Abbott funding: New Jersey's court needs a preschool education

I've got nothing more to add to this Paul Mulshine column. Here's a sample:

The great H. L. Mencken famously observed that "A judge is a law student who marks his own examination papers."

He seems to have anticipated the antics of the New Jersey judiciary. Consider the very first line in the decision issued last week by the Honorable Peter E. Doyne in the Abbott school-funding case:

"The New Jersey constitution mandates the children of this state are entitled to a 'thorough and efficient education.' N.J. Const. art. VIII, sec. 4."

No, it doesn't. The clause in question (full text below) prescribes a "thorough and efficient system" of schools. The framers of our 1947 constitution did not include the locution "thorough and efficient education."

And that's just the opener. Read the whole thing.

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Don't You Wish We Had A Politician Like This?

Daniel Hannan is a Conservative MEP for the South East of England and author of The Plan: Twelve Months to Renew Britain. This is a European Parliament speech of 26/03/09.

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Morristown Tea Party Update!

You have all been screaming for us to update the info on Morristown. Well, you asked and the folks who are organizing the event have responded. Please follow this link to find out the details of the event.

This is going to be a very cool event at Morristown Green. They will also have Steve Lonnegan as a speaker. Sounds like a winner to me.

April 15, 2009
High Noon - On the Green
Latest:

Permission to use the Morristown Green has been granted (pending application approval)
Organizing Meeting Appointments:

Event Director: Jeff Weingarten
Secretary: Janet Cornish
Public Official Liaison: Jeff Weingarten
Media Liaison: Peter Glenn
Steve Lonegan has accepted our invitation to speak
We have an alternate venue
Next Meeting: Thursday, March 26 (Morris County Library) 7pm

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Announcement - Another Tea Party - AFP Piscataway

Our loyal readers have been asking for more tea party info. Here is another event guaranteed to be solid turnout. From American's For Prosperity:


AFP-NJ Announces Taxpayer Tea Party to Protest Gov. Corzines’s Tax Hikes, April 15

New Jersey citizens urge Corzine to reduce spending, reject stimulus money



Join AFP-NJ along with grassroots activists across the country on April 15th at 5PM for a Taxpayer Tea Party to protest Governor Corzine’s proposed tax hikes.
NJ has the worst tax climate in the nation, and yet Governor Corzine continues to rely on tax revenues to support the state’s overgrown budget. This tradition has left us poorly positioned to deal with the economic recession.
Even with the so-called stimulus funds that are coming to New Jersey-- totaling $2 billion-- Governor Corzine has introduced a FY 2010 state budget with a $7 billion deficit, and massive tax hikes to go along with it.
Governor Corzine continues to increase taxes—it is the same mistake over and over again. Taxpayers have carried the burden of these mistakes long enough-- It’s critical to fight back against this proposed budget and its tax hikes!
Urge Governor Corzine and state legislators to take the first step in mending this $7 billion deficit by cutting the size of the state budget and planning for New Jersey’s financial future.

What: Taxpayer Tea Party
Who: Americans for Prosperity
When: Wednesday, April 15, 5:00pm
Where: Johnson Park ( River Road, Piscataway Township)

For more information or to register, click here or call 201-487-8844.

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With A Cheerleading Squad Like This, Who Needs An Opposing Team?

Do you read the Huffington Post? It's one of my few "normal" reads -- meaning that I normally read it, not that its posts are anything I consider normal. Led by the former conservative Arianna Huffington, it is filled with left-wing ideas and socialism in various forms. During the Presidential campaign, when I wanted to see how far Obama-worship could go, I went to the HuffPo.

Well, there or the New York Times. But I digress.

Take a look at what they're saying. Here's Alan Schram:

None of the above scenarios is very promising; none leads to a good denouement. And what bothers me most is that we bet our financial system and the economic recovery on this plan, hailed as a panacea. It is never a good idea to bet the house on any grand scheme. Any system as complex and reflexive as the US economy is by definition unpredictable, and nobody could be confident this plan will work. If it fails, shattering the high hopes of so many, the price of disappointment will be immense. We will be with our back to the wall, facing another wave of panic.

