I have requested legislation to be prepared that will allow 17 year olds to vote in future New Hampshire Presidential Primaries if they will be 18 years of age as of the General Election of that year, and if each political party agrees to the change. It makes a lot of sense to me that if they will be 18 and old enough to vote in the November Presidential Election -- and that at age 17 they already are allowed to serve in the military --they should be able to take part in the presidential nominating process by voting in our Primary.

Using our most recent Presidential Primary as an example, I believe it is very important for young people to be involved in the political process. I was especially delighted to see the awesome participation of young people in Iowa and New Hampshire. I'm sure a lot of those visiting voters door-to-door on behalf of candidates and attending rallies and other events during this year's New Hampshire Primary were under 18, and they probably got to know the issues and the candidates as well or better than a lot of us over 50.

I got involved in politics at a young age. In 1960 as a young pup I distributed flyers for John F. Kennedy. One of my very favorite memories was meeting Bobby Kennedy in Portsmouth as he was campaigning for his brother. Being involved so young was an invaluable experience, and I think it is so important that young people feel they do count, because they do. To allow them to vote in the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary if they will be 18 by the time of the November General Election -- and have their votes counted -- would be a good thing for our future.

I plan to present this legislation during the current Legislative Session, and the change allowing 17 year olds to vote would be in effect for the 2012 New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary.

There was a vast involvement of young people in the Iowa Caucus and the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary this year. With that in mind, I think that we should allow 17 year olds to vote in future New Hampshire Presidential Primaries if they will be 18 years of age as of the General Election of that year. It makes a lot of sense to me that if they will be 18 and old enough to vote for in the November Presidential Election, they should be able to formally take part in the process of nominating the President.

I have requested legislation to be prepared on this concept, and would welcome hearing readers' thoughts about the pros and cons of passing it. I do know that it is very important for young people to be involved in the political process, and I was especially delighted to see the awesome participation of young people in Iowa and New Hampshire, particularly on the Democratic side. I'm sure a lot of those out canvassing for candidates and attending rallies and other events during this year's New Hampshire Primary are under 18 as of now, and they probably got to know the issues and the candidates as well or better than a lot of us over 50.

I got involved in politics at a young age. In 1960 I distributed flyers for John F. Kennedy -- I was a young pup then. One of my favorite memories was meeting Bobby Kennedy in Portsmouth as he was campaigning for his brother. In the mid-1960s while still in high school I was selected Portsmouth Young Democrats President and as such met someone who would be a lifelong friend who is now my seat mate in the New Hampshire House -- Paul McEachern. In 1969 I was elected President of the NH Young Democrats, and we became the first "arm" of the Democratic Party nationwide to formally oppose the Vietnam War, much to the chagrin of some of the powers-who-be in the New Hampshire Democratic Party. See, I've been challenging conventional thinking and been an irritating guy for a long time.

I mention all that because I think it is so important that young people feel they do count, because they do. And to allow them to vote in the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary if they will be 18 by the time of the November General Election -- and have their votes counted -- would be a good thing to do.

Thoughts?

Well, the polls have just closed and it's kind of close, with results jumping around. But I think a few observations can be made about what this election means for Democrats. By the way, I ended up being in my house most of the day, except for voting, because my cold got worse so I missed this beautiful weather.

I caught a cold after being outside for an hour and a half at Midnight on New Year's Eve, when I attended and spoke at the Civil Unions ceremonies at the State House Plaza. It was a freezing chill that night, although a wonderful event with 37 wonderful couples having Civil Unions. So I stayed home and made telephone calls and sent E-Mails for my chosen candidate, Hillary Clinton. We'll see how she does.

Back to this New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary, it was just amazing. The turnout was probably the highest ever, and that's incredible because we always have a high turnout.

There are four special reasons, in my judgement, about why this is good for New Hampshire Democrats:

1. Great Turnout: Reword that to "Fantastic Turnout." That indicates a lot of coming successes for Democrats in New Hampshire and nationally in November. Like in November of 2006, the national situation will again turn out the voters in November, and they will likely vote Democrat. There's no guarantee in that, but whomever our Presidential nominee is, if we get behind him or her, we win in November. Big.

2. Independents Voted Democrat: That's going to be very helpful to Democrats in November. We now have the database of voter lists that won't cost much to update and which gives us most of what we need to know for November. We know who voted on Tuesday, January 8th -- and our job in November will be to get them to vote again then.

3. Democrats Have Positive Messages: Right across the board, the Democratic Presidential candidates led the debates and discussion on issues of corporation donations, Iraq, health care, economics, and foreign policy. Our lineup of candidates looked diverse and talented; the Republican lineup looked exclusively white-male, middle-aged, corporate-minded, and self-centered.

4. The New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary is alive and well, and more relevant than ever. Sure, it would have been sweet to have more than just five days between Iowa and New Hampshire, but everyone had to campaign with that schedule in mind, Iowa didn't unduly influence New Hampshire voters -- we're smart too -- and the impact of our Primary will be felt for a while because the next event for Republicans isn't until Michigan in a week, and the Democrats in Nevada in eleven days. New Hampshire counts.

No matter who wins the New Hampshire Presidential race here in New Hampshire, we know three more things:

1. Barack Obama Is A Great Candidate. An intelligent candidate. He has personality and the power of a message. No tricks. Not a lot of big endorsements. Just an ability to get people to like him. And people who liked him worked hard.

2. Hillary Clinton Is A Great Candidate. While from my view she's been overly-managed and her advertising wasn't inspirational, there is plenty of time and much room for Hillary To Be Hillary. I support her because I think she would make a wonderful President. In recent days we saw her be more "real," more "authentic." When people get to know her, people get to like her.

3. The Republicans are having an interesting race, as are the Democrats. John McCain is incredible, but Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee aren't finished. And Rudy Giuliani is waiting in other states for them all. Should be fun!

