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Dean Ruled From the Fiscal Center in Vermont
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| Parent(s) |
Candidate
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| Contributor | Ced |
| Last Edited | Ced Dec 01, 2003 10:08am |
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| Category | General |
| Media | Newspaper - Los Angeles Times |
| News Date | Monday, December 1, 2003 06:00:00 AM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Another great profile of the Dean's tenure as governor of Vermont.
"Unlike the ideological presidential candidate who first distinguished himself by condemning the war in Iraq, Dean as governor was a pragmatist who ran his state with the blunt efficiency of a CEO. As a pro-business centrist, he was so out of step with the liberal Democratic majority in the Statehouse that he had to recruit a team of other legislative allies to make sure his budgetary goals would pass....
......In a state with two-year governor's terms — a legacy of the Colonial fear of tyrants — Dean soon won election in his own right. The course he then struck was so relentlessly moderate that Democrats ribbed Republicans about "their" governor. Harlan Sylvester, his chief economic advisor, said Dean responded by sticking firmly to the middle.
"He made the far right and the far left irrelevant," Sylvester said. "He just did it."
.......From Snelling, Dean inherited what at one point was the country's highest surcharge on upper-level state income taxes. Dean wanted it to end, but Democratic lawmakers moved to reinstitute the surcharge. Dean beckoned the Blue Dogs — and prevailed.
"It was kind of scary, meeting those pale blue eyes of his," recalled McCormack, who favored the tax. "I remember him saying, 'Dick, for your sake, please don't underestimate my resolve on this subject.' "
Dean also cut the state income tax twice, removed sales tax on most clothing, reduced long-term debt and established a rainy-day fund. Under Dean, Vermont's bond rating also rose to the AAA level, the highest in New England." |
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