The governor’s inauguration is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 7, on the State House Lawn. Join us and several other groups as we circle the State House sidewalks to air our dissatisfaction.
Please Submit Group Email communications or Press Releases for consideration to steve@granitegrok.com or skip@granitegrok.com. Submission is not a guarantee of publication.
The governor has engaged in a maddening 10-month State of Emergency based on the claims of a handful of politically motivated public health officials, wholly exaggerating the threat of a virus to claim unprecedented executive powers, and he just won’t let go. Frankly, the new Legislature has shown that it is also caught up in this fear also, and from behind the scenes it seems like the Republican majority thinks it’s wrong to oppose a governor in the same party, especially due to his “popularity.”
It doesn’t matter how popular you perceive that the governor may be, or what party you’re in, we have a separation of powers in New Hampshire, and according to the rule of law, the Legislature is the proper body to be managing policy at all times, especially during a state of emergency. The governor does not have the powers he has claimed and he needs to be stopped from his extreme abuse of authority. The State of Emergency needs to end NOW!
That’s where you come in. ReopenNH is taking part in a multi-group effort to protest the governor at his inauguration, which starts at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 7, on the State House lawn. Be there a little early, bring your pots and pans, megaphones, and protest signs, and be ready to march around to let him know how displeased you are with his usurpation of powers. Please make as much noise as you possibly can to make sure he knows how displeased you are.
Please note: the governor may change the location of his inauguration, or he may choose to do a “virtual inauguration” instead. If that happens, we will update you with our contingency plan. Please look for our next email prior to making plans for next Thursday.
In the meantime, the Legislature needs to hear from you! Please write your representatives and senator and tell them you support ending the State of Emergency to stop the governor from violating the law and the Constitution. There is no emergency that lasts 10 months and no reason whatsoever that the governor can not lay down his crown and submit to the Legislature we elected to write policy that will help protect and rebuild New Hampshire. This surreal era of one-man rule in the Granite State must come to an end.
If you’d prefer to give the governor the benefit of the doubt; that he is simply being misled by bad advisors and is so stubborn that he won’t listen to opinions outside of those that allow him to persist in his power, so be it. But even in that scenario, he has abused his authority and persisted in a state of lawlessness, and he’s done it without a scientific basis, despite his claim to the contrary. Please use your own thoughts and words when you write to the Legislature.
You can find your representatives on this page:
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/members/default.aspx
You can find your senator on this page:
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/Senate/members/senate_roster.aspx
The House and Senate will meet next on Jan. 6, and we expect the Legislature to make a move to reign in the governor on that date. If they do not, the pressure toward them will need to be turned up a notch. In the meantime, we would urge all of our endorsed representatives to urge the House Speaker and Senate President to boldly stand up to the governor.
