What's Next

Gene was terrible (4.00 / 3)

While Bill O'Brien has without question broke the speakership to an all time low, Gene Chandler is a close second.

The only anti-gay NH law* passed in 25 years was with Speaker Chandler's active support in 2004.

I served under six speakers and Chandler was by far the worst. He paved the way for O'Brien.

*The law made it illegal for ANY entity to recognize any legal same sex relationships for ANY reason - even medical emergencies for tourists!

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.  

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by: Ray Buckley @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 15:58:36 PM UTC

I remember (3.50 / 2)

Some lesbian friends from out of state were visiting, and were very concerned about what would happen in the event of a medical emergency.

Thanks Ray. We can't let NH GOP history be forgotten or rewritten.

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by: susanthe @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 16:58:58 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Nothing surprises me with Bates (0.00 / 0)

We all knew that Bates wasn't going to give up, even after an overwhelming defeat of not only his amendment but the bill itself.  One would hope that his district would see the light and vote for someone else (even another Republican would be better than him!).


"We start working to beat these guys right now." -Jed Bartlet

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by: cblodg @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 17:09:09 PM UTC

The continued spectre... (0.00 / 0)

of Bates and others seeking to repeal, because of their religious convictions is why I continue to think that domestic unions for everyone will eventually be the answer that ends this.  But those who want to spend more years fighting this fight, have at it.

The people deserve better, and like it or not, 40 odd percent of them are unhappy right now, right or wrongly.  Yes, the number is less than before, but I think it's a mistake to think it'll reduce to single digits in the next few years.

BH's token Republican / Libertarian / TeaPartier / Free Stater, courtesy of a Federal Affirmative Action grant.

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by: SethCohn @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 17:12:51 PM UTC

Religious conviction (4.00 / 1)

Bates can keep his religious conviction to himself. Like it or not (clearly not), Bates' religious sentiments don't get to determine the lives of others. If he wants to impose his right-wing religious will on his neighbors, then he's destined for disappointment in the least religious state in the country. The polls make it clear that even religious people in New Hampshire favor marriage equality, or at least do not favor repealing it. I have no sympathy for people like David Bates who hide their bigotry behind a banner of religious conviction and argue that that conviction trumps the rights of others.

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by: FrankLloydMike @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 18:36:24 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

New Hampshire (4.00 / 3)

could be in the midst of a Mad Max post-apocolyptic hellscape and David Bates would still be bringing forward.

Get a life, David. Better yet, read the book you claim to love so much. It's got like eight bazillion clear as day references to helping the poor and caring for the widow and orphan, and only 5 theologically and linguistically shaky references to "homosexuality", and zero references to that adorable gay couple across the street with the cute dog and beautiful garden.  

"We now know that government by organized money is just as dangerous as government by organized mob." - FDR

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by: Granite Gnome @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 17:50:15 PM UTC

Bates Gets A 'Double Down' (4.00 / 1)

Poltical Standing

http://politicalscoop.wmur.com...
DOUBLE DOWN

David Bates - Did House Republican leadership leave Bates high and dry during debate of his gay marriage repeal vote this week? Yes. But fundamentally crafting successful legislation is about finding consensus and Bates did that part last, not first. His bill, and the amendments afterward, were deemed as failure in the vote count.

Consider the stakes here. This issue is basically the only reason Bates is in the House. This version of the bill wasn't even his first time trying. He first did that in 2010. Now if Bates had been successful, it would have been the first time any legislative body reversed itself on the issue. Bates would deserve the credit. He would be a national celebrity in social conservative circles. He would have a national fundraising base if he wanted to mount a conservative challenge to Congressman Charlie Bass. He could have had a lucrative political career working for groups hoping to replicate what he did here.

Bates basically had a year and a half to build a coalition of lawmakers, interest groups, think tanks and conservative legal thinkers, and then craft agreed upon language with 100 co-sponsors and media campaign. He would talk with all these stakeholders weekly to check-in and give direction. He would create a caucus - even if it were just 10 people - who would gladly trade votes on less consequential matters for others to vote later with them on what they believe to be the most fundamental element of human society: traditional marriage. The idea that he told basically no one about his referendum idea until after he announced it in a press conference is backward.

