THE EARMARK

The Earmark bids a fond farewell to Doris “Granny D” Haddock, a true patriot if there ever was one.  She died yesterday at age 100 in her New Hampshire home.

D was a hero to us in many ways.  She first gained national fame in 1999, when she walked across the country to promote campaign finance reform, despite the protestations of a sobbing John Roberts.  Her courageous efforts led directly (we’re pretty sure) to the passage of the McCain-Feingold bill in 2002, which in turn led to the possibility of a largely unknown African-American man being elected president.  So in other words, Granny D was responsible for fishing being banned nationwide.

But we remember D even more fondly for her bold run for the U.S. Senate at age 94.  She managed to win the Democratic nomination for the seat, largely due to her shrewd campaign tactic of baking pies for each of New Hampshire’s six Democrats.  In the general election, she won an impressive 34% of the vote from incumbent Republican Judd Gregg, who was so infuriated that he hired men to kidnap his wife.

Sadly, though, Granny D never became Senator D.  She lived for many more years, however, long enough to become a Hollywood legend and outlive her childhood nemesis, New Hampshire’s Old Man of the Mountain.

Goodbye, Granny D.  We miss you.