Steve MacDonald

Steve is a long-time New Hampshire resident, an award-winning blogger, and a member of the Board of Directors of The 603 Alliance and the National Heritage Center for Constitutional Studies. He is the owner of Grok Media LLC and the Managing Editor, Executive Editor, assistant editor, Editor, content curator, and more (yes, there's more) at GraniteGrok.com. Steve is also a former board member of the Republican Liberty Caucus of New Hampshire, the Republican Volunteer Coalition, and has worked for or with many state and local campaigns and grassroots groups, and is a past contributor to the Franklin Center for Public Policy.

Ann McLane Kuster….Let’s just Call Her McLuster

Uh Hee hee, duh!Ann McLane Kuster, aside from having another one of those pretentious feminist names like Carol Seiu-Porter, has demonstrated to us that she is just another shill for the left wing narrative.  The road map to shill-dom (the most current public version at the very least) was printed in this morning’s Union Leader under the headline “Yes, The Bush tax cuts did harm our economy” in the Another View section of the editorial page.  Yes, it is another view, and while I’m no fan of GWB, her view just happens to be a biased view that is also wrong.

 

Before I explain why, let me get this out of the way.  I’m not writing ‘Ann McLane Kuster’ anymore. It is pretentious and annoying, it takes too long to write, so I’m just going to shorten it to McLuster.    And she should thank me.  Combining names is so “all the rage.”  Just think Brangalina! 

McLuster is also the first of a two–word phrase often used by McDonald’s mangers when everything suddenly comes off the rails.  And based on the way she “sees it,” it’s a short stumble from her rhetorical notion of economics to another full-blown federally-mandated McLuster- %$#@!

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Passing Our Buck

This may go without saying but would anyone be surprised if the democrat House passed the “Union paychecks To Union Dues To Democrat Campaign Contributions Bailout Bill” they went back to DC to vote on? Lord knows those fat cat liberal incumbents need every penny they can get, and since they’ve gotten so use to … Read more

It’s All About What They Want

Erik Erickson offers up an interesting article on pursuing a constitutional convention, (here) but what caught my attention was the Rasmussen figuers on the differences in perception between the Hodesheaporters of the world and the rest of us.   Consider the Rasmussen surveys of late: 86% of voters believe there should b “limits on what … Read more

Told You So

photos-of-extinguished-cigarette - Tobacco taxes in danger thanks to ObamacareDemocrats raised the cigarette tax to raise revenue in their race to the bottom with neighboring states.  And back in April I pointed out what every conservative already knows; that raising the tax will cost the state money.

Raising cigarette taxes will reduce overall revenue from that tax, decrease visits, lower average purchases per visit, provide no secondary or tertiary retail advantages, and give people fewer reasons to visit our state to buy other items.   This will just exacerbate the deficit problem by eroding revenues further, just like the scores of the other tax and fee increases we’ve enjoyed under the tenure of the Lynch administration

In this mornings Nashua Telegraph, in one of those “not worth a whole article” News digest blurbs , we learn that the good people of Maine are smoking more and buying their cigarettes in New Hampshire less.  The theory goes that the increase in the New Hampshire cigarette tax has reduced the price benefit to the point where it is no longer worth making a special trip.  There’s no way to know exactly how much it will cost New Hampshire but according to the blurb Maine sales are up 20%. (TWENTY PERCENT!)

Here’s what else I said back in April…

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Hodespocrisy–The Menendez Chronicles

Being as concerned as they are about ethics and corruption (over at the offices of the New Hampshire Democrat Party) you’d think Paul ‘Jersey’ Hodes would have refused that $10,000.00 campaign contribution from Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ).  Menendez is a long time benefactor of corrupt SEC violator Goldman Sachs (see below) and being from Jersey’s most corrupt Hudson county Menendez has been linked to any number of ethical "misunderstandings" throughout his career.

What kind of misunderstandings you ask?

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Blame Congress

As we consider the economic and political situation some folks are clinging to the ‘Blame Bush’ rhetoric while others are focusing on blaming Obama.  While there is blame aplenty in varying amounts, the one consistent factor they share is the one we have the best opportunity to resove in November. They Both shared a democrat … Read more

Carol Seiu-Porter….No Townhalls?

