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Ballots for the First in the Nation presidential primary have been printed, so it’s all but certain Donald Trump’s name will be listed. But that’s not stopping one last, longshot attempt to dump Trump, a legal challenge that hinges on the brunch-loving brother-in-law of a Texas tax attorney.

The tax attorney is John Castro, whose name will also be on the GOP First in the Nation primary ballot. He’s also going to court to try to kick Trump off it.

Castro’s novel legal theory is that as a GOP challenger to Trump, he can show that he’s being harmed by the former president’s allegedly illegal appearance on the ballot. He says Trump is siphoning support and donations that could otherwise go to him. Castro says Trump can’t appear on the ballot because he’s guilty of “insurrection,” and it’s the duty of New Hampshire state officials to remove him under the 14th Amendment.

That’s the same argument used by Colorado’s Supreme Court and Maine’s Secretary of State when they declared Trump ineligible to appear on the ballot in their states. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to review those decisions soon.

Castro first made his claim last October. His case was dismissed after U.S. District Judge Joseph LaPlante ruled, in part, that a presidential campaign that managed to raise just $670 was not a serious candidacy. Castro appealed to the First Circuit Court, which sided with LaPlante, but left a crack open for Castro to try again.

“We conclude that for Castro to show that he was a ‘direct and current competitor’ at the time he filed his complaint, he must show, at the very least, that at that time he was ‘competing’ with the former President and that he was doing so in the 2024 New Hampshire Republican presidential primary itself,” the First Circuit ruled in November.

Castro filed a new lawsuit last month, claiming he can now prove he’s a real candidate. With a little help from his family.

David Garza is Castro’s personal assistant and one of only two identified campaign volunteers supporting the Castro 2024 effort. He’s also Castro’s brother-in-law. 

Garza testified before U.S. District Court Judge Samantha Elliott on Wednesday that he and his cousin, Alexander Gomez, flew to New Hampshire the day after LaPlante’s ruling to get serious about the campaign. (Gomez is also an employee of Castro’s tax business.)

The pair flew to Manchester on Oct. 27, drove to Concord, checked into their hotel, got some dinner, watched some baseball, and planned out their big day to follow before turning out the lights. 

The next day, armed with about 30 Castro campaign yard signs, the pair drove south to a New Hampshire city Garza called “Noshua.” That conflicted with the testimony of Gomez, who testified he thought the city was called “Joshua.”

Whatever the city, they picked a residential street at random and got down to the hard work of campaigning for president. Garza and Gomez knocked on between 10 to 12 doors to ask if they could put up Castro signs. After getting 10 to 12 rejections, they decided to start putting the signs up on vacant lots somewhere between Joshua (or Noshua) and Manchester, Garza testified.

Elliott halted the proceedings and stopped Garza’s testimony when it became clear he may not have sought permission from the owners of the vacant lots, possibly violating New Hampshire election law.  

After posting between 12 to 15 lawn signs in legally dubious locations, the pair went to brunch, did some antiquing, and then headed back to their hotel to watch more baseball. That evening, the cousins went to a Halloween festival in Concord. Asked if they used the festival as an opportunity to campaign for Castro, Garza said they were off the clock.

“We were very tired at the time, and we just wanted to be ourselves,” Garza testified.

The pair claimed they also spent a day on the campaign trail in Arizona in early November but only managed to put up about five signs due to the hard desert ground, they testified.

As for the candidate himself, Castrol told the court that, while he cannot identify a single New Hampshire voter who is supporting him for president in the primary, he has spoken to some. And, he argued, because his social media campaign has reached thousands of people in the Granite State, the laws of statistical probability indicated he must have certainly reached at least one Republican voter at this point in his campaign.

Castro has dozens of lawsuits filed across the country trying to boot Trump from state ballots, and he’s repeatedly said his presidential campaign is simply part of his anti-Trump legal strategy. But on Wednesday, he told the court he should be treated as a viable candidate. Now that that former Vice President Mike Pence and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott have dropped out of the race, Castro says he has a real chance.

Castro’s campaign raised nearly $800 in donations for all of 2023, though nothing from any New Hampshire resident.

Elliott is expected to rule on the case in the coming days. 

