A Weare lawmaker who faces possible sanction by the New Hampshire House for his social media posts was unrepentant during testimony before a legislative committee on Monday.
Republican Rep. Travis Corcoran received criticism for posts that included calling for a “final solution for theater kids” in response to a karaoke night invitation from a Jewish lawmaker, and inviting the Trump administration to deport a fellow state lawmaker who was born in the Philippines.
“A joke is now being treated as though it were an act of malice, and sarcasm is being recast as hate speech. This is absurd,” Corcoran said during his testimony, reading from a sheet of paper that bore the heading “Kangaroo Court.”
“What is being protected here is not decorum; it is political theater as a disciplinary weapon,” Corcoran added, before leaving the hearing without taking questions from the committee.
Manchester Rep. Jessica Grill, a Democrat, sent the karaoke invitation that prompted Corcoran’s reference to the “final solution," the same term used by Nazi leaders for their plan to commit genocide against European Jews. Grill said Corcoran deserves to be expelled from the House.
“As a Jewish lawmaker, the use of this phrase 'final solution' is especially disturbing,” Grill said. “It’s not a poorly-worded joke; it is targeted language with a specific historical meaning.”
Many who testified joined Grill in calling for Corcoran to face sanction.
“Our institution cannot afford inaction,” said Rep. Alexis Simpson, the House’s Democratic leader.
“We cannot ask Granite Staters to hold us in high regard, if we do not hold ourselves accountable,” said Rep. Bill Boyd, a Republican from Merrimack.
Read more: Why it's so hard to police bad behavior in the NH House
Leaders of civil rights groups in the state, including the Manchester NAACP, and the New Hampshire Center for Justice and Equity, criticized other examples of Corcoran’s conduct, which has included doxing New Hampshire residents he disagrees with and labeling political opponents as “the enemy.”
“Having served in the New Hampshire House, I lost my feeling of acceptance or respect and protection," said Jeffrey Salloway, a former Democratic lawmaker who currently serves as a chairman of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.
Salloway implored lawmakers to "preserve acceptance and respect for me, my community and all citizens of New Hampshire who are otherwise vulnerable.”
While nearly all who testified at the hearing urged the committee to recommend Corcoran face sanction or removal from the House, that view wasn’t unanimous.
“To become a Republican in New Hampshire means you sign up for being called hateful, misogynist, homophobic, racist, and all kinds of other names,” Republican Rep. Matt Drew of Manchester told fellow lawmakers.
“The First Amendment is very broad for a reason,” he added. “Once you go down the path of punishing people because other people got offended, you are going to end up censoring everyone.”
The House Legislative Administration Committee will make its recommendation on Corcoran's case in the coming days. While other House committees face a May 7 deadline to act on pending bills, according to the House Clerk, disciplinary referrals are not bound by that deadline.
