State Sen. Cheryl Rivers

Resigns Seat, Politicking Starts

Cheryl Rivers of Stockbridge, one of the most aggressive and articulate advocates that lower-income Vermonters have ever had in Montpelier, announced this week that she is resigning the Senate seat she has held for 11 years.

Speculating that she shouldn’t take sides on who her successor should be, she nevertheless confirmed her favorite candidate is State Rep. Ann Seibert of Norwich.

"I’m a fan," she said yesterday in an interview with The Herald. "I love her. She’s a fine, progressive woman."

Rivers noted that she "feels fine" about several other names that have been tossed into the hat. Other names that have surfaced in the press include former Sens. Peter Welch and Ben Ptashnik, and former Rep. Matt Dunne, who is now working in Washington as the director of Americorps.

The choice will be made by Gov. Howard Dean after the Windsor County Democratic Committee makes recommendations.

Gov. Dean has not always seen eye-to-eye with the Democratic liberal wing, including Rivers and Rep. Seibert, so the political jockeying will likely be intense.

Sen. Rivers has also been chair of the Finance Committee, one of the two most powerful Senate committees, so Senate President Peter Shumlin will have an important choice to make for that spot.

Rivers won’t be giving up on her core issues and constituents, however. Her new job is as the first executive director of a regional organization that fights for lower prescription drug prices. The organization, the Northeast Legislative Association of Prescription Drug Prices, was formed to create regional support two years ago, after Rivers had sponsored a price-cutting bill in the Vermont legislature.

The position pays $50,000 a year and has just been created.

She told The Herald that her job will entail working with the legislatures of eight states—New England plus New York and Pennsylvania—to pass prescription drug legislation. She’s also found she’ll have a direct role with the media, as she has been besieged by calls this week. She’s already been interviewed on New York public radio and has scheduled a show with New Hampshire radio host Arnie Arneson.

Her alliance with the regional organization is an admission that Vermont can’t go it alone on forcing drug prices down, Rivers agreed. However, she said, it’s an issue where the states should take action.

"Though we’d like Washington to take the lead, that’s unlikely," she said. "There’s a grassroots role for the states."

Though she’s stepping down from the Senate, she said Windsor County people should still call her with their problems.

"I’m never going to give up helping individuals," she said. "You can still call me. I still know how to help."

County Dems To Meet

The Windsor County Democratic Committee will hold an organizational meeting next Thursday, but Rivers said it will not be able to take action on her vacancy, because that issue wasn’t warned for the meeting. (She also hasn’t resigned yet, just announced that she would resign.)

Also, the Committee will likely have a new chair after Thursday’s meeting, Rivers said. The current chair, Kilda McKeever of Royalton, is stepping down and Rivers will nominate Tom Grace of Norwich to be the chair.

"I don’t know of any other candidates," she said.

The Committee, which is made up of representatives from each town in Windsor County, will have to set up a mechanism to recommend up to three candidates to replace Rivers.

By M. D. Drysdale