Carol Shea-Porter

Carol Shea-Porter, a Democrat, has represented the First Congressional District of New Hampshire from 2007 to 2011.

Environmental record
For more information on environmental legislation, see the Energy and Environment Policy Portal

Ejected by "rogue vigilante bouncer" at Bush event
Diane Carman wrote in the April 26, 2005, Denver Post that the "White House keeps insisting that the guy impersonating a Secret Service agent who tossed the so-called Denver Three out of President Bush's Social Security road show here on March 21 was a nobody, an overzealous Republican Party volunteer, a rogue vigilante bouncer."

However, Carman wrote, "If that's true, this guy really gets around. ...

"And he was in Portsmouth, N.H., on Feb. 16 when he and another guy dressed to look like a Secret Service agent with a serious weight problem ejected two middle-aged women from a sparsely attended Social Security town meeting there.

"Carol Shea-Porter and Susan Mayer had tickets and were admitted to the event staged in an airplane hangar. They even were allowed to stay through the entire show, despite the fact that they sat near the TV cameras and removed their sweaters to reveal red T-shirts that said, 'Turn Your Back on Bush.'

"But when they left their seats to join the crowd on the floor as the president left the hangar, two burly guys grabbed them and gave them the bum's rush.

"'We were there for the whole event, and they knew darn well that we didn't disrupt anything,' said Shea-Porter. 'We never opened our mouths the whole time.'

"Shea-Porter said they went to the edge of the crowd of people as Bush exited and turned their backs to him in silence. 'Somebody grabbed me,' she said. 'It was really frightening. He said something like: 'That's it, you're out of here. We've had enough'.'

"She said she asked him to identify himself. 'He said, 'Never mind who I am'.' ...

"The bouncers took the women to a side door and shoved them outside to a spot where several police dogs and police vehicles were parked.

"'It was like a drunk being thrown out of a bar,' Shea-Porter said. 'They tossed us where nobody would have access to us.'"

Bought voter list from Democratic Party with tax dollars
The Concord [N.H.] Monitor's Lauren R. Dorgan reported on December 15, 2007, that "Rep. Carol Shea-Porter's office used [$5,000 in] taxpayer money to buy access to the New Hampshire Democratic Party's voter file, according to the state party's June filing with the Federal Election Commission.... [Shea-Porter's] Chief of Staff Harry Gural said the office bought the Democratic Party's file because it was 'the best available list at the lowest price' and that they needed the data so they can inform constituents 'about issues that may concern them.' ...But the purchase was criticized by New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Fergus Cullen, who trumpeted the sale in a press release... 'Essentially, Shea-Porter made a political contribution to the New Hampshire Democratic Party using taxpayer dollars,' Cullen wrote.... The Shea-Porter news came at the end of a week in which the state's Democratic and Republican parties have traded accusations about each other's use of voter data."

Biography
Carol Shea-Porter is the first woman elected to national office in the history of the state of New Hampshire.

Shea-Porter grew up with her six brothers and sisters in a household that included her parents, a great-uncle, and a grandmother. Her family also gave a temporary home to children and teens that needed a place to live during difficult times in their lives.

She graduated from public high school in Durham, New Hampshire and then worked her way through the University of New Hampshire, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Social Services in 1975 and a Master of Arts in Public Administration in 1979.

She married Gene Porter, an Army officer stationed at an Army medical center in Colorado during the Vietnam era. After her husband left the service, they moved to New Orleans where Shea-Porter directed The Shepard's Center, a New Orleans social service organization. When they move to the Washington, DC area where she founded and directed the City of Laurel Multi-Purpose Senior Center in Maryland. In addition, she taught history and Current Issues to Special Populations at Prince George’s Community College, Largo, MD (1987-1989) and taught Current Issues in Politics on contract at The Charter House in Silver Spring, MD, for 15 years (1987-2001).teacher.

After returning to New Hampshire with her husband and their son and daughter, the Shea-Porter became active in local politics serving as Chair of the Rochester City Democrats and Strafford County Coordinator for state representative races. During the 2004 Presidential primary, she volunteered and then worked for General Wesley Clark.

Shea-Porter Carol ran for Congress after serving for a month as a volunteer in Katrina-ravaged New Orleans. She said that she saw first-hand the inadequate response of the federal government in meeting the needs of citizens after this tragedy and decided that the voice of hard working families needed to be heard in Washington. She built a district-wide grass roots network that succeeded in electing her, in spite of a lack of campaign funding.

Shea-Porter was sworn into office on January 4, 2007. She is a member of the House Armed Services Committee and the Committee on Education and Labor.

