CCRC Editorial Section

Received 4-22-2009

Representative Dan Eaton's Political Games

To the Editor:  

Representative Dan Eaton, Democrat from Stoddard, voted against his district’s interests twice last week in Concord . First, he voted against local school building aid thereby denying promised state funding for school building projects that depend on state aid. Then, he voted to support moving the Cheshire Superior Court to Jaffrey, effectively increasing your county portion of our property tax bill.

In denying school building aid, Rep. Eaton claimed on local radio that the omission was a “little game of political chicken.” In other words, he admitted that he purposefully played political games with our school building money and our tax bills. 

Regarding the courthouse, Rep. Eaton engaged in parliamentary maneuvers to effectively kill an amendment to the state budget proposed by Rep. Robertson which would have kept the district court in Keene . He says that, “it was a parliamentary maneuver that he had to do.” As a result people in Cheshire County will now have to travel to Jaffrey instead of Keene for Superior Court. The dramatically increased travel distances to Jaffrey will be a burden on the residents of Dan’s district and anyone residing in Keene . The attorneys representing those clients will also have to charge extra for the additional travel time. Town police officers, county sheriff deputies, and the county attorney’s office will also incur additional travel and time expenses. The justification for building the new jail in Keene – easier access to the courts - will now be moot. These increased costs will end up on our town and county tax bills.

Rep. Eaton did not stand up for the residents he claims to represent. Political expediency appears to be his sole voting criteria.   

Rob Kasper

122 Prospect Hill Road

Walpole , NH 03608

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