We also know that no one should withdraw from the race after the NH Primary. That's not what the New Hampshire Primary about. We shouldn't be an elimination round. I wish Chris Dodd and Joe Biden had not withdrawn after just one caucus. At this point, fewer than half a million Democrats have voted. About the same percentages are true about the Republicans. The Democrats and Republicans in the rest of the nation deserve to have their opportunity to view the candidates, ask their questions, and make their choices.

Looking at this as a lifelong Democrat, I think this race and the quality of all the Democratic candidates including John Edwards and Bill Richardson shows New Hampshire Democrats that we have to make sure that as part of our political dialogue we make it clear that it's not "us" against "them" -- meaning not about Democrats vs. Republicans. Nor is it all about raising as much money as possible. We need to win in November by showing that we are willing to take meaningful and idealistic positions on campaign finance disclosure and refusing corporate political donations, and in favor of economic reform that includes taking on the corporations and the way they abuse working men and women.

Once again, the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary has shown it has tremendous value for American democracy.

Just to add a little more to the "color" of the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary, I thought it would be good to mention a couple of my experiences today.

I visited Manchester around Noon, to fulfill some obligations I had previously committed to for interviews about our "lead--off" status. I've developed quite a bad cold since last Monday night when I spent an hour and a half on New Year's Eve in Concord when 37 couples joined in Civil Union. As I was speaking that night, or the next morning at 12:01 AM in a freezing chill, I felt something coming on. Well, it took hold.

So I would well have passed up talking much today, but i'm glad I kept my promises. In one case, talking with a BBC reporter for a live interview was most interesting, because I had a chance to ask some questions about how they view our process. It's really like night and day, and they were as fascinated about what we do as I was about the way they described what they do "on the other side of the pond."

Anyway, the area in Downtown Manchester between Bridge Street to Valley Street -- that's, I don't know, perhaps a mile or so -- was filled with sign-holders on intersections, camera people walking all around doing person-on-the-street interviews, and satellite trucks galore. Hundreds. Thousands. Amazing stuff.

Then I went to Concord. Wow. There was a John McCain rally about to start on the State House Plaza, but on two front corners of the State House there were Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton supporters, side-by-side, very friendly toward one another, having a great time. Passers-by in cars were honking as they passed their favorite candidates' signs. I saw a clump of John Edwards supporters, and a group that was more than enthusiastic for Dennis Kucinich.

I dropped into the State House to briefly visit Secretary of State Bill Gardner, who has a lot of ballots to count tomorrow night. He's anticipating a turnout of about 500,000 -- that's as in "half a million" -- and that will be a record for any primary or caucus anywhere, anytime. Since he and I had talked about the strategy on date-setting for well over a hundred hours during the past year, I thought a final hello would be appropriate.

As I was leaving, I quietly reminded him that he and he alone has the authority right now to cancel the Primary and set another date. He smiled. He shook his head. I left.

Monday was a quite wonderful day for New Hampshire, with Presidential candidates around our state talking about our future, America's future. The weather was nice too. And as a partisan, what impressed me most was that I saw the most activity by supporters of Democratic candidates. The enthusiasm seems to be with Democrats this year, and that bodes very well for November.

I've been involved at one level or another in every NH Presidential Primary since 1960, when as a young pup I passed out campaign flyers for John F. Kennedy. And that includes the very intense 1968 and 1972 Primaries which were held during years of returning body bags from Vietnam, including those of some of my friends.

But as I visited Manchester and Concord today and saw the past several weeks and especially past several days, I've never seen our Primary be this intense. Perhaps that's because of just the span of four full days between Iowa and New Hampshire, but it's probably more because a great deal is at stake, and this is the first time in over 50 years that both parties have very open races.

As I was walking back to my car to leave Concord, one thing symbolized to me the entire day, that among Democrats at least there is certainly a lot of division about who should be nominated, who's "on-first," so to speak, but that we'll quickly be able to unify afterward. It wasn't a big thing, perhaps, but it just seemed so nice:

One group of about six or seven Barack Obama sign wavers were on one side of Main Street in front of the State House. Just across the street were half a dozen Hillary Clinton sign wavers. All were rather excited, One of the Obama signs snapped and flew about 20 feet right into the middle of the street. A couple of cars ran over it.

From the other side of the street, one of the Clinton sign wavers ran over, picked up the sign and brought it to the Obama supporter as they together reassembled it. Lots of smiles, and a little applause from both groups after it was fixed.

Decent. Not Earth-shattering, but decent. It won't bring peace to the world, but it was nice. Actually, that kind of thing could bring peace to New Hampshire starting Wednesday morning.

I'm voting for Hillary Clinton in the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary. I made that decision long ago, although I appreciate the vision presented by Barack Obama, the courage of John Edwards, the diverse experience of Bill Richardson, and the inventiveness of Dennis Kucinich. How's that for covering all the bases?

Actually, I believe it -- and I think those of us who are Democrats should be mighty happy with this year's crop of candidates. We all have to keep in mind that whichever of "our" candidates wins the New Hampshire Primary, there may well be more than half of us who voted for someone else so we should be humble in our victory, and find ways to unify behind our eventual nominee.

If I was a Republican, I'd have a tough choice. I like John McCain, but despise his endorsement of the Iraq War. It's scary. Ron Paul makes some sense, but the guy is off-base in so many important ways. The rest of them, well -- I'm glad I'm a Democrat

But with John McCain's recent surge (not as in Iraq), I thought it might be worth repeating parts of my Blog post of this past April, with my observations of his announcement speech. I've expressed my concerns about Hillary Clinton's campaign these past couple of months, and taken a few hits for that although it bears out that something was wrong, but I'm hoping she has recovered enough to win.

