(Thank you, Jay! Resized image - promoted by William Tucker)
The First Draft of the 2012 New Hampshire Democratic Party Platform
I am proud to present the first draft of the 2012 New Hampshire Democratic Party Platform.
This draft is the result of ten hearings across the state where we heard – and responded to – the comments of hundreds of people who are concerned about the direction of our State.
This draft incorporates the many recurring comments we heard in Mont Vernon, Tamworth, Dover, Manchester, Concord, Newport, Keene, Hampton, Hanover, and Laconia. We also recieved many e-mails with suggestions, all of which the Committee studied very carefully.
We also received thoughtful input from all three Democratic candidates for Governor: former Senators Jackie Cilley and Maggie Hassan, and, Bill Kennedy.
Tomorrow morning at 11 AM we will be in Gorham for a final hearing, which will mean we have consulted with folks in every County. Two years ago we kicked off our listening tour in Berlin. This year we give the North Country the first crack at proposing any amendments that will only make this draft stronger.
The draft is now open for amendments for exactly seven days - the amendment period closes at 5 PM on May 11th.
The 2012 Platform Committee has worked very hard to present a consensus set of principles that our candidates can run on from the Southern tier to the North Country.
We look forward to hearing from you.
With respect,
Jay Surdukowski Co-Chair, New Hampshire Democratic Party Platform Committee
Right-wing provocateur James O'Keefe, who is under investigation by the state Attorney General, will be the featured speaker on Sunday at a gala reception and fundraiser hosted by the Rye Republican town committee.
"Why are Republicans honoring a confessed law breaker as their special guest?" asked Democratic Party chair Ray Buckley. "Is that the kind of message that Republicans want to send? That it is okay to break the law if it is in service to an extreme Tea Party agenda?"
The Attorney General is investigating O'Keefe for sending his associates to obtain New Hampshire primary ballots using the names of deceased voters. In 2010, O'Keefe was arrested for attempting to tamper with the phones of Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu. He plead guilty to misdemeanor charges of entering federal property under false pretenses.
"Instead of honoring this fellow, which in essence really is a stamp of approval on what he has done," said former Democratic Party chair Kathy Sullivan, "I would expect elected officials and Republican candidates for office to step away for him. They should not honor him or celebrate with him."
GOP candidates slated to attend the reception include Congressmen Frank Guinta and Charlie Bass, gubernatorial candidates Ovide Lamontagne and Kevin Smith, state Executive Councilor Chris Sununu, state Sen. Nancy Stiles, and state representatives Will Smith and Brian Murphy.
Do the GOP candidates "believe it is okay to plot to tamper with a U.S. Senator's phone as long as the Senator is a Democrat?" asked Buckley. They "should make it clear publicly that they will refuse to stand with O'Keefe and call on the Rye Republicans to cancel this event."
(Part moved below the fold - promoted by William Tucker)
As posted on the Lee Nyquist for State Senate facebook page:
"Today, the New Hampshire Union Leader lead editorial, May 3, 2012 (www.unionleader.com and page A12 of the print edition), called HB 1403, the bill passed by the House which would extingish Bedford's IB program, "myopic." The NHUL called on the Senate "to toss this riduculous bill unanimously." We will all be watching closely today when the Senate Education Committee makes it recommendation to the full Senate and when the full Senate acts later this month. The NHUL called the supporters of this bill, which include one of my announced opponents who voted to pass the bill on the House vote, "a small group of conspiracy theorists." Finally, the NHUL uses biting sarcasm to criticize the supporters of the bill and the ideology of its supporters.
Since, I have promised to bring civility, collegiality, and bipartisanship back to Concord when I am elected State Senator, I have not chosen to use the language and sarcasm utilized by the NHUL in the editorial in urging that HB 1403 be killed and IB and local autonomy thereby preserved. Rather, I have called the bill and its supporters misguided and mistaken.
In any event, the legislators who support and have voted for HB 1403 are prime examples of those who have elevated imported ideologies over the interests of their constituents. Although the NHUL language is harsher than language that I choose to use, the substance of the editorial is dead-on and it is good to see a strongly conservative Republican voice such as the NHUL editorial board recognizing the errors of the ways of the legislators who have voted to extinguish Bedford's IB program.
