U. S. Senate candidate Andy Martin accuses New Hampshire
Democrats of racism after three members of the party’s leadership voted against
an African-American appointee to the State Board of Education. “I worked in
Washington during the civil rights era and I know segregationist rhetoric when
I see it,” Andy says. “The behavior of Jeanne Shaheen’s Democratic party is
racist and an embarrassment to the entire state. I call on Shaheen to condemn
the behavior of her supporters (Volinsky, Pignatelli) and to demand that Ryan
Terrell be reconsidered and confirmed to the board. “I aim to make New
Hampshire proud,” Andy says. “Shaheen’s supporters have disgraced the state.”
Adjunct
Professor of Law
Republican
for U. S. Senator
New
Hampshire
www.AndyMartin.com
www.FirstRespondersOnline.us
Headquarters:
E-mail:AndyforUSSenator@aol.com
P.O.
Box 742
Manchester,
NH 03105-0742
Tel.
(347) 960-9593
Fax
(866) 214-3210
Blogs:
www.AndyMartin2020.blogspot.com
www.AndyMartin2020.wordpress.com
June 15, 2020
Senator Jeanne
Shaheen
United States
Senate
Washington, DC
20510
Dear Senator
Shaheen:
You have been a
career politician in New Hampshire for three decades. During that period, you
built the New Hampshire Democratic Party from the ground up.
What you have produced
is a disgrace to every Granite Stater. Your party, your “base,” your supporters,
are now acting as racists and segregationists. And ignoramuses.
I went to work in
the 89th Congress. Both the U. S. Senate and House were controlled
by segregationists. I recognize segregationist rhetoric when I see it. President
Johnson passed civil rights legislation only because Republicans supported him.
More Republicans than Democrats voted for the civil rights laws.
There was very
raw, racial hatred in Washington and on Capitol Hill in the 1960’s. I may be
the last person active in New Hampshire politics who saw firsthand the civil rights
battles in the 89th Congress.
But until last
week, when your supporters on the Executive Council rejected the nomination of
Ryan Terrell for the State Board of Education, I had never seen such raw racism
in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Democrats are apparently not afraid to use
segregationist rhetoric to smear anyone they oppose.
Governor Sununu
is to be commended and congratulated for seeking to bring New Hampshire state
government into the 21st Century by appointing Ryan Terrell to the
state board. Terrell is a genuine New Hampshire success story.
At a time when
the nation is now consumed with a painful review of our racial policies, New Hampshire
Democrats have taken us back to segregationist days by claiming an African-American
is “not qualified” and would “demean” the state board. Your people are wicked.
The ever-slimy Councilor
Volinsky said that Terrell would “demean” the Board, and that Terrell’s appointment
was “tokenism.” Well, the first appointee of any group to any board, by virtue
of the fact he/she is alone, is “token.”
Volinsky later
apologized for the tokenism remark but not the claim Terrell would demean the
Board.
Councilor Pignatelli
said Terrell should get “experience” and that she had three candidates of her own
for the Board. None has surfaced. Pignatelli is both an unreconstructed racist
and a complete moron.
Both Volinsky and
Pignatelli should resign immediately.
Telling
African-Americans they were “not qualified” and “needed more experience” were
the racist tropes of the Democratic Party in the 1950’s and 60’s. Today
Southerners would be embarrassed to use such openly racist remarks but New Hampshire
Democrats have no problem using the old segregationist rhetoric to smear
Terrell. We have a prime example of “Gone With the Wind” attitudes in your
Democratic Party.
I respectfully request
that you take three emergency steps:
1. I ask that you
apologize to the people of New Hampshire, all of them, for the racist, segregationist
behavior of your party and your supporters.
2. I ask that you
call on the councilors to ask for a new vote on the Terrell nomination.
3. I ask that you
tell your de facto supporters to vote for Terrell and to retract their racist, segregationist
rhetoric.
By the way, you
were governor for several terms. How come you never appointed an African-American
to the Board of Education? How come you
never urged your successors to do so? I guess that was too much for you. Your
behavior is disgraceful and an embarrassment to the People of New Hampshire.
The People of New
Hampshire are not racists. But the New Hampshire Democratic Party, judging from
Chairman Ray Buckley’s sophomoric remarks to the media, is composed of arrogant
people who mouth racist language and demean African-Americans as unqualified,
all while seeking to harvest their votes. In Chicago, they call that approach “Plantation
Politics.” It appears we now have a plantation in your own Democratic Party.
The Democratic Party attack on Terrell is a devastating indictment of your
party.
Volinsky and Pignatelli
are your people. If you don’t condemn them, you own them.
Respectfully
submitted,
Andy Martin
AM:sp
