Steve MacDonald

Steve is a long-time New Hampshire resident, award-winning blogger, and a member of the Board of Directors of The 603 Alliance. He is the owner of Grok Media LLC and the Managing Editor, Executive Editor, assistant editor, Editor, content curator, complaint department, Op-ed editor, gatekeeper (most likely to miss typos because he has no editor), and contributor at GraniteGrok.com. Steve is also a former board member of the Republican Liberty Caucus of New Hampshire, The Republican Volunteer Coalition, 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.

McCain’s CPAC Speech. The turning point?

Steve MacDonald
John McCain
John McCain (GG file photo)
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ARLINGTON, VA — U.S. Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign today released the following remarks by John McCain as prepared for delivery:
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Thank you. Thank you for inviting me. It’s been a little while since I’ve had the honor of addressing you, and I appreciate very much your courtesy to me today. We should do this more often. I hope you will pardon my absence last year, and understand that I intended no personal insult to any of you. I was merely pre-occupied with the business of trying to escape the distinction of pre-season frontrunner for the Republican nomination, which, I’m sure some of you observed, I managed to do in fairly short order. But, now, I again have the privilege of that distinction, and this time I would prefer to hold on to it for a while.
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I know I have a responsibility, if I am, as I hope to be, the Republican nominee for President, to unite the party and prepare for the great contest in November. And I am acutely aware that I cannot succeed in that endeavor, nor can our party prevail over the challenge we will face from either Senator Clinton or Senator Obama, without the support of dedicated conservatives, whose convictions, creativity and energy have been indispensible to the success our party has had over the last quarter century. Many of you have disagreed strongly with some positions I have taken in recent years. I understand that. I might not agree with it, but I respect it for the principled position it is. And it is my sincere hope that even if you believe I have occasionally erred in my reasoning as a fellow conservative, you will still allow that I have, in many ways important to all of us, maintained the record of a conservative. Further, I hope you will grant that I have defended many positions we share just as ardently as I have made my case for positions that have provoked your opposition. If not, thank you for this opportunity to make my case today.
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Ten Reasons why I won’t join the McCain Derangement Express…

Steve MacDonald
runaway train
Derangement Express
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While Skip has decided to climb aboard the McCain Derangement Syndrome Express in concert with Rush, Michelle, and the rest, I have taken a decidedly more sober approach. While I agree that certainly McCain has been a pain in the @$$ for Republicans on some issues through the years, when I consider the lay of the land and the current reality of the public’s mood, the Arizona Senator represents the best shot we’ve got at defying the conventional wisdom that puts a Dem in the White House come January 2009.
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Rather than join the anti-McCain chorus like some mind-numbed robot repeating the talking points, I have come to my own conclusions about the man. To do this, I applied the first hand contact I had with the most likely GOP nominee when he was campaigning here in the Granite State for almost a full year and considered the people that I greatly respect that have endorsed him. I have spoken directly with Senator McCain and asked him specific questions about things important to me, and was pleased with his answers. Skip had the same opportunities as well, and yet, given his recent postings on the subject, apparently was dissatisfied. I’m wondering why he didn’t address his concerns when he had the chance. It appeared to me at the time that Skip was OK with the exchanges he had with the man. I guess that the 88 blogs he reads daily weren’t interested in McCain enough at the time to be distributing memos of what to think. 
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When all things are considered, and then combined with his electability given the current zeitgeist, we could do a whole lot worse than John McCain. Here’s ten reasons to be optimistic about the possibility of a McCain presidency…
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John McCain
10) He’s a fighter. The present administration has inexplicably decided that it would never defend itself or its decisions when attacked by the opposition. Perhaps if they had taken more strong steps to explain things to the American people, Bush, and by extension, the Republicans wouldn’t be playing catch-up to the Democrats. I don’t see a McCain administration enfeebled in this area like Bush. I don’t see McCain allowing his opponents to define him.
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9) He can plausibly represent "change" in an election where people want "change." This is important, unless your idea of "change" means electing a Democrat, which I think would be disastrous for America. The few "sticks in the eye" of Bush through the years paints McCain as one marching independent of the present administration. People are tired of Bush, as they would be after any two term president.
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Dragon Soup: Front page of USA Today reports: 75% of Baghdad Secure