Congressman Frank Guinta has earned accolades from a front group working to privatize Medicare.
The Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC) is comprised of the CEOs of the country's biggest insurers, drug companies, hospital chains and medical device manufacturers. Tuesday, at an award ceremony in Washington, the group honored Guinta as a "Champion of Healthcare Innovation."
The HLC is notorious for the fear-mongering campaign it ran against the Clinton health care reform proposal in 1993. Wendell Potter, former head of public relations for CIGNA, writes that the HLC is now leading the charge to move forward with the Ryan plan and privatize Medicare -- "albeit with a few tweaks and a new sales pitch to make it seem more consumer-friendly."
While Ryan would move all Medicare beneficiaries into a privatized system in one fell swoop, the HLC's plan would do it more gradually. It would, in the words of the press release, "create a new 'Medicare Exchange' in which private plans would compete on the basis of cost, quality and value."
But buyer beware. Rest assured that the HLC is far more interested in the special interests of its member companies and organizations than in what is in your best interests. And the very existence of the HLC shows why it has been so difficult to get Congress to enact comprehensive health care reform. The executives who fund the HLC want first and foremost to preserve their profits and protect their incomes.
Guinta has hailed the Ryan plan, which would replace Medicare with vouchers that beneficiaries would use to buy coverage from private insurance, as "a bipartisan, practical approach to safeguarding Medicare for future generations." It's no surprise that the HLC and Guinta are allies — nor that he has received over $180,000 in campaign contributions from the insurance industry, health professionals and hospitals.
(Nearly six million U.S. seniors face the threat of hunger. Meals On Wheels provides well over one million meals to seniors who need them each day. - promoted by William Tucker)
I believe you have a rep named Fred Leonard over there? I have a quote for you. I am incredulous that he would put this in writing. In response to my criticism of a cut to Meals on Wheels, this is what he said about our less privileged elderly citizens. This is part of an online conversation here: http://www.nashuatelegraph.com...
I think his quote needs wide distribution. People who pick on the elderly really, really piss me off.
"Meals on wheels is not a statutorily run government program, so any reduction in government funds to that program makes perfect sense to me...people are more than able to contribute to charities if they want to, but forcing government to pay for charities is simply wrong...besides, once I got a better understanding of some of the people who receive a meal on wheel, taxpayers should not be forced to pay for a program like that - PERIOD..."
Tonight in Afghanistan, President Obama announced an agreement with President Hamid Karzai marking the beginning of the end of the Afghanistan war. 23,000 U.S. troops will depart Afghanistan by the end of this summer with reductions continuing at a steady pace. Next year, the U.S. mission in Afghanistan will shift to a support role as Afghans forces take the lead for combat operations across the country. By the end of 2014, the President promised, the Afghans will be fully responsible for the security of their country.
My fellow Americans, we have traveled through more than a decade under the dark cloud of war. Yet here, in the pre-dawn darkness of Afghanistan, we can see the light of a new day on the horizon. The Iraq War is over. The number of our troops in harm's way has been cut in half, and more will be coming home soon. We have a clear path to fulfill our mission in Afghanistan, while delivering justice to al Qaeda.
....
As we emerge from a decade of conflict abroad and economic crisis at home, it is time to renew America. An America where our children live free from fear, and have the skills to claim their dreams. A united America of grit and resilience, where sunlight glistens off soaring new towers in downtown Manhattan, and we build our future as one people, as one nation.
(Nice intro, Hannah. - promoted by William Tucker)
Forward = Progressive. The opposite is backwards, regressive or, at best, conservative and static. Why would someone want to stand still? Probably, because they're scared to move.
Fred Astaire's partners danced backwards. But, they're the exception and there's not a Republican politician in the land who can compare to Fred Astaire.
They tell me Barack Obama can't dance. Perhaps that's why we all just have to go forward hand in hand.
