Fingers in Ears: LALALA

The NH House is currently dealing with the Senate’s casino bill, and the NH Senate is dealing with the House budget. These are the two Big Important things of this year’s legislative session. Last week, as part of the budget process, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing in Representatives Hall so that lobbyists, organizations, and members of the public could make their case to the Committee for increased funding for their needs.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Morse was clear from the beginning that he would impose no time restrictions on those who came to speak. The hearing was supposed to last four hours, but went for an extra two, thanks to the no time limit policy.

People who have disabilities and rely on wheelchairs were there to speak about how much they need and value their personal care attendants, and how little these people are paid for the great work they do. A family with a deaf son was there to speak about his special needs. Other families spoke about their fears for their children with disabilities, and the possibility of being put on the infamous developmental disability wait list. This is all painful stuff, put out there in public, while members of the committee listen for hours with their eyes glazing over. It’s a process that is awful for everyone involved, a process that lacks any sort of kindness or compassion.

All that waiting made the two pieces of performance “art” enacted by members of the Free State Project that much more egregious. The hearing began at 3. At some point before the dinner break at 5 pm, a man calling himself “Adam Sutler” was called to speak, and delivered a theatrical and senseless rant. Adam Sutler was a character in the movie “V for Vendetta.” Much later in the evening, a second man calling himself “Edgar Friendly” was called to speak, and engaged in another theatrical rant, before Chairman Morse told him to get lost. His rant was a mash-up of lines from “Network” and “Demolition Man.” “Demolition Man” is where the character “Edgar Friendly” originated.

Apparently this was supposed to prove something grand and profound to the people of NH. What that was remains unclear. The FSP may have succeeded in pranking the committee (boy howdy, now there’s a triumph!) but it was at the expense of those folks sitting there with developmentally disabled children, folks sitting in wheelchairs, and every member of the public who was sitting there waiting to speak about their own needs or the needs of their family. The point they unwittingly made is that the Free State Project is largely comprised of narcissistic individuals who are incapable of consideration for those who live outside of their cult.

The GOP controlled Senate passed a rule change this year that enables them to avoid hearing any House resolutions that they wish to ignore. No longer do the dignified members of our Senate have to stick their fingers in their ears singing “la-la-la.”

There are 2 kinds of resolutions that can make it as far as the Senate: House Continuing Resolutions (HCRs) and House Joint Resolutions (HJRs). Most resolutions die on the House floor and never make it as far as the Senate – and for good reason.

In 2011, there were 27 HCRs and 4 HJRs. There was a resolution in support of the Arizona immigration law, one urging the UK to return the Elgin Marbles to Greece, and another urging the Park Service to exhume the remains of Meriwether Lewis to determine his cause of death. There was also a resolution that year to urge Congress to begin the process of overturning Citizen’s United, the Supreme Court decision that allows corporations to spend as much as they want to influence our elections.

In 2012, there were 16 HCRs and 4 HJRs. There was yet another resolution in support of the Arizona immigration law, one calling on the US to withdraw from the UN (thank you, Norm Tregenza), one urging the privatization of all aspects of Social Security, and my favorite, a resolution declaring brain power to be a state resource.

Most of those never made it as far as the Senate. This year, there were only 3 HCRs and 2 HJRs, which makes the Senate rule change all the more curious.

There are 2 HCRs and 1 HJR that made it out of the House. HCR 1 is a resolution urging Congress to fund a comprehensive health care delivery system to enhance specialty care for New Hampshire veterans. New Hampshire is the only state in the union that has no full service VA hospital.

HCR 2 is a resolution urging Congress to begin the process of overturning Citizens United. HJR 1 directs the joint legislative committee to acquire and display a portrait of legendary NH suffragist Marilla Marks Ricker.

Apparently these three items are all too coarse for the dainty ears of our NH Senators, since they refuse to hear them.  Not a one of them is a frivolous or ideological concern. Some Senators at least claim to be concerned about money influencing politics. Usually the GOP is the first to bang on the drum of veterans needs.  And given the big problem that today’s Republican Party has with women, you’d think the GOP men of the Senate would be out scouring the state for portraits of Marilla Ricker, or that multimillionaire Jeb Bradley would be paying for a portrait out of pocket, and unveiled at a big public event. (ha!) But, all kidding aside, celebrating a long dead woman who fought hard to secure voting rights for her gender can’t do anything but make these guys look good. And they won’t do it. They won’t even hear the resolution.

It’s a petty subversion of the democratic process. Each of those resolutions cleared the 400 member House to get to the Senate. That the Senate can’t be bothered to take the time to even hear those 3 resolutions is pathetic.

The Senate Finance Committee refused to limit the amount of time anyone could take to testify before them, resulting in a poorly run hearing that took hours longer than it should have, and inconvenienced hundreds of people who didn’t deserve to be treated so badly. That same Senate allowed the Free Staters to make a mockery of their hearing – but they refuse to hear 3 resolutions that reflect the will of the people of our state merely because it might inconvenience them.