But at least it seems clear John McCain did "reinvent" his campaign as he campaigned here, and may well be on track for a victory. On the campaign trail he has re-established his "straight-talk," and really hung in there and had REAL interactive "town hall" meetings. There's something to be said for that. It shows intelligence, character, and guts.

By the way -- those of us who are Democrats should look carefully at this guy. He may well be the candidate we'll be running against in November.

Blog Post From Wednesday, April 25, 2007:

"There are many types of heroes, and Senator John McCain is one. He was a prisoner during the Vietnam War, and has done some great things in the United States Senate. On the campaign trail when he ran for President in 2000, he offered the Republican Party a leader who I my judgment obviously would have been far more intelligent and visionary than the one eventually nominated."

"Come to think of it, I've got to write a 'What If...' commentary sometime about what if Al Gore had won in 2000."

"Anyway, John McCain 2008 seems off-message and off-key, and seems to be an inferior clone to his 2000 self. His campaign seems badly-exhausted rather than well-tested. He sounds like he's reaching for a message rather than on message."

"I watched his announcement speech in Portsmouth on Wednesday, April 25th. I was expecting the straight talk and clear idealism of McCain 2000 which motivated thousands and thousands in New Hampshire and elsewhere to get excited about this man."

"Instead, I saw someone stumbling over his words. Worse, he couldn't seem to go through a sentence without reading it almost word by word. One would expect if you're giving about the most important speech of your campaign -- an announcement speech -- you'd know it fairly well before walking up to the podium. But he didn't."

"Whether he was prepared by his campaign consultants or not isn't the point, although it tells us something about the state of his campaign if he wasn't."

"His apparent thematic approach, if he had one, was something like "...that's not good enough for America and when I'm President it won't be good enough for me." Those words followed a few statements of things that aren't going well."

"I also found that he raced through much of his speech, not waiting for expected applause at appropriate places. Yes, it was overcast but rain was a long time off, so I don't know why he suddenly became the Hurried-Up Express."

"And I didn't hear 'the vision thing.' Maybe he's been talking too much with his friend George W. Bush?"

"But, this man is an American hero. A genuine one. He fought for us. He defended us. I wasn't a fan of the Vietnam War no more than I am of the Iraq War, but when a man or woman goes to war in answer to a decision of our government -- right or wrong -- he or she deserves respect and appreciation. He went. He fought. He suffered. Many other heroes went, and didn't come back. Fortunately, John McCain did."

"One speech does not make a candidate or a campaign -- although one given by Barack Obama in 2004 at the Democratic National Convention certainly got some attention. So, here's hoping we'll see John McCain catch his breath and become a star again in the Republican Party."

"Let's hope his campaign reinvigorates and reinvents itself. His party needs him in the debate. And the Democratic candidates need to be challenged by quality opposition as well. The election season of 2007-2008 will be all the better with John McCain as an important player, whether or not he goes all the way."

This Blog post is written on Friday evening to sum up my reasons for supporting Hillary Clinton. I just finished watching the New Hampshire Democratic Party 100 Club on C-Span, where she and several of the other candidates spoke. I saw for the first time in a bit too long the Hillary Clinton we saw before the past three or four months. Maybe she's back. Maybe "Hillary Will Be Hillary" now, after Iowa. Let's hope.

Hillary Clinton is not perfect, but she will make a great President. Before I go on I should mention that I think the rest of the Democratic field would do just as well -- not better than Clinton, but no worse. We're going to win this one in November. Barack Obama is incredible, and his win in the Iowa Caucus was impressive. Joe Biden and Chris Dodd have done so much for the nation as great servants in the Senate, and it's sad they have withdrawn their candidacies after just one caucus. John Edwards has taken on Corporate America and he is right-on as he speaks about their emphasis on "corporate prosperity" instead of "corporate responsibility." Dennis Kucinich speaks to my heart in many ways on many issues. Bill Richardson has tremendous experience and can contribute much to our future as well.

I was a very early supporter of Hillary Clinton -- on December 6th, 2006, I wrote my first Blog post backing her, and that was six weeks before she even announced. By then I had known enough about her to be convinced that whomever else announced, I could support her.

I first met Hillary Clinton in 1991 at a small Portsmouth meeting as she was campaigning for her husband. She was fantastic, and I'm not easily impressed by political-types since I've seen a lot of them going back a long time. So many seem a bit phony. So much of what you see is image. Yes, after all this time I'm still cynical about a lot of politics.

What has always impressed me most about Hillary Clinton from the beginning was her naturalness. It's her "I-am-who-I-am" attitude and "what-you-see-is-what-you-get." In fact, my only real criticism of her in recent months -- other than on a few issues -- has been about her campaign and the way she has allowed herself to be overly-managed It happens. All the candidates have their "handlers," and some are over-zealous. Focus groups, polls, and the political consultants who base campaigns on those results are the bane of politics. So often they make good candidates less than they are. Candidates have to stand above it all, and I think Hillary Clinton eventually will. Perhaps she already is. Perhaps we're beginning now to see Hillary as Hillary.

There are lots of reasons any of us choose for whom we will vote. In addition to others, here are my three special reasons for supporting Hillary Clinton:

REASON #1. KNOWLEDGE OF THE WAY THINGS WORK. Knowing the behind-the-scenes process of decision-making is a skill that can't be learned by reading a book, and she has learned that very personally and first-hand for the past two decades.. She knows how to advance meaningful health care because she tried, but failed. One often learns even more from their failures than their successes. She was in the center of great successes during an eight-year administration. She wants to get out of Iraq. She has done much for kids. She is committed to health care for all. She wants real education reform. She can do the job. She IS ready.

REASON #2. BILL CLINTON. Yes, him. I really believed in 1992 that "two for the price of one" was true. I still do. Bill Clinton can do much as the President's husband, and his future potential role as world ambassador cannot be underrated. His international respect is well-known. The election of Hillary Clinton as President will greatly enhance America's standing in the world, and will save lives here and abroad. I believe that. And it is so vitally needed. Our future security depends on it.

