On January 15, 2020

Why I’m running for lieutenant governor

Dear Editor,

The 2020 lieutenant governor’s race is not about the left versus the right. It is about the past versus the future. This week’s VTDigger article, where I learned about Sen. Tim Ashe’s decision, illustrates the deep divide between the prison guards of the past and our forward-looking, Small Towns*Big Hearts campaign. I entered this lieutenant governor’s race expecting to take on an entrenched incumbent, not to capitalize on political opportunity.

If you stand on the courage of your convictions, then you do not wait for an opening, you make one.

Our campaign presents Vermonters with a vision for the future that makes a clean break from the same old, same old status quo. Vermonters are being crippled by (1) punishing tax burdens, (2) vanishing economic freedom for small business owners, (3) no opportunities for upwardly mobile careers (the vast majority of citizens under 40 see no viable future in this state), and (4) the inability to make the best healthcare decisions for themselves and their families because of monopolies, corruption, and a political class that prioritizes ideology over individuals.

Moreover, the sexual and drug abuse in Vermont women’s prisons, the billion dollar scam that is OneCare Vermont, and our deliberately opaque education spending are just three examples of the horrifying accountability crisis in government that we, the people of Vermont, are expected to quietly accept.

We need systemic change in our government and a fundamental shift toward servant leadership. I stand for empowering the working and middle classes with the freedom to choose in health care, education, and work; for fostering a diverse pro-business climate that creates prosperity for all, and for a transparent government that fulfills its debt obligations and honestly answers to the public.

Learn more about my story and our campaign at hansenforvermont.com.

Meg Hansen,

Manchester

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