Monmouth County Democratic Chairman's Ball Huge Success

I just got in a few minutes ago from the Monmouth County Democratic Chairman's that was held at Sterling Gardens in Matawan this evening and based on what I witnessed there I have to say that it was a huge success.

I got there late due to the fact that I had came directly from work. I knew I was in for a special evening when I couldn't find a parking spot and had to double park along the back fence of the lot.

Inside I was stunned to see that it was wall to wall Democrats that came out to see special guest, Newark Mayor Cory Booker, who took the time out of his busy schedule to stop by Monmouth County and honor Democratic Chairman Victor Scudiery.

It's been a long time since I've seen such a large turn-out as this, with ticket that cost $125 a person they really raked in some cash.

I wish that I could remember exactly what Booker spoke about, I was still a little disheveled from arriving late but from what I do remember, Mayor Booker gave a very inspirational speech about his father and growing up. He related those experiences to how he now perceives himself and how he wishes to help others.

I was very impressed.

I heard him speak before at an Obama Rally in Newark last year but was to far away to appreciate what he was saying. He definitely has the "IT" factor. He will be a huge force in politics both locally and nationally for a long time if he chooses to be.

After Mayor Booker left the reception center, Congressman Frank Pallone and the candidates for County Office, Sheriff candidate Eric Brophy, Freeholder Candidate Janice Venable and Freeholders Amy Mallet and John D'Amico spoke about the issues and the upcoming election.

They really got those in the audience fired-up, which I was happy to see, because it seems that Democrats have just been going through the motions this year with little enthusiasm. I felt that those that walked out of the reception center were really going to start engaging full throttle in this years election as they left.

Speaking of "as they left", I want to thank Chairman Scudiery for stopping Mayor Booker on his way out the door long enough to introduce him to me so that I could grab a picture with him. I also want to thank John McCarthy for being in the right place at the right time. As I was standing there trying to get a picture of Mayor Booker my camera's batteries died, if he wasn't there to remind me that I had another camera built within my cell phone and was willing to take the photo, I would never have forgiven myself for walking out the door early this morning without back-up batteries. Thank you both.

Jersey Scandal - Could Another Operation Bid Rig Be Far Behind In Monmouth County?

Conservatives Are Crazy

By Danny Democrat @ NJDems.com

A 2003 study published by the American Psychological Association concluded that political conservatism is rooted in “fear and aggression, dogmatism and the intolerance of ambiguity” and other psychological factors.

According to the article, “Political Conservatism as Motivated Social Cognition,” four researchers who culled through 50 years of research literature report that the core of the right-wing ideology is the resistance to change and a tolerance for inequality. http://berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/07/22_politics.shtml

The emergence of the Tea Party movement has ignited passion among the most extreme adherents of conservatism in Republican politics, a phenomenon ending the careers of many longtime GOP establishment politicians.

Terror management is another psychological factor that influences conservatism, along with a need for certainty and cognitive closure. These primal instincts help define what makes a political conservative at a time in history when human survival probably depends upon a greater adherence to logic and reason.

Research has shown that people in a state of distress by nature are prone to the allure of charismatic leaders but it’s hard to imagine what would have happened if unbridled emotions drove the Kennedy white House in October 1962 instead of cool intellect. http://library.thinkquest.org/11046/days/index.html

Tea bag conservatives reject science as part of their blind loyalty to discredited anti-intellectual ideas and self-righteous faith-based morality, because by not allowing facts to dillute their perspective, they achieve the certainty they prize. http://silentmajority09.com/2010/09/24/conservatives-assault-science/

The leading tea baggers exhibit ultra-conservative craziness that seems to be overlooked by many voters who would normally object the their agenda: Ken Buck, Christine O’Donnell, Rand Paul, Sharron Angle,Carl Paladino, Mike Lee, Joe Miller, Marco Rubio and others. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/15/september-14-primary-elec_1_n_717242.html

Colorado Republican Ken Buck wants to outlaw birth control and a common fertility treatment and he says teenage rape victims should be forced to have babies. http://www.9news.com/news/elections/article.aspx?storyid=151144&catid=140

Republicans advocate a regressive 30 percent sales tax on everything you buy – which they call ‘the fair tax’ — while cutting income taxes again for the richest three percent of the people, tax breaks for multinational corporations that export American jobs. http://www.factcheck.org/taxes/unspinning_the_fairtax.html Regressive taxes make the poorest pay higher rates than the wealthy so Republicans are entirely disconnected from the American people, even if some Democratic incumbents have disappointed many people.

Republicans want to repeal President Obama’s Wall Street reforms, repeal the new rules that stop insurance companies from dumping sick children, repeal changes helping America’s war veterans — and then they want to tie down the administration with subpoenas and investigations that will preclude the president from solving any real problems facing Americans. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20011464-503544.html

Social Security and Medicare are one again in the Republican crosshairs, with Rep. John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, planning to cut benefits and raise the retirement age. http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/106135-boehner-raise-social-securitys-retirement-age-to-70

The author of the GOP agenda, Paul Ryan, has put a plan on the table would end Medicare as we know it and leave the nation’s seniors to the private insurance industry. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-Klein/2010/08/paul_ryans_plan_would_end_medi.html

Most of these ideas are well outside the main stream but if Democrats keep pushing for health reform, jobs creation, restrictions on Wall Street and credit cards — essentially all the things they stand for — then they could be in for more than a political fight.

Nevada Republican Sharron Angle said armed rebellion against the federal government saying, “if this Congress keeps going the way it is, people are really looking toward those Second Amendment remedies…” and she sought support from members of a right-wing extremist group, “The Oath Keepers,” whose members are police or military personnel who believe they need not follow orders and which was formed “In response to the obscene growth of federal power and to the absurdly totalitarian claimed powers of the Executive…” http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/06/reid-opponent-embraces-patriot-group-that-warns-of-giant-concentration-camps.php

Perhaps to enable ‘those Second Amendment remedies,’ for political New Jersey state Sen. Jeff Van Drew wants to make it easier for residents to carry handguns. http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/09/nj_senator_pushes_law_allowing.html

The bizarre policy positions are weighted with even more extreme anti-government craziness. According to a Sothern Pverty Law Center report: “U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) said she feared that the president was planning ‘reeducation camps for young people,’ while U.S. Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), evoking memories of the discredited communist-hunter Sen. Joseph McCarthy, warned of 17 ’socialists’ in Congress.” http://www.splcenter.org/images/dynamic/main/The_Second_Wave.pdf

The same report stated:

[Fox News host Glenn] Beck is just one of the well-known cable TV news personalities to air fictitious conspiracies and other unlikely Patriot ideas. CNN’s Lou Dobbs has treated the so-called Aztlan conspiracy as a bona fide concern and questioned the validity of Obama’s birth certificate despite his own network’s definitive -debunking of that claim. On MSNBC, commentator Pat Buchanan suggested recently that white Americans are now suffering “exactly what was done to black folks.” On FOX News, regular contributor Dick Morris said, “Those crazies in Montana who say, ‘We’re going to kill ATF agents because the U.N.’s going to take over’ — well, they’re beginning to have a case.”

