Dodd lives in glass house over mortgage meltdown!

Chris Dodd(D-Conn), protector of the poor, tough guy against big business, hater of all things Bush and a big reason why the Senate should have term limits. While Senator Dodd has been blaming everyone under sun the for the mortgage meltdown, perhaps he should look no further than his desk. From the Virginia Pilot on March 21, 2008:

In addition to having regulatory responsibilities, the seven members of the Fed's Board of Governors sit on the Federal Open Market Committee, which shapes the nation's monetary policy by influencing interest rates and using other tools.

In an Oct. 3 article, The Wall Street Journal quoted the banking committee's chairman, Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., as saying he had no plans to move the three nominations through the committee and to the Senate floor for confirmation. "The Fed nominations are not a high priority at this point," Dodd said. "We've got some legislative stuff to get out."

So apparently, Senator Dodd had more important things to do for the past several months than allow nominations to the Federal Reserve to be voted on by the Senate which would result in their being seated as this is not a political position. At least it wasn't until Dodd politicized it.

Speaking tonight on Philadephia's Big Talker 1210(WPHT) on Anthony Mazzarelli's(Dr Maz) evening show, fellow talk show host and financial analyst Steve Cordasco called Dodd "a snake". He was referring to Dodd's tendency to speak one thing in public and do another. He also hinted breaking this news on Glenn Beck tomorrow so if you are reading this, you may want to tune in to Glenn on CNN.

And what was Dodd's big plan for the Senate Banking Committee?

When the Senate's current session began two weeks ago, Dodd announced his 2008 priorities for the banking committee, including efforts to enhance economic prosperity and national security. His statement, however, made no mention of whether the committee would vote on the nominations to the Federal Reserve Board.

What a cruel joke.

Read the entire article here.

---

Corzine - All out of big ideas. AG Cut is ALL PR and means nothing

In the AP today there was an article entitled NJ Taking Garden out of Garden State. The article is about Governor Corzine eliminating the Agricultural department in an attempt to save money to cover the state budget deficit. Corzine has used this "departmental elimination" as a flag to show he is standing up for reduced government. However, apparently not many people are reading the fine print on this one:

His administration contends the move would save $4 million by having the environmental protection and health departments take over the agriculture department's functions.

Those savings would hardly put a dent in the state's $33 billion budget and "would send the worst kind of signal," said Mary Jo Herbert of the Hopewell Heritage Farm.

"I am a third-generation farmer and I, perhaps naively, believed that our state government was committed to preserving our farming heritage," she said.

I understand that we have to make hard decisions and sometimes innocent people get hurt in the process. I also understand now that this move by the Governor is a BIG JOKE. His 4 million dollar savings is laughable and the Governor knows it. This Governor has absolutely no courage to do anything or stand up for anything that doesn't soak the voters. He is afraid of the public employee unions and that only leaves him room to pick on the under-represented:

1. The Taxpayer(defined as people who actually pay taxes) who has no representative in Trenton (the legislature is representative of special interests and political bosses not the voter)
2. The Farmer
3. The Small Town
4. The Traveller either from NJ or other states
5. The Business Community

Here's a big idea for you Mr. Corzine. Eliminate the no contribution pension fund for state employees (other than public safety)and replace it with a 401k. That would put state workers on par with the average taxpayer. And make is retroactive. That way the public employee would then be subject to the same rules as everyone else in this state. But you are afraid. Afraid that state workers and political patronage employees would cry foul over their poor treatment. Only in New Jersey is the is the business life of the average taxpayer considered cruel and unusual punishment.

Corzine. All big ideas when thinking of new taxes. But microscopic when cutting spending.

---

NJ Assembly - Allow towns to tax (Isn't this how the property tax problem happened?)!

From Newsday.com:

Assembly lawmakers on Tuesday said the state should weigh allowing cities and towns to impose their own taxes as more woes were predicted for New Jersey's troubled state finances.

Why is it that I keep getting the feeling that the lawmakers in this state more closely resemble keystone cops than responsible adults?

Rosen's estimate comes with many decrying Corzine's proposed cuts, but Assembly Budget Chairman Lou Greenwald, D-Camden, said the estimate makes it tough to find alternatives because restoring funding would come "at that expense of something else."

But Greenwald said lawmakers should look at how other states let municipalities charge their own taxes.