  © 2013 sbruce

published in the May 17, 2013 edition of the Conway Daily Sun newspaper. 

Annie We Didn't Send You to DC to be a Blue Dog, part 2

Proud 2 join bipartisan colleagues in advancing #FarmBill - imp step fwd 4 farmers/consumers/rural communities in #NH 1.usa.gov/107mxw4
— Ann McLane Kuster (@RepAnnieKuster) May 16, 2013

As you can see, Congresswoman Kuster is PROUD of her vote. 

Hey, kids, guess what is in that vote? Some drastic cuts to the food stamp (SNAP) program. From The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities:

On May 15, the House Agriculture Committee passed its 2013 farm bill, H.R. 1947 (the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, or FARRM).[1]   The bill would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program) by almost $21 billion over the next decade, eliminating food assistance to nearly 2 million low-income people, mostly working families with children and senior citizens. 

and

The bill’s SNAP cuts would come on top of an across-the-board reduction in benefits that every SNAP recipient will experience starting November 1, 2013.  On that date, the increase in SNAP benefits established by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) will end, resulting in a loss of approximately $25 in monthly SNAP benefits for a family of four.  Placing the SNAP cuts in this farm bill on top of the benefit cuts that will take effect in November is likely to put substantial numbers of poor families at risk of food insecurity.The majority of the bill’s SNAP cuts come from eliminating a state option known as “categorical eligibility.”  Congress created this option in the 1996 welfare law, allowing states to provide food assistance to households — primarily low-income working families and seniors — that have gross incomes or assets modestly above federal SNAP limits but disposable incomes in most cases below the poverty line.

In other words, if you're a low wage working family but you have a CAR - you're gonna have to figure out a way to feed that car to the kids. 

• The bill would terminate SNAP eligibility for several million people.  By eliminating the categorical eligibility state option, which over 40 states have adopted, the bill would cut nearly 2 million low-income people off SNAP. 
• Several hundred thousand low-income children would lose access to free school meals.  According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), 210,000 children in low-income families whose eligibility for free school meals is tied to their receipt of SNAP would lose free school meals when their families lose SNAP benefits.

This is what Congresswoman Kuster is proud to have voted for. 

Some quick NH poverty facts. Living in poverty: 

12% of  children.

9% of seniors.

10% of women. 

26% of single parent families. 

The overal poverty rate is 8.7%. The extreme poverty rate is 4.4%. 

9.6% of NH residents live with food insecurity. 

44, 000 New Hampshire children receive SNAP benefits. 

Ann Kuster voted, proudly, against the poor, the elderly, women, single parent families, and above all the children of our state. 

The excuse for all of this is reining in "out of control program growth." Funny how they never say that about weapons spending. Tell your Congresscritter you want cuts to the Pentagon budget, not cuts that take food away from children. 

The bill goes to the full House next. There's plenty of time to make a bunch of noise about this. If you live in Kuster's district, be sure to express your displeasure. And start thinking seriously an actual progressive candidate to run against her in the primary next year. 

Kuster's offices: 

137 Cannon House Office Building

Washington, DC 20515

Phone: (202) 225-5206

18 North Main Street, Fourth Floor

Concord, NH 03301

Phone: (603) 226-1002
Fax: (603) 21010
Hours: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Monday - Friday

70 East Pearl Street

Nashua, NH 03060

Phone: (603) 595-2006
Fax: (603) 595-2016
Hours: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Monday - Friday

Subverting Democracy: A Guest Blog for Public Citizen

Public Citizen asked me to write a guest blog for them on the subject of the NH Senate rule change allowing the Senate to avoid dealing with any resolutions they don't wish to hear. See me there at: Citizen Vox. 

New Hampshire has always enjoyed a reputation for being a state filled with thrifty Yankees having libertarian leanings. The 400-member House of Representatives is the third-largest governing body in the English-speaking world. All New Hampshire  legislators serve tw0-year terms, for which they receive an annual gratuity of $100.  They’re citizens. They’re volunteers. They are not professional politicians.

This year, the New Hampshire Senate enacted a new rule that requires a two-thirds majority vote to introduce or hear certain resolutions. This kind of action has never been taken before in the Live Free or Die state, where everything gets a hearing. The senators claimed that too much time is wasted on silly resolutions that serve no purpose.

House resolutions come in three varieties: House Continuing Resolutions (HCRs), House Joint Resolutions (HJRs) and House Resolutions. (HRs)

It is worth noting that this year, the number of resolutions is significantly smaller than it has been in the past few years. There are only three HCRs, two HJRs and eight HRs. Most of the HRs are housekeeping matters, such as adopting rules for the biennium, and never reach the Senate.

In 2012 there were 16 HCRs, four HJRs and 11 HRs. They included a resolution declaring that New Hampshire supports the Arizona immigration law, one calling on the U.S. to withdraw from the United Nations, one urging Congress to privatize all aspects of Social Security and (my favorite), a resolution urging New Hampshire lawmakers to declare brainpower a state resource.

