Vt. Senate rejects Saunders confirmation 19 to 9
MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) - The Vermont Senate voted Tuesday morning 19 to 9 to reject Gov. Phil Scott’s pick of Zoie Saunders as education secretary.
Weeks of escalating political rhetoric over the governor’s pick for education secretary came to a head Tuesday morning on the Senate floor.
“I have never experienced such an intense and well-organized lobbying effort as I’ve seen with this nomination,” said Sen. Anne Cummings, D-Washington County, who ended up voting against Saunders.
Governor Phil Scott appointed Zoie Saunders last month. But her resume, including working for a Florida-based charter school organization, immediately drew sharp criticism from many lawmakers and the education establishment, condemning what they saw as a lack of vision and experience in public schools. Following a mostly cordial hearing last Tuesday, The Senate Education Committee voted to 3 to 2 to send Saunders’ appointment to the full Senate. But the nomination ran into fierce opposition during floor debate Tuesday.
“Her vision was narrow and uninformed and didn’t come out of the reality of public education here in Vermont,” Sen. Ruth Hardy, D-Addison County, told her Senate colleagues.
“There were no real strategies to address the crisis,” said Sen. Martine Gulick, D-Chittenden County.
Saunders’ supporters say Vermont’s education system needs bold change and that the debate over her nomination has turned toxic. “This has been a very poisonous atmosphere surrounding her confirmation,” Sen. Randy Brock, R- Franklin County.
“I have never witnessed in my 14 years in this building such character attacks toward what I consider a very good person,” said Sen. Brian Campion, D-Bennington County, who guided her confirmation hearing last week in the Senate Education Committee.
Governor Phil Scott over the weekend asked state lawmakers to push back the confirmation vote after Lt. Governor David Zuckerman sent a fundraising email alleging Saunders received an award from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Those claims were false and Zuckerman apologized after Tuesday’s vote. “I want to apologize to the Senate for adding to the heat of the debate on this topic,” he said.
Moments after the Senate vote, Gov. Phil Scott’s office put out a statement saying he’s naming her interim education secretary regardless, raising questions about what the confirmation process was all about in the first place, and Saunders’ ability to work with the very same education community that opposed her.
In a statement, Senate President Phil Baruth, D/P-Chittenden County, said he believed Saunders’ confirmation process was conducted fairly. “Ninety-nine times out of 100, the Senate heartily endorses the appointee. But in this case, a majority of the Senate found Zoie Saunders’ resume a mismatch with the current moment,” he said.
Saunders’ confirmation fight comes during a fraught time for education financing in The Green Mountains. Education spending is up $230 million statewide and voters last month rejected an unprecedented one-third of school budgets -- and many revotes continue to fail -- over concerns of double-digit property tax increases. There are also ongoing debates over the value of public versus independent schools.
There’s an array of potential next steps. Constitutional law experts say the governor could appoint Saunders again after the session ends. Lawmakers would then have to go through the confirmation process again. Senators could also choose to sue the Scott administration in court since he appointed an ‘interim’ cabinet member during the legislative session.
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