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Really, how do "Reporters" and "Journalist" get away with stuff like this? How does it slip by Editors? (Emphasis mine)
Ray White, the owner of Cornerstone Benefit and Retirement Group, poses for a portrait. Ray is just one of many recently elected Republican state Senators who also owns a small business. Located in Bedford, White manages to balance the stresses of a small business alongside the demands of a Senate seat.
Concord Monitor Photo Caption
Excuse me, but Mr. White has not even been sworn in yet! How the heck can we possibly know if he will be able to balance the stresses of small business alongside the demands of a Senate Seat? It would be one thing to say "Hopes to....", but to talk about it as if it is present day is irresponsible/lazy/bad writing and gives accolades for something that has not yet been earned.
(Please note that Russell Prescott who has also yet to be sworn in, also balances the stresses of owning a small business with the demands of a state Senate seat)
and then there is this from the Fosters Daily Democrat
Banning earmarks has been a longtime goal of Tea Party and conservative Republicans.
How the heck can something be a "long time goal" of an organization that has been around for a year, year-and-a-half tops?
It's going to be a long two years... all of us need to ready to call B.S. when we see it.
What sloppy writing/reporting have you been seeing out there?
No contest in the 2010 New Hampshire primary offers voters a tougher choice than the one between Democrats Katrina Swett and Ann McLane Kuster for the 2nd District congressional nomination. The candidates are both well-qualified and differ little on the issues. The district's voters can't lose, no matter whom they choose. That said, our vote goes to Kuster, whose home-grown support and two decades of work bringing lawmakers from both parties together on issues in a legislature the size of the U.S. House gives her an advantage.
...Kuster, who has received nearly 90 percent of her campaign contributions from New Hampshire sources, has demonstrated that she has the support and confidence of a large number of her district's voters. She's also proven that she has the skills to help do what's sorely needed in Washington: convincing people on all sides to come together, end the gridlock and get the nation moving again.
In the Democratic primary in the 2nd District, Kuster deserves your vote.
It will be interesting to see the endorsements as they roll out at this point. If you see one from your local paper, let us know!
Adding: I find it interesting that Afghanistan played a role in their thinking. More evidence that running to the left of Obama on the war is actually the popular view.
Update by Mike: Today The Keene Sentinel Endorsed Ann McLane Kuster as well.
Still another plus is her lawyer experience in negotiation. She comes across as a tough bargainer who also knows that protracted stalemates don't normally serve the client - in this case, the public - very well.
Shorter Monitor Editorial: Maybe if we twist ourselves in knots, pretend general election matchups don't matter while bashing one of the last credible polling outfits out there, ignore other polls from 2010, from 2008, early NH-Primary 2012 matchups, and even evidence from our own paper, we can convince our readers that Joe McQuaid doesn't deserve time on CNN.
That I would spend a single byte defending Joe McQuaid is a testament to the spectacular fail of that editorial. That, and the fact it's being used as fodder by Conservatives4Palin.
The Monitor is now calling for land conservation. I hope it it not too late!
Forests are being fragmented by roads and lost to development. To save enough to preserve what all residents and visitors love will take what in the short run seems like a sacrifice. In the long run, for the sake of the planet, it is a necessity.
Exhibit A (with my edits in bold and red) of why the magic spell Andy Smith casts over the state media is so corrosive:
Though most voters have not decided whom to support in the fall elections, a new WMUR Granite State poll shows the GOP with a significant lead in all two of the three national races if Kelly Ayotte and Charlie Bass are the GOP nominees.
...Ayotte would beat Hodes today by a 47-32 margin if you forget about undecided voters, and has taken the lead from Hodes among independents. Hodes's popularity is declining, despite having spent $1.3 million campaigning, according to a made up number by the chairman of the opposing political party. According to the poll, Ayotte is "better known than Hodes and better liked."
...All four Republicans - Frank Guinta, Rich Ashooh, Sean Mahoney and Bob Bestani - hold slight leads over Shea-Porter. For Guinta and Mahoney, this represents a significant drop from their numbers against her just two months ago.
...In the 2nd District, the poll shows Republican Charlie Bass easily beating Democrats Katrina Swett and Ann McLane Kuster. However, Bass' favorability plummeted a startling 12 points, while his unfavorability rose.
Republican Jennifer Horn would beat Swett 35-31 percent, and Kuster 33-32.The poll has a margin of error of 4.4 percent for the senate race, and 6.1 percent for the congressional races.
Maybe it's a good thing the Monitor has gone behind a pay "curtain."