In 2011, there were a whopping 27 HCRs, four HJRs, and 13 HRs. Included were resolutions in support of the Arizona immigration law, urging the UK to return the Elgin marbles to Greece and urging the Park Service to allow the exhumation of Meriwether Lewis to determine his cause of death. There was also a resolution that requested Congress to begin the process of overturning the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which gave corporations the green light to spend unlimited sums to influence elections.

Some of these must sound strange and obscure. They are!

Yet the previous New Hampshire Senate didn’t feel compelled to complain or refuse to hear any of them, no matter how little relevance they had to New Hampshire. That’s why it is so surprising that the New Hampshire Senate decided to refuse to hear them this year.

This year, they do not want to hear HCR 1, a resolution urging Congress to fund a comprehensive health care delivery system to enhance specialty care for Nfew Hampshire veterans. New Hampshire is the only state in the union that has no VA hospital.

The Senate does not want to hear HCR 2, requesting Congress to begin the process of overturningCitizens United.

The Senate also does not want to hear HJR 1, directing the joint legislative historical committee to acquire and display a portrait of suffragist Marilla Marks Ricker. Marilla Ricker was left a wealthy widow before she was 30 and spent the next 50 years trying to ensure that women got the right to vote. She was the first woman who tried to vote, and later ran for governor, because she was so incensed that she had to pay property taxes but was not allowed to vote. Apparently this story is too coarse for the dainty ears of the current New Hampshire Senate, as they are refusing to hear it.

Politics is our life’s blood in New Hampshire, home of the first in the nation presidential primary. Many of us live in small towns and serve in a variety of offices throughout our lives. With a 400-person legislature, many of us run for the New Hampshire House at some point, as I did, in 2002. It’s inexpensive entertainment in a state where many of us can’t get cable television.

That’s why this Senate rule change is so disheartening. We don’t run away from a discussion or a fight in New Hampshire, and that’s exactly what the Senate is doing. Lawmakers passed this rule without making it public, to avoid working on things they don’t like. That’s not the behavior of statesmen. That’s subverting the democratic process. It’s running away, and running away doesn’t bode well for them in the next election.

As the story of Marilla Ricker illustrates, we’ve been blessed with some strong women to lead the way in New Hampshire. Doris Haddock, known to the world as Granny D, walked from California to Washington, D.C., when she was 90, to call attention to the need for campaign finance reform. On April 21, 2000, Granny D was arrested for reading the Declaration of Independence in the Capitol building. In the statement she read in court, she said: “I was reading from the Declaration of Independence to make the point that we must declare our independence from the corrupting bonds of big money in our election campaigns.” If Doris was willing to risk arrest at age 90, surely we can all take some less risky action.

Public Citizen’s New Hampshire page on the Democracy Is For People website has a great picture of Doris wearing her famous hat. There also are helpful resources listed on the site, so that you can take action by reading the fact sheet about Citizens United and then call your state senator.

Free State Cult Puts on a Clown Show

On Friday I wrote about the Senate Finance Committee hearing on the budget.(One of the Worst Hearings Ever.)  I mentioned that Chairman Chuck Morse announced at the beginning that there would be no limits on testimony, that people would be allowed to speak as long as they wished. And they did. Greg Moore from right wing group Americans for Prosperity was allowed to natter on for 10 minutes. He was also the second person to testify- a remarkable bit of luck for him! There was very little restraint shown by some people who really ought to have known better, including some legislators.

And then there were these people. From that Friday piece:

This committee was not bound by any such considerations, and as such, there were all manner of hijinks. There was at least one piece of performance testimony, with a dramatic rant delivered by a fellow calling himself "Adam Sutler." (Adam Sutler was a character in V for Vendetta.) Given the number of Free State Project members in the room for the hearing, it's quite possible that the Sutler character was one of them. Another performance piece apparently took place after I left, with a speech from the movie Demolition Man. 

From the Sunday Concord Monitor:

"The Senate Finance Committee got punk’d Thursday night.The committee’s public hearing on the state budget was already past the four-hour mark (en route to a final running time of six hours) when a man who had put his name down as Edgar Friendly was called to testify.He spoke and then shouted for a couple minutes about democracy being a “dying giant” and wanting to be able to choose his own food at a greasy spoon diner. Eventually, Sen. Chuck Morse told him to get lost.“You’re done, okay? You’ve had your two minutes,” said Morse, a Salem Republican and the panel’s chairman. The man continued to yell for a bit, then stormed out of Representatives Hall.Here’s what we know: Part of the man’s rant came from the 1976 film Network, and another portion was verbatim from the 1993 classic Demolition Man. (Edgar Friendly is the name of Denis Leary’s character in the latter movie.)“Friendly” was being filmed during his testimony by Garret Ean, a former Republican House candidate and blogger at Free Concord. Ean said the man was a performance artist – in fact, the second of two who spoke at the hearing."

Garret Ean is affiliated with the Free State Project, the cult that is moving 20,000 people here to take over our state, dismantle our state government, and threaten to secede. There were other members of the FSP present in the House chambers for this hearing.

