and this is the bag of mixed nuts he decides to stick his pudgy hands into…
For the viewing challenged, the money quote: known Free Stater Harrison De Bree and an Andy Stachura who both add to the conversation about the frustration of getting their agenda through:
Stachura: “SHILLS and Traiters! These usurper [sic] need a stiff heavy hand and proper punishment!”
Harrison: “Complaining on Facebook won’t get you anywhere. So who is going to be the first one to string a rep up on the birch tree in front of the statehouse?”
Nice sentiments. These are Josh Youssef’s colleagues. Josh Youssef will head up Trump’s initial ground campaign work in New Hampshire. For more on Youssef refer back on this blog to Donald Trump Starts in NH on Questionable Footing
As Miscellany Blue reports below, Donald Trump has named a local New Hampshire curmudgeon and accomplished liar to spear-head his presidential “exploration” team in New Hampshire. We think he couldn’t have picked anyone better to represent his values. Read below:
Donald Trump names controversial figure to N.H. leadership team
Josh Youssef, the Laconia businessman named to Donald Trump’s New Hampshire leadership team, has an extensive history of provocative remarks and controversial conduct. The 2012 Republican state senate nominee in District 7 will serve as the Belknap County chair for Trump’s exploratory presidential campaign.
In 2013, the state Attorney General’s Office ruled Youssef violated the state’s election law when he published a deceptive and misleading website during his unsuccessful senate campaign.
The charges grew out of a public spat between Youssef and attorney Ed Mosca, who was representing Youssef’s ex-wife in their contentious divorce case. In August 2012, the Concord Monitor reported Youssef had accused Mosca of trying to sabotage his campaign by posting court documents related to the divorce on his blog, edmosca.com.
A few weeks later, an anonymous website (first reported by Miscellany Blue) appeared that was virtually identical to Mosca’s blog in look and feel. The copycat site, edmoscablog.com, praised Youssef and accused Mosca of waging a “personal vendetta” against him.
Mosca filed a formal complaint and the Republican leadership of the state Senate called on Youssef to publicly address the allegations. “These allegations are serious and deserve to be fully investigated,” Senate President Peter Bragdon and Majority Leader Jeb Bradley said in a statement.
Youssef eventually admitted creating the copycat site. The state Attorney General’s Office ruled the act violated a state law that prohibits falsely representing someone else for the purpose of influencing an election.
In a YouTube video, Youssef defended the anonymous copycat website as protected political speech, which he called “the underpinning of our entire political process.” Mosca’s complaint, he said, was “just a politically-motivated trick to try to derail my bid for the state Senate.”
Court documents from Youssef’s divorce also revealed he failed to file federal income tax returns between 2004 and 2008. Concord Monitor reporter Annmarie Timmins confirmed the records indicated Youssef owed $60,000 to the IRS, which began garnishing his wages in January 2012.
After the packed public hearing a few weeks ago, full of testimony against
the GOP House radical budget proposal, the Senate Finance Committee began
taking action on their own proposal. And so far the results are not good.
Yesterday the Senate Finance Republicans voted to cut funding for substance
abuse prevention in a party-line vote of 4-2. These cuts would remove the
Office of Substance Use Disorders and Behavioral Health as well as a senior
director position. Losing these resources and personnel would significantly
impair our ability to provide necessary treatment and coordinate a
statewide response to the current substance abuse and heroin epidemic. Not
only were these positions included in Governor’s Hassan’s budget, they were
even in the House version.
To quote my colleague Senator Hosmer, “Senate Republicans move to strip
this essential position shows they are out of touch with the needs of NH
communities and I urge them to reconsider their actions that are putting
the health and well-being of Granite Staters at risk.” I echo Senator
Hosmer’s statement and urge Finance Committee Chair Senator Forrester to
reconsider these harmful cuts to common-sense priorities. Please join me in
sending that message as the budget process continues in the Senate.
Senators continued their work on the budget last week. First, the Ways and Means Committee approved revenue projections $118 million higher than the estimate used by the House. That gave the Finance Committee room to approve restoration of millions of dollars (cut by the House) for elderly services, the developmentally disabled, emergency homeless shelters, and substance abuse treatment. The restored funds, however, still fall short of what the Governor proposed, let alone what is actually needed.
Like the House, Senate Finance voted against renewing the expanded Medicaid program (NH Health Protection Program), which is due to expire in December 2016. Read more here from NHPR. The full Senate also voted, along party lines, against extension of the Health Protection Program.
One question still hanging over the Senate deliberations is whether Republican Senators will follow through on their plan to cut business taxes. See more analysis from the NH Fiscal Policy Institute here. We have not heard whether language authorizing privatization of the Sununu Youth Center will be retained or deleted. Nor have we heard whether Senators will come up with funds for the state employee pay raise already approved through collective bargaining.
The Senate Finance Committee will meet next week on Tuesday and Wednesday, by which time they are expected to approve their budget proposal and send it on to the full Senate. NH Voices of Faith will be present outside the hearing room, continuing its witness for a budget that speaks to our highest moral values.
The full Senate is expected to vote on the budget on June 4. After that it goes back to the House, which can accept the Senate budget or call for a Committee of Conference (CoC) to resolve differences. Given that the Senate had the benefit of better revenue projections than the House did, we wonder if the House might just adopt the Senate budget and save the trouble of a Committee of Conference.
Speaking of Committees of Conference, the House lays out its 2015 CoC Procedures near the top of the House Calendar. Here’s a short version: If the House and Senate approve different versions of the same bill, each chamber can opt to a) “concur” with the other, i.e. accept the language of the other body, in which case it goes on to the governor; b) non-concur and call for a committee of conference (CoC); or c) non-concur and not accept a CoC, in which case the bill dies.