If Wendy Long decides to jump into the already crowded GOP primary race for the U.S. Senate, she’ll do so with two landslide losses in previous Senate races on her record, allegations she attended the January 6 Capitol Hill riot, and her embrace of debunked claims Donald Trump actually won the 2020 election.

And she is not likely to have Gov. Chris Sununu’s support, either.

Long has been floated as a possible candidate by Corey Lewendowski, an advisor to former President Trump. According to Lewandowski, Trump is not thrilled with the current field and Long could theoretically snag his endorsement if she enters the fray.

Last week, Jack Heath asked Lewandowski about reports he was promoting Long’s candidacy. The consultant declined to answer directly, but he did call her “exceptionally intelligent.” And, he noted, “New Hampshire has a history of sending women to Washington, D.C. There’s an argument to be made that a strong female candidate may have a better chance of defeating Maggie Hassan than any of the candidates in the field.”

On Friday, Heath asked Sununu about Long’s potential candidacy and Lewandowski’s possible connection. The governor didn’t sound impressed.

“I don’t know who that person is,” Sununu said. “I don’t know this Wendy Long. She doesn’t live here. That sounds like a carpetbagger from New York.”

Later in the show, Long called into Heath’s program, clearly reacting to Sununu’s comments and ready to respond.

“He doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” Long said. “I do live in Keene and he doesn’t know my history. His father does. Gov. Sununu senior was a great help to us when some of us had some problems at Dartmouth College. Anyway, I look forward to getting to know the governor.”

Long told Heath she is seriously considering a run, but she has not made up her mind. If she does, she would be the sixth candidate, joining state Sen. President Chuck Morse, R-Salem; Kevin Smith, former Londonderry town manager; crypto-businessman Bruce Fenton; retired Brig. Gen. Don Bolduc; and Lincoln entrepreneur Vikram Mansharamani.

Long grew up in Keene and attended Dartmouth College before embarking on a legal career. She earned her J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law and also attended Harvard Law School. She served as a law clerk at U.S. Supreme Court for Justice Clarence Thomas.

Long said her first job in politics was as press secretary for New Hampshire’s Republican Sen. Gordon Humphrey. She got that job after being recommended by Jeffrey Hart, her English professor at Dartmouth.

Long’s time at Dartmouth has followed her career for good or ill, starting with her work at “Dartmouth Review,” the Ivy League college’s conservative newspaper co-founded by Hart. In 1990, Long, then known by her maiden name Wendy Stone, and fellow student and “Dartmouth Review” trustee Dinesh D’Souza, were forced to call a press conferee to apologize for publishing a quote from Adolf Hitler on the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur.

The Dartmouth Review printed the following line from Hitler’s book “Mein Kampf” as part of the paper’s statement of principles: “Therefore, I believe today that I am acting in the sense of the Almighty Creator: By warding off the Jews, I am fighting for the Lord’s work.”

The pair blamed an unnamed staffer for putting in the quote without their knowledge, and they suggested it was an act of sabotage against the conservative publication, according to an Associated Press report. 

D’Souza, a controversial figure even in the conservative community,  made headlines in 2014 when he pleaded guilty to a felony count of making an illegal campaign contribution to Long. According to court records, he arranged for $20,000 in illegal donations for Long’s 2012 campaign against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) At the time, Long said she did not know about those illegal donations. She garnered just 26 percent of the vote.

Long again ran for Senate in 2016, that time against Democratic Senate leader Schumer. She lost with 27 percent.

During that campaign, she met with the leader of the Oath Keepers, Stewart Rhodes. Rhodes is currently charged with sedition for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

“Thank you Stewart (Rhodes) for founding this whole organization,” Long said in a speech to the Oath Keepers. “I am running against one of the greatest enemies of the Constitution, Chuck Schumer, in the United States Senate. He’s an enemy not only of the Second Amendment which you know of course everyone knows he’s the face of the anti-Second Amendment movement, which by the way is in great peril.”

The Anti-Defamation League describes Oath keepers as “right-wing anti-government extremists who are part of the militia movement.”

Long’s own words about Jan. 6 seem to place her at the Capitol that day. In a group chat among former Justice Thomas clerks leaked to The Washington Post, Long wrote:

“Many of my friends and I had been praying our knees off that January 6 would see light and truth being shed on what we believe in our hearts was likely a stolen election… Many of us marched peacefully and yes, many also prayed and shared another important message, ‘Jesus saves.’”

