CONCORD – House Republican Leader Dick Hinch (R-Merrimack) issued a statement after learning that House Speaker Stephen Shurtleff (D-Concord) had removed Rep. John Burt (R-Goffstown) from the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety committee.
“Rep. Burt had serious concerns about how the Fish and Game Department was being managed, and he has a right to express those views, which he did without the use of vulgarity. His removal is a convenient distraction from the fact that a member of the Speaker’s leadership team used profanity towards private and religious schools, and gets an inconsequential suspension. Frankly, this is a double standard,” Hinch said. “Using profanity towards institutions that educate thousands of New Hampshire students is beyond the pale. For the Speaker to not apply the same standard, or a higher standard, to members of his own team shows how partisan his administration has become. The Speaker must be more worried about his reelection and backlash from the progressive wing of his caucus than he is about holding all members to equal standards.”
“The Speaker’s anti-second amendment allies are busy filing several bills for next year that will be before the Criminal Justice committee, and I’m sure they take satisfaction in silencing a strong advocate from the committee. I’ve always known John to act in good faith in committee, and it’s unfortunate that they’ve tied his committee membership to opinions unrelated to the work and policy scope of his committee.”
According to information released by the New Hampshire Department of Education, across New Hampshire, educators in more than 130 non-public schools are teaching more than 16,000 students, from pre-school to post-graduate.
Rep. Tamara Le serves as an Assistant Majority Floor Leader.