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sabrina 1

(62,325 posts)
Sat Aug 11, 2012, 02:13 PM Aug 2012

Sen. Bernie Sanders: Single Payer Now

Bernie is asking for our support for the Democratic Governor of Vermont, Peter Shumlin. He wants to get Single Payer passed in Vt and believes that Shumlin will fight to get that passed in Vt. I really like this guy.



Gov. Shumlin has made Vt the first state to recognize Health Care as a Right not a Privilege.

Bernie's email asking for support for the re-election of Governor Peter Shumlin

Thank you very much for the political and financial support that you have provided me in my race for re-election as Vermont’s senator.

Today, I am asking for your support to help re-elect my friend Peter Shumlin as Vermont’s governor. Peter is, perhaps, the most progressive governor in the country and, because of his policies, is coming under fierce attack from his Republican opponent and the special interests that are opposed to his progressive agenda.

What happens in Vermont is of enormous importance to the rest of the country. If, under Governor Shumlin’s leadership, Vermont is successful in providing health care to all, protecting our environment, supporting family-based and organic agriculture, having one of the best educational systems in the country and promoting economic and social equality among all of our citizens, what we do here can become a model for other states and the entire nation.

Please help Governor Shumlin continue his bold work by making a contribution of $5, $50 or $100 right now.

https://services.myngp.com/ngponlineservices/contribution.aspx?X=C4RpN7Pe5bqP+1nvlUxnqIq6lI3R5yBGId2%2fhOJevz8%3d&b=780014

Let me give you just a few examples of what we’re trying to do in Vermont:

Today, the United States is the only country in the industrialized world that does not guarantee health care to all through a national health care program. The result is that 50 million Americans are uninsured and 45 thousand die each year because they don’t get to a doctor in time. Yet, despite all that, we spend almost twice as much per capita of what any other country spends on health care.

In Vermont, we intend to change all that. Governor Shumlin and the legislature are moving the state toward a single payer system that will provide quality health care to all of our people, lessen the financial burden on small businesses and be much more cost-effective than the current non-system. In Vermont, our health care dollars will be spent on keeping people healthy and well-treated, rather than on huge administrative and bureaucratic costs and excessive profits for insurance companies. If Vermont succeeds in developing a successful single payer health care system there is no question in my mind that other states will not be far behind and that, eventually, we will be able to move our nation toward a national health care program.

In Washington, despite all of the scientific evidence, the Republican Party rejects the reality of global warming and the devastating impact it is having now and will increasingly have on the United States and the entire planet. In Vermont, Governor Shumlin not only understands the reality of a warming planet, he is working aggressively to move Vermont toward energy efficiency and such sustainable energies as wind, solar, geo-thermal and bio-mass. Vermont already leads the country in terms of energy efficiency and the creation of green jobs but, if Peter is re-elected, we intend to do even more in the future.

Please help re-elect Governor Shumlin so that, in these difficult times, Vermont can be a bold example of what progressive leadership is all about. Please donate $5, $50 or $100 right now.

Thanks very much for continuing the fight for an America of social and economic justice. Let’s move forward together.

Sincerely,


Senator Bernie Sanders


Some of the emphasis is mine

Some information on Gov. Shumlin:

Peter Shumlin


On April 26, 2011, Governor Shumlin appeared on The Rachel Maddow Show via telephone where he discussed health care reform in his state. He said he believes in health care for all and stressed repeatedly "health care is a right, not a privilege".

On May 26, 2011, "Vermont became the first state to lay the groundwork for single-payer health care...when [Governor Shumlin] signed an ambitious bill aimed at establishing universal insurance coverage for all residents".[13]

On August 17, 2011, Governor Shumlin became the first sitting governor in the United States to preside over a same-sex wedding ceremony.[14]

On April 11, 2012, Shumlin was almost mauled by bears. Shumlin was chased by four bears that were raiding bird feeders on his property. Shumlin joked that Vermont "almost lost the governor," and added that he was within "three feet of getting 'arrrh.'"[15]

On May 16, 2012, Vermont became the first state to pass a gas fracking ban bill which was signed by Governor Shumlin. It's a hotly debated natural gas drilling technique that involves blasting chemical-laced water deep into the ground. He signed it at a ceremony in front of environmentalists and a group of high school students who pushed for it. [16]


Thanks Bernie for all you do!
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cali

(114,904 posts)
2. Shumlin is a good guy
Sun Aug 12, 2012, 04:26 AM
Aug 2012

I haven't seen any polling since the end of May, but I find it hard to believe that Randy Brock (R-tool) has made any inroads since then:

CASTLETON, Vt. -

"Despite the national numbers, Obama still holds a very comfortable lead in Vermont," said Rich Clark, director of the Castleton Polling Institute.

