Guilty, Unethical, Is Not Telling All PAC

As Pindell first reported, Congressman Frank Guinta has filed documents with the Federal Election Commission to form a leadership political action committee.

The PAC will allow Guinta to raise additional campaign contributions from individuals and lobbyists. Leadership PAC funds are then generally funneled to other candidates and organizations to win friends and influence people.

The Center for Responsive Politics notes, however, that the rules governing leadership PACs are not strict. The funds can be used to dine in fine restaurants, travel around the country, hire additional staff or lay the groundwork for higher office.

Guinta imaginatively named his PAC, Guinta PAC. As is the norm, the name is an acronym: Getting Us Involved Now Transitioning America PAC.

Given Guinta’s ethical lapses — he was named one of the most corrupt members of Congress by the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington — I have another suggestion: Guilty, Unethical, Is Not Telling All PAC.

Just How Extreme is Frank Guinta?

New Hampshire Congressman Frank Guinta likes to say he supports “common sense” solutions. He brags of “setting aside partisan differences” to work for his constituents. Don’t believe it.

By objective measures, Guinta is one of the most ideologically extreme members of Congress. Each year, National Journal rates lawmakers on an ideological scale by comparing their votes to their colleagues. In this year’s ratings, Guinta was ranked the 31st most conservative member of Congress.

To put that in context, Guinta is more conservative than Tea Party favorites Joe Walsh (#162) and Allen West (#174). He’s more extreme than conservative GOP leaders Eric Cantor (#73) and Paul Ryan (#150). He’s even more conservative than Michele Bachmann (#101).

In fact, Guinta is more conservative than the entire congressional delegations from Alabama (#68-#266), Mississippi (#54-#338), South Carolina (#80-#338) and 33 other states!

That’s extreme. Oh, and he was also named one of the 14 most corrupt members of Congress.

Rep. Frank Guinta’s Giant Medicare Fraud

Congressman Frank Guinta and I agree on one thing, spiraling health care costs are a threat to the future of Medicare.

The blank-check system in Medicare, in which the government pays most costs with no incentive to save or be efficient, threatens the solvency of this critical program.

“The failure is to not act,” he says. So what action does he take? He votes to do away with a key program specifically designed to keep Medicare costs from zooming out of control!

The Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), introduced in President Obama’s healthcare reform, would make recommendations to Congress to help reduce Medicare costs. The board only acts if the projected growth rate of Medicare exceeds targets; it is prohibited from recommending policies that ration care, raise taxes, increase premiums, restrict benefits or change eligibility requirements; and its recommendations are subject to Congressional approval.

Yesterday, Guinta voted to eliminate the IPAB. How did he justify this vote? Demagoguery. The board would “greatly restrict” access to health care, he claimed.

IPAB is tasked with reducing medical costs, and it would do that by restricting healthcare access for seniors. Granite State seniors deserve better than a 15 member panel of unelected bureaucrats intruding into their relationship with their doctor. They shouldn’t have to cut through red tape just to get the medical care they need. Hardworking Granite Staters who have paid into Medicare for decades have the right to receive the healthcare they’ve counted on. IPAB would greatly restrict that, and that’s why IPAB has to go.

Writing in Forbes, Rick Ungar calls repeal of the IPAB a “giant Medicare fraud.”

Sometimes, the willingness of Congress to so blatantly act on behalf of special interests to the out-and-out detriment of the average American — or to waste time and frighten the taxpayer all for the benefit of a good political narrative —astounds even me.

According to the House GOP, other political players and the storied think tanks whose pockets are lined by special interests such as the pharmaceutical companies, hospital associations, or just about anyone who might lose a few bucks if someone has to actually do something to get medical costs under control, this IPAB is the mechanism that the socialists (and you know who you are) will use to ration our healthcare.

Except, as the facts would have it, it turns out that this small board of medical experts can’t ration a thing — whether they want to or not.

Let’s see. The Center for Responsive Politics reports Guinta has raised over $97,000 in campaign contributions from the insurance industry, $56,000 from health professionals and $30,000 from hospitals and nursing homes.

Social Security “Keeps Many of Our Elderly in Poverty”

A New Hampshire House resolution urging Congress “to privatize all aspects of Social Security” was approved by the State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs Committee in a 8-6 vote. The infamous Rep. Lynne Blankenbeker explains why.

