Earlier this week the Latino Action Network joined with the Women's Political Caucus, Latinas United for Political Empowerment - Political Action Committee, New Jersey Muslim Lawyers Association, Latino Coalition of Monmouth County, and Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO to file an amicus curiae ("friend of the court") brief in In re Contest of November 8, 2011 General Election of Office of New Jersey General Assembly, Fourth Legislative District, the New Jersey Supreme Court case in which Gabriela Mosquera's election as 4th District Assemblywoman in November 2011 is being challenged despite her having won more votes than her opponents.
On Wednesday, January 26, 2012 we heard that the Supreme Court has accepted our amicus brief.
One of her opponents, Shelley Lovett, argues that because Ms. Mosquera moved to the 4th District 11 months prior to the election, she violated a requirement in the New Jersey Constitution that all candidates must live in their district for at least a year. However, a federal judge back in 2002 had held that provision invalid under the United States Constitution's Equal Protection Clause. As such the Secretary of State (Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno) had told Ms. Mosquera that she could run for office, without challenge, and in fact every candidate since 2002 has been told the same thing.
Conventional wisdom says that one way to defeat Congressman Jon Runyan this year is to fight fire with fire. That is, instead of the Democrats standing up a run-of-the-mill politician against Runyan, they should nominate a celebrity. The thinking is that there's really no one in the Burlington/Ocean county political establishment that has the name recognition, fundraising ability, and gravitas to compete with the ex-NFL "bad boy" and his bottomless source of campaign funds from the corporatists.
There is a celebrity athlete in Runyan's congressional district - one who has dabbled in politics before., and can be orders of magnitude better than Runyan. Olympian Carl Lewis ran for state senate last year, only to be denied the opportunity to serve because a judge ruled that the long-time New Jerseyan did not strictly fit the residency requirements.
Photo of Lewis' announcement of his senate run - April, 2011
(Left to right: Orange, NJ Mayor Eldrige Hawkins, Carl Lewis, Christopher Walker - Executive Director of the Carl Lewis Foundation, New Jersey Senate President Stephen Sweeney)
(Marie's piece here has been getting a lot of buzz around the Twittersphere today, so it's well worth promoting. Follow the links she provides to some other responses to the S-L's editorial; I've added some others below. - promoted by Jersey Jazzman)
I was very disappointed to start my New Year off this morning by reading a fact-less and biased op-ed piece in The Star Ledger about the Voucher Bill. It had already lit up the Twitter and Facebook feeds long before I had my first cup of coffee, with Save Our Schools NJ and NJParents1 posting fact-filled responses.
It is reprehensible and irresponsible for the state's largest newspaper to publish such a work of fiction. Anyone could do a quick Google search to find plenty of evidence to refute their claim that vouchers offer 'a lifeline for poor kids'. I do hope Politifact New Jersey does their homework on this one.
This is not a Democrat vs. Republican or state vs. NJEA issue. This is an issue of our government offering false hope to families of struggling students, financial aid to struggling private and parochial schools, and tax breaks to big corporations. This program that has been tried in various cities around the country for 20 years with no measurable success does nothing to address the crushing effects of poverty on a child's ability to learn. And according to both the US Census Bureau and the NJDOE, poverty, or lack thereof, is a major factor in a child's success in school.
If Trenton is serious about helping struggling students, why not let corporations give those tax breaks to programs that will help the poor live decent lives including affordable health insurance, housing, jobs, and ESL classes? Or how about giving that money directly to the school districts not only to invest in measures that have been proven to work such smaller class sizes, rich, deep curriculums, and strong half day pre-K and full day kindergarten programs, but to help them buy much needed materials and fix broken down, dilapidated buildings?
Newspapers are supposed to uncover the truth, not perpetuate lies. The Star Ledger can and should do better.
As the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan said, "You are entitled to your own opinion, but not your own facts."
U.S. Rep. Steve Rothman (D-9th Dist.) is telling Democrats he plans to challenge Bill Pascrell (D-8th Dist.) in the June primary, according to two Democratic sources with knowledge of the congressman's thinking.
A few anonymous sources are quoted for the article. An announcement from Rothman is apparently due this week.
Needless to say, I am sorry to have found this out, and I hope a strong Democrat will come forward to take on Garrett. It's obviously going to be someone without a $1.5 million war chest, but we need to support them all the same.
"As Senator McConnell's statement today makes clear, the only thing standing between 160 million Americans and a tax increase is House Republicans' refusal to act." – Nancy Pelosi
Well, if you want to ask our “moderate” GOP delegation to the United States Congress why they are standing in the way of bipartisan agreements on taxes, unemployment and energy exploration legislation passed with 90 percent support in the Senate, here’s their addresses and phone numbers.