Steve MacDonald
Colonel Ricky Gibbs, commander of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division
Colonel Ricky Gibbs, commander of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, talks to Iraqi children in the Masafee neighborhood of East Rashid, Baghdad during a recent visit there. (U.S. Army photo by Maj. Kirk Luedeke, 4IBCT Public Affairs)

 
Kudos to USA Today reporter Jim Michaels, whose front page story in the Jan. 18-20 edition of the paper reports that 75% of Baghdad’s neighborhoods are secure as opposed to just 8% exactly one year earlier.
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This is an important story because it quantifies the progress that has been gaining momentum in mainstream media reporting since General David Petraeus issued his Iraq War progress report to the House and Senate back in September.
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My boss, Colonel Ricky Gibbs, commander of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division stationed here in Southern Baghdad, was interviewed for the story and I sat in on the telephonic interview he conducted with Michaels. Here are some points that didn’t make the final cut in the story, but provide further context for Michaels’ fair and accurate reporting:

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Dragon Soup– Baghdad’s Christians: An island in the sea of Islam (Part 3 of 3)

Steve MacDonald
Baghdad Christmas
PHOTO (by author): Christmas trees are alight just outside the 4th Brigade, 1st Infantry Division Tactical Operations Center (TOC) on Forward Operating Base Falcon, Baghdad in 2007.
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[Blogger’s note to the readers]
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It is Christmas Eve here in Baghdad as I write this.
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Tomorrow, I will go to Christmas mass at the St. John’s Church in Dora. What could be more perfect than sharing in the celebration of Christ’s birth in the middle of what was once a war-torn neighborhood? A place overrun with fanatics who would shoot a person dead on the street because she didn’t have on a hijjab, the traditional head covering worn by Muslim women?
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This is the final installment of my series on Christians in Baghdad. As you look back on the work as a whole, understand that this is just a snapshot of what I have personally seen and experienced in one part of Baghdad. The situation in Dora and the Rashid District is not a template that can be applied to Christians everywhere else in Iraq. But in reading these dispatches, I hope that you can at least come to appreciate that like many Iraqis, be they Sunni, Shia or Kurd- the Christians have done their share of suffering in this war. Yet at the same time, this year, more than any other, is a time for celebration and hope.
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This is why I can feel God’s presence here, at this most holy of times for our faith, as we witness firsthand Christians returning to neighborhoods they had fled in terror, and their Muslim neighbors reaching out to embrace them. If that is not a sign of the Lord at work, then I don’t know what is.
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-Major Kirk
Forward Operating Base Falcon
Baghdad
Dec. 24, 2007

A light shines in the darkness

They came from all over Baghdad to see Auxiliary Bishop Shlemon Warduni conduct mass at the St. John’s Chaldean Church in Dora Nov. 15.
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Christian families came not only from the immediate neighborhoods in southern Baghdad, but from other locales after having left their homes because of the Al Qaeda and other Muslim extremists groups’ threats and intimidation.
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Precious Cargo

Steve MacDonald
Veterans Cemetary
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The following was forwarded to us by our friend, Blue Star Mother Sue Peterson. It was written by L.D. Jeffries of West Ossipee, who gave us permission to share it with our readers…

It’s not about right or wrong, but how we treat soldiers

I am a pilot (first officer) for Continental Airlines and just recently had an event happen during one of my flights that I felt should be shared. I just had the honor and privilege of flying a fallen soldier flight on Flight 15 from Newark to Honolulu last Wednesday, Nov. 21. I had heard about these fallen soldier flights and knew we did them but I had no idea how intense and emotional it would be when and if it was my turn. Add to the intensity was the fact that one brother was escorting his deceased brother back home. They were from the little island of Pago Pago, and the young man that was killed was just doing the sergeant major a favor when he went on the patrol he was killed on. He was supposed to just be the driver for the top sergeant. I know they probably left their little island paradise to see the world, and likely the only way they could afford to, so they signed up. I’m guessing they still would have done so had they truly suspected the outcome, the perception of immortality as a young man is very powerful as I recall.
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The deceased soldier, a sergeant, was escorted by his real brother and active duty army specialist 5, and also a fellow Afghanistan campaign veteran. The young man was killed in Afghanistan when he stepped on an IED, probably sometime close to Veterans Day. His remains were non-viewable. The boys were on their way back home to an island wide and well deserved hero’s welcome.
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Captain Mike Montgomery, also a veteran, and I saluted the casket aboard our 767-400 for the 11-hour flight. The ceremony happened at gate C138 and in front of the huge windows of terminal C. There was standing room only in the windows and three people deep as we rode the cargo carrier up the 15 feet to bring the soldier aboard. We rode up the carrier elevator at "present arms" and held the salute until the casket was in the hold. The ceremony of bringing the body aboard was a significant and sobering event for me. I felt pride, honor and a deep sadness at the same time as I reflected on all the guys I knew personally who were killed in this war, the last one, and the one before that. Eleven hours later, my landing in Honolulu was the best I have ever done in the 767-400. I think the airplane knew we had extra precious cargo aboard as well.
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Baby doesn’t get what he wants from his nanny (state).

