vermont history you have a sudden case in which the lieutenant governor has had to assume — suddenly — the office of governor.”
While signs of tension were present, the convention was tame in comparison to some of the fireworks happening nationally. Fights have erupted at rallies over disagreements, and the candidates, including Trump, have used crude and accusatory language, often in personal terms.
The state GOP convention delegates were pleasant and spoke excitedly about their slate of candidates.
Trump supporters handed out T-shirts, lawn signs and stickers. Some sense of party unification over Trump was evident as Republicans took the T-shirts and discussed the candidate. Cheryl Donlan, who was running the billionaire businessman’s booth, said she had talked to many supporters but acknowledged a few people had taken Trump signs with the express interest of vandalizing them.
Alex Willette, a former assistant Republican leader in the Maine House of Representatives, spoke on behalf of Trump. He told Vermont Republicans about the efforts to turn his state red.
“Maine was a blue state for more than 40 years,” he said. “But by taking the Republican message to the voters, especially the blue-collar working class folks, and fighting for their support, we were able to be successful and win the governor’s mansion and the state Legislature back.”
“We’ve been successful at turning Maine purple,” Willette added. “And hopefully Vermont will use some of the tactics we’ve used to their advantage.”
Trump’s Vermont operation is gearing up under the leadership of Darcie Johnston, who called on Scott to endorse Trump.
“I think the Trump supporters are very supportive, and the will of the primary in March is important,” she said. “I hope Lt. Gov. Scott comes around and supports the presidential nominee.”
Johnston said another visit from Trump was possible during the general election and that she has been given access to the email list created from his January rally in Burlington.
“I’m not going to disclose how big it is, but I suspect it’s the biggest list in Vermont,” Johnston said. “It’s huge.”
Sixteen Vermont Republican delegates will vote during the national convention. Eight of them are pledged to Trump and eight to Ohio Gov. John Kasich on the first ballot, based on the results of the Vermont primary. Three party officials were already delegates before Saturday’s voting to select the others: Party Chair David Sunderland, GOP national committeeman Jay Shepard and national committeewoman Susie Hudson.
Below is a list of the 13 remaining delegates who were chosen in voting Saturday, in order of vote tallies from high to low:
Suzanne Butterfield
Deb Billado
Wendy Wilton
Jace Laquerre
Chet Greenwood
Rick Cochran
Paul Dame
Janssen Willhoit
Darcie Johnston
Pam Ackerson
Laura Benner
Bob Bouchard
Sharon Greenwood
