Republican Senate candidate Scott Brown was endorsed by State Senator Nancy Styles of Hampton yesterday.
I am so pleased to have the support of Senator Stiles and appreciate her hard work and dedication to our district. After years of public service, Senator Stiles has demonstrated that she is a true leader who listens to her constituents and works tirelessly to strengthen our communities. I look forward to our continued friendship and I am glad to have her support during this campaign.
Senator Ayotte issued a joint statement with Senators Graham, McCain in response to news that House of Representatives will create a Select Committee to investigate Benghazi.
We applaud the decision of Speaker John Boehner to establish a Select Committee to investigate the events before, during, and after the terrorist attack in Benghazi, which killed four brave Americans on September 11, 2012.
We have called for a select committee since November 2012 and we are pleased that one will finally be established. The committees in both the Senate and the House that have held hearings have made an important contribution, but in light of the many remaining unanswered questions and the recent evidence that the administration has withheld critical information, it is clear that we need a Select Committee that can bring sustained focus across jurisdictions.
We call on Majority Leader Harry Reid to take similar action and to work with Speaker Boehner to make the Select Committee a joint effort between the House and Senate. We owe it to the families that lost their loved ones in the Benghazi attack to finally get to the truth.
Senator Shaheen, Senator Ayotte, and Representative Kuster issued a joint statement yesterday after hosting Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James's visit to Pease Airforce Base. The 157th Air Refueling Wing at Pease was selected as the first Air National Guard unit to receive the next generation KC-46A air refueling tanker.
We're pleased that Secretary James had the opportunity today to learn first-hand about the tremendous contributions New Hampshire Air National Guard members are making at Pease, which is an invaluable national security asset and an economic driver for the Seacoast region. Pease's selection as the first Air National Guard location for the new tanker is a testament to the 157th Air Refueling Wing's exceptional performance and Pease's strategic location. We are proud of the New Hampshire Air National Guard, and we look forward to continuing to work with Secretary James and the Air Force to bring the KC-46A to Pease.
Representative Kuster yesterday responded to a recent report that incidents of sexual assault in the military rose by 50% last year:
While I am encouraged that this new report shows more victims of military sexual assault coming forward to report their abuse, I am appalled at the still very high number of assaults that continue to occur within our military system. Our service members make extreme personal sacrifices to serve and protect our great nation, and no service member should ever feel threatened or be forced to withstand the pain and humiliation of a sexual assault while serving in the line of duty.
This report shows that while we have taken positive steps to increase reporting mechanisms, still much more must be done to prevent these attacks from happening in the first place. I call on Congress to immediately pass H.R. 2974, my bill to provide travel benefits for veteran victims of military sexual assault who must travel long distances for care, and I urge the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense to take immediate steps to eliminate the occurrence of these heinous crimes.
Senators Shaheen and Ayotte, and Representatives Kuster and Shea-Porter yesterday thanked the Department of Energy for releasing an addendum to the Northern Pass draft Environmental Impact Statement showing preliminary alternative identified routes prior to the release of the Environmental Impact Statement itself.
We appreciate that the Department of Energy acted upon our request to release the addendum to the Northern Pass draft Environmental Impact Statement. It is critical that New Hampshire citizens have a meaningful opportunity to participate in the review of the proposed project through a transparent and thorough process, and we're hopeful this release will give our citizens the appropriate opportunity to review the preliminary identified alternatives.
Following Scott Brown's assertion that he couldn't take a position on the NH bill to raise the minimum wage because he hadn't read it, State Representative Patrick Long personally delivered a copy of the four page bill to him.
Scott Brown’s phony excuses won’t save him anymore. Now that we can be certain that he has read the bill, he should come clean to New Hampshire families. They deserve to know that he has railed against the minimum wage in the past, and would join Senator Ayotte in voting against the bill that would give 110,000 Granite Staters a much-needed raise.
Republican Congressional candidate Dan Innis has released a list of 21 New Hampshirites who have endorsed his candidacy.
Our campaign is gaining momentum and attracting both political veterans and many first time grassroots activists. I am grateful and excited by the support I am finding in towns across our district. It's clear that Granite Staters want new leadership in Congress.
Republican Congressional candidate Gary Lambert yesterday responded to the news that the NH House voted down a bill which would have authorized a casino.
With over 38,000 Granite Staters currently unemployed and economic loss due to Obamacare looming, New Hampshire cannot afford to turn down new jobs. That’s why I strongly disagree with the New Hampshire House of Representative’s action yesterday to vote down S.B. 366. Expanded gaming in our state would keep us competitive with Massachusetts, where casinos are being built right now. Roughly 3,000 jobs would be created as a result of this project. The people of Salem want these jobs and our state government needs to get out of the way and let them have those jobs.
The NH Democratic Party issued a statement criticizing Republican gubernatorial candidate Walter Havenstein for opposing a minimum wage increase:
Walt Havenstein has once again shown that he is out of touch with the priorities of New Hampshire working families, opposing a commonsense increase in the minimum wage that would help 76,000 hard working Granite Staters earn enough to afford basic needs and make ends meet. It is not surprising that the Maryland multi-millionare continues to side against working families and the 76% of New Hampshire voters who support raising the minimum wage. But what is truly shocking is that Havenstein doesn't even know that his Tea Party friends repealed our state's minimum wage altogether in 2011. Then again, in 2011 Havenstein was living in Maryland, so he must have missed that vote.