Interview: Karishma Manzur

Yes, I will do everything in my power to hold people accountable for bribery, treason, and high crimes and misdemeanors. No exceptions.

I am not here to play politics. I am here to change it!

Thank you! The short answer is YES.

All of us have to work together to dismantle the corrupt R and D establishments. But I have been in this fight for a few years as a peace activist and will continue to work to stop the death and destruction at home and abroad.

There are two parts to my answer. First, AI technology can have both positive and negative impacts on our society. But at this moment, it is critical that the federal government regulates its use and development. And we should never allow it to be used for mass surveillance and warfare. I agree with Senator Sanders that we must impose a reasonable pause on AI development to ensure humanity’s safety.

Second, AI data centers have an immense environmental and local footprint. They consume massive amounts of electricity and water, driving up local energy bills. It is estimated that data centers will increase our reliance on fossil fuels by 30%.

Extreme wealth inequality is undermining economic opportunity in the U.S. We need fresh, bold leadership in Congress to actually work for American families.

I would address the extreme wealth inequality by making the tax system fairer and raising incomes for working people. Here are some of my policy stances:

• Enact a more progressive tax code, including a surtax on extreme wealth income
• Support legislation like the Cost of Living Tax Cut Act to reduce taxes on working families while asking more of top earners
• Equalize tax rates on capital gains and wages so investment income isn’t taxed less than work
• Raise the federal minimum wage to a livable wage, so full-time work covers the cost of living
• Ban stock buybacks that enrich CEOs and take money away from workers and the company’s growth.

This isn’t about punishing success. It’s about restoring fairness and rebuilding the middle class.

Spot on! Pappas hasn’t held a town hall since March 22 of last year. That’s over 411 days!!

Pappas lacks the courage to meet the people that he is running to represent. And he also lacked the courage to meet with five community leaders and had them arrested. It’s absolutely shameful!

I am running to serve the public, not AIPAC, billionaires, or corporations. Here’s my pledge as a candidate:

I will continue to hold town halls across the state and engage in conversations with everyone in NH, not just those who support me.

I will remain transparent about my donors, my schedule, and the progress of my grassroots campaign.

I support federally legalizing and descheduling cannabis. We also need a nationwide process to clear the records of people convicted of nonviolent cannabis possession offenses.

BTW, let me tell you about a related PDS (Pappas’s Deceptive Strategy). In 2022, Pappas was one of only two House Democrats nationwide to vote against the MORE Act, which would have descheduled cannabis at the federal level. So Pappas publicly says he supports legalization, but he votes against it. Remember, typical PDS!

Hi Kevin. I am the face of the campaign, but behind me are several hundred Granite Staters from the peace movement and the greater nonprofit sector. This is a true people’s campaign.

We need strong unions to provide safety and dignity to workers, and also to stop the immense transfer of wealth to a few oligarchs. I would hold corrupt corporations accountable through Senate hearings.

The best brewery is Fat Hen in Exeter! They also have delicious pies and have just changed the menu to Mediterranean pies. Yum!

You are right that a livable wage for a single person without dependents is about $25 to $30, depending on where they live. Let’s fight together to make sure that everyone who works a full-time job can afford food, housing, and healthcare.

Great question. I’m traveling all over the state and talking with people from all walks of life. We haven’t found a venue in Berlin yet, but we’re planning town halls in Lincoln and Claremont soon. Stay tuned for details.

As a regular person, I have felt overlooked by our federal representatives.

Whether it was advocating to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 an hour and failing to get our two senators to vote for it, fighting for Medicare for All and failing to get Pappas to co-sponsor it, or joining peace activists calling for an end to U.S. complicity in genocide and having five of them arrested in Pappas’s office, I felt like ordinary people were not being heard.

I’m running for federal office because I want to be a lawmaker who is willing to meet with and listen to regular folks like me. Let’s bring honor back to public service.

I am a parent myself. It’s a big responsibility, and parents deserve reliable, trustworthy tools to protect children. However, I am extremely concerned about a system that will collect personal data from citizens.

We must identify ways to protect our children by making technologies less addictive and harmful. And we must not allow the passage of laws that will turn our devices into mass-surveillance tools.

There are two parts to your question.

First, we must ensure that all corporations pay their fair share in taxes.

Second, the solution you’re proposing would not fully address the negative impact AI technology could have on workers and society. That’s why I believe it is critical to implement a pause on AI development and ensure our lawmakers put people before profit by properly regulating the use and development of AI technology.

