My Thoughts on the New Hampshire Primary

Posted by mpinkeyes in January 9th, 2008

Well, the primary is over. The candidates have moved out, headed to their latest destinations. The constant poll phone calls have ended. The relentless television commercials are over, the mailboxes are no longer stuffed with campaign mailers, and New Hampshire returns to normalcy. As the lawn signs come down it is time to ponder what has happened here. I tried to write this post this morning before work, but my heart just wasn’t in it. The passion was missing. When I sit down and start typing there is a passion that takes over, I know how corny that sounds, but it is true. There is something that takes over when you are fighting for what you believe in, even if it is only from behind a keyboard. I started typing two or three times and couldn’t find the words, so I went to work and decided to think about why I couldn’t motivate myself to write.

Well, I have come down off the ledge and am ready to get back to work. To quote Rocky Balboa from Rocky 6, (yes I went to the movies to see it, and it was good), “it’s not about how hard you can hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” I am ready to fight some more.

I realized what was bothering me, and it wasn’t the fact that my candidate lost. I have been through that before. It was that New Hampshire lost, at least the New Hampshire that I want. In November of 2006, New Hampshire lost her head, in January of 2008, New Hampshire lost her soul.

I am not going to use this post to analyze how John McCain won, what demographics voted for who, or how Hillary won, that has been done by many people over the last twenty four hours. I am going to use this post to talk about the future of New Hampshire.

My head has been telling me for a while now that New Hampshire would go through one more Democrat dominated election this November, but after that I thought Republicans would rebound and regain control. My heart was telling me that New Hampshire residents would be so fed up with the liberal agenda that was passed last year, the increased spending, and the nanny state regulations that a Republican might take back the governorship this year. I know my heart is wrong, that is why you never bet with your heart. But now I know my head was also wrong. The Democrat’s liberal agenda and tax and spend policies are here to stay. It is going to be a long hard battle to bring New Hampshire back to the good side.

So why do I say this? Many exit polls showed John McCain’s experience as a main reason some Republicans voted for him during a time of war. But that can’t be all. Most Americans want the war to be over now, so I find it hard to believe that a majority of Republicans voted for him because of his pro-surge policy. What is McCain most famous for? Amnesty for illegals,(a liberal idea), and blocking conservative judges, (a liberal commandment). He sides with Democrats way to often and even earned the endorsement of Joe Lieberman. This is proof, in his eyes, that he can work with Democrats to bring forth “change”. McCain has jumped on this mantra of using his experience to “change”Washington, ala Hillary Clinton. This is what I think may have drawn in many Republicans, and it is disheartening. The Independents who voted in the Republican party voted for McCain. They are most likely looking for a candidate of “change”.

Let us look at what this “change” encompasses. To John McCain, “change” means negotiating with, and siding with, Democrats. That may sound all well and good. What’s wrong with two sides working out a compromise? I’ll tell you. It’s the fact that liberals never change. They may say they are compromising, but it is always the conservatives who must give concessions to the liberals. In other words when you negotiate a deal with a liberal, you become less conservative and more liberal. A liberal never becomes more conservative. This is the candidate that New Hampshire Republicans and Independents want? A man willing to give in to liberals, just to say he affected change?

Sixty percent of Independents voted in the Democrat primary. They want change, they crave change, they demand change. It doesn’t even matter if they voted for Clinton or Obama, they voted for who they felt could give them change. Again change meaning more liberal. I don’t even need to mention that all the Democrats want change.

The third dynamic that will lead to liberal dominance in New Hampshire for years to come is this: young voters, and first time voters turned out in record numbers. These voters were energized and guess what they wanted- change. More liberalism.

Republicans in New Hampshire ready to compromise their principles, coupled with an angry and motivated Democrat base, and left leaning Independent vote, followed by young uninformed liberal voters who will be voting for years to come, means that New Hampshire’s independent, (note the small i and not the capitol I), citizens are going to become a thing of the past as we slowly fade into nanny state zombies who need to be told what is good and bad for us.

New Hampshire’s liberal dominated government is here to stay for a long while. I realized that I, and all the other conservatives out there in New Hampshire, took a beating yesterday. I was bloodied and beaten, but I have risen off the mat and am now ready to continue the fight for what I believe in.