It wasn't just the committee that got punk'd. It was every NH resident who took the time to drive to Concord and testify. It was every resident that loaded up a wheelchair, and packed a bag full of supplies and medications they would need to sit there for hours, while they waited to testify. It was every resident that brought a child. It was the family that brought 2 ASL interpreters for their deaf son.

We know the FSP has no respect for NH government. Now we know they also have no respect for the people of this state. 

NH Senate Finance - One of the Worst Hearings Ever

The NH House passed a budget for the state, and it crossed over to the Senate where it's currently being  examined and probably rewritten. The NH Senate seems bent on undoing all of the positive work done in the House this year. As part of the process, the Senate Finance Commitee held what was supposed to be a four hour hearing on the budget on May 9, in Representative's Hall. This was a chance for members of the public, various agencies, and special interest groups to weigh in on the needs of the state. 

The hearing lasted for 6 hours. Committee Chair Chuck Morse announced at the beginning: "We don't limit testimony" and he went on to do just that. At large House hearings, generally the committee chair will give each person a three minute limit for testimony, and often the chairs are quite dogmatic about keeping on topic. 

This committee was not bound by any such considerations, and as such, there were all manner of hijinks. There was at least one piece of performance testimony, with a dramatic rant delivered by a fellow calling himself "Adam Sutler." (Adam Sutler was a character in V for Vendetta.) Given the number of Free State Project members in the room for the hearing, it's quite possible that the Sutler character was one of them. Another performance piece apparently took place after I left, with a speech from the movie Demolition Man. 

 State Representative Barbara French rose to speak on behalf of Family Resource Centers, and presented a bloc of fellow speakers as a fait accompli. The testimony of the combined group lasted for over 30 minutes. A state rep should know better than this, especially given the hundreds of people who were there to testify. The first 2 speakers each testified for 10 minutes apiece. It wasn't the worst run hearing I've ever been to at the NH legislature, but it was in the top 3. 

One of the first two speakers was Greg Moore of the NH outlet of Americans for Prosperity - the right wing group founded by the Koch brothers in 2004. He spoke for 10 minutes, and one certainly wonders why this lobbyist was given such a plum speaking time slot. Moore (who worked for Speaker O'Brien during the last biennium) was there to speak in opposition to the entire budget. He has the sads about business taxes, but then went into a rantlet about fee increases. NH is apparently supposed to run on the prayers of magic unicorns, and require no actual money to be raised or spent. Mr. Moore is also very opposed to the proposed Medicaid expansion. It seems that people who get Medicaid actually use the health care system. This is heady stuff - people who have access to health care actually USE IT. Oh, and that's a BAD THING. 

Folks were present to speak in support of all manner of programs. Two staffers from Granite State Independent Living testified about how the personal care attendant program enables them to be out in the community, working, and having an independent life. 

There were people who urged the committee to increase funding to our state's nursing homes. Some recovering substance abusers from New Futures spoke about the need to fund treatment in NH. 

NH Judge Edward Gordon spoke about the need to properly fund the state's Intervention Fund, created in 2001, and administered by the Governor's Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. It was supposed to be funded with 5% of the gross profits from the State Liquor Commission. Since 2003, the law has been suspended, and the fund has been raided for other uses. The 2012-2013 budget provided for a paltry $3.2 million for two years. If the fund had actually gotten the 5%, it would have received $18.3 million. Judge Gordon said, "If we're going to aggressively market alcohol as a state, we should be prepared to address the consequences." In speaking of his own years in court, he said, "alcohol flowed through my courtroom like a river." 

Maggie Fogarty of the American Friends Service Committee testified about the good work done by NH Legal Assistance, and how they need to be better funded. 

People spoke on behalf of funding domestic violence programs, affordable housing programs, and fully funding the state's Developmental Disability wait list. One of the great shames of our state is that we have a waiting list for DD services. 

Parents brought their children who have developmental disabilities to the hearing. They sobbed as they spoke about their fears for these children. Some of us wept as we listened.

This is a terrible process, that people have to come and share their private business with the public, and  plead for the kinds of help that they need. Surely as a state we can do better than this? 

Still, as shameful as that process is, it is far more shameful that some cult members would have so little respect for members of the public that they would turn it into mockery theater. 

Right Wing Support Ad for Ayotte Filled With NH GOP Operatives

Just a few days ago, Senator Kelly Ayotte was sharply critical of out-of-state special interests running what she called false ads about her position on background checks for gun buyers. 

Those evil out-of-state special interests attacking poor beleaguered Kelly. 

But wait - our friends at Think Progress find that out-of-state special interests SUPPORTING KellyAyotte are also running ads in NH. They seem to have had a tough time with casting. For example:

Jayne Millerick is billed in the ad as a “New Hampshire mom” and says “Those attack commercials are partisan and deliberately misleading.” But Millerick is actually a Republican strategist whoserved as Chairman of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee, a New Hampshire Republican Delegate in 2008, and was a member of New Hampshire Women for Mitt coalition in 2012. She is now a professional political consultant.

