Not Our Chambers of Commerce!

by: Kathy Sullivan 2

Tue Sep 16, 2008 at 18:02:55 PM EDT
( - promoted by Dean Barker)

As you all know, the United States Chamber of Commerce has been running a nasty attack ad against Gov. Jeanne Shaheen recently, which misrepresented her record.  

Well, the Greater Manchester and Nashua Chambers of Commerce aren't happy about it.  Both chambers have sent out e mails to their members telling them that the US Chamber is not the same as the local chamber. The Union Leader on line quotes from the e mail sent by Robin Comstock to the Manchester Chamber members:

The Manchester chamber, she wrote, is a "non-partisan business advocacy organization" that "serves a very different role and has objectives and strategic goals centered on the needs and interest of the local business community.

"We do not, nor have we ever, endorsed a particular candidate in any political campaign," and, "I do not see that practice changing in the future," Comstock wrote.

Comstock wrote that the Manchester chamber is "not a division, department, or associate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on any level. We are totally independent from them and their program of work; and we are totally removed from their lobbyist and other PAC related efforts."

She said that neither she nor anyone from the chamber office was briefed on the ad "or contributed to its development in any way."

 
Robin's e mail, like the one sent by the Nashua Chamber, states that a number of inquiries had been received in response to the ad. It sounds like the response wasn't, "great job!" but "what the heck is going on?"  I know that when I saw the ad, I e mailed and asked if any of my firm's membership dues wee being used to pay for the ad.

Now, the Manchester Chamber has put up a notice on its web page:  

The Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce is a non-partisan business advocacy organization. The Chamber is not a division, department, or associate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the opinions and views of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are not reflective of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce.
 

In an editorial on Sunday, the Concord Monitor said,

On Thursday, Robin Comstock, president of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce wrote that group's members to disavow any knowledge of the U.S. Chamber's ad and any affiliation with them. Sununu should do the same. When outside groups play loose with the truth on their behalf, candidates should publicly denounce them.

I haven't heard Sununu's denouncement yet, but I am not going to hold my breath. I would have expired years ago waiting for him to denounce Chuck McGee and phone jamming.

One point that I think is important to note here is that it was the calls and e mails from the membership of both the Manchester and the Nashua Chambers that resulted in these statements.  The local chambers of commerce do a lot of good work, and I am happy to see that the business community was as annoyed as the rest of us to see some out of state group coming into our state attacking our US Senate candidate, and using their name to do it.  
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