Republican Lt. Gov. John Rodgers cast a tie-breaking vote in the Senate Tuesday to elevate a controversial nominee to Vermont’s highest court.

When Michael Drescher was appointed by Republican Gov. Phil Scott to fill a vacancy on the Vermont Supreme Court last month, he arrived to the confirmation process with what most Democratic lawmakers considered a disqualifying flaw.

As the acting U.S. attorney for Vermont, Drescher led the Trump administration’s high-profile prosecutions of two students, Mohsen Mahdawi and Rümeysa Öztürk, both of whom were arrested and detained by federal immigration authorities last year for their outspoken criticism of the war in Gaza.

During confirmation hearings in the Senate Judiciary Committee, Drescher told lawmakers that he took the lead on those cases to spare his assistants from the stain of association with President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. He also said it would be “unfair to conclude that I somehow personally supported the policies of the government simply because I was an advocate for those policies in court.”

“Would I have preferred somebody else to have been in the trenches in that case? Absolutely, but that would have been the wrong thing to do as a leader of the office,” Drescher said last month.

Those reassurances did little to win over the 17 Democrats in the Vermont Senate, all but two of whom voted to oppose his nomination Tuesday.

Windham County Sen. Nader Hashim, the Democratic chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that while Drescher hadn’t acted “in an unethical way,” he nonetheless sacrificed the public trust.

“At the end of the day, he did make arguments that were for the purpose of vindicating the unconstitutional detention of two individuals,” Hashim said.

Hashim said hundreds of Vermonters have reached out to him to oppose Drescher’s nomination, which he viewed as reason enough to deny Drescher one of five seats on the bench.

“The social contract between the government and the governed is increasingly fragile, and voting contrary to the many voices of Vermonters would only further contribute to that fragility,” Hashim said.

Bennington County Sen. Robert Plunkett, one of only two Democrats to join all 13 Republicans in support of Drescher’s nomination, cited preservation of that social contract as the reason for his “yes” vote.

Plunkett said he entered the nomination process eager to vote against Drescher.

“I wanted this to be the moment when Vermont stands up and says, ‘It stops here,’” he said. “I wanted to cast a vote that felt like resistance.”

But upon further reflection, and after a long conversation with Drescher, Plunkett reversed course. Had Drescher resigned in protest, Plunkett said, the Trump administration might have replaced him with a functionary who was “willing to bend the rules” in ways that prolonged the detentions of the students.

Plunkett said authoritarian governments rely on the corruption of institutions.

“That happens not just by installing loyalists, but by purging everyone who isn’t,” he said.

By “punishing” Drescher for performing his role in the legal processes that undergird democracy, Plunkett said, “we risk doing that work ourselves.”

Rodgers, who broke the 15-15 tie Tuesday, said Drescher “showed tremendous courage” and has been the subject of “unfair abuse by people in the public that don’t know all the facts.”

Rodgers said he recently had an hourlong phone conversation with Drescher.

“He explained he feared that if he resigned, that the Trump administration would appoint somebody like they have in other districts, who was highly partisan, and that would have been bad for the state of Vermont,” Rodgers said.

In a written statement Tuesday, Scott called Drescher “an exemplary public servant.”

The Senate also voted 23-7 Tuesday to confirm a second Supreme Court nominee, Christina Nolan, who ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate as a Republican in 2022.

Nolan served as U.S. attorney for Vermont during Trump’s first term.

Justices can serve multiple six-year terms on the Vermont Supreme Court so nominations for the bench are rare. Rarer still, and perhaps unprecedented, is for two seats to become vacant at the same time.

Inspired by Swiss chalet design, this cozy mountain hut offers unobstructed forest views—you’ll feel fully enveloped in nature. Maple plywood walls run throughout, adding to that alpine feel, and as there are no other houses visible from the property you’ll have the perfect opportunity to unplug (literally: there’s no television at the listing, and cell service may be spotty, so plan accordingly and bring that book that’s been left unread on your nightstand for months).

Rooms: 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom

Amenities: Bluetooth sound system, travel crib, indoor fireplace, backyard, fire pit, outdoor furniture, EV charger, BBQ

Location: Goshen

Less than an hour away from Stowe and under half an hour from the airport, this ideally located vacation rental sleeps six. A roomy screened porch makes outdoor dining sans mosquitos possible in the summer, and during the seasons you want to stay in, the sweet decor encourages it. From the celery-colored kitchen to the green-tiled tub to the checkered linens in the bedrooms, it’s a spot worth bookmarking for the design-minded traveler.

Rooms: 3 bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms

Amenities: Bathtub, washer/dryer, hot tub, exercise equipment, fire pit, outdoor furniture, BBQ

Location: Charlotte

Courtesy of Airbnb

ST. JOHNSBURY, Vt. (WCAX) – A Vermont woman pleaded not guilty Monday to accusations she stole a truck, hit multiple police cruisers, and led police on a chase that crossed state borders.

Marisa Levesque, 42, of Groton, faces Vermont charges of operating without owner’s consent, grossly negligent operation, and eluding police.

The charges stem from Friday’s incident where police say she stole a man’s truck from a cafe in Gorham, New Hampshire, where the owner had left it running. She then led police on a chase through several towns and into Vermont, where she was eventually stopped with spike strips in Barnet.

Police also say she hit two cruisers in New Hampshire and caused minor injuries to three officers.

Court paperwork says Levesque will be extradited to New Hampshire to face several charges there, including assault, reckless conduct with a deadly weapon, and disobeying an officer.

Copyright 2026 WCAX. All rights reserved.