Steve MacDonald
nanny state
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I was most amused by the news of the most recent tantrum thrown by one of the Lakes Region’s biggest crybabies, socialist David Stamps. "GASP! Doug– you just called him a…. socialist! That’s pretty harsh." Maybe, but here in these parts, he is the classic case study of a socialist in action. Before you move along, thinking this to be a local story, which it certainly is, keep in mind that there’s people just like this in every town, city, and hamlet in America (unfortunately).
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First, the news– Mr. Stamps was among the founders of one of these taxpayer black holes known as the "Main Street" program that cropped up in many locales some years back. You know the drill– taxpayers $$ used to fund more bureacratic positions and "gimme jobs" under the guise of "marketing". In Laconia, (which kicked in twenty grand a year of local property taxes raised on top of the "grant" monies) it was used mostly in the promotion of events that always seemed to have underlying, liberal social engineering themes like "multicultural day." When the city wanted Harley Davidson Corp. to set up shop in the downtown area during the annual Race & Rally Week, guaranteed to bring folks in for a visit, the Main Street group, for all intents and purposes, opposed it. Better to have the gay, lesbian, and transgendered crowd and antiwar peaceniks than a bunch of bikers with wallets full of money in town for Motorcycle Week…
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Well, the gig is up. Whoever was pushing the "Main Street Program" up the foodchain for some reason has pulled the plug on the free ride. Local groups, instead of recieving a good deal of taxpayer largesse from on high, must now reverse direction and PAY to belong. Probably some politicians started really paying attention to the bloated system that could not possibly justify its existence much longer, and figured they might face some heat from the taxpayers. Heh! It was good while it lasted.
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Apparently, Mr. Stamps didn’t get the memo. As if on cue, Stamps, like all good socialists, thinks it can be made to work, if only the pesky unbelievers would just let them be. More time. More people. MORE MONEY!!! The Citizen (Laconia, NH) has the details:
Less than six years ago, the Laconia Main Street program was launched amid great hopes for revitalizing the downtown economically while preserving its past.
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But now, short of volunteers, money and with accusations that some city officials do not support it, the program is in an uncertain place that became even more undefined on Wednesday when David Stamps, its co-founder and president, said he is stepping down from the program’s Board of Directors.
While the paper is somewhat kind, what happened is that Mr. Stamps submitted his resignation by e-mail, berating Laconia’s elected and hired leaders. Why? Cuz he didn’t get his way… poor baby! The powers that be in Laconia, liberal as they are, don’t hold a candle to Stamps when it comes to the pro-socialist positions. To the absolute horror of Mr. Stamps and others of his ilk, the city has decided, rather than spend the bucks on hired apparatchiks to hold events nobody would possibly want to attend, that promoting capitalism is instead the way to go. Bwahahaha!
 

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Memo to McCain NH Leadership Team: “The Comeback Continues”