The very premise behind the plan is flawed....

Here is Ann Pettifor:

President Obama is in danger of making the same mistake Nelson Mandela made. Like Mandela he is abrogating power to shape a vision for the recovery of the US economy, and handing over the baton of leadership to Wall St. and lesser mortals....

Like Mandela, Obama is a lawyer in awe, it appears, of economists. He is surrounded by members of the profession who are, we would contend, the slaves of a defunct economics. Defunct, but dangerously ingrained, since these men are clearly experiencing the most intense difficulty escaping from old ideas and policies, and developing new ones.

Here's a bit of satire from one of the HuffPo's Genuinely Funny People, Andy Borowitz:

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said on CNN last night. "If anyone can convince investors to buy a worthless piece of paper, it's Bernie Madoff."

Here's m'lady Huffington Herself:

No wonder the public is not convinced when Geithner, having laid the groundwork that made the AIG bonuses possible, and having gotten Chris Dodd to include a bonus loophole in the stimulus bill, now acts shocked over the bonuses.

Geithner's feigned surprise at AIG has been a body blow to public confidence in the president. According to Sunday's Rassmussen poll, just 12 percent of those Rassmussen defines as "Populists" have a favorable opinion of Geithner while those Rassmussen identifies as "America's Political Class" have a 76 percent favorable opinion of him.

It was painful to watch Obama, just hours after Geithner had admitted his role in the Dodd/bonus loophole affair, go on Jay Leno and say that Geithner is doing an "outstanding job." Even before Frank Rich's Sunday column was titled "Has a 'Katrina Moment' Arrived?," Obama's assessment had more than a whiff of Bush telling Brownie he was "doing a heck of a job."

...the issue isn't Geithner's delivery, it's what he's delivering: an approach to the crisis that is as toxic as the assets that have hamstrung the economy. Geithner, brilliant and hardworking though he is, is trapped within a Wall Street-centric view of the world and seems incapable of escaping....

It might seem extraordinary to be calling for the resignation or demotion of President Obama's point man on our financial system.

But let me remind you of a few other things that are extraordinary: the government has spent $2.2 trillion and committed another $7.7 trillion to bolster America's struggling financial system; $7 trillion of shareholders' wealth was lost in the stock market in 2008; over 4.2 million jobs have been lost in the last 14 months; 2.3 million houses were foreclosed in 2008, with another 121,756 foreclosures last month alone.

This is what Obama's fans are saying.

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Outrage - Don't ask for whom the bell tolls...

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Silly bonus outrage versus reality

Last week we got a real dose of how absolutely ridiculous our elected officials have become. If I collected the outraged spittle flying out of the mouths of members of the House of Representatives, I could have turned Nevada into lush farmland. All the outrage over employees of AIG who received retention bonuses. The real situation at AIG was far more complex and so was the source of the "fake outrage" from congress.

First, the AIG situation is frankly a non-starter. Aside from a hand full of people who received those bonuses and were actually REAL executives (they should not have accepted the bonuses), the rest were employees who were trying to wind down the businesses and were needed to get the job done. They could have easily left AIG and got jobs elsewhere because their skills are in demand, regardless of what the media has reported. These people are not all failures and my guess is that many of them are hardworking extremely competent and highly skilled at what they do. They do not set company policy, they just execute it. And for doing the job they were asked to do, they should be paid. Pure and simple.

Congress on the other hand is a pathetic bunch of incompetent fools. Their first problem is that every one of them who voted for the stimulus voted to allow these bonuses. The approval was explicitly placed by Chris Dodd and held in the combined legislation by Harry Reid. And the language placed in the bill is clearly quid pro quo for Dodd and should be investigated. NOT ONE member of congress read the bill. NOT ONE! So their outrage is just a cover up for the GROSS INCOMPETENCE!

