Pols on Parade, Havenstein Calls for Ethics, and Boutin Caught Boozing

Here are the latest political notes from around the Granite State:

Parade highlights

The Londonderry Old Home Day Parade was Saturday. Patch has gathered up some of the highlights of pols that were posted on social media sites during the last 24 hours.

Havenstein calls for ethics reform

Republican gubernatorial candidate Walt Havenstein has released a seven point plan to “clean up Concord, starting with the Governor’s Office.”

The plan, called The State House Steps, calls for independent financial reviews by the Secretary of State’s Office, real penalties for campaign finance violations, quarterly reports, and making sure the governor be subject to the Right-to-Know Law.

Seniors for Shaheen

U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen’s campaign announced this week that she received the endorsement of the Alliance of Retired Americans, due to her advocacy for seniors.

At the event, supporters “discussed how Jeanne Shaheen has protected Medicare and Social Security, as well as the new bipartisan legislation she introduced to allow individuals to safety purchase their medication in the same dosage and strength from Canada at lower prices.” The campaign noted that in 2012, “average prescription drug prices were twice as expensive in the United States as they were in Canada, with high costs leading some Americans to skip doses or pass on filling important prescriptions altogether.”

Rubens attacks Brown about Obamacare

Former state Sen. Jim Rubens is calling on GOP Senate candidate Scott Brown to clarify his position on the Affordable Care Act after Brown suggested at Mount Washington Valley Economic Council debate that he wanted to repeal it but thought some parts of it should be frozen for people who like it. Rubens countered that Brown appeared to be trying to have it multiple ways on the issue.

“From talking to voters across New Hampshire, they are demanding specific plans to replace Obamacare,” Rubens said. ”Because he favors grandfathering current Obamacare enrollees, wants to keep Medicaid expansion and voted for mandated insurance in Massachusetts, he supports the three major pillars of Obamacare. On my website I lay out a detailed 16-point plan, no such plan exists on ScottBrown.com. I’m calling on Brown to describe specifically what he is proposing to replace Obamacare.”

Martin reaches out to Market Basket shareholder

In an effort to assist with the Market Basket stand-off that has left a lot of people without work and shoppers spending more money for less at other stores, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Andy Martin recently reached out to Rafaela Evans, a swing shareholder, in London, asking her to shift her loyalties to back Arthur T. Demoulas, for the good of everyone.

“I urge you to reconsider your actions and your allegiance,” he said in a letter. “Switching your votes has cost you tens of millions of dollars, hardly a wise investment strategy … I hope we share the common goal of preserving Market Basket’s history and preserving the firm as a valuable asset for owners, for workers and for the communities they serve.”

Lambert hits the airwaves ...

Former state Sen. Gary Lambert, a Republican running for the 2nd Congressional District nomination, took to the airwaves with a 30 second ad this week. The ad, part introduction, part attack, claimed his opponent, Marilinda Garcia, a state representative from Salem, supported amnesty for illegal immigrants.

“As the record clearly shows, Marilinda Garcia supports amnesty for illegal immigrants,” Lambert said in a statement. “Representative Garcia sponsored a National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators resolution with 1 Republican and 12 Democrats which called for ‘legalizing the undocumented population.’ If that’s not amnesty, I don’t know what is.”

... Garcia gets positive national profile piece

Meanwhile, Garcia was highlighted in an Ozy.com feature touting her leadership with one political analyst calling her “an unusual package,” something that Republicans needed.

Boutin boozing

A video of State Sen. David Boutin, R-Hooksett, has surfaced on Granite Grok, the conservative news/blog site, showing him, well, shattered at the Asian Breeze Restaurant, incoherently speaking to some other guys across the bar, and, it would seem, attempting to challenge the other patrons to some “tough guy” talk.

“Pick on a man instead of a woman,” Boutin said, clearly slurring.

At one point in the conversation, the other patron offers to buy Boutin a drink but Boutin doesn’t have any of it, and continues the tough talk.

“You’re no senator or nothing,” the patron said. “You’re a f---king fraud … you’re a fraud.”

The other patron said, “He’s a state rep? They should have shut him off three hours ago.”

Boutin, who is in a tough re-election primary against opera singer and former state Rep. Jane Cormier, later told the Concord Monitor that the confrontation occurred a year ago and he was attempting to defend a woman that other patrons were bothering. He also apologized to his constituents for his “error in judgment.”

NHDP highlights Social Security’s anniversary

The New Hampshire Democratic Party coordinated its Granite State Forward effort by reaching out the seniors at phone banks last week to highlight the 79th anniversary of the passage of the Social Security Act.

The phone bank effort had seniors reaching out to other seniors in an effort to show what Democrats were doing to preserve and protect the program, as well as Medicare, that many senior citizens rely on.

NHGOP: AG made the right decision to step down

The New Hampshire Republican State Committee commended NH AG Joe Foster, a former state Senator and campaign finance committee member of her campaign, for recusing himself from the governor’s campaign contribution investigation.

“Governor Hassan’s illegal campaign money scandal has cast a dark ethical cloud over her administration and undermined public trust in state government,” Jennifer Horn, NHGOP chairwoman said. “Attorney General Foster made the right decision given his role on Hassan’s 2012 finance committee and his close ties to some of the labor unions that broke campaign finance laws. We hope that the New Hampshire Department of Justice will expedite its ongoing investigation into Governor Hassan’s shady campaign finances and quickly provide an opinion on her suspicious failure to disclose her donors on a required campaign finance report.”

The party also launched a robocall effort on the issue and Horn recently laid into other political candidates like Shaheen and U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter for flying around the country and meeting with lobbyists and billionaires to raise campaign cash.

The party has also recently sent out a chicken, with signs, to follow Shaheen around at campaign events, attacking the Democrat for being “too chicken for town halls.”