Monday, May 11, 2009

Frank Guinta announces his run for US Congress today (5/11/2009)

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"Guinta says Congress avoids tough decisions"
By DAN TUOHY, New Hampshire Union Leader, May 11, 2009

MANCHESTER – Mayor Frank C. Guinta promised a fiscal conservative’s fight, and a steady check on Democrats in power, as he declared his candidacy today for the 1st District congressional seat.

The two-term Republican called Democratic incumbent Carol Shea-Porter "out of touch, out of step with the majority" of the state.

Guinta criticized her support of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and he bemoaned congressional actions that he said are shackling generations in debt.

"It is time we take back our government and make it work for the people again," he said. "I want to help restore good government to America and prosperity to all."

At a time when Republicans seek to avenge statewide losses to Democrats, Guinta said his party needed to stick to principles of low taxes and limited government. He said his time in Manchester showed his fiscal responsibility.

New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Raymond Buckley immediately took aim at that record, from crime to city schools in need of improvement. He said the mayor failed to live up to campaign promises.

"At a time when layoffs and drastic cuts are being proposed in our schools and on our streets, Frank Guinta has shown he’ll check out when the going gets tough," Buckley said in a statement. "The people of Manchester know all too well his personal ambitions have always come before the needs of our city."

Guinta, 38, could see a busy primary before getting the chance at the two-term Shea-Porter, of Rochester.

Manchester candidates have struggled with name recognition when running in the 1st District, which stretches across six counties, including all of Carroll. It covers the Seacoast, the Lakes Region, and the central New Hampshire communities of Bedford, Derry, Goffstown, Hooksett and Merrimack.

Former state health commissioner John Stephen unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination in 2002 and 2008. Former Manchester Mayor Raymond J. Wieczorek, who is now an executive councilor, ran a tough race before losing the GOP nomination in 1996 to John E. Sununu, the former congressman and U.S. senator.

Manchester Democrat Jim Craig struggled to raise his profile when Shea-Porter, then a little-known activist, defeated him for their party’s nomination in 2006.

The Queen City is a potentially critical voting bloc, but Guinta must know the Manchester challenge, said Andrew E. Smith, executive director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center.

"They have get over that perception that everybody knows them," Smith said.

A UNH poll last month found 63 percent of respondents in the 1st District did not know enough of Guinta to give an opinion. He had a favorable rating of 30 percent and an unfavorable rating of 8 percent.

On Shea-Porter, the response was 38 percent favorable, 37 percent unfavorable and 27 percent neutral.

The numbers for Guinta were not great, but they were not bad, either, according to Smith. Though it is early in the political season, he said the race will come down to name recognition and money.

The Guinta campaign is already planning fund-raisers for later this spring, including a major event May 28 in Bedford.

Guinta said his first responsibility for the rest of the year is serving out his term as mayor.

That job requires substantial work this month and next in completing a Manchester budget, which is nearly $300 million.

In his announcement speech, which he read to reporters over a conference call, Guinta said he was proud to have proposed four successive balanced budgets to lower taxes and to have overseen government reform.

Earlier this year, Guinta called for a week of furloughs citywide. Last week, the city’s school board, of which Guinta is chairman, voted to authorize the layoff of 78 teachers. The mayor’s positions have put him in a running feud with union heads, some of whom have accused him of playing politics.

Guinta said yesterday that his actions as mayor, such as proposing furloughs, are tough decisions that are lacking on Capitol Hill.

"Local governments are cutting spending and furloughing employees in order to keep taxpayers from facing massive tax hikes," Guinta said. "Families are making tough budget cutting decisions in order to send their kids to college or just to make ends meet. Why can’t this Congress do the same?"

CORRECTION: When this story was first posted, the year of John Stephen's first U.S. House candidacy was misstated.

READERS' COMMENTS:

Good luck Guinta! What are you going to do when they ask for more than one idea? Your school budget idea was a total joke. I am so happy you are running, I predict you won't even come close and most of us will be so happy because you will have NO job! Woo, wee, keep pushing for the impossible Guinta you are so good at that! I think the Republican party is smarter than you and will support a stronger candidate.

Hey Tom - that will be interesting to hear Shea-Porter defend Obama, does that mean Guinta will have to defend Bush? Seriously, when are you people going to educate yourselves instead of riding the coats of a party? I, for one, educate myself and make my own decisions based on what's good for me and my family, I don't vote one way or the other just because of the party title...small minded people. I bet you are still the ones who believe Guinta's idea for a furlough was legal. Ha!
- Sara, Manchester

As a Manchester taxpayer, I can't say that I've been at that impressed with Mayor Guinta. I wish I could throw my support behind him, but on the one issue we elected him to do - cut taxes - he hasn't delivered. At least he's been talking about cutting taxes, unlike Baines, even if he ultimately hiked them.