REASON #3. SUPPORT OF EQUALITY. I met Hillary Clinton for the very first time at a small meeting in Portsmouth in 1991. As I had with various Presidential candidates or their surrogates through the years, as she was leaving the meeting I asked what her views were on gay rights. For the first time ever with a candidate or a surrogate, I found I didn't have to further explain what I meant, and she didn't "whisper" her answer to me -- which other candidates or surrogates would invariably do.

She loudly, and clearly, without hesitation, said that gays and lesbians should be equal, because we are Americans like everyone else. Bill Clinton during that campaign took on the message that "each of us counts." When he became President he lived up to that, and many times he, and Hillary, spoke out for gay and lesbian equality, and fought discrimination for all in many other ways. I believe Hillary Clinton means it when she talks about equality, and she was there for all of us years before many others were, and long before it became somewhat easier to be an open supporter of gay and lesbian equality. That's important to me. She'll be with us even more in the future.

Hillary Clinton will make a great President. I believe in her ability. I admire her courage. I understand some of her limitations. I like her vision for America. I'm not a jumping-up-and-down cheerleader for her believing that she can do no wrong, because she is human. But in large part because of my past words of concern about the campaign she has run up to this point, I am even more sincere in saying she should be President.

I would like to hear from anyone with their own "lessons from Iowa." Here are mine, based on lots of watching the candidates as they campaigned Iowa -- the cable networks in general, and C-Span in particular, gave great up-close-and-personal views of the candidates. My observations might seem a little harsh toward a couple of candidates, but what the heck -- I'm not out to make friends with some of their consultants. By way of full Blogging disclosure, I'm voting for Hillary Clinton on Tuesday.

1. Don't Washington-Speak. Long-time United States Senators or people who hang around government for too long seem to forget that message. Most of us don't live there. Talk our language. But don't dummy-down to us. We can tell when you do that. Joe Biden and Chris Dodd didn't do well in Iowa for that reason. Hillary Clinton often sounded like she had been hanging around people in power for two decades. I wondered where the "conversation" that she started her campaign went. Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee sounded "fresh." Even "refreshing."

2. Don't Be Marshmallow Fluff. Have some courage to be yourself. Let yourself be you. Put your bell-curve focus group-driven, poll-tested politically-correct answers and cute sayings aside. It's obvious who did that well. And who didn't.

3. Be Bold And Challenge Us With A Vision. We don't want to vote for you just because you're wonderful or you have a fantastic resume. We want to know what you'll do in the future and what you want us to do for our future. In Iowa, those who talked more about "us" than themselves did quite well. Those who talked more about "me" than "you" didn't. And show some passion. Maybe even some anger -- there is reason to be angry about what has been happening in this world. John Edwards did that well in Iowa.

4. If You're A Democrat -- Be Strong Against Iraq. Don't play games with us. Are you for getting out? When? How? Be clear. We have to know.

5. Use The Internet As An Interactive Resource. Stop asking for contributions in every E-Mail message. We just turn that out. Use the Internet to involve us, learn from us, solicit opinions. When people write in, write back. And be informative -- not just the flash and puff. We can see through that. Best WEBSITE: Barack Obama. Tells us something.

6. Involve The Young. After all, they're the ones who are going to outlive us all. And they DO vote. Barack Obama is more than a "fad" for some reason. He connects. Young people in Iowa supported him in droves.

7. Welcome The Independents. In Iowa, the Democrats won over the Independents. That's great for Democrats in November. We need them here in New Hampshire. Barack Obama gets lots of them, as does John McCain. To win, Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney have to discover them.

8. Be For REAL Change, And Mean It. But if you're going to do things differently with out-of-the-box thinking, explain what you mean. Barack Obama did that well in Iowa. Hillary Clinton just seemed to be copying his messages about change. If she's going to turn this around, she has to explain her own brand of "change." .

9. Be Non-Establishment. People have seen a lot of establishment-types in recent years and they've skid us into a war. We're looking for non-establishment types. Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama were considered non-establishment in Iowa. How Mitt Romney, John Edwards, or Hillary Clinton deal with that in New Hampshire might dictate how they do.

10. Seek To Become A Voice. Most of us as citizens feel we have little or no voice in Washington, or in government in general, especially if we have little money and don't contribute to candidates. We're looking for "one of us." In Iowa, Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama seemed more like us than Hillary Clinton (White House "experience") or Mitt Romney (so rich he could buy all the McDonald's restaurants in Iowa). If you're not like one of us, at least try to relate to us more. Tell us how you're going to empower us and respect us.

11. Focus On People And Ideas, Not Endorsements. Endorsements help, but the emphasis should be on "regular-folk." Too many of these candidates have their political endorsers at every rally, up front and center behind them on-stage. In most cases, it seemed like the backdrops in Iowa at events where Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama were speaking were just regular folk. Well, with the exception of Chuck Norris standing with Mike Huckabee like a lifeguard. But that's a bit different.

12. Have A Message, And Stick To It. It's not just about money and running millions of dollars of ads full of clutter and fluff. In Iowa, the candidates who had regular repetitive messages and somewhat of a theme, and stuck to them for more than just a couple of weeks, did well. The ones who were all over the place with their messages and had advertisements full of quick bites of messages didn't do well. They need to learn from that. The "corporate greed" vs. "corporate responsibility" messages of Barack Obama and John Edwards paid off in Iowa. Many of us understand that kind of message. But what does "Ready To Lead" mean? Ready to lead what? And where? And where to? The difference is rather specific vs. very generic. The difference is what relates to us vs. what is meaningless.