Monitor calls on "Tea Party Charlie" to tell the voters whether he truly supports the Tea Party's extremist agenda
Concord -- During his campaign announcement Charlie Bass praised the Tea Party saying he "loves 'em" and that their agenda is "exactly the same as mine."
Oh really?
The Tea Party has an extremist agenda that is out of touch with New Hampshire values. And today the Concord Monitor took "Tea Party Charlie" to task, calling on him to "let the voters know who they will be getting if they vote for him: Is it the Charlie Bass of the Main Street Republicans or Tea Party Charlie?"
The editorial posed a number of important questions including:
* "Does Bass believe, as some Tea Party members do, that global warming is a myth, or worse, a plot?
* "Does Bass really still believe that privatizing Social Security is a good idea?
* "Does he really believe... that the Obama administration is "coddling terrorists"?
Read the full editorial below.
Is Bass truly steeped in Tea Party agenda?
One of the basic rules of Republican politics is "run to the right" in the primary and "move to the middle" for the general election. But Charlie Bass, our Charlie Bass, a tea-partier? You gotta be kidding.
In announcing his run for Congress this month, Bass summed up the Tea Party members like this: "I love them. God bless every single one of them. Their agenda is exactly the same as mine."
It's impossible to characterize Tea Party members accurately, since the ad hoc party has no real platform, at least one all its incarnations agree with. Many of its members appear to believe, however, that the country is going to Hell in a handbasket and some sort of revolution is called for. Does Charlie? Who knows?
Bass was once a moderate Republican in the Walter Peterson, Susan McLane mold, but what is Charlie now? Like Bass, plenty of people in both parties are interested in eliminating wasteful spending and reducing deficits. But does Bass believe, as some Tea Party members do, that global warming is a myth, or worse, a plot? Does he really believe, as he claims on his website, that the Obama administration is "coddling terrorists"? Or, as he claimed in his announcement speech, that the stimulus program - which has helped keep New Hampshire and lots of other states afloat - was a failure?
Does Bass, a onetime head of the moderate Main Street Republicans in Congress - a group that later backed the bailout of Wall Street and big banks - truly believe that cutting taxes is the right response to a deficit caused in good measure by cutting taxes? And after the stock market halved the retirement funds of seniors who panicked and took their money out at or near the bottom, does Bass really still believe that privatizing Social Security is a good idea?
It can't be easy for Bass to move to the right of his primary opponents, radio talk show host Jennifer Horn and former state representative Bob Guida. Both have talked a more conservative game. But that appears to be his plan. If he succeeds, it will take such a long way back to the middle that he'd better pack a lunch.
Bass needs to let voters know who they will be getting if they vote for him: Is it the Charlie Bass of the Main Street Republicans or Tea Party Charlie?
(http://www.concordmonitor.com)
(Posted by Harrell Kirstein, deputy press secretary for the New Hampshire Democratic Party)
Today's Concord Monitor takes Charlie to task for acting like a real Republican, who they say will "run to the right" in the primary and "move to the middle" for the general election.
http://www.concordmonitor.com/...
"But Charlie Bass, our Charlie Bass, a tea-partier? You gotta be kidding."
The Bassmaster's naked cynicism and lack of respect for voters intelligence is incredible, no less so the fact that he thinks anybody will buy it.
It can't be easy for Bass to move to the right of his primary opponents, radio talk show host Jennifer Horn and former state representative Bob Guida. Both have talked a more conservative game. But that appears to be his plan. If he succeeds, it will take such a long way back to the middle that he'd better pack a lunch.
A couple of new polls out this week: NowHamp-shire.com/Populus Research polled 646 likely general election voters, 39 percent registered Republicans and 32 percent registered Democrats. In a generic Republican vs. Democratic matchup for Congress, the Republican won, 56 to 44 percent. Hodes lost to an unnamed Republican, 39 to 54 percent, with 9 percent unsure. The poll didn't match up Hodes with either of his potential Republican rivals, Ayotte or Lamontagne.
Another Populus poll found that 63 percent of likely voters in New Hampshire oppose instituting an income tax to balance the budget.
One caution: Populus Research is run by Steve DeMaura, a former state Republican leader.
Actually, there are several cautions about Populus Research, so many that I am surprised it would even get mentioned in the Monitor.
* Let's start with the one explicitly mentioned by Shira - that Populus is run by Steve DeMaura. I think former NHGOP Executive Director Steve's Twitter page pretty much says it all about Populus Research.And if you need more, a glance at Populus' "In the News" page says more.
* The second one is also mentioned by Shira: with "39 percent registered Republicans and 32 percent registered Democrats," I don't know what state DeMaura is polling, but it sure isn't New Hampshire. More like GOP Wishful Thinking Hampshire. This point alone makes the poll junk.