Long moved back to Keene earlier this year, and Lewandowski notes many of the Granite State’s most successful politicians were not born here. And she has a reputation as an outspoken conservative activist who has helped engage grassroots Republicans.

She helped found the Judicial Confirmation Network — now the Judicial Crisis Network — which supports the nomination of conservative Supreme Court justices like Samuel Alito and opposes liberal nominees like Sonia Sotomayor.

If Long can win the nomination, she could have a shot against Hassan, whose polls have been underwhelming at best and whose sudden swing to the right on immigration and oil production has angered the progressive base. In the latest UNH poll, Hassan was tied with or losing to the relatively unknown candidates in the GOP primary.

“She’s done,” Sununu told Heath. “People see the writing on the wall, the Democratic Party sees the writing on the wall. Republicans, independents, and even some Democrats are frustrated and they are going to vote her right out in November, regardless of who comes out of that primary.”

The Keene man arrested after he took selfies inside the U.S. Capitol Building during the January 6 riots is headed to jail, in part because his current run for Congress shows a lack of remorse, according to prosecutors.

Jason Riddle, 34, pleaded guilty last year to one count of theft of government property, and one count of illegal parading in a government building. The charges stem from his actions during the riot on Capitol Hill following a Trump rally.

Riddle is currently seeking the GOP nomination in the 2nd Congressional District.

His defense attorney wanted Riddle to be sentenced to 30 months of probation rather than prison time. Prosecutors told United States District Court Judge Dabney Fredrich the outspoken Riddle deserves jail time as he appears to be attempting to use the notoriety he gained from his illegal actions to further his political career.

Attorney George Eliopolous wrote in the government’s sentencing memo that Riddle has displayed a total lack of remorse.

“He has given two news interviews, one was months after his arrest in this case, in which he specifically stated that he did not regret his involvement in the January 6 riot and that he expected to benefit from it and the resulting criminal case when he runs for public office,” Eliopolous wrote.

During one of those television interviews, Riddle said he was happy to get the attention that the criminal case brought. 

“In the long run, if you’re running for office, any attention is good attention,” he told an NBC interviewer.

In the same interview, Riddle appeared unaware that Rep. Annie Kuster is a member of Congress. He indicated he thought she was a state representative who worked at the State House in Concord. 

Riddle has run unsuccessfully for office in Cheshire County since moving to New Hampshire with his husband. He was separated from the United States Navy in 2011 due to alcohol abuse, according to court documents.

Eliopolous also argued that Riddle deserves jail time for destroying evidence after learning FBI agents had begun an investigation. He allegedly deleted photos and videos from his phone — some of the same photos and videos he had already shared with the media. 

Riddle supplied reporters with video and photos he took inside the building, including numerous images of himself. Many of the photos of Riddle are included in FBI Special Agent Kevin Helson’s affidavit.

Helson writes that FBI agents interviewed Riddle in Keene on Jan. 22 when executing a search warrant to obtain digital photos and video. During that interview, Riddle admitted to going in as part of a “break in” led by a “big dude.”

“Riddle also admitted that he stole a small Fox News football from the same office, but tossed it aside as he exited the Capitol building,” Helson wrote.

Riddle told the agents that before they arrived he had tried to delete photos from his phone. 

“Riddle also admitted that at some point after the Capitol incident, he had deleted some messages, photos, and videos of his D.C. trip from his phone, during what he termed a ‘delete frenzy,’” Helson wrote.

Fredrich sided with prosecutors and sentenced Riddle to 90 days in jail, three years of supervised probation, and more than $750 in fines and restitution. Staying true to form, Riddle made light of the sentence soon after it was handed down on Monday.

“3 months in jail for 14 minutes of the most beautiful patriotic event in history. Works for me,” Riddle posted on Facebook.

Riddle is being allowed to surrender to authorities at a later date to begin serving his sentence.

Riddle took a photo of himself drinking from a bottle of wine he stole inside the building, a photo that he shared with multiple media outlets. He also stole a copy of the Senate Procedure manual and sold the book on eBay, according to court documents.

The New Hampshire woman who threatened a Republican Michigan election official and her daughter over the 2020 election has delayed her plea bargain, again.

Katelyn Jones, 23, was arrested by FBI agents at her mother’s Epping home in December 2021 after she allegedly made threats against Monica Palmer, chairwoman of the Wayne County Michigan Board of Canvassers, and her daughter.