I nearly choked on my coffee this morning when I saw Jayne Millerick, "mom" in that ad this morning.  They couldn't find any civilians for these ads? 








As for who "they" are: They are the American Future Fund who describe themselves thusly:

The American Future Fund operates as a 501(c)(4) and was formed to provide Americans with a conservative and free market viewpoint to have a mechanism to communicate and advocate on the issues that most interest and concern them.

These groups just seem to pop up like mushrooms after a spring rain. Politico provides some background on the money being spent on ads by these groups to shore up Ayotte's dwindling support. 

It seems out-of-state special interests are just ducky when they're trying to help you cover your ass, right Senator? 

NH Senators Conspire To Take Your Water Rights Away!

The latest conspiracy theory has come to town. The NH Tea Party has decided that SB 11, a bill that permits municipalities to establish water and/or sewer utility districts and to enter into intermunicipal agreements for the establishment of such districts.

A bill that would allow municipalities to work together? Oh the horror! What can they be thinking?

Thank heaven those sharp eyed Tea Partiers found the menace in this abhorrent bit of legislation. What kind of people would sponsor such a thing?

Oh dear. The lead sponsors are state Senators Nancy Stiles and Russell Prescott. Well known pinkos, the two of 'em 

A state rep friends tells me his/her phone is ringing steadily and he/she is getting lots of email on this bill, since the tinfoil hat brigade decided to make it their own. How did this happen?

The bill sailed through the Senate. Apparently they're in on the conspiracy. The bill also moved smoothly through the House Municipal and County Government Committee, where it was voted OTP (ought to pass) on a vote of 18-0. This bill was considered so innocuous that it was put on the Consent Calendar. Then JR Hoell rode in on his aluminum steed and removed the bill from the clutches of consent. It will be dealt with at the next House session, where presumably the fight will be long and rancorous and involve numerous roll call votes. 

Where does the Tea Party get this stuff? And why does anyone give them an iota of serious consideration? 

In the meantime, start getting your chapeau ready for next week's House Session.

Stellaaaaaah Takes a Holiday

Landrigan tweets from the State House:

It seems likely that leadership didn't discourage her from taking the day off.

Kelly Ayotte Changes Position on Background Checks AND Special Interest Groups

The Union Leader published an op-ed by Senator Kelly Ayotte yesterday. From the opening paragraph:

Out-of-state special interests are running false ads attacking me and even lying about my efforts to prevent gun-related violence.

Read the whole thing to see how interested Senator Ayotte has suddenly become in appearing to be reasonable about background checks. 

The far right has been trying to create the mythology that it was those pesky out of state special interests who showed up at Ayotte's largely unannounced town hall meetings. (Still waiting for the incurious NH media to wonder why those town hall meetings weren't listed in her weekly newsletter that comes out on Friday.) 

I was at the town hall meeting in Tilton, and I knew most of the people who were supporting gun safety. I also saw Ayotte supporters getting out of cars with out of state plates. The "we heart Kelly" crowd was organized by a right wing group from NH. This wasn't grass roots - and the reason it wasn't, is because folks didn't know about it. If it had been announced and advertised, the local folk might have actually been there. A cynical person could say that  Senator Ayotte may well have been trying to slide in under cover, with only supporters drummed up by Citizens for a Strong NH, thereby creating the illusion that everyone in NH hearts our Kelly. 

Senator Ayotte's disdain for out-of-state special interests running attack ads is mentioned more than once in the UL editorial.

Apparently out-of-state special interests running support ads is another thing entirely: 

Fear: A Stronger Instinct Than Kindness

fear 

/fi(ə)r/

Noun An unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

Verb Be afraid of (someone or something) as likely to be dangerous, painful, or threatening: "farmers fear that they will lose business".

Fear IS an unpleasant emotion. There are what we call healthy fears; the fear that if you touch the hot stove it will burn you. That if you drive drunk you might kill someone. That if you cheat you will get caught. 

There are fears that don't seem rational - like people jumping on to chairs screaming if they see a mouse. Granted, I don't have that fear, so to me it does seem a little irrational. 

Some fears are based on prior experience, or the prior experiences of others. And some fears are manipulated. "If I catch you doing that again, young lady, you'll be in BIG TROUBLE." Big and little fears are with us throughout our lives.

There are plenty of them projected our way if we choose to accept them. "The President Wants To Take All Of Your Guns Away," is a rather popular fear being projected from certain circles these days. 

It's all about what we choose to accept. We can always be susceptible to fear. I've been living with fear for a long time now. I haven't had a full time job for five years. I've been able to skate by with help from friends and part time jobs. The longer one is out of work, the harder it is to find a job. Add getting older to that, as well as vigorous public use of the First Amendment, and one has a recipe for permanent unemployment. The level of poverty I live in means frequently moving. Most of my belongings are in storage. I move from place to place, my car looks like a moving van, and I dream every night that I'm in some weird living situation. I call this "moving PTSD". There is nothing on the horizon that indicates that this will be ending any time soon. I could be living in my car any day now. And what if that car breaks down? What if...what if...? keeps me awake at night. I live with fear every day. 