New Jersey local governments raise nearly all their revenue from property taxes, which average $6,800 per property owner in New Jersey, twice the national average.

The problem with lawmakers here in New Jersey is that they assume that every spending item approved in the past is valid and must be retained. So, any time cuts are proposed, they must be taking away something really important. But that is a circuitous argument with virtually no hope of ever solving any problem without going back to the taxpayer for more money. And that is exactly what this new bunch of incompetents wants to do:

But New York, for instance, allows local governments to add their own sales taxes. Many states and cities allow local income taxes. Some have a personal property tax on cars, trucks, motorcycles and other vehicles.

"We ought to look at that, too," said Assemblywoman Joan Quigley, D-Hudson.

Greenwald noted many decry local levies a tax increase but rejected that reasoning.

"It is not if it is offset by stabilizing property taxes," he said.

Corzine said letting municipalities impose their own taxes "makes sense and could potentially go a long way to relieving some of the pressure that exists with property taxes," but was uncertain amid economic worries.

So there you go, you see that according to these politicians, we can add a whole new set of fees, taxes and assessments on anything that moves at the local level. And if you CLAIM that your goal is to reduce property taxes, it is ok. But it won't be okay because the legislators have NO INTENTION ON REDUCING SPENDING ON ANYTHING.

They didn't when they passed "Property Tax Relief".
They didn't when they passed the increase in the sales tax and applied it to hospital beds, health clubs, music downloads and other assorted items. This collected an additional 2 billion (yes billion) dollars to the state budget. And noone seems to know where it went (maybe Corzine's girlfriend's Union?).

Guess what. Property taxes went up the next year because Governor Corzine and his pals increased spending.

Until this state gets an adult leader (not Corzine) and a corruption free legislature (not this one), I really don't see a change. It will probably take a few million New Jersey residents marching on the state house to change this mess. That is, if that many residents are left.

Read the entire article here.

---

Should NJ Tax Illegal Drugs?

Courtesy of app.com:

New Jersey officials levy scores of taxes and fees, but here's one they haven't tried yet: a tax on illegal drugs.

Yes, I understand the rationale behind it. It still cracks me up, no pun intended.

---

NJ's AG - Prosecute the internet instead of Corruption!

The Star Ledger's Paul Mulshine piece today on NJ AG Anne Milgram:

I'm talking about state Attorney General Anne Milgram. With her latest maneuver, Milgram seems determined to become the next Eliot Spitzer.

Hold on. Don't take the kids away. We aren't going there. But the issue Mulshine refers to is Spitzer's penchant for grandstanding.

Milgram could have a wonderful career corralling corruption within six blocks of her office.

But instead of cleaning up Trenton, Milgram is going to clean up the Internet. She recently announced that her office is going after a California-based gossip website under the consumer fraud statute. That won her praise all around when newspapers reported some of the nasty gossip from the site's section concerning Princeton University, the sole New Jersey college represented.

New Jersey Attorney's General are famous for their ability to NOT prosecute anyone. Why? Most people in New Jersey do not even realize that their Attorney General is not elected. They are a political appointee. And as such, they owe their allegiance not to the people but to the political machine that was either in power or traded influence to get the slot.

Someone please tell Milgram to set her sights much closer to home. Read the entire article here.

---

Group aims to recall the Governor - Wow!

From Newsday:

The group has started a Web site at www.recallcorzinenow.com where people can download and print recall petitions.

They petitions state, "It is our intention to recall Jon Corzine, Governor of the State of New Jersey."

"The focus here is simple _ this guy is not doing the job and he needs to go," Carl Bergmanson said.

All I can say is....Wow! We will follow these folks as they may be facing an uphill battle but maybe, just maybe this movement will produce a dialogue that will address real problems in this state. Noone thought it was possible in California when Gray Davis was shown the door.

---

The Soprano State - An amazing book!

Ingle and McClure did an amazing job on this book. I just passed it off to Jake for his review but I have about 20 posts I want to do based on what I read. These two reporters from Gannett lay out a story that you frankly could not make up if you had the most jaded imagination. The sad fact is that the entire story is true. My only knock so far is that Amazon took three weeks to get the book to me because they are already on their second (or third???) printing. All I can tell you is that NJ allows a series of ethical practices that are not allowed in the most backwoods tin pot dictatorships!

Got your interest yet?