Clark says it's a good day to be a Democrat. Recent polls show Gov. Peter Shumlin and President Barack Obama would win by a landslide if elections were held today.

The numbers give Shumlin a decisive lead: 60 percent of Vermonter's say they'd re-elect Governor Shumlin; 27 percent say they'd vote for Republican challenger Randy Brock and 11 percent say they're not sure.

President Obama is putting up similar numbers in the Green Mountain State: 59 percent of Vermonters say they'd re-elect president Obama, 28 percent say they'd vote for Mitt Romney and 6 percent say they're not sure.

<snip>

http://www.wcax.com/story/18579959/poll-shumlin-would-win-gubernatorial-race

sabrina 1

(62,325 posts)
4. Yeah, he seems like a good guy. If this is true, it's good news:
Sun Aug 12, 2012, 12:55 PM
Aug 2012
The numbers give Shumlin a decisive lead: 60 percent of Vermonter's say they'd re-elect Governor Shumlin; 27 percent say they'd vote for Republican challenger Randy Brock and 11 percent say they're not sure.


That's a big lead, I hope it holds until November. I don't know anything about the Repub.

Thanks for the link.

What about Bernie, do you think he will be re-elected?
 

cali

(114,904 posts)
5. Bernie is as safe as can be!
Sun Aug 12, 2012, 01:03 PM
Aug 2012

We love Bernie. From the Kingdom to Burlington to Brattleboro, Vermonters overwhelmingly support him. And Vermonters support Single Payer by a large margin too. It's hard to describe how blue we are. Our Statehouse has a veto proof majority of dems with a healthy sprinkling of Progs in the House. Shap Smith our Speaker is just terrific. It's actually pretty functional government- and in this bluest of states unemployment is at 4.6 percent. Liberal policies work.

We do have a couple of repubs in statewide office- the LT Guv and the Auditor of Accounts. And that's it.

sabrina 1

(62,325 posts)
6. That is really good to know, I was kind of afraid to ask as I cannot imagine losing
Sun Aug 12, 2012, 01:31 PM
Aug 2012

Bernie. So Vt is a very blue state and things are working well there, including a low unemployment rate? That says something about being 'blue' over 'red'.

I wonder how we could transform a few other states to be like Vt? Do you think their schools are better, what is the reason for them being so 'blue'? I'd love to see it spread around the country.

Imagine 200 Bernies in Congress! What a different country it would be.

 

cali

(114,904 posts)
7. Yes, the schools are fairly good. We're an educated populace with
Sun Aug 12, 2012, 02:47 PM
Aug 2012

over 1/3 of the population having a college degree. It's ranks 2nd in the country for high school graduation rates with some 90% of kids graduating from hs. It has a high ranking for civic involvement and voting. Town meeting is taken seriously. The environment is protected and has been for decades with the toughest environmental laws in the country. We're also reliably the healthiest state and we have a low teen pregnancy rate.

Vermont has been solidly blue for the last 35 years, but long before that it was quirky, independent place- a republic before it became a state and it was the first state to outlaw slavery.

I wish I knew how the Vermont model could be exported. I fear it cannot. There are less than 700,000 of us. Our capitol has a population of about 7,000 and our largest city has a population of about 35,000. In other words we are tiny and because of the lay of the land and distribution of population wealthier people largely live side by side with the less affluent and the poor and socialize with them to some degree. That's certainly true in the Kingdom where I live.

I don't know why, but people listen here. I think that's why Bernie, Jewish, flatlander, got a fair hearing in even the most rural parts of the state. And our lawmakers are really accessible. All the legislators in the House and Senate publish their home phone numbers in Statehouse info and you can just pick up the phone and call them.

We really do need a lot more Bernies.





sabrina 1

(62,325 posts)
8. Sigh, I am so envious. I am in CA right now, and the district I am in has a Republican Congressman
Mon Aug 13, 2012, 12:54 PM
Aug 2012

who has been reelected over and over again for decades. He is retiring this year. He's not a rabid tea bagger type, but has gone along with the party always. There is a good Democrat running for his seat so it's a chance to pick up a former Republican seat. However, I am surprised how Conservative parts of CA are considering all the rhetoric we have heard from the Right about this state. So it won't be easy taking that seat unfortunately.

Your comment probably would make a good OP as most people do not know much about VT and it gives me hope that maybe it can be replicated in other states. It seems to be more like Europe where the Conservatives are not nearly as rabid as they are here. Eg, most of them support their National Health Care programs, mostly because they have to, but also because it's what they grew up with.

Thanks for a great comment on what makes a state so blue. Should be a blueprint for Dems to work on elsewhere.

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