Al Gore: Fine for thee, but not for me…

Back in February of ’07, we posted a piece reporting that the AlGore mansion in Nashville consumed over twenty times the electricity of the average American household– using in a month more than most homes use in a whole year. The original author of the report, which appeared on Drudge at the time, Drew Johnson … Read more

“Bathroom Bud” Martin’s campaign stalls…

It seems that the Democratic candidate for the special election in District 3 just can’t escape his liberal, lenient past these days. Try as he may to deflect his own public record and to turn its airing into a strike against his Republican opponent Jeb Bradley, Willard “Bathroom Bud” Martin is discovering that his worst … Read more

Judd Gregg: The budget of the President spends too much, taxes too much, and borrows too much.”

Judd Gregg

US Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH)

Regular readers know that from time to time, we have been quite critical of Senator Judd Gregg’s performance both as a Republican and as a supposed conservative. We’re happy to note that in the short time since his flirtation with the Magic Obama, the Senator has regained his footing and has been as strong in his criticism of the proposed taxpayer-busting budget as anyone. This week, our senior Senator provided the Republican weekly radio address and provided some much-needed detail and words of caution regarding the Magic Obama’s budget. I appreciate this, and would further add that, given Gregg’s attempts at bipartisan cooperation with the Democrat-led Executive Branch, he has a degree of credibility on these fiscal issues that cannot be tagged simply as partisan rhetoric…

GREGG: Hello, I’m Judd Gregg , Senator from New Hampshire. We all know these are difficult times. People are worried about keeping their jobs, paying their bills, the value of their homes and the cost of sending their kids to college. It’s hard.

Thus I appreciate, as do all Americans, the efforts being made by our President and his seriousness about addressing these issues.

But what concerns many of us are his proposals in the budget he recently sent to the Congress that dramatically grow the size and cost of government and move it to the left.

It is our opinion that this plan spends too much, taxes too much and borrows too much.

You may have heard this before that the budget of the President spends too much, taxes too much and borrows too much.

What do we mean? Well, let me give you a few examples.

 

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Oh, the irony of it all…

  You just can’t make this stuff up. Once again revealing their true colors, NH Senate Dems require parental notification to draw blood, but deny it in the case of an invasive medical procedure known as the abortion. From State Senator Peter Bragdon’s office: Senate Democrats Block Parental Notification for Abortions for Minors On Same … Read more

New Hampshire Taxpayer Tea Party on April 15th at Manchester’s Victory Park

Concord, NH- Yesterday, the New Hampshire Advantage Coalition  in partnership with the Coalition of New Hampshire Taxpayers, Granite State Taxpayers, Cornerstone Policy Research and the NH 9-12 Patriot Project, announced the NH Taxpayer Tea Party on April 15th, 2009 at 5:30 pm in Victory Park, Manchester, NH. This event is part of 200 plus tea … Read more

A letter to Representative Robert Thompson of Manchester regarding his ignorance of American history and the Constitution

Constitution

I sent an email to Rep. Thompson reacting to a post at Cornerstone Policy Research about a response Mr. Thompson gave to one of that group’s supporters. From Cornerstone:

So, it seems that once again one of our elected officials are of the opinion that we will just believe anything they write…

The latest case being State Representative, Robert Thompson of Manchester, who recently sent what appears to be a “stock” response to one of our Cornerstone supporters…

After our supporter sent Rep. Thompson an email urging him to not support The Bathroom Bill, HB415, as it would trample on religious liberties among other reasons, Rep. Thompson replied that not only does “religion have no place in government”, but that the founding fathers were so concerned about this, that they added a “separation of church and state” clause into the Constitution.

Click here to read the whole post, including Thompson’s offending note.

This is my response to him:

Rep. Thompson,
How could you be such a boob as to write the following false statement in an email:

"Secondly, I certainly feel that religion has no place in government. Our founding fathers, who wrote the constitution, were very concerned about religion interfering with law making and included a separation of church and state into the constitution. This is a very important part of our constitution that has seemed to have gotten away from us. The Judeo-Christian values our country were founded on are important but do not belong in government."

