It’s not too early to start talking about building slates for next year’s primary, no matter what side of any particular issue you are on. I’ll get into issues in a moment, but I want to start by reviewing a few points to build on, especially seeing that the current hot issues involve building. While the mere mentioning of the following people might trigger some readers, I am going to do it anyway, because it’s important.
When General Bolduc and Bruce Fenton were in a 2022 primary, Elliot Axelman wrote an editorial endorsing Bruce Fenton, and the key takeaway was that your vote is “all about YOU.” That being said, someone else’s vote is “all about them.” Your important issues are not necessarily someone else’s important issues, though that “someone else” might still be on your side of an issue. Stay with me here as I move on to the wise salesman’s mantra, “know your customer,” and give a brief personal campaign story.
When I became Alderman Dowd’s opponent, I designed my business card with MY issues. I threw in the Jersey barriers as an afterthought as I was contemplating the design and its visual appeal. I was and still am against the Jersey barriers going from temporary outdoor dining, COVID lunacy, to being a permanent fixture. However, I didn’t think the inner city was a big Ward 2 issue, but learned how wrong I was while out canvassing!
When I handed someone my card and introduced myself as Alderman Dowd’s opponent, I thought they would join me in trashing him about the exploding December 2022 property tax bill, citywide appraisal, and reckless spending, bonus if they wanted to vent about Mask Madness or 91A! I lost count of the number of times that someone looked me in the eye after seeing the “supports a Jersey barrier-free Main Street” bullet point and told me I made the sale. If they wanted to vent to me, I stuck around to be the echo chamber if I thought they were zealous enough about voting (for me) to pitch my candidacy to their neighbors. My point is not new. Political science is like marksmanship; you identify your target. The target is THIS election cycle’s issues.
Let me be clear that I am not discounting the importance of “getting it right” in dealing with these housing issues. What I mean by that is not to do anything in haste that could result in disastrous long-term consequences. Yeah, one could say “it’s just a parking space” regarding SB 284, just like a parent could say “it’s just 10 minutes” the first time the kid is left home alone. Or I could say “it’s just 200 calories,” or 300 or 500, as I’m keenly aware that I often outweigh the person next to me. Why am I drifting off from talking about knowing your customer to pieces of a jigsaw puzzle? We’ll get to that.
As previous flagship issues take a back seat to current issues, it doesn’t mean reform has happened. There’s still work to do. HB 361 is the 3rd time around for the school mask bill, for example. Look at all the vax bills and the ivermectin bill that Adam Sexton and his ilk are mocking. My message to readers is not to get distracted by all this housing stuff, as important as it is, but start paying attention, or paying more attention, to how your elected officials are voting. If your favorite issues are not presently #1 in public interest, you can still tie them together with current hot issues. I will offer a few examples in districts that I don’t vote in.
The senior Rep Pearson is an enemy of 91A and just a plain old garden variety piece of excrement. The way he treats people with disdain and disrespect is on full display in the multitude of videos available, but if YOUR hot issue is children and family law, he’s a huge cancer in that committee’s leadership. If YOUR hot issue is housing bills, he was absent for a House session that had a housing bill on the agenda that was removed from the Consent Calendar. No matter whose doorstep you’re standing on in his district, know your customer and play the appropriate card. I’ll give two more examples.
Rindge Rep Hunt “took a walk” when the above-mentioned bill (SB 284) was having its roll call. My hatred for Rep Hunt has to do with him being an enemy of 91A. 91A should be just as crucial in Rindge as in Nashua or elsewhere. Rep Hunt needs a reminder that it was 91A that allowed sinister Agenda 21/2030 efforts by the NRPC to be exposed and eradicated. That’s a long story worth revisiting, if you’re interested, but Rindge is a big, locally controlled community, more so than other towns due to that story. As a Rindge canvasser, which I am not, I would adjust my presentation according to what’s important to that person who answered the door.
My last example is in Deerfield, a town with five reps, 2 of which are shared with Auburn. Again, your issue, dear reader, might not have the same importance to the next person. However, there’s a big toolbox of issues to work with. If you hate pot, remember that Osborne threatened the Senate in front of Adam Sexton over pot bills. If you’re adamant about keeping access to public records unobstructed, remember that Jess Edwards and Kevin Verville voted for the RTK tax. If guns are your issue, remember that Terry Roy is a red flagger and he is STILL the Criminal Justice committee chair. If housing (and how it’s handled) is your hot issue, let it be known that Spillane and Osborne voted for SB 284. Absent from just that particular roll call were Verville and Roy. No matter what side of the housing issues you’re on, taking a walk should be remembered when the rep slate for Deerfield is assembled for next year’s primary. I was later informed that Jess Edwards was in the hospital and the informant demanded that I retract any implication that he played hooky.
If you’re still reading at this point, my conclusion is that removing a rep doesn’t have to be insurmountable, even in these funky districts with shared reps or a large number of reps. Gather their voting records. Identify issues important to you and important to lots of others, even if they’re less important to you than your issues. Pay attention to their votes and their attendance! There are a lot more housing bills in progress and who knows how many will be removed from consent for a discussion? No matter where you live and how much you like your reps, consider enlisting them to remove things from consent and request roll calls. My own rep, Mr McGuire, might appreciate the following comment because he’s a movie buff. Be a laundry and morale officer. Help your fellow Granite Staters remove some duds in the House and start scouting for recruits.