If CoCs are formed, members are appointed by leadership. The objective of the CoC is to reach agreement on new language that would be acceptable to both chambers. If it is unable to do so, the bill dies. COCs need to approve reports unanimously, but leadership can replace members at any time. CoCs would be formed between June 4 and June 11, and would need to complete their work by June 18. The House and Senate will vote on CoC reports during the week of June 22, with June 25 the final day for action.
Updates from Last Week
HB 614, implementing the goals of the state’s 10-year energy plan, was approved by the Senate and referred to the Finance Committee for further consideration. A floor amendment was added calling for shortfalls in funding to be met by transfers from the renewable energy fund. Any monies not expended would be returned back to the fund at the end of the biennium.
SB 219, the bill that would require employers to provide a clean, private space for nursing mothers to express breast milk, had already passed the Senate on a voice vote and seemed like the kind of bill that would sail through without difficulty. Employers with fewer than 50 employees whose businesses lacked sufficient space were exempted. Even with that sort of accommodation, the House Commerce Committee voted 13-8, along party lines, to retain the bill. We are disappointed that a bill aimed at helping working mothers breastfeed their babies turned into a partisan issue.
Dueling EBT Bills
Last week we reported that the Senate amended and passed HB 219, the House bill intended to limit how people receiving benefits via EBT cards can use them. The amendment included an unenforceable ban on the use of cash obtained through EBT to purchase goods and services that the Senators believe poor people should not spend money on. With the amendment, the bill became a mirror of SB 169, a bill already adopted by the Senate and sent to the House. You with us so far?
The House Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs Committee took up SB 169 in executive session on Tuesday. Representative McMahon, the prime sponsor of HB 219, proposed an amendment that replaced the language of SB 169 with the text of the original version of HB 219, a bill which limits the sites where EBT cards can be used but does not try to regulate the use of cash. The amendment was approved, and the full committee voted OTP/A on the bill, with a vote of 17-0. The House committee also voted NOT to concur with the Senate on HB 219, the House EBT bill altered by the Senate. They’ve asked for a Committee of Conference on the bill.
If you’re confused, try this: The House passed its bill, which was altered by the Senate to mirror its own. The House took umbrage, and altered the Senate bill to mirror its bill, and called for a CoC. If the Senate agrees, differences could be resolved. From the State House Watch perspective, the best possible outcome is that everyone will be so annoyed by all of these shenanigans that neither of the odious bills aimed at demonizing poor people will pass.
Coming Up in the Senate
The Senate will be in session on Thursday, May 28, starting at 10 AM.
Regular Calendar
HB 315, relative to termination of tenancy, is recommended for defeat. This bill would provide additional grounds for termination of tenancy with only 7 days’ notice. The committee recommended killing the bill on a vote of 4-1. We actively opposed this bill, and are pleased with the Senate Judiciary Committee’s action. Landlords already have sufficient power to evict tenants with only 7 days’ notice.
HB 25, the capital budget. (Look at the Senate Calendar Addendum for the version approved by the Senate Capital Budget Committee.) We are pleased that it includes $1 million for the Affordable Housing Fund. We have to observe that Governor Hassan had proposed $2 million for this fund and housing advocates had suggested $5 million, but $1 million is $1 million more than the House approved. The Senate’s capital budget proposal includes additional funds for a new women’s prison and does not include funds for a commuter rail study supported by the governor.
Coming Up in the House
The House will be not be in session until Wednesday, June 3.
Coming up in House Committees
Labor, Industrial and Rehabilitative Services, Room 307, LOB
10:00 AM Executive Session on SB 255, establishing a low-wage service worker task force. This task force would be charged with studying the growth of the low-wage service sector as compared to the growth of other job sectors; the demographics and rate of poverty of workers in low-wage industries; the impact on children, families and communities; the cost of state services used by low-wage workers; and the effects of low-wage jobs on the local economy. There is some fear afoot that the House will turn a serious task force into a legislative study committee that is less likely to look very deeply into the issue.
Coming up in Senate Committees
Tuesday, May 26
Finance, Room 103, SH
9:00 AM Executive Session on the Budget
Wednesday, May 27
Finance, Room 103, SH
9:00 AM HB 550, relative to the administration of the tobacco tax. This was a routine bill addressing how the tobacco tax is managed. The Senate already passed the bill and referred it to Finance. At this hearing Finance will consider “non-germane amendment” 2015-1906s that changes the title and limits the inclusion in the business profits tax of the net increase due to certain sales or exchanges of an interest or beneficial interest in a business organization. In other words, the taxes on profits from the sale of an interest in a business will be limited, which will mean less revenue for the state.
Following the public hearing on HB 550, the Finance Commitee is expected to complete its deliberations on the budget.
“State House Watch/White House Watch” Radio
We’ll take a holiday break next week and replay last year’s Memorial Day music special. You can hear us Monday from 5 to 6 pm and Tuesday from 8 to 9 am at 94.7 FM in the Concord area and at wnhnfm.org anywhere you can get an internet signal. You can also download podcasts of past shows, including last week’s with Brenda Libby from Community Bridges and Michele Holt-Shannon of NH Listens.