* Populus relies on automated IRV technology to do their polling. While they certainly aren't the only outfit to do so, it's also the case that the NYT, WaPo, the AP, and ABCNews refuse to report polls conducted with IRV.
* The sample is too small, and there's no description of the demographic or geographic data, or whether they even bothered with those details.
* DeMaura's partisan polls are premiered and pushed by Patrick Hynes' pretend "news" site, NowHampshire. Here is one egregious example of how NowHampshire operates as a disguised GOP spin funnel.
Now, this is the part where Kevin Landrigan or someone will put on the false equivalence hat and say, "Now wait just a minute! Markos Moulitsas, the Great Orange Satan Himself, commissions polls that Mean Liberal Bloggers on the web log Blue New Hampshire put all over their site. So, A-HA!"
Yes. Those would be polls Markos commissions from Research 2000, a reality-based non-partisan polling outfit that always does a superb job with sampling and demographics. So good that the Concord Monitor themselves use them for polling.
Oh, and then there's that BH isn't pretending to be an online news site while it pushes GOP spin. We are honestly partisan here.
It's bad enough that in NH we constantly have to deal with the demographic and sampling issues of UNH, and the opacity of ARG. The last thing this state needs is a Republican partisan polling outfit the purpose of which seems to be to create pro-GOP momentum spin rather than accurately report voter opinion.
And they counter Gregg's own piece in their pages to do so:
Gregg warns that Obama's plan would put government bureaucrats between patients and doctors, but there are bureaucrats there now. They work for companies that profit when they say no. Wendell Potter, a veteran head of corporate communications for Cigna who turned whistleblower, described those bureaucrats this way in one interview: "It doesn't have to be stated directly to them that you will be paid a particular bonus if you deny X number of claims; it's known, and it's part of the culture."
Gregg closed his piece by saying that it's time for Democrats in Congress to listen to the American people. They have been. That's why, despite Republican attempts to demonize health care reform, a meta-study of polls published in the Aug. 12 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine shows that an overwhelming majority of Americans want major change and half to two-thirds of them want that change to include the ability to purchase a public health plan.
Between that and this graph, I'm not sure exactly what we are waiting for. Judd Gregg has one view, and the majority of American people another.
This was reflected on voting day last November, and should thus be reflected in the policy coming from those elected. Elections (even broken ones in 2000) have consequences, as Judd Gregg well knows.
I admire him for putting up as good a fight as he can, I really do, but the show is not worth the price of seeing our broken health insurance system destroy any more families' fortunes. The time for getting this done is now, Senate. Use the reconciliation process, if you must. The same process that Gregg used to give tax breaks to billionaires.
Concord Monitor columnist Ray Duckler has a very good piece in today's edition about the so-called "Town Hall" meetings on health insurance reform. He starts by describing the nature of the outbursts, quotes some New Hampshire stalwarts such as Walter Peterson and Dean Spiliotes, and ends with some inspiring words from Arnie Alpert, of the American Friends Service Committee.
This whole violent reaction to a much needed social program has gotten to me as well. I'm watching the craziness on the teevee and getting angry, until I realize that the teevee is whipping everybody up in a frenzy. It's "exciting" it gives "ratings". Meanwhile, there is no dialog between people as people. Without that, nobody will be convinced of anything. I'm not sure even with it, people will be convinced, but we have to try.
Duckler quotes political analyst Dean Spiliotes on the media's fanning of the flames:
It gives them a different potency than they might have had at some point in the past," Spiliotes said. "You had a couple of initial town hall meetings, a lot of aggressiveness and shouting, and that got replayed on cable news. The ability of these moments to go viral around the country can have a big impact on motivating others to get involved and in giving people a sense of what the tactics are."
This week will be my last at the Monitor and writing Capital Beat. I am shipping off to graduate school at the Fletcher School of Diplomacy at Tufts, where I plan to study Arabic, economics and more.
If you're sad - or glad! - to see me go, or if you just like politics and beer, you're cordially invited to a bipartisan happy hour at the Barley House on Thursday night at 6. You can meet the indomitable Shira Schoenberg, who will be taking over the Capital Beat.
Ms. Dorgan's reporting was voluminous, detailed, unfailingly fair, and - best of all - completely lacking in that off-putting Gatekeeper veneer that characterizes so much political journalism today.
I wish Shira the best, and I look forward to seeing more of her work.
But I'm not going to sugar-coat it. This is a quantifiable loss for political journalism in New Hampshire, a state that, given its engaged citizenry, really lacks comprehensive state house coverage. Lauren Dorgan will be missed.
It's great to see the Monitor endorsing meaningful health care reform, including the addition of a public option.