(Thank you, Annie! Part moved below the fold - promoted by William Tucker)
This is an edited speech given by congressional candidate Ann McLane Kuster at the New Hampshire Women United rally on Saturday April 28.
Standing up for women right now could not be more important.
The Republicans here in Concord and down in Washington D.C. would have us believe that the War on Women is a phony war. Michele Bachmann and Fox News would have us believe that the whole thing is “political fiction.”
But women – and the men who love them – know that this is not fiction. Whether we are talking about access to affordable birth control, feeling safe from violence in our homes, or being able to earn the same amount of money as our male counterparts, these are rights that all people deserve and they are being threatened.
And the War on Women is not just about women – it’s about putting the squeeze on the middle class.
Last week, after the Senate had dismissed numerous House bills seeking to advance its radical social agenda, Speaker Bill O'Brien and his minions retaliated. The response was to table six Senate bills the House had just passed, and to attach the defeated House bills as non-germane amendments to Senate legislation under consideration.
In a letter to the editor, Portsmouth state Rep. Rich DiPentima reviews this obstructionist warfare and declares, "The people of New Hampshire deserve and should demand much better."
The Senate Republicans understand that the House Republicans are fixated on a radical social and anti-labor agenda that is straight out of the American Legislative Exchange Council playbook. ... The Senate Republicans also understand that the public has a very negative opinion of the House, and they are trying to distance themselves from the House Republicans as much as possible to save their political hides come November.
Unfortunately, the big losers in this Republican in-fighting are the people of New Hampshire. Instead of spending the time and energy to create jobs and strengthen education and the economy of our state, they are playing ideological games of chicken. If Republicans cannot even work among themselves, how can we expect them to govern the state? This is government at its worst, and they should be ashamed.
The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) is a market-based program to reduce carbon pollution. It essentially charges power plants for their emissions and invests the proceeds in local energy efficiency initiatives.
Writing in the Portsmouth Herald, the CEO of Foss Manufacturing, a Hampton-based manufacturer of advanced fibers and fabrics, explains why RGGI is good for business, and good for New Hampshire.
New Hampshire faces numerous energy challenges, from leaky buildings to energy insecurity — placing a heavy burden on our business owners and homeowners. It's time to switch gears and put our hard work and innovation into reducing energy waste.
In New Hampshire, [RGGI] has meant $33 million invested in critical, waste-eliminating energy measures, education and job training programs, and the likes. The result has been economic growth, reduced energy costs and greater independence from volatile out-of-state energy sources.
Furthermore, Granite Staters have seen, and will continue to see, reductions in energy bills due to the new energy-efficiency programs. Simply put, this means more money for us to invest into our local economies and communities.
When push comes to shove, we simply cannot afford to lose these benefits. We must stick to our roots — growing our economy through innovation and smart thinking, while avoiding needless waste.
This week I've been writing about the Agenda of Destruction underway in Concord: bills and rhetoric meant to destroy the cornerstones of life in New Hampshire. Our schools, our woods and parks, our health care - all of this and more is under constant barrage. How can an agenda like this possibly get any traction in the state we love?
New Hampshire is one of the richest states in the nation: for example, first in median household income. And we spend less than all but a couple of states on public services. So how can it be that we are talking about ending poison control centers? And rewriting the Constitution so the state can wash its hands of grade school and high school education? How can it be that we close the "Welcome" centers?
It can only happen when we block our vision, when we deny our own strength.
We block our vision and deny our strength when we swear off state revenue sources and whimper, "we're too poor." This session of the legislature cut the cigarette tax and shrank the coffers by about $17 million. A new bill this week cuts the Communications Services Tax for another several million. The same people promoting these cuts in state revenues cry "No money!" as they cut funding for the most basic services.
This is Norquist Nihilism: shrink the funding for services until you can "drown the baby in the bathtub." The single most powerful tool in the hands of the New Hampshire Nihilists is The Pledge. Take the Pledge to veto any sales or income tax and you put blinders on the state. Should we bump our investment in growth drivers like education and infrastructure just a bit, maybe from 47th cheapest to 44th cheapest? We can't even talk about it, once the Pledge is taken.