Governing Under the Influence
Check out our website to find out why Arnie handed a plastic whistle to New Jersey’s Governor Chris Christie, and to read about Senator Lindsey Graham’s encounter with a band of peace activists in downtown Manchester. There’s also a new post on the Obama administration’s trillion dollar plan to “modernize” the US nuclear arsenal, all to the benefit of some likely suspects. Next week we’ll see the return to the NH campaign trail of Senators Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz (no joint appearances scheduled), as well as Carly Fiorina Check out the candidate calendar, and let us know if you plan to be at any of the events. As noted below, we’re doing another “bird dog training” Thursday in Milford. No dogs and no birds will be harmed, and you’ll have fun honing your political skills.
Events Coming Up
Friday, May 22 – Saturday, May 23
Ancestral Reburial – The Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail invites you to honor the dead who were found buried beneath a Portsmouth street as they are reinterred in sacred ground. Friday night, beginning at 7:00 pm, with an overnight vigil at the New Hope Baptist Church, 263 Peverly Hill Road, ending with a sunrise service at 6:00 am on Saturday morning. A motorcade will transfer the caskets to the State Street entrance of the African Burying Ground Memorial Park on Chestnut Street. At 8:30 AM there will be an unveiling of commissioned artwork, and at 9:00 am the reburial ceremonies will begin. Wearing white or traditional African attire is encouraged. More information is here and on Facebook.
Friday, May 22
“Who Am I Going To Be: African Youth Building Lives in NH,” a documentary by Lynn Clowes, will be shown at 7:00 pm at the Concord Quaker Meeting Meetinghouse in Canterbury. Lynn Clowes will be on hand to lead a discussion and answer questions about the constellation of challenges that African youth face as they build new lives in NH. Click here for directions.
Saturday, May 23
Walk For Democracy in the Upper Valley with the NH Rebellion. 11:30 AM – Meet at Lebanon Green for rally and sign making. Noon – Walkers depart on 6 mile walk to Hanover. 2:00 PM – Arrive at Hanover Green, and celebrate with speakers, street theater, burgers, and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Details and registration here. Sponsored by the NH Rebellion, AFSC/Governing Under the Influence, Open Democracy, Take Back Our Republic, NH Peace Action, and the Stamp Stampede. Contact Eric if you want to help carry AFSC banners.
March Against Monsanto to raise public awareness and bring political pressure to bear regarding Monsanto’s farming and business practices as well as the dangers of genetically modified food. An estimated 38 countries on 6 continents, and some 428 cities, will participate in this peaceful, informational protest. Noon to 2 PM in Portsmouth. Meet at the farmer’s market at Portsmouth City Hall, 1 Junkins Avenue at 12 noon for a march to Market Square. Visibility at Market Square from 1:00-2:00 PM. More information on Facebook.
Wednesday, May 27
Legislators and anyone else who supports affordable housing are invited to join Housing Action NH for a Home Matters in NH Week breakfast and award presentation Wednesday, May 27, from 8 to 9 AM in the State House cafeteria. Home Matters in NH Week will highlight policy solutions that help create housing matched to NH’s needs. The breakfast includes a presentation of five Home Matters in NH Awards, honoring outstanding work in three categories that help advance policies for more affordable housing and ending homelessness. Senators Jeb Bradley and Martha Fuller-Clark will receive this award for their legislative work, along with Concord resident Mike LaFontaine, formerly with the NH Community Loan Fund, for his long-time advocacy. Concord Monitor reporters Megan Doyle and Jeremy Blackman will be honored for their recent series covering the issue of homelessness in Concord. Encourage your Representatives to attend this important event, and please join us if you can. Please RSVP here.
Thursday, May 28
AFSC Bird Dog Training, Milford UU Church, 6 to 7:30 pm. Co-sponsored by 350NH, NextGen, UU Congregation of Milford. Contact Olivia for more information. (No dogs, no birds, just skills training for activists trying to affect the political discourse during NH Primary season.)
June 11 to 13
Michael McPhearson, Executive Director of Veterans for Peace and Co-Chair of the “Don’t Shoot” coalition, will speak at several events in New Hampshire about building peace at home and abroad. Events include NH Peace Action’s annual membership meeting, June 3 in Sanbornton and events in Hanover and Manchester organized by AFSC’s Governing under the Influence project. More details soon.
Saturday, June 13
“The Last Call, The Untold Reasons of the Global Crisis,” a film asking, “Can the golden age of unlimited growth last forever?” and “Are there no actual physical limitations to growth on our planet?” 7:00 PM at the Concord UU Church, 274 Pleasant Street, Concord. Free and open to the public, with discussion afterwards. Contact John Warner for further details.
-Arnie Alpert and Maggie Fogarty
PS – Don’t forget to “like” us on Facebook. Search for “American Friends Service Committee-NH” to “like” us. After all, we are your Friends.
AFSC’s New Hampshire “State House Watch” newsletter is published to bring you information about matters being discussed in Concord including housing, the death penalty, immigration, and labor rights. We also follow the state budget and tax system, voting rights, corrections policy, and more. Click here for back issues.
The AFSC is a Quaker organization supported by people of many faiths who care about peace, social justice, humanitarian service, and nonviolent change. Arnie Alpert and Maggie Fogarty direct the New Hampshire Program, publish the newsletter, and co-host the “State House Watch” radio show on WNHN-FM. Susan Bruce helps with research and writing. Fred Portnoy, WNHN Station Manager, produces the radio show.
“State House Watch” is made possible in part by a grant from the Anne Slade Frey Charitable Trust.
Your donations make our work possible. Click the “DONATE NOW” button on our web page to send a secure donation to support the work of the AFSC’s New Hampshire Program. Thanks.