This was brought home to me in a vivid and unattractive way yesterday. I read this story in the New York Daily Record, about a job fair for the unemployed and for ex-offenders. Except in my fear, they were CRIMINALS and unemployed folks were being stigmatized by being lumped in with them. 

This isn't ordinarily how I think. I know very well how difficult life is for people who are released from any kind of incarceration. They're apt to have lost jobs, housing, families, credit - and no one wants to give them any kind of a break. 

Yet my first thought was not that we're all in this together. My first thought came right from the place of deep, primal fear. 

Fear can make us forget what we know to be true - but only if we let it. I cannot afford to let it. 

"Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality." ~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

A big tip-o-the-hat to Arnie Alpert. 

The Incurious NH Media Strikes Again

This is a screenshot from NH State Rep. Stella Tremblay's Facebook page:

This is the oath that NH legislators take:

Established October 31, 1783 Effective June 2, 1784 As Subsequently Amended and in Force January 2007

[Art.] 84. [Oath of Civil Officers.] Any person chosen governor, councilor, senator, or representative, military or civil officer, (town officers excepted) accepting the trust, shall, before he proceeds to execute the duties of his office, make and subscribe the following declaration, viz. - I, A.B. do solemnly swear, that I will bear faith and true allegiance to the United States of America and the state of New Hampshire, and will support the constitution thereof. So help me God. I, A.B. do solemnly and sincerely swear and affirm that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all duties incumbent on me as ................................................., according to the best of my abilities, agreeably to the rules and regulations of this constitution and laws of the state of New Hampshire. So help me God.

http://www.nh.gov/constitution/oaths.html

I can't help but notice Rep. Tremblay's use of quotes. Her first set of quotes is around the word "oath." The second set is around the words "innocent victims." Given that Tremblay doesn't believe that there were real victims, that they were some sort of amputee actors, what does that tell us about the regard for which she holds her "oath?"

As a big supporter and practitioner of the First Amendment, I certainly am in favor of Rep. Tremblay saying whatever she wants to. The thing about that freedom to speak though, is that there may be consequences. One should be prepared to take responsibility for what one says.

Did Stella violate her oath by making rather treasonous comments that blame the US government for a "black ops" terrorist plot - based on no evidence whatsoever?

That's not up to me to decide.

I do know this much: Representative Stella Tremblay brought shame upon the state of NH. Serious shame. That kind of a public accusation - based on the ravings of the tinfoil tricorne hat brigade and nothing else - are truly shameful. A great many people were injured that day. My relatives who work in the hospitals of Boston could give Rep. Tremblay an earful about what happened that day, night, and over the following days. What she said is truly reprehensible.

That's why Stella Tremblay should resign. She's made NH not only a joke - but an evil joke, wrapped in the worst sort of conspiracy theories.

Every piece of legislation she was the lead sponsor on this year failed. Tremblay's role is to be a supporting actor in the Teabagger/Bircher/FreeState pageant. It's certainly worth noting that GOP Chair Jennifer Horn has been quite public in denouncing Tremblay's comments. So has House Minority Leader Gene Chandler. What about former Speaker Bill O'Brien? He refused a committee assignment in the House, so he certainly has time to comment. Has anyone in the NH media (who LOVE to give him airtime for any trumped up reason they can find)  bothered to ask him for his opinion about Rep. Tremblay? Does he agree with her? Does he denounce her ugly accusations? Stella Tremblay is in the background at every one of his press conferences. She's one of his supporters. You'd think the NH media would be curious.

It's a shame they so seldom are.

Help the Hungry in Your Community

From our friends at the NH Labor News:

The National Association of Letter Carriers (AFL-CIO) will be holding their 21st annual food drive on Saturday, May 11th. On that day letter carriers will pick up non-perishable food as they deliver mail on their postal routes. The food donations collected will stay in the towns and cities where they are collected.

Read the whole story - and let's support our Letter Carriers and help the hungry folks in our communities. 

The Soundtrack for Kelly Ayotte's Next Family Vacation

Kelly Ayotte: Slicker Than Trout Snot

From Senator Kelly Ayotte's latest weekly newsletter:

Dear Friends, Continuing my commitment to holding town hall meetings throughout the state, I held public forums this week in Fitzwilliam, Tilton, and Warren. As you know, I believe it's vitally important that citizens have the opportunity to speak with me directly, and I appreciated the opportunity to continue that dialogue this week.   New Hampshire residents have a lot on their minds and I answered questions on several topics - including Social Security, immigration, defense spending, health care, and education. I also was glad to answer questions about how we can reduce gun violence. As you may have seen, Granite Staters were joined this week at my town halls by visitors from other states as well members of the national media. It was an opportunity to continue an important discussion, and I appreciated the time that attendees took to listen and ask questions.