Steve MacDonald
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As we get ever closer (at least we think) to the NH Primary, the one thing that’s apparent to me as I observe the scene is that the Granite State is still up for grabs, with no clear frontrunner sporting some insurmountable lead. The front four, Huckabee, Romney, Giuliani, and McCain all show signs that they are going to make an all out sprint to the finish line (wherever it is). We have reported in many prior postings that the enthusiasm and numbers turning out for the various candidates is quite high. The last Giuliani, McCain, and Romney events the ‘Grok has attended have been standing room only. As a Republican, this is heartening indeed. I love a good campaign, and watching all comers espousing core conservative positions is the added bonus in this cycle.
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As proof to the fluidity of the NH Republican presidential landscape, consider this analysis of the most recent polling data. In a confidential memo to McCain’s NH leadership team from National Political Director Michael Dennehy obtained by GraniteGrok, we find the campaign satisfied with where it stands at the moment in this must-win state:
We also received some very good news from The Boston Globe poll that was released today.  Andy Smith, of the UNH Survey Center, conducted the poll and he was quoted as saying the race is “still really open”.  While the ballot indicates that Romney has 32, Rudy 20 and John 17, it doesn’t discuss the important numbers inside the numbers.
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Of significance, only 16% of those sampled have “definitely decided” who they are voting for in the Primary.  And of those 16%, the race is a dead heat with Romney at 29%, John at 24% and Rudy at 24%.  However, the best news of the entire poll for our campaign in New Hampshire, is that since Andy Smith’s last poll at the end of September, John has increased his “definitely decided” from 10% to 24% – a 240% gain.  Romney has only increased 4 points and Rudy only 3.  This further illustrates the momentum that John has in New Hampshire and is a sign of good news to come.  It also proves what we have known all along – when John McCain meets voters, looks them in the eye, and gives them “straight talk”, they are boarding the bus for good!
As for the big push for the goal that is now underway, you know McCain fields the strongest ground game of all the Republican campaigns– no one does full contact politicking like he does. Writes Dennehy,
Crowds at our Town Hall meetings are growing and getting much more enthusiastic, veterans are showing up at campaign events in droves, and phone calls and emails to our headquarters are keeping our volunteers overtime. 
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You will see John in every corner of the state in the weeks ahead and we’ll need your help more than ever.  As more and more voters tune in to the race, we expect to have the same success converting undecideds into supporters.  We need to grow our local organizations and turn your friends and neighbors into supporters too.  If this conversion rate holds, we’ll be taking the lead for good on, or even earlier than, January 8 – when we EXPECT the Primary to be held.
The battle is on!
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The entire text of the memo follows:

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Business as usual ends in Dover

Steve MacDonald

. I’m sure my friend Bill is happy today— the tax cap proposal has been passed by the voters of Dover. Good for them! The charter amendment passed Tuesday by a margin of 405 votes, with 3,225 votes in favor and 2,820 votes opposed. When you add them to the growing list of cities that … Read more

Voting Day. A couple of recommendations…

Steve MacDonald
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While I fret about the fact that so few people care enough to vote when election day rolls around, I don’t get as worked up about voter turnout, in general, as others tend to do. My bigger concern is that the people that are voting are well-informed, not propagandized. Today is Election Day– the "midterm of the midterm", if you will, as it is mostly city elections that will be occuring.
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If I lived in Manchester, I would definitely be voting for Mayor Giunta’s re-election. Tax stability goes hand in hand with good service and a quality education. Taking action against criminal activities is important too. While it must be akin to herding cats, Giunta has managed all of these areas rather well. Why would Manchester want to change course?
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In Laconia, Mr. Greg Knytych is running for the Ward 1 seat on the City Council. Skip and I had the opportunity to meet and listen to Mr. Knytych a while back at the American Solutions Day event held here in our neck of the woods. He contributed a great deal of input during that day’s activities and was, in fact, encouraged to become involved in local affairs, which he obviously is doing. We had him in studio this past Saturday on MTNP radio. Promising to abide by the tax cap, stressing its success and importance, he offers the Lake City an opportunity to elect a well-informed, "regular-guy". In his closing words as our guest, Mr. Knytych reminded the listeners that, yes, he is a Republican, and not afraid to say so, but beyond that, and more importantly, he wanted the folks to know that he is a conservative. And not afraid to say so. Go here to watch him in studio on the SchlubCam.
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In Dover, the big question is the tax cap. I can’t imagine why the voters wouldn’t want this. We discussed and debated the subject on GraniteGrok here and here. In an op-ed following his recent election as Franklin’s Mayor, Mr. Ken Merrifield wrote, of that city’s tax cap:

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Hang on tight– It’s time to Meet the New Press!

Steve MacDonald

. ….        ..Pat Hynes                                Skip Murphy                          Doug Lambert . Once again, this week’s broadcast version of GraniteGrok and AnkleBitingPundits brings an array of items and guests for your consideration. As always, thanks to the technical wizardry and analytical skills of Skip (the GraniteGrok media empire’s secret weapon), if you are beyond the broadcast area … Read more

Oh that Jeanne Shaheen, there she goes again!

