Governor Linda Lingle, R-Hawaii, and Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H., met with students and campaigned for their party's ticket during visits to the College this week. Lingle spoke about her personal connections to Republican vice-presidential candidate Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Ala., while Sununu discussed the importance of the U.S. Senate race in New Hampshire.
Meeting with Dartmouth students, faculty, staff and local community members at the Hanover Inn, Lingle spoke about the similarities between herself and Palin.
Both women were the first female governors of their states. which Lingle said grants her a unique understanding of Palin's "strong" qualifications. She further noted that Palin is the only candidate on either ticket with executive experience.
"Sarah Palin is the only governor in the country with an 85 percent approval rating," Lingle said, adding that her own approval ratings are in the low 70s. "The people who know her best rate her highest."
Lingle also spoke in support of John McCain's foreign policy positions, adding that McCain would strengthen the image of the United States abroad.
"I want to elect a person more concerned with what America thinks than what the rest of the world thinks," Lingle said when asked about the impact on the United States' international reputation if Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., were elected to the U.S. presidency. "Other countries, like France, the United Kingdom, they should know better. We saved their very existence in World War II. Maybe they should be educating their young people about the greatness of America.
"In my part of the world, places like Japan, Korea, Indonesia, where people have lived under dictatorships and are concerned about their security, they prefer McCain," she added. "People from former Soviet countries prefer McCain."
Sununu met with approximately thirty students over pizza at Everything But Anchovies on Tuesday afternoon and spoke about his campaign, encouraging students to get involved in the election. Sununu is fighting a close race for the U.S. Senate seat from New Hampshire against the state's former Democratic governor Jeanne Shaheen.
Sununu emphasized that he would continue to work to stabilize the economy.
"Five years ago I wrote legislation to reign in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac," Sununu said. "That bill was stuck in banking committee since 2005 until it became part of housing bill in July. I also wrote legislation to give government a voice in regulating large national insurance companies. Congress has a responsibility to make sure there's oversight, integrity, in interstate commerce and financial markets."
Sununu went on to critcize Shaheen's economic policies.
"This is the worst time to raise taxes -- we're in the middle of a recession," Sununu said. "But my opponent wants to raise income taxes, raise capital gains, and bring death taxes back from the dead."
Sununu also stressed that he is an independent thinker on a variety of issues, including conservation, energy policy and banning internet taxes.
Members of Dartmouth's College Republicans chapter said the two events were successful, despite the student turnout, which was significantly lower than that of recent events hosted by the College Democrats. The Sununu event was scheduled at the last minute, according to Harrison Davies '09, vice president of the College Republicans, and the Lingle event was held at a time that conflicted with many students' classes, which contributed to low turnouts. Roughly 30 students attended each event.
In contrast, a College Democrats orientation-week event, featuring New Hampshire state senate candidate Matthew Houde '91 and staff members from the Obama and Shaheen campaigns, attracted more than 250 students.
More than 150 students attended a College Democrats meeting on Monday, where speakers included Houde, New Hampshire state Sen. David Pierce, D-Grafton, and Jeanne Shaheen's daughter, Molly Shaheen.
"We understand that we have an uphill battle when students prefer not to think and to just follow the crowd," said Gregory Boguslavsky '09, co-chair of New Hampshire Students for McCain and chair of the statewide College Republicans chapter. "Go talk to these students and see how many actually know anything about the repercussions of Obama's tax plan, the specifics of his health care proposal, or any other critical issues."