Robby, You’ve obviously never bothered to read the Constitution, or much of anything one might guess. The U.S. Constitution only refers to religion once in the 1st Amendment where it guarantees freedom OF religion, and that means religion of the public square. Your red-herring concept of a separation was first mentioned in a letter by Mr. Jefferson to the Danbury, CT Baptists who were complaining to him when he was POTUS years AFTER the Constitution had been written and ratified that they thought it was unfair that they had to pay taxes that went to support the CT state religion at the time which was Congregationalism, because contrary to your moronic lack of knowledge about American history, the respective states had official state religions well into the 19th century. That so-called "separation" Jefferson coined referred to government having no power over religious liberty among the various states, including their 10th amendment right to establish state religions which they did in fact have. You shouldn’t even be a legislator, you’re so ignorant of the laws governing this land and even the history of New England where you reside..  It’s uneducated buffoons like you that make our democracy as horribly fragile as it’s recently become.

Furthermore, on religion in "government" as you ridiculously call it, in your attempt to set up a straw man,…John Adams who knew a helluvalot more than I would dare say you do, especially when it comes to the documents he was involved in drafting and ratifying, but even more so on questions of wisdom…political, moral and otherwise, said the following:

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Pickpocket

I know more than one person forced to work as a member of  a union that feels as though the weekly union dues are somewhat akin to having their pockets picked. Here is a story that shows that when it comes to some members of some labor unions, they’re picking your pockets coming and going. … Read more

“I’m confused…”

Our friends at Cornerstone Policy Research have released a new web ad urging viewers to contact at Gov. Lynch at 271-2121 and ask him to say "no" to HB 436, the the so-called "genderless marriage" bill…     Don’t you just love the "new" New Hampshire, brought to us by the majority Democrats? (And aided … Read more

Safe Shopping

Have you ever stopped to ponder the fact that most mass-shootings happen in places where guns are banned? As I have often stated here on the ‘Grok on this subject– the only real defense against such tragedies is for law-abiding, properly skilled people to carry, thus being able to shoot back. Here is a lighthearted … Read more

Democrats: “anti-energy, anti-growth, and anti-jobs.”

From the NHGOP: CONCORD – Today, former New Hampshire Governor and Republican State Committee Chairman John H. Sununu released the following statement on the Merrimack Station Power Plant:  “No matter how hard the Democrats try to sound like they have a constructive energy policy, their actions prove they are anti-energy, anti-growth and anti-jobs. The repeated … Read more

Guest Post: We don’t need new taxes, but who will tell Washington?

The road to economic recovery is not paved with new taxes. New Hampshire’s delegation in Washington needs to share that bit of cold New England logic with their congressional colleagues as they evaluate the Obama administration’s budget proposal.  That proposal includes a giant energy tax increase, although that’s not what the administration’s economic team is … Read more

Conservative Republican wins seat in Central NH race

OK, so it’s a budget committee position in the ‘Grok hometown, and the elections are "non-partisan," but still– let me repeat: A conservative Republican has won a seat in Central NH. Skip Murphy-GraniteGrok, MTNP radio As Tip O’Neill famously said, "all politics is local," and what happens in our happy little hamlet is simply a … Read more

Five Out of Six Towns Pass Spending Caps. Town Meeting Taxpayers Send Clear Message…

 

Lower Spending = Lower Taxes.

Tax Cap

Nashua, NH – The call for controlled spending and efficient government from taxpayers across New Hampshire is getting louder and louder each election cycle. This year’s town meeting has proved to be no different. Tuesday’s resounding win in five of the six towns that spending cap warrant articles were on the ballot prove that taxpayers are tired of government continually reaching into their pockets and they are looking for relief. Spending cap warrants appeared on the ballot in the towns of Kingston, Hampstead, Allenstown, Salem, Hudson and Rindge. With only the Hudson warrant articles not passing.

“Taxpayers across this state are sending a clear message that an efficient government that spends their money wisely is the only path to lower taxes. We are facing very challenging times here in New Hampshire. The economy is down, property taxes are up, we have a record budget deficit on the state level and the federal government is spending at an unprecedented pace. Taxpayers are trying to control what they are closest to and that is their local government.” said Michael Biundo Chairman NHAC

The partnership between local taxpayers and local taxpayer associations, and the New Hampshire Advantage Coalition has been a successful one. With these results added to the impressive victory this past November in Rochester, the call for spending restraint and taxpayer relief from the grassroots’ can’t be ignored.

