May 2013
50 posts
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Neo-Nazi defends Kelly Ayotte in inflammatory...
The heated rhetoric surrounding Sen. Kelly Ayotte’s vote against expanding gun background checks reached a new low today in a letter to the editor of the Concord Monitor.
Pembroke’s Allison Caldwell, a self-described neo-Nazi, condemned gun safety proponents for invoking the memory of children killed in Newtown by comparing it to a dog rolling around on a dead animal:
Imagine taking...
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Are N.H. lawmakers the 'dunciest in the land?'
The Gem State has its share of “cretins and cretinesses,” writes Boise Weekly’s Bill Cope.
Case in point, he says, is the state senator “who ensured Idaho a spot on the dumbass map by authoring a bill that would have made Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand’s sloppy paean to the glories of not giving a crap about one another, required reading in Idaho schools.”
But Cope...
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New ad: Ayotte's vote makes N.H. less safe
Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the national coalition of mayors working to reduce gun violence, began running a new television ad today targeting Sen. Kelly Ayotte.
The ad criticizes New Hampshire’s junior senator for claiming she supports background checks — but voting against the bipartisan Manchin-Toomey background check bill. “And that makes New Hampshire less safe,” warns...
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Gary Patton: Senate Democrats join chorus 'moving...
Thursday, the state Senate will vote on House Bill 135, which would repeal New Hampshire’s “Stand Your Ground” self-defense law.
The bill is almost certain to be defeated. Three Democratic senators, Andrew Hosmer (D-Laconia), Bette Lasky (D-Nashua) and Jeff Woodburn (D-Dalton), have signaled their intent to join the Republican majority and vote against repeal.
Writing on Blue...
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Constituent responds to Rep. Tasker: 'I am...
Yesterday, we reported on a Facebook comment from state House Rep. Kyle Tasker (R-Nottingham) directed at gun safety proponents: ”Just the thought of guns makes them piss themselves unless its arming the police to further crush their spirit,” he wrote.
After reading Tasker’s remarks, Nottingham’s Karen Davidson fired off an email to her representative:
Dear...
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Retired deputy police chief rejects Ayotte's...
Len DiSesa is a retired deputy police chief and a gun owner who “believes strongly” in the 2nd Amendment. In a letter to the editor of the Portsmouth Herald, he rejects Sen. Kelly Ayotte’s argument for voting against expanded gun background checks.
“I think Sen. Ayotte is looking to the next election and is pandering to the right wing extremist base of her party,” he...
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More constitutional illiteracy from Rep. John...
Last month, state House Rep. John Hikel (R-Goffstown) filed a House petition and criminal complaint to have 189 fellow lawmakers removed from office and prosecuted for voting to repeal the state’s “stand your ground” law.
Former state Supreme Court Justice Chuck Douglas condemned the action. “Pulling bits and pieces out of the constitution to create criminal charges...
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Quote of the day: The thought of guns
Just the thought of guns makes them piss themselves unless its arming the police to further crush their spirit.
— State House Rep. Kyle Tasker (R-Nottingham) on proponents of gun safety legislation
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Union Leader: Don't confuse me with the facts
In an editorial defending the vote by Sen. Kelly Ayotte against expanding background checks for gun purchasers, the Union Leader claims the “great majority” of Granite Staters support her position:
A single poll’s number showing general support for unspecified “stronger” background checks does not mean that most constituents disagree with Sen. Ayotte’s...
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Bill O'Brien launches congressional campaign by...
In a statement released by the O’Brien for Congress campaign, former state House Speaker Bill O’Brien blasted Congresswoman Ann Kuster for not voting to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
“If fully implemented, Obamacare will hijack and wreck not only the finances of the federal government, but also our state’s finances,” he wrote. O’Brien also took the opportunity to trash...
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Where's the apology from Kelly Ayotte?
When Republicans mugged U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice over her initial explanation of the attack in Benghazi, Sen. Kelly Ayotte was the lead assailant. “I have to tell you with the comments she made on those Sunday shows — that was either incompetence or blatantly misleading the American people,” she told Fox News.
Now we know Rice played no role in crafting the Benghazi talking points and...
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Those zany Free Staters: State House 'performance...
Susan Bruce and Ben Leubsdorf have reported on how the Senate Finance Committee got punk’d by mock testimony that has Free Stater fingerprints all over it.
The bogus testimony came from men identifying themselves as “Adam Sutler” (a character in V for Vendetta) and “Edgar Friendly” (the name of Denis Leary’s character in Demolition Man). The text of their speeches...
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Lawrence O'Donnell: The NRA helps Ayotte obscure...
