Vermonters showed what they thought of the Sedition Act and what they thought
of trying to stifle free speech. While Matthew Lyon was in jail, Vermonters
reelected him and sent him back to Congress. Along with our own lone
Congressman, Congressman Sanders, I am working on that commitment to having a
post office named for Matthew Lyon in Vermont.
Vermont has stood up for the rights of free speech before and since. Vermont
served the Nation during the dark days of McCarthyism. In one of the most
remarkable and praise-worthy actions of any Senator from any
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State, Vermont Senator Ralph Flanders stood up for democracy in opposition to
the repressive tactics of Senator Joseph McCarthy. When so many others, both
Republicans and Democrats, ran for cover, Senator Ralph Flanders of Vermont, a
Republican, a conservative, a businessman, came to the Senate floor and said:
Enough is enough. He asked for the censure of Senator McCarthy and allowed
people once more in this country to speak freely.
Vermont has a great tradition we cherish. It is one I intend to uphold. I
honor the Vermont tradition that includes Senator Flanders when I oppose
cutting back the First Amendment and the Bill of Rights.
The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the
inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries. -- Winston
Churchill
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