Steve MacDonald
…Al Gore canoeing
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Our friend Pat Hynes  at AnkleBitingPundits writes about Democrat Jeanne Shaheen, former governor and present candidate for US Senate, hopping aboard the Bush derangement bandwagon…
I was wondering when the “Bush Caused the Wildfires” mantra would start. I just didn’t think it would start in my Granite State of New Hampshire and that it would come out of the mouth of former New Hampshire Governor and current Democratic Senate candidate Jeanne Shaheen, who is normally very disciplined and not prone to saying silly things.

Nevertheless:

Speaking to an audience of committee members and elected officials, Shaheen and Buckey discussed their qualifications for the Senate and their stance on global warming, the economy, and the health care system.

Buckey said he would focus on decreasing America’s dependence on petroleum and increasing research on renewable energy technologies. He said it’s an issue that’s vital to both national security and the economy.

“If we don’t take action, we are going to lose control of America’s future,” Buckey said. “Ten years from now, do we want to be importing solar-powered systems and other technologies from elsewhere or do we want to be building them here?”

Shaheen agreed with many of Buckey’s points, but criticized the Bush administration on everything from the war in Iraq to health care. Shaheen also blamed Bush for the wildfires in California.

“Those wildfires are the direct result of the failure of this administration to do something about global warming,” she said.

This is a pretty remarkable and irresponsible statement on Shaheen’s part, for as even the MSM has acknowledged by now: “Authorities in Southern California said they believe two of the fires that recently ravaged the area were intentionally started.”

As readers no doubt know, Shaheen is running against Sen. John Sununu, whom you can contribute to through the Rightroots contribution interface HERE.

UPDATE: More than a few readers have e-mailed to say that Gov. Shaheen’s gaffe is the consequence of a major party going loopy–otherwise smart, rational people start saying loopy things just to win their approval. Sigh. I suppose so.

This, of course, follows a similar pattern demonstrated by none other than Bill Clinton. Remember when he blamed "right wing talk radio" (Rush Limbaugh- Clinton’s number one detractor) for the OKC bombing?  Long a New Hampshire version of the "triangulator" Bill Clinton, it is no surprise that Ms. Shaheen would choose this path of thoughtless demagoguery as she seeks to curry favor with the left wing loons of her party.

Those following the career of Jeanne Shaheen know that this wouldn’t be the first time Ms. Shaheen said or did something loopy in the process of seeking approval. Let’s review one incident in particular…

 

 

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GraniteGrok Debate. Counterpoint…Favoring a tax cap.

Steve MacDonald
point counterpoint
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The following was forwarded to us by ‘Grok reader Bill Asbell of Dover. After reading Mr. Tunning’s "Point" against NH cities having tax caps, he felt as though it answered several of the incorrect assertations made. It was originally written in response to a letter writer in his local paper, Foster’s…
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I attended both forums on the Dover Tax Cap initiative. In the first one moderated by Councilor David Scott, he laid out the ground rules and how it was an information gathering event for citizens paneled by: himself, three Dover city employees and four guests from Franklin and Laconia (including two mayors), who had experience of a tax cap in their communities. It was therefore balanced with those from the private sector who pay taxes to government and those from municipal government who increase their ranks and compensation through tax hikes and whose earnings are the result of taxes. Two of the first people to break the ground rules and start the ball rolling toward mild anarchy were the tax and spend liberals Betsey Andrews Parker and Mr. Glenn Grasso himself, who felt that they should grandstand rather than ask questions. And no cap opponents asked a question of the Dover staff. The audience was packed with Dover city union employees, some of whom also threw their rhetorical weight around with great melodrama, and warnings of doom, generating far more heat than light.
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The second, calmer forum, run by unlimited spending advocate Mayor Scott Myers had six panelists all from state agencies and local government; people whose compensation increases and whose jobs are more secure when taxes go up not down. This is objectivity he says, not stacking the deck to achieve a desired outcome. There were no private sector representatives and no one who’d personally experienced first-hand a tax cap…how helpful.  He then coached the panelists how to respond when he felt the need.
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On the same day that Foster’s ran its editorial against the tax cap, the Union Leader editorialized in favor of it. On Thursday, Foster’s editor publishes an unhinged, "infuriated" diatribe playing the class warfare demagogue’s card, then denying it in the next paragraph…truly embarrassing.  As if renters don’t pay increased rent when landlords’ property taxes go up. Foster’s editor must really believe all its readers are dupes.
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GraniteGrok Debate. POINT… Opposing a tax cap.