13. Be Straight-Talking. Barack Obama usually answered questions in a sentence or two. Hillary Clinton went on for a minute or two. Bill Clinton when he'd speak for Hillary would answer questions in five minutes or so. Mike Huckabee seemed to have clear answers. Mitt Romney had to explain himself at length. Joe Biden couldn't answer questions without Washington-speak. Iowa people were listening carefully, and made their choices based on what they heard. We will here too.

14. Be Authentic And Look Us In The Eye. Voters can see through phoniness. When a candidate is calculating or cautious in answering questions, we can tell. There's something genuine about Mike Huckabee -- what you see is what you get. Same with Barack Obama. I think there's a lot of WYSIWYG with Hillary Clinton too, but her managers and handlers haven't let us see that yet. And eye-to-eye contact on the campaign trail is vital. C-Span is great for noticing that in the candidates as they walk around before and after speeches and greet voters.. Mike Huckabee was great at that in Iowa. Mitt Romney didn't seem to do it well. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama each have good people skills, but there's just a special warmth about Obama that Clinton needs to develop. One of the more amazing things about Bill Clinton is that if you have just ten seconds with him, for those ten seconds you feel as if you're the most important person in the world to him for that time. Hillary Clinton needs a lesson -- she always seems to want to go onto the next handshake.

15. Be Consistent. "Flip-flopping" isn't the problem that most candidates have. It's not being able to answer a question the same way with some consistency, or being clear about a position without trying to cover all the bases and make everyone happy. Mitt Romney seemed to take several positions on some issues -- it's not that he's changed his positions, it's that you just don't know where he stands now. Barack Obama gives a lot of rhetoric, but has consistent messages. Hillary Clinton's messages in speeches and television advertisements changed a lot in Iowa. That can't happen these next few days in New Hampshire.

I have written about it in more detail before, but I'll say it again in this shorter but begging message to her campaign management: Let Hillary Be Hillary. Please. She will not win this one by being overly-managed, by giving focus-group designed, poll-driven, politically-correct answers, or by talking about 1990s "experience."

What we have seen lately is not the Hillary Clinton many of us think we know and have been before. And the Hillary Clinton we have watched on the campaign trail these past few months is not what we have seen these past few years in the United States Senate. Something happened when she hired all these Washington-based consultants.

To Hillary Clinton, if I may be so bold: Starting Friday at 12:01 AM until the polling begins in the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary, you have just exactly 96 hours. That's 5,760 minutes. Don't waste any of those minutes with your slogans or the meaningless ads your managers have put on television. Spend time talking "with" us, not "to" us. Talk with us about your vision in these next few hours.

Give us your hopes and dreams. Display your courage. Please don't pass up this opportunity to be the Hillary Clinton that can be a great President.

I am quite a fan of the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary. I think it is democracy at its best in that our process allows candidates to spend time talking "with" us instead of "to" or "at" us, which they often end up doing by standing behind cameras in television studios in the larger states.

Here they have to meet regular folk face-to-face, talking with us one-to-one and eye-to-eye on our streets and sidewalks, in our living rooms and small meeting halls. We get to ask them tough questions AND we usually have the chance for follow-up if they have just given us their own consultant-written, focus-group tested politically-correct answer. Then we go into the privacy of a voting booth and make our choice.

Our Presidential Primary is a real election.

The Iowa Caucus is not.

Whatever happens in the Iowa Caucus, New Hampshire voters should keep it in perspective by reminding ourselves that whatever it is and whatever they call it, the event in Iowa is not an election. While I respect and appreciate the Iowa Caucus, we should keep in mind that for all that it is, it is not an election in any sense. That doesn't make it any less meaningful. I just means the rest of the country should keep that in mind.

A "Caucus" as in the case of Iowa is a statewide series of meetings. Members of the Democratic and Republican Parties meet in meeting halls and living rooms throughout the state and discuss the candidates. It is purely a party event. The political parties create the rules. The political parties pay for most of the arrangements.

The rules for the caucuses are confusing at best, and often favor candidates who have lots of staff on the ground able to facilitate the logistics of the caucus-goers. Political parties and candidates' campaigns often arrange for dinners for their supporters to gather before, or after, the caucus. Sort of a reward, I guess.

The caucus meetings themselves are often several hours long, making it difficult for many working men and women who have other obligations to attend. Supporters of the candidates "vote" by voicing their opinions and standing up, or sitting down, in corners of the room with other supporters of that candidate. Oh, and campaign staff and organizers can watch to see exactly what you're doing, and who you're supporting.

The Iowa Caucus is a good event in that it is an exercise in democracy, but it is not an "election" of the kind Americans will participate in New Hampshire and most other states. New Hampshire's First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary is a real election, paid for by the state, held under the strictest of regulations protecting the integrity of the ballot.

In New Hampshire, voters go into the privacy of the voting booth to exercise their right to vote for the candidate of their choice. Unlike Iowa, "observers" are not looking on to intimidate the voter. The New Hampshire Primary is administered in exactly the same way that the November General Election will be. Indeed, it is a real election and a much more accurate indicator of voters' support for candidates.

What New Hampshire Democrats and Republicans should do in making their final judgement about whom they will vote next Tuesday is to put aside the results in Iowa after taking a good look at them. If a candidate comes in "first" in Iowa, does that tell us anything other than that candidate's staff and the special interest groups supporting that candidate were effective at getting their supporters at party meetings? And if a candidate runs fourth or fifth in the Iowa Caucus, that should not discount him, or her, for staying in the race. They're on our ballot next Tuesday and we should have them still in the contest by then.

So, from my point of view whatever happens in Iowa should stay in Iowa. We should look at the results, maybe chuckle a bit if one of the candidates screams on caucus night, perhaps even thank the people of Iowa for fulfilling their democratic role of voicing and standing up for their opinions. Then we should make up our own minds. We still have a few days to do that.