I wonder why he's getting in the race so early. He is useless promoting things as Mayor now, as it will all be viewed as political. He should have held off and spent some time building up some accomplishments to run on.
- Glen, Manchester, NH

Seriously Mr. Fortin, don't try and speak for the Republican Party because your out of touch, angry, and personally motivated posts on blogs CERTAINLY only speak for your opinions alone. Most Republicans and Independents, myself included, are extremely happy to have Guinta running for Congress. He has been a great mayor and I am proud to support him for Congress.
- Chris King, Manchester, New Hampshire

Guinta is running for Congress? There has to be a better Republican than that back stabber. If by some tragedy he would get elected he won't be any better at that than he is as Mayor. What a shame that we Republicans should get stuck with that phony do-nothing as our nominee. There has to be someone better than him.
- Richard L. Fortin, Manchester

Great news...after two terms of Shea Porter's extremely far left liberal voting record, independently minded New Hampshire can return to some sanity with Guinta's leadership in NH's First Congressional District.
- Ryan Feltner, Manchester, New Hampshire

Mayor Guinta's criticism is right on target. Obama announced this morning he will run a $1.8 trillion deficit this year and next year's estimated deficit is now up to $1.3 trillion, certain to rise. This on top of the trillions Obama has spent on "stimulus" and on bailouts.

It will be interesting to hear Shea-Porter try to defend Obama.
- Tom, Campton

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Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta speaks during a protest against gay marriage at the State House last month (April of 2009). (KEN WILLIAMS / Monitor staff)
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"Guinta's in the running: Manchester mayor seeks congressional seat"
By LAUREN R. DORGAN, Concord Monitor staff, May 12, 2009

Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta made it official yesterday: He will run for Congress in 2010, touting a message of fiscal restraint.

The two-term Republican mayor told reporters on a conference call that he will challenge second-term Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter for the 1st Congressional District seat, which represents the Seacoast, the Lakes Region and Manchester. Guinta said little about his opponent and didn't say her name once, although he did denounce her votes for the $787 billion stimulus package and President Obama's $3.4 trillion budget proposal.

"In New Hampshire, we have a sense of frugality. We have a sense of pulling up our own bootstraps," said Guinta, 38. He added: "That is in direct contrast to what is going on in Congress."

Government has grown too big, he said.

"America has always been the land of hope and opportunity, but those virtues are passing away as government is slowly suffocating hope while condemning opportunity to obsolescence," he said. "It is time we take back our government and make it work for the people again."

Guinta pointed to his record as mayor of Manchester, saying that he proposed four budgets that would have cut taxes and that he reduced the size of the city's payroll while funneling money toward crime-prevention initiatives.
The state Democratic Party quickly moved to counter Guinta's portrayal of his record. It said in a press release that taxes have risen in Manchester despite Guinta's proposals and that 19 of Manchester's schools are now designated "in need of improvement."

Democratic spokeswoman Victoria Bonney summed up Guinta's record this way: "onerous tax burden, weaker schools and higher crime."

Guinta's announcement came as little surprise. In recent weeks, he has said he would pursue higher office instead of seeking another term as mayor and that he would not run for governor.

While Guinta is the first Republican to announce a run, few expect him to be the last. Potential candidates include Republican National Committeeman Sean Mahoney and congressional candidate John Stephen. Conservative activist Bob Bestani has already formed an exploratory committee.

Jim Wieczorek, a 46-year-old businessman and son of longtime Manchester officeholder Ray Wieczorek, is considering a run for Congress and said yesterday that he gave himself a deadline of Sept. 1 to

decide. For now, he's "doing my due diligence."

If Guinta and Shea-Porter face off in 2010, much will ride on how the race plays out in the state's biggest city, Manchester, which has delivered big victories to each.

Guinta won re-election in Manchester in 2007 despite a tough national and statewide climate for Republicans. Democrats dominated major statewide races in 2006 and 2008.

Last fall, Shea-Porter beat Republican opponent Jeb Bradley by rolling up big leads in Seacoast cities, by keeping Bradley's margins low in his home turf of the Lakes Region - and by trouncing Bradley in Manchester, where she clinched a 5,796-vote margin, more than a quarter of her overall margin of victory.

Dante Scala, an associate professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire, cautioned against assuming that Guinta has Manchester "in his back pocket." Scala said coming from the Queen City has pros and cons for any candidate.