If you are reading this, go BUY this book RIGHT NOW! I would lend it to you but my book is now reserved for the next two months. You will not believe the words on the page. We will review this soon on NJTaxRevolution! I am dying to now but want Jake to get his chance as well!

In case you are wondering, neither Jake nor I have any contact, relationship or interest in this book. Our only interest is in the state where we live and continue to believe in just like Ingle and McClure. We only hope to meet their acquantance some time soon.

---

Economic Stimulus Welfare!

I just received a notice from the IRS regarding the economic stimulus plan. The good news is according to the IRS, I have to do nothing to receive my money aside from filing my tax return. The bad news is that very few people I know in New Jersey qualify. You see, they explain that if you are a "higher income" person (that is someone making 75k single or 150k married), you get phased out. Of course, that would include a State Trooper(You're out!)especially if you are married to a teacher (double out!).

However, if you made more than $3,000 dollars last year you get $300.00. Why did I get this from the IRS? It should have come from the Social Security Admin or State Welfare agency.

---

Now Obama's preacher is FOX News Fault?

Obama's campaign blog is now blaming FOX News for calling attention to his preacher's hateful rhetoric.

We appreciate Chris Wallace for doing his job as a tough but fair journalist on a network that has been deeply irresponsible over the last week in its unrelenting and sensationalistic coverage of Senator Obama.

Senator Obama gave the speech he did on Tuesday because he believes that Americans are ready for a thoughtful, mature discussion about race, and are hungry to move past media-generated controversies that distract from the struggles they face in their everyday lives.

If Fox News wants to play clips of the same offensive sound bites every day from now until November, that's their right, but that type of coverage does a disservice to their viewers and to a nation that is facing serious challenges that merit thoughtful and honest reporting.

Earlier on this blog we discussed Preacher Wright and his comments and Barack Obama's answer to them. We didn't comment on his speech which seemed to strike people as more "the beauty is in the eye of the beholder". While I didn't agree with throwing grandma under the bus or his comments (which I heard) on a Philadelphia sports radio station (what was he doing interviewing with Angelo anyway)about "typical white person", I though his speech was at least interesting and unique. It also discussed race in a way that not many politician are willing to even touch.

But to blame this entire episode on FOX? Are you kidding me? Barack Obama has largely gotten a free pass from the media since day one. And to now accuse FOX of a media created scandal is beyond the pale. Grow up Mr. Obama. I don't agree with Hillary but you are now getting a dose of the treatment that she and most others have been getting all along. And for the record, FOX has this story a long time ago and aired it. It was only AFTER the other networks caught up to the story that it grew legs.

Maybe FOX should ask you why you won't wear a flag lapel pin but when you give an important speech, you chose to fill the screen backdrop with American flags. I guess our national symbols only exist as a prop. But, you also would probably comment that this is a smear too (oh, wait, you did that already).

Bringing up valid questions on the things politicians think, the people who influence them and the actions they have taken when given the opportunity to make real decisions is part of the primary and general election process. Just as these questions are valid, so are Hillary's First Lady logs and your criticism of them. Stop crying foul and start fighting back.

---

Now it's 'Healthcare for Everyone!' On your dime of course.

From the Kaiser Network:

New Jersey Senate Health Committee Chair Joseph Vitale (D) on Monday announced a universal health coverage proposal that would require all residents to obtain health coverage within three years, the New York Times reports. About 1.4 million state residents are uninsured (Chen, New York Times, 3/18).

The first phase of the plan would focus on expanding the state's NJ FamilyCare program to provide more coverage for uninsured children and their parents. Also during the first phase, the state would try to overhaul the health insurance market to reduce costs, particularly for small businesses and the self-insured. According to Vitale, the first phase would cost an estimated $28.8 million and would be paid for by redistributing unused state and federal funds that already are allocated for health programs for low-income residents.


This is the old foot in the door technique. While Vitale says that this won't cost taxpayers anything, he also says his phase two plan would cost a billion dollars. This money would magically appear in savings other places. Here's a novel idea, if there are savings other places, let's take them now. They use the money to pay down the 4 BILLION DOLLAR DEFICIT in this state.

A bigger reason to dislike even the thought of this plan is the invitation to corruption that it represents. Fast forward to two or three years after this is implemented and count up the state senators and assembly people being indicted for steering contracts to insurers and providers intermingled into this plan under the covers. I suspect that this plan is less about 'feel good' politics and much more about influence that Vitale is willing to admit.

