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New Hampshire House Speaker Kevin Smith

by: Dean Barker

Mon Mar 14, 2011 at 05:34:57 AM EDT
( - promoted by William Tucker)

This is stunning on the one hand, though on the other it confirms what we have all suspected to be true:
O'Brien lobbied last week to save from certain doom a bill that barred state funding for Planned Parenthood and any other abortion provider.

Health and Human Services Committee clerk Rep. Susan Emerson, R-Rindge, steamed, "I really resent being pressured like that" when she emerged from the GOP mini-caucus with O'Brien.

She complained later that a bipartisan subcommittee from both sides of the abortion argument met for hours before voting, 8-0, to kill the bill, HB 228. They worried about the effect it would have on 26 hospitals and 24 health clinics across the state, as well health insurers, Emerson said.

"I've been here 10 years, and I have never had a speaker call us in and tell us he wanted a bill passed," Emerson said. "He told us he did not want that bill killed because Cornerstone wanted it passed."

Stunning.  The General Court no longer works for the people of New Hampshire, but for a right-wing social issue group that gets its money from goodness knows where and is allied with the National Organization for Marriage, a known anti-gay group.

What do we learn from Tom Fahey's incredible vignette?

1) It doesn't matter for whom you voted in November, if you voted for a Republican; House Speaker Bill O'Brien gets them to vote however he wants, or, I should say, however Kevin Smith wants.

2) O'Brien is disliked enough by House GOPers to go on record trashing him - to the Union Leader!

3) O'Brien's and Bettencourt's full court damage control insistence that the recent crazy emanating from Concord has nothing to do with their real focus on jobs and the economy is a total con job.  Bill O'Brien is in fact micro-managing these social issue bills for his apparent boss, Kevin Smith.

When you combine this with Rep. Foose's revelation that John Stephen is the puppetmaster behind the preliminary budget, you have to wonder who is really in charge that was actually elected?

(birched; on Twitter @deanbarker)
Dean Barker :: New Hampshire House Speaker Kevin Smith
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New Hampshire House Speaker Kevin Smith | 14 comments
Funny coincidence (4.00 / 1)
I was thinking last night that the demise of the Republican leadership here will be facilitated by "regular" GOP members who get fed up with tea party excesses.

And here it is, this morning!  Keep up the good work, Susan Emerson, one of my reps here in Rindge!


""Hope is the dream of a soul awake.""

/French Proverb quotes.


Bullying (4.00 / 3)
I saw this in the linked article.  Besides the blatantly anti-gay agenda, it comes as little surprise that O'Brien et al would take issue with anything attempting to curb bullying:

The state's bullying law, in effect all of nine months now, is poised to be watered down if the House goes with an Education Committee recommendation. It would no longer list the reasons bullying occurs, such as age, sex, race or religion. Conservatives were peeved last year that sexual orientation was included. Their team's in control now, so out comes the list.

[ Parent ]
Also cyber bullying is coming out (4.00 / 3)
Which is crazy in this day and age!  The argument is that it doesn't happen in school!  But it sure can affect how kids do in school, and while they may not tell their parents, teachers, nurses and guidance counselors who are trained to deal with this may very well pick it up and help kids who are being bullied on line and on cell phones.
[ Parent ]
Of course it happens in school, (4.00 / 1)
regardless of any technological safeguards put in place, kids are coming to school every day with smartphones that can access social media and SMS messaging anytime and anyplace. And these cyber-incidents are frequently continued in school, the main social milieu for kids. Anyone who thinks otherwise is completely out of touch.

Nationally-recognized research on this is being done by Elizabeth Englander at MARC.

As I say, bullies are usually against anything that is meant to prevent bullying. Given who's running the show, what else should we expect?

They. Don't. Care.
We do.
Rinse, repeat.

[ Parent ]
There is only one reason bullying occurs. (0.00 / 0)
The perpetrator is an anti-social insecure individual who attacks preemptively to stave off being attacked.  The object of the behavior is insignificant.  
[ Parent ]
Actually, (0.00 / 0)
based on recent research (see linky above) the reasons for kids are a bit different than for adults, and vary by gender. For kids today it often has more to do with gaining social status from "onlookers" who are involved to a lesser extent, and often the bullies already have high social status, unlike the stereotyped sociopathic "dead-end kids" of yesteryear. Or, certain of our current "legislators"...

They. Don't. Care.
We do.
Rinse, repeat.
[ Parent ]
So now we know that my hunch was correct. (4.00 / 1)
Removal of the ENTIRE list had everything to do with one item on the list.

Shameful.

birch paper; on Twitter @deanbarker

[ Parent ]
More than shameful. (4.00 / 4)

It is disgusting.

Have you told a stranger today about Bill O'Brien and his Tea Party agenda? The people of NH deserve to hear about O'Brien  and his majority committed to destroying New Hampshire and remaking it into a armed survivalist preserve.  
[ Parent ]
I hope Tom Fahey has employment options... (4.00 / 2)

He seems to be committing the unforgivable sin of actually reporting the news. UL management is not going to like that.
A friend... (4.00 / 4)
I love Susan Emerson, even though we're different parties. I chaired a subcommittee on her bill for a hearing aid mandate. Now that stands to be repealed along with autism coverage, early childhood intervention, and so forth. She's really heartfelt, and loves to talk. Glad she did!

(john Hunt's bill to repeal all health care mandates is being retained in committee.)

JillSH

Is that good news? (0.00 / 0)
I assume it's better than his bills passing, but does it just mean it will pass at a more "propitious" time?  If the latter, what can we do?
(Beside "disappear" him in his lake?)

Susan is an old style country club Republican who actually believes in "noblesse oblige," which I guess is better than no oblige....

(I like her a lot,too!)

""Hope is the dream of a soul awake.""

/French Proverb quotes.


[ Parent ]
They sure are retaining a record number of bills... (4.00 / 2)
are they turning the NH House into a year round job?  How much will all that mileage cost?

Have you told a stranger today about Bill O'Brien and his Tea Party agenda? The people of NH deserve to hear about O'Brien  and his majority committed to destroying New Hampshire and remaking it into a armed survivalist preserve.  
What do we learn from Tom Fahey's incredible vignette? (4.00 / 3)
I read Tom Fahey's section yesterday.  One thing I learned, or at least inferred, was that the Union Leader, while extremely conservative, does not approve of Speaker O'Brien's type of politicking.
 Tom also implied that there is truth to the rumor that state budget process has turned into a grudge match. No big surprise that this group of house legislators are more capable of passive aggressive play than of simply managing money in a way that assists all NH citizens in a reasonable, fair fashion.

While I am not a fan of many of the Union Leader's extreme views, I have come to appreciate their ability to call foul when its appropriate.  

Did Kevin Smith have his hands in this? (4.00 / 1)
I know they didn't like the bill when it passed while insisting they were trying to protect all, including gay, children.
New Hampshire House Speaker Kevin Smith | 14 comments

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