The insane ideas are being backed up by action. The Second Wave includes a chapter outlining 75 right-wing terrorist plots, conspiracies and racist rampages since 1995, when conservative Republican Timothy McVeigh bombed the Oklahoma City federal building, killing 168 people, including 19 children in a day-care center, and injuring another 500. http://www.splcenter.org/images/dynamic/main/The_Second_Wave.pdf

In March 2010, after the report was published, nine Hutaree militia members were arrested in Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana, for alleged involvement in a plot to murder a law enforcement officer and then attack police officers at the funeral using illegal explosives and firearms in order to incite revolution against the government. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hQlDq4d5Js2bVnV83z7R1ORbsZPA

People who make up the Tea Party movement are largely conservative and get their news from Fox; they’re generally old and of moderate to low income; and they’re fairly convinced that their taxes are going to rise in the next few years, even though they won’t.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/01/tea-party-survey-old-cons_n_522336.html

“It’s the type of group that would likely benefit the most from Democratic governance, with commitments to Social Security, Medicare, and middle-class job creation,” said that report.

Tea baggers also have exceedingly poor views of President Obama. In the aforementioned poll, 81 percent disapproved of his job performance.

The scientific research identified the paranoia and obsession with certainty associated with conservatism but here are some hard examples of how they depart from reality and embrace delusion:

Fueling the myth mongering that Barack Obama is not a natural-born U.S. citizen, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said in a recent interview that the president may follow a “Kenyan, anti-colonial” worldview.
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/246302/gingrich-obama-s-kenyan-anti-colonial-worldview-robert-costa

Southern Baptist Pastor Carl Gallups suggests Obama isn’t just Kenyan — he’s also the Antichrist.
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/feature/2009/07/31/antichrist/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgHUZXgNAWo
http://www.hickoryhammockbaptist.org/interview.html

Such lunacy is not being immediately rejected by voters. Crazed tea baggers won Republican nominations for seven U.S. Senate seats, for New York governor and for dozens of seats in Congress. They are all over the place on ballots for city council, mayor, plus county and state offices.

A Harris poll cemented the notion of the scary conservative who believes that President Obama is many things that, factually, he is not.

The Harris Poll of 2,320 adults surveyed online between March 1 and 8, 2010 finds that large numbers of Tea Party supporters have not just extremely hostile opinions of President Obama but believe many of the false statements about him circulated on cable news and the internet.

The numbers among Tea Party supporters are scary, indeed: 67% believe the President is a socialist, although Harris didn’t do anything to verify that respondents knew what that word meant. More than half believe he is a Muslim,

The real sizzlers, are the 45% who believe he wasn’t born in the US, and the 25% who say he “may be the Antichrist” and 24% who say he wants the terrorists to win. These people think our president is a Nazi-esque Muslim Antichrist. http://www.harrisinteractive.com/NewsRoom/HarrisPolls/tabid/447/ctl/ReadCustom%20Default/mid/1508/ArticleId/117/Default.aspx

The Republican leadership’s willingness to flirt with ideas like the birth certificate conspiracy, or their insistence that health care reform is an “apocalypse,” paints all Republicans as unhinged loons and obliterate conservative credibility.

If you are still thinking about voting Republican, please see a mental health professional at once.

The White House White Board: CEA Chair Austan Goolsbee Explains the Tax Cut Fight

From the White House Blog

Today Team Obama is trying something new, they are rolling out the - White House White Board,in which one of the key players on the White House team will cut through the political back-and-forth you hear every day and break down an issue affecting American families into simple, understandable terms. Today, Austan Goolsbee, the new Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers at the White House, tackles the tax cut fight and what it means that Congressional Republicans are "holding middle class tax cuts hostage" as the President has said:





Key points and links:

Under President Obama’s plan, all Americans would receive a tax cut on the first $250,000 of their income. Every middle class family would receive the immediate certainty and comfort of knowing their tax cuts were permanently extended. Every American making more than $250,000 per year they would receive a tax cut on the first $250,000 of their income.

Instead of working to give middle class families this immediate certainty and comfort, Congressional Republicans are continuing to hold that relief hostage in order to have our nation borrow $700 billion that we can’t afford to provide an average tax cut of $100,000 to millionaires and billionaires.

We simply can’t afford to give the wealthiest Americans these big tax cuts that would add to our deficit and, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, be just about the least effective way to grow our economy and help create jobs.

Monmouth Jail Death: Brophy Asks "Why, How And Under What Circumstances Did Death Occur?"

BROPHY FOR SHERIFF

Press Contact: Jon Evans (732) 739 8888
September 28, 2010


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WALL, NJ - On July 29, 2010, Amit Bornstein, age 22 of Marlboro was arrested by Monmouth County Sheriff’s Officers on a warrant for failing to appear in Superior Court. Eight (8) hours later he was dead. Why, how and under what circumstances this death occurred have yet to be released by acting-Sheriff Shaun Golden. In fact, sixty (60) days after Bornstein’s death, Golden has yet to make a public statement about the incident.

Eric Brophy, candidate for Monmouth County Sheriff commented, “I am appalled that Mr. Golden has not stepped forward to address the residents of Monmouth County about this event. Part of a Sheriff’s job is to assure the public that they are safe and that he is in control of his agency.”

In his campaign literature, Mr. Golden touts ‘effective, responsible leadership’. His lack of public acknowledgement of the events surrounding Mr. Bornstein’s death is neither ‘effective’ nor ‘responsible.’ Failing to acknowledge the event does nothing more than fuel speculation about what occurred on July 29, 2010.

It is now two (2) months later and the only facts the public knows are that (a) it wasn’t a suicide; (b) the family hired Dr. Michael Baden; and (c) the Bornstein family lawyer has obtained an order preserving evidence in the case. “The lack of information from the Sheriff’s Office raises many questions about Golden’s crisis-management abilities,” said Brophy.

As a result of Golden’s inaction, there is now speculation about whether the Sheriff’s office is conducting an internal investigation; whether any corrections or other officers have been suspended pending the outcome of any investigation; whether a criminal investigation is underway; or whether the medical examiner has determined the cause and manner of death.

Brophy further commented “Monmouth County needs a Sheriff who is open with the public, who will be accountable for his office, and who will take the steps necessary to investigate potential wrongdoing. Golden should have stepped forward publically on July 29, 2010, and announced the specifics of this serious situation that occurred on his watch – and furthermore, he should have announced what steps, precisely, he is undertaking to get to the bottom of this potentially criminal situation. Instead, he remains silent and the public continues to speculate.”

Byrnes & Mahoney Town Hall Meeting Was a Big Success

Last nights Sean Byrnes and Mary Mahoney's Town Hall Meeting at the Middletown Panera Bread location was a big success. It was better than hoped for with over 50 people in attendance, many of then Republicans, who voiced their concerns over the lack of transparency shown by those down at Town Hall and how those in charge have been running the Township over the past several years which has resulted in the largest tax hike in Monmouth County this year (nearly 14%).