"Manchester is a rough playground," Scala said. That means, Scala said, that Guinta "won't be easily flustered" by attacks from opponents.

But the deeply personal politics practiced in Manchester also means he has some dedicated political opponents.

"It certainly will be the case that Manchester Democrats will try to create all kinds of trouble for him in his backyard," Scala said. "If you're mayor long enough, you get pretty dinged up."

In the Republican's favor, Scala said that if the economy continues its decline, Guinta's message of restraint may find a favorable audience.

"If it's a year that's all about taxing and spending. . . . I think that's going to tend to hurt Shea-Porter more than it will hurt Guinta," Scala said.

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NH-01: Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta has been acting like a candidate for a long time, but finally had his official kickoff event yesterday. Guinta hit every note in the libertarian book, singing the praises of tea baggers, criticizing the stimulus package, and saying that EFCA is "blatantly against" New Hampshire's "live free or die" mentality.
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NH-01: "Guinta Says Congress Out Of Touch With NH Values"
realclearpolitics.com - May 11, 2009

Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta (R) made it official today, announcing that he's running for Congress to bring "New Hampshire values" to Washington, DC.

"In new Hampshire we have a sense of frugality. We have a sense of pulling up our own bootstraps. We have a sense of trying to figure out the way together to get through tough times. That is in direct contrast to what's going on in Congress, and how our Congressman is voting," Guinta said on a conference call this morning.

He called the stimulus bill "wasteful," and said it "doesn't provide the long-term economic viability that our country demands." He also slammed the Employee Free Choice Act as "blatantly against" the Granite State's "Live Free Or Die" credo. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D), the first district incumbent, is a co-sponsor of the EFCA and voted for the stimulus bill, though Guinta didn't mention her by name.

"The problem with Washington is that our representation is only looking as far as the next election. The policies that they are implementing today are only short-term risks that do not address long-term problems, not offer long-term solutions," he said.

Guinta, the mayor of the state's largest city, has been mentioned as a potential candidate for several statewide offices, but said he's running for Congress because that's where "my heart is." He chose to announce his candidacy now to be honest with his city, and because he said he wants strong candidates run to replace him this fall. He said he'll keep his focus on the city this year, with a full campaign schedule picking up next year when his term is over.

Other Republicans are still considering the race. Guinta said he's not focused on a primary yet, saying he brings "the right credentials" to the race and has a record that "speaks for itself."

Asked what direction he thought the Republican Party should go in as it plots a comeback, Guinta cited the tea party movement as evidence that most Americans feel the country is on the wrong course.

"What I hope other Republicans do across the country is take up the mantle of being forthright, being true to their own particular principles, and respect what people are saying," he said. Those who participated in tea parties "are not just Republicans or conservatives, but people with all ideological backgrounds, and they're coming together for common cause and a common purpose, and that is to take back our government and to change the direction of America."

He said his own party can always do better, and should "restore some basic principles of limited government, of focusing on reducing spending, on bringing prosperity back to America."

"That's part of the reason that I'm running and I'm putting myself out as a candidate," he said.

New Hampshire Democrats are already criticizing Guinta, saying he's "running away from the challenges of City Hall" as Manchester faces higher crime and declining schools.

"The people of Manchester know all too well his personal ambitions have always come before the needs of our city," New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley said in a statement.

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New Hampshire Public Radio host Laura Knoy, left, asks a question of Democratic U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter, center and Republican Frank Guinta, both candidates for the state's First Congressional District seat. (BRUCE PRESTON)
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"NHPTV Debate: Shea-Porter, Guinta meet for first forum"
By NORMA LOVE, Associated Press Writer, NH Union Leader, September 27, 2010

CONCORD – New Hampshire Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter told listeners to a radio forum Monday that government must watch out for people - the opposite approach Republican challenger Frank Guinta said he supports.

Guinta said he believes government should have a limited role - especially when it comes to business.

"Let's get government out of the way," Guinta said.

Shea-Porter responded that lack of government oversight on Wall Street is what led to the economic mess the country is still recovering from.

"We the people are the government and we need the government to watch out on Wall Street so this doesn't happen again," she said.

Shea-Porter is seeking her third term in the 1st Congressional District. Guinta, the former mayor of Manchester, defeated seven other candidates in the Sept. 14 primary. Monday's forum broadcast live on New Hampshire Public Radio turned into a debate with the candidates interrupting each other repeatedly. It was the first meeting of the two.

"You are just so extreme," Shea-Porter said at one point.

Guinta accused Shea-Porter of "giving you the classic big government solution."

