Will Paul Ryan's Toxicity Poison New Hampshire Politics Too?

Which one is Charlie Bass?

One of Blue America's top contenders last year was Annie Kuster in New Hampshire. And she came tantalizingly close to winning against prohibitive Republican headwinds. While the state did a disastrous about-face and Republicans swept the Senate race, both House seats and both houses of the state legislature, often by overwhelming margins, Ann fought Republican rubber stamp Charlie Bass to a 48-47% near-draw.

As we saw in last week's special election, few voters are experiencing buyers' remorse as severely as Granite Staters.

When New Hampshire's lunatic fringe Speaker, Bill O’Brien, persuaded Rep. Robert Mead to resign and become his chief of staff, no one worried about the GOP's ability to retain the seat. After all, House District 4 is one of the reddest in the state-- the 14th most Republican seat in the legislature. But they did lose-- and they lost big, Daler sweeping all 5 towns in the district (Mont Vernon, New Boston, Lyndeborough, Temple and Wilton) against O'Brien's handpicked candidate Peter Kucmas, who struggled to stay above 40%.

Delusional and refusing to see the writing on the wall, the state Republican Chairman, Jack Kimball, who many think lost his mind long ago, said "Unfortunately special elections have a lower voter turnout and I am disappointed with the outcome. Jennifer Daler is a tax-and-spend liberal... Republicans hold super-majorities in the House and Senate and will continue their outstanding work, promoting economic growth and job creation while continuing the fight against irresponsible spending in Concord." Republicans are unwilling to see the results as a verdict from voters on their destructive and reckless extremism even though the turnout Tuesday was the highest for any special election in New Hampshire's history. Voters don't want to see New Hampshire's public education system dismantled and they won't stand for the Republican's power grab. The vote Tuesday augers well for a swing back towards the center next year in the legislature and it augers well for victories for Carol Shea-Porter and Annie Kuster in the two House races.

Annie is already getting down to business and last week penned editorials for several of the biggest newspapers in the state. She isn't allowing Bass to creep away from his vote for Paul Ryan's disastrous budget that features a plan to turn Medicare into an inadequate voucher system that would be catastrophic for seniors from coast to coast and hits New Hampshire seniors extremely hard. The out-of-pocket costs for a New Hampshire senior on Medicare will more than double if the Ryan-Bass budget, as I like to refer to it when writing about New Hampshire, is ever signed into law. By 2022 a typical New Hampshire Medicare enroll would have to pay $5,716.96 as the system now operates. According to the Congressional Joint Economic Committee, under the Ryan-Bass plan, the out-of-pocket expenses go up to $11,624.36 by 2022. That's an increase of $5,907.40 every year. There are an awful lot of seniors who just cannot afford that. In 20 years-- 20 years of retirement-- that increase would amount to $118,140 for granny and $118,140 for gramps. Can they afford that? Can New Hampshire voters afford Charlie Bass and the Republican Party. Is Senator Ayotte going to bring that budget one step closer to reality by voting for it this week? The other New England Republicans aren't going to.

Annie's message is clear and in sync with New Hampshire voters. Bass’s “private mandate and voucher system sets up an unstable, hurtful, and discriminatory system for seniors. In essence, the only element it keeps from our current, successful program is the name 'Medicare'." Bass is desperate and is lying to his constituents insisting that he didn't vote for a voucher system even though he did. The Nashua Telegraph called him on it:

"Neither 'sweeping overhaul' nor 'change' comes anywhere close to the unvarnished truth: the Ryan budget would abolish Medicare."

So did the editors of the Concord Monitor:

"Please, Charlie, you’re insulting people. Call it what it is: a voucher whose value increases more slowly than the cost of health care."

Harsh! But the editors of the Keene Sentinel were not less brutal: "This plan would in fact end what we know as Medicare.” And AARP skewers their "cause" as well:

Tomorrow’s seniors “would not get traditional pay-as-you-go Medicare benefits once they become eligible. They would receive federal vouchers to buy coverage from the private sector."

But Bass is running from his vote as fast as he can. Anyone think he'll invite Paul Ryan to visit New Hampshire's second district to explain his "cause"-- their cause-- to the citizens of Concord, Keene, Berlin, Lebanon, and Nashua? After all, Ryan, probably the most toxic politician in the country, announced on Meet The Press yesterday that he's available for someone's vice presidential ticket. Herman Cain... here's your chance. 'Cause a Newt/Ryan ticket isn't all that likely. Ryan blasted Gingrich’s assessment of his Medicare plan as “deeply inaccurate” and a “gross mischaracterization.” No doubt Charlie Bass was sitting at home wishing he had never heard the name "Paul Ryan."