Overall, it was a very informative meeting that Sean Byrnes tried his best to make as non-political as possible, which I believe those in attendance appreciated. Many of them were there to be informed about what was happening at Town Hall and what possible solutions they could expect to their problems if Byrnes and his running mate Mary Mahoney were elected. They didn't want to hear them slam or complain their opponents.

Committeeman Byrnes chose to highlight 3 topics of discussion last night; Planning (or lack there of), the Execution of Government and the Inefficiencies that are associated with the "business as usual" way that Middletown has been run, which has lead to tax increases of over 42% during the last 5 years.

Byrnes's running mate, Mary Mahoney, introduced herself to the crowd and spoke about how and why she became interested in running for the Township Committee. She told those in attendance that she became involved back in December of last year when the Township decided to install an artificial turf fields complex with concession stands and lighting across the street from her house at the West Front Street Park, with no notification or discussion with the residents of the area that would be affected by such a complex. Mahoney went on to tell those in attendance how she helped form the citizens group SONIC, that defeated the sports complex at West Front Street and how she came to realize that the Mayor (Gerry Scharfenberger) and others were more interested in themselves and getting elected than doing what's right for all the residents of Middletown.

The floor was then opened for a Question and Answer period, where attendees asked Sean Byrnes questions that ranged from the Governor's "Tool Kit" and civil service rules, recording and televising Township meetings and what it would mean for residents if the Township Committee reverted back to it's old make-up of a 5-0 super majority of all Republicans and no Democrats.

I recorded over an hour worth of video last night that will take me a few days to edit down for posting. When I do, readers will be able to see and hear for themselves how well the Town Hall Meeting went and decide whether or not Byrnes and Mahoney deserve your votes.

NJPP Monday Minute 9/27/10: Good, Better ... Best Practices

On October 1, every municipality will puts its state aid on the line. As part of the governor's reform Tool Kit, towns will only receive 100 percent of their state municipal aid payment if they respond "yes" to at least 76 out of 88 questions listed in the governor's "Local Government Best Practices." Not having enough "yes" answers will cut their final aid payments for this year at a time when most municipalities have already lost some of their state aid.

Many of the questions make sense. Elected officials should understand their responsibilities and obligations and should attend most of their organization's meetings. It would be good for the municipal websites to include standard useful information like municipal budgets, minutes and agendas of the various governing bodies and boards, and the names of people to contact. A personnel manual is important for employees of the municipality to know the rules...and certainly the municipality should have rules.

Many questions suggest that important policies are in place and are recognized as important. Since assessed values are the basis for the property taxes people pay, towns should recognize that maintaining those records is a critical feature of good management. Unfortunately, only 60 percent of municipalities will be able to answer "yes" to that question.

Other questions contradict each other so if a municipality says "yes" to one, it can't say "yes" to the other. For instance, one question asks if the municipality employs a full-time health officer. The next question asks if the municipality shares health services with another municipality or county. If you say yes to one, the only way you can say yes to the other is if you have more than one health official.

Some questions contradict state policy. For instance, the questionnaire asks if the municipality limits health benefits to full-time (35 or more hours weekly) employees-excluding from coverage all part-time employees, elected and appointed officials. Newly enacted laws on this subject (P.L. 2010, c. 1 and c. 2) define full time for local government employees as 32 or more hours a week.

And while the questionnaire asks whether the municipality has implemented cost sharing for health benefits by collecting at least 1.5 percent of salary for all employees, it is silent on pensions. If the state is interested in health benefits why not also pension costs? It might be a big surprise for the borough administrator to find out how many pensions some of their shared service workers are entitled to receive upon retirement.

Of course, that is not a "yes" or "no" question, but it could be phrased along the lines of, "Do any of your full-time employees also work full-time in another municipality?" Also, "Do you know how much your full-time employees get paid by the other municipalities where they also work full-time?"

How about nepotism and political patronage? Because this issue clearly fits into the category of ethics and personnel manuals, what about asking, "Does the municipality condone the hiring of a son by a father, a sister by a brother or a mother by a daughter?" or maybe even a more pointed, "Does the municipality allow a mayor, council person or other public official to buy municipal property?"

How about various sanitation practices? Under the public works section of the questionnaire, several questions are asked about recycling. But how about asking whether the municipality picks up trash more than once a week? Or whether the municipality picks up grass clippings?

And what about the ultimate questions?

Are you too big or too small to function effectively?

Do you annually have a joint meeting of officials from every taxing authority to see how you can coordinate and manage the services you provide taxpayers to guarantee that you are providing the highest quality, most cost effective services possible?

"Yes" and "no" questionnaires have both value and limitations. They are like public report cards. If made public, they raise questions. NJPP has always believed information should be provided to the public in an understandable way. "Yes" and "no" is pretty simple. And making municipalities answer the questionnaire or lose state aid is a pretty direct stick. But tying these "yes" answers to the allocation of state aid may not be the best practice when non-compliance is likely to amount to further increases in property taxes to make up for lost state aid.

Middletown Dems - Byrnes & Mahoney To Hold Town Hall Meeting

Middletown Democratic Committeeman Sean Byrnes, a long with his running mate Mary Mahoney, will hold the first of two planned Town Hall meetings Monday night September 27th at 7pm. The meeting will be held at Panera Breads, 776 Hwy 35 Middletown,NJ.

"The Status Quo Is Not Good Enough, Have You Had Enough?"

(click on image to enlarge)

Hear about and discuss issues affecting your quality of life in Middletown.


A second Town Hall meeting will be held on Wednesday Oct.13th in Leonardo.

Further details will be release as the date draws near.

Health reform's benefits kick in

By REP. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN posted at Politico.com

Six months ago, President Barack Obama signed the new health reform legislation that will bring down health care costs for American families and small businesses, expand health coverage to an additional 32 million Americans and end the widespread abuses in the health insurance industry. The Affordable Care Act is the most groundbreaking reform of health care coverage since Medicare. It reduces the deficit by $1.2 trillion in the next 20 years, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

Americans are already benefiting from several important provisions that have taken effect. More than 4 million small businesses are eligible for $40 billion in tax credits, helping them offer employee health insurance coverage. Children with pre-existing conditions who have long been denied coverage now have access to a health plan in every state, including Maryland. Seniors in the Medicare Part D program are now receiving an annual supplement of $250 as the first installment toward closing the notorious “doughnut hole.” No longer will seniors be forced to choose between food or heat and lifesaving medications. Early retirees are also benefiting, because the program helps employers continue their health coverage.

This week, some crucial health care consumer protections begin. This new Patients’ Bill of Rights helps Americans obtain better care, lower their costs and improve their health coverage security.

Health insurance companies will no longer be able to drop people’s coverage when they get sick and need health care the most. Young adults — the largest population of uninsured Americans before passage of this law — can now remain on their parents’ health insurance plan until their 26th birthday. Health plans can no longer impose lifetime limits on coverage, and annual limits are to be phased out over three years — a dramatic change for families, because more than 60 percent of people who declared bankruptcy in 2007 cited medical bills as a reason, and medical costs have only increased since.

