Shaheen Shares Plans

By Dan Gorenstein on Wednesday, February 6, 2002.

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With very little fanfare, Governor Jeanne Shaheen announced her candidacy in this fall's race for the US Senate.

New Hampshire Public Radio's Dan Gorenstein reports.

The waiting game is finally over. Governonr Jeanne Shaheen confirmed what many political observers have believed for months.

1:00 this afternoon, I want to let the people of New Hampshire know that I do intend to seek the seat in the US Senate.

Shaheen says one lesson learned as governor is that sometimes to make things happen in NH, policy in Washington must be changed. And sheï¿½s got some ideas.

5:46 environmental issues are something that will be incredibly important to build on the record of accomplishment we have had in NH. One of the areas we need to see some action is MBTE. We have a waiver pending. We need legislation to really be MBTE free. I think energy is another energy where it will be important to see action in Washington.

While she has announced her candidacy, Shaheen says she remains committed to the job she was elected to do.

4:20 we have a number of pressing issues in the state, my first responsibility, and first priority is as governor. That is what I was elected to do. I am going to continue to work on those issues that are crtical to people in the state. The IP land deal approved, getting legislation to address water resource protection, continue to do something about lowering the cost of prescription drugs.

Dan Ronayne is the New England regional press secretary for the Republican National Committee.

:28 the announcement isnï¿½t a news story. Itï¿½s really laughable, she has been raising quite a bit of money, Terry McCauliffe has been on television, she has been running for some time, today is a non-event.

Quite a bit of money indeed. The governorï¿½s exploratory committee has locked up more than nine-hundred thousand dollars since August. And Ronayne says thatï¿½s what gives the governor an ferocious appearance.

1:04 which really makes her the 800-pound paper tiger of the NE. When you look at Shaheen, you are looking at a governor with the smallest margin of victoryï¿½she really is a paper tiger, we have excellent candidates and are looking forward to keeping that seat.

In comparison to the governor, Senator Bob Smith has amassed 1.4 million and Congressman John E. Sununu 700 thousand. None of the candidates are planning to adhere to voluntary spending caps.

While heï¿½s currently got the largest war chest, political editor Foshay says Encumbent Senator Smith may be vulnerable.

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Governor Shaheen expects to make a formal announcement of candidacy in the near future. For NHPR News, Iï¿½m DG