There's No "A" in Creemee

Vermont's $60M School Funding Fight, CVU chair Megan Metzler joins us

Joanna and Andy welcome Megan Metzler, chair of the Champlain Valley School District Board and vice president of the Vermont School Board Association, for a deep dive into Vermont's education funding crisis. Megan unpacks the foundation formula, why it doesn't work for Chittenden County, the $60 million that could be pulled from the county's schools, and why school boards have had to become loud advocates. In the opener, Joanna and Andy talk creemee moments — structural integrity, pistachio regrets, and a hot debate over meltiness. Plus: a frank conversation about the "wait your turn" culture in Vermont politics. #TheresNoAInCreemee #VTPoli #VermontPolitics #VermontEducation #Act73 #H955 #FoundationFormula #CVUSchools #ChittendenCounty #SchoolBoard #VTLeg #PublicEducation #VTElections2026 #Creemee #VermontCulture

Ryan Kriger on Data Privacy, Data Brokers & the Vermont Way

Joanna and Andy welcome Ryan Kriger — former Vermont and FTC privacy attorney, now Deputy Chief of Privacy at the Massachusetts AG's office — for a deep dive into one of the defining issues of our digital age. Ryan breaks down what data brokers actually are, why HIPAA doesn't protect as much of your health data as you think, how states like Vermont are stepping up where the federal government won't, and what makes Vermont's approach genuinely different. In the opener: the U.S. Secretary of Education's surprise Essex school visit (and the walkout it inspired), the filing deadline fallout, last-minute legislative exits, and the education funding bill that's not quite the rollback it's being sold as and Ryan raids his sprinkle cabinet. You will want to watch the video.

Should VT Tax Millionaires More? Anika Heilweil on the Fair Share Campaign

Anika Heilweil from the Public Assets Institute stops by to break down Vermont's Fair Share campaign — a push to recapture a portion of the massive federal tax cuts headed to the wealthiest Vermonters under HR-1. Anika explains why 80% of Vermonters support increased taxes on the wealthy, why the bill stalled in the statehouse, and what the data actually show on tax flight. In our opener, Joanna gives an update on her Democratic Party neutrality resolution — which the bylaws committee scheduled without telling her, naturally — and we officially unveil our new intro featuring the late, great Chuck the Rooster.Plus: Andy and Joanna play Robin Hood with $400 million in would-be state revenue — from property tax cuts to tiny homes to ACA subsidy restoration — and Anika reveals her go-to creemee order.

Maura Collins on Why Vermont's Affordable Housing Math Doesn't Add Up

Joanna and Andy sit down with Maura Collins, Executive Director of the Vermont Housing Finance Agency, for a deep dive into Vermont's housing crisis. Maura explains how VHFA moves Wall Street money to Vermonters, why Vermont median home prices are nearly 5x median income, and why $450 million in tax-exempt bond money sits unused while 850 apartments could be built today. Plus: the post-2008 rule quietly killing condo development, what you can do locally at housingdata.org, and Maura's shocking Creemee confession. In the opener: canvassing dispatches, a two-Creemee week, Mets win the Subway Series, Joanna's Democratic Party primary neutrality resolution, and Senator Heffernan's disturbing floor comments on trans identity. #TheresNoAInCreemee #VTPoli #VermontPolitics #VermontHousing #AffordableHousing #VHFA #HousingCrisis #VTLeg #VermontPodcast #MauraCollins #HousingPolicy #LetsBuildHomes #MetsWin #SubwaySeries #TransRights #VermontLife #CreemeeHeresy #HousingData

The Podiversary Special, Part 2: Charity Clark & Owen Foster Turn the Tables on Joanna & Andy

The mic takeover continues as Owen Foster and Charity Clark take the wheel and put Joanna and Andy through a delightfully rigorous Vermont quiz — dairy cows, state mottos, switchel, the Vermont wave, and a pronunciation segment that exposes who truly drops their T's. Before the buzzer sounds, the group digs into Vermont's most stubborn challenges — education, housing, healthcare, and affordability — and why self-reliance may be the only answer as federal support melts down. Plus: Vermont's smallness as both superpower and social limiter, the Long Trail as spiritual home, and a Vermont history deep dive into the Young Turks and the Mountain Rule. Also: dream podcast guests, Creemee orders all around, and some very old baseball grudges. Hashtags: #TheresNoAInCreemee #VTPoli #VermontPolitics #VermontHistory #MountainRule #YoungTurks #RealVermonter #VermontQuiz #Switchel #Creemee #VermontValues #LongTrail #VermontCulture #OwenFoster #CharityClark #VTElections2026 #BraveVermontState #VermontPodcast