Yeah, I'm sure Ayotte was thrilled to have national media attention, given how flattering it was:

Washington Post
NY Times
Huffington Post
Think Progress

To her credit, Kelly's learned how to spin, and spin pretty smoothly - all the while making eye contact. And you thought only your sociopathic ex could do that so well!

Instead of saying, "my secret town halls were invaded by socialists from out of state!" she refers to "visitors." Instead of saying, "left wing media bias" she says, "members of the national media."

When a woman in Tilton asked about the chained CPI, Ayotte smoothly said that it was something to  consider, and she was glad that Obama included it in his proposal.

Slicker than trout snot.

Of course this is a woman who rode a dead cop to Washington.

Stellaaaaaaaaah! Issues a Fauxpology

NH State Rep. Stella Tremblay fell squarely into a big bucket of doo after she announced that the Boston Marathon bombings were a Black Ops terrorist attack by the US gummint. She ran that false flag right up the crazypole, and refused to back down. NH GOP Chair Jennifer Horn gave her a dressing down and told her to shut up. Instead, Stellaaaaaaaah! went on the radio to elaborate:

Then, my first gut reaction seeing the horror of that person that has their legs blown off. You know, the bone sticking out? He was not in shock. I looked and I thought there’s something… I don’t know what’s wrong, but it seems surreal to me. I talked to my sister, who’s not into politics at all, and she said, yes, I saw the same thing. He was not in shock. He was not in pain. If I had had those type of injuries, I’d be screaming in agony.

Yup, she accused Jeff Bauman who lost both legs of being...an actor? A faker?

Stellaaaaaaaaah! crossed a line with that one. The NH GOP was okay with treason, but they were really not okay with accusing a guy whose legs got blown off of being a faker. They threatened her with party excommunication. There is no mechanism for the recall of any elected official in the State of NH, so they were going to be stuck with her unless she decided to resign.

Well, she didn't. Instead, today she issued a fauxpology:

"My sincere apologies if I have offended anyone with my comments regarding the Boston Marathon bombing. It was out of my sincere desire to question the violated constitutional rights of the residents in Watertown in the name of searching for one fugitive. Furthermore, all individuals have the right to be 'innocent' until proven guilty. 

"We are setting a precedent for ourselves, if we allow our fears to override individual liberties. Our emotions must be tempered if we want justice to prevail. President Richard Nixon was impeached when the media asked the tough questions. Inquisitiveness is only natural when the media is not doing their jobs. These media standards should apply consistently to every administration and not be slanted or manipulated for a specific outcome. When we give up our 'liberties' in the name of safety, we truly have agreed to be enslaved."

A sincere apology does not contain the word "if."
"My sincere apologies if I have offended anyone" translates as "your stupidity got me in trouble"

Stellaaaaaaaaaah! also expects us to believe that she accused the US government of a black ops terrorist attack out of concern for the residents of Watertown.

That's a steaming pile of elephant dung right there, folks.

Between Stellaaaaaaah!, and  the treasonspeak of Rep. Edmond Gionet the NH GOP has a big problem, garnished with a little tea-flavored jello.

There's been a solid month of NHGOP stoopid. Will they be able to continue to sweep it under the tinfoil carpeting?



h/t to  WMUR  and (a permanent?) h/t to Tuck at miscellany blue

Stellaaaaaah! Stellaaaaaah!

Charlie Pierce revists our gal Stellaaaaah! Tremblay, after we learned that in addition to all of her other skills, Stellaaaaaah! is also a diagnostician.  In the world according to Stella, Jeff Bauman, who lost both legs in the Boston Marathon bombing is suspect because he wasn't in shock or in pain. She could tell. Just by looking at the pictures. The woman is gifted!

This is eerily reminiscent of the diagnostic skills displayed by Tennesseee's answer to Dr. Mengele, Bill Frist, when he determined that Terri Schiavo was NOT in a persistent vegetative state, and was responding to visual stimuli. (The autopsy later proved that her brain had atrophied to half the normal brain size, the damage was irreversible, and that she was BLIND.)

Charlie sez:

So, based on the forensic abilities of Stella Tremblay, who appears to be the bright, aware one in her family, we have moved from the government's setting off its own bombs to the government's inventing its own traumatic-amputee cyborgs to lie on the sidewalk. I think it's time for someone to sneak into Stella's house late at night and steal all her radios.

A big h/t to Tuck @miscellany blue. 

The Combo Plate

New Hampshire is famous for many things. The beauty of our mountains, our history, our covered bridges, our highway liquor stores, and our 400 person House of Representatives. As most of us know, the NH House of Representatives is the third largest governing body in the English-speaking world. In a state of 1.3 million people, we have 400 state reps that serve a two-year term for no pay. There is a little extra money for travel, but it’s limited to certain days of the week.

What do other similarly sized states do?

Our neighbors in Maine have the same sized population, spread out over a larger area. There are 151 members of the Maine House, and three non –voting members representing the Penobscot Nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribe, and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians. Maine reps are paid $13, 852 for the first year of their session, and $9,661 for the second. They also get $38 a day for housing or mileage and tolls, and $32 a day for meals. Among those currently serving there are 10 educators, 8 attorneys, 2 farmers, 9 health care professionals, 2 in the pulp/paper industry, 3 carpenters, and 1 logger. There are 35 retirees.