She replied that she believed in an effective government that included regulations to make air travel and food safer.

The two agreed on little, but even when they agreed that no company should be considered too big to fail, Guinta added: "I don't think we agree."

Guinta does not support just passed legislation that creates a $30 billion federal fund to help smaller banks issue loans to small businesses and cuts taxes by $12 billion over the coming decade. Shea-Porter supports it. Both would freeze federal spending, though Shea-Porter would make exceptions for the war effort and similar emergencies. Guinta supports extending Bush-era tax cuts for everyone, including top earners; Shea-Porter would exclude top earners.

Shea-Porter would support government subsidies for alternate energy companies producing "green jobs," but Guinta objected that picked winners and losers. He favored tax cuts for all to encourage job growth.

Guinta said Shea-Porter would help a small alternative energy company get started, but once the owner made more than $200,000 she'd tax him if the tax cuts for top earners aren't extended.

"Let's treat everybody the same," Guinta said.

The expiration of Bush-era tax cuts in January has led to partisan bickering in Washington over which tax cuts should be extended. Republicans want to extend all the tax cuts, and President Barack Obama - along with Democratic leaders in Congress - want to extend them for people making less than $200,000 and married couples making less than $250,000.

Extending the tax cuts for middle- and low-income workers would add more than $3 trillion to the national debt during the next decade. Extending them for top earners, as well, would add an additional $700 billion.

Shea-Porter said Guinta didn't want to tax anybody, but government services aren't free.

"It's magical. You can find magical bank accounts," she said in a reference to Guinta's failure initially to declare money on a financial disclosure form.

Guinta amended a disclosure form to list a previously unreported bank account holding between $250,000 and $500,000. Guinta updated the form after lending his campaign $245,000 during the primary, raising questions about where the money came from.

Shea-Porter said the $700 billion would be borrowed from China.

"That's not standing up for the middle class, Mr. Guinta," she said.

Both candidates support President Obama's plan to make research and development tax credits for business permanent. Shea-Porter opposes income-based means tests for eligibility for Social Security; Guinta would include it in a long-term discussion about the program.

Guinta criticized Shea-Porter's support for federal legislation to bail out the auto industry. Shea-Porter said America's manufacturing industry must be protected.

"We have to make things in this country," she said.

Guinta also said the federal stimulus program had failed to produce promised private sector jobs.

"We won't get through this recession with one-time money but with belt-tightening," he said.

Shea-Porter said she was disappointed more jobs weren't produced, but argued the economy would be in worse shape if nothing had been done. She said the stimulus had pumped "air into an economic mattress that was pretty flat at the time."

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"NHPTV Debate: Guinta's student loans questioned"
By TOM FAHEY, State House Bureau Chief, NH Union Leader, September 27, 2010

CONCORD – Democratic Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter and Republican Frank Guinta argued about taxes, health care and the size of government during their first face-to-face debate today.

The one-hour forum produced by the New Hampshire Union Leader, New Hampshire Public Radio, New Hampshire Public Television and the New Hampshire Business and Industry Association focused on business and economic issues, but the topic turned increasingly to the appropriate role of government.

Later in the day, Guinta found himself explaining his student loan history, the second controversy over his financial disclosure form in the past three months.

Guinta told Shea-Porter during the debate that he used no student loans to complete his college education. "No, I did not," he told her.

He added that he did not use them to attend Assumption College in Worcester, Mass.

Democrats pointed out after the forum that his disclosure form shows he had between $15,000 and $50,000 in loans from NHHEAF, a New Hampshire company that handles federal student loans.

Guinta's campaign then released a statement that said the loans were for his graduate studies at Franklin Pierce Law Center in Concord.

Guinta also ran into a problem with his disclosure form in July, when it turned out he had not listed a bank account worth at least $250,000. His campaign at the time said the missing information was an oversight, since corrected, and that it should not be a major issue.

Guinta argued continually for less government regulation, and greater freedom for private business. He criticized Shea-Porter's votes for federal stimulus packages that he contends did not produce jobs.

Shea-Porter said she voted against the Bush bank bailout bill, but did back programs that saved and created jobs, including the auto industry package.

Shea-Porter, seeking a third term representing the state's First District in Congress, said that Guinta's philosophy would sweep aside critical government services, including home ownership programs, student loans, energy oversight and food inspection.

"You're just so extreme about eliminating federal government," she said. "I'm astounded by this anti-government, no-role for government talk. We the people are the government."

Guinta responded: "Your answer is that government has to be involved in every section of our lives."