Over time, the Affordable Care Act will prohibit insurance companies from denying anyone coverage based on pre-existing conditions, create insurance exchanges so that Americans have the same health plan choices as members of Congress and implement the biggest tax cut for health care in U.S. history to ensure that middle-class families can afford insurance. The new law puts Americans, not the health insurance companies, in charge of their own health care.

Unfortunately, Washington Republicans want to repeal the law and take away these important consumer protections and benefits. Under their plan, things would grow worse and the deficit would increase. The CBO found that the Republicans’ plan would increase the number of uninsured to 52 million — higher than today.

The Republican plan would also make coverage unaffordable for millions of Americans, eliminate tax credits that help people cover their premiums and remove assistance to small businesses that offer coverage for their employees.

I am proud that these reforms, enacted by Congress, are helping make a difference in Americans’ lives today, and I am committed to ensuring the legislation is implemented successfully.

To learn more about these provisions and other ways that health reform will help you, please visit http://www.healthcare.gov/.

Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) serves as assistant to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and is chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

How Tax Brackets Work

The following blog post was written by Dave Johnson over at the website Campaign for America's Future and it explains in very simple details how tax brackets work. So don't fall for all the rhetoric surrounding the issue of whether to allow the Bush tax cuts to expire before you understand how tax brackets actually work. There is a lot of miss-information out there specifically designed to mislead the American public into believing the if the tax cuts were to expire, many would be burdened beyond their means which is simply not true:

This discussion of whether to get rid of the Bush tax cuts for the rich has been a learning experience. I have been listening on the radio and reading the comments at blogs. The main thing I am concluding is that people just do not understand how tax brackets work.

When people talk about raising taxes on people "who make more than" a certain income they really mean that they are going to raise it ONLY on the income that comes in after a certain income is received, not on the person't entire income.

Here is what I mean. Suppose they say they are going to raise taxes on incomes above $250K. People seem to think that this means if you earn $250K plus a dollar, that you owe an additional tax on the entire $250K. This is not correct. I actually hear stories about people who give away money, and do other things to avoid going "into a higher bracket" because they think they have to pay additional taxes on their entire earnings.

Here is how it really works. What happens is that the first $250K is taxed just like it has been, but anything that is made over $250K -- and only the amount over $250K -- is then taxed at the higher rate. The tax on the amount below $250K is not changed.

Example: Suppose the tax increase is 5% on income over $250K. This means that a person who reports income of $250K plus one dollar will be taxed an additional 5 cents. FIVE CENTS!

Yes, that's right, if it is 5% they are talking about then it means a 5 cent tax increase on people who make $250,001.

Let me repeat that. If you make $250,001, and they raise taxes 5% on people who make over $250K, then you will have to pay 5 cents more. Five cents. F.I.V.E. C.E.N.T.S. That is what people are so upset about. 5 cents.

If it is 5% a person making $260K might pay an additional $500. That's right, the proposed tax increase is approx. $42 a month on people making $260K, about $21,600 a month. Forty-four dollars out of twenty-one thousand. THIS is what all the right-wingers are screaming about. THIS is what all the Ayn Rand cultists are threatening to stop working over. THAT is how tax brackets work.

President Obama's Weekly Address 9/25/10: Crossroads on the Economy

The President lays out the choice between his plan to keep our economy moving forward, and the agenda put out by Republicans in Congress taking us backward to the special interest economy that created this mess.

Letter: Common Sense Over Politics

The people of Middletown have crucial decisions to make on November 2 of this election year. This community desperately needs new leadership that recognizes the concerns of the residents here .We can no longer continue to condone the mismanagement, the displays of incompetence and the failed policies of the republican majority on the township committee. Business as usual is contrary to prudent government.

Sean Byrnes is the only committee person willing to recognize the current economic conditions the residents of this town face. He has consistently voted against the failed policies of the current majority now serving. Their priorities are themselves, their party and their cronies, in that order. They refuse to consider
the very valid suggestions, that have been offered by Mr. Byrnes to right the sinking ship that is government in Middletown. These republicans seem oblivious to reality as they ignore the fact that the people in this country are in revolt against unfair and excessive taxation.

As a resident of this township for forty three years .I believe Middletown will be a much better place to live when bipartisan government becomes a reality here. We cannot afford three more years of the blatant disdain and disregard of the very people who pay the bills here....The taxpayers.

Time to vote for the re-election of Sean Byrnes and to elect his running mate,Mary Mahoney,.Mary is a person of honesty and integrity who shares Sean's vision for a better Middletown and a government that serves and respects the people who live and pay taxes here. They are both remarkable individuals.

Common sense must prevail over politics and the acute indifference that exists now towards the Middletown taxpayer.



Barbara R. Thorpe
Lincroft,N.J.

There seems to be NO reason why Middletown can't televise it's meetings other than Gerry doesn't want to.

An excellent article appears in today's edition of the Tow River Times titled "Twp. Officials Differ On Wisdom Of Videotaping Meetings", it is written by reporter John Burton and pretty much counters everything that has been said by Gerry Scharfenberger as to why Township Committee meetings can't be televised over the local cable access channels.

Burton contacted a spokesman for Verizon, Mr. Duthaler, who explained that "Cable companies take a small portion of the money paid to them by customers, and pay those allotments to the varies towns, what are called franchise fees. Some communities use portions of those funds to tape and broadcast meetings and other community information...

Sometimes municipalities negotiate with the cable providers, which can cover much, possibly all, of the cost of equipment. If Verizon is available in a community, that company, under its state agreement, would make available the necessary equipment and train personnel for any municipality that wants it, that's the way for them [towns] to get anything they want, all the equipment, all for free".

The article goes on to say that the cost of televising meeting is only ~$14k-$15k a year, which is a far cry from the $120k figure that Gerry Scharfenberger told residents at Shadow Lake Village last night it would cost when asked.

Burton also contacted representatives from Long Branch and Howell Twsp. to ask their opinions about how well things have worked out with televising meetings and both shared with him the same sentiments. "I think its working out well."

As to Scharfenberger's worrying about legal responiblities if something inappropriate is broadcast, David Bonowski, Howell's director of Management Information Systems, stated that in the six years Howell has been doing it(taping meetings for public broadcast)ed there has been no editing of content. "We haven't had anything happen at a meeting that would violate the FCC public guidelines and regulations."

So what is the problem here other than Scharfenberger and the Republicans that have been in control of Middletown for over 30 years, just don't want to do it.

Committeeman Sean Byrnes is qouted as charging,"opponents are actively trying to keep meetings from being made available for the public."

"I think if you could pick up the clicker and put on the local equivalent of C-Span and see what's going on," he said, "I don't see how it can hurt."

I happen to agree with him as do many other residents on this issue. Whenever you can bring more transparency to the process of government it is a good thing, especially when you consider that the costs of recording and broadcasting meeting can be done for little to no costs to the tax payer.

Sarah Palin's Top 10 Tea Party Mamma Grizzlies

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

D.C. Douglas Releases New Video Highlighting Sarah Palin's Top 10 Tea Party Mamma Grizzlies

Los Angeles, CA September 21, 2010

D.C. Douglas, a veteran character actor and voice over artist, has produced another in a series of comedic political videos. "Sarah Palin's Top 10 Tea Party Mamma Grizzlies" is a 4 minute voter's guide to Sarah Palin's mid-term Tea Party congress candidate picks.