Steve MacDonald
point-counterpoint
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The following was sent to me from Ron Tunning, the chairman of the Laconia Democrat Committee. Writes Ron,
Doug,
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I thought I’d share with you a column I’ve submitted to the Foster’s Daily Democrat regarding the proposed tax cap in Dover.  I know you’ll never agree with me, but at least you can see where I’m coming from.
He’s right about that, but, as he knows, I do like to listen to and ponder what those who stand in opposition to what I believe have to say. Ron is a thoughtful individual, and I always appreciate and enjoy the discourses and debates we have engaged. His piece follows in full as written. Tomorrow, GraniteGrok will present a counterpoint to his argument. Keep in mind that two cities right here in the ‘Grok’s neck of the woods have tax caps: Laconia and Franklin. Feel free to leave comments in the section below…

Opposing the Tax Cap Proposal in Dover, NH

by Ron Tunning
No one enjoys paying higher taxes, and it’s safe to say that everyone would prefer a lower tax bill. That is why ideas such as the tax cap being proposed in Dover garner immediate public support. But if voters are honest with themselves they’ll oppose the measure.
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Let’s be frank. We all know “there’s no such thing as a free lunch“, and experience has taught us that “you get what you pay for.” Those maxims should guide us as we evaluate the sensibility of imposing a tax cap.
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So, too, should careful consideration of the methodology proposed for determining how much municipal spending will be permitted to rise. The Dover plan mirrors the language adopted in Franklin and Laconia, limiting the annual increase in spending to the annual rise in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index (CPI). After all, proponents of the tax cap argue, why should the cost of government rise more rapidly than the costs of consumer goods?
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Embarassed his taxes aren’t high enough!

Steve MacDonald

. Sometimes you really have to wonder… In a letter found in the Foster’s Daily Democrat entitled, Don’t Cap Taxes; Increase them for the sake of the Children, a Mr. Verdenal H. Johnson writes about how distressed he is that when it comes to taxes, the people always want to say "no." He is apparently … Read more

John McCain rips the bark off of Romney!

Steve MacDonald
John McCain…
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Wow! As many of you might have figured out, I’m the kind of guy that LOVES the heat of political battle. I can’t get enough of those able to deliver the conservative message in such a way that it becomes for all intents and purposes indisputable to all those who hear it. Additionally, I apreciate an orator that is able to define his/her oponent in an accurate, unvarnished way that too becomes essentially non-debatable it is so on the mark. Such it was for John McCain today when he addressed the NH GOP state committee at their meeting today in Londonderry.
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Senator McCain effectively shredded fellow Republican wannabee Mit Romney in the speech (which is quite excellent all around) discussing what it means to be a real Republican. Citing Ronald Reagan as the epitome of what a Republican president ought to emulate here in our times, McCain reminds us of Romney’s famous denial of Reagan and his legacy during a debate with Ted Kennedy. For me, watching the YouTube of Mr. Romney saying this is something that I have not been able to get past since I first watched it many months back. I can forgive some deviations from where I might wish my Republican candidates to be on some issues, but such a blatant dissing of Ronald Reagan is not one. Sorry. McCain nails where I am at regarding the former Massachusetts Governor…
ARLINGTON, VA — U.S. Senator John McCain delivered the following remarks to the New Hampshire Republican Party in Manchester today, Saturday, October 13th:
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Thank you for that kind introduction.  It is an honor to speak to you. 
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I don’t usually do this but I’m going to depart for a moment from the issues I want to talk to you about today.  One of the other Republican candidates made an extraordinary statement yesterday.  Former Governor Romney yesterday proclaimed himself the only real Republican in this race.  As we all know, when he ran for office in Massachusetts being a Republican wasn’t much of a priority for him. 

In fact, when he ran against Ted Kennedy, he said he didn’t want to return to the days of Reagan-Bush.  I always thought Ronald Reagan was a real Republican.

