TRACY: Well I knew Gov. Dean prior to--I used to coach his son in soccer.  I mean he's a good dad as far as being around his kids and stuff.  So coaching young kids in soccer, we first met there and then as I became engaged politically we just got to know each other much better and as I got into leadership we've worked together quite a bit.
 

QUESTION: What can you tell everyone outside of Vermont, people who know very little about Gov. Dean, about his leadership style and capabilities?  Maybe you could give a specific example or two. 

TRACY: He's a very strong leader and he doesn't shy away from controversy and he goes right into the lion's den.  We've had some significant legislation that has passed in Vermont, the way we fund education, Act 60, was incredibly controversial.  He went right through it with us and held firm.  And the civil unions legislation that we passed as well, which ultimately cost us the majority in the House of Representatives, was incredibly controversial, and he refused to shy away from it.  He just approaches things head on.  He's very bright, very quick, and very strong.  He's a great leader.

QUESTION: On Act 60, I talked with one person who said that Dean kind of stepped aside and said you guys in the legislature have to come up with a plan.

TRACY: I would say that he knows the role of the legislature and he's always been there, but he's very respectful of our processes.  It was clear that he had some ideas as to where he wanted us to go.  But it was clearly our job; but once we passed the bill, and he was engaged in discussions.  I mean nothing goes on, especially in Vermont, without the administration being in on it.  And once we had enacted the legislation he stood behind us.

QUESTION: Shouldn't he be out there, at least laying out his principles?

TRACY: Well he made it clear at that juncture that he didn't want it to be clearly the income tax.  Actually what we had passed in the House was an income tax, and the compromise that came back from the Senate and we felt the governor was on board with that was to have a statewide property tax with an income sensitivity provision so you get the best of both worlds, and I think the governor had a hand in that.  And the upside of that, although I prefer income, is that when the economy goes south, like it is now, property doesn't leave.  Income does.  We're seeing our income as a state being impacted negatively now, but the property's still there.  And a former governor, Richard Snelling, wanted a statewide property tax.  And while the burden, I do not believe, should be overwhelming on the property tax, having the piece of stability there with the income sensitivity was a reasonable compromise at that juncture and he had a hand in that.

QUESTION: Kind of from the back though?

TRACY: Well around.  You knew he didn't want a straight income tax.  He made that clear.  Because he knew, he looked at the financial stability and the needs of the state.  So you always know where the governor's coming  from; he may not be out there pounding his chest doing it.  And I have found that working with him in leadership, he's always been there.  And he's a wonderful politician; he knows how to get things done and he doesn't necessarily have to get the credit for it.
 

QUESTION: What would be another example that would show how he works?

TRACY: I think his strong leadership on civil unions.  I mean he was in touch with us constantly through the legislative process on civil unions, working with us to work on members to get them to support it.  Helping and being on board with us when we made the decision and went forward with it.  I mean...we had some people from Washington saying why are you guys doing this?  You know it's an election year.  Stick it in the drawer; deal with it later.  And we said it's the right thing to do.  That's why we're doing it.  I mean that's why you got into politics, to do the right thing.  And I think that's what Gov. Dean is all about.  He was very much with us, always in constant negotiations with us, in communication, helping us work on members.  He was right in the thick of it.  Now he wasn't out there pounding his chest saying this is me and this is mine, but he was working with us to make sure that we had the votes that we needed, and it got through and then he signed the thing and stood up for it when it passed.
 

QUESTION: Have his relations with the legislature been generally good or...?

TRACY:  Well this session, actually from my perspective in the House they were good.  The governor and I early on we had a couple of rows; that was part of a learning curve on my part, and I had a more liberal caucus than the governor was on some financial issues.  So it took a while for us to get each other, but I have found his as I have grown in leadership, I've found him to be incredibly helpful and supportive...

When I was first leader we had a Blue Dog contingent of Democrats, the more moderate Democrats.  And they were more aligned with the Governor on financial issues than the rest of my caucus so we had a couple of testy times during that session in particular.  And so that was tough for he and I, but I think we both grew from that and were able to say let's get working on things that matter like health care and things like that.
 

QUESTION: One person I spoke with said he admires the Governor because he goes on "gut instincts."  But is he able to change his mind if that gut instinct proves wrong?  Is he flexible, in other words?

TRACY: I think he is.  I'm a little biased on this; I go on gut a lot.  But he listens and he's extremely bright.  And he listens to others; he listens to diverse opinions.  If it's proven to him or justified that something needs to be altered then he will.  If he believes in his heart and his soul and he's looked at everything and says this is the way it should be, that's the way it's going to be.  And that's one of the things I find admirable about him.  I think he's got a good gut instinct, but he's bright enough to know when the course has to be changed.
 

QUESTION: Getting at his leadership style there was a recent quote from the IBM person about him being "thin-skinned."  What does that mean?

TRACY: I think it shows that the guy's got emotion and he's got passion.  You get in this business for a while and you do have to develop a thick skin--it's just, it's a protection device; things still sting, they just don't sting as long.  But he feels passionately, and he's not going to sit there passively when someone says something that he doesn't agree with or goes counter to what he really feels in his heart is correct.  And he won't kowtow to people.  Now if that's being thin-skinned, I think we need more of that.  He's very respectful, but when he disagrees, he'll let you know.  In reading that article where John O'Kane made that comment, I thought, oh gees, I mean I don't see the governor as thin-skinned at all.  I see him as a human being who reacts, but he's a guy who takes his job very passionately and I think we need more passionate politicians.  There's a lot of them around, but that's what makes the difference.  I mean that's the thing about politics.  If you want to be good at it, you have to be passionate about it and that's what he is.
 

QUESTION: Would he make a good president?  Does he have what it takes? 

TRACY: I think he'd make a great president.  He goes right into the lion's den; he's not afraid of anything.  He's bright and he believes in what he's doing.  I'd vote for him in a heartbeat.