And the bill to tax bonuses for people who work for entities that the government bailed out? Okay. That's a lot more than AIG. That would include all of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. And if we are retroactive to last year, lets go all the way back to when the crimes actually occurred. Franklin Raines and Jamie Gorelick received a bonus of close to 4 million in bonuses after the organization lost 200 million dollars. But then we would probably have to indict Barney Frank who presided over that mess and assured its continuity. And we also have to look the other way there because otherwise we would have to ask why Frank, Dodd and Obama received the three highest donations from Freddie and Fannie.

The government needs these bailed out organizations to succeed. Our money as taxpayers will only be paid back if these companies return to profitability and pay the money back. And driving their employees away is not going to accomplish that goal. That is why it is asinine to demonize all of the loyal employees desperately trying to turn these organizations around. I wonder if congress is prepared to eliminate bonuses for union employees and retirees at GM? They are bailed out companies as well as AIG and should be held to the same standard.

If Congress wants to get outraged, try some of these:

- Congressman Jack Murtha (D-PA) embroiled in a scandal regarding earmarks to the tune of 300 million dollars (2 times the AIG bonuses)
- AIG paid 90 billion dollars to foreign banks (why weren't we told?)
- Both Bush and Obama administration have no accountability for stimulus funds-WHY?
- Just under 8,000 earmarks in the budget bill. Where is the outrage?
- Senior level Democrat nominees that all have one thing in common. They don't pay taxes! Why?

Congress needs to grow up and stop politicizing the small things and start concentrating on the big things.

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NJ Tea Party Locations!

UPDATE: All Tea Party information will be updated on the sidebar -->
instead of being updated below. After April 15, 2009, that information will be moved to this post. If I keep on top of things, anyway.

I guess when you coin your blog NJ Tax Revolution, folks who are looking for the beginnings of the real thing look here first to find out what is going on. While we didn't come up with the Tea Party idea, we certainly support it. Several readers have inquired as to where they can attend one of these events. We will try to keep up with these events moving forward for those who would like to show up and demonstrate their feelings about the irresponsible handling of our taxpayer money.

There are currently three events of which I am aware for NJ coming up. All three events are on April 15.

Newark
At Senator Lautenberg and Menendez' office building
Gateway Center One, 782 McCarter Highway
12:00 PM

Trenton
New Jersey State House
125 W. State St.
11:30 - 4:00

Morristown
Location TBD
9:00AM to 12:00PM

We will update this list as further information develops.

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The Corruption of NJ's Supreme Court

Let me state up front that I find the entire legal discussion over the Governor's email with his former girlfriend and the lawsuits regarding their disclosure to be a bit of a joke. The fact that Corzine allowed himself to get into this situation is more indicative of his mettle (or lack thereof) than the result of this political legal action. These are details that the public in this state do not get.

But here is what REALLY bothers me. The Governor of this state negotiated with the head of a union (that happened to be his girlfriend). The Union fired her for conflict of interest (they thought something was fishy). Corzine said everything was on the up and up. And the NJ Supreme Court said none of it was relevent. This smells really bad. And again, no one cares.

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Where does the government get its money?

I cannot even believe I am writing this post but recently, polls and even some local man on the street coverage has made me rethink whether or not this is a valid post. The main driver that took me over the edge was a radio station in New York Friday had a "man on the street segment". They were asking about where the government gets the money.

One respondent said, "I know the government gets money from taxes. But they also should spend some of their own money". I found this answer unbelievable. So I thought that it would be worthwhile to review where the government gets it money.

Rules for Government Funds:

1. The government can tax citizens for funds
2. The government can tax business for funds
3. The government can borrow...against funds they tax on citizens and business
4. The government has no other source of funds EXCEPT to just print money-which as a policy must be backed by.....taxpayers.

So you see, the government has no money "OF ITS OWN". It only has your money. And if you think it is any different, you are either naive or ignorant. Either one is unacceptable in today's economic situation.