Because of this approach, the House Republican Leadership and sympathetic outside groups faded away, alienating Bates because he chose to basically alienate himself by going it alone and expecting people to follow.

 

note to close readers: this might be sarcastic so think twice before reading to candidates for use in their attacks on each other

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by: JonnyBBad @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 19:31:23 PM UTC

All Good Points... (4.00 / 1)

...and in passing gay marrriage three years ago, we did exactly the opposite.  We built an inclusive, growing coalition, developed strategy and floor plans, and expanded our organization step-by-step.  Plus eventually we had the House and Senate leadership on our side, and the governor.  

I'm hoping that our opponents just will leave New Hampshire people alone and stay out of our lives.  Don't they have better things to do?  

[I'm a former has-been House member and State Senator, but I keep "Rep." on my ID name for easy reference of previous posts.]

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by: Rep. Jim Splaine @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 20:22:52 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I for one agree with you, Jim Splaine (0.00 / 0)

It's time to end the annual Taliban-style terrorism on members of the NH Community to end.  Mr. Bates needs to move-on.  Life is too short to be so obsessed with what others do in a civil society.  Go away, Mr. Bates, and take your Taliban thinking with you.  

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by: mevansnh @ Fri Mar 23, 2012 at 21:12:34 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Who is David Bates? (4.00 / 1)

Your assessment of Rep Bates is correct. He does seem, by any reasonable measure, to be obsessed to the point of derangement on the subject of marriage equality. As I try to learn more about him, every data point appears to underscore that his legislative agenda is not simply limited to the subject of marriage equality.

For those of you who may not have seen or heard the speech he gave at the New England Solemn Assembly (Plymouth, MA) in Sep 2010, I have included a link to the YouTube Video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...

This is a pretty scary guy who appears to see elected office as his best chance of imposing his religious beliefs on others. When one begins with the premise that our country has been overrun and is under the control of "sinners," I would suggest repealing marriage equality is just the tip of his ideological iceberg.

As I noted the other day in a different post, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Corporations Division lists David Bates of 12 Range Road in Windham, NH as President, Treasurer, Secretary and Director of ZION Christian Fellowship, Inc. of 320 Boston Avenue in Medford, MA.

This religious organization was previously known as Hillside Evangelical Church and by a third name as Assembly of God Church of Medford MA. Bates appears of have held (and currently holds) the religious position of "pastor" in these organizations.

What is more than a little discerning, however, given his intense public profile, is the apparent lack of historical and background information about him. While it would not be accurate or fair  to draw a final conclusion about what this means, my professional experience has been that the substantial absence of any biographical, occupational or professional history on an elected  public official is very unusual.

Beyond the fact that he ran for office and was elected, does anyone know who he really is?  

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by: Dave O'Brien @ Sat Mar 24, 2012 at 15:19:03 PM UTC

Here's what little I know (4.00 / 3)

He's a Republican in an overwhelmingly Republican town. While Windham may not be very religious (just guessing based on it being a town in New Hampshire), it is very difficult to know whether a Republican candidate for state representative is a religious conservative, fiscal conservative, Tea Partier, Free Stater, social conservative, a Yankee Republican (becoming exceeding rare these days) or any other brand of right-of-center politician.

New Hampshire's excessively large House is often touted as being more democratic, or at least more representative of the state than any of its counterparts. I think this is patently false. The size of the House means that except for a few cases, no one really knows whom they're voting for. In a town like Windham with several representatives, it's nearly impossible for the average voter to find information on candidates, their policy goals or their personal beliefs.

So what it comes down to is whether there's an R or a D next to their name. In Windham, the R next to David Bates' name is enough to get him elected. While I doubt most of his constituents are proud of his service, or at the very least glad that he has spent so much of his time on this particular issue, in Windham that R may be enough to keep him in office in 2012.

That doesn't tell me much about David Bates, but it tells me a lot about the structure of New Hampshire's legislature.

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by: FrankLloydMike @ Sat Mar 24, 2012 at 17:13:23 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

This strikes me . . . (0.00 / 0)

. . . As a fruitful line of inquiry for the next few months. Bates and his record have gone largely unexamined. Who is he? What's his history? These things matter, especially when you're trying to make everyone in New Hampshire do your bidding.

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by: Hampshire Ite @ Sat Mar 24, 2012 at 20:59:08 PM UTC

[ Parent ]