8/11/2019 Politics and Guns II | Vermont Times | Oct. 5, 1994

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P o l i t i c s A n d G u n s I I

Itappears that the fU 'S t casualty inthe bitter battle between

certain passionate supporters of the second Amendment to theU.S. Constitution and Congressman Bernie Sanden is the first

Amendment to the Constitution.

Last week the Vermont Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs deep-sixed a column by Earl Capron from the upcoming issue ofTheVermont Sportsman. Forthe last five years the 75-year-old Chesterresidenthadwrittenthefull-pagereportonnewsandpoliticsforthe

Federation. Buthislatesteffortdidnotmeetwith the approval of thehigher-ups at the Vermont Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs. So outoflove for the second Amendment's right to bear arms provision,

they trashed the fJ.rst Amendment's right to free speech and a freepress.Inside Track has obtained a copy of the offending column.

Capron's mistake was innot toeing the NRA line on01'Bernardo.The NRA's man inVermont, George McNeil, is desperately tryingto paint Sanders as a liar and a hypocrite who wants to tskeeveryone's guns away. Capron had the audacity to write that overthe years "Congresaman Sanders took his political stands - stuck

with them - and haso't flip-flopped from 1989 to 1994 on gunissues."

Capron proceeded to quote from a Rutland Herald report on atwo-hour meeting Sanders recently attended at the Precision ValleyFish and Game Club in Springfield. Capron, who was also inattendance, wrote that the 50 orso present were "skeptical but goodnatured, and Sanders got a good hand of applause when the seasion

was over."The report ofgunclub members applauding The Bern was too

much for the spindoctors. Looks like the NRA c rowd won't toleratedissenters inVennont's hunting and fiahing ranks - not even anoldbackwoods Vermonter who tells it like it is.

Media Nntes - TheBurlington Free Press is looking for a newbusiness editor. Last week, Chriss Swaney departed after a yeerandahalfatthedistinguishedlooa1dai1y.SwaneyisofftoParsippany,

N.J. where she'll be business editor ofThe Daily Record.WCAX-TV statehouse reporter Alva Taylor has departed for

Toledo, Ohio. Alva was at Channe13 for 10 years. Also planned toleave MarseUs P8l'801I8' land is vetersn reporter CatherineHughes. Catherine was Southern Vermont bureau chief for 10 ofthe 14 yeers she's been at Channel 3. At man&gel/Wnt's request,she'll be sticking around through the Novembsr election.

OveratWPI'Z-TV,DavidScottmadehisdebutMondayeveningasco-anchor along with ErinClark on the Six O'Clock News. The31-year-old Indiana native comes from a South Bend, Ind. station."It's a great town," he says, "ifyou like Notre Dame." Scott willalsobe teaming up with Clark on the 11 O'Clock News. There were onl,ya couple tongue trips opening night. The guy looks like a pro. It'stsken Channel 5 news director Stewart Ledbetter five months to

fill the anchor post len vacant by Bob SoJarski. Ledbetter tellsInside Track he conducted two national searches that produced 110applicantsforthejob. Withthatkindofsupplyoutthereintelevision

journalism,local management gets tokeep salaries wall below whatthe public imagines TV people earn.

And finally, controversial Channel 22 sportscaster Lisa GilbertI got the heave-ho last week after eight months on the job but not

because of anything she did on the air. Rather it WBB what she didbehind the wheel that sealed her fate. Gilbert had a suspendeddriver's license going back to her pre-Vermont days. She says it wasfor failing to pay aticket inFlorida. Then when she arrived intownshegotintoacaraccidentandit'sbeendownhilleversince.Lisasays

working for the gargantuan sumof$13,OOO ayearatWVNY-TVlefther scrambling for dough to f ix the car. Then the tickets started

piling up. Being the fU 'S t woman sportscaster intown made her the

tsrget for critics used to seeing a man - no matter how stiff andboring-doing sports. Fact isLisa WBB an euellent writer and hadsome on-air pizzazz. \'he la difference! And she won a lot ofadmirationlrom peopla inthe sports business like Vermont Expos'generallll8Jlllglll'TomRaciDewhomarveledatherdetermination."Ifshe didn't know something," he says, "she was never afraid toask She rea1ly wanted to learn." While the other stations have

reporters and camerafolk, Lisa had to lug her own equipment anddo all her own videotaping. Women insports brosdcasti.ng, she says,is "a growing trend," and fortunately she signed on with an L.A.agent a couple of months back Oneday a lot of mouths around herewill drop open when Lisa Gilbert makes it to the big time.

On the Campaip Trall-Democratic U.S. SenatecandidsteJan Backus reeponded to Republicsn Senator .run Jeffords'description ofher as "very, very far left," by saying she's "fiscallyconservative and soclal1y liberal." Jeffords, she said, is tough todeftne since he's all over the map. "He really doesn't stsnd foranything." Jeezum Jan scored adirecthit on Jeezuro.Tun this week

by releasing a list of all the free trips he's tsken as a guest of outfitslike Monsanto, PhllipMorris and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange(141 vacation days inall). "There's no doubt about it," saidBackus."TheWashingtonllfehas beengoodtoMr. Jeffords." (Interestingly,

Jeffords' staffer William B oa attended Backus' press conferencearmed with a tape recorder.) A nd despite having a ~~gsbuckswarchest, Jeezum Jim iseagerly seeking more. A .fundraising letterwent out to Vermont lawyers last week over the signaturee of Allen

Paul,JerryDiamond,PeterHallandLouiseMcCarren.