A bright future for Vermont.
Now, more than ever, we need leaders in statewide office who listen to Vermonters, who understand their challenges, and who know how to invest in our future.
As we face an unprecedented economic, health, and humanitarian crisis, and justifiable social unrest, we must elect leaders who share Vermont’s values of hard work, resilience, innovation and care for our neighbors. We must elect leaders who will collaborate with our communities and statewide officials to address the challenges we face and build a bright future for Vermont.
Fighting for Social, Racial, and Economic Justice
As the Black Lives Matter movement sweeps the country, building on the fearless and tireless work of civil rights leaders and racial justice warriors who came before, it is an absolute imperative that we Vermonters confront systemic racism, eliminate police brutality, and reform our criminal justice system.
I have always been proud to be a Vermonter, in large part because of the progressive and inclusive spirit of our state, and our fierce commitment to freedom and unity. But we are far from perfect, and as the whitest state in the country, we must examine our systems and institutions, and take action to ensure safety, justice, and opportunity for all. As the first state to legalize same-sex marriage through our legislature, I know we can lead again in this critical time.
Demilitarize the Police and Invest in Safety, Deescalation, and Community Services
The people who sign up to protect and serve our communities as frontline workers, including police officers, deserve our gratitude and respect. However, with generations of failed police reforms, we need to fundamentally rethink the institution itself. We ask too much of our officers who constantly double as social workers, mediators, and medical responders. They are called on to deal with mental illness, domestic abuse, addiction, homelessness, and poverty, without the proper training and support. The militarization of police forces has made unstable encounters with law enforcement even more dangerous, leading to civilian deaths and the erosion of public trust and safety. To start, we must eliminate programs that funnel military equipment to local police departments, reassess our use of force standards, and end harmful policing practices such as racial profiling, no-knock warrants, and chokeholds. As we take steps to demilitarize police forces, we must also invest in mental health services, education, affordable healthcare, and other human rights-based solutions to peacekeeping and the strengthening of our communities.
End Mass Incarceration and Transform Vermont’s Criminal Justice System
I am committed to ending mass incarceration and transforming our criminal justice system toward rehabilitation and reentrance. The United States imprisons more people than any other nation in the world, disproportionately incarcerating Black and Brown people with devastating effects on families and communities. Again and again, the evidence has shown that our system is broken. As a starting point, we must stop criminalizing poverty and mental health. We must end our reliance on for-profit prisons, ensure a just and supportive re-entry process after release, and provide humane conditions in holding facilities.
Invest in Child Care and Education
Racial, social, and economic justice is not just about police reform, it is about investing in schools, healthcare, small businesses, and communities. Not only does every child deserve equal access to quality education and opportunities for advancement, but strong schools help children from running afoul of the juvenile, and later, adult justice system. Vermont has the capacity to have the best school system and family-friendly communities of any state in the country. It’s time we make that a reality.
A Diverse and Resilient Rural Economy for the 21st Century:
Raised in the changing landscape of Vermont, I am running for Lieutenant Governor to amplify the opportunities that our diverse rural economy presents for the future of Vermont. In envisioning Vermont’s future, I am inspired by our young farmers and our diverse food and agricultural economy. I’m inspired by our more than thirty community-led coworking spaces, innovative start-ups, home grown renewable energy pioneers, and Vermonters who serve our state as teachers, lawyers, tradespeople, first responders and healthcare workers. Our future is diverse, it is collaborative, it is inclusive, and I am excited by the prospects of what we can do together as we look forward.
Whole Communities - As Lieutenant Governor, I will work to support the trades that are most critical to our rural communities. We have learned through our greatest and most recent challenge, presented by COVID-19, that Vermont’s frontline workers are essential to our resilience. Maintaining critically low employment in skilled fields is not sustainable in an emergency -- nor will it be as we work to rebuild our local economy.
A Vermont Talent Pipeline - I am committed to workforce development to keep a generation home, and bring a generation here. I will partner with Vermont businesses to build a stronger and more diverse workforce pipeline from our high schools through to our technical schools and colleges on to the workforce.