American Friends Service Committee
4 Park Street
Concord, NH 03301 http://afsc.org
Newly elected state rep Yvonne Dean-Bailey from Rockingham District 32, who squeaked by in her win against Maureen Mann, told her buddies at the conservative whiner rag Campus Reform for persecuted junior wingnuts nationwide that she suffered ill treatment on the campaign trail, “At my own college conservatives were alienated and when I ran for office the majority of the attacks from the left were based on my gender and age,” Dean-Bailey said…
Well, you know the old saying “If you can’t take the heat get out of the kitchen.”
Campus Reform described Dean-Bailey as a “campus correspondent’. Dean-Bailey also liked to describe herself as a journalist, basing this of course on her experience with the Campus Reform website. The writer also stated, “Dean-Bailey has extensive political experience…” and named the campaigns she’s volunteered on, an extensive list no doubt, but she’s 19 years old. How many months were packed into about two years of life?
Oh wait, there we go, making a point of her age.
Which brings us back to her assertions about the campaign. If any issues were made about Dean-Bailey’s age this writer can assert for certain that none came from Maureen Mann nor would any have been condoned by her campaign. When I did the interview with her in April when asked to discuss her opponent and her age and inexperience, Mann was adamant that her campaign not “go there”. Mann knew the issues well enough and knew her district and the state well enough to have a wealth of information to work on without personal attacks.
Dean-Bailey has no experience, no wealth of information or knowledge to draw on. She’ll be yet another ill informed tool stuck to the extremist mix of libertarian and tea party dogma and most likely taking direction from others most of the time. We’ll be watching.
There’s no sting worse in politics than when your own party bites you on your soft-spot and right now Frank Guinta must be feeling some serious sting. But of course, baby-face Frankie can’t say he didn’t bring it on himself. Burdened with the load of his investigation by the Federal Election Commission and the embarrassment of his constant insistence on innocence, the GOP and their chorus, most notably the Union Leader, have broken their silence and come out demanding Guinta resign.
First, let’s not forget that this investigation more than likely occurred because of the pressure from good progressive activism such as CREDO supported Take Down Guinta campaign in 2012. Activists have long asked why Frank Guinta had a sudden dump of $355,000 in his political action fund during the 2010 election for the first congressional seat. At that time Guinta had refused to disclose the source of that money and other funds he “loaned” his election campaign as Jon Hopwood explains in a 2012 article on Guinta for the Examiner,
The loan, the terms of which Guinta refused to disclose during the campaign, triggered an FEC investigation.
That campaign loan was the reason Guinta was named one of the 10 most corrupt politicians in Congress, according to Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). CREW cited Guinta as he had “fudged the numbers and cooked the books to buy a seat in Congress.”
The organization reported that Guinta had given his campaign loans of $100,000 and $245,000 despite having a $72,000 annual salary as mayor of Manchester and a relatively modest investment portfolio. Guinta made the loans without liquidating any assets.
And on the story goes with Guinta weaving a web of lies for years while the FEC slowly investigated his claims. Now apparently Guinta has settled with the FEC. We’re sure he hopes to move on in his political career and Frank’s wrongdoings will dissolve into the ether of the short American psyche. That might be so but we’re thinking the GOP and their supporters may have other ideas. Calls for him to resign have arisen from nearly every political corner:
Union Leader Editorial staff called for Guinta’s resignation Guinta Must Go and the refrain was repeated earily this week when Joe McQuaid publisher placed on the editorial page:
Oh yes and even the guys back home in the state house aren’t too thrilled about Frankie either, with House Speaker and long-time Republican Shawn Jasper observing, “I believe it would be in the best interests of the people of the first congressional district if he step down from his position in the United States Congress.”
Jeb Bradley, State Senate majority leader chimed in to the chorus telling the NY Times, “I think he’s on a really small island,” Mr. Bradley said. “I think the charges are serious and disturbing and at some point he needs to think about doing what’s better for New Hampshire than himself.”
NH’s largest television news station WMUR said they caught Kelly Ayotte on the phone, “Senator Ayotte, who is expected to face a tough re-election battle next year, has said she told Mr. Guinta by phone that he should step down. “This is a decision he needs to make, but if I were in his position, that’s what I would do.”
But unfortunately, the NH Republican Executive Committee chose to stand by Guinta, ignoring the cries for his resignation saying in a statement released to the press 3 days ago and reported by WMUR,
But the party executive committee, after speaking with Guinta by telephone for about a half-hour on Monday night, parted ways with the four top elected officials. It unanimously adopted a statement that did not call for Guinta’s resignation but instead said that he has acknowledged mistakes, “takes responsibility for them and is taking actions required by the Federal Election Commission.”
“Unless further information comes to light, the executive committee of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee will take no further action,” the committee said.
Frankie went on the tube to blather on about how he was humbled by the committee’s support and he’ll work on making things right, yeah yeah.
The fact remains that citizens of congressional district 1 in New Hampshire are stuck with a hollow man for their representative. Apparently Frankie has no threshold of shame that would cause him to want to resign and live out of the public spotlight.
But that doesn’t mean people can’t fight back. NH Labor News has put together a petition for citizens of the state to register their disgust that a criminal and a liar can stay in office to represent them in Washington. Check out the petition and add your signature!
On May 6, the NH Senate held more than five hours of budget hearings. For several hours, I listened to one citizen after another plead for funding for a host of our state’s needs. Through it all, there was a nagging feeling that something was missing.
Representatives Hall was filled to capacity, as was the House gallery, the anteroom and the corridor outside. Some attendees were escorted to the State House cafeteria to wait for room to open up in the House chamber. More than 1,000 citizens are estimated to have turned out for the hearing.
Yet there was something missing.