At this point the embattled CD-1 encumbant has not scheduled any meetings with her electroate.  Oh, I’m sure there will be tea and crumpets with the state party leadership, and whatever passes for Seiu-Porter groupies from Boo Hoo Hampshire, but wading into the mass of humanity to whom she must actually answer is currently not in the … Read more

Blame Lynch

Blame%20Lynch.JPGCourtesy of haystack over at RedState (Dave Poff, who lives in New Hampshire now by the way) we get word of the particulars on the passage of a funding bill in which was stuffed a union hand out disguised as a job creator along with federal money for Medicaid payments.

Adding a thought to what skip provided, and Drew Kline’s initial post on the Binnie Camp’s response to the Cornerstone Ad.  Binnie ‘did call a lawyer’ when he didn’t understand.  The lawyers did not understand either; that Cornerstone is a New Hampshire group founded by who, Karen Testerman?  Yeah, she’s that out of state girl…running for governor … Read more

Hodespocrisy–“It’s Not A Schoomah”

It's Not A Toomah!In keeping with the holier than thou New Hampshire Democrat Party “rules” committee’s abhorrence of money from ‘corrupt’ sources, we bring you Chuck Schumer, New York Senator, Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, and committee member on Banking, Finance, and judiciary.  He has also stained Paul Hodes already questionable reputation with dirty money–$10,000.00 dollars worth of it.

Remember all those Wall Street firms Hodes was standing against? You know, the Wall Street vs. Main Street smackdown. The big bank vs. small bank rhetoric.   Well Hodes can probably thank them for the $10,000.00 dollars he got from Schumer.  Senator Schumer gets ‘fed’ by all of the bailed out boys and girls (and those in between), including an eye-popping career sum from SEC violators Goldman Sachs.  Goldman has shoveled almost half a million of its greedy dollars to Schumer– 486,000.00.  And Schumer’s total career “take” from the evil anti-main Street banking crowd is a paltry $7,000,000.00 million.

 

Can you hear the crickets over at the NHDP headquarters. Loud little bastards aren’t they?

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Where Do We Draw The Line?

No, It's not marraige.All you folks (regardless of your sexual disorientation) who’ve gone and gotten yourselves hitched by a JP or someone else who performs a legitimate civil union just got hosed by one federal judge in Northern California.  According to him, you’re not married.  That’s right, civil unions are not marriages. (That is to say, they are not contractually equivalent.)

It will get appealed for good reason, and it has no affect anywhere else, but you know how the left likes to think of every little thing some elitist radical judge does as a sign of whatever it is they want that no one else wants.  It’s the beginning of a transformation of the culture.  Actually it’s not.

 

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You Want Us To Take This Seriously?

Yeah? When pigs fly!Cynicism is the proper lens through which all political activity should be viewed–particularly by incumbents—so pardon my skepticism but this latest legislative effort by Paul Hodes strikes me as a bit hollow.

CONCORD — Members of Congress and federal regulators would be barred from working as lobbyists for a minimum of two years under a bill that U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes said yesterday he is sponsoring.

Hodes, D-N.H. is a candidate for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg. Hodes said his proposal would "stop the lobbyists’ revolving door" in Washington. House members would have to wait two years before moving to a lobbying firm, Senate members would have to wait six years. Regulators over the banking, securities and oil industries would have to wait six years.

Digesting? Good, let’s think this through.

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CLEAR gets KO’d For Now

Oil and GasWith bi-partisan support the Senate has blocked a new energy tax passed by the House that would have hit the middle class and working families right in their shrinking wallets.  The CLEAR act, a job killing tax raising attempt by House democrats beholden to radical environmentalists, would have driven energy industry jobs out of America by the thousands while raising taxes on oil and natural gas.  It also would have increased our dependency on foreign energy, enriching countries that just a few years ago the democrats were claiming should not be getting wealthy on the backs of hard working Americans.  Yet here we are with 10% or more of the population out of work or underemployed  and the disconnected ruling-class House democrats are passing massive new energy taxes and shifting more American dollars off shore to places they themselves have said do not have our best interests at heart.

Morons? Hard to tell. This looks like an intentional effort to make energy more expensive so their green lobby campaign donors and the deep pocketed environmental justice crowd can make the even more expensive ‘so-called’ alternative more attractive.  Whatever the goal the pain and suffering this new tax burden and job loss would place upon average families, and single moms with kids is unconscionable and the left could care less.