He said the best way to revive the economy is not through government borrowing, but a free-up of private capital, including an extension of the 2001 tax cuts across the board. He argued that if the Obama tax plan passes with a tax hike for the wealthy, entrepreneurs and small business owners who can hire new workers will be penalized.

"You can't stimulate the economy by spending through borrowing," said Guinta, a former Manchester mayor. "The way you stimulate the economy is to cut taxes for people who do create jobs, which is the small business economy here in New Hampshire."

Shea-Porter said Guinta's complaints about government come from someone who has spent most of his adult life in government. She said he now criticizes the stimulus plan, but that he once complained publicly that stimulus funding was coming to his city too slowly. The move prompted then-attorney general Kelly Ayotte to accuse Guinta of "grandstanding," according to e-mails made public this summer.

Shea-Porter argued that tax cuts for the middle class will give the average family a badly needed financial boost. But she said the country should not bear the expense of tax cuts for the wealthy.

"We'll borrow the money from China, it will put us $700 billion into debt and 80 percent of that borrowed money will go to people earning $1 million or more. That's not standing up for the middle class, Mr. Guinta," she said.

Guinta argued against subsidizing any industry, including green energy, saying the free market should decide which industries succeed and which players rise to the top.

Shea-Porter argued that Republicans borrowed throughout the Bush administration, cut taxes for the wealthy, fought wars without covering their costs and added to Medicare costs with the Part D prescription coverage. She said cutting taxes while continuing to spend won't work.

Guinta said he would vote to repeal federal health care reform, and said insurance costs can be controlled by passing tort reform and allowing small businesses to form purchasing pools and buy coverage from any U.S. insurers.

The health reform plan puts an added paperwork burden on small business that raises their costs, he said.

Shea-Porter said Republicans blocked efforts Democrats made to repeal the offending provision.

Both candidates favor making research and development tax credit permanent and a freeze on federal spending. They also agree that no bank or financial institution should be protected as "too big to fail."

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"Poll: Guinta In Front In 1st District; Race Tightens In 2nd"
WMUR.com - Commitment 2010 - September 30, 2010

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- A new poll shows a turnaround in the 1st Congressional District race, while the 2nd Congressional District has tightened up.

The 1st District race pits Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter against Republican Frank Guinta.

The WMUR Granite State Poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center shows Guinta surging ahead of Shea-Porter, 49 to 39 percent, a 15-point swing from July.

The poll of 262 randomly selected New Hampshire adults in the 1st District was conducted from Sept. 23 through Sept. 29 and has a margin of sampling error of 6 percent.

"This is really tough news for Shea-Porter," said pollster Andy Smith. "Because most of these congressional races tend to be referendums on the incumbent, any time an incumbent is below 40 percent this close to elections shows they are in really difficult shape."

Smith said the race could get ugly before it's over.

"This is going to be a tough race to watch," Smith said. "I think it's going to go nasty, and I think you'll see a lot of money spent by outside groups in this race, and it's certainly one that people in D.C. are watching very closely."

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"Accusations fly at NH congressional debate"
By Holly Ramer, Associated Press Writer, October 12, 2010

MANCHESTER, N.H. --The political nominees in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District accused each other in a debate Tuesday of shirking responsibility and failing to govern.

Republican Frank Guinta told incumbent Democrat Rep. Carol Shea-Porter she should have been governing instead of campaigning when she recently voted for Congress to adjourn without extending tax cuts enacted during the Bush administration.

Guinta, who is former mayor of Manchester, supports extending the cuts for all taxpayers. Shea-Porter, who is seeking a third term, opposes extending them for the top income earners.

"You were the deciding vote to leave Washington and not extend the tax cuts for anyone, for anyone, leaving our economy in further peril," Guinta said. "There are times to govern and there are times to campaign. Three weeks ago, the country needed you to govern, not take a leave of absence from your responsibility to extend tax cuts."

Shea-Porter said the adjournment vote reflected the reality that Congress would not have been able to agree on the tax cuts. She countered that Guinta failed to govern when he pushed through a tax cut as mayor at the expense of Manchester's schools, police force and infrastructure, and she accused him of flip-flopping on the federal stimulus program.

"You should have been governing instead of just looking at your political future, trying to get that tax cut at the cost of the people of Manchester. Then you came begging for the stimulus money," she said. "Now you're going out telling people the stimulus didn't work. ... Did it work, or didn't it? Did you ask for the money, or didn't you?"

As mayor, Guinta complained to a newspaper that stimulus money wasn't coming fast enough. He said Tuesday he never supported the program but the city's Democrat-controlled board of aldermen did.