“Hmm, It’d be a shame if something happened to your daughter at school,” Jones allegedly wrote in one of many alarming messages posted to Palmer’s social media accounts. 

Now, Jones is negotiating a plea agreement with federal prosecutors. She was charged with making interstate criminal threats. Court records filed in the United States District Court in Easter Michigan show Jones was supposed to have a plea hearing this week but requested a delay until April based on COVID-19 related setbacks.

Jones was reportedly angry that Palmer voted against certifying the election results that showed President Joe Biden won the election, in effect supporting a possible challenge by President Donald Trump. Jones, an adamant Trump opponent, responded by sending Palmer violent threats, including bloody photographs of nude women along with threats directed at Palmer’s daughter.

“F***ing with our election is TERRORISM, and us Americans clearly don’t tolerate terrorists so yes you should be afraid, your daughter should be afraid, and so should (name of Palmer’s husband,)” Jones allegedly wrote in one of the messages.

Jones is a former Michigan resident but was living at her mother’s New Hampshire home when she made the threats, according to court records.

Palmer voted against certifying the election in heavily African American Wayne County, Michigan. Her actions were seen as part of Trump’s doomed efforts to change the election result that saw him lose the presidency. Despite Palmer’s vote, Michigan eventually certified its election showing that Biden won the state. 

“Racist Terrorist B*tch,” Jones allegedly wrote in one message.

Jones allegedly sent Palmer a photo of a nude, mutilated, dead woman and wrote, “I’d just like you to imagine that’s … your beautiful daughter.”

When confronted at her mother’s house in Epping, Jones reportedly acknowledged to FBI agents that she had sent the messages. Jones said she made the threats and called Palmer a terrorist and a racist, according to court records.

Jones is currently free pending trial on a $10,000 bond. 

Violent political threats are becoming part of the political landscape. Last month, former Allenstown Middle School instructor Daniel Rattigan pleaded guilty to charges he threatened to mutilate state Rep. Keith Ammon (R-New Boston) and sexually assault one of his family members in response to the Republican lawmaker’s support for anti-CRT legislation.

Rattigan called Ammon a racist in the messages and he made numerous obscene and graphic threats against Ammon and a family member.

“I truly hope you get skull f***ed to death you pathetic privileged white [expletive] boi,” Rattigan wrote in one of the messages.

Also in December, Amherst resident Ryder Winegar, 33, was sentenced to 33 months in prison for calling members of Congress and threatening to rape and murder them if they did not support President Donald Trump after the 2020 election.

One message Winegar left, edited to remove extreme profanities, is a typical example:

“Here’s the advice, Donald Trump is your president. If you don’t get behind him, we’re going to hang you until you die … You can come, you can keep being a shill for the Chinese Communist Party. And you know, like the, uh, the Jewish banking cartel, or you can stand up and do the right thing and back America’s president Donald Trump. Support freedom.”

MANCHESTER — Mike Pence kept saying during his trip through New Hampshire — on a chilly Wednesday in December where he was followed by national media — that he isn’t running for president. 

At least not yet.

The former Vice President is looking to help elect Republicans in the 2022 mid-term races as part of an effort to push back on President Joe Biden’s economic agenda. After that, he might be open to the possibility of his own presidential run.

“Now more than ever, every American should be focused on the 2022 elections, and that’s where we’re entirely focused,” he told CNN’s Michael Warren. “Come 2023, we’ll do what my family always does; we’ll reflect, and we’ll pray, and we’ll go where we feel we’re called.”

Former Vice President Mike Pence visits The Simply Delicious Bakery in Bedford, N.H.

Pence certainly looked like a presidential candidate, calling into local talk radio shows and making a half-dozen campaign stops in a single day. In between a morning stop at the Simply Delicious Bakery in Bedford and a state senate fundraiser in the evening, Pence was the featured speaker at a Heritage Action for America event in Manchester. He talked foreign affairs, national security, and what he called out-of-control Washington spending. Heritage Action is the political arm of the conservative think-tank Heritage Foundation, and boasts millions of grassroots volunteers who stand at the ready to get behind the right candidate.

Pence took aim at Biden’s foreign policy, calling the withdrawal from Afghanistan a disgrace that damaged the country’s standing. That loss of standing could be setting the stage for another disaster in the Ukraine, where Russian troops appear ready to invade.

