Former Congressman Dick Swett, a candidate for U.S. Senate in 1996, accused Republicans of using "destructive, hate filled rhetoric" to polarize society and called for social "bridges" to reunite America in a speech last night.
Swett, who served two terms as a Democratic Congressman from New Hampshire's Second Congressional district, spoke to a crowd of about 40 students at a Young Democrats meeting in the Rockefeller Center for the Social Sciences.
First elected to the House in 1990, Swett was the first Democrat to occupy the seat in 78 years. He lost his seat to Republican Charlie Bass '74 in 1994.
Condemning current Republican Congressional dominance, Swett defined his platform for the 1996 race.
Swett said hateful political rhetoric scared off the nearly 60 percent of Americans that did not vote in the 1994 elections. Swett said his goal will be to re-enfranchise this giant source of moderate, "good-minded" Americans who will reject far-right extremism.
Swett said Republicans capitalized on popular disdain for government "intrusion" into private lives. He said he is in touch with the need for independence but said it does not mean the government should not provide citizens with the tools they need "to help themselves."
"To think that [politicians] of the Jesse Helms-mold are reducing the intrusion of government is a lie," Swett said.
Swett said the widening gap between rich and poor people is the biggest problem facing America.
"Any successful society has got to have a bridge between these two groups," Swett said. This bridge, he said, should be the middle class, which Swett proposes to strengthen by providing a balance of education, jobs and fiscal responsibility.
"Government should help us to educate ourselves and give us the job skills that will make us productive citizens," he said.
The Republican "revolution has taken over the country and driven groups further apart," Swett said. He blamed Republican tax cuts for the rich and cuts in health care spending and other social programs as responsible for growing socio-economic inequality.
Swett said he envisions a depolarized American society that will not tolerate a stubborn Republican congressional bloc that has brought government to a standstill by doing nothing and voting against everything.
This, said Swett, is the biggest problem with Sen. Bob Smith, R-NH, the incumbent he is running again.
"We've paid $2 million dollars to a man from whom we've gotten little in return," he said. "If you owned a business would you pay your employee to do nothing?" Smith's salary has totaled $2 million dollars during his 12 years in office.
Swett called for Democratic solidarity based on a strong foundation of democratic ideology reaching back to the ideas of former U.S. presidents Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman and John Kennedy but including the additions of "new Democrats" like himself.
Swett said being a new Democrat means combining social consciousness and fiscal restraint. But Swett would not give specific details about his own his new democratic agenda.
Chris Swift '98, a member of the Young Democrats and a supporter of Swett's prior campaigns, said he was not bothered by Swett's vagueness.
"He's focusing less on issues and more on getting to know people on a personal level at this stage," Swift said.
Raised in Hollis, Swift said he identifies with Swett as a native of the state. "If you grow up here as a native ... you develop a respect for family, work and independence."
Tucker Richmond '99, another Young Democrat, said he was impressed with Swett's speech.
"He presented a lot of interesting ideas that you don't hear from a lot of the old school democrats in America today," Richmond said.
During his four years in office, Swett was known for opposing congressional pay raises. When Congress approved a salary hike, Swett passed along more than $100,000 in extra pay to New Hampshire charities.
Swett was also a supporter of the Congressional Accountability Act passed last January to force elected officials to abide by the legislation they passed. He has been recognized as an ardent supporter of education though he was not on any educational committees.
Swett aligned himself with President Bill Clinton in 1994 by supporting Clinton's crime bill, specifically a ban on assault weapons. The gun ban was in a big issue in the 1994 campaign, as the National Rifle Association contributed heavily to Bass' campaign.
Swett talked about the Republican Congressional victory in 1994, in which Republicans won majorities in the House and the Senate. Swett credited New Gingrich for utilizing a "meticulous strategy ... that preyed on fears and differences between people."
