Democrats are currently losing both Congressional seats and the coveted open U.S. Senate seat up in November, according to a poll out tonight by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center.
If the election were held today Democratic Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter would lose her seat to all four Republicans polled, including Bob Bestani, who beats her 36 percent to 32 percent.
Read the full postFund-raising trend lines show Bestani now competitive with Guinta
by James Pindell
President Obama’s State of the Union address was familiar to most Americans, repackaging precisely the rhetoric he used during his successful campaign for the presidency. It was completely foreign, however, to the reality of how he, Carol Shea-Porter, and the Democratic Congress have governed during the past year. There is no evidence that any of them have listened to the clear call of the American people to bring about the change we want, rather than the change they have tried to force upon us.
The American people elect a President not to give great speeches or run well managed campaigns, but to provide effective leadership in solving difficult issues of national importance. The sad truth of the first year of his presidency is that President Obama continues to prove masterful at the former, but has been unwilling to focus on the latter.
Read the full postThe Supreme Court today expanded the right of both corporations and unions to directly engage in political speech. While I applaud this decision as an extension of free political expression and a check on self-serving government interference in the political process, I am cognizant of the risks such freedom poses. It is up to the people, not the government, however, to manage those risks.
Read the full postScott Brown was exactly right when he declared, “this is the people’s seat.” The same is true of every single seat in Congress. No candidate for federal legislative office should ever forget that he or she is not going to Washington as a representative of a political party or a group of special interests. Far too often they have, placing personal gain and ambition above helping solve the problems of the constituents they represent.
Read the full postNancy Pelosi and her union allies have purportedly reached a “deal” to soften the concerns of union leaders about the tax to be levied on high value health plans as part of the monstrosity of a health care bill being developed in Congress. The principle behind this deal is this: her political allies are entitled to a sweetheart deal and all other Americans are left to pay the bill.
Read the full postEvery week Political Standing tracks who is up or down in New Hampshire politics. See this week’s list at NHPoliticalReport.com.
Political Standing for Jan. 15, 2010
by James Pindell
UP
Bob Bestani: Bestani faces a.) a bad economy b.) a well known primary opponent with establishment support and c.) another highly credible primary challenger looming yet Bestani exceeded expectations for another fund-raising quarter.
Read the full postNHBR Article
Flotsam and Jetsam
Friday, December 18, 2009
It’s been making the rounds…
• With Rich Ashooh joining the GOP 1st C.D. race, and with Bob Bestani making some inroads, Frank Guinta’s air of inevitability - if it ever existed to begin with - just went poof.
Yesterday Carol Shea Porter and Nancy Pelosi’s House of Representatives voted to increase the United States Debt ceiling by $290 billion to $12.394 trillion. In effect, this action increases their credit card limit for wasteful government spending with the bill to be sent to the American taxpayer.
The United States cannot afford the extreme profligacy of the Democratic Congress which has exacerbated the irresponsible behavior of the Congress in past years. Both parties must work together to restore fiscal responsibility and sobriety to the management of our national finances. What we cannot afford is to balloon our national debt to such a significant level that the world loses faith in our willingness and ability to repay our obligations. If they do, the financial crisis of last September will look like a pleasant day in Prescott Park.
Read the full postLast night President Obama finally gave us his long awaited answer to the question of what we should do about Afghanistan. What the President knows, but did not say, is that the real key to this equation is not Afghanistan but Pakistan. Pakistan is currently the most dangerous country in the world. It is now a highly unstable nuclear power that is rapidly coming apart at the seams. The nightmare scenario is that Pakistan collapses and nuclear weapons get into the hands of Al Qaeda and/or the Taliban.
Chaos in Afghanistan would further destabilize Pakistan. Our presence will help keep Afghanistan together and serves to provide at least a partial buffer against insurgent incursions across Pakistan’s border. It is also prudent for us to be close by in case the situation in Pakistan collapses.
Read the full post