“The reality is, weakness arouses evil,” Pence said.

Pence said Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attempt to invade Ukraine will need to be met with military force. That means the U.S. needs to start arming the Ukrainian military, as President Donald Trump did.

“(The Obama-Biden Administration) sent blankets and military meals in boxes, but we sent arms to Ukraine so they could defend themselves,” Pence said. “I met Vladimir Putin. I saw what he did in Crimea. I think it is going to take action [to stop an invasion],” Pence said.

Boasting about Trump’s arming the Ukrainian military is problematic for Pence. While it’s true the Trump administration approved offensive weapons for the Ukraine government the Obama administration refused to sell them. Trump later ordered arms shipments held up in an attempt to get the Ukraine government to investigate Hunter Biden’s business dealings.

Pence also teed off on Biden’s Build Back Better spending plan, which he dubbed ‘Build Back Broke’ after several tries at a slogan. He said the spending plan would shift America into a socialist society, and it needs to be stopped.

“It would be an unmitigated disaster for American families and American workers and I came to say we’re not going to let it happen,” Pence said. “We gotta shut down their big-government, socialist agenda right now.”

Pence made several stops in New Hampshire, including The Riverside Room, a small venue in Manchester’s mill district. The capacity crowd was made up of party insiders like New Hampshire GOP Committee Chairman Stephen Stepanek, and congressional candidates like Jeff Cozzens and Matt Mowers. 

Mowers said Pence could be a strong contender in the 2024 race, but he’s not going to commit to any candidate, yet.

“It depends on who gets on the race,” Mowers said.

And the “who” on everyone’s mind at the campaign events is former President Trump, who injected himself into Pence’s Granite State appearance. His Save America PAC released a statement during Pence’s visit referencing the 2020 election. It linked an interview Pence gave CBN News in which he said he believed there were “irregularities” in the 2020 election. It’s a comment he’s made several times in the past, though he also says he did the right thing certifying the election.

“Good man, but big mistake on not recognizing the massive voter fraud and irregularities,” Trump said in his press release.

Booze and heavy doses of right-wing misinformation pushed Navy veteran Ryder Winegar to call members of Congress last year, threatening to rape and murder them if they did not support President Donald Trump.

He’s now going to prison.

Winegar’s attorney, Charles Keefe, told the court this week his client regrets his actions and now rejects the ideology that led him to prison.

“After months of becoming caught up in ultra-conservative news-outlet information, and allowing himself to be indoctrinated with a dogma spewed by the former president and his followers, Ryder’s depression and anxiety found an outlet,” Keefe wrote. “Fueled by his intoxication, Ryder proceeded to leave a series of disgusting, racist, and threatening voicemails for six members of Congress regarding the results of the 2020 presidential election.”

Keefe asked the court to give the 35-year-old a sentence of time served. He’s been jailed since his arrest last year. John Farley, the acting United States Attorney for New Hampshire, wanted the 33-months in prison Winegar got, saying his threats were part of former President Donald Trump’s overall movement to upend the 2020 election.

“Add it all up, this is serious conduct that was intended to disrupt the functioning of government at the highest levels and warrants the imposition of a sentence that reflects the gravity of the offenses,” Farley wrote.

On the night of Dec. 15, Winegar downed a six-pack of beer, two bottles of sake, and a few tumblers of tequila before he called six members of Congress and threatened to kill them if they did not support Trump’s efforts to stay in office after his loss to President Joe Biden. 

The members of Congress are not identified in the court records. Winegar made calls to offices in D.C. after midnight, and left voicemail messages for the Congress members. He also left his name and phone number on many of the messages.

One of the messages Winegar, edited to remove extreme profanities, is a typical example:

“Here’s the advice, Donald Trump is your president. If you don’t get behind him, we’re going to hang you until you die … You can come, you can keep being a shill for the Chinese communist party. And you know, like the, uh, the Jewish banking cartel, or you can stand up and do the right thing and back America’s president Donald Trump. Support freedom.”

Days before he called and left the threats, Winegar also emailed threats to a New Hampshire state representative, according to court records.