But I am especially pleased to see them mention what I wish more would - the "pursuit of happiness" aspect of not being shackled to your job to keep you and your family covered:
People trapped in jobs they don't like because a better one may not offer health insurance will get a chance to change. And if health care cost increases are slowed, employers might have the money to hire people and give decent raises again.
Potential entrepreneurs, fearful of leaving jobs that offer health insurance, will get the freedom to engage in the kind of innovation that drives the economy.
There are all sorts of other reasons the system has to change - some more vital to the conecpt of simple medical survival without falling into bankruptcy.
But it boggles the mind that genuine free market conservatives are not jumping up and down demanding health care reform over changing the current employer-based system.
What Next Big Idea will be unleashed from garages and closets and into the forefront of American industry when someone doesn't have to take that cubicle job just to cover her kids?
(And it passed! Will Pater Sununu be crowing about the "Scottish Highlands Agenda" now? - promoted by Dean Barker)
Men in kilts to debate rights of men in skirts (Concord Monitor, Lauren Dorgan):
Today is Tartan Day in the New Hampshire House, the annual holiday when House members of Scottish heritage and sympathies bust out their plaids, and many men sport kilts.
The day begins with a re-vote on the transgender rights bill.
In general it was pleasing to see the Monitor Mike Pride put some pins into John H.'s bubble.
But this part had me laughing:
Democratic Gov. John Lynch is immensely popular. Lynch's veto power, along with his control of his majority in the Senate, tamps down any radical inclinations among Democratic legislators. The reality of life with Democrats in power has thus been far less perilous than Republican cries of wolf portended.
If only Lynch weren't governor, then we radical dirty hippies could enact our true socialist agenda. Or something.
Or else, I've got it wrong and the implication is that not bending knee to The Almighty Pledge is "radical". Because watching my property tax bill go up three times the rate of inflation during a recession and knowing how it will bring out the inevitable merry-go-round of civil war in our communities on town meeting day is a revenue system I should be happy with. Also kind of funny.
It looks like the Smartest Man in the Senate may have just taken a look at the polls, and he's lashing out:
At times during the meeting with Monitor editors, Sununu was confrontational, cutting off several questions and, on follow-up, offering to repeat himself.
And my favorite is the arrogance of telling the Monitor, during an endorsement interview, how they should be doing their business. That can't be good:
In closing, he told Monitor editors that he stands for what he thinks they should stand for. "This is a newspaper that has always claimed to want someone who is willing to stand up on entitlement reform, take the tough votes, engage in the tough debates, whether it's Medicare or Social Security," Sununu said. "I've never hesitated to do that."
In fact, Sununu has been a prominent proponent of creating private accounts within the Social Security system, a plan he says will bring long-term stability and solvency to the system. Shaheen and the Democratic Party say the recent volatility of the stock market demonstrates the risk of his plan.
Sununu questioned Monitor editors about whether they have heard any ideas on shoring up Social Security from Shaheen.
"Here it is. Here it is," Sununu said, holding up his fingers in a zero shape, as he did in a debate last week. "Come on. This newspaper above every other in the state should be holding her accountable for even discussing this issue without offering any ideas or solutions."
I never bought the mild-mannered sweater meme the Sprinter puts on in front of the crowds, anyway. It flies in the face of his "jokes" with friendly audiences.
In her first term, Shea-Porter proved to be a quick study. She hit the ground running. She quickly became known as a friend of veterans and sponsored legislation calling for every state to have at least one full-service veterans hospital, something New Hampshire does not have. She fought to restore habeas corpus protections, to increase federal Pell Grants for needy college students and to allow Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies for lower prescription drug prices.
Like Bradley, Shea-Porter excelled at constituent service and accessibility. She supports an end to President Bush's tax cuts, a change that would benefit the vast majority of the state's residents. She is strong on defense and serves on the House Committee on Armed Services. Her belief in the right of a woman to determine the fate of her own body is in tune with the sentiments of most of the state's residents. Meanwhile, Bradley followed his party, backed President Bush and moved to the right.
There are two reasons behind that exclamation point above. First, it's worth remembering that this is the most competitive federal race in New Hampshire, so every little bit counts.
The second is that there are really only two leading statewide newspapers, and one of them can never be counted on to help a Democrat in any way, shape or form. So in essence there is really only one major newspaper endorsement to snag inside the Granite State, and it's the Monitor.