Like so many parents of developmentally disabled children, one mother beseeched the committee to reinstate the thin safety net that provides for someone to care for her child while she works each day. These parents pay property and other taxes and save the state tens of thousands, if not millions, of dollars by not turning these adult children over to state care.
But there was something missing.
Folks from chambers of commerce and tourism-related businesses asked for restoration of state tourism promotional dollars, noting a 9-1 return on every dollar invested in promoting an industry accounting for more than 34 million visits and $4.5 billion in spending.
There were students from New Hampshire colleges including the student president of Keene State College who has seen friends drop out due to tuition costs and escalating debt. “I love New Hampshire. I want to stay here and contribute, but my college debt and the lack of affordability of living here will likely result in my leaving when I graduate.”
Many sported neon green T-shirts with the chalk outline of a body on the front bearing the number 321, the number of those who had died in the past year from drug overdoses. They entreated the committee to restore funding for drug and alcohol treatment and prevention to save lives.
Dozens of seniors asked the committee to save ServiceLink, a coordinating agency for seniors, and to restore funding for Meals on Wheels. If cuts result in the need for nursing home care, we currently could not accommodate them with the existing county nursing home structures.
Then I realized what was missing.
In all the hours of testimony, I had not heard one person who stood up and asked for cuts to the budget; not one who implored the committee to tighten our collective belt and eliminate any of the programs being discussed. Not one person demanded fee and tax cuts.
Of the more than 800 signatures on sign-in sheets, 10 were in favor of the budget and the remainder in opposition. Where does the outcry to slash these programs come from? As one woman said to the Senate committee, “We heard loud and clear from the House: You don’t matter to us, your children don’t matter to us. Will you tell us the same thing?”
Is that really what we want to tell the citizens of our state – the vulnerable, our students, seniors, tourism businesses, the homeless – you don’t matter to us. Is that truly the best we can do?
Dream of the Sun:
From often very quotable and ever erudite Tim Smith, Democratic state rep, Manchester Ward 10: “The world’s first solar-power photovoltaic cell was invented in 1839, by Edmond Becquerel in France. The first coal-powered electric power station (in fact, THE first power station) was built 43 years later (1882) on Pearl Street in NYC.
There’s simply no excuse why our global electrical grids are based off fossil fuels. The amount of R&D time we’ve squandered has been costly, indeed ….”
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The firefighter spouts off:
Mark MacKenzie, AFL-CIO President who won a recent re-election by a very narrow vote (24 votes) is facing a charge of corruption by his opponent, Glenn Brackett. Brackett claims that 691 ballots were thrown out due to a technical error. The Union Leader gets some insider information on the election and does their duty to report.
Although we can understand that MacKenzie might have some sweat around the collar right now but geez Mark, really?
When questioned about the dispute by a Union Leader reporter, MacKenzie responded (as the reporter then of course reported): “This is none of your business, this is being handled internally by our members. This is not in any way a matter of public record. For you to have that letter is inappropriate.” [MacKenzie referring to a letter Brackett wrote in his appeal to the union for an investigation].
But he doesn’t stop there:
The reporter then reported (as reporters must do): “MacKenzie told a Union Leader reporter that, if the newspaper ran a story about the letter, he would seek whatever legal remedy he could. ‘You do what you want to do,’ he said. ‘This is none of your business. If you run this, I will do what I can to come after the Union Leader.’
While MacKenzie then backed off a little and the UL reporter did also quote that, the fact remains that McKenzie gave the union hating Union Leader an appetizer, then an entree and a final desert of some good old fashioned union thug verbiage. You’d think after thirty years as president McKenzie would know better than to feed the vultures.
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Dude, I was so drunk…
Carl Gibson, a volunteer charged with running a Twitter account for Maureen Mann attempted to screw up Maureen Mann’s campaign in Rockingham District 32 after being fired after a week on the job. How does Mr. Gibson, the aspiring journalist/aspiring political operator respond? By making up a fake email purporting to be from Mann’s opponent that said she was dropping out of the race.
Gibson is quite over it, glibly responding to a Concord Monitor’s inquiry by passing off his behavior as “having too many beers” and claiming that, as apparently a self appointed great champion of the left, he was “trying to lead her [Mann] left“. Unsuccessful, he decided he didn’t like her or her opponent and thought he’d just play a little joke on her while drunk, “I thought it was funny. I didn’t really think it would be taken seriously,” said Gibson.
As a result the opponent understandably called the election commission and understandably as well, Mann said she welcomed any investigation into the matter. “Rat-fucking” an election is taken pretty seriously and you’d think the self-styled journalist, wannabe political operative might know this. Mann has handled this whole episode with grace and openness and moved on.
Gibson hasn’t been quite so tactful about the mess he made, preferring to use the tactic common among twelve year olds of dissing your opponent when your back is up against the wall, “We left on kind of bad terms. I haven’t talked to her in about a month and a half or so,” he said, adding he doesn’t like either candidate in the special election for Rockingham County’s 32nd district and “if they could both lose that’d be great.”
While many speculate on the motives of Gibson, no doubt the voters of Rockingham District 32 would rather their electoral process play out in the more traditional, democratic way.
And of course Jennifer Horn (NH RNC Chair) has to horn in on the whole thing, being her usual mean-girl self attempting to smear Mann stating, “The fact that Maureen Mann trusted a radical extremist who engages in illegal campaign activity to work on her race speaks volumes about her and her candidacy. Mr. Gibson’s deplorable attempt to spread misinformation was clearly designed to help Maureen Mann and disenfranchise Yvonne Dean-Bailey’s supporters,”
Let us say that Gibson never presented to anyone as an “extremist”, heck we’ve published a couple of his written pieces on this blog. Mann had him handle a Twitter account and for only a week. Twitter, a social media tool and he screwed the pooch on that so Mann had enough, fired him and changed his password. Also, the stunt had Mann on the defensive, not her opponent. Draw in your claws Cruella and let the election carry on.
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Frankie Goes Nowhere
Finally, now that baby-face Republican US Congressman, (NH DIstrict 1), Frank Guinta has finally been charged by the FEC with accepting campaign contributions from his parents that far exceeded the legal amount (to the tune of $355,000). The Boston Globe has a good story about the whole affair and how he’s now become the dead man walking with the NH GOP. But what we find notable is Frank’s continued efforts to deny that ma and pa just got a little too over zealous in helping their baby-boy. He has insisted all along that the funds were his. The Globe quotes him from a prepared statement to the press, “… I have always maintained the money I lent myself was, in fact, money I had generated since the early 1970s.”
That’s a lot of paper delivery money Frankie.
Guinta partying with his Tea Party friends. Where are your buddies now Frankie?
As the primary season warms up candidates from all over the country will visit New Hampshire to do their requisite glad-handing and baby kissing. Wouldn’t it be great to get a chance to ask the burning questions on your mind and everyone else’s this season? Don’t you think you have that right?
Well of course you do! What’s best is that right in Concord there exists folks ready to help you get connected with those who can lead on your way to holding politicians accountable to the people. The importance of what many like to call “bird-dogging” after the practice of sending the dog out to snuff out the hunter’s prey cannot be over-stated. Like the bird-dog, your job as a citizen would be to snuff out the truth behind all the fluff-talk and happy-jabber that politicians love to dole out. Nothing better than making a politician dance around those difficult and uncomfortable questions! For an example, we give you the here a video and write-up from experienced bird-dogger, Elizabeth Ropp as she puts Rick Perry on the hot-seat:
Rick Perry WMUR Town Hall
Elizabeth on April 16, 2015
I asked Rick Perry what he would do to prevent crony capitalism from corrupting our economy and our government. He dodged the question. I continued to push the issue from my seat in the audience.
He got so hung up on the first part of my question which was “I work for a small business and small business is the engine of New Hampshire’s economy.” But he ignored the second statement: “But they cannot afford to spend millions of dollars in campaign contributions to fund election campaigns and to hire lobbyistys. What will you do to prevent crony capitalism from corrupting our economy and our governement.”
He dodged the question and focused on Dodd Frank and the small business economy of Texas. At his conclusssion, I looked to Josh from WMUR and said “he did not answer my question.” Josh followed up with a follow up question on large campaign contributions from corporations. Perry continued to dodge. I was in my seat at this point and Rick Perry was looking and speaking directly at me. I responded back to him off mic.
“I am talking about large corporations funding election campaigns.”
Rick Perry continued to dodge and say he is not for sale.
I responded again, “You and every politician who comes here is relying on large sums of money from their corporations.”
Josh tried to step in and Rick Perry continued to address me.
I said one last thing: “This is the system.”
So you’re excited right? You wanna try this right? Well, don’t just sit there! Get up and get registered! Make a call, drive to Concord if you are in New Hampshire or close by. Then let’s go!
Get Involved
The American Friends Service Committee wants you to get involved with the Governing Under the Influence project, now underway in New Hampshire and Iowa. Here’s how:
Be a Bird Dog
Sign up to learn how you can use your voice to shape the unfolding political debate in direct dialogue with presidential candidates. We’ll provide training, let you know where the candidates will be, and help you decide what to ask/tell them. You can use our blog to file reports and share your experience with others.
Help us Educate the Public
Join our GUI Banner Team to bring our educational displays to public places, like fairs, festivals, and locations where candidates will be speaking. Help AFSC organize workshops, film showings, and other educational programs in your community.
Use your Social Media
Spread the word through Facebook, Twitter, your own blog, and other social media. Tweet and re-tweet using #GUI2016.
Volunteer in the Office
Our offices in Des Moines and Concord can use your help updating data bases, researching candidate plans for our calendar, and calling other volunteers.
State House Watch May 8
2015 Issue 16The Budget and Beyond
The big news this week was the budget hearing held by the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday. Representatives Hall, which holds 400 people, was full. The House Gallery, which holds 200 people, was full. People were standing in line outside both chambers waiting for people to leave so they could get seats. Meanwhile, the hearing was being live streamed to more people in the State House cafeteria.
Testimony was almost entirely about the failures of the House-approved budget to meet the needs of the most vulnerable residents of our state. Senators heard dozens of moving statements about services for people with developmental disabilities, mental health care, domestic violence and homeless shelters. They also heard numerous statements about the importance of extending the NH Health Protection Program and the folly of cutting business taxes.
NH Voices of Faith held a “prayer rally” by the State House steps prior to the hearing, and members vigiled in the hallways as the hearing got underway. Several members testified, too.
Rev. Gail Kinney’s statement included a call to “’just say ‘no’ to any effort to privatize juvenile offender services in the state of New Hampshire. New Hampshire’s troubled young people should never, ever, ever be turned over to be profit centers for a private corporation.”
“We are the fifth highest state in the country in per capita income,” Rev. John Gregory-Davis pointed out. “We have the resources; we simply choose not to use them,” he said, with a challenge to Senators to make a different choice.
The Finance Committee will meet twice next week – Tuesday at 1 pm and Wednesday at 9 am – to begin writing its budget proposal. If you were not able to be at the hearing on Tuesday, it is not too late to contact committee members with your views. You can also join members of NH Voices of Faith in vigils outside State House Room 103, where the committee meets. Contact Maggie to sign up for a shift.