Shea-Porter's volunteer service includes work with the Laurel Advocacy and Referral Services, Laurel, MD; the Mayor’s Taskforce on Senior Housing, Laurel, MD; the Interfaith Action Committee in Prince George’s County, MD; Patrons for Peace, Laurel, MD; and fundraising at her children's high school annual auction since 2002.

2006 election
Shea-Porter won the 2006 congressional election against Republican incumbent Rep. Jeb Bradley in a 51% to 49% vote. 

Money in politics
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Committees in the 110th Congress (2007-2008)

 * House Committee on Armed Services
 * Subcommittee on Military Personnel
 * Subcommittee on Readiness
 * House Committee on Education and Labor
 * Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities
 * Subcommittee on Workforce Protections

Technology
Shea-Porter Secures $35.3 Million in Defense Spending. http://www.shea-porter.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&amp;task=view&amp;id=92&amp;Itemid=67. Shea-Porter supports Defense spending and announced 7 projects worth 35.3 million, also including a pay raise for troops and funding for the Defense Health Program. She also secured money for ship yard projects and says, “The Shipyard is a top priority, and I am going to keep bringing construction projects here that help our workers continue to be the best in the Fleet.”

Health
Shea-Porter Announces the Creation of HealthCare.Gov. http://insurance-technology.tmcnet.com/news/2010/07/06/4885810.htm. July 6, 2010. Shea-Porter announces the creation of the website HealthCare.Gov. This site is to explain the new health care package and gives tips on how to shop for health insurance.

Shea-Porter works hard for New Hampshire vets. http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20100706-OPINION-7060372. July 6, 2010. Shea-Porter supports solving health problems that relates to burning toxic wastes in combat zones. She wants to help the veterans with health problems and see a reduction in toxic wastes.

Dem lawmaker: Congress could pass health reform if men were 'sent home'. http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/77707-dem-lawmaker-congress-could-pass-healthcare-reform-if-men-were-sent-home. January 24, 2010. Shea-Porter is in support of the healthcare reform. She said that if they send the congressmen home, they would be able to solve the current healthcare problem.

STEM Education
Shea-Porter Supports Bill to Create and Advance Science and Technology Jobs http://sheaporter.com/release_details.asp?id=129. Shea-Porter voted to pass the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act (H.R. 5116), which will increase the competitiveness of the United States by investing in science and technology. It will include “modernizing manufacturing, spur American innovation through clean energy research, and strengthen math and science education for students.” Shea-Porter says, “This legislation will create jobs here at home while ensuring the U.S. remains at the forefront of scientific and technological research…As a member of the House Trade Working Group, I believe it is critical to spur job growth in the U.S., not in China and India…For too long, math and science education has been put on the backburner… It is vital to invest in these fields now so that our future generations can be worldwide technological leaders.”

Resources

 * Carol Shea-Porter for Congress, official campaign site.
 * Carol Shea-Porter, ActBlue.
 * Carol Shea-Porter in the Portsmouth Herald (NH).
 * Carol Shea-Porter in the Wikipedia.
 * Carol Shea-Porter at DFA-Link.
 * "Carol Shea Porter. Political Campaign Contributions and Campaign Finance Information for the 2006 election cycle," CampaignMoney.com.
 * NH Congressional Races in 2006, OpenSecrets.org.

Local blogs and discussion sites

 * Democracy for New Hampshire
 * Graniteprof

2005

 * Diane Carman, "Bush's bouncer gets around," Denver Post (Infoshop.org), April 26, 2005.
 * "Removal of Bush foes from presidential visit prompts lawsuit," Associated Press (FirstAmendmentCenter.org), November 23, 2005.
 * Larry Clow, "'Denver Three' sue over Bush event ejection," The Wire NH, November 30, 2005.

