Looking for Republican Candidates for Fairfax Representative

The Fairfax Republican Committee is seeking candidates for the Republican nomination for the Vermont House. The following article outlines the reasons we'd like to see more Republicans in Montpelier. Although it was written for Washington County, it applies to all of Vermont. If you are interested in helping to bring affordable, common sense government to Montpelier, please contact me. The Franklin County Republican party provides ongoing support to candidates, and weekly candidate meetings are held to help your campaign. It's a lot of work, as outlined in the article, but will be very rewarding to provide an alternative for change in Vermont.

State House Candidates Wanted

The following editorial was written by John Fitzhugh, Washington County Republican Committee chairman, a past counsel to governors and former president of Union Mutual Fire Insurance Co.
This is a call for help.

Gov. Shumlin and the Democrats’ super majority in the Legislature are bankrupting our state, making it unaffordable for young and old, and driving many to leave the state.

This simply must change. There is an urgent need to bring financial sense back to the State House. Over the past five years, the state has increased spending twice as fast as our citizens’ incomes have risen. There are plans to spend over a billion dollars on information systems over the next decade.

And, but for the federal government sending our taxes into a financial black hole known as Vermont Health Connect, the state would be bankrupt from this ill-conceived effort.

Without more forward-thinking legislators, Vermont will continue down its current path of using taxes as a means of social engineering and of creating more and more bureaucracy. Now is the time for a few good men and women to step forward and be part of a force for change.

The Washington County Republican Committee is looking to recruit state Senate and House candidates for election this November. Candidates must file petitions and the necessary paperwork by May 26.

Of the 18 legislators currently serving in Washington County, five are Republicans, 11 are Democrats and two are Independents. All five of the Republican legislators — Sen. Bill Doyle, Barre Town Reps. Francis “Topper” McFaun and Robert LaClair, and Berlin/Northfield Reps. Patti Lewis and Anne Donahue — are running for re-election.

Let’s be clear: Becoming a legislator, or even running for election, is a lot of work. Although legislators receive about $12,000 a year and expense reimbursement, the work is pretty much full time from January through mid-May, and probably a day a week for the rest of the year responding to constituent questions and attending district functions.

The best candidates have a love of public service, the flexibility in their lives to accept the schedule a legislative position requires and a strong desire to improve the lives of their fellow Vermonters. Previous public service on a school or select board is certainly helpful, but legislators come from a great variety of backgrounds.

What does it mean to be a Republican? There is no litmus test, but here are some fundamental concepts which have served the Republican Party well since its founding in 1854:

— The power of government should be limited in order to maximize to every citizen the opportunity for “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” as Thomas Jefferson so eloquently wrote in the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

— Individuals and their families, not government at any level, are the building blocks of our society.

— To the extent possible, initiative for change and improvement in our lives should come from the private not the public sector, because competition leads to better results, greater efficiency and more participation and ownership by people in their own future.

— Taxes are necessary for the raising of revenue for essential government services, but since they are essentially the taking of another’s property, they should be imposed fairly and with great reluctance.

— Government has a responsibility to spend tax dollars wisely and carefully. If it cannot assure that it will, the money should be returned to the citizens.

For a more complete listing of Republican principles, check out the party’s platform at http://vtgop.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf81e70b77be4ed6466f9716&id=dfeb4441e3&e=0e9330871d.

The Republican Party has a glorious history. Some of our greatest presidents, starting with Abraham Lincoln, were members of the Grand Old Party (a nickname sometimes shortened to GOP). Vermont governors Deane Davis, Dick Snelling and, most recently, Jim Douglas were Republicans.