It's New Year's Eve. There are just a few hours to go before Midnight, and guess what happens right after then?

Okay, lots of things. But one thing that is happening that affects some people very much is the New Hampshire Civil Unions law becomes effective. And in some ways, it affects all of us.

It was a tough, long battle to get to this point. Still, a lot needs to be done for full equality. We need full marriage equality with the word, and Civil Unions don't allow for the many federal benefits otherwise given to differently-gendered couples.

BUT, the New Hampshire Civil Unions law will provide for equality under the state laws for both gay and straight couples. That's a lot of progress. That's more equality for gays and lesbians here than in 45 other states.

There are those who are still attacking the thought of Civil Unions and equality. During the past several days I've heard and read a number of those attacks, and a few have been mentioned to me face-to-face. Hey, it happens.

But as I drive to the State House in Concord tonight to watch some of the very first Civil Unions, I'll be reminded that nothing on this planet is more important than the way we treat one another. So many of our problems would disappear if we treated one another fairly and equally. I can't quite figure out what motivates anyone to do otherwise.

Why are Civil Unions important? -- even for those who won't engage in one? I think it's because of the message it sends.

Right now there are some young people in this state -- more than just a few perhaps -- who are dreading going back to school next week where they will continue to be harassed and mocked because of being gay, or perceived to be. Questions about one's sexual identity is one of the leading causes of suicide among young people.

But in tomorrow's newspapers and on television, they will see couples who happen to be of the same gender committing to one another to share their lives and love together. And they will be hearing that our state government has said that is okay. It's okay to be gay. That's a powerful message to everyone.

Sometimes when I think politics is rough and tough and tumble, I think of how some people have treated me, and others, who are gay -- before we "came out," and even now. Each and every day, gay and lesbian young people, and the older among us, have some of the cruelest things said to us and about us. Most of us who are gay have either been beaten up or had hostile things said to us. I've had both, even recently. It does get personal. And it does hurt.

But, with Civil Unions we have made some progress. We're not there yet. Civil Unions open one more door for equality and acceptance for gays and lesbians. There are other doors to open. There are more miles to walk. But we will get there.
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Here in New Hampshire, as of 01.01.08 -12:01 AM, the law will say that same-gendered couples who have a Civil Union will have all of the same "rights, responsibilities, and obligations" which are currently given under our marriage statutes to differently-gendered couples. That's more than we've ever had here.
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And that's a good thing. It's a good thing for gays and lesbians. It's a good thing for New Hampshire. And it's a good thing because nothing is more important than the way we treat one another -- fairly, and equally.

A great way to start the New Year! And I wonder what all the Presidential candidates visiting New Hampshire will say about it during the next several days.

I find the decision of the organizers of this Saturday's debate at St. Anselm College to be disgusting. My goodness. In a democracy? In the First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary? What is politics coming to?

The news media already "create" candidates and their "who's-on-first" standing by running their own polls, managing minutes of coverage for each, selecting the questions they'll throw at them on the campaign trail, doing long stories about how much money candidates have received (while ignoring where they got all that money), and even setting up focus groups with hand-held dials to have a second-by-second, word-by-word bell-curve on-screen display of instant reaction to answers in debates.

NOW the media wants to limit the candidates who have been invited to virtually all the Democratic and Republican debates in the past many months based on the results of some party meetings in Iowa this coming Thursday?!

The news media should play no role in limiting official candidates who have already participated in previous debates. Nor should an educational organization. That's not what the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary is about.

Further, I could strongly suggest that the Iowa Caucus is NOT a real election -- it is a statewide collection of political party meetings where members publicly support their candidates of choice. That's not what we do in November, when Americans go into the privacy of their voting booths to exercise their right to vote in our democracy. New Hampshire's Primary is a real election. Party members in Iowa should not be determining who may or may not debate the issues in New Hampshire.

I would give any of the candidates who are "chosen" to participate in Saturday's upcoming St. Anselm College debate a bow of respect if they stand up, as Ronald Reagan did, and insist that the others join them on the stage. That would be leadership of the first order. In fact, they should be challenged to do that: to stand up and fight for the right of legitimate candidates to speak and be heard.

In the interest of full Blogging disclosure, I've often mentioned in my posts that I'm supporting Hillary Clinton. She'll make a great President. And I fully expect she will be among those insisting that all the nationally-recognized candidates participate in the Democratic debate. I'd be disappointed if she doesn't.

This election isn't a TV show. It's about democracy. It's about our future. It's an important reality show for all of us, and the news media shouldn't be selecting the cast of stars in it.

It's late Christmas Eve. I'm alone, watching some of my Season Two DVD of Showtime's Queer As Folk a friend gave me. I just went outside and looked to the sky on this perfect evening, with a full Moon and bright stars everywhere. It's not as nice as Christmas Eve's of the past with family of long ago or friends of more recent times, but it's okay and relaxing.

So I decided to give some "gifts" for Christmas and a few New Year's wishes to some people. Here goes:

To George W. Bush -- Some chat time with his Dad and Mom. Obviously he didn't listen to them when he was a little guy when they, like all parents, hoped their son would grow up to be good.

To Carol-Shea Porter -- The continued courage and independence to be a great Congressperson.

To Paul Hodes -- A conservative Republican to run against in 2008, so he can have more fun and win even bigger than last time.

To Jeanne Shaheen -- A united New Hampshire Democratic Party behind her after next September's primary.

To Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani -- Copies of the book "How To Get Along With People Who Are As Messed Up As Me."

To Mike Huckabee -- A copy of "First Grade Reader," so in the future he can read the simple facts about AIDS and other issues.

To all New Hampshire gays and lesbians -- The full right to marry. Soon. Not just a Civil Union. "Marriage," with the word. In the meantime, Civil Unions are "official" as of 12.01 AM 01.01.08. Fantastic. We're getting there.

