Bernie Sanders Faces Feisty Democratic Challenger

[karynnj]

128. I tried to answer your question

Compared to both Indiana and NJ, the only other places I have lived, party is LESS an issue in Vermont. True, we have a Democratic party, Republican party and, in some areas, a progressive party, but people really do try to hear all major candidates. (This is so not like NJ, where close friends of mine in my neighborhood turned down invitations to meet the candidate forums, explaining they were Republicans.) Note that the same Vermont electorate that re-elected Leahy by a landslide gave the Republican, Phil Scott, a pretty clear win as Governor.

In some ways, VT is like what friends of mine describe in MA. There is a very involved electorate. I attended a city council meeting last night where there were easily over 200 people. Last week, our NPA (2 of the wards) had between 50 to 75 people last Thursday. The issue at both was how a major road is configured. Burlington has around 42,000 people. At the town council, there was over 2 hours of open forum which continued until all who wanted their 2 minutes had their say.

Like Massachusetts, there is a strong demand that elected officials engage with the people. The mayor of Burlington's schedule includes things like always being at the bagel shop in the North end early Wednesday morning where people in our area can bring issues to him. In 25 years, I never had such a meeting with the mayor of the small (about 16,000) town in NJ.

I honestly do not see blind party loyalty as either noble or obvious. For Governor, I would be open to voting for the person who has the same values on issues as me, if they are the better person running. Given my positions, it will take a very atypical Republican - something that is less and less likely! For the House or Senate, if someone caucusing with the Democrats is possible, that makes a huge difference.

Even in NJ, if the Republicans had a far better candidate for Governor (never happened), I would have voted for him or her. I did strategically vote for Millicent Fenwick in the Republican primary in my very very red district when she was against a far right candidate with considerable support. I was not alone in this - and it made sense because a Democrat was never going to win the district in the general election. It led to the election being Fenwick vs a Democrat rather than a RW Republican vs a Democrat -- where the Democrat, who I voted for in the general election, had no chance of winning. However, I did not even consider not voting or voting for the Republican in 2002 when we knew that Torricelli was pretty bad. I was saved from that terrible vote when he dropped out and Lautenberg ran. Here, the reason was control of the Senate. Had a Republican won the NJ seat in 2002, we would NOT have regained the Senate in 2006.

In the case of Sanders, there is no such consideration. he will caucus with the Democrats. So, even for a transplant like me, my vote will be between the candidates on the ballot, who would caucus with the Democrats. As in 2002, I would not vote for the Republican, even if he/she were an exceptional person. We need the caucus vote! Sanders will give us that - and, at least with this opponent, he is not a good choice in any way.

Here is VPR's article on Svitausky - http://digital.vpr.net/post/little-known-challengers-seek-unseat-bernie-sanders-2018#stream/0
Is this someone you would see as a good Senator?

Svitavsky has had some legal problems of his own. Last year, a federal judge ordered Svitavsky to pay more than $48,000 to the people who purchased his Ripton home from him and his then-wife in 2002. The judge found that Svitavsky knowingly failed to communicate to the buyers that an addition built onto the house encroached on government-owned land.

Svitavsky says he didn’t build the addition, and that the lawsuit and judgment were “all nonsense.”

“It’s almost a moot point, because I don’t have any money” to pay the judgment, Svitavsky says.

Svitavsky also filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Maine in 2011.

If Sanders opts not to run - due to health or legal problems, there are many many serious Vermont Democrats, with strong records of accomplishment in state government or as mayors who would be interested if Peter Welch, the Congressman was not interested. Most likely it would be Welch who would run and he is a wonderful representative.