Really, Joe Sweeney? Executive Director of the NH GOP? (see below)
Yeah, another weaponized phrase called “Period Poverty” was all but sufficient to cancel out the NH Constitution. I know that this is going to echo with someone that will sadly tell me “I told you so.”
But what is it about our elected Representatives that won’t follow our Foundational Law – the NH Constitution.
Especially this Article:
[Art.] 28-a. [Mandated Programs.] The state shall not mandate or assign any new, expanded or modified programs or responsibilities to any political subdivision in such a way as to necessitate additional local expenditures by the political subdivision unless such programs or responsibilities are fully funded by the state or unless such programs or responsibilities are approved for funding by a vote of the local legislative body of the political subdivision.
Translation for the Constitutionally weak-minded: Make no law forcing towns, school districts, et al that causes them to spend their own money on stuff you tell them to. The STATE has the responsibility to pay for these things. Like feminine hygiene products.
Which is exactly what the Legislature did in 2019: “SB142: Legislators & Gov Sununu trashed their oaths to protect the NH Constitution over tampons“. And back on April 9th, given the chance with HB458 to right their wrong, they utterly failed to undo the mandate laid down in SB142 that forced local School Districts to pay for such things instead of the State saying, contra the NH Constitution, if we’re going to mandate those products are in the bathrooms, we’re going to pony up and pay for them. The UL has the sordid tale of our Elected Representatives, once again, holding that:
“Menstrual Products TRUMP EVERYTHING!”
Empashsis mine, reformatted:
In a rare rebuke to New Hampshire House Republican leaders, the rank-and-file voted last week to keep in place a 2019 mandate [SB142 -Skip] that all public schools must equip their bathrooms with female hygiene products. The House Education Committee had narrowly recommended a bill (HB 458) repealing that law, which critics said was an unfunded mandate.
The New Hampshire School Boards Association went on record in favor of the bill; the group contended the state should pay districts to cover these costs.“I never disputed that this was needed,” said Rep. Alicia Lekas, R-Hudson, a bill supporter. “I asked us to figure out how to do this without violating our Constitution.”
And here’s where the “TRUMPS EVERYTHING” bit comes in:
State Rep. Stephen Woodcock, D-Center Conway, said Gov. Chris Sununu signed this law because low-income teen girls were skipping school for up to three days a month because they couldn’t afford to bring tampons to school. “This bill is often referred to as period poverty,” Woodcock said.
No, he signed it because some underaged twit made it a cause celebre and given that elections would be coming up, Sununu decided to paint himself as a savior of the oppressed. But did it on the local School District’s dime(s). Because he could flap his gums and brush his hands and say “My, what a good boy am I!”. Constitution? We don’t need no stinkin’ Constitution
Who knew that the act of signing that bill was a tip-off of how he would disregard his Constitutional limits during the WuFlu. Ditto for both the NH House and NH Senate.
“You may ask yourself? Why would a school do such a thing? Could it be compared to providing toilet paper? Yes, there is no requirement to provide toilet paper, but they do.”
What a Majorly Stupid thing for NH State Rep. Stephen Woodcock (D-Center Conway) to say. Hey, Dumb-Dumb, local communities voluntarily decided to put toilet paper in the schools by putting such funds into a GL account line, bringing it to the local Legislative Body (the local voters), and approving that budget. THIS, on the other hand, was rammed down their throats by such idiots as you. And, apparently, a majority of our Elected Representatives – including Republicans:
A move to pass the bill repealing this law failed, 193-183. The House then voted, 192-184, to table the bill. This was a form of polite death because, after a Friday deadline, it will take a two-thirds vote in the House in the future just to take up the bill.
Why am I not surprised – after all, we have some Reps on record saying that they don’t care about the Constitution:
- NH State Rep. Debra DeSimone (R): “The Constitution is a guideline”
- NH State Rep. Sandra Keans (R, now D): “I don’t try to justify anything by the Constitution, it’s not my job and I don’t want to do it”.
- NH State Rep. Susan Almy (D): “Well, you don’t get to decide what is Constitutional and I don’t get to decide what is Constitutional, the judiciary decides what is Constitutional”.
It’s not like they’re making our laws, right?
Pretty much it was Democrats voting against this but enough Republicans did as well:
- Max Abramson (R-Seabrook)
- Mike Bordes (R-Laconia)
- Karel Crawford (R-Center Harbor)
- Brodie Deschaies (R-Wolfeboro) – whaddya trying to be, the next Jeb Bradley???
- Tom Dolan (R-Londonderry)
- Ted Gorski (R-Bedford)
- Will Infantine (R-Manchester)
- Aboul Kahn (R-Seabrook)
- Ben Kilanski (R-Winchester)
- John Lewicke (R-Mason)
- John MacDonald (R-Wolfeboro Falls)
- Fred Plett (R-Goffstown)
- Jennifer Rhodes (R-Winchester)
- Dennis Thompson (R-Stewartstown)
- Dan Wolf (R-Newbury)
And last but not least, someone that should know WAY better then to cross the “Constitutional line”; from the GOP Platform:
- We believe that the New Hampshire and United States Constitutions were written by our forefathers to limit our government, not our freedom.
- We believe that individual liberty is guaranteed under the Constitutions of the United States and New Hampshire, that the liberty of the people must be protected above the power of the government, and that it is only through an adherence to our founding documents that we will continue to grow as a free, Constitutional Republic.
- We believe that low taxes are the result of low spending; that government has a moral obligation to the people to be as cost effective as possible, to always limit spending and growth of government, and to cut spending and cost of government at every possible turn.
And that would be Joe Sweeney (R-Salem). He’s also the Executive Director of the NH GOP. So he gets two spanks – one as a Rep that ignored Article 28-A in the NH Constitution AND for deliberately ignoring the precepts and philosophy of the Platform of the NH GOP which is ostensibly runs.
Really Joe? You couldn’t set an example by saying “Hey, SB142 was unconstitutional – let’s fix it”. Was that a step too steep, a bridge to far, to actually be a role model for the Party in which you are deeply involved? Did you not consider the optics of such a vote, as a Republican Leader” before you cast it?
Principles, principles, principles – do I really need to ask the question “Now, what message does this send as a high ranking Official to the rest of us? Don’t bother?”
If those that are supposed to be in charge fail to adhere to the strictures they have voluntarily put upon themselves, why should we?
If Reps like Joe Sweeney fail to obey their most fundamental Law created by our Founders, why should we bother to obey the laws made by these lawless Representatives? Or have we really devolved to “Rule by Strong Men” rather than by “The Rule of Law’?
And they wonder why we’re in such a pickle?
I do thank GraniteGrok’s own NH State Rep Judy Aron for being the prime sponsor in an attempt to get NH on the right side of its own Constitution.
(H/T: Union Leader)