Broadband and Essential Services - Through the COVID-19 emergency response we have seen what rural Vermonters have always known, that universal access to high-quality, high-speed internet is essential for the health and well-being of rural communities. I am committed to deploying broadband to every home in Vermont, as well as to protect and expand access to telemedicine, remote learning, online community building, and remote work infrastructure.
Economic Security - I will support and incentivize efforts to ensure livable wages, paid family and medical leave, child care assistance, student debt repayment, professional development and family healthcare.
Making Vermont the Best Place to Raise and Support Families:
As we navigate a once in a century challenge together, I am reminded everyday of why I chose to run for elected office. Vermonters inspire me with their selflessness, collaborative spirit, and strong sense of family and community. We will survive and thrive from these unprecedented challenges brought by COVID-19, because Vermonters know how to take care of each other. I believe, however, that our elected officials should take care of our families as well. It is time for Vermont’s leadership to reflect the values of our communities. From infants to elders, I am committed to helping Vermont be the best place to raise and support families.
Universal Paid Family And Medical Leave - No Vermonter should have to choose between keeping a roof over their head and caring for family. As Lieutenant Governor I will work to advance an equitable paid family and medical leave bill.
Affordable and Accessible High Quality Child Care - In response to COVID-19, our Vermont families are making a heroic effort to keep all of us safe by balancing homeschooling and full-time child care alongside remote work, jobs in essential response, or unexpected unemployment. We now know what I have always believed, that accessible and high quality child care is essential for Vermont parents to be able to do their best work. I will continue to support expanded access to affordable and high quality child care for all Vermont families.
Caring for Vermont’s Elders - We have heard and understand Vermont’s demographic challenges as they relate to the workforce, but I also care about our aging population as it relates to our ability to care for each other. Vermonters deserve our every resource as they look to age in dignity and good health. For some, this may mean safe residential care, for others, this may mean access to professional caregivers who can support aging in place.
Reproductive Healthcare for All Vermonters - I support every Vermonter’s right to choose or to refuse contraception, pregnancy, or parenthood. Every Vermonter should be able to choose the course of their life. I support permanent and equal access to reproductive choice, the expansion of sexual health education, access to contraception, and continued funding for Vermont’s reproductive health providers.
Preserving our Working Lands and Environment for Future Generations:
Growing up nourished by food grown on the family farm, skiing and hiking our outdoors, and swimming in the crystal waters of our lakes and rivers, I know our working lands and natural environment are what attract people to our state and bring us together. To support the health and well-being of Vermonters post COVID-19 we must come together to preserve, protect and sustainably utilize our natural resources. Together, we also share a responsibility to ensure that future generations will know the landscape we love so much. Climate change is a threat to everything that makes Vermont so special, and climate action represents the greatest economic opportunity of our time.
Investing in our Working Lands - At the heart of our communities, and at the root of a prosperous and secure food economy, are our local farms. As Lieutenant Governor, I will drive support for our diverse agricultural economy so that it is resilient to generational transitions, a changing marketplace, labor challenges, unpredictable weather, and disaster. I will work with our dynamic and connected community of Vermont farmers and invest in their efforts to innovate value-added products and to promote food security for Vermont.
An Energy Independent Future - Every year, Vermonters collectively spend over a billion dollars heating their homes and businesses and commuting to school and work. Right now, this investment goes largely to out-of-state fossil fuel companies rather than circulating in our local economy. As Lieutenant Governor, I will work to incentivize investment in renewable energy programs that are equitable, transparent and good for our economy and support policies to make investment possible, including the Global Warming Solutions Act and the Transportation Climate Initiative.
Investing in Green Jobs and Industry - In order to build climate resilient communities, we need to support and encourage Vermonters to fill skilled jobs for an energy independent Vermont. Vermont can lead, and look to our public utilities, efficiency utilities, renewable energy companies, and businesses who continue to find success through a commitment to environmental stewardship.