Good morning. Tougher prison sentences for drug dealers who traffic fentanyl in New Hampshire were shot down Thursday by state lawmakers. Democrats and Liberty Republicans teamed up to defeat the legislation that was a top priority for Senate Republicans.
The legislation would have created a new, mandatory minimum five-year prison sentence for drug traffickers caught bringing fentanyl into New Hampshire.
As Adam Sexton reports, the Senate might try to revive the issue before the end of the session, but the margin of Thursday’s vote wasn’t close, a fact Senate President Jeb Bradley said he believes most voters would find shocking.
“I think when people are bringing deadly drugs into New Hampshire, there need to be significant penalties,” Bradley said. “I think the vast majority of people in New Hampshire recognize that.”
Speaking of Bradley, the senate president announced his retirement on Thursday. He was first elected as a state representative in the early 1990s. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2003 to 2007 and then the state Senate from 2009 on.
Other political headlines we’re watching:
- Bill to raise New Hampshire marriage age to 18 approved by House, sent to governor
- New Hampshire House rejects bill to change date of state primary
- Lawmakers table bill that would ban ‘sanctuary city’ policies in New Hampshire communities
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