If this post has made you angry and you want to know why, please send me a private note. There is nothing here that should upset anyone and if you are upset, you need some asisstance understanding of the economics and we are perfectly happy to accomodate you.

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Corzine's (and the Democrat's) Budget Problem

Jon Corzine just submitted his version of a budget this week with apparent lukewarm support only from his Democrat cronies in the legislature. This budget is likely to dramatically decrease Corzine's approval in the state due to the dire situation of the state's finances. Corzine in his budget address on March 10 claimed that he is a champion of cutting the budget:

To that purpose, the budget I am proposing for FY 2010 totals $29.8 billion - that's $1 billion less than the first budget I presented in 2006. Stop and think about it, since 1947, every governor before me has grown spending over their four years.

With this proposal, we will have reduced spending two years in a row and will literally spend less than in the first budget I presented in 2006. This isn't a matter of debate or nuance. It's a fact.

Let's examine this statement. He compared his drop in spending to the budget he submitted in 2006. For those of you who believe that facts should trump malarkey (I used that word in preparation for St Patrick's Day), here is the budget statement for the budget he submitted in 2006:

Governor Jon S. Corzine’s proposed Fiscal 2007
Budget seeks to restore fiscal integrity to the State
of New Jersey. This $30.9 billion Budget is an
important first step in a multi-year process to
reestablish prudent fiscal management. A
fundamental principle reflected throughout this
Budget is that we, as a State, must pay the bills for
the current operations of State government. We
cannot continue to defer the costs of our decisions
to future generations, or even until next year. This
simple practice of matching current expenditures
with current revenues has been missing from State
budgets for too long.

So, truth check one is on track. But what about the budget that acting Governor Codey submitted in 2006? Shouldn't that have some relevance on "Governor Spending Cut"? This is from the Budget brief for 2006:

Acting Governor Codey’s $27.4 billion proposed Fiscal
2006 Budget is an honest and responsible budget that
has State government living within its means and meets
the challenge of reining in government spending while
at the same time not recommending any increase in the
sales tax or income tax rates. Despite nearly a billion
dollars in increases for mandatory entitlements, the
proposed budget is $614 million, or 2.2%, below the
$28 billion budget enacted in fiscal 2005. In contrast,
the Fiscal 2005 Budget actually increased spending by
17% from the year before. In fact, the reduction
proposed for fiscal 2006 is the largest spending cut in
State history, both on a percentage basis and in its
amount.

So the real facts are that Governor Corzine is proposing spending 2.4 Billion dollars more than the budget that Codey submitted before he became Governor. And those were much better times than today. So Corzine while claiming the mantle of a spendthrift, is lying through his teeth. He raised spending 3 billion dollars his first year in office and now pats himself on the back for not getting anywhere near what Codey did as temporary Governor the year before he took office. I cannot consider this rhetoric or nuance, Mr Governor. You are dishonest.

Another dishonest portrayal is the claims about how the prior Republican Governor ran the state into the ground. Here is Christie Todd Whitman's final budget brief:

The total budget recommended by the Governor for
fiscal 2001 is $21.253 billion, an increase of $1.278
billion, or 6.4%, over the current year. Over the
seven budgets of the Whitman Administration, the
annual growth in appropriations has averaged 4.5%.
This compares to 6.3% in the prior administration.

Let's summarize what we have gotten from Corzine and McGreevey and their Democratic counterparts. Budgets that have grown from 21.2 billion dollars to 30 billion dollars. That represents growing the budget of this state 150% in the 8 years they have been in office. Our taxes are out of control and the only thing that has grown in the state are corruption arrests for New Jersey politicians (mostly Democrats) and the state workforce.

This Governor and legislature could have made an effort to get spending under control. They could have created a rainy day fund in good times to protect the state from economic downturn. They could have exhibited at least a semblance of fiscal self control. But they haven't. And we continue to pay for it.

And now, as the Governor tries to claim that flat lining spending increases will balance a budget devastated by the personal misfortune of many Wall Street "Rich People" that Corzine likes to point to when he is ginning up his class warfare act, he is being dishonest once again. And guess who is going to pay the price?

