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B e r n i e ' s M e x i c a n C o n n e c t i o n
T
hings had been looking quite grim until last weekend. De-
spite the hopes and wishes of political junkies across Ver-
mont, it appeared almost certain that Congressman Bernie
Sanders was content to go on being Congressman Bernie
Sanders and had no desire to change his name to Senator Bernie
Sanders. Of course, a name change would require a run against
incumbent Senator J im J effords, who hasn't lost an electiori
since the 1972Republican gubernatorial primary. As far as 1994
goes, Sanders is the-only dark cloudinJ eezumJ im's political sky.
In recent weeks, yours truly has boon getting teased quite abit
for suggesting here a few months ago that 01' Bernardo would
surely rise to the challenge, since 1994would be his ouly shot at
the 100Club, barring an incumbent's untimely death in office.
Since then, many readers have taken pleasure in assuring me
that Bernie is "too chicken" to take onJ eezum J im, and besides
the roaring mouth of the Green Mountains needs to put in one
more year on Capitol Hill to become vested in a government
pension and no way will he risk that. "See," they say, smugly,
"he's just like everyone else."
T hings got so depressing I called up an old friend to whine.
"His staff members say they see no evidence of a U.S. Senate
bid," I lamented, "and with J effords packing his campaign fund
like aBrinks truck, there's no signBernie'sdoingany fundraising.
Woeis me."
Suddenly, my friend hurled aglass of icewater in my face and
shouted at me towake up. "Snap out of it, Mr. Pundit. When has
Bernie's staff ever known what his plans were until the last
possible minute? And who says it's toolate to start fundraising?
Besides J effords would look like a sleaze ifhe dumped a ton of
bucks into the race."
I felt like I had just woken up from abad dream. Once again,
hope was alive. I wanted to call Bernie right away and run it by
him, but then I remembered he was in Mexico.
Why Mexico, you ask?
Well, you see, he went toMexico to get ahundred more reasons
to support his absolutely rock-solid position against NAFrA
Fair enough, you say, but why go there ifyour mind's made
up?
Because, ifhe goes to Mexico and gets his picture taken
looking totally disgusted while standing outside of a GM plant
that pays workers 58cents an hour to make $25,000Chevys, he'll
be the darling of the unions who are fighting NAFT A tooth and'
nail. And come next spring, all he'll have to do is pick up the
phone and the money will come gushing in. Payback time.
Come to think of it, J effords better hire a meteorologist
because that dark cloud keeps getting bigger.
From Russia With A Grain of Salt ..
If you had trouble swallowing the description of the events in
Moscow as Boris Yeltsin's "forces of democracy" were shelling
the Russian Parliament building "in order to establish demo-
cratic reform," you were not alone. In the midst of Russian
democracy's worst hour, Burlington author and historian, Bill
Daniels, penned an op-ed piece for The New York Time. titled
"Yeltsin's No J efferson - More Like Pinochet."
Daniels was shocked by the way Bill Clinton and the U.S.
media twisted the facts inBoris' favor. "It's not the rubber-
stamp Supreme Soviet that you had in Communist times,"
Daniels tells Inside T rack. "T his Parliament was elected in 1990
after-the Communist Party had given up its monopoly. It elected
Yeltsin as chairman. Itfixed up the Russian Constitution so he
could create for himself the job of president in 1991. Itgave him
the power to reform the economy by decree. "
Daniels taught hlstory at DVM for msny years and was a
Vermont state senator 15years ago when Richard Snelling
was governor. "Dick Snelling was astrong leader," says Daniels.
"Credit himwith that. But he never tried tosend tbe Legislature
packing the way Yeltsin has done."
Andinother news ..
T he other Sanders, J ane Sandera, the congressman's wife
and chief of staff, is the newly elected chair of the board of
trustees at Goddard College. J ane's a 1980graduate. She reports
Goddard is on the rebound - enrollment's up 20percent, and
this is the fourth straight year the former hippie haven is
operating in the black.
Word from the Free Pre88 is that the paper's editorial stance
is about to take a sharp turn to the right. Publisher ~i~ Carey
may not bring in Rush Limbaugh to replace Editorial Page
Editor Candy Page, but a Rush-clone is almost a certainty.
~annett's employment bulletin board, Newswatch, recen!J Y
listed the opening with the caveat "must becomfortable wlth
conservative positions." Whoopee, Ditto Heads!
By the way, Big Daddy Gannett was recently dropped by the
Calvert Investment Group from its soclally and environmentally
responsible list of stocks. A Calvert spokesperson says Gannett
was taken off the list for having a record of "quite extensive
union problems." No kidding. .
Finally, T om Burke, president of the local letter earners
union, says he and his troops areworried about Mayor Peter
~rowneUscutbacksinsnowplowing.especiallysidewalkplow-
109. He also says the carrier who delivers on Ledge Road reports
that the mayor isn't known for doing a particularly goodJ ob of
shoveling his own walk. T sk, tsl<, tsk!