To the New Hampshire First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary -- The absolutely bestest-ever turnout of voters across all age groups on Tuesday, January 8th. It's our chance to show the nation we go to the polls in droves, and that's why New Hampshire is important now and in the future.

To John Lynch -- A new office camera. Twice now when I arranged for pictures in the Governor's Office their camera didn't work, most recently with some Russian journalist visitors. Fortunately we brought cameras of our own. But what gives? I'm not THAT ugly.

To Secretary of State Bill Gardner -- Another chance to set the date of yet another Presidential Primary, in 2012.

To The Union Leader -- A giant bag of coffee so the reporters will be alert enough to keep a sharp eye on all those wayward national and statewide Republican candidates who are switching all around and attacking one another about things they never said. My are they confused.

To Democrats everywhere and anywhere -- A fantastic year in 2008 on the national and state levels. The only way we can lose this one is if we don't let Democrats be Democrats.

To our troops in Iraq -- Withdrawal from that ill-planned, unnecessary war, and a commitment never to again put them in harms-way unless necessary.

To "Granny D" -- Success on her effort to have New Hampshire join the dozen other states with public financing of campaigns and real campaign reform.

To Hillary Clinton -- A new campaign manager. I don't even know who the current one is, but I do know she could use a new one. This woman rocks and will make a great President, but her campaign continues to be off-based from what I can see. She still has time, but those who are on the top of her national campaign could serve her better.

To my wonderful kitty cat "RayToo" -- Pleasant dreams of chasing mice, and another year of good health. I need your "greetings" every day I return home.

And to my very special friend D.P. -- Successful surgery in three weeks, because I don't want to lose another good friend, and the world needs all the wonderful people it has. You can make it!

Well, that's it for this year. I can't afford to be any more generous. How about other gifts from readers?

Polls. It seems like some politicians and their consultants can't live with them, and most can't live without them.

Polls are mostly irrelevant, and in some ways are quite destructive of the political process. Polls are the ultimate Catch 22, where instead of leaders offering their courageous real opinions, the polls often lead the candidates who want to get elected as they "tailor-make" their messages and positions to reflect the polls.

There have been polls for decades -- though they only began getting some degree of recognition since the late 1940s. They're not going away, no matter what I or anyone else might write. And in some ways, put into proper perspective, and used carefully and interpreted with both skill and objectivity, polls can serve a positive purpose.

I've done a lot of polling -- writing them, administering them, and coordinating polling efforts. And although I don't claim to be an expert I have studied the process and interpreted a lot of polls. To be anywhere near accurate, a poll has to ask the right questions the right way, they have to be administered uniformly allowing for variants and statistical balance, and just as importantly -- they have to be interpreted correctly.

But do they tell us anything useful? So what if Hillary Clinton is ahead of Barack Obama at a particular time, if 50% of voters say they haven't made up their minds or another 20% who have answered the questions say they're not firm in their answers? What's THAT tell us? The "who's on first" really doesn't tell us anything. It gives bragging rights to someone, and that's about it.

Of late, I think the worst of polls has the on-air real-time bell-curve focus-group instant-polling we've seen during recent debates of both the Republican and Democratic candidates. FOX News and WMUR TV had focus-groups using their hand-held dials to instantly register their "favorable" and "unfavorable" opinions to candidates answers. The bell-curves ran on the television screen right along with the candidates' responses to questions, telling the viewer immediately what listeners thought of the comments, virtually word-by-word.

What's THAT do to "leadership?" I can just imagine a candidate DARING to answer a question about Civil Unions a few years ago. Do you believe gays and lesbians should be able to have a Civil Union giving them all the rights, responsibilities, and obligations of marriage?" My goodness! I bet no candidate would have answered favorable to that, and if they did the bell-curve would be hovering around 30 percent. So, other candidates for other offices would have got the message -- stay away from Civil Unions.

We need leadership on issues like real health care reform, tax reform, corporate responsibility and workers' rights, education, global warming, Iraq and other foreign policy matters -- not just an assemblage of buzz words written by consultants who are interested in just getting their candidates to say what the public wants to hear, word-by-word.

Instant polling gives us only an instant snapshot, a gut reaction of the voter. And polls themselves only give us a snapshot of the voters' judgement at the moment, and gives us little indication of whom really is "on first" for longer than that moment.

Unfortunately, I think, the overemphasis on polls affects the electoral process in ways that harms it. Donations are based on polls. Campaign strategies, and whether or not a candidate sticks to a position on an issue is affected by polls. Even whether a candidate decides to withdraw from a race before votes are cast is based on polls. About the only thing they really do is provide chatter for the pollsters and for the news media and talking heads on TV shows.

I'd like to see an election without polls. An entire election with polls. Wow. Could we at least try it? Well, I can also dream of becoming an astronaut before I die and flying to Mars.

I wonder where the Presidential candidates stand on the death penalty. After all, it is a life or death issue, and there is a certain hypocrisy on the issue across the board.

A long time ago -- oh, it seems long anyway although it was just 2000 at the turn of the century, New Hampshire was close to being the very first state to abolish the death penalty since the United States Supreme Court allowed executions again in the mid-1970s.

In 2000, the New Hampshire House and Senate surprised the state and excited many people throughout the country and the world by becoming the first legislative bodies to vote for legislation to abolish the death penalty in over 20 years. We had the public and personal support of Coretta Scott King, Bishop Desmond Tutu, former President Jimmy Carter, even the Vatican. Imagine -- it passed!

With just a signature waiting for the bill to become law, we heard that the Rome Coliseum would turn on its lights, but...

...the bill then ran into a wall. Governor Jeanne Shaheen vetoed it, and we failed to overcome her veto. I was in the thick of that debate, as primary sponsor of the bill. To this day I'm sad about Governor Shaheen's decision. I understand. But I disagree. We lost.