"I find it best to put all your crazy tea bags into one pot so you can get a real taste of Sarah Palin's political acumen," says Mr. Douglas.

Mr. Douglas was thrust into the spotlight in April of this year when a tea party group, FreedomWorks, posted his private voicemail on an Andrew Breitbart website and called for his dismissal from performing voice over work on a new GEICO campaign. A month later, Mr. Douglas struck back with a Tea Party PSA that went viral and inspired thousands of people to look at FreedomWorks differently.

Since then, Mr. Douglas has released How To Comment On YouTube Videos (a cartoon mocking the responses to his first video), Matt Kibbe Pitches Dick (a mock ad for Dick Armey's new book), and Burn A Quran Day, a controversial mock ad which also went viral last week.

You can learn more about D.C. Douglas at http://www.DCDouglas.com.

MNT: ARE YOU READY FOR SOME TEABAGGIN'?!?!?

Newark Mayor Cory Booker To Host Monmouth County Chairman's Ball

Here's an event I am surely not going to miss!

Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Victor V. Scudiery

&

The Monmouth County Democrats Executive Committee

Cordially invite you to attend the

21st Annual

Chairman's Ball

With Special Host

MAYOR CORY BOOKER

Thursday, September 30th, 2010

7:00pm ~ 9:30pm

Sterling Gardens

227 Freneau Avenue (Rt. 79)

Matawan, NJ 07747

$125 per person

Black Tie (Optional)

Sponsorships

Gold Level Sponsorship ~ 8 Tickets and Full Page Ad ~ $5,000

Silver Level Sponsorship ~ 4 Tickets and Full Page Ad ~ $2,500

Ad Journal

½ page: $100 Full page: $150

Covers (3): $500

For more information, pls e-mail me back @ vin.gopal.2008@gmail.com

NJPP Monday Minute 9/20/10: THE HIGH COST OF BEING UNABLE TO AFFORD HEALTH CARE

When Governor Christie vetoed legislation last month that would have provided $7.5 million in funding for 58 family planning clinics across the state, he said he did so because the state could not afford to fund the program.

That should hardly surprise anyone.

The non-partisan Office of Legislative Services earlier this year estimated that the state has lost $5.5 billion in revenue the past two years because of the faltering economy. It has nothing to do with spending. It is entirely the result of a devastating erosion of the state's tax collections across the board by nearly 20 percent.

If anybody still believes that the state's finances have been beset by profligate spending, that revenue number alone should be as bracing as a bucket of ice water.

Even the governor recognizes that the state has a revenue problem. His own words in vetoing $7.5 million for family planning clinics confirm that the state's financial decline is directly attributable to the anorexic tax collections in every single revenue category over the past three years.

The governor was almost apologetic in his veto message in acknowledging that the state simply does not have the necessary means to finance these clinics, which have become a vital component of the state's health care infrastructure. Last year, the clinics served 136,000 people. Of that total, more than 97,000 had no health insurance at all. The clinics provided 65,252 pap tests and 70,507 breast exams for women who have few if any other health care options.

The state just doesn't have the wherewithal to cover the cost, Governor Christie said, even though every $1 spent by the state can be matched by as much as $9 in additional federal health care funding or save the state $4 in other health care costs. "Unfortunately, in these unprecedented fiscal times, the state simply cannot fund every worthy program," he wrote.

The governor didn't say this is a frivolous program. In fact, he said it is "worthy." Nor did he say that the state should not be spending money on health care for women, just that the state cannot afford to do so right now. The economic times are so tough right now the state doesn't even have the capacity to provide something as fundamental as basic health care services for poor women. "It would be patently irresponsible to approve any additional spending," the governor wrote.

Today, the Senate will vote on whether to over-ride the governor's veto of S2139.

The bill originally sailed through the Senate with a 30-10 majority. Seven of the 17 Republicans joined all 23 Democrats in support of the funding. After the governor's veto, though, six of the seven Republicans who had voted in favor of the funding said they would not countermand the governor's wishes and would not vote for a veto over-ride, which requires a two-thirds majority (27 votes). The Republicans said they agree with the governor, the state simply doesn't have the money to pay for health care for poor women.

It should be clear from the governor's words and the Republican caucuses' own words what fiscal analysts have been saying all along. New Jersey does not have a spending problem, it has a revenue problem. And that revenue problem is as bad as it has ever been.

The veto ought to make it quite obvious to all that the state lacks sufficient income from tax collections to sustain the high quality of life and community values that New Jersey residents want. It's not as if the budget is being trimmed of fat. These are not luxuries that the state can do without. For the past year there has been a steady mantra that there is just not enough money to fully fund schools; police and fire departments; libraries; parks; road and bridge repairs; transit; or even a pap test for a 40-year-old woman who doesn't have health insurance.

More than a display of politics, the veto of S2139 shows that without greater resources, New Jersey - one of the wealthiest states in the nation - is destined to become a place where classrooms are more crowded, police are slower to respond to 9-1-1 calls and women without health insurance have nowhere to go for basic health care and family planning needs.

It's Your Town Newsletter Volumn 2, Issue 20, 9/7/10; The Workshop Meeting

As everyone knows by now, there were two Middletown Township Committee meetings that took place Tuesday night 9/7/10. This edition of It's Your Town Newsletter contains information from the second of those two meeting, the Workshop Meeting, that was held after the Budget Adoption Meeting.

This edition of the newsletter arrives just in time for readers to get caught up on what went down at the last Township Committee meeting, so that they can be ready for tomorrow night's monthly Business Meeting.

If you plan on attending tomorrow nights meeting, here are a few things that will be on the agenda:

The Township has a $20M bond ordinance listed. It looks like it might be a refund ordinance, but the wording of ordinance titles usually throw you off on what it is actually for. The Committee is going to issue a reassessment on Township property. We are promoting 10 police officers and they will be sworn into their new positions. These promotions are mainly due to the recent retirements in the police department. it doesn't look like the residents in Pt. Monmouth will see any flood relief from the Township, for the bids to correct this +20 year problem were rejected again.

Read the Newsletter >>> Here

If you would like to have this newsletter sent directly to your inbox send your request to itsourtown@yahoo.com

Smoke and Mirrors Part II: Resolution NO. 10-248 - Authorizing Township Wide Property Tax Reassessment

Below is part II of Gerry Scharfenberger and crew's smoke and mirror attempt at once again deceiving voters into believing that they are working in their best interests of township residents rather than their own.

Resolution No. 10-248 will be introduced Monday night at the monthly meeting of the Middletown Township Committee and may be pushed through for a vote without any discussion by Committee members in Executive Session, just in time for the annual Middletown Republican October surprise for the November elections.

If you read my earlier post as to why I say this resolution is nothing more than a smoke and mirrors trick to divert residents anger away from the huge 12% municipal tax increase, you will understand that the reassessing of home values will have little impact on the actual amount of property taxes that they will pay because regardless of what local real estate is appraised for the Township still needs to raise in excess of $45 Million in taxes. Sure, the home appraisal will drop by a few thousand dollars but as an effect of the drop off in value the tax rate will need to adjusted higher to compensate for the loss of home values.

