Bill O'Brien RIP (Politically)

One of the worst casualties of yesterday’s election was the political death of Bill O’Brien, the now former Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives.  He flew high (cutting government spending substantially, including the sacred cow of higher ed funding) and had even higher aspirations (greater school choice and right to work status, for example) for New Hampshire.  Indeed, he wanted to make NH “the Hong Kong of the region” and preserve it as a bastion of limited government.  But Republicans couldn’t hold a majority of House seats and O’Brien, despite winning reelection, will not be seeking a return to the leadership of the now minority House Republicans.  Speaker O’Brien deserves a lot of praise despite the fact that he’ll come in for a lot of criticism from even his fellow Republicans.  I’d like to see him rise from the ashes of this election, but he may have to pass the baton along to a new generation of NH Republicans who dare to dream rather than follow the easy path that many flinty, conservative Yankee Republicans would like to take.