---

Family leave - Not so fast!

Just when it seemed that the family leave bill was heading to join its friends of railroaded legislation that either means nothing or costs the taxpayers more, the brakes have been applied. From the Philadelphia Business Journal:

Legislation to provide paid family leave in New Jersey was not placed on the Senate's agenda on Monday, delaying for months what was to be a final vote on the issue.

An emergency vote, requiring three-fourths majority approval to pass, was necessary for the Senate to vote legally on final passage of the measure, according to the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services. Without the emergency vote, the bill, which was substituted by the Assembly for a Senate bill, requires the usual three readings in the Senate before it can be voted upon. The delay will give state business groups that oppose the measure more time to plead their case.

Now maybe some maturity can be applied to this wonderful "feel good" exercise which is nothing more than another Trenton giveaway when the State and its citizens can ill afford it. In case someone thinks I am heartless, I would love to have any or all of the following:

1. Free health care
2. Free transportation to and from work
3. Heck, no work, just pay
4. Puppies for everyone
5. Free Girl Scout Cookies because some of them are really good
6. Free insurance
7. Free house that I get to keep


But there is one small problem. I could not ask my fellow citizens to reward my complete and utter lack of productivity. And what makes me wonder is why so many of our elected politicians are so willing to head straight for the camera and pat themselves on the back for SACRIFICING my hard earned money. It pains them so.

How about this if our elected politicians want this law. Instead of business paying for it, have all of our elected politicians give up their second (or third or fourth or fifth) state job or paid patronage appointment and take only the pension due their elected office (around $12,000-this number courtesy of the education I am provided by Bob Ingle and Sandy McClure in The Soprano State which we will be reviewing in a later post). This should more than make up the cost of this program for its life.

Of course the downside of this delay is that it will give certain politicians time to set up their new side businesses in Family Leave Counseling and bid for the soon to be (you know it's coming) let state contracts for same. Bet you the first one is in Hamilton.

---

Attention NJ Residents - Here's who to blame for your higher tax bill!

Democrats in the House and Senate this week voted to end most of the Bush tax cuts and let them expire in 2010. This will result in the largest tax increase in years which will be on the back on the next President. Even the USA Today which is far from a conservative newspaper stated the decision by Democrats as the following:

House Democrats would allow all of Bush's tax cuts to expire, effectively raising taxes by $683 billion from 2011 through 2013

Democrats continue to fail to recognize that taxation is taking money from productive people believing that government knows better how to spend your money. No elected politician is ENTITLED to your money in the United States. And we should all remember our local elected officials that voted for this massive tax increase. They are as follows:

Senate
Lautenberg
Menendez

House
Andrews, Robert E.; New Jersey, 1st
Pallone, Frank; New Jersey, 6th
Pascrell, Bill; New Jersey, 8th
Rothman, Steven R.; New Jersey, 9th
Payne, Donald M.; New Jersey, 10th
Holt, Rush D.; New Jersey, 12th
Sires, Albio; New Jersey, 13th

These members of the House and Senate have let down the people of New Jersey. When you consider the poor rate of return that New Jersey already gets on its tax dollars sent to Washington, you would wonder why our representatives are so anxious to increase our taxes. Interestingly enough, our loss of representation was not as severe in the House with the New Jersey delegation voting 7-6 for higher taxes.

President Bush's tax policies helped New Jersey. And as the federal tax bill went down, New Jersey's last two Governor's stepped in and took the money to feed their corrupt political machines. Now New Jersey residents face even higher federal taxes to match their worst in the US state taxes. And no-one seems to care...

---

Per my previous post: Want to pick on Obama

As a follow up to my previous post on Barack Obama. If you really want to pick on Obama, follow the money. His policies will literally bankrupt the country if he means them as he has stated so far. So there may be plenty of reasons not to like him. But his preacher is the weakest. But, isn't it funny that all of a sudden, Democrats who insist on ignoring religion as a legitimate part of society want to use it to disqualify a candidate. Hmmmmm.

---

Barack Obama's Preacher

I just watched Barack Obama address the news about his preacher's hateful rhetoric on FOX. As far as I am concerned, his answers were fine with me. He doesn't come across as a hatemonger as far as I have seen and frankly it is silly that this has become an issue. And for the record, I am a conservative Catholic. I have no issue with the Church of Christ even though I may have an issue with a lot of what his preacher has to say. But I think we need to seperate the preacher from the acolyte.

