Today is a busy day at the Statehouse, with lots of topics vying for top billing: sex offender bill on the House floor, Chief Justice Paul Reiber addressing the full Legislature, budget adjustment bill on the House floor, the governor's weekly press conference, judicial retention hearing.
One event that was expected to take a lower profile was the joint assembly to elect the sergeant-at-arms, the adjutant general and three legislators to the University of Vermont Board of Trustees. The sgt-at-arms and adjutant general were both unopposed for re-election. Four legislators were seeking three spots on the UVM board.
That election took an interesting twist, however, with a tie vote tying up the works. Last I knew they were calling in the Florida Board of Elections to oversee the recount.
By the way, at the governor's press conference today, Gov. Jim Douglas stood side by side with Treasurer Jeb Spaulding to celebrate Moody's decision to grant Vermont a top-notch AAA bond rating. What are the chances, do you think, that Douglas would have invited Spaulding in if Spaulding were still a potential gubernatorial candidate for 2010?
And the governor, who hadn't clarified whether he's running in 2010, said Thursday he is indeed running for re-election - as moderator of the Middlebury town meeting.
- Terri Hallenbeck