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I work in software marketing, so a substantial chunk of my paycheck comes from commissions. Can you imagine if I went to my boss and said, "Gee, Gerry, our commissions are down. So instead of X% per million dollars, you need to give me X+3% per million so I can stay revenue-neutral." He'd laugh in my face.

But that's exactly what Governor Corzine is doing. Tax revenues are down, so he's going to raise taxes: by a billion dollars or so!

Meanwhile, he's cutting less than 10% of spending (about 3 billion from a budget of, what, about 33 billion last year). And by the way, some of that so-called cut is rebates and deductions -- in other words, he's cutting back on letting us keep our own money.

Even when he's cutting spending, he's raising taxes.

And you'd be able to see that clearly if we had a budget to look at. But we don't.

For that matter, we can't see anything clearly. What are your priorities, Jon? You gave us some ideas in your budget address, but I can't tell how sincere you are. I can't tell whether my dollars are going to, say, Planned Parenthood (even though they had a surplus) or stem-cell research (even though the voters have given that idea a resounding "no").

So should he now get to hide behind an opaque wall until people actually have to vote on his budget? Should there be no debate?

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When he ran for governor, people talked about his financial savvy. If we had known then where the Wall Street Warriors would get us, maybe we wouldn't have been surprised that he's less than he's cracked up to be.

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I keep thinking about the budget as if it were weight. Putting on 60 pounds is a lot easier than taking it off, and you're better off not putting on the pounds; but if your weight is a problem then you have to figure out what habits made you heavy, fix those habits, overcompensate until you're down to a normal weight, and then start maintenance.

As a state, we've gotten fat on taxes. We shouldn't have increased spending as much as we did, but since we have, we should find out where the increases have gone to, how many are mandatory vs. discretionary, and what the real benefit is: how our quality of life has improved.

Then we should start remedial efforts. We'll have to strip out unnecessary stuff, even stuff we really like. We'll argue among ourselves about what's discretionary vs. what's mandatory. It won't be fun.

And then we'll have to keep off the weight.

Much easier said than done, of course.

Comment from Dennis: Jake, I think we miss the fact that Corzine is following the same script that Obama has followed at the Federal level. Gin up the crisis, use urgency to eliminate debate and pass a poor bill without appropriate review. We all know the stimulus went through under the "urgency" banner yet Obama waited 5 days to sign it into law. That was a scame pure and simple. Corzine has never had any new ideas so it is not surprising that he will do the same with NJ's budget. Message to the voters: Suckers!

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Corzine Tax Increase on All of NJ

The Governor announced his budget plan yesterday. He made a point to be Obama'esque by citing the global economic condition rather than his own mismanagement for the poor state of NJ's economy. As a matter of fact, he tried to balance the "i inherited the problem (from his Democrat counterpart?) with the economic situation. He proudly spewed Obama by announcing tax increases on those making more than $500,000 per year as if everyone didn't expect there was more to his populist pap.

Well there was. He quietly announced a proposal to not only eliminate the rebate program for everyone but seniors thereby increasing taxes on most of the homeowners int he state, he also announced the elimination of the deduction for mortgage interest in income taxes. I caught this last night and alerted Jake but I didnt get a change to do the research before the folks at NJ.com did commenting on the budget.

That could translate into a double whammy for non-senior homeowners earning between $75,000 and $150,000. Not only would they lose their rebate, they would also miss out on hundreds of dollars in savings from the deduction.

A homeowner earning $95,000, for example, would not only lose a $1,000-plus rebate. Scrapping the property tax deduction would take away another $350 or so, according to state figures.

But that isnt all:

According to income tax data from 2006, the most recent available, there were 469,300 tax returns in the $80,000- to $150,000-income bracket. Those taxpayers had an average savings of $356 from the deduction. The average savings was $175 for the 258,500 tax returns in the $50,000 to $70,000 range.

