Free Republic

Via Isaac Chotiner, Newsweek reports: The day of the third debate, Palin refused to go onstage with New Hampshire GOP Sen. John Sununu and Jeb Bradley, a New Hampshire congressman running for the Senate, because they were pro-choice and because Bradley opposed drilling in Alaska. The McCain campaign ordered her onstage at the next campaign stop, but she refused to acknowledge the two Republican candidates standing behind her. So according to the hatchet man/woman who talked to Newsweek, Palin is such an ideologue about drilling in ANWR that she won't stand next to Bradley, even though John McCain has the...

New Hampshire’s two freshman congressional incumbents are going back to Washington on their Democratic Party's sweep of major elected offices. U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter held off a late charge from Republican Jeb Bradley, who served the 1st District from 2003 to 2006. U.S. Rep. Paul W. Hodes celebrated a commanding victory over Republican Jennifer M. Horn in the 2nd District. With 11 of 12 wards in Manchester reporting, Shea-Porter led Bradley by 22,751 to 17,297. Hodes won his home city of Concord by a 2-to-1 margin, 13,817 to 6,941. In an election season of attacks and counter-attacks, the incumbents worked...

FOX News is reporting that Republican poll watchers in New Hampshire are being kept 40 feet away from the tables were new voters register. Republicans have filed a lawsuit (to be heard within hours) against the New Hampshire Secretary of State.

OK. What's your take on the famous New Hampshire hamlet? Post your views here.

Has anyone found any links for live video of Sarah in Columbus or McCain In NH? CNN apparently has cleared the way so the Fraud can be shown with the Ass from Asbury Park exclusively.

ABC News Reporter Jake Tapper's Political Punch Blog has a report on Sen. Barack Obama's push-back on John McCain's description of his tax policies, Tapper begins with a quote from Obama in Florida, here is the whole report: "The reason that we want to do this, change our tax code, is not because I have anything against the rich," Obama said in Sarasota, Fla., yesterday. "I love rich people! I want all of you to be rich. Go for it. That's the American dream, that's the American way, that's terrific.

I just returned from a Sununu gathering of "Veterans for Sununu", the alternative is to dreadful to contemplate. John almost lost me when he joined the "Gang of Ten" but he came across very stongly on veterans issues, education, health, and family assitance. When you think of Queen Jean Shaheen being returned to power, I think that John is the way to go. All of the powers that be from the VFW, The Legion, and the DAV's where there. For those of you that recieved the VFW Mag endorsing Carol Che Porter in the NH First District, the State Commander...

John McCain has gained ground for the third straight month and now holds a slight two-point advantage over Barack Obama in the swing state of New Hampshire. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the Granite State finds McCain attracting 49% of the vote while Obama earns 47%. A month ago, it was Obama by a point. At the moment, the presidential race in New Hampshire is a toss-up. Nationally, the race remains close in the Daily Presidential Tracking poll. Seventy-four percent (74%) of Obama voters say they will vote with enthusiasm for their candidate, a feeling shared by 68%...

Customers at Northwood Power Equipment are hoping to get their outdoor wood heaters delivered before a new state law bans the selling of some models starting Jan. 1. "I don't think we're going to be taking orders anymore," said store manager Rick Devoid. "We're getting close to the deadline. Right now, it's a November-December delivery date." A state law passed in July set the Jan. 1 ban for selling outdoor wood-fired hydronic boilers that don't meet federal air pollution standards.

Nearly five years have passed since the Free State Project adopted New Hampshire as its home base and began the task of convincing 20,000 activists to commit to uprooting their lives and moving here. They would come in droves, the plan went, overwhelming the sparsely populated state and ultimately changing the way big government works by limiting its power through free-market solutions. There would be tax reductions; regulations such as being required to have a driver’s license to get behind the wheel of your own car would be relaxed or scrapped; power would be restored to the people and the...

MANCHESTER — - Drivers along I-291 had quite a sight Saturday, as a man wearing nothing but a thong, fake breasts and a wig sauntered along the side of the highway. Police said they received several calls about the man, which prompted an hour-long search. Police said they found the man, fully clothed and collecting cans behind a business on Batson Drive in Manchester. Police said they found a wig and fake breasts in the man's car. David Gebhardt, 42, of Manchester, was charged with disorderly conduct and simple trespass and was released on $2,500 bail.

