The State Department is failing to recruit a Foreign Service that fully represents the American people, as required by the Foreign Service Act of 1980. One of State’s most glaring recruitment shortcomings is its inability to hire new Foreign Service officers (FSOs) who come from all geographic regions of America. This ongoing failure helps to perpetuate the mindset of the current Foreign Service and shape its policy attitudes. Fielding a U.S. diplomatic and consular corps that truly reflects the geographic diversity and values of the American people, and not just...

A bill to restrict paramilitary training in Maine in response to a neo-Nazi who wanted to create a training center for a “blood tribe” was signed into law by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills on Friday. The law, which the governor signed without public comment, allows the attorney general to file for a court injunction to stop paramilitary training that's intended to sow civil disorder — and to bring charges that carry a penalty of up to a year in jail. Rep. Laurie Osher of Orono introduced the bill after a...

MILTON — The Milton school board on Thursday avoided talking about the Black Lives Matter flag that has flown outside the high school for five years. But the board voted to change the flagpole policy to effectively exclude such flags. After a three-hour long, packed meeting at the high school library, the school board voted 3-2 to allow only the United States and Vermont flags to be flown on district flagpoles. Whether the Black Lives Matter flag, which still flew Thursday night, will come down right away is, however, unclear....

When the week started, the House’s tax writing committee looked poised to structurally transform Vermont’s education finance system. By Thursday, such changes seemed less certain. And on Friday, Gov. Phil Scott’s administration entered the room, throwing out an unexpected proposal to lower property taxes this year by spreading out the tax increase over multiple years using a yet-to-be-named pot of money. Where that money for the “deferred payable” idea could come from and what effect it might have on the state’s credit ratings remain open questions. Craig Bolio, commissioner of...

The Vermont Senate Committee on Education will hold its confirmation hearing for Gov. Phil Scott’s pick for education secretary, Zoie Saunders, on April 23. The committee’s chair, Sen. Brian Campion, D-Bennington, initially considered holding the hearing next week, when Saunders plans to begin work. But Campion said in an interview on Thursday that the administration had requested the hearing be scheduled one week later. “Seemed a little ambitious for her to arrive, and then the next day have a hearing,” Campion told VTDigger. “It seems quite — I don’t know...

The company that produces baked goods for brands including Arnold bread, Entenmann’s and others has closed 28 outlet stores in the Northeast. Bimbo Bakeries USA said in a press release that its products still will be found on grocery store shelves. The company’s brands also include Boboli, Lender’s Bagels, Sara Lee and Thomas. The closed stores included outlets in New York, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire. U.S. Steel shareholders have overwhelmingly approved the company’s sale to Nippon Steel of Japan for $14.1 billion in cash, voicing unequivocal support...

The company recently acquired the former Paradis Shop 'n Save grocery stores in Fort Kent and Madawaska. The grocery chain recently acquired the Paradis Shop ‘n Save stores in Fort Kent and Madawaska and finished converting both. Hannaford had been supplying the stores prior to the sale. “While we’ve long been connected to Fort Kent and Madawaska, we are excited to officially become a part of these outstanding communities,” Todd Bullen, Hannaford's vice president of retail operations, said. “We look forward to welcoming shoppers through our doors as they discover...

An arrest warrant has been rescinded for the Vermont owner of a controversial firearms training center involved in a long-running legal dispute over unpermitted structures after the town says it has removed them while he remains jailed on other charges. An environmental court judge ordered Daniel Banyai’s arrest in December, finding him in contempt of court for not bringing the property into compliance. Banyai was taken into custody last month and charged with aggravated assault on the constable who arrested him. He has pleaded not guilty. The property in Pawlet,...

The company that produces baked goods for brands including Arnold bread, Entenmann’s and others has closed 28 outlet stores in the Northeast.Bimbo Bakeries USA said in a press release that its products still will be found on grocery store shelves.

Last Wednesday, Gov. Phil Scott vetoed S.18, a bill that would ban the sale of flavored e-liquids and nicotine products in Vermont. Since then, the bill has spent a week on the Senate’s action calendar with no movement from senators, raising the question: Did lawmakers have the votes to overturn that veto and pass the bill into law? On Thursday, the Senate appeared to provide an answer. In the afternoon, Senate President Pro Tem Phil Baruth, D-Chittenden Central, announced that the bill would not move forward for an override vote....