Click here for a Concord Monitor article on the budget hearing with some great photos from the NH Voices of Faith rally. See the NH Voices of Faith Facebook page for more photos, video links, and news.
We expect the Finance Committee to approve a new budget proposal during the week of May 25 and for it to come before the full Senate on June 4. Following approval of a budget, the House and Senate will appoint members to a Committee of Conference to resolve differences by June 18. Watch this space for more about committees of conference and about budget advocacy.
Some Good News!
On Thursday Governor Hassan signed SB 47 into law, making NH the first state in the nation to prohibit the paying of subminimum wages to persons with disabilities. Read her signing statement here. Congratulations to everyone who worked on this!
The Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony from victims of violent crimes during a hearing on HB 225, a bill requiring defendants to personally appear in the courtroom during a victim impact statement. Rep. Renny Cushing, the sponsor of the bill, was quoted in the Union Leader saying, “It is important the victim is heard by the judge. It is important the victim is heard by the community, and it is important to be heard by the person who victimized me.” Cushing emphasized that those who have committed offenses against others can only move forward if they hear directly from those whom they have harmed.
Special Election in Rockingham 32
There has been a vacancy in the House since January, when Representative Brian Dobson went to work for Congressman Frank Guinta. The vacancy will be filled with a special election on May 19. Rockingham District 32 covers the towns of Candia, Deerfield, Northwood, and Nottingham. We hope you’ll take the time to research the candidates and be sure to vote.
More News from Last Week…
… in the House
SB 135, relative to lead poisoning in children, was adopted by the House with an amendment that strengthened the bill. Due to the amendment it will have to return to the Senate for reconsideration.
SB 62, relative to drivers’ licenses for persons without a permanent address, was adopted by the House with an amendment to stipulate that these licenses shall expire in one year and cost $10. Again, due to the amendment it will have to return to the Senate for reconsideration.
SB 105, relative to child-resistant packaging for tobacco products and establishing a committee to study revising the indoor smoking act, was killed by a House roll call vote of 210-143. Live free and/or die!
… in the Senate
HB 304, establishing a committee to study public access to political campaign information, passed on a voice vote. It is now headed to the Governor’s desk.
Next Week in the Senate
The Senate will be in session on Thursday, May 14 starting at 10 AM
Regular Calendar
HB 219 , relative to the use of EBT cards. This bill originally sought to prevent people receiving benefits via electronic benefit transfer cards (EBT) from using them in businesses that engage in body piercing, branding, or tattooing; also cigar stores and marijuana dispensaries (even though NH has no marijuana dispensaries at this time and that when we do the product will be available by prescription.) The Senate Health and Human Services Committee has added an amendment banning the use of cash obtained from EBT cards for use in the restricted businesses. The bill now more closely resembles the Senate’s version of this bill, SB 169. The Senate amendment is both demeaning and unenforceable. The Health & Human Services Committee recommended OTP/A 3-2. We recommend you call your Senator and suggest that she/he vote this down. Meanwhile, SB 169 is still in the custody of the House HHS Committee.
HB 681, increasing the marriage license fee. This bill increases the fee from $45 to $50. From this increase, $43 would go to fund the state’s domestic violence program. OTP vote 3-2.
Coming Up in the House
The next House session will be “at the call of the chair,” which is likely to resound throughout the land on June 3. (We love the phrase, “call of the chair.” It conjures up images of pages with trumpets in the King’s court or Town Criers in the days of the American revolution against the King.)
Coming up in House Committees
Tuesday, May 12
Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Room 302, LOB SB 52, establishing a commission to study the issue of residential tenancies in foreclosed properties.
Executive Departments and Administration, Room 306, LOB
10:00 AM Full committee work session on retained bills including HB 488, relative to an abusive work environment and the health and safety of public employees; and HB 602, relative to the use of drones.
Coming up in Senate Committees
Tuesday, May 12
Finance, Room 103, SH
1:00 PM Executive session. We presume this session is about the budget. NH Voices of Faith will conduct a vigil outside the hearing room.
Judiciary, Room 100, SH
9:50 AM HB 309, permitting landlords to remove tenant’s property in certain circumstances.
10:05 AM HB 315, relative to termination of tenancy. This bill provides additional grounds for termination of tenancy within 7 days. This includes having a person staying at the premises for more than 14 consecutive days, or 30 days in a 12-month period. This would mean that a family could be given a 7 day eviction notice because grandparents came to visit one weekend a month for a year. Other grounds include having pets in violation of the lease or failing to pay utility bills. We oppose this legislation because under current statute landlords already have the ability to initiate 7-day evictions. We fear this bill would give unscrupulous landlords too much power and would also increase the risk of homelessness.
Wednesday, May 13
Finance, Room 103, SH
9:00 AM Executive session. Once again, we presume this is related to the budget. NH Voices of Faith plans to conduct a vigil outside the hearing room.
We note that many committees in the Senate calendar are scheduled to meet for executive committee sessions on “pending legislation.” We prefer the House’s approach, in which committees disclose which bills they are going to consider.
Events Coming Up
Saturday, May 9
Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, conducted by US Postal Service Letter Carriers. To donate, just place a box or bag with your cans and non-perishable items next to your mailbox, before your letter carrier delivers mail on May 9th. The drive is the largest one-day food drive in the nation. Last year, more than 70 million pounds of food were collected, making this the eleventh consecutive year that collections reached over the 70-million-pound mark. Since the drive began in 1993, nearly 1.4 billion pounds have been collected.
