The Star Ledger is out with their most recent "blame both sides" for New Jersey's economic mess editorial. It is a powerful piece that attacks Governor Christie's tax-cut for "magical thinking," and it argues that "the "New Jersey Comeback" the governor keeps talking about is pure fiction."
But when the editorial tries to balance these criticisms of the Governor by blaming Democrats for lacking the "guts to tell the truth," it misses the mark. Democrats are not by any means the blameless victims of Governor Christie's policies; rather, the Democrats in the legislature are the minority party. That's right, the Democrats in the legislature are the minority party and this needs to be reflected in our public discourse.
Leading up to last year's legislative elections, when polled, voters consistently said that one of their main priorities in electing a Democratic majority in the legislature was to off-set the Governor. New Jersey voters were rightly afraid of an "Imperial Governor" and they sought to use their vote to reinforce a checks-and-balances system. Despite the Democratic Party "officially" holding on to their legislative "majority," voters in New Jersey unwittingly ended up with a Republican controlled legislature. By colluding with Sweeney, Norcross and Co., Christie managed to achieve politically what he could not achieve at the ballot box: a submissive legislature that is unwilling to stop his reckless and politically motivated agenda.
We are therefore stuck with another blow to the economic health of our state in the form of this new tax cut. By any measure, it is a reckless move by a Governor positioning himself nationally and preparing himself for a potential reelection campaign. It is another poor attempt at trickle down economics, a "dogma that won't die no matter how many times it fails to deliver." While the richest few might reap the rewards of the tax cut, the middle class in New Jersey will look back on it in a few years and say, "The rich enjoyed the excesses of the present at the expense of our children's future."
I am not an ideological purist. I believe that "moderates" should have a warm place in the Democratic Party; but Sweeney and Co. are not making political concessions based on their principles or their political beliefs. Nor are they making concessions based on logic or a well reasoned argument by the Governor. As exemplified in the tax cut, they are making cold and calculated decisions to allow Governor Christie to rule the state imperially. In the process they and their political boss/benefactor reap the rewards of complicity.
The Ledger was right to blame us Democrats. We have showed a lack of guts. Not only on the tax cut, but in not taking a stronger and more vocal stand against the members of our own party that have relegated us to the minority position in New Jersey. This is what we need the Ledger and others to understand: the current political discourse is a farce. The Democrats in the legislature are in the minority, and they are currently powerless to check our Imperial Governor.
Has anyone else noticed that in all the coverage of Mayor John Bencivengo's arrest for taking bribes his party affiliation is either not mentioned or buried deep in the story?
NJ Assemblyman Peter Biondi was a Republican. Usually you won't see a GOP legislator eulogized on Blue Jersey, and given my former reputation as a bit of a partisan many folks wouldn't expect to see me write it.
I met Pete in 1999 when I was managing the campaign against him for my father. He and my father connected and so I got to talk to Pete. He was funny, friendly and while he tried to wheedle campaign secrets from me he was not underhanded about it. I knew he was doing it, an he knew I knew. Still he tried, and still I parried.
He always asked after my father whenever we ran into each other on a campaign trail, down in Trenton or in Somerville. It was generous of him to do so.
When I ran for Freeholder in 2003 the Somerset County Democrats' office was next door to Pete's Assembly office. The late John Guerrera owned our building, and he and Pete were friendly rivals in trying to take or keep control in Hillsborough. Many nights I would come in from a night of campaigning and John and Pete would be in the back office drinking hard liquor and smoking cigars. I joined them many times, and loved watching these two war horses jockey with each other, try to steal information from each other, and tell great stories about their battles, successes and failures.
In 2004 I ran for Freeholder again, because I lost in 2003. Pete invited me in to his office and gave me advice even though we both knew my job in 2004 was not to win, but to take a spot on the ballot and aid other candidates up and down-ticket. Or maybe he gave me advice because he knew I had no chance.
I teased him because he was a New Jersey Assemblyman and had no NJ flag outside his office. He sloughed it off like he did many things, so I bought one for him and had it shipped with a smart-ass note. He put it up, took a picture and sent a smart-ass note back to me.
Over the years Pete did me a few favors, being a reference for jobs, co-sponsoring a bill to help the Red Cross and a few other things. I never had the opportunity or ability to do him any favors other than the flag. I wish I'd had that chance.
Governor Christie may be a mean and heartless, and he has an ego the size of Mount Everest, so there's no doubt in my mind that he wants to be President. But he's also not stupid, and he knows that his chances are much better in 2016 than in 2012. But that can only happen if Barack Obama is re-elected next year.
