John Stephen, The "Pledge" and Failed Public Policy
Last Friday I attended John Stephen’ public signing of the No New Tax pledge. In every way imaginable, this event signaled that Mr. Stephen will run a campaign based on the same public policy gimmicks that have turned us into a debtor nation and significantly weakened the American middle class.
The promise is small government and low taxes. The reality is deficits and debt, a decaying infrastructure, a banking crisis and a middle class that too often must chose between gasoline and health care.
Mr. Stephen stood alongside Grover Norquist the conservative lobbyist and founder of American’s for Tax Reform. Mr. Norquist symbolizes many things to many people. The right sees him as the number one crusader for small government and low taxes, the left sees him as a ruthless shill for special interests.
Former NH Republican Senator Warren Rudman has said this about Mr. Norquist: “Americans for Tax Reform is a wonderful-sounding name. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a front organization for Grover Norquist’ lobbying activities.”
Senator Rudman knows what he is talking about—he has dedicated many years to the Concord Coalition—a prestigious group of Americans dedicated to fiscal sanity and sustainable budgets.
Senator Rudman is right on the money about Grover Norquist. Mr. Norquist is the king of special interests and K street power politics.
Unfortunately, Mr. Norquist was the chief architect of George Bush’s massive tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and corporations. The scary part is that as the ultra rich get ultra richer and the middle class stagnates, Mr. Norquist considers the past eight years a rousing success.
True fiscal conservatives don’t turn the country they love into a debtor nation with a straight face.
Mr. Stephen has now saddled himself with the Norquist Bush world view.
He not only wants to make the Bush tax cuts permanent, he is parroting Norquist, Limbaugh and Bush in claiming that failure to make them permanent amounts to the “Largest tax hike in history.”
Since when does the end of a temporary tax break become a tax hike? If someone told me I would get huge tax break for the next eight years, I think I’d be pretty grateful and use my time wisely.
Give somebody else a chance? Not this crowd.
Thematically too the event was telling. It took place in a boardroom high above the Merrimack River. I stepped out onto a balcony and it really was breath taking. There’s nothing wrong with boardrooms per se, I’ve served on boards that met in comfortable rooms. But there was no mention of the middle class whatsoever. Not even a touch of lip service. There was no mention of recession, the national debt, the huge Bush Deficits or the healthcare crisis. And there was no mention of Iraq and the price to America in blood and treasure.
In fairness to Mr. Stephen he was very cordial to me. He and I talked both before and after the public part of the event. I enjoyed talking with him. I had a very nice chat with his wife too. I wish the three of us could have talked longer.
So this isn’t personal. What is personal though, is the lives that Americans live.
We’ve squandered too much of our precious time. We’ve squandered too much of our money. We’ve weakened our military's effectiveness. In short, Bush Norquist policies have created problems that will haunt the next five generations of Americans.
The policies that have failed us so badly have no place in our future.
Chaz Proulx
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Reader Comments (16)
Why?
I'm a Democrat and worked hard in 06 to help elect Carol Shea-Porter.
I'll be doing the same this year.
I think Rep. Shea-Porter is going to have a harder campaign this time. She will have to campaign on her record. Perhaps you might be willing to share what some of these accomplishments are. I'm over here in 2D. Though I'm a Republican I think Rep. Hodes has done a quality job in his first term after watching him in Groveton and Berlin I think he gets it. The question is: Does Rep. Shea-Porter?
I will be writing a lot about the accomplishments of Congresswoman Shea-Porter. She has worked tirelessly and accomplished far more than the general public is aware of.
Plus she has does not take special interest
money. Contrast this with John Stephen who is schmoozing today with pals of Jack Abramoff.
John Distaso wrote about that in todays Union Leader.
I'll grab the story and post it.
Once you cozy up to Norquist that opens the floodgates to special interests.
Here's Distaso's column
"Republican 1st District U.S. House candidate John Stephen will meet potential Washington-based supporters at a meet-and-greet in the nation's capital tonight.
Invitations sent by lobbyist Todd Boulanger, a former associate of Jack Abramoff, say, "Come hear first-hand why John will be the winner of the September 9 primary and go on to defeat Porter (sic)," referring to Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter"
Rep. Shea-Porter may not take special interest money, as you say, but I'd hardly classify Goss International as not being 'special interest.'
Any legislator in Washington that cannot work with lobbyists is a legislator that won't get anything done. Its that simple.
I'll look forward to your information about the legislative achievements of Rep. Shea-Porter.
Obviously you love lobbiests over the people of New Hampshire.
Both of our Republican Senators are also helping Goss too.
The people of NH are certainly a "special interest" to our entire congressional delegation.
This is from a Fosters article about the Goss situation:
Goss officials allege the Japanese company, Tokyo Kikai Seisakusho, Ltd., flooded the U.S. market with underpriced goods in a practice known as "dumping." Goss won $31.6 million in a jury trial in 2003, but the Japanese government soon afterward passed a "claw back" statute that could force Goss's own subsidiary in Japan to pay back the judgment.