Why all of a sudden is this in the public arena? Does this have something to do with the kitchen sink? Time will tell. But pasting this guy over an evangelical sermon is a bit over the top. Have YOU ever been to an evangelical service? I have. And frankly, I found it all over the top for my taste but absolutely NOT wrong in any way. Just not for me.

---

Just For Fun: State Mottos

This isn't very tax-oriented, but you should run over to JoelX's blog and read the 50 state mottos that he's collected.

To stay just a little bit on topic, here's Massachusetts:
"Our Taxes Are Lower Than Sweden’s (For Most Tax Brackets)"

And to stay local, here's New Jersey's:
You Want A ##$%##! Motto? I Got Yer ##$%##! Motto Right Here!

And here are a few other favorites:
8. Connecticut: Like Massachusetts, Only The Kennedys Don’t Own It Yet
13. California: By 30, Our Women Have More Plastic Than Your Honda
16. Ohio: Where one of your dad’s friends lives
19. Wisconsin: Come Smell our Dairy Air
21. Michigan: First Line Of Defense From The Canadians
26. Georgia: We Put The “Fun” In Fundamentalist Extremism
50. Nebraska: Ask About Our State Motto Contest
52. Minnesota: 10,000 Lakes And 10,000,000,000,000 Mosquitoes

And yes, astute readers, that's number 52. The list goes to 59. Maybe JoelX was raised in Tennessee: "The Educashun State".

---

New Jersey: Exemplary Government

Exemplary of what, though?

We don't have to look far to see where that [i.e., including additional spending in plans for new taxes] leads. New Jersey adopted legalized gambling (Atlantic City) to lower property taxes. Then it adopted a sales tax to lower property taxes. Then it adopted an income tax for education to lower property taxes. Today, New Jersey has the highest per capita property taxes in the country as well as an income tax and a sales tax.

This came from the Union Leader newspaper of New Hampshire. And the same article gives some very sound and obvious advice:

Voters concerned about property taxes should consider cutting spending, not adding more taxes. Spending goes up every year much faster than inflation does, so property taxes go up.

Maybe we should be looking to others for examples.

---

Understatement of the Week

Like the toll road plan two months ago, the budget proposal is not starting off with a groundswell of public support.

-- Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute

The paragraph above Mr. Murray's comment gives the explanation:

Just 10% of New Jersey voters say they are “satisfied” with Governor Jon Corzine’s state budget, another 34% say that are “not particularly satisfied but can live with it,” and 54% are “decidedly dissatisfied,” according to a Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey poll released this morning.

Other good statistics can be found in the article here.

---

Shout out to Coda from the Tri-Town News

He has caught my attention two issues in a row so I have to recognize some local flair while we examine the state and the state of our Governor:

So, it looks like Gov. Jon Corzine has started shooting the cocker spaniel. As longtime readers might remember from the last time I used the term, shooting the cocker spaniel is an old technique used by administrators facing budget cuts they really don't want to make.

In this case, the bosses (taxpayers) tell them (elected officials) that they have to cut government expenses by reducing the size of government. The officials don't want to do that because they like big government and have other plans for raising money (increased taxes, charging a lot more for toll roads). They appear to be going along by saying, "Fine, we'll cut the budget, but you're not going to like the results." Then, they start cutting programs and services that the bosses (taxpayers) really need and want (shooting their cocker spaniels), hoping that we'll eventually say "To heck with it. Do whatever you want."

Mr Coda goes on to describe a series of issues that we have highlighted here such as the Governor's "big employee cut" fallacy:

Cutting 3,000 state jobs by attrition, early-retirement incentives and some layoffs. This sounds like a lot, until you remember that the number of people on the state payroll increased from79,298 in 2004 to 84,401 in 2006 (figures from the New Jersey Department of Personnel), an increase of 5,103 workers. I don't have figures for how many state workers were added in 2007, but I do know the number didn't stay flat. Using those numbers, that means Corzine is proposing to cut threefifths of the new government positions added between 2004 and 2006. Big deal.

I am left with the feeling when reading his work that we are not alone. Read his entire commentary here.

---

Spitzer's Steamroller? What a howler!!!!

