It's Okay With Me if Rep. Kyle Tasker Doesn't Vote

Last week, I wrote about NH State Rep. Kyle Tasker. Rep. Tasker was in some hot water for posting a racist video on his Facebook page. I chimed in, helpfully, with a look at his voting record in the House this past session. Not only had Tasker missed a number of votes, he hadn't voted on a single roll call vote in the House since April 3. Now, it's possible he was there and voted in voice votes or division votes, but that begs the question....why?

Yesterday, Kyle Tasker was present and accounted for at the beginning of the House session. The first roll call vote was on SB 48, relative to school performance and accountability. He voted no. The next roll call was SB 148, an act relative to electric renewable energy standards and relative to group and individual health insurance market rules.

Humph, you say - what the hell kind of bill is that? It's a mutant bill, caused by the Senate's refusal to regulate the ACA in NH in any way. Some of our state senators are under the impression that if they stomp their expensively shod little feet long and hard enough, we won't have "Obamacare." The fact that it is the law hasn't yet become clear to them.

In any case, Kyle was there to vote no on SB148. The next roll call vote was on a motion made by gubernatorial aspirant George Lambert, to reconsider the voice vote made on SB 135. (relative to the practice of genetic counseling. Tasker voted yea on the motion to reconsider, but it failed. Next up in the land of roll call was HB-1, the budget bill. Tasker voted yes on passing the budget. HB-1 was followed by HB-2, the budget trailer bill. (the bill that makes appropriations and deals with revenue.)
Tasker didn't vote. He didn't vote on HB 124, either, a bill concerning disability retirement insurance.

Then along came HB 247, relative to child passenger restraint requirements. This was a hotly contested bill, with the libertea faction objecting strenuously to the idea of the gummint regulating their kids. The safety of children should be up to their parents. After all, nothing says freedumb like a dead kid in a car crash. He voted against it, of course. This was followed by SB295, a bill that would mandate background checks for volunteers and employees of summer youth skill camps. Kyle voted nay on that.

And then he disappeared.

He didn't vote on HB 472, the rooming house bill. He didn't vote on HB 573, the medical marijuana bill. He didn't vote on HB 595, the voter ID bill. He didn't vote on HB 664, HR11, or SCR1.

Out of 14 roll call votes, Tasker voted 7 times. There were voice votes and division votes that he may well have participated in. I saw him twice so I know he was there for much of the session.

So, why? Why would you show up and not vote?

It's okay with me if he doesn't vote. One less freedumb/libertea wingnut in the mix works just fine for me - but the voters of Rockingham District 2 may feel otherwise.

Time For Voters to Take Kyle to Task...er

(A look at Rep. Tasker in action, testifying before a House committee. Marvel at how well prepared he is as the lead sponsor for a bill to decriminalize marijuana.)




NH State Rep. Kyle Tasker was first elected in 2010, when the noxious red tide swept our state, and the NH GOP ceded control of their party to the Bircher, Bagger, Free Stater faction. Tasker represents Rockingham County District 2: the towns of Candia, Deerfield, and Nottingham.

Young Mr. Tasker set himself apart from the pack very quickly. In 2011 he got into some trouble for some comments he made on a Facebook page:

Tasker questioned whether police should have any more right than a law-abiding individual to point a gun at someone.

“When a police officer points his firearm that’s not gonna make me feel threatened? If I’ve been trained to respond to that with force am I justified in blowing a cop away because I’m quicker on the draw, and he already pointed his firearm at me?” Tasker posted.

“Police are just citizens with badges and all laws should apply equally.”

Within an hour of the leak, Tasker issued a statement explaining himself.

“A number of people, as part of an intellectual discussion on SB 88 raised hypothetical questions on how this law would be interpreted,” Tasker wrote.

“I used one example that involved police to try to make a point and get a greater understanding of how the changes proposed in SB 88 would affect state law. In no way do I endorse shooting of police officers or anything but following the lawful orders of the police and to suggest otherwise is a clear misinterpretation of my intent.”

Anyone who believes that Kyle Tasker was part of an intellectual discussion has never met Kyle Tasker. 

In the second year of his term, Rep. Tasker went on to distinguish himself even further; this time making national news:

A Republican member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives who once posted a comment on Facebook about shooting at police officers accidentally dropped one of his guns on the floor at the start of a committee meeting Tuesday morning. State Rep. Kyle Tasker (R-Nottingham) explained to onlookers that he had donated blood that morning and the effects caused him to drop his gun at the start of a House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee meeting. The committee was meeting to amend an abortion bill pending in the Legislature. The gun did not fire.State Rep. Steve Shurtleff (D-Concord), a member of the committee, said that he was sitting three seats away from Tasker in the committee room when he heard "a clang" and saw that the gun was on the floor. Shurtleff said Tasker routinely wears two guns in a shoulder holster to legislative meetings.

The story I heard from folks who were at the House that day was that Tasker was playing quickdraw out in the hall with buddies, which is why his holster wasn't properly snapped shut. As for me, I wonder how Nottingham has kept their enormous violent crime stats a secret. Clearly Rep. Tasker lives in terrible fear every day - a fear so great that he carries not one but 2 handguns.

Somehow, Rep. Tasker won a second term.

This year, he's distinguished himself anew, as we learn from Miscellany Blue. Tasker posted a video on his FB page by a conservative black commentator who has made a name for himself by bashing black folks. The video led to this exchange with one of his fellow intellectuals, Rep. John Burt:

John A Burt Is this man racist?

Kyle Tasker He thinks black women are the least fit people on earth to rear children.

Kyle Tasker So not really

It's good to see that Rep. Tasker is hale and hearty enough to be posting offensively on Facebook. Given his spotty voting record this session, one might have concluded that he was in ill health. 

The House Republicans have called for an inordinate amount of roll call votes this session. Their strategy was to use those votes on people they want to oust from office. What they didn't appear to think about was that all those votes/nonvotes on the record are fodder for people like me. Thanks, NH GOP!

Rep. Tasker hasn't cast a roll call vote in the NH House since April 3. 

On January 2, there were 5 roll call votes. Tasker didn't participate in one. 
On January 30, there were 8 roll call votes. Tasker didn't vote twice. 
On February 6, there were 5 roll call votes. Tasker didn't vote once. 
On February 13, there were 6 roll call votes. Tasker didn't vote twice. 
On March 6, there were 12 roll call votes. Tasker didn't vote 8 times. 
On March 13, there were 14 roll call votes. Taskwer didn't vote 12 times. 
On March 20, there were 13 roll call votes. Tasker didn't vote 7 times. 
On March 21, there were 16 roll call votes. Tasker didn't vote 7 times. 
On April 3, there were 21 roll call votes. Tasker didn't vote 16 times. 

That was the last time a recorded vote shows up for Representative Tasker. He missed theApril 24, May 8, May 22 (lead sinkers!), May 29, and June 5 voting sessions. On June 5 there were 20 roll call votes. 

Now, I'd be the last person to complain about Kyle Tasker not voting. I wish more of the freedumb and libertea crowd would follow his example. 

The voters of Rockingham District 2 might feel a bit differently. 




To access roll call votes, go to the NH General Court website. On the right side of the page is a section labeled State Legislation Dashboard. Click on the link to voting records. Here you have the option of searching the House or Senate. Click on House 2013, and hit search. The screen that comes up next gives you the House roster. Click on any representative's name, and you will see their voting record on all roll call votes thus far this year.