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New Hampshire voters voice concerns about the trade war and "Medicare for All"

Three Meals: New Hampshire voters on 2020
Three Meals: New Hampshire voters share their thoughts on 2020 05:55

In our series, "Three Meals," we travel to different states to break bread with voters and hear what's on their minds. The 2020 presidential campaign marks a big milestone for the state of New Hampshire. It's the 100th year the first presidential primary will be held there. CBS News contributor Steve Inskeep crossed the state to see what voters are thinking.


Breakfast: Gorham, New Hampshire

Inskeep first visited a town in New Hampshire's White Mountains that's home to Welsh's Restaurant. Vickie Byrd is a waitress and was born and raised around the area. Richard Wallingford eats on his way to work in his interior design store.

"We've had good times. We've had bad times," Wallingford said. "We're peaking the top."

"Honestly there's not enough people to work right now," Byrd said. "I mean, people are coming and going. You can't get help."

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Breakfast in Gorham, New Hampshire CBS News

When Inskeep checked in, news was spreading of an attack on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia.

"That will affect us, you know? So it's just-- I feel like we're on the edge of a war," Wallingford said. "And it's pretty scary right now."

Wallingford said the trade war is already affecting him.

"A lot of materials are very difficult to get," Wallingford said. "The prices have increased tremendously."

Lunch: Manchester, New Hampshire

After breakfast Inskeep headed south through the White Mountain National Forest. It felt remote, but as Inskeep heard from the shopkeeper selling products from China, it's connected to the global economy. Some of the rules of the global financial system were made at the White Mountain Hotel at a conference in 1944. This is the system that has lasted ever since and has been challenged in these days of trade wars and nationalism.

In Manchester, New Hampshire, old mill buildings which once made this city a world leader in textiles have filled with more modern global industries. And when people get a chance to grab lunch, they head to KC's Rib Shack Barbecue.

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Lunch in Manchester, New Hampshire CBS News

While there, Inskeep met Lyne Verfaillie, an artist who reshapes old pieces of furniture. She gets health benefits through her husband, Shannon, who works for a defense contractor.

"Our healthcare system is broken, without a doubt," Lyne said. "I myself have foregone medical care when I needed it because of the expense of it."

Lyne said she wants the government to do something about that, but she doesn't want plans like "Medicare for All."

"I do not want socialized medicine," Lyne said. "I think it's a bad idea."

This is a Republican family. But while Lyne's son Cian supports the Republican president's crackdown on illegal immigration, he feels it's gone too far.

"The ones who are getting caught, they're — they are getting thrown in cages," Cian said.

Dinner: Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Inskeep trekked to dinner in Portsmouth, a port city — New Hampshire's traditional opening to the wider world.

Tourists mix with locals at the River House. Democrats Lynne Pallarino and Kin Bolz are ready to vote for anyone but the president.

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Dinner in Portsmouth, New Hampshire CBS News

"You can have a four-year mistake, but eight years is a pattern," Bolz said.

And they've been talking through the alternatives. Pallarino said Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren would make a good ticket, but picking between them is tough. She's not sure about Warren because the candidate endorsed a Medicare for All plan.

"She's Medicare for All, but she doesn't believe in keeping the private insurance," Pallarino said.

Bolz said Warren needs to change course on that.

"I think people — somehow they gotta work it out so people can keep their insurance," Bolz said. "You can't take away from Americans and expect them to vote for her. You just can't. She's gotta back off that."

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