The Oxford Dictionaries
recently chose the term “post-truth” as their international word of the year.
It’s certainly appropriate, after all of the events of the last 2 years.
Post-truth is where we live
now. I was driving north last weekend, and heard a North Carolina voter
discussing the election with a person from NPR. She pointed out that President
Obama had deported more undocumented immigrants than any other president, and
he responded by saying “That may or may not be true.” In post-truth America you
can decide what the facts are, based on whether or not you like them.
Given that the NH GOP has control of every branch of the NH government, we will all be dwelling in the land of post-truth for the next two years, and trying to undo the damage they will do for at least the next decade.
In a state where young people don’t stay because they can’t get good jobs or afford housing, where we have the 11th worst infrastructure, and the highest utility costs in the northeast, you might think that those might be priorities for the new legislature. You would be wrong.
There are 4 gun bills. NH has some of the least restrictive gun laws in the nation – but that is not enough to satisfy the MOAR GUNZ crowd. Perhaps when babies are given guns in the hospital along with a car seat they’ll finally be able to lighten up.
Given that the NH GOP has control of every branch of the NH government, we will all be dwelling in the land of post-truth for the next two years, and trying to undo the damage they will do for at least the next decade.
In a state where young people don’t stay because they can’t get good jobs or afford housing, where we have the 11th worst infrastructure, and the highest utility costs in the northeast, you might think that those might be priorities for the new legislature. You would be wrong.
There are 4 gun bills. NH has some of the least restrictive gun laws in the nation – but that is not enough to satisfy the MOAR GUNZ crowd. Perhaps when babies are given guns in the hospital along with a car seat they’ll finally be able to lighten up.
There are bills to limit
abortion – something our new governor is in favor of. (Given the endless parade of Sununus we are
subjected to, do we call this one Sununew?) His pretend concern for women is
touching. Abortion has been legal for over 40 years. He claims to be worried
that abortion clinics must be surgical centers or some such nonsense.
Meanwhile, he’s expressed zero concern for the homeless women and children who
are about to experience winter. He’s expressed no concern for the increasing
rate of child poverty in our state. It’s worth remembering – and I will be here
to remind you – that Chris Sununu was a Trump supporter. He supported a man who
said vile things about women, and boasted gleefully about sexually assaulting
them. His concern for women doesn’t exist.
There are at least 4 bills
aimed at making it even harder for people to vote. There were stories all over
the news after the election of NH Republicans complaining about voter fraud,
including one from the latest Sununu. We’ve been hearing the stories about
busloads of people coming from Massachusetts to vote in NH. The Republican
Party took the Governor’s office, has control of the NH House, the NH Senate,
and the Executive Council. If there’s so much fraud – how did that happen?
Worst buses ever!
Sununew wants to put the
kibosh on same day voting. One reason we have same day voting is because it exempts
us from having to comply with motor voter laws. Someone will explain that to him.
Other bills include the usual tortured attempts to redefine words like
“domicile” and “residence.” There’s the annual constitutional amendment aimed
at making sure only white, male, Republicans can vote.
He’s snagged Charlie Arlinghaus to be his budget advisor. Arlinghaus is the head of the Josiah Bartlett Center, which is allegedly a non-partisan think tank. If perpetuating the same, failed GOP economic policies of the last 30 years is non-partisan, I guess they’re right. The Bartlett Center is funded by the Koch brothers, and is also a member of ALEC, the conservative group of state legislators who are handed model legislation and then bring it home and present it as their idea. Apparently Sununu didn’t dare to ask Greg Moore of Americans for Prosperity. Everyone knows they’re funded by the Kochs. The Bartlett Center also feeds from the Koch trough, but the NH media politely never mentions it.
State Representative Dick Marple of Hooksett, filed an LSR that calls for the voluntary registration of motor vehicles. Rep. Marple was arrested at the polls on Election Day, on a bench warrant for driving with an expired license. He won re-election anyhow. Perhaps his next bill will call for making driver’s licenses voluntary. And maybe some doughty Republican will file a bill preventing public servants from being arrested while they’re in office. Whatever comes next, you can be certain that it won’t have anything to do with ethics reform.
