I spent a lot of time in New Hampshire….most of the final four years of my adolescence, and a couple of other visits since…..but that’s nothing compared to some of the candidates for President of the United States. They return to The Granite State time after time, year after year, campaign after campaign. They spend so much time in New Hampshire that they ought to pay taxes there. Oh, that’s right…..there is no income tax or sales tax or capital gains tax in this state where vehicle license plates carry the motto: “Live Free or Die.”
New Hampshire ranks 42nd among US states in terms of population and 46th in terms of land mass, but with its early presidential primary — state law mandates that it must be first in the nation — New Hampshire’s influence on selecting finalists for the US presidential election is vastly out-of-proportion to its size. Even worse, its population is 94% white and not at all like the face of the nationwide electorate.
But I have to admit…..New Hampshire’s Dartmouth College is the only place where I’ve actually been on-site to hear a presidential candidate speak…..although protestors didn’t allow him to finish. The speaker was Independent Party candidate, George Wallace.
It was also where I had a front row seat for a performance by a new singing duo called Simon and Garfunkel, and where I had a back row view for a demonstration over the war in Southeast Asia.
It was where I last had the audacity to sing close harmony before large audiences and play football before large crowds.
New Hampshire did not produce my favorite or best years, but they were formative and important years…..as it has been for every presidential election since the state began to host the nation’s earliest primary in 1916.
JER
ALL OVER THE MAP 