When Capitol police investigators went to Winegar’s home in Amherst to talk about the phone calls, Winegar reportedly told them to get off his property. The next day his wife drove him to Boston’s Logan Airport where he boarded a flight to Brazil, according to court records. He stayed out of the country until he was convinced to come home, at which point he was arrested at the airport.

Investigators searched his home and found an AR-15 rifle loaded with light armor-piercing ammunition, a loaded shotgun, a loaded 9mm pistol, an unloaded rifle with a scope, several hundreds of rounds of ammunition, and a body armor vest, with clips and Level IV body armor plates.

Winegar pleaded guilty to all charges in August. Keefe wrote that Winegar’s 10 months in jail is the longest stretch of time he’s been sober since he was 12. Alcohol and marijuana use played a key role in his crimes, as does childhood trauma, Keefe wrote.

“As well, his actions derived from an alcohol-fueled form of political hysteria that he now renounces. It is very likely that Ryder’s actions in this case, and the mindset that allowed him to commit these offenses, is connected to the instability and unusual influences of his childhood,” Keefe wrote.

Winegar grew up in the Church of Scientology, which was founded by pulp writer L. Ron Hubbard. It teaches belief in alien lifeforms that inhabit the human body and are the cause of all emotional problems, as well as belief in past lives, and a sci-fi infused history of the earth. Scientology also prohibits followers from seeking mental health treatments.

“The Church of Scientology has been described by government inquiries, international parliamentary bodies, scholars, law lords, and numerous superior court judgements as both a dangerous cult and a manipulative profit-making business,” Keefe wrote.

 Winegar found structure in the Navy, and excelled at learning languages, according to Keefe. He was honorably discharged but had trouble adapting back to civilian life. He stopped taking medications like Zoloft, and started heavy use of alcohol and marijuana leading up to the 2020 presidential election, according to Keefe. As part of the sentence, Winegar will pay a $15,000 fine.

“Today’s sentencing sends a clear message that threats of violence have no place in our political discourse,” Farley said in a statement. “While all citizens are free to express their political opinions, it is unlawful to threaten to commit acts of violence against members of Congress or members of the state legislature.  This defendant’s graphic threats were a troubling attempt to intimidate lawmakers and a direct assault on the functioning of our constitutional system.  This sentence should send a message to the community that those who threaten to commit acts of violence against duly-elected legislators will be held accountable for their unlawful conduct.”

In the First Congressional District GOP primary, the candidates have their eyes on the prize. Beating incumbent Rep. Chris Pappas? Not yet. The big prize in the primary is the endorsement of former President Donald Trump.

“He’s still the guy, he still matters substantially. He’s still the leader of the Republican Party,” said Rep. Fred Doucette (R-Salem), Trump’s 2016 campaign state co-chair.

On Monday, candidate Gail Huff Brown announced her endorsement by Linda McMahon, best known for her role in creating the WWE empire. It’s a “get” for Huff Brown’s campaign because McMahon served as Trump’s Small Business Administrator.

“With Gail, New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District is in good hands. As a working mother and grandmother, she knows what it’s like to balance a family and a career,” McMahon said.

Huff Brown has previously been endorsed by K.T. McFarland, the Trump administration’s first Deputy National Security Advisor. McMahon’s backing gives her another connection with Trumpworld. And she’s likely to need it.

Huff Brown is in a battle with former Trump administration communications staffer Karoline Leavitt and former Trump State Department staffer Matt Mowers for the top spot in the primary. Trump endorsed Mowers in the 2020 NHGOP primary.

Leavitt has run hard on her Trump connections and continued loyalty to the former president, even denying Trump lost the 2020 election. When contacted Monday, she repeated the unfounded claim that Trump defeated Joe Biden.

“I am the only candidate who has the courage to say what the majority of Republican voters here in New Hampshire know – there is absolutely no way Joe Biden legitimately won more votes than Donald Trump,” Leavitt said. “Granite Staters want a homegrown fighter, and that is why I am in this race.”

Mowers said Monday he would love to get Trump’s endorsement yet again.

“I was honored to receive President Trump’s endorsement and to serve in his administration as Senior White House Advisor at the State Department where I implemented the America First agenda. I would proudly accept his endorsement again,” Mowers said. 

Huff Brown, on the other hand, has a far more tenuous Trump connection. She spent 30 years doing TV news, mostly in the Boston market. But she describes her more recent experience as “serving alongside her husband Scott Brown as President Donald Trump’s ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa.”