Thousands of shorefront property owners and builders across the state are on a crash course to understand a new permit system that goes into effect tomorrow. Effective July 1, a state shoreland permit is required for excavation, filling and construction within 250 feet of shore if minimum standards for maintaining the lot's natural state are not met. Those standards are outlined in the new Comprehensive Shoreland Protection Act (RSA 483-B). ...... "It is impossible to figure out unless you are an engineer or a scientist," he said. "My basic thing is that the restrictions are so strict. In my mind...

From the National Republican Senatorial Committee. http://www.nrsc.org/multimedia/details.aspx?ID=81When there's a problem, Jeanne Shaheen goes back to her old standby -- raising taxes. Failed polices and more taxes are not the answer. They're the problem. More at http://www.TheShaheenRecord.com.

Snow Eagle and I, Little Bill, would like all New Hamshire FReepers to FReep our local, 1st District Commissar, Carol Che-Porter, in North Conway on 6/14/2008, over Gas Prices and the Rat refusal to make us Energy Independant. Bring Signs and you to North Conway, vent your dspleasure.

Those pesky Granite State gun owners have damaged the anti-gun spin machine of the Violence Policy Center. In a recent news release, the credibility-challenged VPC proclaimed, "Pro-Gun States Lead the Nation in Per Capita Firearm Death Rates.” ... The VPC dares not look at the bottom seven (7) states instead of the arbitrary five (5). That is because, lo and behold, New Hampshire ranks seventh from the bottom in per-capita gun deaths. New Hampshire is undeniably a strong pro-gun state that greatly respects the individual right to keep and bear arms....The VPC also has to purposely limit their selectively picked...

Sure, it's OK when it's somebody ELSE'S money! I have put this under Culture rather than Plain Politics, because this story from Blue Hampshire shows that there IS a culture chasm between Liberals and Conservatives.  Once in a while, I go and take a look at the "the other side" - in this case, our "opposite number in the blogosphere here in NH - Blue Hampshire.  They had this story and comments - very illustrative of the difference between Liberals and ConservativesConservative believe that adults make decisions for themselves generally knowing what is in store for them - and that...

What happens in a town when the privileged move in Town Meeting and elections have been held here in NH over the last couple of weeks (with more voting in some towns still to come).  I've been helping one group of people, the Moultonboro Citizens Alliance, with their site as they advocate for implementing SB2 style of voting and for keeping taxes lower.Well, while they did not achieve their goal of getting SB2 implemented, they came REAL CLOSE!  And they did defeat a contentious issue of a new edifice in town.During that time, lots of Letters to the Editors were...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MrVup9Dl4U For over twenty years, "Patriot Pastor" Garrett Lear has strode the halls of New Hampshire's legislature...serving as a voice for his faith and his Revolutionary War ancestors. Today he talks with us about Real ID, the liberty deficit among Christians and his colorful outfit. Pastor Lear's church is in Wakefield, New Hampshire. What do *you* think? Is Real ID the Mark of the Beast? A precursor to it? A bad thing? A good thing?

Sponsor: http://NHLiberty.org - Guns are allowed in New Hampshire's state house and most of our government buildings. When State Rep Eleanor Kjellman tries to change that...the local citizen gun lobby overflows her hearing. http://youtube.com/watch?v=GZOQN3HwRC8

PORTSMOUTH — Rochester physician Terry Bennett said he rented a city building to people who worked for Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign — and skipped town without paying the bill. Making matters worse, Bennett said, the 3,000-square-foot building at 236 Union St. was left trashed. Campaign signs were left lying all over the place, he said. "It's a very nice little building, with an 1,800-foot warehouse and the rest can be offices," Bennett said. "There's a full kitchen and bath. They used it as a campaign center and dormitory. I expected them to hand the Realtor a check as they...

What would Shakespeare's Jack Cade say after the New Hampshire Democratic primary? Maybe the demagogue in "Henry VI" would call for the pollsters to be killed first, not the lawyers. The opinion researchers find themselves in a difficult place after most predicted a big Obama sweep. It's not their fault. The dirty secret is it is hard to accurately poll a primary. The unpredictability of who will turn out and what the mix of voters will be makes polling a primary election like reading chicken entrails -- ugly, smelly and not very enlightening. Our media culture endows polls -- especially...

