Stephen J. Connolly at NH Insider predicts that Governor Hassan's New Year with be . . . less than bright.
These are my prediction(s) as to what I'm thinking will happen in 2015. Some of which will bode very well..
Anyone that is even remotely connected to NH politics knows that the upcoming budget cycle is very important. I think politically it comes down to make or break for Gov. Hassan. I'm leaning towards the break for a number of reasons:
Gov. Hassan has made a mistake that is frequent to many in power. They tend to surround themselves with subordinates that build their power instead of being qualified to be in their respective positions. I don't think the entire Hassan budget team has any real experience with accounting, finance and creating a large scale municipal budget that is currently in deficit. And this inexperience will now start to show. Major Issues And Liabilities Are Approaching. Is Gov. Maggie Hassan up to the task?
State Employees. They've declared a contract negotiation impasse. As they should. The can has been kicked down the road long enough. It will be interesting to see how the second term governor responds to this.
Executive Council. An intelligent, experienced Republican majority has the potential to create some real problems for this governor. Keep in mind that there are three of "them" and one of her. Compound this with an issue like Planned Parenthood funding, and this doesn't lead to a good place for the occupant of the corner office.
Legislation. It doesn't look very good here either. Right to Work fails again with a backdrop of unhappy state employees. Expanded casino legislation also fails again for the same reason(s) it failed last time: too many wolves not enough food or licenses to go around.