The August sprint. The dead heat of the campaign where all your extra time is spent knocking doors, heading to events to and fro; doing every thing you can to speak to any and all people who will vote in September. The drama of a campaign starts to reach broadway levels in August. With most doing the silliest tap dance contest to attempt to win voters over. I do not have interest in participating in the petty squabbles of the online conversation. I occasionally go on to the different platforms to make a post in order to stay in touch with those who use them as their way to receive news, and will do some perusing while I am there but other than that - I do not participate in that which I believe is destroying our ability to communicate. 

Peter and I went out knocking doors this month as a team a couple times. Going to the Pine st, and Cheney st. neighborhoods and knocking every door we could. We had a great time seeing a whole host of people we knew and people we didn’t. Hearing about the issues important to them. Putting a face to the name and making connections amongst neighbors. It has been a pleasure to get to know Peter over these last two years. From when I sent an email to him resulting in our first dinner at Harlows, to now, walking doors as a team for the district which we are both privileged to serve. It is an honor to call Representative Leishman my friend. 

The first legislative filing period for incumbent legislators, funnily enough, opens on September the 3rd. Two days before the primary election. It ends on Friday, September the 13th. Another one opens on November the 6th, closing on the 22nd of the same month. Due to the early filing period I am in coordination with constituents, colleagues, and groups such as the NH School Funding Fairness Project to build out potential Legislative Service Requests to write legislation for the next session in the case I get re-elected to office. 

The NH School Funding Fairness project is a 501c3 non-profit organization which was established in 2019. Their mission is to bring awareness to the current school funding scheme which burdens our property poor towns, and advocate for changes to create a more just system for students and the taxpayers. They are a small staff of less than ten employees based out of Concord. I worked with Zack Sheehan of that organization to build HB1583, the bill which would have raised the base adequacy amount for our public school students, and they were a critical part to that bill’s success in the House this last term. 

Some of the legislation I am thinking of proposing would again relate to the education funding issue in our State. Tackling the rising property taxes for our citizens across the State. Putting in place sensible environmental regulations to protect our land, water, and people from the pollutants of industry. We will see how the electorate decides to compose the next legislature and which party will receive the majority in November. Which legislation gets proposed will greatly vary based on which party is in power. I as a member of the minority would prefer to be in the majority next year. The minority caucus in the House has members deeply committed to making this State the best it can be. Working on those important issues which I am running on. If there is any one in one of the purple districts in our State, I urge you to reach out to your democratic candidate, grill them on the issues and see if they are worth for their vote. Do not blindly vote down the ballot, get to know each candidate and their vision for the legislature. See if they truly care about your rising property taxes, falling apart public school system, infrastructure, and all the other important issues to you. 

I am confident if people did that, we would win a majority in the legislature. 

This is not going to be an easy election for either party. The electorate is beyond upset with a government they see representing the interests of the elite, more than they are the citizenry of this country. 

If the Democrats pull an authentic mea culpa on their own faults, and couple it with a coherent vision of the future which encompasses all citizens of our country. Hard policy instead of vague notions of values. Policy that speaks to the issues people are seeing in their everyday lives such as the should-be criminal nature of our so called health insurance industry. The working conditions on our big farms, packing facilities, mines, and other industry which you wouldn’t think twice about. Where the workers are working brutal days, for little pay. The environment which is being destroyed by runaway chemical trains, industrial waste facilities dumping trash juice into our land and water, the industrial farming destroying the local farms, the land, and our food; destroyed, by our negligence to industry's polluting behavior. The wars and brutal occupations being supported by arms provided by the United States resulting in the deaths of innocent people in exponential numbers this world hasn’t seen in generations, the starvation of millions, and the greatest moral tragedies of our times. 

The message is just waiting to be told. If Democrats can put aside their allegiance to big business and their wealthy donors, and build a message that connects to the citizens of this country; they will win. 

If they don’t, well, do I need to say?