As a U.S. Senator, the regulation of state law would not be within my purview.

The most powerful thing we can do in New Hampshire is to out-organize FSP. There is a growing coalition of advocacy groups that are actively opposing FSP, including Granite State Project, Kent Street Coalition, 50501 NH, Southern NH Indivisible, Granite State Matters, and Third Act NH.

Folks should consider getting involved with one or more of these great groups, which may help with the effort.

Jeddeye, I hear you. The red and blue political dynasties are undemocratic and must end.

Let me tell you what I see during my travels and town halls in New Hampshire: a lot of enthusiasm and hope that NH finally has a candidate who represents the people and is challenging the corrupt establishment from both parties. People are tired of a rigged system that works against them. They are ready for a change. Just like you, they hear about my priorities and fully resonate with them. Granite Staters will absolutely vote for a candidate like me.

Let’s work together to unite across the state. We have to organize our grassroots campaign. And concerned citizens like you will help make it happen!

I am not a politician, and that’s my superpower.

Let’s face it. People in NH are suffering from a housing, childcare, and healthcare crisis. And the current set of lawmakers got us into this mess, and we cannot expect them to get us out.

We need fresh, bold leaders who will answer to the people.

I am running for the U.S. Senate to ensure that we stop spending billions of our tax dollars on bombing people overseas and instead use the money to build affordable housing, provide universal childcare, and pass Medicare for All.

Primary elections are extremely important because both the Republican and Democratic party establishments will work to protect their donor-backed candidates.

Our campaign is taking on the entrenched political power in NH, as well as massive outside spending from groups like AIPAC and other special interests.

I will no longer vote for the “lesser of two evils.” On September 8, let’s vote for the greater good.

I am running as a Democrat. But it is important to distinguish that I am a progressive Democrat and my opponent is a corrupt corporate Democrat.

At this point in my campaign, I am focused on defeating my opponent, Chris Pappas, in the Democratic primary. Pappas represents the “billionaire” Democratic Party, as you called it. We must reject corrupt politicians like him who take money from AIPAC and special interest groups. I will not take a cent from corporate PACs, AIPAC, or special interest groups. I am a progressive, and I answer to the people.

I would be honored to serve on HELP (Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions), Foreign Relations, and Veterans’ Affairs.

We absolutely must implement term limits for the SCOTUS, the House, and the Senate.

At this time, I would ask that we focus on enforcing ethical rules in the House rather than on expansion.

I agree with you that we must consider either removing or limiting the president’s pardon power.

The Second Amendment of the Constitution protects the right of law-abiding citizens in the US to own firearms.

It is a national tragedy that we are losing over 45,000 Americans each year from homicide, suicide, and accidental deaths. I agree with responsible owners of firearms that we must improve firearms safety through the expansion of background checks to private individuals, providing safety and responsibility training to first-time buyers, and keeping guns off of our college and university campuses.

Military-style, semi-automatic rifles already exist in the millions in the public domain, so focusing on ways to keep them out of the hands of those NOT entitled to own them is of critical importance (eg, those who avoid background checks through private sales).

I value honesty, compassion, and a fighting spirit. Based on those values, I would rank George Washington, Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, FDR, and Eisenhower among my top 5 U.S. presidents. If you allow me one more choice, I will add Jimmy Carter.

Please see my pledge with Melt ICE (m3lt_ice). I have called for the abolition and prosecution of ICE. https://www.instagram.com/p/DWxQUMQEe7t/

First, my heartfelt gratitude to all federal workers. I am horrified by the gutting of key federal agencies, and the loss of knowledge, experience, and public services from these agencies is immeasurable.

I’m also deeply sorry for the psychological trauma caused by the lies, uncertainty, and on-again/off-again games inflicted on federal workers by the Trump administration.

Before we can even begin rebuilding, we must first stop the destructive forces of authoritarianism and restore a government that serves the people. But to do that, we must ensure that the majority of members of Congress (in both parties) serve the American people, not billionaires and corporate donors.

Upon taking office, I will fight to fully restore staffing and funding for gutted federal agencies, strengthen whistleblower protections, defend collective bargaining rights for federal workers, and pass safeguards to prevent political purges of career civil servants in future administrations. I will also work with other Senators to hold hearings to investigate and hold people like Russell Vought, Stephen Miller, and Elon Musk accountable.