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Announcing the GraniteGrok reader survey results: NH’s Power Players

Steve MacDonald
megaphone
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The long-anticipated day has arrived. Surely everybody who’s anybody is already looking at the results, wondering if they were fortunate enough to make our list. Our sincere apologies to those of you who have fallen short on your sleep, nervous in the anxiety of whether or not you’ve made the list. Worry no more, for the time is now!
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Our thanks to all of you who took the time to participate. While some of these types of exercises tend to mainly be about promoting the person conducting the survey, rest assured this was not the case here. Watching the recent turns of political events here in NH, it is quite obvious that power has shifted. Those who used to acquire and wield strength in the Granite State are either gone, or in their waning moments. A new crop of shakers and movers is beginning to make their marks on the NH scene. We thought it was time to update the list, and, while having thoughts ourselves, we thought we should get as much input from other people, in case it turned out we were all wet.
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The way it worked was simple– I asked readers to submit a list of 5 people who they thought were the new power players in NH; who are the most influential in today’s Granite state. I then listed all of the answers and then ranked them according to total votes cast for each. The goal was to create a list of twenty people that GraniteGrok readers felt fit the bill.
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National Gay-Rights Group is Right!

Steve MacDonald

Ray Buckley

NH Dem Chair Ray Buckley (GG file photo)

 

Click here first to read my post: Is Civil Union Legislation Based on Lies? Then click here and read “Gay-Rights Group Pushed for State Democrats in ’06.” More disturbing is this article from the Boston Globe. Yep, that’s right, they were the single biggest donor to the democrats. But, of course the dems weren’t influenced by the money, geez, ya gotta explain everything. da mi il soldi!

 

Spending almost $150,000 on New Hampshire state races by the Human Rights Campaign…I wonder why they just don’t call it what it is; i.e., Gay Rights Campaign?…paid off for them. They switched their focus from national politics to influence state politics, particularly NH, Iowa and Oregon. Smart move, I’d say.

 

I recently read an opinion published in one of the papers that said there was no out-of-state influence regarding pushing civil unions in NH. Well, the Human Rights Campaign donation would prove that person’s theory wrong. Not only did they contribute money, according to the editorial, but an employee traveled to NH to assist with get-out-the-vote efforts and phone-banks. Do you think he was encouraging Republicans to vote?

 

The President of the Human Rights Campaign states:

 

“We understood that in order to change things at the federal level, we had to play a role in changing things locally.”

 

Of course they were successful in changing things here locally. They don’t live in NH and NH citizens didn’t get a chance to vote on the issue of civil unions, but I guess many NH citizens simply are too apathetic to care that NH was being influenced by “outsiders.”

 

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Giuliani wins the straw poll. No, not THAT one…

Steve MacDonald

Ron Paul’s supporters caravanning to the straw  poll? * . In the Nashua Telegraph’s blog page, "NH Prime Cuts", Kevin Landrigan reports on another, lesser-known straw poll that took place this past weekend. Given that it took place in NH, probably a more important state than Iowa in the requisite steps a candidate must take on the path to … Read more

Welfare Poem

Steve MacDonald
welfare sticker
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Well, I have no idea if the figures in the poem below are correct, etc., but you get the drift, huh? Read the poem (after my discourse)  and let me know if it makes you angry, okay?
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Somewhat related to this, I’ve been following some of the coverage on the Pelosi/Shea-Pompous upcoming trip to New Orleans along with the other 13-14 democratic party animals. The story is interesting. Why, you ask? The comments are overwhelmingly against them going to New Orleans for what most people believe is merely another photo op and Bush bashing expedition at taxpayers’ expense.
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What does Congress do about approval ratings in the single digits? Go on a trip, of course. They are all on vacation anyway. Many people are mad at Pompous and wondering why she doesn’t work here in NH to solve fixing the many roads and bridges that are red-lined, help those who have suffered flooding problems here, feed the one in ten children who go to bed hungry…you know work on NH’s many unsolved problems. We’re 6th in income but 49th in services to citizens right here in NH. Where’s the NH way?
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Not a big photo op here, I guess, as it probably wouldn’t get national exposure. Playing on people’s sympathies works very well many times. What some people don’t seem to understand is that you can fell sorry for somebody, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to "do" something for them, especially if they’re not willing to do something for themselves.
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We all like to give, partly because it makes us feel good about ourselves. Obviously, when there’s a real crisis as there was with Katrina, we should all try to do our part to help. But, sometimes people don’t appreciate what they get for nothing so it can be more harmful to them and what they may need is to become responsible and accountable and held to a higher standard sometimes too. I’m not saying we still shouldn’t be trying to help people in New Orleans, but sometimes "help" can actually hurt.
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I was in Vail about a year ago. I rode the shuttle van from Denver and met a New Orleans’ football player who was going to see an ortopaedist in Vail. We started talking about Hurricane Katrina.
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