Frank Lobiondo (R-2) 5914 Main Street Mays Landing, New Jersey Phone: (609) 625-5008
Jon Runyan (R-3) 4167 Church Road Mount Laurel, New Jersey 08054 Phone: (856) 780-6436
Scott Garrett (R-5) 266 Harristown Rd, Suite 104 Glen Rock, New Jersey 07452 Phone: (201) 444-5454
Leonard Lance (R-7) 425 North Avenue East Westfield, New Jersey 07090 Phone: (908) 518-7733
Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-11) 30 Schuyler Place, 2nd Floor Morristown, New Jersey 07960 Phone: (973) 984-0711
Side thought. Why can members of Congress send us pretty, printed mail at taxpayers’ expense but their offices don’t have 800 numbers?
As reported by Tom Johnson of NJ Spotlight, Hal Bozarth, executive director of the Chemical Council of New Jersey and an opponent of offshore wind development recently said,
"Without big federal subsidies, you cannot make wind power affordable."
That's a lot of chutzpah from someone whose industry receives big federal subsidies.
His statement was in response to NRG Energy's withdrawal from the offshore wind business in New Jersey. NRG's rationale was the uncertain regulatory climate and the lack of subsidies for offshore wind developers.
How hypocritical that Bozarth is opposed to subsidies for this clean technology. After all, the oil and gas industries, on which Bozarth's members depend, have received government subsidies for decades. And the taxpayer has been repeatedly called upon to spend billions to clean up oil, gas, and chemical spills and to pay for health care due to chemical pollution of the atmosphere.
There are few Republicans that I would consider voting for. But if I see a member of the GOP who I think would bring the party back to becoming a viable loyal opposition instead of a bunch of extremist corporatists, I would consider voting for that candidate.
Shelley Lovett was such a candidate in the recent election, a Republican running for Assembly from the Fourth Legislative District in Gloucester County. While she lost to political neophyte Gabriela Mosquera, Lovett was the kind of Republican we need in Trenton. When I met with Lovett back in October, she said "public education is the most important thing we can give our children" - heresy in the Christie religion. Lovett was open to the idea of giving voters a say in the establishment of charter schools and had concerns about the use of standardized tests in teacher evaluation as proposed by Governor Christie's "reforms." Lovett's Assembly running mate, Pat Fratticcoli, is also a member of that dying breed of moderate Republicans, and had either one been elected, I would not have been disappointed.
So to be fair, it isn't just state's rights hypocrite Scott Garrett who voted to allow for federal overreach in permitting individuals to carry concealed and loaded weapons into New Jersey if they have a permit to do so that is issued by another state - even though New Jersey's gun laws do not permit this of New Jersey residents. And it wasn't just Scott Garrett who, along with every NJ House Republican voted against an amendment to exclude terrorists, stalkers, pedophiles, those who have committed domestic violence and other violent criminals from the lax concealed carry rules that this federal overreach would result in
But (1) Garrett is my Congressman (lucky me), and (2) he has used "states' rights" as a reason for many many of his many many many many extreme votes - saying that he thinks that {INSERT COMMON SENSE ISSUE HERE} should not be decided by the Federal Government and that it should be left to the states to decide. One other notable exception to this rule is when Garrett thought it was A-OK for the Federal Government to overstep into the bedroom of Terri and Michael Schiavo in a deeply private and personal medical matter.
With Garrett, it is always about weasel-like excuses such as "we all agree on 'X', but....." with the "but" mainly being Federal overreach. Here, Garrett is just fine with Federal overreach when it is for the NRA (who, according to OpenSecrets ) has given Garrett close to $30,000 over the years) - even though it puts his constituents at risk.
That being said, this little video I did could just as easily apply to so called "social moderates" Leonard Lance or Rodney Frelinghuysen, or any of the other NJ House Republicans. But I did it for Garrett instead. Hope you enjoy it.
When you think of pollsters in New Jersey, one of the first names that comes to mind is Patrick Murray of Monmouth University. Yet, even an iconic figure like Murray has succumbed to the Tea Party propaganda. Check out this video snippet from his interview on NJ Today:
"Republican voters are against any tax hikes. Democratic voters are against any cost cuts."
The first part of Murray's statement is true, as we have seen with the so-called "super committee" and Governor Christie's justifying his double veto of the millionaire's tax based on the false assertion that it would drive wealthy people out of the state. But stating that Democratic voters are against cost cutting is just plain wrong and Murray should know better.
First, many Democrats are in favor of cutting the bloated defense and homeland security budgets, but have been stymied by the Republican minority. But even ignoring this obvious fact, Democrats have long been willing to compromise (some say too willing) on social programs to get the Republican votes they need to unjam the Senate filibusters that have been crippling our economy.
I can only assume that Murray has fallen victim to the biases about the economy that are pervasive within the mainstream corporate media.