The initial intent of social security as a survivor benefit plan was certainly noble and laudable. But social security has morphed into a benefit plan that keeps many of our elderly in poverty. … Simple math will tell any logical person there are just not going to be enough taxpayers to sustain the huge number of beneficiaries.

Actually, the projected shortfall in the Social Security Trust Fund can be fixed with “modest changes” to payroll taxes and benefits while privatization would exacerbate it.

And the claim that social security perpetuates poverty is absurd. Without Social Security, according to the latest available Census data (for 2008), 19.8 million more Americans would be poor. But Blankenbeker has at least one fan of her fuzzy math: Congressman Frank Guinta.

Government’s the problem here, ladies and gentlemen. When Social Security was created, you didn’t have the wealth of private sector solutions for lifetime savings that you have today. We have to honor the obligations that have been made to those who are reliant on the federal government - older generations. But future generations should seek different private sector solutions and have personal responsibility start to lead the way. My kids are 6 and 5. They shouldn’t know what Social Security is!

The full House is scheduled to vote on House Concurrent Resolution 39 tomorrow.

Bass and Guinta are in the House! (of Scandal)

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee launched a new web site today featuring Congressional Republicans who are embroiled in scandals and ethics violations. It’s no surprise that, once again, New Hampshire Congressmen Frank Guinta and Charlie Bass made the list!

HouseOfScandal.com will feature a different Republican scandal each month. (Yes, for $19.95, you too can be the proud owner of a Corrupt Republican of the Month calendar.) The May, 2011 entry highlights Guinta’s infamous “mystery bank account” that appeared soon after the press questioned the source of funds that Guinta used to loan money to his campaign.

When large amounts of money go missing, you know a scandal is just around the corner – and it’s no different in Congressman Frank Guinta’s case.

Not to be outdone by his fellow Granite Stater, Bass follows as Mr. June. Bass’ lobbying on behalf of a company owned by his nephew, New England Wood Pellet, is featured.

In June, a previously unreleased and newly discovered letter provides further evidence that Bass had arranged a meeting to promote a tax rebate program that would have benefited his nephew’s company, New England Wood Pellet, in which Bass made a $500,000 investment.

“Each month it seems another scandal-plagued Republican is revealed,” said DCCC spokesman Jesse Ferguson. “Republicans’ top priorities are their special interest allies, ultra-wealthy campaign contributors, their campaign treasuries and their personal bank accounts — not the best interest of middle-class families and seniors.”

N.H. Congressional Redistricting Plan Released

UPDATE: The PVI for the town of Merrimack was originally misidentified. The correct PVI for Merrimack is R+4.

New Hampshire has been one of only two states (along with Kansas) still dragging her feet in the Congressional redistricting process. Gumming the works has been a behind-the-scenes tug-of-war between Congressmen Frank Guinta and Charlie Bass.

James Pindell writes that Bass has been pushing to make CD2 more Republican by adding Merrimack, Hampstead and Plaistow to his district in exchange for more Democratic-leaning towns including Plymouth and areas further north. “House and Senate leaders don’t want any dramatic change, nor does Guinta,” says Pindell.

It looks like Guinta won. Last Wednesday, writes Rep. Steve Vaillancourt, a House subcommittee on redistricting voted 7-3 to accept a “behind closed doors plan.” The “revised Mirski/Bates Proposal” (Amendment 1162h) rebuffs Bass’ effort to shift Republican voters to CD2. In fact, if this plan is adopted, his district will become slightly less Republican.

The plan moves seven reliably Republican towns, including Atkinson (R+9), Loudon (R+5) and Epsom (R+6) from CD2 to CD1 in exchange for Merrimack (R+4) and the very small towns of New Hampton (R+1) and Hart’s Location (D+4).

Using the 2008 presidential voting as a benchmark, CD2 would become slightly more Democratic (and CD1 slightly more Republican) than it is today. President Obama carried CD2 by 46,325 votes (and CD1 by 21,967 votes). He carried the towns making up the redistricted CD2 by 47,110 votes, an additional 785 Democratic votes.

