A Vermont lawmaker stood firm behind comments made during a recent Ways & Means hearing about the government's role in the economy that drew the attention of state Republicans.
"Right now, our system is rigged against working people, our poorest neighbors, and the most vulnerable members of our communities," said state Rep. Teddy Waszazak, D-Barre. Fox News Digital asked him about comments made during a discussion on property tax brackets and proverbially paying one's fair share.
"I feel very strongly about this - I feel the need to say this," Waszazak interjected during a committee discussion last week that included a guest witness from the business-centered Lake Champlain Chamber of Commerce organization.
"The market picks winners and losers - it is the job of the government and tax code to right-size that," Waszazak said.
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The chamber official responded by saying that there may be a place for the government to "play referee," but "I don't think that it's appropriate to be picking winners and losers [or] targeting specific classes of payers based off of likes and dislikes… that's a slippery slope."
Another Democrat on the committee chimed in to say she did not believe Waszazak was seeking to divide taxation based on personal likes and dislikes.
Vermont Republicans seized on video clips of the hearing, with Vermont GOP Chairman Paul Dame saying such commentary is par for the course in Montpelier, as talk of government control and "winners and losers" is often associated with socialist political thought.
While Gov. Phil Scott is a Republican, the legislature has long been a site where far-left ideas are put to paper, Dame said.
"Unfortunately, Representative Waszazak is expressing verbally what so many Vermont Democrats believe and how they've legislated," he said.
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"They believe it's their job to tip the scales in the ways they see fit rather than letting Vermonters play on an equal playing field."
In his comments to Fox News Digital, Waszazak reaffirmed his assertion from the hearing, saying that the "rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer."
He pointed to the increasing wealth of billionaires Elon Musk, President Donald Trump and Amazon/Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos.
Citing the discussion in the hearing, which revolved around funding affordable housing and divvying up Vermont breadwinners into as many as nine tax brackets, Waszazak said he would like to see a tax structure where the working-class benefits most.
"[I'd like to see] teachers, construction workers, food service workers, truck drivers, veterans, children, and families [be] the winners," he said. "That's what I work for every day in Montpelier, and I'm proud of it."
Fox News Digital also reached out to Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. - a self-described democratic socialist - for comment on his fellow Vermonter.
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On Sanders' official website, a video featuring a then-21-year-old Waszazak showed the future lawmaker saying he believed the American Dream had faded.
"I think a lot of my generation is growing up and realizing that this isn't the country and the economy that we were promised we were going to have. We were just told as children that if you work hard, if you go to school, you will eventually be able to buy a house, have kids, and have whatever job you want to have… And I don't think that's true at all today."
On X, formerly Twitter, Waszazak appeared to be taking criticism in stride.
When a critic posted the video clip and asked "is this a joke?" the Democrat reposted: "I'm Teddy Waszazak and I approve this message."