“The results of these warrant articles sends a clear message to elected officials at the local, state, and federal levels that people want controlled spending and lower taxes.” said  local Hampstead Taxpayer John McGrath

Former Deputy Speaker Ken Weyler of Kingston noted “In these fluid economic times, the public has clearly stated that spending must be capped at reasonable increases. …when the public, by two to one, tell you to cap your spending increases, you can expect further accountability, all of which you will ignore at your political peril.”

Here are the voting results by town:

 

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“Excessive government spending will not bolster the economy”

March 11th, 2009, Fairfax, VA—Americans For Limited Government (ALG) today released an exclusive video interview with Republican Congressman Michael Burgess, M.D. (TX-CD26). Topics ranged from healthcare reform and the economic crisis to the commuter rail lines in Texas. Congressman Burgess also proposed tax cuts as a remedy for the nation’s economic woes. “[W]e’ve seen this … Read more

Feds funding COBRAs. No, Carroll Shelby’s NOT in on the automakers’ bailout…

I got an email this week from the person that handles some of the benefit package offered by our company regarding changes to employee health insurance thanks to the recently passed bailout stimulus recovery law. Now if you’re like me, you’re probably wondering what health insurance has to do with economic recovery. Well, apparently, plenty. What’s also incredible is the fact that, despite the bill having been debated and discussed by Congress, nearly a month since its passage, people are STILL analyzing it to gauge its full meaning and what it requires. Of course, the fact that the federal government is going to basically go on the hook for 65 percent of the premium costs for every laid-off employee eligible to recieive health insurance continuation (COBRA) benefits is also of note as well.

Ray has given me permission to share this information with ‘Grok readers. I am including the email as written so that you can get the flavor of what just one little facet of a 1,000 page law can do. Can you imagine what all these "little" pieces must add up to in manhours and costs of analysis, forms creation, communication, and administration? What if all such manhours had been spent on something actually PRODUCTIVE instead of simply trying to comply with the law?

To My Valued Clients,

I am sending this e-mail to you, to discuss briefly what I know about the recent law changes that affect your group insurance. On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).  The law, in its final form, exceeds 1,000 pages length. Part of the law provides a subsidy for COBRA benefits.

COBRA Subsidy

Eligible workers will receive a 65% subsidy toward their COBRA continuation premium for up to 9 months.  The subsidy will begin March 1st and will be administered by the Treasury Department as a credit against payroll taxes.  The subsidy will terminate the date the individual becomes eligible for any new employer-sponsored health care coverage or Medicare.  The subsidy is also available for state provided comparable continuation coverage.

Eligible Individuals

An assistance eligible individual must meet the following qualifications:

 

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Spending/Tax Cap Momentum Builds

Claremont and Somersworth File for 2009 Spending Cap Vote  Nashua, NH – Today, Claremont resident Cynthia Howard in association with the New Hampshire Advantage Coalition (NHAC) filed a petitioner’s committee affidavit with the Claremont City Clerk to begin the petition process for a spending/tax cap charter amendment for the city’s budget.  On Tuesday March 10th, … Read more

“Hope” and “change”… peeling away the phony veneer

When you consider the facts from a variety of places, the luster that seemingly coats the Magic Obama is quickly wearing off… Jen Rubin, writing at Contentions, notes the mess that is quickly becoming the Obama Administration and its approach to the economy, and the resulting "reporting" we’re getting from the so-called "mainstream" media: it’s … Read more

Left & Right Bloggers agree: There is nothing they agree on…

Once again, much like the old adage that "women are from Venus, men are from Mars," National Journal Online has polled left and right bloggers and, guess what? They’re polar opposites when it comes to the question of Obama and his administration’s performance. This week we were asked two questions. 1.) Did President Obama overreach … Read more

Hear! Hear!

The Chairman comes out swinging and challenges Governor Do Nuthin’ Lynch to be true to his word on the gas tax increase… From former New Hampshire Governor and Republican State Committee Leader John H. Sununu: “This week the ‘tax and spend’ Democratic leadership in the New Hampshire House passed a 15-cent per gallon tax increase. This … Read more

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