To quote John McClane of “Die Hard” fame, “Welcome to the party, pal.”
New Hampshire Public Radio reported Monday that one of its reporters was asked to leave a public event by the Joyce Craig for governor campaign.
“An NHPR reporter was recently invited to attend an interfaith event put on by the Granite State Organizing Project, but before the forum began, was asked by Craig’s campaign staff to leave the church basement,” NHPR’s Todd Bookman reported.
“It’s weird to run for office and not want to have any press, or have anybody hear what your ideas are in the public,” Pastor John Hopkins, one of the hosts, told NHPR.
“Joyce Craig will happily meet with far-left governors Gavin Newsom and Maura Healey – but continues to hide from the New Hampshire press,” said John Corbett, spokesperson for the Kelly Ayotte for governor campaign.
“We have a proud tradition of open debate and grassroots campaigning, and Granite Staters deserve better than Joyce Craig’s D.C. campaign strategy of hiding and refusing to answer questions. Our next governor must be a leader who is ready on day one, and each day Craig refuses to campaign openly, she shows she is not ready for the job.”
Excluding reporters from public events, including press conferences, has become more common among New Hampshire candidates and elected officials. Last Thursday, the Biden for New Hampshire campaign refused to allow NHJournal—a member of the New Hampshire Press Association—to cover a press conference urging Democrats to back Biden’s candidacy.
(Less than 72 hours later, Biden had dropped out of the race.)
Craig’s campaign would not answer questions about why it removed the NHPR reporter. Indeed, former Mayor Craig’s policy is to refuse to answer any questions from Press Association members of whom she doesn’t approve. That list includes NHJournal.
Ironically, NHPR is a left-leaning news outlet known for its close relationship with Democrats. At least a week before the Republican primary to determine the GOP’s nominee, Sen. Maggie Hassan was already negotiating an agreement with NHPR on the details of a debate in the U.S. Senate general campaign. Obviously, the GOP nominee — who had not been chosen yet — wasn’t included in those negotiations.
“Joyce Craig certainly does not like the media,” one reporter told NHJournal when they heard the story.
Craig has yet to hold even one open press event since launching her campaign for governor.