When Ammaarah Khan posted this at Huffington Post, it caused quite a Twitter flutter, particularly in New Jersey. She was born in Queens, NY, graduated this year from Edison High School and is now a freshman at Rutgers. - promoted by Rosi
Growing up, politics was completely an invisible subject in my life. I spent my earlier years not knowing the difference between the Republican Party and the Democratic Party --- I had incorrectly believed it was something much simpler -- just two people with completely different opinions vying for the same post. It is safe to say that I had no party influence from the beginning.
When I turned ten, I wanted to be one of those two people. I had this extreme sense of patriotism that often seemed embarrassing for both my family and friends. I likened the fourth of July to my second birthday, and in fact, enjoyed it more. I cannot say much has changed from then and now, except the fact that I no longer have any interest in becoming a politician or anything of the sort.
"Some in GOP signal openness" blares the unexpected Washington Post headline. It seems forty Republicans have joined sixty Democrats to sign a letter advising that "all options for mandatory and discretionary spending and revenues must be on the table," a strong hint in support of tax increases. So, a list of the 40 most open-minded, bipartisan Republicans, with moderates and conservatives, must surely include New Jerseyans? No, not one. Frank LoBiondo and all the rest are missing in action again. Honestly, the last year shows LoBiondo wakes up every morning afraid of following Mike Castle into involuntary retirement. It's pretty pathetic after he spent four years in the minority complaining that Republican leaders didn't value moderates enough.
On the other hand, maybe I shouldn't complain. Whatever the Deficit Super Committee recommends would only harm America in the short and long term.
Imagine that you are invited to a wedding reception at a snooty Five-Star restaurant in Midtown Manhattan. You know the chef is one of the best in the world, internationally famous, and you are looking forward to sharing a top-notch meal with your friends.
Imagine, also, that you are a vegetarian on a low-carb diet. You arrive at the reception and find that your dinner choices are filet mignon or pasta. What do you do?
Clearly, you can't order the meat. You're hungry, so you can't choose to skip the dinner. You reluctantly get the pasta, which tastes so good that you overindulge on carbs that evening. You opted for the lesser of two evils and had a satisfactory but not satisfying dinner.
Found this 1-minute floor statement by Rep. Rush Holt at the website RH Reality Check (that's RH as in prescription, not for Holt's initials).
Holt reminds us the GOP-majority House is still short on jobs creation and once again indulging themselves in yet another version of their legislative assault on women's health rights, with the Orwellian-titled "Protect Life Act" (H.R. 358).
CREDO Action's pointed out the hypocrisy of the DCCC using H.R. 358 as a fundraising tool (calling it the "Let Women Die" Act, then giving money to 15 Dem candidates, 3 of whom in fact voted to "Let Women Die" - voting for H.R. 358.
“People, Not Politics.” That’s the tag line on the yard signs for the GOP candidates in the 7th Legislative District. And it’s about as misleading as Fox’s tag line, “Fair and Balanced.”
I’ve written before about how the head of the ticket, Senator Diane Allen, puts politics before people. Her silence during the Senate debate on women’s health care and her failure to vote to override the governor’s veto were clearly political and not in the best interests of the people of Burlington County. This course of action flies in the face of her past record of independence from the party hacks, but it seems that she has transformed into just another Republican who votes lock step with their Tea Party leaders. Putting politics ahead of people was also her choice in supporting the governor’s paean to the Koch brothers by promoting increases in respiratory diseases with the withdrawal from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
As bad as that is, her running mates are even more anti-people and pro-politics. Mount Laurel Mayor Jim Keenan, who flip-flopped on his position on the 2% property tax cap (perhaps under the influence of Trenton politicians?) is not in favor of allowing two people who are in love to marry. He and his running mate, businessman Chris Halgas, are strongly committed to marriage discrimination. Both subscribe to the failed premise that tax cuts promote jobs, thus putting corporations in front of people on their priority list. And I suppose their slogan is accurate if you consider the subset of people who are millionaires. All three support tax breaks for the wealthy while cutting services to the other 99%.
Allen, Keenan, and Halgas are certainly entitled to campaign on whatever platform their political masters gin up for them. But don’t give the voters Orwellian Doublespeak when you frame this pro-wealthy anti-middle class agenda as “People, Not Politics.”
What did you see, my brown-eyed Son?
What did you see, my darling young one?
I saw a Red Knight, all covered in Armor,
Charge through a Blue Family, Broken Asunder!
I saw Family moaning, and say What a Headache
With heads all pushed, down in the sand
I saw union clans, counciling caution,
As their ranks were pushed so close to the edge...
