The Monday Memo is a mix of reporting, rumors, analysis, and unkind comments compiled from various sources and provided for your entertainment and enlightenment each Monday. Reader discretion is advised.
Dems Kiper and Howard Join the
“He-Man Woman Haters’ Club”
For a candidate who, by his own admission, believes it is “insanely unlikely” he’ll get elected, Jon Kiper keeps making news. And he’s doing it the old-fashioned way: by telling the truth.
WMUR’s Arielle Mitropoulos broke the story over the weekend of text messages between Kiper, the Democratic Party’s only candidate for governor, and Rep. Heath Howard, one of the half-dozen Democrats running in the NH-01 congressional primary.
Why were these two third-tier candidates from two difference races chatting in the first place? Both declined to answer questions from NHJournal, but they agree on one thing: New Hampshire Democrats have a “dudes” problem.
A screen capture from Jon Kiper’s phone
(CREDIT: WMUR)
“Maybe it was just my experience, but I don’t think the NHDP wants to support cis white men. They basically told me that,” Kiper texted to Howard, who replied, “Yeah, but that’s why we keep losing.”
Kiper followed up with “Women kind of run the party. Don’t say that out loud.”
“Just being honest,” texted Howard.
This is what is known in political journalism circles as a “Kinsley gaffe,” named after former New Republic editor Michael Kinsley. “A gaffe is when a politician tells the truth—some obvious truth he isn’t supposed to say,” Kinsley wrote.
And the obvious truth is that Kiper is right. How obvious? So obvious, both candidates later denied they said it.
After trying to blame the controversy on New Hampshire’s notoriously lousy cell service (true dat!), Heath then released another statement reading in part, “I never agreed to the secondary text being circulated, and it does not reflect my views.”
According to Mitropoulos, after WMUR contacted him about the texts, “Howard posted a stream of photos on his TikTok account, sharing why he is an intersectional feminist.”
*Chef’s Kiss!*
Kiper’s first response was to claim some members of his party simply “don’t like men who are straight” and decrying “identity politics.” That was quickly followed by a do-over statement. “I do not agree with the claim that Democrats are losing elections because of women. That is not true, and it is not what I believe.”
(If that sounds like spineless sycophancy, check out Kiper’s performance in the 2024 WMUR gubernatorial debate when he said that, “as a man,” he had no right to an opinion on the issue of abortion.)
Whatever Kiper really does or doesn’t believe, he spoke the truth. The state Democratic Party has “cis white men” problem.
Don’t take Monday Memo’s word for it. Ask NHDP chair Ray Buckley.
In his rebuttal to Kiper and Howard, Buckley said, “It just so happens, currently, both of our U.S. senators, one of our members of Congress, our executive counselor, our House leader, and deputy House leader and Senate leader all happen to be women.”
And the other member of Congress is Rep. Chris Pappas, who is running for U.S. Senate, touting the fact that he would become the first openly gay man to serve in the upper chamber.
If you’re keeping score, that’s eight Democratic leadership positions and zero straight guys. In a state where 49 percent of voters are male, the vast majority of whom are “cis-normative.”
And the last time a straight guy won a contested Democratic primary for a major office over a woman was when Mark Fernald defeated Bev Hollingworth in 2002.
(For the record, the current GOP governor, Senate president, and Senate majority leader are all women, as are Executive Councilor Janet Stevens and NH-02 congressional nominee Lily Tang Williams.)
The question MM is asking: Who gave Kiper’s screenshots to WMUR, and why? Kiper says he’s the victim. “Dems using identity politics to kneecap progressives and dodge a real debate about economic power.” But the text images clearly came from his phone. Who did he give them to? Did someone steal his phone?
Or is Kiper the worst Democratic candidate since Dan “33%” Feltes, and he thought this story would help his campaign?
Don’t worry, Democrats! A candidate who can really connect with working-class, blue-collar men is about to jump into the governor’s race: Cindy Warmington.
Hey, who do you think was buying all that Oxy?
YOUR MONDAY MEMO-ROLOGY FORECAST:
The phrase “called an emergency meeting” is never good news, so eyebrows were raised when the NHGOP sent out the “Holy Crap!” signal for 6 p.m. Monday in Concord. The state party has been little more than a sideline in state politics the past year. Could a storm be brewing for state chairman Jim MacEachern and his team?
Can a progressive win a Democratic Primary in New Hampshire? The conventional wisdom is no, but issues like the ICE shooting and Trump’s foreign policy are both pumping up the base and creating problems for old-school Dems like Rep. Chris Pappas. Progressives want to abolish ICE and impeach Trump, and the base agrees. What do Pappas and Stefany Shaheen want to do?
THE MEMO -RANDOM
New “Day,” Old News: In the press release he sent out last week announcing he’s “exploring” a run for U.S. Senate, Free Stater Aaron Day insisted, “I’m not running to play spoiler.” Which is odd because his campaign website lists among his accomplishments “2016: Derailed Kelly Ayotte with 17,742 independent votes in a race decided by just 1,017.”
If any of the Senate candidates are concerned about Day running a spoiler replay, it’s not showing. Most Republicans shrugged off the news, and several noted that the crypto activist and self-styled “Freedom Architect” no longer has the financial backing of Michael Gill, Sr., who disappeared from NH politics after losing a record $274.5 million defamation lawsuit (he later settled it for $1 million).
And the Turtle’s Name Is “Impeach Trump!” Reports that Stefany Shaheen’s nepotism-powered campaign strategy book is just a family photo album may be exaggerated, but apparently, she’s running out of relatives to feature in her fundraising appeals. She’s sent out requests for cash featuring her mom, her dad, and her kids. Now it’s time for… the dog.
“The time has come to welcome a new member into our family. Excited to introduce our puppy…BLUE!” Shaheen wrote. For fans of the movie “Old School,” the name “Blue” is a classic. But Shaheen had something else in mind.
“And yes…her name has a little extra meaning. Blue is a reminder of the mission we’re on this year: keeping NH-01 blue and flipping the House so we can finally deliver real change for working families.”
Wow. When you’re a Shaheen, even the pet’s names are political. Just ask their goldfish, “Roe” and “Wade.”
“DON’T PUT THAT IN THE MEMO!
(Stuff people said that we weren’t supposed to tell you about.)
“100 percent” — A Republican speculating on the odds Rep. Katelyn Kuttab and many of the GOP members who helped Democrats kill HB675, the school tax cap legislation, will face a primary.
“If the NH Democratic Party were a line of yogurt, I would have discontinued it after last year’s election.” — Prominent Democratic donor (and yogurt entrepreneur) Gary Hirshberg, reportedly to other NH donors and activists looking for an alternative to the state Democratic Party.
ACTION MEMO: WAZZUP AT THE STATE HOUSE THIS WEEK
A logistically challenging session of the New Hampshire General Court gets into full swing this week as House and Senate committees hold a full slate of public hearings on proposed legislation.
The House has nearly 900 bills to address this year, while the Senate has 250.
Monday, January 12
10:00 a.m. – House Education Policy and Administration – GP 232
After the legislature passed a bell-to-bell cell phone ban in New Hampshire schools as part of the state budget in June, the House will take up an attempt to pare back the policy. HB 1129 would allow school superintendents to permit limited student use of laptops and tablets under teacher supervision.
10:00 a.m. – House Ways and Means – GP 159
The House tax panel considers bills to increase taxes on cigarettes (HB 1596), vacation homes (HB 1580 and HB 1707), and road salt (HB 1810).
