A Rough Schedule of Sorts

(or, how to meet 6 to 8 Presidential candidates, and catch the Super Bowl in a long weekend)

Saturday the 6th: Leave early morning from Moncton to Portsmouth, New Hampshire for a Hillary Clinton GOTV event at the Great Bay Community College.  Doors open at 5:45PM.  Senators Franken and Shaheen confirmed, here's hoping Bill shows up too.  Republican debate that night afterward on television, and overnight at America's Best Inn in Portsmouth.

Sunday the 7th: Pancake breakfast with Marco Rubio from 8:30-10:30AM at Londonderry High School.  Drive north to Plymouth in time for the 11AM opening of the doors for the Trump Rally at Plymouth State University.  After Trump concludes, drive back down to Concord, stopping off at a John Kasich Town Hall at the Concord High School Cafeteria until about 4:30PM or so.  Then we are free to find a Super Bowl party in Manchester or Nashua for the 6:30PM EST kickoff.  Rubio is hosting one at a posh golf club, but would rather find Bern (who has not released any events for the weekend yet) or even Bill or the Donald?  Overnight is at Motel 6 in Nashua.

Monday the 8th: Town Hall with Chris Christie at the Gilchrist Metal Company in Hudson from 8-10:30AM.  Another gap in the schedule to maybe squeeze in one more candidate or procure last minute souvenirs in Manchester, before lunch and a meet and greet in Raymond with Ted Cruz at the appropriately-named Tuckaway Tavern and Buchery (seriously!) from 1-3PM.  From there the afternoon/evening drive home to Moncton for the night, and then Halifax Tuesday morning.

Not too shabby all told, with a line up that covers all the bases.  And still some room for flexibility as/when further announcements get made (I'm looking at you, Bill and Bernie!!)

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Going through the schedule got me thinking - what questions should I ask if an opportunity presents itself?  Some initial ideas:

Hillary - I can't really think of anything that hasn't already been asked in some form a thousand different times and ways, so how about: "What server are you going to use for your emails if you become President?"  (Which could allow for the follow-up of: "What the @%$# were you thinking?")

Rubio - I love Havana, so...  "You have rejected Obama's policy on Cuba.  What is your plan to help young Cubans growing up in that country who want the freedom to use the internet and open businesses in Cuba?  And what is your favourite Cuban cigar?"

Trump - His rallies are too big, so the chances are remote in the extreme.  Maybe just: "What is your favourite book that is not written by either God or Donald J. Trump?"

Kasich - I'm stumped here.  The guy seems to have been a politician his entire life, so could just ask: "What career would you choose if you couldn't be involved in politics?"  ("And does it bother you as a supposed champion of small government that you have taken a government salary your entire life?")

Christie - This one's easy, and the only question that I really want to ask and get an answer to: "Last year, you visited London.  I was hoping you could share some thoughts on the relationship the US would have with Europe under a Christie administration, but first and more importantly, are you still an Arsenal fan, and do you think we can win the league this year?"  (Bonus follow-up: "Wenger-in or Wenger-out?")

Cruz - "As President, what can you do to convince more people in the world to convert to Christianity?"  It will be tough, but I will try to keep a straight face in the asking of that one!


Reflections tomorrow on the relative chances of some of the various candidates, what they need out of New Hampshire, and on my last drive to New Hampshire 12 years ago.