Compromising positions: Session’s tumultuous end brings out the good, the bad, and the ugly

By Shay Totten & Kathryn Casa | Vermont Guardian
photo by Jessica K. Kell

Posted May 12, 2006

MONTPELIER — It was 2:30 p.m. on May 9 when the tense cloud that had been hanging over the Statehouse for weeks lifted.

House and Senate negotiators, along with Gov. Jim Douglas, were gathering to announce that they had secured a deal on the major issue of the session — health care.

In the end, neither side got everything they wanted, but observers noted that the governor got more than the Democrats gave up.

While House members churned through legislation into the night, the Senate recessed until May 10, when adjournment was expected.

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