What is the deal with the Governors of New Jersey and New York. A few years ago, we were promised that if we elected Corzine, we would be getting a businessman who would turn the financial mess in Trenton around and put the state on firm footing for the future. When he got into office and had to do something, Corzine immediately demonstrated his complete lack of fiscal maturity. The result-his latest proposal to turn the state into Enron wth his toll tax plan.

And the there is Spitzer. He was elected based on his law and order reputation and socking it to big business. He was to clean up the corrupt culture of cronyism in Albany and return New York to the people. He then proceeded to illegally use the state police to go after a rival politician and then cover up the crime in a cloud of secrecy and perjury. And now today's news.

Governor Spitzer has now been caught on tape soliciting a prostitute via a rich guy prostitution ring? If this wasn't so sad it would be rolling on the floor funny. This guy should step down. Not for the sex and the embarassment to his family. Democrats have already shredded the expectation of decency for leaders in the party of the people. He should resign for election fraud. Or unfathomable stupidity.

---

Picking on State Workers

In Sunday's Trentonian there was a letter to the editor from a state worker who was clearly miffed at the perception that state workers are the reason that state is in financial trouble. The state workforce is not the only cause for Trenton's financial problems however it is clearly a major contributor. And it's not just about how hard people work that matters.



Our state governent employs a tremendous number of hard working individuals who are as dedicated in their jobs as anyone. But this state also employs a large number of people who gained their employment through patronage. And those jobs are often in questionable areas and departments whose value is marginal to the states interests at best. We should have a test where all citizens in the state are given the department name and a 50 word description of its principle functions and reason for existance. And then let the citizens vote on whether to keep it. My suspician is that we would cut state government overnight by a large margin.



Another challenge for state workers is their insistance on benefits long discarded in the commercial business community. Imagine the fact the the people paying the bill are entitled to neither the wage levels paid by the state nor the very generous health and pension benefits enjoyed by state workers. This is courtesy of a public union presence in New Jersey that is at least overly influencial and not in the public interest and at worst downright corrupt (does anyone forget the Governor's ex-girlfriend negotiating with the state while literally under the informal payroll of Corzine himself?).



State workers should relax. If their role and the role of the department is in the public interest, it should continue to serve the people of New Jersey. I suspect that many people have some doubts as to the value of their jobs to the state. In the private sector it is always interesting to see the employees that get most nervous during times of rumored downsizing or layoffs. Invariably, they are people who question their own value to the organizaion and worry that management had finally figured it out.



The letter writer did bring up an interesting point that should be addressed if true. It was alleged that a large nunber of state government workers are commuting into Trenton and other places from out of state. Now, I have a real problem with paying the highest tax burden in the US to enrich another state's populace. And if the answer we would get from these people is that they had to move because they couldn't afford New Jersey anymore, we should let them know that New Jersey can no longer afford them.

---

Democrat primary - The PC Joke

Political correctness is and has always been a silly exercise for people who spend far too much time worrying about form rather than function. But in this year's Democrat party primary, it is being used by both sides to create an environment that is frankly toxic to debate.

Some recommendations for both sides. Attacking Barack Obama on his record or lack thereof is fair game. It isn't racist and isn't a foul. I actually like the way Obama sounds. The problem for me with his policies is that he is part John Edwards populist and part socialist collectivist (ala the former Soviet Union). He hasn't sold me that he is worth a vote that won't cost me dearly personally. When he gets the nomination, we can evaluate his spending priorities on this site and debate them.

As for Hillary, criticizing her for anything does not make the person who makes the charge 'Ken Starr'. This criticism is frankly so over the top that I think someone in the Clinton camp is deranged. Why in the world would you remind the electorate in the same week that:

1. When the phone rings at 3 am, check your interns
2. There was a substantial investigation of this person (a former first lady) who only avoided prosecution herself when her law firm files which were missing for years suddenly appeared after the statute of limitations expired. And where did they appear? In the master bedroom of the White House. Skewer Ken Starr all you want but he was only assigned an unpleasant task.

Both side should stop trying to create a fake wall that no-one dares invade. If there is weakness, the people and the press will find it. So fight like everyone else would have to otherwise the wall will come crashing down at a very inconvenient moment. Let's have a real debate, not a pc one.