The new majority will do its damnedest to pass right to work legislation. In NH no bad idea ever dies, they just return every two years, ad infinitum. One wonders, though – suppose they pass free guns for all, voting limited to middle aged white male Republicans, no more abortion, right to work – and big business tax cuts – and nothing changes? Not one of these things will do anything to solve NH’s economic problems.
He’s snagged Charlie Arlinghaus to be his budget advisor. Arlinghaus is the head of the Josiah Bartlett Center, which is allegedly a non-partisan think tank. If perpetuating the same, failed GOP economic policies of the last 30 years is non-partisan, I guess they’re right. The Bartlett Center is funded by the Koch brothers, and is also a member of ALEC, the conservative group of state legislators who are handed model legislation and then bring it home and present it as their idea. Apparently Sununu didn’t dare to ask Greg Moore of Americans for Prosperity. Everyone knows they’re funded by the Kochs. The Bartlett Center also feeds from the Koch trough, but the NH media politely never mentions it.
State Representative Dick Marple of Hooksett, filed an LSR that calls for the voluntary registration of motor vehicles. Rep. Marple was arrested at the polls on Election Day, on a bench warrant for driving with an expired license. He won re-election anyhow. Perhaps his next bill will call for making driver’s licenses voluntary. And maybe some doughty Republican will file a bill preventing public servants from being arrested while they’re in office. Whatever comes next, you can be certain that it won’t have anything to do with ethics reform.
The new majority will do its damnedest to pass right to work legislation. In NH no bad idea ever dies, they just return every two years, ad infinitum. One wonders, though – suppose they pass free guns for all, voting limited to middle aged white male Republicans, no more abortion, right to work – and big business tax cuts – and nothing changes? Not one of these things will do anything to solve NH’s economic problems.
There’s an ugly race brewing
for Speaker of the NH House. The libertea crowd has never forgiven Rep. Shawn
Jasper for beating out former Speaker Bill O’Brien with the help of the House
Democrats. Somewhere, O’Brien is ensconced in a padded room, kicking and
howling because he didn’t run for reelection.) The
other candidates are Rep. Laurie Sanborn of Bedford, Rep. Carol McGuire of
Epsom (and the Free State Project), and Rep. Frank Sapareto of Derry.
McGuire and Sanborn are good libertea locksteppers. They both have 100% scores from the Americans for Kochsperity, the House Republican Alliance, and A’s from the NH Liberty Alliance. Sapareto is less of a lockstepper. He only got an 82% from AFP in 2013, and 89% in 2014. He got a 90% from the HRA, and a B from the NHLA. That would seem to indicate that he could think for himself at least part of the time, which means he’ll never be speaker. His conviction for 3 domestic assaults in 2013 won’t be a problem – not in today’s NH GOP.
McGuire and Sanborn are good libertea locksteppers. They both have 100% scores from the Americans for Kochsperity, the House Republican Alliance, and A’s from the NH Liberty Alliance. Sapareto is less of a lockstepper. He only got an 82% from AFP in 2013, and 89% in 2014. He got a 90% from the HRA, and a B from the NHLA. That would seem to indicate that he could think for himself at least part of the time, which means he’ll never be speaker. His conviction for 3 domestic assaults in 2013 won’t be a problem – not in today’s NH GOP.
This would be a lot more
amusing if we weren’t going into the future with leaders who are stuck in the
past. Sununu wants to run our state like a business. Remember the last governor
who had that dream? He lasted one term. Running a state is not like running a
business, no matter how often you invoke kitchen tables. A business owner invests
in his business. Republicans do not invest in our state. They’re the reason
there are 350 red listed bridges. The bill for decades of neglect is going to
be a whopper when it comes due. They will, however, find a way to blame it on
the Democrats.
Post-truth. We live here now.
Post-truth. We live here now.
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