NEW NHGOP PARTY PLATFORM IS (LITERALLY) MORE OF THE SAME RIGHT-WING EXTREMISM

For Immediate Release
September 29, 2008

NEW NHGOP PARTY PLATFORM IS (LITERALLY) MORE OF THE SAME RIGHT-WING EXTREMISM
 
 
(MANCHESTER) The New Hampshire Republican Party voted overwhelmingly to uphold a platform of extreme right-wing views during yesterday's state convention, rejecting a platform that offered more moderate stances on embryonic stem cell research and supporting pro-choice Republican candidates for office.

This comes just weeks after longtime state representative Elizabeth Hager (R-Concord) was primaried out of her seat by opponents she described in a newspaper article as Republicans who are "right-wing, anti-government and want to control social issues." Hager said she saw her loss as a victory by the more conservative wing of the Republican Party over moderates, and that  "I think a lot of people that have been associated with the Republican Party for years are no longer Republicans." [Concord Monitor, 9/10/08]

From November 2002 to August 2008, the difference between Democratic and Republican voter registration in New Hampshire has shrunk from 76,870 to 4,891.

"Yesterday's vote just reaffirms that the New Hampshire Republican Party is swearing allegiance to its extreme right-wing base," said Raymond Buckley, chair of the New Hampshire Democratic Party. "By actively opposing the use of embryonic stem cells and taking extreme stances on choice, they are closing their ranks to anybody who doesn't subscribe to their extreme views."

The delegates at yesterday's convention voted to uphold the extremist 2006 NHGOP platform instead of adopting a new draft. The extremist 2006 version states that the party actively advocates "opposing the use of embryonic stem cells," while the failed 2008 proposed draft makes no mention of embryonic stem cells.

The re-adopted extremist 2006 version also states "The New Hampshire Republican State Committee not supporting financially or by in-kind contributions, any candidate or nominee of this party who opposes measures to end partial-birth abortions", while the rejected 2008 proposed version does not mention such a financial ban.

The re-adopted extremist 2006 version also endorses "legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendment's protections apply to unborn children" and "supporting the appointment of judges who respect traditional family values", neither of which were mentioned in the 2008 draft platform that was rejected yesterday.

Despite a few moderated issues, though, even the rejected platform contained extreme positions far outside the mainstream of New Hampshire values.

New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Fergus Cullen said he did not have a problem with the state convention rejecting the 2008 platform and instead adopting the 2006 platform. [PolitickerNH, 9/29/08]

Extremist 2006 NHGOP Platform re-adopted Sunday: http://www.nhgop.org/0708platform.aspx

Proposed 2008 Platform rejected Sunday: http://www.nhgop.org/platformdraft.aspx