As anyone learned while in science class, Newton's third law of physics states, "for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction". So, as property values are adjusted downward, property taxes are adjust higher to compensate for lost revenues.

The other problem that I have with this resolution other than the timing and intent, is the lack of transparency in which it is being presented.

During the public comments portion of the special budget adoption meeting of September 7th, resident Jim Grenafege made a comment to the effect that in his opinion, the member of the minority party sitting up on the dais was routinely excluded from discussions and not given the same access to information, often stonewalled, as other committee members may receive. Grenafege's statement naturally got a rise out of our acting mayor, Gerry Scharfenberger, who vehemently denied that such things go on.

Well, I want to point out this resolution as an example of what Jim Grenafege was talking about because other than seeing Scharfy's press release that is forth coming, I understand that Sean Byrnes was not aware that actions to conduct a town wide reassessment had taken place.

RESOLUTION NO. 10-248

TOWNSHIP OF MIDDLETOWN

COUNTY OF MONMOUTH

RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING ASSESSOR TO PREPRARE TO

CONDUCT A TOWNSHIP-WIDE PROPERTY TAX REASSESSMENT

WHEREAS, after successfully seeking repeated deferrals due to extraordinary market conditions, the Township of Middletown was ordered by the Monmouth County Board of Taxation to conduct a property tax revaluation that was completed over two years ago at the height of the real estate market; and

WHEREAS, the Township has been forced to refund in excess of $1 million resulting from successful property tax appeals for the last tax year at a time when overall municipal revenues have experienced a significant decline due to current economic conditions; and

WHEREAS, such refunds have a devastating impact on the Township’s budget because the Township must refund nearly four times the amount of money it actually collects in taxes for municipal purposes without any refund from the school district; and

WHEREAS, the making of such refunds typically require special short-term financing by the Township as refunds must be made within 60 days of judgments being rendered as a matter of law; and

WHEREAS, Governor Christie’s new 2% tax levy cap law, which will become effective for the purposes of the 2011 tax year, does not provide any exception for the financing of refunds ordered via tax appeal judgments; and

WHEREAS, current market data analyzed by the Assessor’s office demonstrates that property values have declined significantly below assessments made based on the County Tax Board’s ordered revaluation which is resulting in a growing number of successful tax appeals with an even greater potential liability developing for the 2011 tax year; and

WHEREAS, a Township-wide reassessment does not require detailed inspections like those which are conducted during a revaluation and will reestablish fair and equitable property tax assessments that are more precisely in line with current market conditions throughout the Township while decreasing the number of tax appeals in the future; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 18:12A-1.14(c) and based on the forgoing analysis, the Assessor has filed an Application for Reassessment that has been approved by the County Board of Taxation and Division of Taxation and now having notified theTownship Committee of the same.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Township Committee of the Township of Middletown in the County of Monmouth, State of New Jersey that the Tax Assessor is hereby authorized and directed to take any necessary and appropriate action to commence a Township-wide property tax reassessment for the 2011 tax year

President Obama's Weekly Address 9/18/10: The Republican Corporate Power Grab

The President explains how the most dire warnings about the Citizens United case have been proven valid as Republicans in Congress have blocked legislation to fix it.

Saturday Morning Cartoons: In honor of the "Taxman" Himself Gerry Scharfenberger; The Beatles's "Taxman"

It's Saturday once more, time for a cartoon.

While the Beatles might have dreamt they were back in the time of Merry Olde England, and tried to pay Ringo's whopping tax bill with the aid of Robin Hood and Little John, Middletown residents aren't so lucky.

Middletown has its own "Taxman" in Gerry Scharfenberger, who has risen the local tax rate by more than 39% over the past 5 years and if you don't pay up your home may be taken.

Instead of my usual bowl of Cheerios, I think I need some Pepto Bismal.

Smoke and Mirrors: Scharfenberger To Pledge Support For Property Reassessments To Deflect Anger Away From 12% Tax Incease

Can you believe this one? In a soon to be released press statement, Middletown's acting mayor Gerry Scharfenberger, will announce his plan to support a town wide property tax reassessment.

It seems that Scharfy and crew have decided that they can't wait for their usual October surprise. The need to turn the tide on their ill-conceived budget, that has risen the local tax rate by 12% and angered a large majority of residents, has them running scared and desperate for votes.

How much do you think a new Town wide property reassessment will cost, especially after the botched revaluations cost the Township a couple of $ million to complete in the first place?

And really, does Scharfenberger and his buddies think that a reassessment will have a positive effect on the average homeowner? Middletown still needs to collect $45 million worth of taxes from residents to support the budget. The reassessment may lower the overall assessed value of ones home and make it seem as though the average homeowner will get a break, but in actuality the assessed tax rate will climb to offset the decrease in revenues from the lower home assessments.

The assessed tax rate now stands at $0.3975 per $100 of assessed value. That rate will increase as home values are reassessed lower by the township, it will have the same effect on both the School and County portions of the tax bills as well.

Essentially therefore Scharfenberger's plan is nothing more than a smoke and mirror parlor trick or a game of Three Card Monty, to divert voters anger away from the 12% municipal tax rate increase.

I'll post the press release as soon as it is available.

While I'm At It, Here's Another Letter From the APP: Who can afford to live in Middletown?

Since I seem to be reprinting letters to the editor, I might as well add one more.

This letter was written by Bonnie Lynn Isaksen and was printed in Monday's on-line addition of the Asbury Park Press.

I find it interesting because there seems to be a growing frustration building up in residents over their local tax bills.

For those paying attention, Middletown adopted it's 2010 budget which included a 12% municipal tax increase on September 7th. The municipal portion of the property tax bill that residents need to fork over to Town Hall has risen from $0.35 to $0.3975 per $100 assessed value:

It's a nightmare. Middletown taxes have gone higher, there are no homestead rebates this year and no tax credits until next year.

People will be moving out of Middletown. Who can afford to live there anymore? With the new budget 4.5 percent higher than last year, this puts a strain on all its residents. Expecting more foreclosures in Middletown? You bet.

Middletown should send out "pack your bags and get out" notices along with the new, higher tax bills.

Bonnie Lynn Isaksen

MIDDLETOWN

Letter: Mahoney deserves Middletown's vote

I just found the following letter published on-line over at the Asbury Park Press. The letter is in support of Middletown's Democratic Committeeman Sean Byrnes's running mate Mary Mahoney.

Mary is starting to build a very large following around town and is quickly becoming Middletown's "darling". Those that meet her on the campaign trail can not help themselves from falling for her and her bubbly, warm and down-to-earth, genuine persona. She has been describe by those that have met her as a "Natural":

I have been a resident of Middletown for 23 years. Over the past few years, I have noticed a conspicuous lack of transparency in our local government and been disappointed by many of the decisions and policies pursued by the current leadership.

This year, one of the candidates, Mary Mahoney, is someone I have known and worked with for many years. Mahoney has consistently been an outstanding leader in our community.