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Happy Birthday!

Today is my daughter’s 10th Birthday.  She shares the day with Roger Clemons, Louis Armstrong, The Queen Mother Elizabeth, Anti-Semite Helen Thomas, Redskins Running Back John Riggins, Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman… …and someone else of note—I can’t seem to remember who though.

Want To Know Why….

Want to know why you can never enter into a “bi-partisan” agreement with a liberal?   The same reason you can’t enter into any agreement with them.  No matter what you may think you have agreed to, if at some point in time they “change” their mind, they’ll just redefine it until they get their way.  … Read more

Why Not Bob Giuda?

As one of the leaders of the NHRCV I played a part along with our tireless leader Kevin McHugh when our membership voted to endorse Jennifer Horn late last year.  We here at the Grok have endorsed Jennifer and yes I had a hand in that as well.  And since then a few libertarians–Bob Giuda’s core of support–have tried to have their way with us on our selection.  I think that’s great and I encourage it.  But I thought it appropriate to offer something of a rebuttal–which happens to be one of the single biggest reason why I chose Jen Horn over Bob.

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What Was The Point Of This?

If you and your employer “Part ways,” you are entitled to file for unemployment compensation assuming the departure was not the product of gross misconduct.  That means you didn’t do something that forced the employer to fire you.  Sexual misconduct, irrational behavior, negligence, abuse, and theft are all possible examples, many subject to the possibility … Read more

Hodespocrisy–The Max Baucus Edition

Money money money money...Max Baucus, Democrat Senator from Montana, is the chairman of the Senate Finance committee and his Glacier PAC has donated $10,000.00 dollars to Paul Hodes for Senate.  Baucus may be best known for his influence on Health Care reform or Climate change legislation.  But what he should be known for is his relationship with lawyer/staffer Melodee Hanes, (here, here and here) whom he left his wife for, and also nominated for a job as US district attorney from Montana. (then there’s this) Talk about inside baseball.  But banging a staffer, dumping your wife, and then trying to hook-her up with a well paying federal job–even if it is love–demands questions about your core values and integrity so it’s a good thing he’s a democrat.

If Baucus was Mark Sanford for example, the media would have hung him from the pillory by his man-parts and shamed him out of seeking higher office which makes you wonder if Mark Sanford would have faired better if he’d tried to get his Argentinean mistress a job at the State Department?  Buy her a blue dress and hello Oval Office?  I guess we’ll never know, but since Baucus is a powerful Senator and a democrat, everything about it is a non-scandal-scandal to the unbiased media so he was never in any serious danger over that cozy relationship; but should it make Paul Hodes think twice?

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Welcome To The Hodespocrisy!

Hodespocrisy.jpg

On July 31st the New Hampshire Democrat Party declared open season on Paul Hodes political PAC money so I’m not wasting any time taking up the challenge.  The challenge?  Find hypocrisy in the donors or the donors to the donors—to Paul Hodes campaign.  Let me tell that it’s no challenge making Mr. Hodes and his NHDP supporters look like hypocrites.  So courtesy of the NHDP’s new ‘rules’ I am pleased to bring you an ongoing series of campaign finance investigations suitably called the Hodespocrisy.

First up is DANPAC, one of nine leadership PAC’s that have given Mr. Hodes $10,000.00 dollars this election cycle.  DANPAC is run by Senator Daniel Inouye, democrat from Hawaii, the chairman of the Senate appropriations committee.  DANPAC has given $10,000.00 to Paul Hodes, which Mr. Hodes has accepted despite glaring contradictions.

Contradictions you ask?  What might they be?

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Reducing Foreign Dependency On What?

Can we even count how many times our New Hampshire congressional democrats claimed that we needed to reduce our dependence on foreign oil?  Twice?  A dozen times?  Hundreds?  Is it safe to say that among the lot there has been enough rhetoric on reducing foreign dependence to fill the Verizon center?

So why then have the House Democrats, Carol SEIU-Porter, and Paul ‘Sugar Daddy’ Hodes voted in favor of legislation (The CLEAR Act) that would tax domestic oil and gas even more?  Has it occurred to them that this will give foreign oil a distinct price advantage over domestic oil?  Probably not.

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