Our neighbors in Vermont have a 150 member House. Their reps get $604.79 a week during the legislative session, and $112 a day for special sessions or interim committee meetings. They also get $101 a day for lodging (for non-commuters to the capital). They receive $61 a day for meals and mileage.

South Dakota, with a population of 833,350 has a 70 member House. They get $12,000 for their two-year term, and a $110 daily per diem. North Dakota has a population of 700,600 and a 94 member House. Their reps get $152 a day during the legislative session and for attending interim committee meetings. They also receive up to $1,351 a month in lodging reimbursement.

In Rhode Island, with a population of 1 million, there are 75 representatives in the RI House, who receive $14,185.95 a year, with no per diem. Hawaii has a 51 member House, who earn $46,272 per year. The per diems during session: $150 a day for those living outside Oahu, $120 a day for members living outside Oahu during the interim who conduct legislative business. Those living in Oahu get $10 a day during the interim.

Idaho has a 70 member House. They earn $16,116 a year. The per diems: $122 a day for members who live outside of Boise, $49 a day for members who live in Boise, and up to $25 a day for travel.

Montana has a 100 person House. Their reps get $82.64 a day, and a $105.31 daily per diem. Alaska has a 40 person House, and their reps earn 50,400 a year, with a per diem of $238 or $253 per day, depending on the time of year. That rate is adjusted lower for those who live in Juneau.

The only state legislature that comes close to NH in size is Pennsylvania, with 203 state reps. The legislature that comes closest to NH in parsimony is Alabama, whose reps earn an official wage of $10 a day. Their per diems, however, are $4, 308 per month, and $50 a day for the three days during the week that the legislature is in session.

It used to be that the size of the NH legislature was a source of pride. We could boast to people in other states that we have unprecedented access to our legislators. We can call ‘em up at home! We see them at the supermarket!

These days I see it a little differently. The size of the House ensures the kind of gridlock we see in the US House. Those 400 representatives have no offices and no staff. They wade through hundreds of bills every year with no resources to assist them, except for the hundreds of people hanging around the House and the LOB wearing orange badges. Lobbyists. I’ve attended more than one committee hearing or work session this year where the chair called upon a lobbyist for information. We may tell ourselves that our giddily unpaid system eliminates corruption and special interests, but when we do, we’re lying to us.

It’s impossible for most working people to run for the NH House, so the majority of reps are retirees. “Rich, retired, or crazy” as the old saying goes. Now that’s not true in every case, but there’s certainly a basis for it, as we’ve seen a lot lately. We don’t hear stupid Maine legislator remarks on late night TV. Vermont state reps don’t seem to make the national news. New Hampshire, on the other hand, seems determined to become a permanent national joke.

Let’s play rich, retired, or crazy!  Rep. Al Baldasaro of Londonderry recently testified that the bill to ban lead sinkers and jigs comes straight from the UN’s Agenda 21. It’s actually a bill to protect the dwindling loon population in New Hampshire, even as the loon population in the legislature expands. Al’s a well-to-do retiree. Crazy? You make the call. Rep. Romeo Danais of Nottingham compared food stamp recipients to wild animals. Romeo Danais is a multimillionaire. Rep. Peter Hansen called women “vagina’s” in a House email. He’s rich and retired. Draw your own conclusions about the full combo plate. Rep. Stella Tremblay achieved global fame by asserting her belief that the US gummint blew up the Boston Marathon. Mere treason was not enough  - since then, Stella’s gone on to further glory by insisting that bombing victim Jeff Bauman was faking it, after having both legs blown off. Dr. Stellaaaaah asserts that Bauman wasn’t in shock or pain, therefore this is all a big fake gummint show. I’m not sure if Stella ever had a job, but it’s clear what part of the combo platter applies to her. There is no recall mechanism for removing her (or any NH elected official) from office. Rep. Edmond Gionet of Lincoln distinguished himself by asking Kelly Ayotte this week if she thought there was going to be a revolution, because of Obama. Ayotte bravely squashed that kind of treasonspeak by responding, “Obviously, I hope not.” A real pillar of tea flavored jello, is our Kelly. As for Gionet, he’s 82, and not rich. Other aspects of the combo plate may apply.

Cutting the size of the legislature by more than half and paying a reasonable stipend would mean a younger and more diverse legislature Adding legislative staff and offices would cut back on the influence of lobbyists. It makes sense though, so it will never happen.

It would mean paying for service rendered, which NH is always loath to do, and it would also require a Constitutional amendment. The folks serving in the NH House aren’t likely to vote themselves out of their non-paying jobs, especially now that they’ve learned they can get a national platform for their tinfoil hattery.

Published as a biweekly column in the Conway Daily Sun newspaper, in N. Conway, NH. 

© 2013 sbruce