Peter Welch, left, and Bernie Sanders. File photos by Glenn Russell/VTDigger The U.S. Senate voted by a wide margin Tuesday night to send a $95 billion foreign aid package to President Joe Biden for his signature.  But among those who opposed it were Vermont’s two delegates to the U.S. Senate: Bernie Sanders, an independent, and Peter Welch, a Democrat. The sprawling bill would provide close to $61 billion in military aid to Ukraine; more than $26 billion in military aid to Israel and humanitarian assistance for Palestinians; and more than $8 billion to Taiwan and other U.S. allies in or ..read more

Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Baruth, D/P-Chittenden Central, speaks with fellow members of the Senate Appropriations Committee before the start of a committee meeting at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Friday, April 19. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger On the precipice of the Vermont Legislature’s approval of a bill outlawing so-called ghost guns, a third party is slated to weigh in on the question of regulating untraceable, unserialized firearms: the U.S. Supreme Court. The nation’s highest court on Monday agreed to take up an appeal on a 2022 Biden administration rule, which altered the ..read more

Sen. Bernie Sanders, left, and Gov. Phil Scott. Photos by Glenn Russell/VTDigger A majority of Vermonters surveyed recently said they want to see Republican Gov. Phil Scott and independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders run for reelection this fall. But the two top politicians remain tightlipped about their reelection plans as the state’s campaign filing deadline fash approaches. According to a University of New Hampshire poll released Tuesday, 58% of those surveyed said they want Scott to seek a fifth two-year term as governor, while 30% said they do not want him to run and 12% were undecided. Sli ..read more

The damaged door at Sen. Bernie Sanders’ office in Burlington. Photo via police affidavit BURLINGTON — A 35-year-old man has denied a federal charge accusing him of setting a fire to the entryway of the Burlington office of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders earlier this month. Shant Michael Soghomonian, who previously lived in California and has more recently been living in Chittenden County hotels, appeared Tuesday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Burlington for an arraignment.  He pleaded not guilty to a charge made in an indictment returned last week against him alleging that on April 5 he ..read more

A representation of a measles virus particle. Image via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention State officials have confirmed a case of measles in Vermont, officials announced Tuesday, the first confirmed case in the state since 2018.    The individual who was confirmed to have the disease had come to Vermont for an “international group program,” according to a Department of Health press release, and had stayed at the Hampton Inn in Colchester earlier this month.    “The health risk to members of the public in Vermont is low,” the department said in its p ..read more

Two bald eagles nesting in a tree. Photo courtesy John Hall/Vermont Agency of Natural Resources Olivia Wilson is a reporter with Community News Service, part of the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program. After years of absence, the most patriotic bird in the sky returned to Vermont — but it might’ve come at another’s expense. Vermont finally took the bald eagle off of its endangered species list in 2022 following years of reintroduction efforts starting in the 2000s. Since that reintroduction, researchers have concerns about the relation between the bald eag ..read more

This commentary is by Helen Riehle, former South Burlington City Council member and chair. The availability, affordability, and yes, safety, of housing will make or break a community, its economic vitality and its social vibrancy. If there is one thing that unites us, it’s that we all recognize the affordable housing crisis in Chittenden County and in Vermont. We all recognize that people need housing that matches their individual and family circumstances, and that quality homes must be accessible and available. It’s a challenge that has been a long-standing issue in Vermont, and has only in ..read more

This commentary is by Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman. It’s no secret that we’re facing a massive affordable housing shortage in Vermont.  Over the past few decades, we have not built enough new units to keep up with our growing demand. This scarcity, along with the significant increase in second home ownership and short-term rentals, has driven up the cost of available housing, making it out of reach for many low- and middle-income working Vermonters.  There is a lot of debate about how we can best address this affordable housing shortage. The challenge is whether we can discern the poli ..read more

The 150-year-old former Vermont National turned Chittenden, People’s United and finally M&T Bank is one of several currently empty downtown Brattleboro properties. Photo by Kevin O’Connor/VTDigger BRATTLEBORO — Five years ago, this community received an early Christmas present with the November 2019 news of a proposed $30 million arts and apartment block for downtown. “This project,” Brattleboro Museum & Art Center director Danny Lichtenfeld said then of the priciest Main Street plan in local history, “will encourage enduring economic and civic vitality.” Four months later, the Covid ..read more

Two horses rescued from Friesians of Majesty. Photo courtesy of Dorset Equine Society A southern Vermont resident is on the hook for $38,600 that an animal rescue organization spent to care for numerous horses that the state seized from him last year. At an April 18 hearing, Vermont Superior Court Judge John Treadwell ordered Robert Labrie to repay the Dorset Equine Rescue for the medical care and boarding costs of 11 horses. They were among 13 horses the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department seized from Friesians of Majesty, Labrie’s horse breeding and training facility in Townshend, last J ..read more