Andy Martin: Republican Party Tax Cheats Attack Democratic Party Tax Cheats

(MANCHESTER, NH) (February 13, 2013) New Hampshire Republican leader and corruption fighter Andy Martin claimed “total victory” Wednesday morning as U. S. Representative Annie Kuster broke her silence Monday and spoke to the media about her extensive history of late payment of local taxes.

“Last Friday I demanded that Anne Kuster stop ‘stonewalling’ the media,” Andy says. “She must have heard me. Monday Annie was singing to WMUR-TV. But Kuster’s song was something else again. We had just gone through a Republican Party leadership charade in which Jennifer Horn blamed her husband for being five (5) years behind in her federal taxes. Kuster took a line from Horn and said Kuster hadn’t paid her taxes because she has two kids. One blames the children, the other blames the husband. New Hampshire family values?

“I predicted last month that if Republicans made Horn their leader, Democratic Party boss Ray Buckley would have a field day. A couple of weeks later I have stopped counting how many times Buckley has already referred to Horn’s unpaid taxes.

“But there is more to this ‘story’ that the flaccid New Hampshire media reported. Here are the facts and here is the time line.

“First, WMUR broke the ‘Kuster’s taxes’ story on February 4th. (See Link #1) WMUR quoted the New Hampshire Republican Party thusly: ‘The New Hampshire Republican Party declined to comment.’ In other words, when asked by the media to address Kuster’s nonpayment of taxes, Jennifer Horn & Co. said nothing.

“Tuesday morning, February 5th, I attacked both Kuster and Horn, Kuster for nonpayment and Horn for her silence. Kuster heard me and paid her taxes. After Kuster had already paid her taxes, Jennifer Horn & Co. started attacking Kuster. The GOP leadership was late to the party.

“Once I attacked Kuster and Horn the local tax issue became a national story. Last Friday, the 8th, I demanded Kuster stop stonewalling. Again she heard me and Monday she was chirping to the media.

“The bottom line. If I had not been attacking the Republican Party leadership for remaining silent, they were prepared to respond with ‘no comment.’ Once attacked for their silence, Republicans attacked Kuster while ignoring their own hypocrisy in having a leader with a still-unpaid tax bill.

“There is no question U. S. Representative Annie Kuster is a loathsome politician. Kuster reached a new low Monday when she tried to blame her two children for her late payment of taxes. Kuster used her two children as an explanation for not paying her taxes year after year. ‘We’ve got two kids growing up…Life is expensive, it caught up with us,’ Kuster explained. (See link #2 below) If Kuster is not capable of creating a family budget then why did New Hampshire voters elect her to work on a national budget? I hate to sound sexist, but where was Kuster’s husband in all of these financial improprieties? Who pays the bills in their family? Are the voters of New Hampshire prepared to accept Kuster’s ‘blame the brats’ excuse? In Horn’s case her husband has also remained silent.

“But while Kuster is undeniably loathsome political operator, New Hampshire Republican state chairman Jennifer Horn is an equally loathsome political figure. Horn ran for congress twice, and both times diverted federal income tax payments into her personal campaign account. So how is Horn morally superior to Kuster?

“Reading Horn's news releases attacking Kuster, I was struck by how Horn’s attacks on Kuster perfectly fit my own questions to Horn (see links #3-#4 below):

Congresswoman Kuster's inability to explain herself further damages her credibility and raises even more questions that demand immediate answers. The people of the Second District deserve to know why, at a time when Annie Kuster is trying to raise their taxes, she hasn't been paying her own. Granite Staters don't want excuses, but they do expect their elected representatives to be open, honest and to provide a plausible explanation for three years of delinquent taxes

If you substitute Chairman Horn for Congresswoman Kuster, the words fit perfectly. Horn hasn’t paid her federal income taxes current for five (5) years, yet she offers no ‘plausible explanation for [five years] of delinquent taxes.’ At least when she was exposed, Kuster paid up.

Or look at more of what Horn said in attacking Kuster:

"The time has come for Congresswoman Kuster to stop hiding from her constituents and offer an open and straightforward explanation about her long history of delinquent taxes. The Congresswoman needs to discuss about why, despite her support for higher taxes and her reported net worth of nearly $2 million, she avoided paying her fair share in taxes until the media caught her red-handed. Now that she is back in New Hampshire, Congresswoman Kuster needs to meet with her constituents, give them honest answers, and begin to regain the trust and confidence that she has lost as a result of this embarrassing incident."

Sounds like Kuster and Horn are sisters under the skin. Has Horn ‘[offered] an open and straightforward explanation for her long history of delinquent taxes?’ Five years of unpaid taxes? How can Horn attack Kuster when Horn is guilty of even more outrageous tax violations, possibly criminal tax violations?

“And yet New Hampshire Republican leaders blindly voted for Horn on January 26th. For shame.

“Some Republicans get jittery when I focus on Horn’s indiscretions. But there is no way New Hampshire Republicans can win in a Democratic-leading state by being more callous and more corrupt than the Democrats. If all Republicans have to offer for leadership is Horn’s still-unpaid taxes, Republicans are doomed in 2014,” Andy says.

“I will continue to fight corruption in New Hampshire, and continue to fight for political reform. One man can make a difference. I just proved it.”
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MEDIA CONTACT: Andy Martin (603) 518-7310; CELL (917) 664-9329
E-MAIL: AndyNewHampshire20@aol.com

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LINKS TO THIS STORY (cut and paste the entire link below and not just the underlined portion):

Link #1

http://www.wmur.com/political-scoop/U-S-Rep-Kuster-

owes-nearly-11-000-in-late-property-tax-bills/-/16254890/

18403174/-/dh3y28z/-/index.html

Link #2

http://www.wmur.com/news/politics/Kuster-

breaks-silence-on-back-taxes/-/9857748/

18502758/-/2lepajz/-/index.html?treets=man&tid=

26513660906813&tml=man_political&tmi=

man_political_1_06000102122013&ts=H

Links #3-#4

http://www.nhgop.org/news/detail/450

http://www.nhgop.org/news/detail/451