Issues

Right to Work

I will ask the General Court to introduce a Right to Work law. Individuals should have the freedom to apply for a job, attain it, and work without mandates for union membership. Contractors and businesses should be free to hire anyone who qualifies, not just those individuals vetted by the unions, and they should be free to hire at the rate they can offer, not a rate unilaterally mandated by unions.

Taxes

We do not have a revenue problem that requires additional taxes, income or otherwise. We have a spending problem.  We must diminish the need to tax by controlling this runaway spending. This requires cutting the fat from the budget and streamlining the government expenditures. The easiest way to do this may be to roll back the budget to the last budget balanced budget that matched expenditures to income without significant increased taxes and fees.

We must reform the process used to develop budget and spending plans to include only necessary spending and thus avoid "credit card" solutions in which we accrue unbearable debt for our children's children in lieu of making tough fiscal choices ourselves. I want our citizens to become our best auditors. To give them the necessary tools to accomplish the task, we need full transparency. All department budgets and the corresponding expenditures should be available online within 30 days or less of the expenditure.

Immigration

As your Governor I will enforce the laws, and I will work with the legislature to pass requirements for proof of citizenship before receiving State aid, including health and public education, and I will seek prosecution of business owners who hire illegal aliens. It is time we remember that we are Americans and we must follow the law.

Second Amendment

NH has a strong tradition of responsible appreciation of our Constitutional rights to bear arms. We must protect and strengthen our right to own firearms to defend and protect our families and communities as basic to NH’s freedoms. This includes the right for responsible citizens to own, carry, and use firearms.

We should restore firearms safety training in our schools and communities through partnership with organizations such as the federal government-sponsored Civilian Marksmanship Program. This will provide training in firearms safety, the responsible use of firearms and marksmanship to our citizens.

Education Choice

Parents are their children’s first teacher and their best advocate. Parents are best positioned to choose the most appropriate learning styles for their children, i.e. home schooling, private, or public. Neither the state nor local education authorities should undermine nor usurp the rights and responsibilities of parents. I will ask the General Court to introduce legislation that supports school-choice and lifts the overly restrictive regulations on homeschooling. 

Education Funding

Funding of education should primarily rest with the local community or communities in which the school is located.  Citizens who control the education budgets have the strongest incentive to spend it wisely. I will urge the General Court to reassert their right over the judiciary to control budgets and legislation.

Marriage and Family

The natural family is the fundamental building unit of society. To build a solid society, we must build strong families who foster personal responsibility, good citizenship and for the perpetuation of society through new generations. I will support action from the General Court to allow the people to vote on defining marriage between one man and one woman.

Life

NH has a long history of defending the rights of the innocent and vulnerable. Recently though we have seen this erode through the actions and attitudes of many of our leaders. The attack on parental rights is just one example, but it is best demonstrated by the endorsement of our current leadership by the proponents of abortion.

I will ask our General Court to reintroduce a Parental Notification bill and to reopen hearings on end of life laws that threaten our elderly. I firmly believe that we must protect the lives of ALL NH citizens, young and old, born and unborn.

Environment

Private ownership of lands, with appropriate public access, should be favored over public ownership of lands. 

Conservation and appropriate use of our natural resources should be high on the list of all NH citizens. Common sense should be applied to all actions. Citizens should be aware of how their personal actions impact the environment, and the lasting legacy those choices pass to future generations.

Gambling

Income taxes and gambling are currently viewed as sources of revenue.  What we as a State face is a problem of spending not the production of revenue. I do not support gambling as a source of revenue.

State Sovereignty

I believe the Federal government has violated its constitutional role and taken away many rights that are reserved for the states and the citizens. This has made us dependent at many levels.

We must carefully investigate and understand what strings are attached to any federal monies, particularly those that are short term. Where the acceptance of them is not in our best interests, we should assert our independence and responsibility to control our own destiny.

Some state legislatures have issued proclamations declaring their sovereignty. I would not oppose this. However, it should not be necessary since I believe this is a basic right and fact.