GOP Chief: 'No Question' Scott Brown Would be Welcomed in NH

The chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party says there's "no question" former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown would be welcomed in New Hampshire if he chooses to run for Senate here.

"I think there's no question Senator Brown would be welcomed," Horn told Patch in a telephone interview Tuesday. "I've heard a lot of positive feedback from Republicans around the state. He really has been warmly welcomed and I've heard a lot of positive feedback about him as he's been out and about."

Brown has appeared at GOP fundraisers across New Hampshire in recent months, fueling speculation that he may challenge U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) in 2014. Brown owns a summer home in Rye and recently put his Massachusetts home on the market. He also recently established a New Hampshire political action committee and made a sizable donation to the NHGOP.

Asked if she's spoken to Brown about running for Senate in New Hampshire, Horn wouldn't provide a direct answer.

"Certainly I've spoken to Scott Brown," she said. "He's been here many times, he's generous to the party."

She said she has spoken to "a lot of people" about possible candidacies in the high profile races, but in the end, the candidates have to speak for themselves.

"Senator Brown has been a strong advocate for Republican principles and the Republican Party, and we certainly appreciate the help he's been giving us," Horn said. "It's not for me as chairman to speak for candidates. He's going to have to answer that.

"I'm not going to say he will or won't make a good candidate. I think what voters are looking for in that race is someone who will go to war in Washington as an independent voice fighting for New Hampshire. Senator Shaheen has not done that. I think voters are absolutely looking for an alternative for her."

Whether it's Brown or someone else, Horn said she expects to see additional candidates surface for the one U.S. Senate seat and the two U.S. Representative seats that are up for grabs in the 2014 election.

"While this is the time of year that we all start looking for candidates to come forward and identify themselves, it really isn't uncommon for candidates to wait until after the New Year," she said. "The first time I ran for Congress I announced in February and I won the primary. I would expect that we're going to see some more faces and names in these races before we're done."

That said, Horn said she feels "very positively" about the current slate of Republican candidates for 2014. 

"The reason for that is our current representatives, (Annie) Kuster and (Carol) Shea-Porter, have just done a dismal job of fighting for New Hampshire," she said. "We've seen it play out in front of us as ObamaCare hurts one family after another after another."

And she said Shaheen joined President Obama in promising U.S. citizens they could keep their existing healthcare under the Affordable Care Act, when that wasn't really the case. 

"She knew better all along," Horn said.

One 2014 race that has no Republican candidate at this point is the race for governor, but Horn said she expects that to change soon.

"I am aware there is more than one person looking at that race, and they are good people with strong backgrounds and strong business backgrounds," she said. "And I am confident we will have a qualified, articulate Republican ready to take on Governor Hassan.

"Any candidate looking at that race I'm sure is spending time right now calling around to Republicans around the state, calling donors, trying to establish what a campaign will look like for themselves."