Vermont’s lone US House member eyes move up to Senate

By WILSON RING
Associated Press

NORWICH, Vt. (AP) — Vermont’s lone member of the U.S. House for the past 16 years has always embraced his role as a liberal Democrat. But Rep. Peter Welch says he’ll take the state’s tradition of working across the political aisle with him if he’s elected to the U.S. Senate next month. Welch, who is vying to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy, says that if elected to Congress’ upper chamber, he’ll continue to try to find common ground with Republicans despite the current hyperpartisan political climate. Some in Vermont have questioned the 75-year-old Welch’s choice to run for Senate, saying he’d better serve the state by remaining in the House and keeping the seniority he’s built up there.