From the Right

By Alex Fries

This week, Gov. Hassan presented her $11.5 billion budget proposal to lawmakers. There are already some major concerns with several key areas of the two-year spending plan, such as an increase in the tobacco tax, a steep increase in the vehicle registration fees, and, the most bizarre part of the budget is, the proposed hiring of a Chief Operating Officer whose job it will be to work with state agencies across the board to find more efficient ways to run the state. However, this specialist alone will cost the state $95,000, plus he/she will have two supporting staffers.

The governor’s budget is pure politics, in an attempt to catapult herself into federal office. It is more than clear that this budget will not be passed by the Republican controlled House who proposed a significantly smaller budget, and rightfully so!

Recently, Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ) in his keynote address at the Third Annual Lincoln-Reagan Dinner hosted by the Concord City and Merrimack County GOP attacked Governor Hassan with something many in New Hampshire speculate is the true reason behind the composition of her current proposal.

“She will use this platform as a way to increase her own visibility and run for the next job,” Christie said, referring to a possible bid for the Senate seat currently held by Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH).

Jeff Chidester, host of the Clear Channel radio show “New Hampshire Perspective with Jeff Chidester” rightly asks, “How can we expect our governor to lead us in the right direction if she is unwilling to take responsibility for the daily tasks she was elected to perform? Maybe New Hampshire should worry less about hiring a ‘state CEO,’ and more about electing a governor who understands that she is the ‘state CEO.’”

I agree very strongly with Jeff; it is baffling and quite alarming to imagine that the future of the State that we love so much and that we owe so much to is being led by a governor, who seems to care less about the citizens and the State she serves, and more about her own political future and with it the title on her door.

What does it matter if the governor hires a COO, raises taxes and proposes gambling as a means to cover basic costs, such as highway maintenance? It affects us millennials and anyone trying find a job or create a business, now and in the future, a lot.  New Hampshire was known for its entrepreneurial spirit and its small lucrative businesses and those are being strangled by taxes and red tape. Chances are that when we finish our education we won’t be heading to well-paying jobs in New Hampshire.

Much rather we will have to follow the path many New Hampshire millennials are being forced to take and move to states that have an economic model that allows entrepreneurs to thrive and provides chances of lucrative employment for its citizens.

It’s time for us to wake up and realize that for our current governor, her job and the well being of this state and her constituents, are just means to her political ends rather than people who are worth working for and building a better economy and overall better future for our state.

Alex Fries is a sophomore athletic training major and the president of the UNH College Republicans. Follow Alex on Twitter at @AJFriesNH.