Op-Ed

by Rep. Mike Sylvia

The shell game continues on County Drive. It’s understandable that this sleight of hand would lead to errors in the Laconia Daily Sun’s article covering the Belknap County budget.

Commissioner DeVoy, according to the Sun, said: “…it was poor budget management on the part of the delegation that helped create the current bleak fiscal situation for the county.”

While I’ll agree that ‘poor budget management’ is involved, the fact is the delegation appropriates funds, and the county administration is tasked with budget management. It would be helpful if the administration would keep their spending to monies that had actually been appropriated as opposed to finding ways to spend money which had not been appropriated.

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By Jim Kofalt

There is a very funny scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail in which a crowd of villagers drags a hapless woman before the local knight (Sir Bedemir) proclaiming that she is a witch and demanding permission to burn her at the stake. When the woman proclaims her innocence, Bedemir points out that she is in fact “dressed like a witch.”

“They dressed me up like this,” she says, pointing at the angry mob. “And this isn’t my nose; it’s a false one.” “Well we did do the nose,” says one villager… “and the hat. But she is a witch.” Sir Bedemir asks them point blank: “Did you dress her up like this?” The crowd answers: “No, no… no … well… yes.  Yes, yes, a bit, a bit.” It’s obvious after all that the mob has no interest in facts. They are determined to burn a witch.

Fast forward to 2017. Steve Bannon comes to Manchester, New Hampshire to give a speech at a fundraising dinner for the 603 Alliance – a local group that aims to restore Constitutional values in government. As soon as the event is announced, the village mob swings into action on social media.

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By Rep. Dave Testerman

In New Hampshire, most public school funding originates in the pocketbook of local taxpayers and most of us hope we elect a local school board that watches out not only for the students but also the taxpayer. It doesn’t always work out, but we have had some very good board members in Franklin.

A much larger problem has occurred at the State Board of Education level. Unfortunately, our state has appointed State School Board members for 18 of the last 20 years that loved regulations and micromanaging our public schools.

With backing by the NH School Boards Association and the School Administrators Association, the pressure on local schools and Superintendents has been to simply comply with whatever the DoE and the State Board said…or else. Frankly, it hasn’t been working. So what has been the effect on school funding?

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By Peter Leminska

The refugees and immigrants who come to America to escape poverty and oppression need safe haven.  The vast majority of them are good, hardworking people, and how they get here is unimportant.  Compassion for immigrants overrides federal immigration laws.

That represents a basic tenet of the liberal mindset, the force behind sanctuary cities.

The number of sanctuary cities expanded rapidly during Barack Obama’s administration.  The Washington Times reported in 2015 that there were more than 340 sanctuary cities in America.  This year, it reported that the number had grown to nearly 500.  According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), 279 municipalities refused to cooperate in at least one case during 2016.  That resulted in the release of more than 2,000 illegal immigrants that ICE had been trying to deport.

Those who support the notion of sanctuary cities should consider these points:

1.      Sanctuary cities violate federal law.

Cities and towns that harbor illegal aliens often cite the 10th Amendment,

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The Executive Council in NH is often the red-headed step child that is ignored by the rest of the political world.  Outside of NH, people interested in the First the Nation Primary politics go “Executive Huh?” – and even most NH residents have little clue as to what it does and why it is important.  And make no mistake – it is important as it is supposed to be the last “brake” on the NH Governor’s decisions when it comes to official appointments and signing of contracts.  However, like most, it is subject to mere politics, like when this Democrat dominated EC decided to pass a 300 plus page contract for Obamacare’s Medicaid Expansion only gave the Republican Councilors 15 minutes to read all that – and then just passed it into effect.  This will have a real effect on the taxpayers of NH in the coming months and years.

We, the writers and authors at GraniteGrok are making only two Endorsements for Executive Council at this time…

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Consistency breeds Trust yields Votes

There are a number of contested races in the NH State Senate primary races this cycle and we have been asked to give our guidance based on our Principles.  The following folks fall into the GraniteGrok mold of what we expect to see from NH GOP candidates – adherence to Conservative & Liberty Principles and a fealty to the NH GOP Platform and the NH Constitution regardless of the situation or this issue (even in the face of opposition, especially from their own Party).

We have known these folks over a long periods of time – they have shown that they have walked the talk and thus, proving their Consistency that has earned our Trust. Our bar for endorsement was quite high – while Ronaldus Magnus oft spoke of the 80%, we can and want better.

We believe we have to – times are much dire and the Left is much, much further left to almost being to the point of being indistinguishable from those we opposed in the Cold War and in the multitude of proxy wars fought during that time.  We need solid counterweights to balance not only the Democrats in the General Election but, in some cases, prevent those that would promote and advance the Democrat Agenda (as with incumbent NH State Senator David Boutin who voted for Obamacare’s Medicaid Expansion, for one MAJOR item).

Thus we humbly ask you all, in these different districts, to vote for these candidates for NH State Senate...

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