Mr Sylvia said, “The Senate is a place where good House bills go to die.” GM Hopf said, “Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And, weak men create hard times.” A Granite Stater in a red community said, “Sadly, Republicans have been their own worst enemy this term.”
The latter was in response to my article on Regina sabotaging the progress of HB361 (prohibiting mandatory mask policies in schools). I’m sure the Hopf quote predates the Sylvia quote, but there was a Nurse Terese comment after the Sylvia quote that was before the Rs were called their own worst enemy. It was about what a waste of an opportunity we have. We know it’s going on in DC and hardly anyone in our red trifecta will admit it’s also happening in Concord.
Sure, banning sanctuary cities is a good thing, though I just glossed over a piece by our Editor in Chief that appears to legitimately rain on that parade. School choice is also good, but I am not unconditionally 100% on board with EFAs for everyone because many of the zealous Rs have avoided discussing important, detailed matters that the Underwoods and Doris have sounded the alarm on.
Then there’s all this housing bill madness. There needs to be more thoughtful discussion about the unintended consequences of some subsets of the 100-plus bills out there. And the “gorilla in the room” is being mostly ignored. Why not start now by getting rid of everyone who should NOT be here? No, I’m not talking about someone who paints their house a color you despise or wants the wrong topping on the office pizza. I’m talking about people who have illegally entered this country and are physically occupying dwellings that would otherwise be available to Granite Staters. Then we can watch for a supply-to-demand ratio correction. Terese has made a few tweets about things that could be accomplished together with a red House, Senate, and Corner Office. Everyone has their own wish list and in their own hierarchy, but I’ll offer a vague one of my own and in no particular order:
- Cut and/or defund stuff.
- Ban masks, vax, and any other government overreach policies. (HB361, for example)
- Abolish the sticker tax. (HB649)
- Audit all the state bureaucracies. (SB193, for example)
- Audit Gunstock.
- Reform DSS, the family court, the youth center, and other parts of the Foster system.
- Reform the regular court and impeach dirty judges.
- Investigate and audit Nashua.
- Reform the attorney general’s office.
- Reform election security practices.
- Repeal the RTK tax
But here’s the thing about the Rs being their own worst enemy. In addition to “not Massing up NH,” Kelly Ayotte campaigned on “following the Sununu path.” Part of what built the Damn Emperor’s popularity was his veto pen. We had the Legislature from Hell between the elections of 2018 and 2020. Never forget what Shurtleff’s House and Donna Soucy’s Senate tried to defile NH with: an income tax, a boat tax, a ski lift ticket tax, to name a few. His Excellency presented himself as a hero, and I surmise that Kelly Ayotte secretly wants that same opportunity. Let’s see what she does with some of the bills she has ignored or avoided discussing. Much of the senate, including Queen Sharon and Regina, supported Chuck Morse. Will those two most powerful senators become Kelly Ayotte’s water carriers and do her bidding(kill HB 361 and 649) so she won’t have to do it herself?
I can’t be the only one who does NOT want a “Legislature from Hell 2.0” elected next year. When is our current one going to shape up to avoid having to ship out?
