Off to the Senate primary races Parke, Tarrant begin campaigns for chance to beat Sanders

Author: Joshua Carson

Although election day is still months away, potential candidates from both sides of the aisle are throwing their hats into the ring. The 2006 election cycle will prove to be an active one for Vermont, with key elections scheduled for the United States House, Senate and Vermont State Governor.

Biding to succeed three-term Vermont Senator James Jeffords (I-VT) are, among others, Rutland Republicans Greg Parke, Colchester Republican Rich Tarrant and Independent Bernie Sanders, Vermont's current House Representative.

Although nine months remain until November's election, initial polling by Rasmussen Reports shows Sanders with a formidable lead over both Republican hopefuls, garnering support from 70 percent of Vermont voters.

Nevertheless, Parke and Tarrant go head-to-head in a primary for the Republican Party nomination this September and both men have already begun to position themselves on the issues.

Parke, now employed as a commercial pilot flying business jets for corporate executives and celebrities, served in the United States Air Force following graduation from the University of New Hampshire. He later moved on to work for the Pentagon as a Middle East policy analyst. While he has never held elected office, Parke has come out strongly on issues of military spending, homeland security and national intelligence. In a position paper in favor of increased military spending, Parke struck squarely at the voting record of Sanders, saying, "Mr. Sanders is leaving unprotected the values we cherish, our freedom and our liberty."

Parke has aligned himself closely with President George W. Bush, pledging to support the President in matters of homeland security while maintaining a balance with constitutional rights such as due process and free speech. Parke also adopted Bush's plan for immigration reform which would allow for a temporary worker program to match willing foreign workers with willing U.S. companies when domestic labor cannot be found.

Tarrant is the co-founder of IDX systems, a computer company which focuses on healthcare applications. Having sold his company to GE Healthcare, Tarrant is gearing up for the Republican primary this September and has distanced himself from the current administration on issues such as federal spending and healthcare.

Coming from a business background, Tarrant has focused more on the domestic agenda, with healthcare towards the top of his list. Speaking with the Addison Independent last week, he went on record stating that the new Medicare prescription drug plan was "the worst thing I've ever seen in legislation. It's a terrible bill." The greatest costs associated with healthcare come from the delivery of care, Tarrant said. Building on his past experiences with IDX, Tarrant believes that by increasing the information flow between all of a patient's doctors, the United States can cut down on the medical bureaucracy, increase efficiency and decrease medical costs.

Speaking on foreign policy issues, Tarrant told the Independent that he did not have enough information to judge whether the Iraq invasion was an appropriate move three years ago. But he did mention that the United States should begin to reduce troop strength in the country to allow the Iraqis to take ownership of their country and to begin to build a democracy.

Campaign finance will likely become a point of contention in this race. Tarrant has already surpassed the million dollar mark and is heading towards two million with a personal contribution of $425,000 two weeks ago, which will be added to the previous personal contributions of $1.25 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Whereas Sanders is well known throughout the state, the goal of Tarrant's spending is to introduce himself, a relatively unknown candidate, to the electorate through mass mailings and television commercials.

Parke has collected over $600,000 with the help of Houston lawyer John O'Neill who also organized the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth Campaign against John Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential candidate.

As Tarrant himself told the Independent, the race for Jeffords' seat will be "the most expensive in the state of Vermont."