---

New Jersey Mayors Cry Foul

A series of articles hit the news today after small town mayors got a look at Governor Corzine's revised aid figures as a part of the state budget. It seems that everyone wants to reduce government as long as it isn't theirs. From a NY Times local article:

“We expect to have faith in our legislators, because to start cutting is detrimental to our residents,” Mayor Nancy Martin said Thursday. “What are we going to cut? A police officer? There’s no waste. There’s nothing left.”

Few places provide as a vivid a perch to view the exercise of home rule as the municipal building here on Main Street, where Mayor Martin governs a borough of just 2,023 that has its own police force, department of public works and fire inspector.

I have nothing against this town nor do I think its Mayor is that far off base. However, this town is a part of a culture in this state of massive government both local and state. One could argue that many of these smaller towns would best be served by creating regional policing and sharing other services either at the county level or through some regional partnerships with other towns. It the business world, this concept is common. When a sales territory stops producing and cannot sustain the business, that territory is usually absorbed into a bigger district to save money. The same rule should aply here.

The town mentioned in this article essentially became insolvent in 1993 when its principal business moved to West Virginia. The town has been surviving on 'emergency' state grants for several years. Sorry folks. How do you square having its own police force at the same time the town is on the dole. Every town does not need a police force and the infrastucture to run it. New Jersey consistantly ranks in the top ten of all states in 'justice' expenditures. So, it isn't a problem with the funding, just where it is directed.

Towns like this should have to be practical and consolidate services when they are not longer viable on their own. But the mayor is also right that Trenton cannot just look at the towns in the state and expect them to 'pay up'. That is how Trenton funds everything. It is time for the state government to show that it is capable of cutting the outrageous waste perpetuated by bad management and outright corruption. Your turn Governor.

---

It's not just the tax burden - NJ is run horribly

An excellent article appeared in the City-Journal yesterday. I lays down the case for the fact that New Jersey is not just over-taxed, it is exceptionally poorly run:

In a new study, Governing ranks New Jersey the third worst-managed state in the country, not only because of the shambles that its finances are in, but also because of its lack of investment in infrastructure, its poor employee training and development, and a failure to apply technology and data to manage public services well. Talk about a quadruple whammy for the state’s residents, who ought to be asking exactly what the heck the state has been doing with all their money.

The article also takes on New Jersey's recent hiring frenzy in state government. When Governor Corzine talks about cutting employees, the state employee unions howl. The problem with that is that they forget that government employees serve at the pleasure of the people-they are not entitled to their jobs. And why is it that in the private sector, employees must work hard to make their jobs relevant or they will lose them. But apparently, inefficiency combined with over-staffing compared to other states is status quo in New Jersey:

One thing that Jersey’s patronage-ridden government has been doing is hiring workers at a rapid rate, far faster than most other states. Last week, when Corzine proposed cutting $500 million in spending out of the state government, he pledged to trim the state’s workforce by 3,000 employees, which drew a howl from public-sector unions, as well as warnings from some editorialists that the cuts might hurt services. Corzine might have noted that from 2000 to 2006—after the meltdown of technology stocks on Wall Street and the economic fallout from September 11—a succession of New Jersey governors added 10,000 workers to the state’s executive workforce, a 17 percent gain, even as the state’s population grew by only 4 percent.

The hiring spree didn’t stop there. Agencies and authorities subsidized by state government but not directly controlled by the governor were rapidly boosting their own payrolls, adding approximately 13,000 more full-time (or full-time-equivalent) workers to the state’s payrolls, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics. Only a few other states increased their public payrolls as quickly; all were far larger than New Jersey and had more rapidly growing populations. By contrast, even New York State was a model of efficiency, growing its workforce by less than 1 percent during the same period.

The article closes by bringing up the patronage that has destroyed the management of the state. People are hired not for their talent but as a byproduct of a patronage society that has no real measurement culture. Of course, I really haven't heard much from the Governor or the legislature that shows that they want to change it.

---

NJ Chamber of Commerce - Oppose Family Leave!

Printed from NJ Chamber website:

Paid Leave Before Senate on Monday
Continue to Voice Your Concern


The Assembly Labor Committee passed the paid leave mandate out of committee Thursday and the next stop is the full Senate on Monday. Thank you for sending hundreds of e-mail messages to legislators this week with your many reasons why New Jersey should not be the third state in the nation to implement paid leave.