"You sound like a victim," Shea-Porter interrupted. "You need to be a leader."

Guinta turned the tables later after Shea-Porter repeatedly blamed the nation's current economic woes on the Bush administration and the then-Republican majority in Congress.

"When are you going to stop blaming George Bush?" Guinta asked. "When are you going to take responsibility for the four years you've been in Congress?"

Social Security was another hot topic. Shea-Porter said she supports raising the cap on how much people pay into the system and accused Guinta of wanting to privatize it or make seniors prove they need the money. Guinta denied her claims and said he wants to keep the same system for those currently paying in or receiving benefits but bipartisan discussion is needed on what to do for future generations.

After Shea-Porter repeatedly interrupted Guinta, moderator Scott Spradling cut them off, joking that he was moving on to the "all get-along" issue of health care.

Shea-Porter supports the Obama administration's health care overhaul legislation; Guinta wants to repeal it.

A WMUR Granite State Poll released Sept. 30 showed Guinta with a slight lead over Shea-Porter.

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"Return Shea-Porter to 1st District seat"
The Nashua Telegraph, Opinion, Editorial, October 29, 2010

Carol Shea-Porter, like most incumbent Democrats this election cycle, has been chastised for voting along party lines, particularly with Republican enemy No. 1 Nancy Pelosi.

Unlike most Democrats, however, Shea-Porter is proud of it.

Even if you can’t stand Shea-Porter’s politics, don’t argue that she’s anything less than genuine. She ran as an unknown in 2006 as an advocate for the middle class and has been true to that. She stands by her record and is honest with her answers, even when it’s unpopular.

She’s well-versed on the issues and is one of the few incumbents this cycle who doesn’t try to paint herself as a moderate. Maybe she can’t, considering that she’s not.

Still, she’s one of the few Democrats or Republicans in this race who hasn’t muddied her personal beliefs to snag votes. She deserves voter support for a third term in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Her challenger, former Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta, is not so well-versed. He’s a one-note, anti-spending candidate who has campaigned too heavily on his budget-cutting tactics in Manchester, while ignoring the fact that his unilateral approach wouldn’t translate to the congressional style of governing.

We’re all for reining in Washington spending, but Guinta has missed the mark. When pressed on his opposition to the TARP program during an editorial board interview with The Telegraph, Guinta said cutting spending was the answer to the banking crisis of 2008. That just doesn’t make sense.

Guinta’s “Frank’s Fifty” plan for saving $827 billion contains some good ideas (ending federally funded iPods for Utah students who graduate), but also proposals that would be harmful to New Hampshire (eliminating funding for private-sector technology research).

It’s no secret to regular readers that we tend to favor moderate candidates, but there isn’t one in this race. Given that, our beliefs are more in line with Shea-Porter’s.

The Rochester Democrat supports extending the Bush tax cuts for middle-class Americans and repealing them for the wealthy. Guinta supports extending the tax cuts for all Americans, including the richest 2 percent, adding an estimated $700 billion to the deficit.

The daughter of a World War II veteran, Shea-Porter has established herself as a tireless advocate of the state’s veterans, an example of her impressive constituent services record.

Earlier this year, for example, she introduced the Veterans Health Equity Act of 2009, which would require the VA to ensure that veterans eligible for hospital and medical care in the contiguous 48 states have access to at least one full-service hospital or comparable services outside the VA network.

She supported the stimulus package and the health care bill. Admittedly, we have some serious reservations about both. It’s pretty clear that the stimulus package did not create enough jobs to justify $787 billion, and the health care bill does not resolve many of the country’s health care woes – particularly the crushing burden of health care costs on businesses – but it’s a good first step. It extends coverage to the 46 million uninsured Americans and ends the unconscionable practice of denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions.

Guinta supports repealing both, and we don’t.

It would have been easy for Shea-Porter to explain away her votes with the famous “I made the best decision with the information I had at the time” excuse, but she hasn’t.

Even as the stimulus program faces widespread public criticism, Shea-Porter maintains that it saved the country from entering a deeper recession. Even if you don’t agree, convictions that strong make Shea-Porter a rare breed in Congress.

Voters in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District should send a message that this kind of representation should be rewarded. They can do that by sending Shea-Porter back to Washington.

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"GOP’s Guinta ousts Shea-Porter in NH 1st District"
By HOLLY RAMER, Associated Press, November 2, 2010

CONCORD (AP) — Republican Frank Guinta ousted Rep. Carol Shea-Porter in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District Tuesday after a campaign spent casting the two-term Democrat as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s spendthrift shadow.