The Last Word’s Lawrence O’Donnell explains the “standard Washington trick” that Sen. Kelly Ayotte is using — with an assist from the NRA — to obscure her unpopular vote against expanding gun background checks:
The National Rifle Association’s defense of Kelly Ayotte’s vote against background checks was to say she actually voted for background...
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Dean Barker: Rubio takes a bullet for Ayotte
Sen. Kelly Ayotte’s vote opposing gun safety legislation did “irreparable harm” to her chances for re-election, writes Dean Barker. In rushing to her defense, Barker adds, Sen. Marco Rubio hurt his chances with the undeclared voters who are key to wining the New Hampshire primary:
When [Ayotte] sided with the NRA and not with 91% of the state over background checks, with the...
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Are you seeing double?
h/t: Demand Action to End Gun Violence
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Which side are you on Kelly? Which side are you...
As I noted earlier, Greg Sargent has written senators who voted against the Manchin-Toomey background check bill “recognize that support for improving background checks is the politically necessary position to take.” They are now staking out positions to that effect — rather than saying, for example, “I will never apologize for defending the Second Amendment, and you...
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Dave Weigel: 'They need to pretent that Ayotte...
After seeing the new ad from Marco Rubio’s Reclaim America PAC, Slate’s Dave Weigel draws the same conclusion that Greg Sargent did today: Republicans “need to pretend that Ayotte really did support a background checks bill:”
Conservatives are admitting, with their ad dollars, that the throttling of Manchin-Toomey really did hurt a few Republicans. Ayotte isn’t even up...
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Sargent: Ayotte, staunch advocate for gun safety?...
Washington Post’s Greg Sargent notes campaigns by groups supporting Sen. Kelly Ayotte, including the NRA and Marco Rubio’s Reclaim America PAC, emphasize her supposed support for gun background checks. “That seems like a pretty good sign of which way the political winds are blowing on the issue,” he concludes:
It’s true that Ayotte did vote for an alternative proposal,...
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Quote of the day: I'm under attack
I’m under attack for standing up for the U.S. Constitution by voting against flawed legislation that would have compromised our 2nd Amendment rights while doing nothing to prevent horrific tragedies such as Newtown. I won’t back down.
— Sen. Kelly Ayotte, in a fundraising email to supporters
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Concord Monitor: Ayotte misdirection not working
Faced with a barrage of criticism over her vote not to close loopholes in gun background check legislation, Sen. Kelly Ayotte disingenuously proclaimed, “I support effective background checks.”
“Magicians rely on misdirection to fool audiences and pull off their tricks. So do politicians…” write the editors of the Concord Monitor. “What is surprising is how...
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'It is relatively common for [lawmakers] to drop...
The family of a Vermont man who was killed when a gun he accidentally dropped fired is suing gun manufacturers. In an interview with the Valley News, the family’s attorney pointed to the example of New Hampshire state House Rep. Kyle Tasker (and others) as an example of how common it is for people to drop guns:
In an interview, Ed Van Dorn, the Davis family’s attorney, said that Davis is...
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Video: NEC student protests selection of Sen....
Erin Faith Page, a 24-year-old self-identified lesbian, will be the student commencement speaker next week at New England College. She made this video to protest the selection of Sen. Kelly Ayotte to give the keynote address at the graduation ceremony:
Sen. Kelly Ayotte is an avid anti-gay marriage, anti-same sex adoption and anti-choice senator. She is one of the leading voices asking for...
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Rendell: Kelly Ayotte is 'either a dumbbell or a...
Sen. Kelly Ayotte is either “a dumbbell or a liar,” says former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell. On Philadelphia talk radio today, Rendell ridiculed Ayotte for saying she voted against gun background check legislation because it would have created a federal registry. Rendell told host Dom Giordano that either Ayotte “didn’t read the bill or she’s outright lying:”
The bill...
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Quote of the day: Pro-gun control groups are...
The fight over gun restrictions has moved from Capitol Hill to New Hampshire, and when it comes to spending, the pro-gun control groups are winning.
— Rachel Weiner, Washington Post
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Kelly Ayotte's 'bizarre logic'
In a letter to the editor of the Portsmouth Herald, Walter Hamilton questions Kelly Ayotte’s bizarre logic:
At one of Sen. Kelly Ayotte’s town meetings last week, she told the audience she voted against the Manchin-Toomey gun background check bill because she feared it would lead to gun registration. The Manchin-Toomey bill specifically outlawed gun registration. Sen. Ayotte voted...
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Newtown, CT gun lobby stands with Kelly Ayotte
The headquarters for the second most powerful gun lobby in the country is just across the highway from Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. The National Shooting Sports Foundation has turned its attention to the Granite State this week. The premiere industry association for gun retailers is running radio ads supporting Sen. Kelly Ayotte for her vote opposing expanded background...