Just this week, New Jersey abolished the death penalty. The Rome Coliseum will turn on lights this week in recognition of the courage shown by New Jersey lawmakers, and Governor Jon S. Corzine. Some 36 states, including ours, still allow executions.

In signing the legislation, Governor Corzine, who is a Democrat, said “Today New Jersey is truly evolving. I believe society first must determine if its endorsement of violence begets violence, and if violence undermines our commitment to the sanctity of life. To these questions, I answer yes.”

There is a "cycle of violence" that former NH State Representative Renny Cushing, who is now Executive Director of Murder Victims Families For Reconciliation, refers to often in his speeches. The "cycle" is that when a horrible murder occurs, that victim's family grieves for their loss. And then when an execution occurs, yet another family is affected. The brothers and sisters, parents, and children of TWO families suffer. And Renny Cushing should know of what he speaks -- his father was killed in 1988 at his home by a man showing up at the front door.

The death penalty isn't a deterrent. It just cheapens our society, and that's not a good message for our young people. That's why most religions on this planet oppose the death penalty, as do most nations of the world. Right now, New Hampshire is in league with China, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Texas.

I believe all the Presidential candidates should take clear positions on the death penalty. For. Against. And why.

The new law in New Jersey, like the one I sponsored again this past Spring, replaces the death penalty by execution for capital murder with a death penalty of life-in-prison without any chance of parole. In a very real way, that is worse than the death penalty -- each and every day, the person who committed those horrible crimes will wake up behind the bars of a small cell, will smell the odors and hear the noises of the cell block all day, and will go to sleep in that cell. No more rides in a car, walks on a beach, or seeing the stars. That's their existence, until God decides their death penalty.

This year's death penalty abolition bill lost by only 12 votes in the New Hampshire House, by a vote of 185 to 173. It was defeated in large part because Governor John Lynch said he would use his veto stamp if it passed. I understand. But I disagree.

New Hampshire should abolish the death penalty. We need the courage to do so. And all the Presidential candidates -- Republican and Democrat -- should have the courage to say what they believe regarding the death penalty, and the message it gives to our kids about the way we treat everyone in our society.

Three weeks ago I wrote a Blog post expressing my concern about the way Hillary Clinton was campaigning. That's when she was still "ahead," if we are to believe the polls. I still don't put much stock in the polls at this point, since in the NH First-In-The-Nation Presidential Primary we've often seen much shift during those final few days before people go to vote. However, I am concerned that her campaign still has continued to emphasize "experience" rather than "ideas," and the "past" rather than the "future." And her advertising in my judgment is crammed full of rhetoric, with no clear message other than this stuff about a President needing to be ready to "lead from day one." What's that mean? She can do better.

I got some criticism about my observations a few weeks ago. I received a few calls and E-Mails from my fellow Clinton supporters, even some suggesting I was being disloyal by offering even a bit of public criticism. We have to all be "cheerleaders," I was told. But I'm never going to ask Hillary for a job if she wins. In fact, it's me who's trying to get HER a job, with my vote. I don't need to please the campaign bosses. And Hillary Clinton doesn't either.

Of course, perhaps my observations about her campaign aren't accurate. I can accept that. Maybe I'm wrong and it's perfect. But I just think something's wrong with her campaign right now. I've been involved at one level or another in every NH Primary since 1960, when I distributed flyers as a little pup for John F. Kennedy, and I've seen and participated in lots of good, and poor, campaigns -- as well as good campaigns that just fell apart because of some poor tactical choices during the closing weeks. It happens.

Either way, in a hope that my chosen candidate will run up to a smashing successful finish during the next and final 26 days to January 8th, I again encourage Hillary Clinton to reinvent her campaign and show us who she really is and not just what her consultants and handlers from Washington media firms want us to think she is. I urge her to listen to more of her experienced New Hampshire campaign advisors. And I ask her to present her ideas in her own words, without the buzz phrases that might rate "80%" on the electronically-generated curve in some focus group session.

As I said last Spring shortly after she formally announced, Hillary Clinton could lose this one. Put another way, it's her's to lose, or win. As a very early endorser, dating back to a Blog post I wrote on December 5, 2006, even before her announcement of January 20th six weeks later, I began to get concerned about the direction of her campaign after she made her first few visits here.

What I've seen these past few months isn't the Hillary Clinton I remember from her campaign visits here in 1991, when I first met her, or her several visits since and prior to this year. Where has the "conversation" gone that she said she wanted to start with her announcement last January? It seems as if she is talking "to" or "at" us, even "down" to us. She needs to talk "with" us -- in fact, one of the strengths of the NH Primary is that candidates indeed have that chance, to get away from the podiums and look us in the eye, face-to-face, not talking over our heads.

Where are her courageous stands? It seems like so many of her "positions" are indeed that -- positions that are the result of focus groups and consultant message massaging that simply makes it difficult to figure out exactly what she will do about Iraq, corporate corruption, campaign finance reform, and even health care. I just can't figure it out.

"Let Hillary Be Hillary" should be her personal motto during the next three-plus weeks in Iowa and New Hampshire. THAT WAY, she'll win this thing Otherwise, I'm worried that we will lose the opportunity to have a great President elected in 2008. .

To Hillary, I'll repeat my advice from a few weeks ago for what it's worth: Put your pollsters aside. Forget the focus groups. Resist the "politically correct" answers where you sound like you're trying to satisfy everyone and every interest group. Tell your managers you don't want to be managed. Leave your speech writers' missives at their offices. Forget the cute one-liners that don't tell us much. Don't be overly cautious or calculating. Show your courage, we've seen that before. Be yourself. Just yourself. We'll like what we see.

Challenge us. Talk with us about America's possibilities and our opportunities. Give us your vision. I think we'll like you even more for that. And you'll become President.

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01.01.08 - 12:01 AM: Civil Unions

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