Guinta, 40, the former mayor of Manchester, was dogged throughout the campaign by questions about his personal finances. But he kept the focus on the issues, contrasting his record of enacting Manchester’s first tax cut in a decade with what he called Shea-Porter’s failure to protect small businesses.

Guinta also emphasized his opposition to the national health care overhaul legislation and the federal stimulus package Shea-Porter unabashedly supported.

Four years ago, voter dissatisfaction with President George W. Bush and anti-war sentiment helped Shea-Porter pull an upset win over Republican Rep. Jeb Bradley. But this year, Shea-Porter found herself swept out by the nation’s anti-incumbent mood.

Guinta got into the race 18 months ago and built a sizable organization that helped him win a six-way primary in September. In both the primary and general election, he promoted himself as someone who would cut spending and bring fiscal discipline to Washington while trying to portray Shea-Porter as Pelosi’s evil twin.

He described his opponents philosophy as “government has to solve every problem that exists,” and said, “That’s the exact thinking that has gotten us into the mess we’re in right now in this country.”

But Guinta’s claim that Shea-Porter was “embarrassed” by her record often was at odds with her willingness to defend her votes on the most controversial issues: the stimulus funding and health care. She said the economy would be much worse without the stimulus money, and said while the health care bill Guinta would like to see repealed wasn’t perfect, it brought much-needed reform.

Shea-Porter criticized Guinta for pushing through a tax cut as mayor at the expense of Manchester’s schools, police force and infrastructure, while he accused her of failing taxpayers and small businesses by voting to have Congress adjourn without extending tax cuts enacted during the Bush administration.

During one debate, Guinta asked Shea-Porter if she would vote to re-elect Pelosi as speaker if Democrats hold the House. After some prodding, she said, “Yes, I would.”

Like Guinta, Shea-Porter also spoke often about spending, but she zeroed in on her opponent’s personal finances, repeatedly grilling him about how he was able to loan his campaign $355,000. Guinta has faced questions about the money since he amended a disclosure form last summer to add assets of between $250,000 and $500,000. His rivals during the Republican primary first raised the issue and Democrats picked up where they left off.

Guinta flatly denied that he has accepted illegal donations and said he and his wife saved the money during the “approximately 20 years” he and his wife worked in the private sector before he was elected mayor in 2005, at age 35.

Libertarian Philip Hodson of Manchester also was on the ballot.

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Jason Meserve, NHPR

"Guinta Takes First Congressional District Seat"
By Jon Greenberg - nhpr.org/guinta-takes-first-congressional-district-seat - November 3, 2010

Republican Frank Guinta claimed victory in the first congressional district. NHPR’s Jon Greenberg reports that Guinta tapped into widespread dissatisfaction with the economy and Washington spending.

Frank Guinta showed robust support across the district. He did well in small towns like Epping and Wakefield and in cities like Laconia and Manchester. He racked up majorities throughout the Lakes Region and in Republican strongholds such as Bedford and Hooksett.

Speaking to an ebullient crowd at a hotel in Manchester, Guinta reiterated the themes he has carried throughout the campaign.

GUINTA: We are going to finally make taxpayers front and center in this country again. We are going to make sure that we retire our debt and deficit and we are going to make sure that we actually start balancing our budgets for a change.//applause

Starting 18 months ago, Guinta geared his campaign toward the small taxpayer groups around the district who later took on the Tea Party label. He tapped into their frustration with Washington and last night, he said he would not be a congressman, but a representative.

GUINTA: And what this representative is going to do, will listen to each and every one of you, and go down to Washington and vote your conscience.// applause.

Guinta clearly connected with voters at a personal level. Dave Ross of Hooksett is self-employed and has struggled through the recession.

ROSS: We’re the guys that have been really hurt by this and left behind. And Frank knows that. That’s why I say, he’s one of us. Granted, he’s not a tradesman, but he listens to me.”

Ross called questions about the source of Guinta’s campaign money, garbage thrown by Democrats.

The defeated incumbent, Democrat Carol Shea Porter, did in some of the key Seacoast communities she has carried before, but her margins were considerably slimmer than in the past. In her concession speech, she was unbowed, saying Democrats had accomplished a lot for the bottom 99% in the country.

SHEA-PORTER: Everybody standing in this room, and middle American and all of us have hopes and dreams and believe in the vision of prosperity for everybody, education for everyone, opportunity for all. We have not stopped.//applause

Shea Porter told the crowd, the Republicans had merely taken round one.

For NHPR News, I’m Jon Greenberg.