Unfortunately, our elected leaders do not comprehend that their timing could not be any worse. There is more economic uncertainty than ever and the last thing our business owners need to worry about is another mandate imposed on them by government. Please continue to remind Governor Corzine and Senate President Richard Codey - as well as others - that this does not sit right with employers.

On Thursday, amendments that would have made this less damaging did not have enough support to pass. This included: exempting key employees, exempting businesses with 50 or fewer employees, or allowing employees an opt out possibility. Democrats hold a majority on the committee and these amendments were voted down largely according to party line.

Continue to send e-mails to key legislators to voice opposition to this mandate. You are also encouraged to call the Governor's Office at (609) 292-6000 to tell his staff that you are opposed to paid leave in New Jersey .

For more information, contact Jim Leonard at (609) 989-7888 or jim@njchamber.com .

---

New feature - Taxing Porker of the Month! Greenstein and DeAngelo

It's high time for a new feature highlighting those politicians in the Garden State who seem to defy good sense in promoting a tax (and spend) first culture in our state. It is not surprising that the first winners of this award are from Hamilton township, near to where I live. This township elected a completely irresponsible leadership team that proceeded to take a successful and reasonably well off town and run it into the ground. These two are clearly leftovers from a policy of failed social policy mixed with a complete lack of fiscal responsibility.

The winners are Linda Greenstein and Wayne DeAngelo for their proposal to increase taxes for a paid family leave act that won't help families but will raise taxes. This is more about taxation than helping people and these two cannot even begin to understand how to assist working people in a jam. They could have pursued a range of options but in true liberal form, the only thing they could come up with was to tax every single working person in the state to facilitate their untimely pork.

And for their sadistic torture of the citizens of the state of New Jersey, DeAngelo and Greenstein are our porkers of the month!

---

Moving companies confirm - NJ is a big loser

In an article in the Home News Tribune, the two largest moving companies examined the pattern of inbound versus outbound migration in various states. And of course, New Jersey was notable:

Data from two moving companies provide "on the ground" snapshot certifications of the more comprehensive Census Bureau data. First is the annual interstate "migration study" of United Van Lines, the nation's largest carrier. Its report tracks the states where its customers moved from and moved to. New Jersey was the third-ranking "high outbound" state in the survey. Of the total United Van Lines' interstate movements that took place in New Jersey in 2007, 61 percent were outbound compared to 39 percent inbound.

The Garden State ranked third in outbound percentage behind economically challenged Michigan (67.8 percent outbound), which ranked No. 1. Michigan has been devastated by a collapsing industrial/automobile economy. We also trailed weather-challenged North Dakota (67.2 percent outbound). Second-ranking North Dakota has the lowest average annual temperature (42.2 degrees) in the lower 48 states. In contrast, New Jersey's weather has been mild and free of extremes, and its economy had been growing modestly, yet the outflow continued apace.

Wow! We are now being compared to Michigan. But I am not that surprised. Michigan has a liberal Governor who in the midst of the largest outbound migration in her state's history, saw nothing wrong with massive tax and spending hikes. Sound familiar? The sad thing about Michigan is that so many of the productive people in the state have left, they have virtually no hope of breaking out of this cycle.

New Jersey is in much the same boat. It seems that the Governor and legislature of this state are so busy handing out taxpayer money, they are forgetting the once all the productive people leave, they won't be able to pay for their largesse anymore. Of course, it isn't all good news for the moving companies:

In any case, the two moving companies have a good customer in New Jersey, although they have to keep shipping empty moving vans into the state in order to move New Jerseyans out. This is just the opposite of the growing stacks of empty cargo containers in the Port Newark area, where far more cargo containers with goods flow into New Jersey than flow out. Thus, our cargo movements have an interesting lack of symmetry with our household goods movements.

Just remember fellow citizen-there is a empty container with your name on it just waiting for you to say enough is enough. And for our legislators, keep on taxin' so the moving companies can keep on truckin'.

Read the article here.

---

Corzine - What's up with Clifton?

I just saw another Corzine Clifton reference. What is up with our Governor always going to the same places to spread his spending spew. Here's a suggestion. I will gladly host the governor at my house and broadcast the event on the web. I live in Burlington County. I only need about a weeks notice to get my web av crew to get their act together to make it happen for the entire state. We will gladly broadcast live.

Governor. You are welcome here. I will welcome you into my home with the grace and dignity you deserve (and you absolutely do as our elected leader of our state). What do you have to lose?

---