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Rep. Jeanine Notter: Connecting the dots
#NH Rep Notter - no need for family planning care. Says she’s used natural methods for 22 years and only had 1 “surprise”. #nhpolitics— NARAL Pro-Choice NH (@NARALNH) May 8, 2013
Yikes! #NHHouse Rep Notter states during session that she has a shrine to Robert E. Lee.— GraniteStateProgress (@ProgressNH) May 8, 2013
A shrine to Robert E. Lee? No wonder Jeanine Notter...
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2016 watch: Marco Rubio passes the hat for Ayotte
Jockeying for position in the 2016 New Hampshire primary is underway. Today, Florida senator and likely 2016 presidential candidate Marco Rubio signaled his interest by passing the hat for the Granite State’s beleaguered junior senator, Kelly Ayotte.
Ayotte, who opposed expanded background checks for gun purchasers, “is facing an onslaught from anti-gun special interest groups,”...
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House passes family planning bill despite GOP...
The New Hampshire House today passed Senate Bill 194, which expands Medicaid eligibility for family planning services.
After sailing through the Senate in a voice vote, the bill was approved by the House with a 212-120 margin. Democrats voted in favor 184-2, with Free Stater Reps. Michael Garcia (D-Nashua) and Joel Winters (D-Manchester) being the only nay votes. 28 Republicans crossed the aisle...
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NRA fires back: We stand with Kelly Ayotte
The National Rifle Association fired back today at those criticizing Sen. Kelly Ayotte for her vote against expanded background checks for gun purchasers. The gun lobbyists began running a television ad in the Granite State countering an ad campaign funded by Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
“Stand with Ayotte” parrots Ayotte’s assertion that she supports background checks —...
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Phoenix New Times: Dumber Conspiracy Theory poll
The Phoenix New Times has been keeping an eye on New Hampshire state Rep. Stella Tremblay since she suggested Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s “Cold Case Posse” would be an appropriate “unbiased” group to investigate the government’s involvement in the Boston Marathon bombing. The paper notes Arpaio’s investigators “pretty clearly fabricated...
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Rep. Stella Tremblay: How can a Facebook comment...
Writing on Facebook, state House Rep. Stella Tremblay defended herself from criticism that Democrats will benefit from her incendiary claim that the U.S. government was responsible for the Boston Marathon bombing.
The Auburn Republican said Republicans who have attacked her have abandoned their principles and will be punished at the polls. “It is all about ‘the GOP’ staying in...
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Ayotte knocking on door to Save My Ass Please,...
Our Sen. Kelly Ayotte is “knock-knock-knocking at the door to the Save My Ass, Please Club,” writes Charles P. Pierce:
Ever since she voted to stifle the diluted Manchin-Toomey gun-regulation compromise, Senator Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire has been pretty much the walking definition of the concept of “floundering.” First, she got on the wrong side of one of the family...
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Gun safety ad: That’s not N.H. common sense
Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the national coalition of mayors working to reduce gun violence, today announced a new television ad campaign that targets Sen. Kelly Ayotte. The ad criticizes New Hampshire’s junior senator for her vote against legislation that would have closed background check loopholes that make it easier for criminals to get guns.
The new ad will begin airing in the...
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Quote of the day: Don't you dare Quit!
Rep Stella Tremblay May have Misspoke and words may have been taken out of context .. but consider the political climate these days … Rep Tremblay ..Hang in there and Don’t you dare Quit! let the extremest wacko left Quit first!!!!
— Former state House Rep. Kevin Avard (R-Nashua)
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Did Manuse ghostwrite Tremblay's apology?
We have yet to hear a single New Hampshire politico express support for state House Rep. Stella Tremblay following her comments blaming the U.S. government for the Boston Marathon bombing. Party leaders publicly denounced the Auburn Republican, while her fellow travelers on the far right fringe were largely silent. And then there’s Andrew Manuse.
Two days after Tremblay issued a...
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This week in wingnuts: A posse you can trust
No surprise here. State House Rep. Stella Tremblay takes the top spot in The Daily Beast’s This Week in Wingnuts wrap-up:
New Hampshire: A posse you can trust It seems Stella Tremblay, a Republican State Representative from New Hampshire, is determined to get to what she thinks is the bottom of the Boston Bombings. Earlier this week Tremblay went on a Boston radio station and suggested that the...
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Does Cornerstone stand by 'hero' Stella Tremblay?