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"Shea-Porter announces 2012 run for Congress"
By ALBERT McKEON, Staff Writer, Nashua Telegraph, April 14, 2011

Five months after getting swept out of office by a Republican electoral tide, former Democratic U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter has announced she will run again for her old seat.

Citing frustration with Republican policies since the 112th Congress started in January, Shea-Porter made her reelection campaign intentions public Thursday with an email that accused the GOP of hurting average Americans.

“Our current Congress is passing legislation that will hurt average Americans, and they are bowing to special interests instead of focusing on job creation and good government,” Shea-Porter wrote in email sent to supporters and the media.

Shea-Porter lost to Republican Frank Guinta in November. Guinta defeated Shea-Porter 121,655 to 95,503 votes.

A Rochester resident, Shea-Porter took office in 2006, upsetting 1st Congressional District incumbent Jeb Bradley, a Republican, as part of a Democratic tide of success that election. She was the first woman to serve New Hampshire in Congress.

She won reelection in 2008 in a rematch with Bradley. But the partisan tide turned against her when Guinta won the seat last year.

Like fellow Democrat Ann McLane Kuster, who ran unsuccessfully for the 2nd Congressional District seat in 2010, Shea-Porter announced her 2012 campaign intentions earlier than candidates usually do. McLane Kuster announced in March she would go toe-to-toe with incumbent Republican Charles Bass, in a rematch of their 2010 election fight.

In her email, Shea-Porter alluded to Republican congressional intentions to largely privatize Medicare and make Medicaid a program based on vouchers dispersed at the state level, changes that would drastically overhaul the two entitlement programs.

“My dad, who was born and died a Republican, never forgot the power of good government to transform lives,” she wrote. “He served our country in WWII, and then our country thanked him with the GI bill for college so his children were raised in the middle class.

“He and my mom worked hard, raised a family, and served their community. They paid their taxes and when they retired, received Social Security benefits and Medicare. It was a contract. My parents supported these programs when they worked, and used them when they retired.”

Shea-Porter also said she wants to focus on renewable energy and ending the transfer of jobs overseas.

Albert McKeon can be reached at 594-5832 or amckeon@nashuatelegraph.com

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"Shea-Porter issued primary challenge: Businesswoman joins House race"
By Karen Langley, Concord Monitor staff, 4/29/2011

A lengthy Democratic primary contest is in store for the 1st District, where Portsmouth businesswoman Joanne Dowdell said yesterday she will compete against Carol Shea-Porter to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta.

Guinta won the seat last year from Shea-Porter, an incumbent who had represented the state's eastern district for four years. Shea-Porter announced two weeks ago that she will seek to take back the seat in the 2012 election. The Democrats would face each other in well over a year.

Dowdell, a first-time candidate, described herself yesterday as a progressive Democrat whose career as an investment firm executive has given her experience to address fiscal issues. She said she decided to run for Congress because she believes federal officeholders are not doing their job.

"Washington politicians have been making life harder for families here in New Hampshire and throughout the country," Dowdell said. "With my background I will work extremely hard to help strengthen our economy, create jobs, expand educational opportunity and really get our priorities in line."

Dowdell, 52, was a member of President Obama's steering committee for the New Hampshire primary and canvassed on his behalf. In 2009, she became an at-large Democratic National Committeewoman.

She characterized her political outlook as similar to that of Shea-Porter, saying it would be up to voters to discern the differences.

"I think you would find that ideologically we're both progressive Democrats," she said. "This is democracy, from my point of view. This is the process in action, and that will be for voters to decide."

Dowdell said she was not ready to commit to specific policy positions but intends to speak extensively with residents of the district to learn about their concerns.

"I'll know better when I get out and talk to them and listen to what they have to say," she said.

Dowdell said she grew up in Niskayuna, in upstate New York, and graduated from Howard University with a degree in communications. She arrived in New Hampshire from Washington, D.C., nearly a decade ago and has since worked in socially responsible and sustainable investing. She held senior executive roles for the mutual fund companies Citizens Advisers and then Sentinel Investments. In those positions, Dowdell said, she steered research on companies being considered for investment. The companies were examined for their executive compensation, accounting practices and greenhouse gas emissions, she said.

Dowdell named veterans issues as an area of particular interest, saying her father served in World War II as a Tuskegee airman, a member of the first black aviation unit in the U.S. military. Shea-Porter advocated for veterans issues on the campaign trail and in Congress.

In the 2nd District, Democrat Ann McLane Kuster announced last month she would challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Charlie Bass for the seat she narrowly lost to him last November.

(Karen Langley can be reached at 369-3316 or klangley@cmonitor.com.)

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