Sunday, May 10
Mothers Day Peace Vigil from noon to 1 PM in Market Square, Portsmouth. Participants are invited to bring appropriate signs calling for peace, appropriate poetry to read, and to join in reading Julia Ward Howe’s Mother’s Day Proclamation for Peace, which introduced Mother’s Day in 1870. Her words were a passionate demand for disarmament and peace after the Civil War. Find more information or sign up on Facebook.
Tuesday, May 12
NHCA Community Conversation on NH Budget, Franklin Public Library, 5:30 to 7:30 pm. NH Citizens Alliance has been holding public discussions with Jeff McLynch of the NH Fiscal Policy Institute as a resource person to help us understand the state budget debate. Sign up here.
Thursday, May 14
Rally to Save Our Postal Service – National Day of Action, 4:30 to 6 PM, Manchester Post Office, at 955 Goffs Falls Road. The U.S. Postal Service is under attack by forces in Congress and on Wall Street who have this vision: cut service, privatize operations, and convert living-wage, union jobs into low-wage, non-union jobs – then dismantle the Postal Service so they can turn over the profitable pieces to their cronies in private industry. You can find more information and sign up here.
May 12 and 13
When Opportunity Stops Knocking – New Hampshire’s Kids and the American Dream
Join a statewide conversation to share ideas with neighbors, hear the latest research, and inform the presidential primary campaigns about the increasing barriers our state’s children face in achieving their dreams. NH Listens, a project of the Carsey School of Public Policy at UNH, is hosting 12 local conversations around the state. Find more information and registration here.
Tuesday May 12 – Keene, Lancaster, Portsmouth
Wednesday May 13 – Concord, West Lebanon, Rochester
Friday, May 22 – Saturday, May 23
Ancestral Reburial – The Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail invites you to honor the dead who were found buried beneath a Portsmouth street as they are reinterred in sacred ground. Friday night, beginning at 7:00 pm, with an overnight vigil at the New Hope Baptist Church, 263 Peverly Hill Road, ending with a sunrise service at 6:00 AM on Saturday morning. A motorcade will transfer the caskets to the State Street entrance of the African Burying Ground Memorial Park on Chestnut Street. At 8:30 AM there will be an unveiling of commissioned artwork, and at 9:00 am the reburial ceremonies will begin. Wearing white or traditional African attire is encouraged. More information is here and on Facebook.
Friday, May 22
“Who Am I Going To Be: African Youth Building Lives in NH,” a documentary by Lynn Clowes, will be shown at 7:00 pm at the Concord Quaker Meeting Meetinghouse in Canterbury. Lynn Clowes will be on hand to lead a discussion and answer questions about the constellation of challenges that African youth face as they build new lives in NH. Click here for directions.
Next week on “State House Watch/White House Watch” Radio
Next week’s show will focus on the state budget, with excerpts from the budget hearing and commentary from Arnie and Maggie. You can hear us live on Monday from 5 to 6 pm and re-broadcast on Tuesday from 8 to 9 am at 94.7 FM in the Concord area and at wnhnfm.org anywhere you can get an internet signal. You can also download podcasts of past shows, including last week’s with Keith Kuenning of Child and Family Services and a recording of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka describing the labor federation’s plans to make wages a central issue in the 2016 presidential campaign.
Governing Under the Influence
Last week Hillary Clinton voiced criticism of a policy that requires the government to lock up immigrants in for-profit prsions. If you think that sounds a lot like something we’ve been discussing, you’ll be interested to know that Clinton first heard about the issue from students at a Quaker high school in Iowa who “bird dogged” her last October. Last week we had productive encounters with Governors John Kasich and Chris Christie. You can find out what happened at our GUI web site, and also find out where you can meet Chris Christie, Carly Fiorina, Rick Perry, and Ben Carson, all of whom will be campaigning in New Hampshire next week.
-Arnie Alpert and Maggie Fogarty
PS – Don’t forget to “like” us on Facebook. Search for “American Friends Service Committee-NH” to “like” us. After all, we are your Friends.
AFSC’s New Hampshire “State House Watch” newsletter is published to bring you information about matters being discussed in Concord including housing, the death penalty, immigration, and labor rights. We also follow the state budget and tax system, voting rights, corrections policy, and more. Click here for back issues.
The AFSC is a Quaker organization supported by people of many faiths who care about peace, social justice, humanitarian service, and nonviolent change. Arnie Alpert and Maggie Fogarty direct the New Hampshire Program, publish the newsletter, and co-host the “State House Watch” radio show on WNHN-FM. Susan Bruce helps with research and writing.
“State House Watch” is made possible in part by a grant from the Anne Slade Frey Charitable Trust.
Your donations make our work possible. Click the “DONATE NOW” button on our web page to send a secure donation to support the work of the AFSC’s New Hampshire Program. Thanks!
American Friends Service Committee
4 Park Street
Concord, NH 03301 http://afsc.org
We’ll take a holiday break next week and replay last year’s Memorial Day music special. You can hear us Monday from 5 to 6 pm and Tuesday from 8 to 9 am at 94.7 FM in the Concord area and at 
The next House session will be “at the call of the chair,” which is likely to resound throughout the land on June 3. (We love the phrase, “call of the chair.” It conjures up images of pages with trumpets in the King’s court or Town Criers in the days of the American revolution against the King.)
Maggie. You can hear us live on Monday from 5 to 6 pm and re-broadcast on Tuesday from 8 to 9 am at 94.7 FM in the Concord area and at 
Progressive Action New Hampshire 