Happy morning news to put some spring into your step. The following down-ticket numbers from the same Concord Monitor poll released yesterday showing Obama leading McCain 50-43:
Jeanne Shaheen: 50%
John Sununu: 43%
Carol Shea-Porter: 48%
Jeb Bradley: 43%
Paul Hodes: 49%
Jennifer Horn: 43% 35% (see chart in link)
First, while the sample demographics are fantastic (vide the POTUS diary), it's important to remember for the House races that the margin of error is 6% due to the smaller sample sizes for the districts polled (presumably 300 each).
That said, and while these numbers make me want to do a happy dance, some things stand out when compared to the previous R2K:
* Shaheen has flatlined at 50, while Sununu inched up 2 points. Could be statistical noise, or it could be the relentless assault of misleading, negative TV ads against her. This is the downside of having a nominee with tremendous name recognition from significant earlier office (the advantages of the same name rec have been patent for some time now). Still, it must be emphasized, Shaheen's position fourteen days away from voting is an incredibly enviable one for any challenger to be in against an incumbent.
* Horn is doing much better than she should. She's not going to win this, but it might be time for Hodes to stay less above the fray and go directly after Jennifer S. Horn-Palin's radical right-wing agenda and utter lack of qualifications.
* Carol Shea-Porter has picked up a full four points in since the last poll. Huzzah! Momentum is on her side, as is the electorate remembering what a dishonest boor Bush League Bradley is.
* Lynch will win by landslide proportions. As for Kenney's 34%, it is a truism of politics that you can always find 1 out of 3 people to join your cause (though Bush's recent approvals are really testing that theorem). This is the GOP coming home to a candidate whose name they are just learning now.
* Those favorability ratings for Obama and McCain are really shocking - though they shouldn't be, given how McCain has conducted his reckless, dishonorable campaign. Where did the Maverick who won the Granite State's heart in 2000 go?
Some key quotes from the Obama-McCain poll. As we predicted over and over again on BH, Palin is a huge drag on the indy vote:
Retired housewife Lois Alenson of Concord, walking through Eagle Square downtown yesterday, said she used to like McCain. "Well, so far as Republicans go, I thought he was okay. I liked him. I've changed my opinion now," said Alenson, a 76-year-old Democrat who said she will vote for Obama. "I couldn't today say I would trust his judgment."
Alenson said she finds it "horrifying" to think of McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, being a "heartbeat away" from the presidency. "They say people like this Palin because they say she's just like me," Alenson said. "I wouldn't want anybody just like me running the government."
Alenson isn't alone. Asked in the Monitor poll whether Palin's selection made them more or less likely to vote for McCain, 18 percent said they were more likely and 31 percent said they were less likely. Among independents, 13 percent said they were more likely and 37 percent said they were less likely.
And the cherry on top: voters by double-digit margins in New Hampshire find Obama "more honest and trustworthy and that he had a better understanding of the nation's problems."
So take a deep breath, and smile. BUT: this is no time to get complacent. Press these advantages any way you can for the next two weeks. Donate, do visibility, canvass, phonebank, write LTEs, talk to your undecided friends. It's crunch time.
The Concord Monitor released the latest Research 2000 statewide poll today, showing Obama broadening his lead to 50-43 among likely voters. That's up from the last showing of 48-44. Here's the part that has me really encouraged:
Among those expressing a preference for president, 92 percent said their choice was a firm one, up from 87 percent a month ago. Obama, in particular, seems to have closed the deal with a few more voters: In September, 19 percent of Obama voters said they could still change their mind. In the new poll, that number was 10 percent.
The numbers are hardening as we reach the finish line, and truly undecided voters are becoming more and more scarce.
If you believe, as I do, Dante's projected 2008 PVI for NH at D+2 or +3, that means that Obama is overperforming by a full three to four points. Now that's the kind of cushion I would want going into election day - especially as concerns the down-ticket races, regardless of the absence of straight-ticket voting. Can we vote yet?
Here is the sample data: note that the party affiliation percentages are quite accurate:
Total sample size: 600, 10/17-19, (MoE +/- 4.0)
Men 287 (48%)
Women 313 (52%)
Democrats 187 (31%)
Republicans 178 (30%)
Independents/Other 235 (39%)
District 1 300 interviews
District 2 300 interviews
"Quotas were assigned to reflect the voter registration of distribution by county."
That's a really well-done sample, imho.
Tomorrow we should see the Senate and Congressional races, though I would caution in the latter that, with only 300 sampled apiece for CDs 1 and 2 (presumably), the MoE will be accordingly higher.
Shorter Monitor Editorial: When Very Serious Rich People tell us to give away even more oversight to the Executive Branch along with out tax money, the rest of us should do as we're told.
Look, good people disagree on the bailout bill, and I'm fonder of Buffet than I am of other Very Serious Rich People, but the days of suppressing my concerns because of experts are over.
