Free Republic

right Republican Party. “Are you uncomfortable remaining a member?” one reporter asked Scott after U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., was dumped from GOP leadership this month for repudiating former President Donald Trump. Scott’s response: “The big tent we talk about a lot within the party doesn’t appear to exist, and I think that’s really unfortunate. All I can do is continue to serve the people in a manner that is reputable, open and welcoming.” But 20 years ago this week, another Vermonter did something explosively different. On May 24, 2001, then U.S. Sen. James Jeffords walked into a press-packed Burlington...

<p>WASHINGTON -- Senator James Jeffords criticized President Bush's tax cut proposal yesterday, saying the debate reminded him of two years ago when he decided to leave the Republican Party. ''Millions of Americans need help,'' the Vermont Independent said in the Democratic Party's weekly radio address. ''Yet, the president insists on a tax cut that hurts those who need help most, and helps those who need it least.''</p>

WASHINGTON - President Bush's top environmental priority — giving power plants, factories and refineries more time to reduce their air pollution — suffered a major setback Wednesday as a Republican-controlled committee rejected it in the Senate. The Environment and Public Works Committee deadlocked on a 9-9 vote on Bush's "clear skies" bill, a name that Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., described as "akin to calling Frankenstein Tom Cruise." The tie vote came after weeks of fruitless negotiation to get a bare majority required to recommend the bill to the full Senate. The committee vote doesn't preclude GOP leaders from scheduling the...

Officials: New federal tests hurt students BY JUDY HOLLAND Hearst Newspapers WASHINGTON - Teachers, lawmakers and celebrities on Tuesday unveiled a book of letters that criticize the Bush administration's efforts to improve public schools by imposing federal testing. Critics of President Bush's centerpiece education program - known as "No Child Left Behind" - say it forces teachers to abandon more valuable academics in favor of preparing for federal tests. The program requires standardized testing for third through eighth grades in math and reading and identifies schools that don't pass muster as under-performing. The book, "Letters to the Next President: What...