I have had the privilege of working closely with Mahoney on the Lincroft PTA executive board, and know how intelligent, dedicated and hardworking she is.

This November, Middletown residents should support a new direction for the township by casting a vote for Mahoney.

Judy Krivitzky

MIDDLETOWN

Letter: Byrnes is the Kind of Leader Middletown Needs

It seems as the letter written by Republican County Committeeman Michael Vitkansas last week that criticized Sean Byrnes for being a "socialist liberal" and questioned his support of the so-called "special interests" has been responded to by yet another.

The following letter was sent to me and appears on-line at the Atlantic Highlands Herald website:

I read with interest the letter from Mr. Vitkansas attempting to criticize Sean F. Byrnes. Mr. Vitkansas' pitch is one of guilt by association. His logic runs something like this: Mr. Byrnes is a Democrat, therefore he is pro-Union, pro-COAH and ultra-liberal. Before writing his letter, Mr. Vitkansas should have taken the time to review Mr. Byrnes' record.

Unlike Mr. Vitkansas, I attend many of the Township meetings. Here are some facts. Mr. Byrnes called for layoffs in early 2009 and deep cuts in benefits spending, but the Republican majority on the Committee did not act on his request until the middle of 2010. Mr. Byrnes favors privatizing much of the Township's leaf and brush pickup and introduced a resolution to save money by consolidating all maintenance operations in the Township, instead of having separate maintenance departments for the school district and the different township departments. He also wants to competitively bid all professional contracts to reduce costs for taxpayers.

As for COAH, the all-Republican Township Committee missed a golden opportunity in 2005 to save the Avaya site from inclusion in Middletown's Affordable Housing Plan when the Township failed to follow through on an agreement with Red Bank to purchase housing credits. When they could wait no longer, Red Bank ultimately sold these credits to Manalapan and the residents of Lincroft were dealt the prospect of affordable housing at the Avaya site. For what it's worth, I doubt that the Tea Party would find favor with the tax bills handed by Mayor Scharfenberger to Township residents, especially the 12% increase in the municipal tax levy for 2010.

By the way, Mr. Byrnes was the only Committee member to vote against this increase. Mr. Byrnes is not the ultra-liberal Republicans and Tea Party members would like you to believe. I challenge Middletown residents to look at the candidates' records and come to the Township Committee meetings. You'll see that Mr. Byrnes is the kind of leader we want in our local government.

Don Watson
New Monmouth, NJ

Can the Grand Old (Tea) Party Win in November?

Nice article written by John Nickles over at the Nation.com about the sudden turn of events that has now made Democratic prospect for the November elections and retaining control of the US Senate much more likely thanks to Republican voters that chose extreme right-wing TEA Party backed candidates in Alaska, Delaware, Nevada and elsewhere over more mainstream GOP candidates:

Did the Tea Party movement just snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in Delaware?

In a word: Yes.

Just as wins by extreme right-wingers in Republican primaries in Nevada, Alaska and other states have renewed the hopes of Democrats in Senate races where they looked to be doomed, Delaware Republicans just ditched a seemingly certain November winner for a likely loser.

On a night when the Tea Party movement scored some big wins over candidates of the Republican establishment—in races for governor of New York and perhaps for New Hampshire's open US Senate seat—the most dramatic victory for the frenzied right came in Delaware, where Tea Party heroine Christine O'Donnell upset Congressman Mike Castle for the party's Senate nod.

Former White House political czar Karl Rove, who describes the Republican nominee for the US Senate from that state, Christine O'Donnell, as someone who "says a lot of nutty things," was arguing that the GOP just lost a Senate race.

"We were looking at eight to nine seats in the Senate. We're now looking at seven to eight in my opinion," Rove said Tuesday night. "This is not a race we are going to be able to win."

But consider those numbers: What Rove is saying is that, with the Delaware result, Republicans may have lost much more than the Senate race in a single state....

Read more >>> Here

It's Your Town Newsletter Volumn 2, Issue 19, 9/7/10; Budget Adoption Meeting

There were two Middletown Township Committee meetings that took place Tuesday night 9/7/10. This edition of It's Your Town Newsletter contains information from the first and most important meeting, the budget adoption meeting, where the 2010 budget was finally voted on.

Attached you will find meeting agendas, the resolution that amended the budget that was introduced in June and a copy of the final amended budget.

The second newsletter that covers the main Middletown Township Meeting will be published and available shortly.

Read the newsletter >>> Here

If you would like to have this newsletter sent directly to your inbox send your request to itsourtown@yahoo.com

Rep. Holt Decries Opponent's Call for Lowering Unemployment Benefits to Below Minimum Wage

Press Release

September 14, 2010 - 12:00pm

Opponent Believes Unemployed Lack Motivation to Find Work

TRENTON: U.S. Representative Rush Holt today decried Wall Street Hedge Fund Manager and congressional opponent Scott Sipprelle for proposing to lower unemployment benefits to below minimum wage as a means to force people to look for work. Economists recognize that unemployment benefits help not only the individuals that receive benefits but also help society at large by preventing those laid off from becoming burdens on social services. Unemployment benefits also create, dollar for dollar, the greatest positive benefit on the economy in the short term.

“Essentially, Mr. Sipprelle thinks people on unemployment are making too much money,” said Representative Holt. “My opponent thinks people who lose their job won’t be motivated to look for work unless we cut their unemployment benefits to an unlivable amount. The contempt that Mr. Sipprelle has for the people he claims to want to represent is staggering.”

On July 19th of this year, Mr. Sipprelle wrote in his campaign e-newsletter that we should “set the level of unemployment benefits at a modest discount to the minimum wage so that no one receives more for not working than they do for working. This will accelerate the adjustment of laid-off workers to the reality of today's labor markets without pulling a prop out from under the truly needy who cannot find work.”

Joining Representative Holt were Dr. Keith Dewey of Lawerenceville and Mr. Gavin Brown of Ewing, residents of the 12th district who are currently seeking full time employment. They each shared their own individual story with regard to unemployment and benefits, discussing how they have been actively seeking work and do not need a reduction in benefits to motivate them.

Many of the nation’s leading economists have stressed the importance of unemployment benefits and how they actually stimulate economic growth. Mark Zandi, economic advisor to John McCain and Chief Economist for Moody's, stated earlier this year that, “No form of the fiscal stimulus has proved more effective during the past two years than emergency UI benefits, providing a bang for the buck of 1.61—that is, for every $1 in UI benefits, GDP one year later is increased by an estimated $1.61…”[i]

Zandi has also pointed out that "…UI benefits are among the most potent forms of economic stimulus available…Most unemployed workers spend their benefits immediately; and without such extra help, laid-off workers and their families have little choice but to slash their spending. The loss of benefits is debilitating not only for unemployed workers, but also for friends, family, and neighbors who may have been providing financial help themselves." (See Blinder and Zandi paper “How the Great Recession was Brought to an End at http://www.economy.com/mark-zandi/documents/End-of-Great-Recession.pdf)

Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman has stated that “Helping the unemployed, by putting money in the pockets of people who badly need it, helps support consumer spending. That's why the Congressional Budget Office rates aid to the unemployed as a highly cost-effective form of economic stimulus.”[ii]

Heather Boushey, Senior Economist for the Center for American Progress, has stated that “…These benefits help unemployed workers and their families cope with abruptly lost incomes until they can find a new job while also aiding the economic recovery by helping families maintain spending in their communities, which in turn preserves jobs for employed Americans…”[iii]

Representative Holt also discussed his efforts to assist those on unemployment and create jobs. These include introducing the Online Job Training Act (H.R. 146) to bolster the availability of home-based training programs, supporting the enactment of up to 99 weeks of unemployment benefits for 3.5 million Americans – 230,000 New Jersey residents – who are looking for work and who have exhausted their 26 weeks of regular unemployment benefits, and supporting $40 million to help workers enter careers in emerging green industries.