The next Governor will owe us an accounting. Can we fund poison control centers? Can we put the "Welcome" mat back on the front steps of this tourist state? Can we fund our schools?
I want a Governor who can look at the whole picture - all our needs and all our resources - in preparing that answer. I want a Governor who rejects the Pledge and its straitjacket on services.
I want a Governor like Jackie Cilley.
--
No primary endorsement is complete this year without adding a reminder that the chasm between the parties and their values is greater than ever. From equal rights to women's health to the environment, there is no difficulty in choosing come November. I will eagerly support the Democratic nominee, whoever wins.
(Team O'Brien sinks to new lows in an attempt implement their radical agenda. Not only do they thumb their noses at the Judicial and Executive branches but to their siblings in the Legislative branch as well. - promoted by Mike Hoefer)
Just when you think there might be a break in the weirdness that is the current NH House, there isn't. At today's House session, we broke for lunch early, and returned late, so the Republicans could have another mid-session caucus. Here's what they are up to now:
For those of you who are celebrating the death in the Senate of some of the House Republican leadership's more excessive efforts, get ready for another round. Speaker O'Brien and Majority Leader Bettencourt are attaching measures passed by the House and subsequently killed by the Senate back onto Senate bills as they pass the House, seeking another bite at the apple, as it were.
Four bills were amended in this fashion.
SB 378, an innocuous bill allowing municipalities to remove snow from private roads and driveways, was lumbered with a do-over on one of the anti-union bills allowing public employers to request de-certification of bargaining units. This manouver may count for extra credits with respect to sticking it to people, as Senate President Bragdon was a sponsor of the snowplow bill. Another sponsor was Rep. Jennifer Daler, who had the temerity to win an election in the Speaker's district.
SB 272, which addressed some of the problems attendant on the defunding of the CHINS program by modifying some of the truancy laws, was the recipient of another anti-labor provision mandating that a member of the county convention be permitted to observe collective bargaining sessions at the county level.
SB 155 was a bill which would allow greater deductions for business expenses under the business profits tax. The underlying bill would have given a benefit to businesses,, but would also have resulted in even less revenue to the state to use for infrastructure and education, which are also necessary to a healthy business climate. Republican leadership spliced onto this bill the particularly mean-minded moratorium on immigration provisions killed by the Senate only this morning.
And finally, SB 295, a bill increasing the research and development tax credit, was the recipient of the newly resurrected 24 hour waiting period before an abortion. This piece of brinksmanship certainly makes it clear that all that talk by Speaker O'Brien and DJ Bettencourt about being focussed like a laser on jobs and the economy is just so much hot air. Speaker O'Brien is one of the sponsors of this amendment that holds a bill designed to promote business development hostage to the radical right's social agenda. House Republican leadership's priorities could not be made more plain.
And for the icing on the cake, six other Senate bills passed by the House in the morning session were then tabled in the afternoon session so they , too, can be used as vehicles for more of this counterproductive gamesmanship. In at least one case, the tabling motion will delay measures necessary for the Deapartment of Corrections to achieve savings it needs to meet its budget obligations in this biennium. Any delay makes it fore difficult to meet the savings goals. Apparently it is okay for the state budget to bleed dollars while the bill lies on the table.
Focussed like a laser on jobs and the economy, or holding their breath til their faces turn blue because they did not get their way? You be the judge, and stay tuned.
Two more items surfaced in the last couple of days. First, Putney points us to the state's impending abandonment of poison control hotlines. If your child gets into the medicine chest, maybe there will be a number in Vermont, or Maine, or Massachusetts to take your call. All the other forty-nine states spring for this service.
Second, the Sentinel reports that the the state is turning off the lights on local roads. More than a hundred street lights in the Monadnock Region will go dark to save money. There's no indication of any study to see whether this is, well, SAFE.
When we get a few poison deaths, and a few fatal car accidents, we'll have more data.
Meanwhile the legislature is working on new ways to cut revenues flowing into the General Fund. The Agenda of Destruction is just getting started.
(The title is probably too optimistic - it's only hump day, after all. Plenty of time left for more damage.)
