We're screwed, and it IS for want of trying.

[rowland]

Seriously, the NHLA is about liberty in NH, last I checked.  How do losses in DC relate to the NHLA?

1. The Feds can march in and take our liberties by force any time they want to, if they can get enough toleration of such arrogance on the part of the nation as a whole. They way things are headed they might just get away with it. Do you really think they wouldn't dare?

2. The anti-Republican sentiment strengthened Democrats on state levels. That's the way people's minds work and it directly affects local elections.

3. The national Democrat organization actively supported local Democrat candidates, practically all of which were anti-liberty. In fact, at Fremont there were carpetbaggers from Tufts that came from as far away as Alaska. They were holding up signs for state Rep and Constitutional Threat Penn Brown. That's the way they do things. And it looks like he won, and we lost B+ rated Ron Nowe.

Does this answer the question?

THIS IS NOT A LOCAL WAR. THIS IS A LOCAL FRONT IN A MUCH LARGER WAR. Some people here just aren't grasping this essential truth. But our opponents get it. And that's why the Dems will still control New Hampshire despite the best efforts of the NHLA and the Reagan Network combined.

Fran Wendelboe said we could see a Republican majority in the NH House after this election. She said they'd gain 80 seats. The Union Leader says they didn't even come close. I can't even interpret the NHLA success rate because the endorsement system makes no sense to me. For example it looks like Priscilla Lockwood is an own goal.

We are at the mercy of national politics because too many people are in denial about the big picture. NOTHING is as local as you guys think this is.

[bill_mcgonigle]

The way I see it it all comes back to the same old question: how to get the message out wholesale?

In this society you need either media or massive local presence (the former creates the latter, in effect, with technology).  Both require tons of funding.  NHLA can't even afford an office yet, right?  So, bring in as many wealthy donors as possible, that'd be step 1.

If Republicans were actually consistently pro-liberty, we wouldn't need Libertarians. And yet the LP, having been around for quite a while now, still hasn't succeeded in goading the GOP in that direction.

Why would they?  Most of the strong pro-liberty folks have gone over to the LP, leaving a hollow shell of RINO's and statists in the Republican party.  Like them or not, Republicans still have a very strong brand in NH (45% vs 3% for LP).  It would be most tactically prudent to take over marketing of that brand than try to establish a new one ('new' in terms of mindshare, not historical).

[ReverendRyan]

2. The anti-Republican sentiment strengthened Democrats on state levels. That's the way people's minds work and it directly affects local elections.

Except it didn't: the balance in the executive council and senate stayed the same, and Republicans picked up a few seats in the house.

[rowland]

2. The anti-Republican sentiment strengthened Democrats on state levels. That's the way people's minds work and it directly affects local elections.

Except it didn't: the balance in the executive council and senate stayed the same, and Republicans picked up a few seats in the house.

Yes it did. These small gains were far short of what had been expected. I'm going by Fran Wendelboe's prediction. I think she's reasonably knowledgeable about state politics EXCEPT about the extent to which national politics impacts us. That's where she's got the same blinders on as a lot of people here.

They're also far short of what we needed to safeguard NH against Fed intrusion over the next two years. I expect there will be a lot of attempts, far more than we've ever seen before. We have no shield in Concord now. Maybe we can resist at the town level somehow but I don't see how. We really needed a rout of the statists this year to get their attention and we didn't get one.

A brighter ray of hope is the way the local gun lobby has been able to intimidate state legislators. I intend to hook up with those guys. But they're single issue. Can I get them to be equally alarmed about all our OTHER rights?

Maybe gun ownership should be a requirement for liberty activists. Classify it as a communication skill, one that they don't teach us about in Toastmasters. It certainly seems to be the only thing that makes them listen.

[ResearchFirst]

At the risk of sounding like Bill's clone, my experience with the Republicans confirms most of what he wrote. However, don't discount the Republican Liberty Caucus, which I'll be joining once I'm sworn in. That is already fertile ground as many of our ideas have at least partial support there. Maybe I'm just lazy, but I prefer to work where there's less resistance. Racking up a few easy wins can at least get the ball rolling in the right direction.

[bill_mcgonigle]

Yes it did. These small gains were far short of what had been expected. I'm going by Fran Wendelboe's prediction. I think she's reasonably knowledgeable about state politics EXCEPT about the extent to which national politics impacts us. That's where she's got the same blinders on as a lot of people here.

Wait, people were expecting Republican gains in the State House?  With the teeming hordes voting straight democratic tickets due to national tides?

Color me surprised (both times).

[J’raxis 270145]

Yes it did. These small gains were far short of what had been expected. I'm going by Fran Wendelboe's prediction. I think she's reasonably knowledgeable about state politics EXCEPT about the extent to which national politics impacts us. That's where she's got the same blinders on as a lot of people here.

Wait, people were expecting Republican gains in the State House?  With the teeming hordes voting straight democratic tickets due to national tides?

The Democrats in the State House have so thoroughly screwed up the budget ($200M deficit and counting) that a lot of us thought people would be ready this year to kick them out. Most Republican campaigns, especially among our crowd, emphasized fiscal conservatism, low taxes, and low spending.

Either people haven’t woken up to the mess yet, as much as we’d hoped, or even if they have, they’re more concerned with punishing the Republicans over national issues than their own wallets.

[bill_mcgonigle]

Either people haven’t woken up to the mess yet, as much as we’d hoped, or even if they have, they’re more concerned with punishing the Republicans over national issues than their own wallets.

I remember seeing a giant National Deficit clock in Times Square in the 80's.  Nobody cared.  They should have divided by the population and re-labeled it "You owe:".

[lildog]

Either people haven’t woken up to the mess yet, as much as we’d hoped, or even if they have, they’re more concerned with punishing the Republicans over national issues than their own wallets.

I remember seeing a giant National Deficit clock in Times Square in the 80's.  Nobody cared.  They should have divided by the population and re-labeled it "You owe:".

Problem is Democrats have made the national debt a republican fault while keeping their hands clean from it.

One idea I had from looking at the NTU.org website (National Tax Payers Union) was to point out how much each particular politician is costing us.  They show how much spending (or cutting) each federal level candidate voted for.  That prevents either side from wiggling out saying it's Democrat or Republican debt.  Nope, it's politician X's debt.

[BrianS]

I remember seeing a giant National Deficit clock in Times Square in the 80's.  Nobody cared.  They should have divided by the population and re-labeled it "You owe:".

They recently ran out of digits on it and they had to add another.

If I recall, it actually does have a "your share" number under the total figure.

[dreepa]

I remember seeing a giant National Deficit clock in Times Square in the 80's.  Nobody cared.  They should have divided by the population and re-labeled it "You owe:".

They recently ran out of digits on it and they had to add another.

If I recall, it actually does have a "your share" number under the total figure.

Correct on both:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7660409.stm

[Bill.Walker]

We are at the mercy of national politics because too many people are in denial about the big picture. NOTHING is as local as you guys think this is.

Well, Jenn Coffey won. She came in fourth as an R in a district that went heavily Democrat.

If you get out and talk to enough people face-to-face, it trumps the TV.

[lloyd danforth]

I'm thinking if you don't use your real name on these forums you should be ignored.

O RLY?

'Specially you!

[bill_mcgonigle]

They recently ran out of digits on it and they had to add another.
If I recall, it actually does have a "your share" number under the total figure.

Oh, nice, I didn't realize it was still up.  I haven't been to Times Square in a long time.  Thanks.

[error]

It was taken down in the 90's when Bill Clinton supposedly got the debt under control, and returned to service a couple of years ago.