Bill Clinton: Tears won Hillary New Hampshire By Toby Harnden in Manchester, New Hampshire Last Updated: 6:07pm GMT 09/01/2008 Bill Clinton, the former US president, said that his wife Hillary won the New Hampshire primary because "people saw who she was" when she came close to tears after being asked how she kept going on the campaign trail. "She was genuinely moved that in the middle of a political campaign another person would actually express a genuine level of concern for her," he told Telegraph.co.uk after had she eked out a surprise two-point victory. Telegraph TV: Hillary Clinton comes close...

What happened last night in New Hampshire?? How did Hillary win?? Seems to be the questions of the day. Pundits are asking this as they wipe the egg off their faces as the proclaimed Obama victory dissolved. He was supposed to win by double digit margins according to the latest polls. The Obama supporters in the blogsphere are acting like its Ohio 2004, and the vote was "stolen" or "rigged". They haven't blamed it on Bush or Rove yet, but its only 10AM here on the East Coast. The polls themselves indicated a surging Obama in the last couple of...

You know, as Hitlary might say, I don't want to put too fine a point on this but after the elections of 2000 and 2004, we need to look at the media election reports very closely. CNN and all of the other outlets, as far as I've see, declare Hitlary the winner of the NH dim primary 39% - 37% over Operah...but really, was she?

Hillary Clinton won last night by putting together the voting coalition that has held Democratic frontrunners in good stead for 75 years. Take a look at these numbers - all of which come from CNN's cross-tabulated exit polls. What you'll see is that Hillary Clinton won many elements of the traditional FDR coalition. -Self-identified Democrats made up 54% of the electorate. She won them, 45% to 34%. -She won voters without a college degree, 43% to 35%. -She won voters with incomes less than $50,000, 47% to 32%. -She won voters over the age of 65, 48% to 32%. She...

Game's ON... My prediction... Obama in a blowout, McCain by 5.

SALEM, N.H. - Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign stop was interrupted Monday when two men stood in the crowd and began screaming, "Iron my shirt!" during one of her final appearances before the New Hampshire primary. Clinton, a former first lady running to become the nation's first female president, laughed at the seemingly sexist protest that suggested a woman's place is doing the laundry and not running the country. "Ah, the remnants of sexism — alive and well," Clinton said to applause in a school auditorium. The two men were removed from the hall after raising a pair of signs that...

LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xg5qZUTPTKk (or at link, above) Occured this morning. Gets in Chrissy's face (and others'), but in a nice way.The MSM has to wiggle out of this one. For their patent disregard of a GOP Candidate officially with delegates (Wyoming, eastern counties) but denied national TV debate access.

Sunday, Jan 06, 2008 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECONTACT: Kevin Madden (857) 288-6390 The American Spectator's Jennifer Rubin: "Romney was very solid and effective on defending Bush tax cuts." (Jennifer Rubin, "Taxes," The American Spectator's Blog, www.spectator.org, Posted 1/6/08) The New York Times' Michael Cooper: "It was the Republican Debate, Episode II: Mitt Romney Strikes Back." (Michael Cooper, "G.O.P. Rematch: Romney Fires First Round," The New York Times The Caucus, http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com, Posted 1/6/08) - Cooper: "...Mr. Romney came out swinging Sunday night during the opening minutes of a Republican presidential forum that was broadcast on Fox News." (Michael Cooper, "G.O.P. Rematch: Romney...

She too thinks the McCain campaign hit the iceberg last night with the amnesty dodges, and concluded Charlie "Gibson’s superficial knowledge of the immigration issue left him completely unequipped to challenge John McCain’s slippery rhetoric on shamnesty." But the GOP base knows the issue, from A to the Z Visa, so Gibson's indifference doesn't matter. Michelle also wonders: "Can Romney defend himself with more zeal without pulling a McCain and looking churlish? Can Huckabee appear in a forum with McCain without leaving slobber all over the floor?" As I wrote earlier, Romney must not be baited into an angry moment...

