Bob Clegg: Prime Sponsor of Bill Authorizing Governor's Shutdown and Rule Over NH Citizens - Granite Grok

Bob Clegg: Prime Sponsor of Bill Authorizing Governor’s Shutdown and Rule Over NH Citizens

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Bob Clegg was the prime sponsor of 2002’s HB 1461, which created RSA 4:45 and “granted” the Governor additional emergency powers” and authority to indefinitely suspend the New Hampshire Constitution.

We’ve had six months of lockdown so far, and despite the catastrophic effects, Executive Council candidate Clegg neither regrets nor apologizes for introducing and promoting an unconstitutional law.

Clegg claims he pushed through an amendment to his bill to “grant” to the Legislature power to reclaim its own authority. That is completely backward, because the Legislature can always assert its Constitutionally granted authority. The amendment was a “no-effect” one designed to convince wavering legislators to vote for the underlying monstrosity, which Democrat Governor Shaheen signed into law. We would not be in the Constitutional crisis we are in today without Clegg’s bill.

At the time, Constitutional conservatives opposed the bill, including the House Republican Alliance. They argued that the Legislature did not have the authority to delegate away its power without a Constitutional amendment, which requires a 2/3 vote of the people. The New Hampshire Constitution does not allow the Legislature to abrogate the provision for separation of powers. Clegg’s bill was an unconstitutional grant of power to the Executive and an abandonment of responsibility by the Legislature which passed it.

The law has enabled Governor Sununu to act like a despot. Conservatives foresaw the danger to our liberty, but Clegg, and the others who voted for the bill, failed to heed their warning.

Using a fake pandemic as his excuse, Sununu has shut down “non-essential” businesses, destroying jobs and our economy. He refuses to end his emergency “for another six months at least,” despite the fact that there are only eight Covid patients in hospitals statewide and zero Covid patients in ICUs. New Hampshire could have survived the virus without shutting down and destroying our economy. South Dakota did. Sweden did. Without Clegg’s bill, New Hampshire could have done so too.

Constitutionally, New Hampshire’s Governor is the weakest in the country. But, with the authoritarian powers “granted” by RSA 4:45, New Hampshire’s Governor has become one of the strongest, operating with effectively unchecked power.

Sununu recently authorized searches of private property without a warrant to investigate suspected violations of his 65 Emergency Orders. Searches “to investigate, including inspecting sites on public and private property without the consent of the owners” are now allowed under Emergency Order #65 in violation of the NH Constitution – Bill of Rights, Pt. 1, Art. 19 Searches and Seizures Regulated. Our Constitution and Bill of Rights are under siege. When one person is able to create and enforce law as he pleases, we can call that person a dictator. “Benevolent,” some might say, but a dictator nonetheless.

We are living through a Constitutional crisis. The September 8th Primary elections will determine the outcome.

  • Bob Clegg is running against Dave Wheeler for Executive Council in District 5.
  • Chris Sununu is running against Karen Testerman for Governor.

We must elect candidates who promise to uphold the Constitution and Individual Rights. Dave Wheeler and Karen Testerman have made that promise. Please vote wisely on September 8th.  Share this with your friends.

 


The House Roll Call vote from 2002 on HB 1461:

238  House members voted in support: 143 republicans, 92 democrats and 1 independent supported this bill.  112 voted in opposition: 75 republicans, 35 democrats, and 1 independent.

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