2006

 * "Third Democrat enters 1st House race," Associated Press (Boston Globe), February 8, 2006.
 * Rep. Jim Splaine, "About Carol Shea-Porter: 'For the Rest of Us'," NH Insider, February 28, 2006.
 * Endorsement: "Carol Shea-Porter for Congress, NH-1, Clark supporter &amp; terrific candidate," Securing America/WesPAC, March 17, 2006.
 * "Jeb Bradley—Rubber-Stamp New Hampshire Republican Who's Got to Go," Down With Tyranny! Blogspot, April 13, 2006.
 * "Carol Shea-Porter Calls for a Date to Bring the Troops Home," PoliticsNH.com, May 30, 2006.
 * Elana Schor, "Campaign: State by State," The Hill, June 13, 2006.
 * Timothy Horrigan, "Joe Biden: June 17, 2006; Dover, NH," TimothyHorrigan.com, June 17, 2006.
 * "Release: Shea-Porter Predicts First District Democrat Victory," PoliticsNH, July 14, 2006.
 * Mike Campbell, "Democratic dreams. Four Democrats vie for Jeb Bradley's seat in the House. Only one can make it past the primary. Who will it be?" The Wire NH, August 2, 2006.
 * Barbara Broderick, Letter to the Editor: "Shea-Porter will fight Bush-Bradley team," Exeter News-Letter, August 11, 2006.
 * bloomingpol, "NH, DE, IA, MS and VT," MyDD, August 15, 2006.
 * Fergus Cullen, "Jim Craig’s brain vs. Carol Shea-Porter’s heart," UnionLeader.com (Manchester, NH), August 16, 2006.
 * "Four Democrats vie for 1st District. Bradley could prove to be tough opponent," Concord Monitor (NH), August 22, 2006.
 * Beverly Wang, "1st District candidates' ideas on health care, pensions, tuition" and "1st District candidates on spending, in their own words," Associated Press (Boston Globe), August 31, 2006.
 * Gary Patton, "Shea Porter can defeat Jeb Bradley," Exeter News-Letter, September 1, 2006.
 * Opinion/Letter: "Carol Shea-Porter truly walks the talk," Portsmouth Herald (NH), September 3, 2006.
 * Staff, "Beware outside bid to dictate state's vote," Concord Monitor (NH), September 3, 2006.
 * Rose H. Arthur, "Shea-Porter would work for all people in N.H.," Nashua Telegraph (NH), September 3, 2006.
 * Patrick Hynes, "Carol Shea-Porter: Another Moonbat Insurgency?" Ankle Biting Pundits Blog, September 5, 2006.
 * "Shea-Porter bandwagon leaving the station?" Granite Prof, September 7, 2006.
 * Chaz Proulx, "Carol Shea Porter for the United States Congress," NH Insider, September 8, 2006.
 * Beth LaMontagne, "2 races key in primary," Portsmouth Herald (NH), September 10, 2006.
 * Beth LaMontagne, "Final push to primary on Tuesday," Portsmouth Herald (NH), September 11, 2006.
 * Laura Blinkhorn, ".C. Endorsement a Double-Edged Sword for Shea-Porter in N.H. 1," CQ Politics, September 11, 2006.
 * Laura Blinkhorn, "Party Backing Backfires in N.H. 1, Giving Shea-Porter the Win," CQ Politics, September 13, 2006.
 * trillion, "NH-01: Fighting Dem Carol Shea-Porter Live Blogging," America Abroad/TPM Cafe Blog, October 29, 2006.
 * Beverly Wang, "Shea-Porter v. Bradley in close congressional race," Associated Press (Boston Globe), November 7, 2006.
 * Shir Haberman, "Shea-Porter ousts Bradley from Congress," Portsmouth Herald (NH), November 7, 2006.
 * "ELECTION NEWSBLOG: A historic Democratic triumph," Union Leader (Manchester, NH), November 7, 2006.
 * Election 2006: "U.S. House, New Hampshire District 1," Washington Post, November 7, 2006.
 * Beverly Wang, "Underfunded, ignored by national Democrats, Shea-Porter pulls upset," Associated Press (Boston Globe), November 8, 2006.
 * David Darman, "Shea Porter Wins Surprising Victory," New Hampshire Public Radio, November 8, 2006.
 * John Nichols, "The Iraq War Election," The Nation, November 8, 2006.
 * Michael McCord, "Shea-Porter: 'We have a tough road ahead'," Portsmouth Herald, November 9, 2006.

2007

 * Carol Shea-Porter, "The beginning of the end of the war: House bill stands up for our soldiers, vets," Concord Monitor (NH), March 21, 2007.
 * Anne Miller, "Don't go wobbly on us, Congresswoman: Vote for Iraq bill is vote for more war," Concord Monitor (NH), March 22, 2007.
 * Carol Shea-Porter, "Congress has spoken up for our troops," Concord Monitor (NH), April 29, 2007.
 * Lauren R. Dorgan, "Shea-Porter bought voter list with tax dollars: Democratic Party sold district data for $5,000," Concord Monitor (NH), December 15, 2007.
 * Fergus Cullen, "NH GOP - Carol Shea-Porter Used Tax Dollars to Buy Voter File from NH Dems," NH Insider, December 15, 2007.

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