The proposed budget would offer rebates averaging $900 for non-seniors earning less than $50,000 annually, and checks averaging $700 for non-seniors making between $50,000 and $75,000.

Last year, Corzine's budget included rebates averaging $665 for households earning $100,000 to $150,000. Households earning up to $100,000 received checks averaging $1,115.

So guess what all of you New Jersey resident who voted for hope and change and a new way of doing things? You voted for a middle class tax cut that apparently amounts to $13.00 per month for most people. Review this post and you will realize that thanks to your Obama loving Governor, you are already in the hole by quite a large margin. You thought it was the OTHER GUY who was going to be taxed.

You were wrong.

Read the entire article here.

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Obama - The Earmark King!

During the campaign last year, candidate Obama insisted that the would not sign earmark loaded legislation if it came across his desk. He promised hope. And he promised change. From the AP:

President Barack Obama plans to sign a massive spending bill to keep the federal government running, but he is cracking down on lawmakers' penchant for stuffing such legislation with billions of dollars in pet projects.

Apparently, the 8,600 earmarks(Taxpayers for Common Sense) in the budget bill are not really earmarks. Just as the trillion dollars of pork in the stimulus was not earmarks either. But wait, the Obama team has a new spin(from Yahoo):

Orszag said: "We want to just move on. Let's get this bill done, get it into law and move forward."

Said Emanuel: "That's last year's business."

Let's examine this. Allegedly, voters picked change. The only change in this budget is that former President Bush would not sign it. So the Democrat congress held it over until President Obama took office. And he signed. Earmarks and all.

Change you can believe in.

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Read the bill!

I usually don't forward messages I get from the various public interest groups but since I already wrote on the problem of our congress passing a bill that they didn't bother to read first. Repreentatives that don't read legislation are not representatives at all-they are party shills. The Sunlight foundation has started a web site called www.readthebill.org. If you think that at the minimum, all legislation should have 72 hours in plain view before it is voted on, you should watch this video and go to the site and sign the petition.

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WSJ: Obama and the Economy

The Wall Street Journal had an excellent opinion piece in regard to the President and his advisors and their economic policies. One of the most telling items was in the subtitle:

As the Dow keeps dropping, the President is running out of people to blame.

This was no partisan screed. It was documentation of the impact that Obama's policies are rapidly having on the only economic indicator that can react to events close to when they occur.

As 2009 opened, three weeks before Barack Obama took office, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 9034 on January 2, its highest level since the autumn panic. Yesterday the Dow fell another 4.24% to 6763, for an overall decline of 25% in two months and to its lowest level since 1997. The dismaying message here is that President Obama's policies have become part of the economy's problem.

While it is clear that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid along with the Obama Administration have incited absolute class warfare. The problem is that they are doing it by scaring away the people they will need to fuel the programs they insist are so important. And what's worse is that they are hiding behind the economic situation to push their agenda through hoping that no one is noticing. But the market is clearly paying attention.

So what has happened in the last two months? The economy has received no great new outside shock. Exchange rates and other prices have been stable, and there are no security crises of note. The reality of a sharp recession has been known and built into stock prices since last year's fourth quarter.

What is new is the unveiling of Mr. Obama's agenda and his approach to governance. Every new President has a finite stock of capital -- financial and political -- to deploy, and amid recession Mr. Obama has more than most. But one negative revelation has been the way he has chosen to spend his scarce resources on income transfers rather than growth promotion. Most of his "stimulus" spending was devoted to social programs, rather than public works, and nearly all of the tax cuts were devoted to income maintenance rather than to improving incentives to work or invest.

His Treasury has been making a similar mistake with its financial bailout plans. The banking system needs to work through its losses, and one necessary use of public capital is to assist in burning down those bad assets as fast as possible. Yet most of Team Obama's ministrations so far have gone toward triage and life support, rather than repair and recovery.

Read the entire article here.

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Least Surprising New Jersey Headline Ever

From the Philadelphia Enquirer: Ethics panel meets, does little.

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