Buckley v. Horn: a Case of 2014?

New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Raymond Buckley said Thursday that Republicans suffer from "rebranding failure." It's a swipe at Reince Priebus, the RNC chairman, for his comments this spring about restoring the GOP after 2012. But it's really about 2014 and the field battles of Buckley v. Horn – as in Jennifer Horn, the chairwoman of the Republican State Committee.

Buckley, in a call with reporters, accused Republican legislators of impeding progress on efforts to curb gun violence, trying to infringe upon abortion rights, and working to make it harder for people to vote. He offered a reference, too, to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling against the Defense of Marriage Act, to suggested the GOP was on the losing side of marriage equality.

Former state Sen. Deb Reynolds lumped U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) into the criticism, based in part on her vote against a background check bill earlier this year.

Buckley offered a familiar dig at state Rep. William O'Brien, the former tea party Speaker of the House who is exploring a bid for Congress, and also pointed to former state Rep. Stella Tremblay (R-Auburn), who suggested the Boston Marathon bombings were a "black ops" operation with government influence.

"They continue to put the irresponsible tea party ideology ahead of the common sense solutions of the people of New Hampshire," Buckley said.

Horn, in turn, blasted Buckley. "I would suggest that Mr. Buckley is clearly trying to rewrite history," she said in a phone interview.

Horn touted Republicans in the Legislature for fiscally responsible leadership. That there is no tax increase in the state budget? Thank a Republican, according to Horn.

Gov. Maggie Hassan (D-Exeter) balanced her budget recommendation back in February with $80 million in casino licensing fees, which didn't exist, Horn said.

"If the governor had her way, Granite Staters would have been saddled with unaffordable increases in state spending and reckless tax hikes," Horn said in a statement Wednesday, after the Legislature passed the $10.7 billion budget.

The budget, which was passed with sweeping bipartisan support, is for the fiscal biennium that begins Monday.

Buckley also had something to say about Hassan, who is expected to run for a second term in 2014. He says she's in the running to become one of the state's greatest governors.