CD1
Incumbent: Rep. Frank Guinta (R)
Current PVI: EVEN, Proposed PVI: EVEN
Adds Allenstown (EVEN), Atkinson (R+9), Chichester (R+3), Epsom (R+6), Loudon (R+5), Pittsfield (R+5), Shelburne (EVEN). Removes Harts Location (D+4), Merrimack (R+4), New Hampton (R+1).

CD2
Incumbent: Rep. Charlie Bass (R)
Current PVI: D+3, Proposed PVI: D+3
Adds Harts Location (D+4), Merrimack (R+4), New Hampton (R+1). Removes Allenstown (EVEN), Atkinson (R+9), Chichester (R+3), Epsom (R+6), Loudon (R+5), Pittsfield (R+5), Shelburne (EVEN).

Guinta: Unscrupulous For-Profit Colleges “Innovative”

American Progress policy analyst Julie Margetta Morgan explains U.S. Education Department regulations that define the term “credit hour” for colleges and universities.

One may be surprised to learn that although most colleges define their degrees by the number of credits accumulated, there’s no common definition for what a credit is. Some for-profit colleges have exploited this ambiguity by inflating their credits to the point where one school offered nine college credits for a five-week course.

Without the regulations, she says, low-quality educational institutions can qualify for federal financial aid and “students will end up wasting both their own money and the federal government’s when they pursue worthless credentials.”

New Hampshire Congressman Frank Guinta refers to the unscrupulous practices as “innovative methods for awarding credit.” (!) The rules preventing low-quality educational institutions from fleecing students and the government, he says, are an “unprecedented and unnecessary federal intrusion into post-secondary affairs.”

Guinta proudly co-sponsored H.R. 2117, which would repeal the regulations and prohibit the Education Department from defining “credit hour” in the future. “This bill,” says Guinta, “removes the federal government from yet another place where it doesn’t belong.”

This is not a particularly surprising statement from a man who said the FDA has no role in protecting the nation’s food supply.

D.J. Bettencourt on GOP Values and the NHCSL

When state House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt congratulated Rep. Marilinda Garcia on her appointment to the Business and Economic Development Task Force for the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL), he praised the organization as a group “whose values are consistent with Republicans.”

Perhaps Bettencourt is not all that familiar with the NHCSL. Last year, the group adopted a resolution opposing “any effort to reduce the federal budget deficit at the expense of patients and seniors who rely on the Medicare and Medicare Part D programs for access to health care.”

Protecting Medicare from budget cuts is hardly consistent with Republican values. Just ask GOP Congressman Frank Guinta. 

On the topic of Medicare, Guinta said it and the Medicaid program need major reform.

“They are going to have more of an impact on long-term debt,” Guinta said, adding that Congress will begin to address the issue this year.

“Everything needs to be on the table,” in terms of Medicare reform, Guinta said….

Guinta: Getting Seriously Deceptive About Gas Prices

In this latest Frankly Speaking op-ed column, New Hampshire Congressman Frank Guinta claims the solution to reducing high gas prices is “legislation that would significantly increase our energy supplies.”

Like many of you, I’m tired of events in the Middle East determining how much we pay for gas in Manchester. I’ve had enough of hostile foreign nations’ oil exports influencing how much people pay for gas in Somersworth. We must stop being hostage to global petroleum schemes, so people in Wolfeboro can have a reliable source of affordable energy.

He may be tired of it, but that’s reality. Ken Green, resident scholar with the conservative American Enterprise Institute, offers Guinta a lesson in Economics 101. Crude oil is a global commodity, explains Green. The price will be unaffected by an increase in U.S. production.

“The world price is the world price. Even if we were producing 100 percent of our oil,” Green said, if prices increase because of a shortage in China or India, “our price would go up to the same thing.” “We probably couldn’t produce enough to affect the world price of oil,” he added. “People don’t understand that.”

Guinta certainly doesn’t. The world market produces 87.5 million barrels of oil a day. Guinta’s favored solution, the Keystone XL Pipeline Project, would produce 830,000 barrels a day — a drop in the bucket of world supply that would have a negligible impact on prices.

Guinta is right about one thing, though. The price at the pump is determined by supply and demand.