For more information regarding Representative Rush Holt and his fight for the people of the 12th district, please call 609-799-0800 or log on to www.rushholt.com.

No Smear Shall Go Unanswered: Latest By Vitkansas Is Not So "Amusing"

In the latest smear letter directed at Middletown Committeeman Sean Byrnes, I am glad that the writer finds it amusing to read other peoples letters that point out the short comings of Middletown’s mayor and other members of his beloved Republican Party. The letter, which is written by Michael Vitkansas, has appeared in various local publications recently.

Truth be told, Vitkansas is a strong and active member of the same, elite Middletown Republicans that he tries to protect by spreading misleading and sometimes inflammatory information about others. As a Republican County Committeeman representing his district in Middletown, Vitkansas has often allowed himself to be used as a tool for the local Republican machine and as a reward for his loyalty, he now sits on a number of local boards and commissions in Middletown, which makes his invocation of the “patriots of the TEA Party” in his letter, laughable in and of itself.

In his most recent lapdog attack letter, Vitkansas goes after a fellow letter writer, Jeff Blumengold, for criticizing the poor job that mayor Gerard Scharfenberger and his GOP majority has done in their planning efforts while trying to run Middletown Township over the past 5 years, by attacking Democrat Sean Byrnes.

In his letter, Vitkansas tries to label Byrnes as a socialist liberal who favors COAH, supports teachers, unions and high property taxes in his attempt to persuade readers into believing something that just is not so.

Those that know Committeeman Byrnes would describe him as a fiscal conservative and a social moderate. Over the 3 years that he has been a Middletown committeeman, Byrnes has made many suggestions on how to reign in the local spending that has resulted in tax hikes that total over 39% to the municipal tax rate over the past 5 years (since mayor Scharfenberger has sat on the committee), only to be rebuked by his fellow committee members. He has never voted in support of a Township budget that has included a tax increase, including the most recently adopted 2010 budget which raises the municipal tax rate by nearly12%

Committeeman Byrnes has repeatedly stated over his 3 years on the Township Committee that programs like COAH need to be revamped and revised so that the burden of such programs do not fall onto local taxpayers. Mr. Vitkansas and others that oppose Mr. Byrnes however, point out his vote to rezone the Avaya property in Lincroft, that rezoned the property from industrial to residential in order to meet Middletown’s state mandated COAH obligation, as proof that he is not sincere or straightforward. Allow me to point out though, that the ones that are not being straightforward and sincere with Middletown residents are Vitkansas and his fellow GOP supporters that attack Byrnes on this issue. After all, it was his friends on the republican dominated Middletown Planning & Zoning Boards that came up with the plan to rezone the Avaya property so that the Township would be in compliance with COAH, not Byrnes. At the time, mayor Scharfenberger, Pam Brightbill and Tony Fiore, all current Republican members of the Township Committee, approved and voted for this rezoning as well.

Sean Byrnes knows that having a strong middle-class is the backbone and foundation of our State as well as our Country. He realizes that education plays a leading role in establishing that foundation and supports teachers and unions in general, knowing that without them there would be no middle-class as we know it today. That being said however, Mr. Byrnes has repeatedly been on the record as saying that he supports Gov. Christie’s “Tool Kit”, that reforms need to be made in order to level the playing field during contract negotiations and that state union members should be expected to contribute more to their healthcare costs.

If supporting Committeeman Sean Byrnes and his record as a member of the Middletown Township Committee in his re-election bid this November labels me as being a “socialist liberal” so be it. I love being a socialist liberal who opposes high taxes, government mismanagement and the entrenchment of the long-standing Republican ruling class.

I also happen to think that those “remarkable patriots in the Tea Party movement” that are “growing in numbers more and more with each passing day” are intelligent enough to know the difference and will also support Sean Byrnes and his running mate Mary Mahoney against Republicans that have borrowed, spent and raised local taxes to the point that it will soon become unaffordable to raise a family and live in Middletown.

Opaqueness of Government Was Grenafege's Point While Addressing Committee At Last Week's Budget Adoption

Last week I posted an piece of audio that featured an exchange between resident Jim Grenafege and mayor Gerard Scharfenberger that took place during the special budget adoption meeting Monday night September 7th. It was a rather heated exchange, but was a small segment of the overall address to the Township Committee made by Mr. Grenafege.

Grenafege addressed the issue of transparency in government which he called the "Opaqueness" of Middletown's governing body.

He brought up the issue of early retirements and their effect on this years budget, he pointed out that the Township passed an ordinance last year that encouraged employees to take advantage of early retirements as a cost savings to the Township. By passing this ordinance the Township should have been able to do better job at planning for the rash of retirements sparked by Gov. Christie's threat to change the State's retirement system.

Grenafege brought up the issues of Tax Appeals.

It was stated that the township had to assume the full cost of the many tax appeals that were successfully approved against the town. Scharfenberger lamented that a portion of those appeals should have had to been paid by the Board of Education seeing that 60% of the overall property tax burden is attributed to the school system and not the Township.

Grenafege correctly pointed out that the Township owes $80M worth of debt to the school board in the form of deferred taxes, which the Township collects and uses to offset the municipal tax rate, and if the Township did a better job at planning a portion of that debt could have been put aside for the purpose of tax appeals.

After addressing health care costs and questioning the per capita costs ratio of employees to residents and how the $680 figure is derived that Scharfenberger loves to quote when talks about how fiscally conservative Middletown has been through the years, he moved on to the Middletown Sewage Authority and "Concerts in the Park".

The Township has often said that the concerts are fully funded by corporate sponsors with no taxpayer dollars supporting them. Grenafege pointed out that at least one of these concerts were sponsored by the Middletown Library System, which was therefore, in fact funded indirectly by Middletown taxpayers.

Listen to the audio, it was a fascinating exchange that I am sure will keep you listening until the end of the 12 minute give and take between Jim Grenafege and the those on the Township Committee. The exchange between them is exactly what open government is all about and what needs to happen more often at Township meetings

Saturday Morning Cartoons: Hippty Hooper

Does anyone know how to get to Ring-a-Ding Spring? I need some of that water. Enjoy your cartoon

President Obama's Weekly Message 9/11/10: A Day That Tested Our Country

The President marks the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks as a National Day of Service and Remembrance to honor those who lost their lives.

Volunteer in your community through Serve.gov.