I was struck down by the family gastric flu at around 4:00 P.M. in New York. By the time I had hobbled back to my Washington apartment, I was not in the sunniest of moods — but I was in exactly the right mood for the Iowa results, namely a sour determination not to be swept away by a very strongly based mood affecting everyone. Let me resist it: If we stand back, the basic message of the Iowa caucuses seems to be that the race is slightly open on the Democrat side and wide open on the Republican side....

NHK (the main national TV network in Japan which is equivalent to PBS and the major networks rolled into one) just finished earlier this evening re-airing the entire GOP and Democrat Primary debates from New Hampshire. (They have a tie up with ABC-TV). The program was called: 徹底討論　超大国アメリカを��導�「大統領候補者討論会�, or "Debate: How Will The Superpower America Be Led? The Presidential Candidates Debate). The voice over translation into English, was excellent and exact, and the post-commentary in-studio also superb.Host Ms. Reiko Zessho was joined by Professor Toshihiro Nakayama of Tsuda University in Tokyo, an esteemed specialist on American political issues. I...

What About Duncan Hunter? January 4, 2008 The Courant missed a Republican candidate for president during its front-page profile news series ["Defining Moments"] and its editorial series [Dec. 31, Jan. 2, "Countdown To Iowa"]. That candidate is Rep. Duncan Hunter, from the San Diego area of California. Hunter has a solid and consistent record of achievement and service since he was first elected to Congress in 1980. A Vietnam war veteran, his family has a strong military heritage. He is a man of courage and integrity who is willing to tell the truth, even if it isn't politically correct. He's...

NEW YORK The first two poll results based on survey taken in New Hampshire after the Iowa caucuses both show Barack Obama opening up a double digit lead over previous leader Hillary Clinton. The new American Research Group poll gives Obama a 12-point lead over Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire, 38% to 26%, a 16% swing since the previous poll. John Edwards moved up on Clinton, at 20%, gaining 5% from his previous percentage. Most interesting detail deep in the ARG numbers: Hillary actually leads Obama 34% to 32% among confirmed Democrats, while he tops her 49% to 12% among...

The Courant missed a Republican candidate for president during its front-page profile news series ["Defining Moments"] and its editorial series [Dec. 31, Jan. 2, "Countdown To Iowa"]. That candidate is Rep. Duncan Hunter, from the San Diego area of California. Hunter has a solid and consistent record of achievement and service since he was first elected to Congress in 1980. A Vietnam war veteran, his family has a strong military heritage. He is a man of courage and integrity who is willing to tell the truth, even if it isn't politically correct. He's not a fly-by-night, one-issue or offbeat candidate....

If the New Hampshire Democratic Party’s 100 Club dinner is any bell weather – Barack Obama will handily win here. When Obama, the dinner’s last speaker, took the stage the crowd surged forward chanting “O-bam-a” and “Fired Up, Ready to Go!” So many people pressed toward the stage that an announcer asked people to “please take their seats for safety concerns.” By comparison Hillary was twice booed. The first time was when she said she has always and will continue to work for "change for you. The audience, particularly from Obama supporters (they were waving Obama signs) let out a...

Caption this pic of DNC Chairman Howard Dean:

Former Gov. Mitt Romney, coming off a disappointing loss in the Iowa caucuses last night, should be buoyed by the latest Suffolk University poll that shows him retaking the lead in the run-up to Tuesday’s crucial New Hampshire primary. On the Democratic side, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton maintains her front-runner status in the Granite State, with a 12 percent lead over Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, who is coming off a big win in Iowa last night, according to the latest Suffolk University/7News poll released early this morning. The poll shows Romney gained 4 percentage points in the past two...

Remember the push poll around Thanksgiving that "asked" voters in New Hampshire if they had awareness of some aspects of the Mormon religion? Both Mitt Romney and John McCain filed complaints with the state Attorney General for violations of New Hampshire's laws against push-polling. At the time, no one would 'fess up to hiring Western Wats to conduct the attack. Now the AG has found the next-level cutout, and it wants witnesses who can show where it leads: Attorney General Kelly A. Ayotte is requesting the public’s assistance in identifying who employed Moore-Information of Portland, Oregon to conduct a poll...