Thank heaven Carol Shea Porter is standing up for a NH company and NH jobs.
This company is competing fairly and squarely and getting screwed by a particlarly ruthless Japanese business tactic.
This has implications for many American business and the law Carol Shea Porter submitted would keep the playing field level.
It's hard for me to figure out what you think is wrong with this picture.
When the Canadians dumped softwoood lumber on to the U.S. markets destroying the equity in every U.S. sawmill including those in NH/VT did the NH Congressional Delegation move to impose tarriffs. Answer: No.
When Russia, Brazil and countless others dumped steel onto the U.S. markets destroying equity positions and good jobs including subsidiary industries in New Hampshire. Did the NH Congressional Delegation move to impose tarriffs. Answer: No.
So what is wrong with this picture? Two answers:
1. The flawed actions of Rep. Carol Shea-Porter.
2. The Japanese lost the war. So this entitles them to treatment different than other countries that participate in this big world of global trade and opportunity.
And no Chaz I don't particularly like lobbyists but after serving two terms in the New Hampshire House and spending time in Washington have come to learn that like it or not they are an important if not instrumental part of the legislative process.
And what do you think the probability is that this legislation will even get out of committee?
Can you say.......Zilch.
I'll look forward to your outline of the legislative accomplishments of the Honorable Carol Shea-Porter. And all that she has done for the hard working people of the first congressional district.
This is not about Tariffs. I lived in Vermont when the US was in a taricc war with Canada/ Trains were lined along the border to get lumber into the us fast.
Anyway this is about collecting a debt that is owed. The US customs have been ordered to collect but never complied. All this bill does is give that order teeth.
Here are the details:
In the late 1990s, a number of printing presses manufactured by TKS were imported from Japan into the United States. In response to petitions filed by U.S. industry, the government determined that the Japanese printing presses were being ‘dumped,’ or sold below fair market value in violation of international rules, and threatening domestic industry.
In a review of subsequent sales, the government reversed its position and determined that the presses imported by TKS were sold at fair value. However, evidence was later revealed in a federal court case brought by Goss International that TKS had hidden dumping by using a fraudulent price increase, a secret rebate, and destruction of documents in order to conceal the full details of its sales in the U.S. market. A government investigation found that TKS had indeed concealed evidence that its imports were ‘dumped.’
According to the Department of Commerce determination: “This review reveals a uniquely egregious display of misconduct by a respondent in an antidumping proceeding … the evidence supports the conclusion that TKS deliberately embarked on a campaign to withhold and misrepresent material information specifically requested by the Department in the conduct of an antidumping duty proceeding.”
Two years ago, the agency determined that a 59.67 percent duty was appropriate to offset the amount of the unfairness. Shea-Porter’s bill would require U.S. Customs to re-process the imports from TKS with the correct duty applied.
PS. Its going to take me a long time to review all that Carol Shea Porter has done. She has been a very effective Congresswoman on the rise in Washington.
She displayed her talents for getting things done when she upset the political world and won a seat in 06.
She has put those same talents to work for the people of NH
Its going to be the pleasure of a lifetime to write about her.
Then what is it about? Your narrative states that printing presses were being sold in the U.S. at below fair market value. Vis a vis-- dumping. The presses were dumped, period.
Inasmuch as I can understand the position that Goss International is in. These things happen in business, which brings me back to my original claim. That this legislation is unfair and unbalanced. Lumber, steel and printing presses all were dumped. Even if this legislation somehow miraciously passes, it won't, the Japanese will never pay a 59.67% duty. They'll simply pass the cost off on the next item or category to be dumped automobiles for example.
So the larger question become what would it take for the Japanese to not engage in this type of activity. The starting place would be to stop punishing the Japanese for what they did to the U.S. This will be hard. But perhaps Rep. Shea-Porter could work on some of these issues and while she is at it encourage the Russians to release their soverignty on the Kureil islands.
After all its a small world we are all living in.
The Japanese company violated existing international trade laws.
You can argue trade laws and whether they are good or bad or in between, but that isn't the issue here.
How do you defend Mr. Stephen surrounding himself with so many special interests within hours of launching his campaign?
I think that's a question that bears discussion.
There's also the question of judgement. A new candidate should NOT want his name in the paper along with Jack Abramoff.
These things won't go away,
Jeb Bradley's campaign got a gift.
GREGG, SUNUNU URGE SECRETARY OF STATE TO SUPPORT GOSS TRADE DISPUTE CASE AT SUPREME COURT
Contact: Barbara Riley
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
WASHINGTON, DC – United States Senators Judd Gregg and John Sununu (R-NH) recently wrote to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urging her to support Goss International Corporation’s legal position in its anti-dumping trade dispute case with a Japanese competitor. The case, Goss International Corp. v. Tokyo Kikai Seiskusho (TKS), is currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.