If he runs for president now, Christie may fool many of the independent voters into supporting him due to the tepid performance by President Obama. But the governor knows that he will have difficulty with the radical base in the Republican Party. His appointment of a judge who happens to be a Muslim causes Republicans' heads to explode, and the fact that Christie is a northeasterner rubs many in the GOP the wrong way. A Christie entry into the 2012 presidential race would virtually guarantee the emergence of a third party radical Tea Partier which would split the Republican vote and give Obama a second term.
The biggest roadblock to an eventual Christie presidency would be the election of a Republican in 2012. Waiting to the end of a second Obama term in 2016 might seem to be a long time in political life, but the potential of a two-term Republican would leave Christie out of the picture until 2020 - an eternity in American electoral gamesmanship.
So why would 2016 be any different than 2012? Christie may be counting on the American public and mainstream media waking up and realizing that the Tea Party is an extremist cult, whose members follow their leaders blindly even if it is against their self-interest. And like most cults, the Tea Party will self-destruct over the next few years.
So instead of running now, Christie is pandering to all factions in the Republican Party, fundraising and generating IOUs for future support. Like Sarah Palin, he is leveraging the idolatry from the press to his advantage. He will most certainly endorse the eventual candidate, but look for him to promote himself more than the candidate as he hits the campaign trail. And look for that little smirk on the SOB's face when Barack Obama gets re-elected.
Frank Luntz: Chris Christie is "basically a blue-collar Republican". That might be news to some blue-collar New Jerseyans I know. Luntz, via Crooks & Liars:
Fifteen donors pooled their money to provide 60% of the funds used to power Reform Jersey Now, the shady slush fund created to privately boost Chris Christie's agenda, and hit Democrats who might oppose it. The fund was created for the new governor by his GOP allies and run by Mike DuHaime, GOP strategist and the architect of Christie's campaign, with former Franklin Lakes councilman Chuck Shotmeyer listed as president.
Was this list released today to divert attention from Chris Christie's irresponsible decision to leave the state to avoid handling a messy snow emergency? The governor's due back in New Jersey tomorrow.
In a memo Reform released today, 244 donors are listed - including the core 15 - combining for a total raised of $623,784. Read the entire list here.
Missing is a list of the fund's expenditures, so New Jerseyans can follow the impact of the private financing of the slush fund's activities. For the most part, Reform acted in secret, but some of its projects are known: radio ads in June supporting Christie's property tax agenda (and in no way making clear that the support came from a group organized around the governor), and a direct mail & robo-call campaign directed at Democratic lawmakers like senators Steve Sweeney and Paul Sarlo. Reform had a half-year life, and will shut down Friday.
John Crowley (Princeton Twp), Amicus Therapeutics CEO who almost ran for US Senate in 2008, and the subject of a film about his children and their rare illness.
Sol Barer (Westfield), former CEO of Celgene Corp, a biotech firm.
Spencer Baretz & John Hellerman, of Hellerman Baretz Communications, a PR firm.
2 national GOP committees; a policy committee under the Republican Governor's Association, which made an adoring short film about Christie's 2009 upset win that premiered in a D.C. theater, and the State Government Leadership Foundation.
4 companies in the construction & development sector: Ferreira Construction Co., George Harms Construction, Langan Engineering and Environmental Services, and home-builder Toll Brothers Inc..
Issues Mobilization Committee, a Realtors issues group.
Jeff Michaels, former chief of staff under Gov. Donald DiFrancesco
follow me below the fold for more scandalous details.
Yep, the Democratic leader of the State Senate actually said he was a Republican. How so? Because there are no Reagan Democrats left. That term went out of style about a decade ago. They're now called Republicans. Except, perhaps, for Steve Sweeney.
This explains a lot. It explains why Sweeney is constantly enabling Chris Christie. And it explains his anti-state worker stance. As a "Reagan Democrat," he must have cheered when Reagan busted the air traffic controllers union. And he must have cheered on other Reagan policies, such as tax cuts for the wealthy, deregulation, and the deindustrialization of America.
That this Republican is actually the leader of the Democrats in the senate is all you know to know about the pathetic state of the Democratic party in Trenton. Hopefully, after redistricting occurs, the third district will be represented by a Republican with a R next to his or her name. Rather than a Republican with a D next to his name.