We were taught a basic lesson in school: prices are determined by supply and demand. With global demand for oil shooting up, supplies are going down.  Shrinking Supply + Increasing Demand = Outrageously High Gas prices for you and me.

And while we can’t increase supply enough to have an impact on world prices, we can by reducing demand.

The only real long-term solution to high prices and foreign oil dependence is to reduce our consumption. The Obama administration undertook the first serious effort to cut oil use in 35 years by increasing car and light truck fuel economy standards. … The combination of the most effective standards for these vehicles could save more than 3 million barrels of oil per day by 2030.

The U.S. consumes 18.7 million barrels of oil a day. A reduction of three million barrels a day, 16 percent, would have a significant impact. Guinta doesn’t mention that. Daniel Weiss suggests why.

No matter what the energy problem, Big Oil and its allies have only one solution: “drill, baby, drill.” When all they have is a drill, everything looks like a well. This approach will make big oil companies billions of dollars more in profits, but won’t help American families cope with higher gasoline prices.

Guinta’s “Wide Stance” on Federal Funds for N.H.

When Rep. Frank Guinta first ran for Congress, he took what he called a “tough stance” and opposed the use of federal funds for Portsmouth’s deteriorating Memorial Bridge.

Asked about whether he would support earmarks for replacement of the Memorial Bridge, he said he’s taken “a no-earmark pledge.” As such, he said, if a project is not a “federal responsibility, other funds than federal funds are going to have to be found. It’s a tough stance, and it doesn’t mean the project’s not worthy. But the budget is $1.3 trillion out of balance. We have to bring the budget into balance.”

After a year in office, his tough stance has apparently given way. Guinta now supports a massive river dredging project for the Port of New Hampshire and replacing, rather than rehabilitating, the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge — and he vows to use his seat on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure to help secure federal funding. “I’m here to govern,” he now says.

Guinta said funds could come from various sources, including the states of New Hampshire and Maine; a five-year, $260 billion Highway Bill making its way through Congress; and grants including Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) funding.

To critics who say the transportation bill is larded up with unnecessary spending, Guinta said, “I’m here to govern.” He cited the Constitution as his basis for making infrastructure projects a national, Federal responsibility.

Frank Guinta’s Lucrative Turkish Connection

One of Pindell’s Questions for the Weekend caught my eye:

Where is that “Turkey,” Frank Guinta, these days? Is he in New Hampshire?

A little poking around confirmed that, yes, Guinta has been in Turkey — as a guest of the Turkish Coalition of America.

The Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) on Feb. 14th wrapped up its twelfth Congressional Delegation to Turkey. … The delegation, comprised of Rep. Frank Guinta (R-N.H.) and three senior Congressional staffers … visited Istanbul and Ankara during their four-day visit.

Ironically, when Guinta campaigned for office, he pledged to co-sponsor an Armenian genocide resolution, which would condemn the 1915 slaughter of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide. His promise to co-sponsor the resolution, which is opposed by the TCA, secured the endorsement of the Armenian National Committee of America.

In his response to the ANCA’s 2010 Congressional Candidate Questionnaire, Guinta pledged to co-sponsor the Armenian Genocide Resolution and oppose any kind of historical commission that might be established to question this crime against humanity.

Guinta’s Turkish romance began soon after his election to the House. He joined the Caucus on US Turkish Relations & Turkish Americans, which is sponsored by the TCA, and was rewarded with a $5,000 campaign donation from Yalcin Ayasli, the New Hampshire entrepreneur who founded the TCA. Ayasli has deep pockets. During the 2008 election cycle, he and his family gave $424,050 to politicians and political organizations, making them the nation’s top individual contributors.

Guinta has also received $17,000 in PAC contributions from BAE Systems, a defense contractor with business interests in Turkey who has lobbied against an Armenian genocide resolution.

Last month, Guinta was one of 13 members of Congress to attend a reception celebrating the opening of a new office for the Turkish Coalition of America and the Turkish Cultural Foundation.

Guinta, pictured at the TCA/TCF reception with Yalcin Ayasli, Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) and Lincoln McCurdy, TCA President.

For the record, Guinta is not a co-sponsor of U.S. House Resolution 304, the Affirmation of the United States Record on the Armenian Genocide Resolution, which was introduced on June 14, 2011.