Welch visits Stowe business owners

“It wasn’t at all clear then what was going to happen,” Welch told a small group of business owners and town officials. “Somehow you all survived.”

Welch was in town as part of a swing through Lamoille County to talk about tourism, real estate and roads, and to throw a little mud on the quagmire that is Washington politics. Roughly a dozen people attended the casual 45-minute chat, which concluded with a stroll down Main Street in Stowe village.

Earlier in the morning, Welch visited Morrisville to deliver meals to seniors with volunteers from Lamoille County Meals on Wheels.

Among the topics of discussion in Stowe was how banks are treating people seeking home loans after the housing crisis. He said when he was young, he got his first home loan from a banker on his hometown baseball team. Banks, he said, need to make “local decisions.” Instead, he said, loaners have “gotten spooked,” going from a pre-2008 housing crash mindset of “no credit necessary” to “hassling the most credit-worthy.”

Welch said Congress went too far after the housing crisis, imposing standards that were too rigid for smaller banks. He said Congress should consider rolling back some of those standards so that it is easier for people to get home loans from their local bank.

Stowe hoteliers Bruce Nourjian (Commodores Inn) and Mark Vandenberg (Sun and Ski Inn) both addressed the hard times still facing those in the tourism business.

Nourjian said Vermont is being “outgunned” by other tourism-based states and wondered if Washington could provide more marketing money for Vermont. Welch said although Vermont has a “formidable brand,” it would be difficult to get the federal government to pump money into state tourism.

Vandenberg said the Affordable Care Act is cutting into his bottom line, and Green Mountain Care threatens to cut in even further. He complained that details on funding plans for the state’s proposed single-payer system are “conveniently held until after the election.”

Welch said Congress has been bogged down 55 times with attempted repeals of the Affordable Care Act. He said Congress should instead try to reform the health care law in ways that would appease both Republicans and Democrats.

Welch said the partisan gridlock in Washington is quite different from how Vermont’s Legislature works. In Vermont, he said, the process involves listening to ideas you disagree with and making adjustments to get things done. Not so in Congress, he said.

For example, in response to a question about the poor condition of roads in Vermont, Welch said, “We’ve got a third-world infrastructure in this country,” yet Congress is still having trouble passing a highway bill.

“Now you’re getting into the heart of the failure of Congress,” he said.

Welch’s time as a Vermont state senator allowed him to negotiate with both Republicans and “far left” Democrats. For instance, he said, he might not be able to convince U.S. Rep. Michelle Bachman that global warming is real, but he might be able to convince her to see the practical wisdom in energy efficiency.

He said there are plenty of people in Congress who are still unconvinced about climate change. He quipped, “I work with some of the best minds of the 18th century down there.”

Welch said the “orthodoxy” in Congress is to cut and cut. He said government is like a business, and the biggest challenge is spending money without knowing where it’s going to come from.

Vandenberg wasn’t convinced.

“If I run my business with a trillion-dollar deficit, I’d be out of business,” he said.