"The problem was not that Americans lived beyond their means but that their means had not kept up with what the larger economy could and should have been able to provide. The American economy had been growing briskly ... but a larger portion of the economy's winnings had gone to people at the top.... The central challenge is to rebalance the American economy so that its benefits are shared more widely." - Robert Reich: AFTERSHOCK (Alfred A. Knopf - 2010)
Brescia:The Cost of Inequality substantiates this lack of balance. Inequality in NJ can be viewed in terms of 1) our poverty rate: 8.7%; 2) differences in our median household income: Whites: $47,036, Black: $29,293 and Latino: $35,744; and 3) the difference between the median income of the three above groups and the State median income of $64,470, suggesting a number of individuals with a disproportionately high income. In comparison with other states NJ fares worse, but not significantly so because these disparities have become widespread throughout the U.S.
(continue reading below)
Today, Ohio's state Democratic chair publicly referred to teabaggers as "f*ckers". Chris Redfern made his remarks while talking to the United Steelworkers. See the article and video on HuffPo:
http://huff.to/9IAstZ
Now all the other state party chairs need to follow this example. I call on John Wisniewski to make clear that Dems in New Jersey regard teabaggers and their leaders as a bunch of f*ckers. And that's being kind.
Congressional wannabe John Runyan made millions of dollars playing a game (protected by a government-sanctioned monopoly) in hundred million dollar taxpayer-financed stadiums. Upon retirement, he promptly took a government subsidy to turn his luxury McMansion into a hobby farm.
Thankfully, Congressman John Adler is taking him to task for it.
For July the BLS reported, NJ unemployment was at 9.7%, a slight increase over both last month and the same month last year, and above the national average of 9.5%. Realty Trac reported home sales in NJ declined precipitously by 55%, from 7,206 in June to 3,196 in July. This is bad news for New Jerseyans, but does Governor Christie care?
On Tuesday the governor signed into law the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority. In a press release Assembly Majority Leader Cryan said, "Quite simply, this is all about jobs for New Jerseyans." In the governor's press release the word "jobs" is not mentioned once. Instead it refers to loftier notions of "investment, continuity and economic growth." Does he care that NJ unemployment is higher than the national average? Does he care about jobs for New Jerseyans?
In order to help people buy homes and reduce current unsold inventory, Assemblyman and Budget Committee Chair Louis Greenwald sponsored a bill to establish a New Jersey Homebuyer Tax Credit Program. Christe vetoed it saying "It would undermine our 2011 budget." Does he care that home sales fell 23% in May, 27% in June, and 55% in July? Does he care how this impacts New Jerseyans?
In the Quinnipiac poll released today Governor Christie is presented as "winning the hearts and minds of NJ voters who approve 51% - 36% of the job he is doing." Christie, however, seems remarkably detached from the lives of real people. He couches so much of what he says in terms of costs, finances and the budget, and he seldom talks about the impact of his actions on individuals. His single-minded focus on budget cutting and reducing the size of government satisfies his limited and short-sighted approach to governing. But does it satisfy those who are un-or-underemployed, concerned they might become un-or-underemployed, unable to sell their house or unable to buy a house. How many others are worried about not receiving a rebate, increased public transportation costs, smaller class sizes, or fewer municipal services? Do you get any sense he sympathizes with these people? When will New Jerseyans from the "Real World" strike back at "Christie's World?"
Last week, County Party Committees reported their net worth or (in some cases) their debt. The detailed results are available at the NJ ELEC website, but here are some highlights:
Democratic committees are prospering in Passaic ($629,688); Camden County (315,487); and Bergen (271,243.)
Some Democratic committees are deep in the hole: Burlington Co is in the red for about 100k. Hudson is worse in a $181,723 hole. Ouch.
On the GOP side, BurlCo takes the prize. At $719,804, it's the wealthiest committee in the state for both parties.
The GOP lags badly in Warren, Essex and Cumberland Counties which report less than $1,000 net worth.
Curious about the net worth of your County's committee? Leave a comment, take a guess. I'll reply with the tally promptly.
Apparently all the hullabaloo about ACORN and liberal voter fraud from the right missed the horrors of Republican voter fraud right here in Warren NJ!
A 52-year-old township woman surrendered to authorities Wednesday on charges she used her dead mother's identity to vote by absentee ballot and insure three cars, maintain a driver's license, obtain a handicapped parking placard and receive Social Security benefits.
Mary Stewart, of King Georges Road, has been released on her own recognizance after being charged with theft by deception, fraud and forgery, said Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne J. Forrest.
Ms. Stewart is a registered ... Republican!
UPDATE: Oooops. Ms. Stewart was a registered Republican, and voted in the 2008 Republican presidential primary. Her late mother is still a Republican, but Ms. Stewart has since changed to be a Democrat.