Click here for video.Click here for transcript

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - Today's snowstorm made this month the snowiest December in New Hampshire in more than a century. The National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, said Concord, where New Hampshire records are kept, beat the previous record of 43 inches of snow in December by an inch and a half. That record was set in 1876. Overall, the storm left 10.1 inches in Concord, and more in other parts of the state.

Beginning the presidential nominating process in Iowa, as will occur this week, "makes no sense," says Gov. Ted Strickland, who recently campaigned there for Sen. Hillary Clinton. "I'd like to see both parties say, 'We're going to bring this to an end,' " he said. It's too late to do that for 2008, though, which is why the candidates and thousands of out-of-state supporters and reporters are trudging through Iowa this week -- and then on to New Hampshire for the run-up to its Jan. 8 primary -- in a quadrennial ritual that many agree is no way to pick...

Wednesday, December 26, 2007 2008 HOMEPAGE CAMPAIGN BOX, MITT ROMNEY, JOHN MCCAINThe New Hampshire Newspaper WarsOne of my guys in New Hampshire went through the list of major newspapers in his state.The Union Leader, in Manchester, is influential in that city and the north country. In the past it has been furiously, wildly conservative, and its editorial page is much milder than the days, of say, Edmund Muskie railing against the paper’s attacks on his wife in the snow.“The editorial page has come mainstream quite a bit,  but everybody in New Hampshire knows it, and they know what they’re getting... That...

"THERE IS A reason Mitt Romney has not received a single newspaper endorsement in New Hampshire. It's the same reason his poll numbers are dropping. He has not been able to convince the people of this state that he's the conservative he says he is. Like a lot of people in New Hampshire, we wanted to believe Romney. We gave him the benefit of the doubt. We listened very carefully to his expertly rehearsed sales pitch. But in the end he didn't close the deal for us. Now, two weeks before the primary, the same is happening with voters.... ...In...

A Boston Globe survey of likely primary voters in New Hampshire taken between December 16 and 20. Sampled were 422 likely Democrat and 410 likely Republican voters. Margin of error: +/- 4.9 percentage points. Numbers may not add to 100 percent due to rounding. SOURCE: University of New Hampshire Survey Center

NH GOP REVEALS DETAILS OF NH DEMS FUNDRAISING SCHEME DEMS HAVE SOLD THE LIST TO COMMERCIAL VENDORS AS WELL AS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS; NH GOP FILES AS INTERVENER IN CASE AND ASKS JUDGE TO ORDER THE MONEY BE RETURNED TO THE TAXPAYERS NH GOP Chairman Fergus Cullen: “The Democrats appear to have orchestrated legislation to funnel more than $400,000 to the party. This list was gathered at taxpayer expense. If the list has a private sector value, the taxpayer should be the beneficiary. Therefore, the New Hampshire Republican Party is calling for the New Hampshire Democratic Party to pay the money back...

In New Hampshire’s Republican Presidential Primary, the latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey shows former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney with 34% support and a nineteen-point lead. Making the most of his home field advantage, Romney has steadily increased his lead from fifteen points earlier in November, nine-points in October and three-points in September. The new primary election poll shows a virtual three-way tie for second place between former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Arizona Senator John McCain at 15% and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee at 14%. For Giuliani and McCain, those figures are a very slight dip...

UPDATE: Quick clarification. I had previously asked my source about the notion that Romney is behind the poll. He said it was “nonsense�. I should clarify that this is his opinion. From my conversations I gather that he does not know exactly who is behind the survey but thinks that a Romney motive is “ridiculous�. Again, he is understandably tight lipped on all this. I don’t know how much he does know.OK, its time to debunk some of the more ridiculous things going around the blogosphere by anti-Romney forces:Claim: Ron Lindorf and his family are the in pocket of...

I received Lit from Paul Hodes, my congressman today. On the inside bottom right corner, there is a picture partially obscured by "a brilliant quote" from Hodes himself. In the picture I can see the feet of 8-9 people that I assume are actually soldiers. The are holding the Flag... Upside down. This is just disgusting. Does anyone know anything about this picture? Wish I could scan this an post it.

BATH, N.H. -- It is the first day for deer hunting season in New Hampshire (for those not using arrows) and Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul marked the day with a stop at a gun store in Whitefield.