New Hampshire Senate 2008: Marchand withdraws; endorses Shaheen

[Adlai Stevenson]

(PORTSMOUTH, NH) - Continuing his commitment to bringing leadership for New Hampshire values, Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand today announced his withdrawal from the 2008 US Senate race, and his support of former Governor Jeanne Shaheen, who entered the race on Friday.

"I am very proud of the campaign we've run, which has always focused on bringing positive change to Washington," said Marchand. "From ending the war in Iraq, to bringing affordable health care to all Americans, to being the global leader on 21st century energy policy, to restoring fiscal discipline, our message of fiscal and social responsibility is a real New Hampshire message."

"This has been a true grassroots effort," continued Marchand. "To all those who have supported me in this effort: thank you. I am honored and grateful for the support of hundreds of activists, and the endorsements of over 60 state representatives, multiple state senators, and many city and county chairs. We have had successful fundraising efforts, and polling shows me in a statistical tie with John Sununu today. There is no doubt that we can compete with Senator Sununu. However, this seat is too important to the state and the nation to do anything less than put up New Hampshire's strongest candidate for 2008."

"Jeanne Shaheen is our strongest candidate to defeat John Sununu in 2008. Her commitment to the same principles that I have fought for during this campaign will make her a tremendous Senator for New Hampshire and the nation. I am proud to support her in all her efforts."

http://www.bluehampshire.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=1845

[TheresNoMoney]

Marchand will be a strong candidate in the future for either governor or Senator.

[MarkWarner08]

I'm a little worried that this race is going to turn into a Santorum/Casey race, in which pretty much any Democrat without a controversial record can defeat the incumbent. If that's the case, I'd rather have a young progressive like Marchand, than a 90's triangulator like Shaheen.

[Lief 🗽]

Yeah, I would have much preferred Marchand. Shaheen, I think, will be a disappointing Senator who wins by a landslide, much like Casey.

[Brittain33]

Yeah, I would have much preferred Marchand. Shaheen, I think, will be a disappointing Senator who wins by a landslide, much like Casey.

I completely agree, but I take solace in the thought that she's more likely to hold the seat for the long-term if the Republicans' image shifts and N.H. returns to its roots. It's still too early to say that N.H. will support a progressive senator beyond these anti-Bush times.

[TheresNoMoney]

If that's the case, I'd rather have a young progressive like Marchand, than a 90's triangulator like Shaheen.

Hate to break the news to you, but I wouldn't consider Marchand "progressive". He was running as the progressive candidate, but unfortunately he's a free trade guy. I still like him and he's good on a lot of issues, but he's really a center-left Democrat (centrist on economic issues, liberal on social issues). 

Paul Hodes and Carol Shea-Porter are definitely more progressive than either Shaheen or Marchand.

[MarkWarner08]

If that's the case, I'd rather have a young progressive like Marchand, than a 90's triangulator like Shaheen.

Hate to break the news to you, but I wouldn't consider Marchand "progressive". He was running as the progressive candidate, but unfortunately he's a free trade guy. I still like him and he's good on a lot of issues, but he's really a center-left Democrat (centrist on economic issues, liberal on social issues). 

Paul Hodes and Carol Shea-Porter are definitely more progressive than either Shaheen or Marchand.

When did free trade become the litmus test issue for whether or not one is a progressive?


Wouldn't  you call Robert Reich and Paul Krugman progressive? Both are commited free-traders. Even Alan Blinder, thje Princeton prof. who's become the oracle of the anti-offshoring movement, is still a firm believer in the benefits of free trade.  He's worried about the disadvanteges of free trade to American workers, but he doesn't think trade barriers, the economic equvilaent of an ostrich sticking its head in the ground, will solve our problems. 

Ensuring the equality of opportunity through free community college for those whose jobs were displaced by offshoring, earlier math and science programs in K-12, tax incentives for workers to gain additional skills. These are all common sense alternatives to protectionism that will help America stay competitive with India, China, and the rest of the developing world.

Opposing free trade should not be a rite of initiation for progressives.  We,as a movement, must view this economic threat as an opportunity for America to continue it legacy of innovation in business, education, medicine, and hundreds of other fields.  Tarrifs have a long, sordid place in American history (Smoot-Hawley is a severe example of misguided economic policy), if progressive want to be the "party of ideas," they cannot afford to repeat past mistakes.

[Frodo]

If that's the case, I'd rather have a young progressive like Marchand, than a 90's triangulator like Shaheen.

Hate to break the news to you, but I wouldn't consider Marchand "progressive". He was running as the progressive candidate, but unfortunately he's a free trade guy. I still like him and he's good on a lot of issues, but he's really a center-left Democrat (centrist on economic issues, liberal on social issues). 

Paul Hodes and Carol Shea-Porter are definitely more progressive than either Shaheen or Marchand.

Since when did someone (otherwise uniformly liberal) had to also be a protectionist in order to qualify as a progressive Democrat? 

[MarkWarner08]

If that's the case, I'd rather have a young progressive like Marchand, than a 90's triangulator like Shaheen.

Hate to break the news to you, but I wouldn't consider Marchand "progressive". He was running as the progressive candidate, but unfortunately he's a free trade guy. I still like him and he's good on a lot of issues, but he's really a center-left Democrat (centrist on economic issues, liberal on social issues). 

Paul Hodes and Carol Shea-Porter are definitely more progressive than either Shaheen or Marchand.

Since when did someone (otherwise uniformly liberal) had to also be a protectionist in order to qualify as a progressive Democrat? 

I 100% agree with you.

I hope Scoonie reads this article: http://www.econlib.org/Library/Enc/FreeTrade.html

[TheresNoMoney]

Since when did someone (otherwise uniformly liberal) had to also be a protectionist in order to qualify as a progressive Democrat? 

I guess everyone has their own definition. For me, a progressive is someone who emphasizes helping the middle class above all else, including fair trade policies, progressive income tax, and increasing union membership.

Progressives to me are people like Russ Feingold, Byron Dorgan, Pete DeFazio and Sherrod Brown. While I like Steve Marchand for a lot of reasons, I do not put him in the category of "progressive".

[MarkWarner08]

Since when did someone (otherwise uniformly liberal) had to also be a protectionist in order to qualify as a progressive Democrat? 

I guess everyone has their own definition. For me, a progressive is someone who emphasizes helping the middle class above all else, including fair trade policies, progressive income tax, and increasing union membership.

Progressives to me are people like Russ Feingold, Byron Dorgan, Pete DeFazio and Sherrod Brown. While I like Steve Marchand for a lot of reasons, I do not put him in the category of "progressive".

How do you define "fair trade"?  Do you agree with Max Baucus who argues that the lenient environmental standards in 3rd world nations represent a form of protectionism?