Trump’s endorsement will be a game-changer for the primary race, Doucette said. However, he is skeptical Trump will weigh in, and he says his advice would be for Trump to stay out of the race for the time being.

“If I were to advise him, all three (Leavitt, Mowers, and Huff-Brown) are solid Trump people,” Doucette said. “How can you pit one against the other?”

Tom Rath, a longtime NHGOP strategist and a Trump skeptic, isn’t sure the former president’s endorsement would mean much in the race.

“This isn’t a state that typically puts a lot of stock in endorsements of candidates,” Rath said. “We like our candidates to be grounded in the districts in which they run.”

It’s hard to see a potential Trump endorsement coming in this race unless Trump sees an advantage for himself, Rath said. He sees a race that comes down to a contest between different shades of pro-Trump candidates, and there is unlikely to be an emergent centrist candidate who is anti-Trump.

And why would there? Polls show Trump remains popular among NHGOP voters, with a net +64 approval rating in October’s Granite State Poll from the UNH Survey Center. However, that same poll found Trump’s polling among all voters underwater with 57 percent of voters disapproving to 34 percent approving of the former president.

New England College Provost Dr. Wayne Lesperance said Trump’s endorsement is not going to move the needle for Huff Brown or Mowers voters, but it could help Leavitt, who polls show isn’t as well known as the other two.

“It will help one of the lesser-knowns the most if it came to them. But for a Mowers or Huff Brown it’s not impactful,” Lesperance said.

Trump’s record on endorsements is mixed at best. According to Politico, many in the GOP are frustrated with Trump’s endorsements, which seem based on whims rather than a coherent political strategy. And the candidates he’s backing this cycle have been struggling early.

“If he spent a little more time and resources vetting and researching where he can have an impact and a little bit less time s—-posting, he could actually help his own legacy and move the ball forward,” a Republican strategist told Politico.

Huff Brown has another problem positioning herself as the Trump favorite: Her husband’s denunciation of Trump’s behavior surrounding the January 6 Capitol riot.

“Absolutely, I mean he bears responsibility. I think his presidency was diminished as a result of this, and I think he’s paying a price. He’s been impeached twice. He was impeached for those actions,” Brown said in a May interview on CNN.

Asked about the impact Scott Brown’s comments might have, campaign spokesperson Nina McLaughlin told NHJournal: “Gail has been a long and strong supporter of President Trump. She worked hard for nearly four years to advance his America First agenda. She would welcome his endorsement.”

Rath said Trump has always operated based on personality, rather than any political ideology. While a Trump endorsement can bring a wealth of donors and support to the candidate who wins his favor, it can also backfire. If Democratic voters don’t have a primary race to worry about, Trump’s endorsement could cause problems for his candidate with New Hampshire’s open primary system.

“He might activate Democrats to vote in the GOP primary,” Rath said.

Is the GOP playing the gender card to get President Donald Trump’s CIA nominee through the US Senate? And will it work on the two women representing New Hampshire?   That’s the word from the Washington Examiner’s Susan Ferrechio:

Republicans are hoping that Gina Haspel’s gender might help her win the Senate votes she needs to become President Trump’s next CIA director.

Republicans are playing up the idea that she would be the first woman ever to be confirmed to run the spy agency, which could make it much harder for lawmakers, particularly women, to vote “no.”

Gina Haspel’s proponents say other Senate “yes” votes could come from Sens. Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen, both New Hampshire Democrats.

Both Hassan and Shaheen voted against previous CIA Director Mike Pompeo’s elevation to Secretary of State over issues unrelated to international diplomacy such as his personal views on LGBTQ issues.  Haspel, on the other hand, was directly involved in the CIA’s use of enhanced interrogation and its aftermath.

Will New Hampshire’s two women senators break with their fellow Democrats and back a female nominee? One nominated by President Donald Trump and who has a troubled past regarding the issue of “torture?”

In this edition of “New Hampshire Journal: On the Air,” listen to David Paleologos, Director of Suffolk University’s Political Research Center, talk about his new poll of New Hampshire voters.

From the governor’s race to the 2020 primary–and the possibility of a GOP challenge to Trump–Paleologos shares the numbers that popped for him.

Find more podcast conversations at NHJournal.com.  And to subscribe to the NHJournal.com newsletter, please click here.