Leahy faces challenges from right, left

MONTPELIER, VT. — With the midterm election just under a year away, Sen. Patrick Leahy faces challengers from both the left and right, with two political newcomers saying major national reform is needed and must begin with removing Washington's entrenched political class.

Dr. Daniel Freilich, 46, a physician and naval officer who lives halftime in Wilmington, and half in Maryland, is challenging Leahy for the Democratic nomination, saying the six-term senator hasn't been aggressive enough about pushing for a single-payer health care system. Feilich also favors a more progressive tax system and a fundamental reformation of the economy to move away from fossil fuels.

Woodstock area businessman Len Britton, 54, announced he's seeking the Republican nomination, saying Leahy has failed to keep the country from moving toward the brink of financial collapse. Britton, who lives in South Pomfret and has a lumber and feed store in Woodstock, said in an interview Monday he wants to bring a small business owner's pay-as-you-go ethos to Washington.

Leahy has been successful in bringing home earmarks that give business to Vermont manufacturers and aid to Vermont institutions. Britton said he's not impressed.

"We're broke. This country can't afford that, and what we have to realize is that if Pat Leahy's doing it, multiply it. There's 99 other senators in the Senate. All of them are doing that, they're all getting their special interests, their earmarks for their district or their state," Britton said.

"And ultimately, who's paying for that? We're printing money, selling the debt to China and saddling our children with that debt to pay for that earmark. And it's just plain wrong, and we can't continue doing business that way."

Leahy campaign manager Carolyn Dwyer said most Vermonters recognize the good work Leahy has done representing the state's interests in Washington.

'For nearly 36 years, Senator Leahy has been there for Vermonters, whether it's a business in need of a helping hand, struggling dairy farmers, first responders needing the best equipment," Dwyer said. "It's up to Vermonters to decide if they feel he has and will continue to represent them in the U.S. Senate."

Freilich said the country's fiscal troubles are tied at least in part to a steep decline in recent decades in how much of their income the wealthy are asked to pay in taxes.

The highest marginal tax rates were above 90 percent just after World War II and had declined to less than 40 percent by late in the Reagan administration, Freilich said. Capital gains income is taxed at 15 percent, while working people typically pay taxes as a percentage of income in the high 20s, he said.

"It's just a sense of fairness that's gone away there," he said.

Freilich opposes the health care legislation pending in Congress, saying it does not make enough progress toward universal and fair access to medical treatment. He recently urged Leahy and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., to join a Republican-led filibuster of the legislation if one develops.

Britton espoused views on health reform similar to those of many Republicans in Washington. He questioned the ability of the government to afford new or expanded entitlement programs. He said a key to controlling medical costs is putting limits on lawsuits against doctors, and argued that insurance costs could be reduced by loosening state-based controls on health insurance companies.

"The GEICO lizard should be selling health insurance, not just car insurance," Britton said.

On other social issues, Britton said he favors abortion rights, and that gay marriage should be decided in state-by-state referenda.