Modern Vermont Governors RICHARD SNELLING
Wholly Subjective Ratings & Evaluations & Brief Comments on Their Respective Contributions According to
MICHAEL J. BADAMO
the first time I laid eyes on Dick Snelling, I knew he was going to be governor. He had that air about him, a smooth self confidence that simply smothered opposition or argument. Arrogant? Perhaps the most arrogant politician I have ever observed close up. Snelling was smart and a natural-born powerhouse. He was our first imperial governor.
Vermonters couldn't resist Snelling's right to rule and so elected him year after year. Four terms beginning in 1976, then two more after Kunin. Traditionally, Vermont governors have served no more than two terms, many only one. Only our first governor, Tom Chittenden, who had to stand for election every single year, held office longer than Dick Snelling. Like a king, Snelling died in office.
Snelling was a flatlander and a successful Republican businessman. At least he wasn't a lawyer. He didn't lie, cheat, or steal. While I can't say he did anything particularly good for Vermont, I also can't say he did anything terribly bad. After the fashion of any imperium, the bureaucracy continued to spread its tentacles, despite all the Reagan-era rhetoric. But at least the government ran pretty smoothly during his tenure. He commonly gets credit for cleaning up the fiscal mess left by the Kunin administration. |
