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tv   [untitled]    January 21, 2016 7:01pm-7:14pm EST

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good progress that we've made reforming our criminal justice system. it shouldn't surprise anybody that when you take people's driver's licenses for non-driver related offenses like underage tobacco purchases, that we end up with four times as many vermonters with suspended driver's licenses than we have enrolled in our state college systems. four times. that's right. now, i want to recognize our innovative state's attorney, t.j. donovan, who worked with us to create two driver restoration days in two counties. thank you for your good work. where are you hiding? stand up. thank you. appreciate it.
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the stories -- the stories that t.j. and i heard from low-ranking vermonters standing in line for redemption made me ask this -- why are we creating a permanent economic disability and making it so difficult for people who want to improve their lives? i ask you to make driver restoration days unnecessary. that's right. abolish them. by passing legislation that ensures that non-traffic related offenses don't lead to vermonters losing their ability to get to work and drop their kids off at school. this is just common sense! let's do it together! the outdated war on drugs has
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also failed. we all know that. and there's no greater example than our nation's marijuana laws. that's why vermont took steps to change our criminal penalties and to institute a well-regulated medical marijuana system that now serves 2,400 vermonters. this careful approach shows that we know how to regulate marijuana thoughtfully and cautiously, avoiding the pitfalls that have caused other states to stumble where vermont succeeded. so we got a track record. but the black market of drug dealers selling marijuana for recreational use is alive and well in our state. serving over 80,000 vermonters who reported using marijuana just last year. 80,000. these illegal dealers could not
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care less how young their customers are, what's in the products that they sell, or what illegal drugs you can buy from the rest of their stash while you're there, much less whether they pay taxes on their earnings. that's why i will work with you to craft the right bill that thoughtfully and carefully eliminates the era of prohibition that is currently failing us so miserably. miserably. to do it right, we must do it deliberately, cautiously, step by step, and not roll it out in one leap as we legislate the lessons learned from the other states that went before us. i'll insist on five things before i'll sign the bill. first, a legal market must keep marijuana and other drugs out of
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the hands of underage kids which the current system does not. our new system must. second, the tax imposed must be low enough -- low enough -- to wipe out the black market and get rid of the illegal marijuana dealers. third, revenue from legalization must be used to expand addiction prevention programs state wide. that's right. [ applause ] fourth, we must strengthen law enforcement's current capacity to improve our response to impaired drivers under the influence of marijuana who are already driving on vermont's roads right now. and fifth, take a hard lesson learned from other states and ban the sale of edibles until other states figure out how to do that one right. those are the five things that
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are good common sense. now, i understand that the senate's going to go first, and i look forward to working with senate president pro tem john campbell, with the senate leadership, senator sears and the senate judiciary committee to construct a sensible, cautious bill. we have a history of tackling difficult issues with respect and care the vermont way. i believe we have the capacity to take this next step and get marijuana legalization done right the vermont way. let's do it together. as we begin a new year and start a new legislative session, we commit ourselves anew to the work ahead. i know that there are those
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critics who perpetually see the cup, vermont's cup, as half empty. while some pessimists talk down our economy, vermonters know, they know that we continue to make progress growing jobs, attracting businesses, because of our unique quality of life, our tight-knit communities and our dedicated innovative workforce. while some cynics call endlessly for vermont to join the race to the bottom taking place in some other states, i believe we should continue our commitment to clean jobs, clean water, clean energy, and a quality educational system. our cup is not half empty. it's overflowing with the most hard-working, most resilient, most rugged, innovative people
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in america. that's vermonters. together we aspire rightfully for a brighter future, and vermonters deserve leadership that is forward looking and unafraid. while some want vermont to join the majority of governors in our nation, in closing its borders to the syrian refugees fleeing violence and death, i believe vermont must not abandon its long heritage of being a welcoming state to those who are escaping unimaginable horror, unimaginable horror, to seek a
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better life. how many of us can claim that our own family's arrival in america, fleeing famine, religious oppression, dictatorship, or war was not a motivation to come here? vermonters have a long tradition and a proud tradition of rejecting racists, bigotry, bullying, intolerance, and fear. you know, when mccarthyism reared its ugly head in america,
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senator akin cautioned his own republican party that sought, and i quote, "victory through the selfish political exploitation of fear, bigotry, ignorance, and intolerance." more than half a century later, the same un-american spirit dominates our political dialogue. we are so blessed to live in a state where so many reject fear and hatred. and i pledge to continue to work with president obama, with our congressional delegation, our refugee resettlement community, clergy, volunteers, and our mayors to make our state a beacon of hope and hospitality to muslims, to our syrian brothers and sisters, to all who seek to build a better life right here in vermont.
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let's do that.!sj&j now this news probably won't surprise you, but i love being governor. and i'm so grateful for the privilege of serving you. those of us entrusted by the people of vermont to affect positive change have the unique opportunity every day of putting words into action. our time is now to make a difference in the lives of
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vermonters. let's get to work. thank you so much. democratic presidential candidate hillary clinton is campaigning in iowa today and this evening at 8:30 eastern she'll be speaking to supporters at the university of iowa in iowa city. c-span will have live coverage of her remarks.
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then saturday c-span will be live at the first in the nation presidential town hall hosted by the new hampshire republican party in nashua. many of the republican presidential candidates will be there along with notable republican leaders and over 1,000 grassroots activists. live coverage begins saturday morning at 10:00 eastern and again that's on c-span. american history tv airs every weekend on c-span3. all day saturday and sunday. some of the highlights for this weekend include -- saturday at 2:00 p.m. eastern on oral histories, an interview with conservative commentator armstrong williams. part of the explorations in black leadership project. >> and we walked in, some of the people recognized my father because he had a strong reputation in the county. just before he was about to be introduced to strom thurmond i extended my hand, i said hello, senator, i'm armstrong williams and i hear you're a

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