GOP to Tolerance: Get Out of Our Party

by: Dean Barker

Sun Sep 19, 2010 at 06:14:07 AM EDT

After losing Tuesday's primary, state Rep. Anthony DiFruscia of Windham officially changed his registration from Republican to independent. "It appears as if the Republican Party is imploding," he wrote in an e-mail to legislators.

What happened?

DiFruscia, a moderate, pro-gay marriage Republican who has served in the New Hampshire House for 10 years, was targeted by the right. "I had seven mailers against me," DiFruscia said.

One mailer pictured DiFruscia as a flasher at an elementary school and another made him look like he was presiding over a gay marriage. According to DiFruscia, the senders included libertarian Republican groups in New Hampshire, the National Organization for Marriage in Washington, a right-to-work group, and a group called "New Hampshire Citizens for Truth."

The GOP has no conceivable reference point any longer to the principles of its founding.

Adding: It's clear from the part in bold that while Nancy Eliot may not be running, Nancy Eliot-ism is running the party. Disgraceful.

The NH Death Penalty: A Worthy Discussion

by: Rep. Jim Splaine

Sun Mar 25, 2007 at 09:07:33 AM EDT

AN ACT relative to the death penalty.

SPONSORS: Representative Jim Splaine, Rockingham #16; Representative Gail Morrison, Belknap #2; Representative James Pilliod, Belknap #5; Representative Anthony DiFruscia, Rockingham #4; Representative Paul McEachern, Rockingham #16

COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety

ANALYSIS

This bill removes the death sentence from the capital murder statute and replaces it with life imprisonment, until death, without the possibility of parole.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 Homicide; Capital Murder. Amend RSA 630:1, III to read as follows:

III. A person convicted of a capital murder [words eliminated from current statute:  "may be punished by death"] shall be sentenced to life imprisonment, until death, without the possibility of parole.

2 Repeal. RSA 630:5, relative to procedure in capital murder, is repealed.

3 Applicability. This act shall only apply to those persons charged with capital murder on or after the effective date of this act.

4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2008.

Put very simply, this legislation provides for a death penalty.

It says "A person convicted of a capital murder shall be sentenced to life imprisonment, until death, without the possibility of parole."  While our state has not had an execution since 1939, it remains an option, and should not be part of our New Hampshire society. 

European countries, and many of the nations of this hemisphere, have abolished the death penalty.  Currently we are in league with Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, North Korea, and China with the death penalty.  We should be better than that. 

The House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee held a public hearing on the bill, and the majority are recommending that the bill be defeated, while a minority support passage.  The Committee vote was 10-7.  Here are their reports: