McCain, Obama campaigns looking to names for numbers
MERRIMACK – The former head of the federal Environmental Protection Agency was brightened by a Merrimack company she said was on the “cutting edge” of energy technology.
On the stump for Republican presidential candidate John McCain, Christine Todd Whitman on Thursday toured GT Solar, which manufactures equipment to produce solar panels. Meanwhile, senior citizens in Merrimack learned more about Barack Obama’s plans to help them as a result of a visit from Matt Kennedy, grandson of Robert Kennedy.
Whitman, who is also the former governor of New Jersey, toured the facility and talked with company leaders about its economic future.
“It was very impressive, and it’s obviously a part of the economy that is not only very important but will grow a lot and offers a lot of economic growth in New Hampshire,” Whitman said.
GT Solar’s mission fits in well with McCain’s energy policies, Whitman said. The Arizona senator is calling for increased research and development in alternative energy sources, which GT Solar does in-house, Whitman said.
Businesses such as GT Solar would benefit if McCain were elected, Whitman said, because he proposes a permanent, annual tax credit equal to 10 percent of the wages of a company’s research and development employees.
Across town, Kennedy said he talked with about 30 seniors at John O’Leary Adult Community Center. Kennedy, who is director of the New Hampshire Campaign For Change Constituency, said people in attendance talked about the difficulty of living on fixed incomes, which means making difficult choices.
Kennedy said he met a woman who started taking medications every other day to cut back on costs.
“It was a little ‘in your face,’ and you get to understand the hard parts of what seniors are feeling,” Kennedy said.
He talked to people about Obama’s plans to eliminate taxes on seniors with incomes of less than $50,000 a year, close a gap between coverage in Medicare and Medicaid and keep Social Security out of privatization.
New Hampshire Campaign For Change Constituency, said people in attendance talked about the difficulty of living on fixed incomes, which means making difficult choices.
Kennedy said he met a woman who started taking medications every other day to cut back on costs.
“It was a little ‘in your face,’ and you get to understand the hard parts of what seniors are feeling,” Kennedy said.
He talked to people about Obama’s plans to eliminate taxes on seniors with incomes of less than $50,000 a year, close a gap between coverage in Medicare and Medicaid and keep Social Security out of privatization.