The Philadelphia Inquirer had an in depth piece yesterday on the agency talking about how despite the notion they want people to believe that they are a model that has learned from past mistakes under the new leadership of John Comegno, they are still a prime source of business for many of the GOP donors and the game continues:
The commission and its staff have a number of Republican ties. Comegno's law firm, the Comegno Law Group, is a GOP donor. The executive director is the son of a Republican political action committee treasurer. And the new chief financial officer is a former GOP councilwoman from Riverton.
Comegno is the current chairman of the bridge commission and despite all of these ties to the county party, he described "the commission as a model of transparency and accountability, saying political relationships and donations are not related to agency operations in any way." This "model of transparency" still has deep ties to the county party:
The law firm Capehart Scatchard, an influential backer of the Burlington County Republican Party, has received $2.2 million in legal fees since 2007. That's the equivalent of billing 13 hours a workday over the last three years.
Capehart Scatchard is GOP party boss Glenn Paulsen's law firm where he is a partner. His neighbor is Bill Layton, the current chairman of the Republican party Burlington County. Follow me below the fold for more.
The Republican majority on the freeholder board appears to be ignoring what's in the public interest in favor of what's in their partisan interest.
The Courier wants the Freeholder board to cut their losses and let Drayton go, but the Republican Freeholders haven't been willing to take that step yet. The editorial called the selection of Drayton a "highly partisan pick, and a bad one given some of what we know." Not only is the selection questionable, but the process by which he came about deserves further scrutiny. The Republican Freeholders have been unwilling to make public the names of the people who interviewed for the position and the finalists only met with the Freeholder Director and Deputy Director. That's far from the transparency they promised the voters.
So my Mayor has switched teams again. Evesham Mayor Randy Brown initially managed the campaign of the former Republican Mayor, Gus Tamburro in 2003, but then ran against Tamburro as a Democrat in 2007 and won. It was a big pickup for the Democrats at the time to win all 3 seats and take a 4-1 majority on council for the largest municipality in the county.
Since that time, Republicans have retaken control of the council. Both the Burlington County Democratic Chair and Treasurer were forced to resign in scandal, which seriously undermined the charges of corruption the Democrats hurled at the Republicans, and the Party's still struggling to get back on track. The party has seen a fight over the Chair position, which after many stops and starts, will be chosen in June. In the mean time, Brown has used the divisions in the party and the shifting political winds as a chance to switch teams again.
The funny things is, the GOP ran ads against the last Democratic council candidates accusing them of being just a continuation of Brown's policies. They even attacked Brown in a mailer, calling him a liar (click to enlarge the mailer to the right). Chris Russell, spokesman for the County Republicans and defender of Brown's switch, still touts the mailers that he produced on his business website, though I doubt the'll be posted there for long. The GOP spent the last 3 years trashing Brown. But now that he's one of them, they're all good to keep him around.
Chris Christie was interviewed by Jon King and Wolf Blitzer on CNN earlier this week and they asked him about the public option and whether he would consider himself a moderate or conservative:So he opposes the public option and now he's not into labels. But he was clearly into labels in the primary when he was trying to be further on the right than Steve Lonegan:I guess he's counting on the fact that people won't remember. He seems to have one set of rules for himself in the primary and another set for himself in the general. Which answer was the correct one, the primary answer where he was super conservative or the general answer of not liking labels the other day?
This is another thumb in the eye of conservatives who are still smarting from the way Christie ran the primary against Lonegan. He barealy even acknowledges he's a Republican these days, let alone a conservative. You have to wonder if they hold their nose and vote for Christie, or do they decide to stay home or even find someone else to support on election day.
Democrats have a fourteen point voter registration edge over Republicans in New Jersey, 34%-20%, according to a summary released by the state Division of Elections last Thursday. But nearly half of New Jersey voters (46%) are not affiliated with a political party.
Since October 2008, Democratic voter registration has actually declined, by 15,430 voters, while the number of registered Republicans has increased by 6,794. The total number of registered voters in New Jersey has decreased by 142,328 over the last year.
Republican NJ-Gov candidate Chris Christie doesn't seem too interested in letting Spanish-speaking voters know he's a Republican. Compare the English and Spanish versions of his new "Bringing Back Our Cities" web ad. The Spanish one omits the word "Republican" in a couple places where the English one identifies Christie with his party.
Here's the first ad in english. In the opening 30 seconds, he mentions the fact that he is a Republican twice:And here is the ad in spanish. While I'm no expert, I don't hear the word Republican at all:A viewer of the Spanish version was insulted by the omission and left this comment:
Hablamos diferente idioma, no somos estupidos.
That's exactly right, they may speak a different language, but they're not stupid. So what gives with the Christie campaign and what is their explanation for only being a Republican in English? Maybe it's just like he was only a conservative for the primary too.
.gif)