After learning of Cornerstone’s deceptive fundraising plea, former New Hampshire Democratic Party chair Kathy Sullivan asked, ”is Cornerstone too busy misleading supporters to disassociate from one of its fave reps, Stella Tremblay?”
It’s a fair question. Cornerstone, which is leading the fight against marriage equality and a woman’s right to...
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Payback: NRA thanks Kelly Ayotte
Retweet this to thank @kellyayotte for standing up to left-wing interest groups & protecting your #2ndAmendment rights.— NRAILA (@NRAILA) April 30, 2013
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Breneman: Ayotte rolls with Ted Nugent wing of GOP
Writing in the Portsmouth Herald, John Breneman says he really want to like Sen. Kelly Ayotte — but first “she’ll have to chose another path than rolling with the Ted Nugent wing of the Republican Party:”
Confronted at a town hall event by a man who said he had read her four-page explanation of the vote and still did not understand, Ayotte said, “In terms of a...
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Cornerstone: There's truth and there's fundraising
Cornerstone Action, which is leading the fight in this state against marriage equality and a woman’s right to choose, declares its mission is to “communicate truth.”
Apparently there’s “truth,” and there’s “traditional fundraising language.”
Ben Leubsdorf reports executive director Ashley Pratte emailed Cornerstone supporters last week...
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Hoyt Hilsman: 'The political suicide of Kelly...
“In a single stroke, [Sen. Kelly Ayotte] committed perhaps the swiftest and most devastating act of political suicide in recent history,” writes former congressional candidate Hoyt Hilsman:
It’s not simply that she voted against background checks for gun purchases — which the overwhelming majority of her constituents support. It’s that she had the temerity to...
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Stella watch
All hell broke loose after our report on Wednesday that state House Rep. Stella Tremblay (R-Auburn) claimed a double-amputee victim of the Boston Marathon bombing “was not in pain.”
New Hampshire Republican Party chair Jennifer Horn, who had quietly tried to silence Tremblay when the story first hit, now cut her loose:
Representative Tremblay’s vile and disgusting comments have...
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Bonus quote of the day: Tea flavored jello
Rep. Edmond Gionet of Lincoln distinguished himself by asking Kelly Ayotte this week if she thought there was going to be a revolution, because of Obama. Ayotte bravely squashed that kind of treasonspeak by responding, “Obviously, I hope not.” A real pillar of tea flavored jello, is our Kelly.
— Susan Bruce
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Quote of the day: Traumatic-amputee cyborgs
So, based on the forensic abilities of Stella Tremblay, who appears to be the bright, aware one in her family, we have moved from the government’s setting off its own bombs to the government’s inventing its own traumatic-amputee cyborgs to lie on the sidewalk. I think it’s time for someone to sneak into Stella’s house late at night and steal all her radios.
—...
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Rep. JR Hoell: Machine guns would reduce gun...
State Rep. JR Hoell (R-Dunbarton) wrote on Facebook that the best way to reduce gun violence is have more people carry concealed guns — and eliminate restrictions on the manufacture and sale of fully automatic firearms:
If back ground checks actually helped prevent murders I would consider them, but they do not. What helps is better firearm training, more people trained, more people...
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Ayotte gun safety vote motivates new activists...
As we noted previously, Sen. Kelly Ayotte’s vote against gun safety legislation has created a natural momentum for political action. For many, it’s their introduction to politics.
In Fitzwilliam today, ABC News senior Washington correspondent Jeff Zeleny interviewed a longtime gun owner who said the Newtown shootings motivated him to take a public stand against Ayotte’s vote:
...
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N.H. GOP chair to Rep. Stella Tremblay: 'I’m not...
Following a series of embarrassing statements from Republican lawmakers, state House Rep. Stella Tremblay reports New Hampshire Republican Party chair Jennifer Horn privately addressed House lawmakers.
“She told us that we were doing great work,” said Tremblay, “but we had to be very, very careful because we’re in the public sight and we really, as legislators, cannot...
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Rep. Stella Tremblay: Boston Marathon bombing...
Days after her bombshell pronouncement that the Boston Marathon bombing was a U.S. government “black ops terrorist attack,” state House Rep. Stella Tremblay appeared on The Pete Santilli Show where she was hailed as an American hero. In this clip, Tremblay describes viewing the bombing video and realizing “there’s something wrong here:”
I went to Infowars and I...
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Jeb Bradley: Gun safety questions 'not productive'
At her town hall meeting in Tilton yesterday, Sen. Kelly Ayotte took a dozen pre-screened questions from constituents — none on gun safety.
State Sen. Jeb Bradley, who screened the the questions, told the Concord Monitor she received many questions on guns, but he chose not to have the Senator address them.
“I felt that she had answered the question on what her position was, and I was...
