Gov. Christie's Budget Address Open Thread - A few of the sticking points

by: Rosi Efthim

Tue Feb 22, 2011 at 04:15:06 PM EST

Disparaging public employees: There was a reference to "keeping faith" with public employees in Gov. Christie's budget address today. But the public-employee bashing came in the form of: "the rich benefits of the privileged few" who "do not contribute enough". And that sounded more like the man.

Rich: Indeed, for a governor who threw his lot in with New Jersey's richest the same year he touted "shared sacrifice", the only references in the entire speech to "rich" came not in describing his own wealthy contributors and slush fund pals, or the cushy class he protected by vetoing the millionaire's tax. In fact, that word - "rich" - was only used by Christie to describe New Jersey's public employees. A great number of whom are represented by labor unions, the very definition of middle class.

Stand Up NJ and support collective bargaining and Wisconsin Workers - can you make the scene?

more below

Weird, anachronistic hockey metaphor: Flashbacks to other, deader, Republicans came in the form of a weird digression in the speech - "the free people of the world" section - in which he appeared to credit the USA hockey team for the end of the Cold War and the collapse of Soviet communism. Really.

Health care hypocrisy: On health care, his warnings about Medicaid growth "out of control" are completely inconsistent with the ease - with the determination - he showed in vetoing state funding for women's health care and family planning, that would bring in matching funds at $9 for every $1 New Jersey spent. Nor does his concern match with his stonewalling on every effort made by the women of the NJ legislature to find alternative funding sources that he did find acceptable, even to the point of requiring NJ Treasurer Andrew Sidamon-Eristoff to blow off even speaking with legislators about funding alternatives.

Jobs: It can't be a surprise that Christie vetoed Democratic-initiative jobs bills a few days ago, so he could announce some and make it look like he's actually leading on that.

Schools: Tells sob story about how he "agonized" before he had to slash funding for education last year. In fact, defunding public ed is the most important step in the pro-voucher, pro-religious school ideology he's driving NJ into. And just as an aside, there's money to help underwrite charter schools - they get a 50% boost.

Chops public education funding last year, altering conditions in classrooms across the state. Intentionally botches a $400 million federal education grant to advance his career by distancing himself from the teachers union. Returns just a fraction of that funding and is cheered as a hero by Republican legislators.