And its a hard, Its a Hard
Its a Hard Rain Gonna Fall
Hamilton Township is the Birthplace of the Modern Day Tactics of Union Busting
Well, to start, there is no Labor Day Parade in Hamilton Township, but that is merely a by-product of Labor unfriendly leadership within the Township.
Long before Chris Christie became Governor of New Jersey. Long before Wisconsin's actions against Collective Bargaining. Long before John Boehner became Speaker of the House. Long before Republican Mitch McConnell became Senate Minority Leader...Hamilton Township has had John Bencivengo, Kevin Meara and Kelly Yaede hard at work busting up the Public Workers' unions of the CWA, AFSCME and the PBA.
As we analyze what has happened in Hamilton Township it is as though Christie, Wisconsin and the Congressional Republicans ripped a page out of the Hamilton Republican's playbook.
Claim a fiscal crisis and blame the public workers.
Bencivengo and team came into office by accident. On Election Day 2007, the Times of Trenton headlines screamed deficit and these three rode into office. http://nl.newsbank.com/nojavas... .
Since then, they have seized upon this deficit claim to justify a host of actions against the Township's Public Workers, which they state were needed to save the money of Hamilton Township taxpayers.
With the backdrop set of "fiscal crisis" and historical deficit levels these three, along with the sitting Republicans on Township Council, began to work to bust up the CWA,
AFSCME and PBA workers.
What is remarkable is that they moved forward with tax hikes and public worker lay-offs and furloughs without ever having actually naming what this deficit amount was. They have said it was $10 million. Then they said it was $8.8 million and $14 million. Next they said it was $16 million. Finally, they said it was $5 million.
Below, in chronological order, are the links to the various deficit amount claims by the Republican incumbents.
So, in 2008, the first thing that they set about doing was lay-off 54 public employees and reorganizing the Police Division.
In March 2010 they forced 8 furlough days on the remaining public workers in the Township. But in June 2010 they found the money to propose giving John Bencivengo a raise and to actually give significant raises to the non-Union Department Directors.
In 2010 they privatized the Engineering and Planning Department as well as the Ecological Center - further displacing public workers.
A further indication of their disregard for Public Workers and Collective Bargaining is that the Township's Personnel Director is not an actual Personnel Director - lacking all Civil Service level requirements to hold such a position.
Bencivengo and the all Republican Council continually discuss how rising benefit costs are wrecking the Township's budgets and that these costs need to be brought under control.
All of this is poor politics and pure political spin. The largest single increased cost to Township residents is the enormous increased spedning and probable waste i.e. HAMStat, the reckless and very "un-Republican" 2008 $13.3 million permanent Tax Hike that these elected officials gave to residents. A tax increase that they instituted without knowing what the true financial picture of the Township was.
The next largest burden on the Township has been decreased State aide followed by the State's hijacking of the utility Gross Receipts tax then followed by the diminishing property tax receipts.
Yet, despite their cries about labor costs and benefits increasing so dramatically over the past four years they have still found themselves able to increase Township spending a cumulative $20 million.
Yes, there is a global recession. However, due in no small part of the $13.3 million annual tax hike, Hamilton Township has lost more revenue due to lost tax receipts from exodusing businesses and residents than what the increasing labor and benefit costs have been.
The Public Workers in Hamilton Township are hardworking and have sacrificed much for the betterment of the Township. Unfortunately, their sacrifices appear to be borne out of Bencivengo's, Meara's and Yasede's generalizations as well as their insincere and unsubstantiated claims of fiscal crisis.
Last week, I wrote a post about how House Republicans like Scott Garrett and Eric Cantor were using this past week's disasters (earthquake, Hurricane Irene) and used them as a sick opportunity to take cheap shots at those who were the most in need and vulnerable.
Of course, I'm referring to the self righteous calls for more cuts to desperately needed programs to help those who aren't super rich in order to pay for cleanup of the massive and widespread damage.
As most of you know just by looking around, New Jersey was damaged during Hurricane Irene this weekend. Some communities were hit harder than others. In my neck of the woods, no municipality was hit harder than Spring Lake-- a wealthy resort community. When Mother Nature strikes, she does not know the difference between rich and poor. The boardwalk was destroyed during Irene and unlike many shore towns, Spring Lake cannot rebuild in time for the influx of tourists this weekend.
Hopefully, everyone is safe, with power back on if it was lost or all water bailed out (as I spent most of yesterday doing) or all tree branches picked up (as I still have to finish myself).
House Republicans demanded earlier this year that new disaster relief be funded by cuts elsewhere, and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's office said Thursday the Virginia Republican continues to believe that.
Rep. Scott Garrett agreed. Garrett, R-N.J., said through a spokesman it was the "responsible thing to do."
"With $16 trillion in debt and budget deficits as far as the eye can see, the last thing we should be doing is spending money we don't have," Garrett spokesman Ben Veghte said.
