After polling its writers, the internet based New Jersey Newsroom issued it's endorsement of State Senator Barbara Buono over Chris Christie for NJ Governor on Friday.
From New Jersey Newroom:
At a time when New Jersey has been unable to deal effectively with major issues, NewJerseyNewsroom.com urges a vote for a better future with Barbara Buono.Our contributors decide collectively whether to make political endorsements, and those have been few, far between and far from unanimous. This year,there is a significant margain, with 64 percent for Buono, 32 percent for incumbent Chris Christie and 4 percent for Libertarian Kenneth Kaplan.
On jobs, property taxes, transportation, women’s health, education, rebuilding from Hurricane Sandy and preparing for future disasters, Buono recognizes the challenges, understands the concerns of average citizens and is ready to go to work.
We are encouraged by Buono’s emphasis on stimulating the economy, helping people keep their homes, speeding reconstruction and restoring and expanding transportation infrastructure. As a small business, we are hopeful that she will follow through with tax and fiscal policies that focus on the real job creators.
New Jersey continues to have the highest property taxes in the nation, and that burden is rising rapidly. Despite the incumbent’s good intentions, the so-called 2 percent cap on municipal and school tax-supported spending is full of holes.
And while local governments may need tough love to cut costs, Christie has burdened them with his own budgeting problems. In particular, his cutback of homestead rebates directly increased our property tax burden.
Buono is smart enough to recognize the importance of bringing property taxes under control, and refreshingly frank enough to tell voters that it will be a gradual process. We are ready to see her start.
Anyone without an ax to grind on education policy agrees that early childhood education is key to student achievement, and Buono favors more. She can also understand data well enough to know that when the state school aid formula has been fully funded, districts like Newark showed noticeable improvement.
We are concerned, though, that like other Democrats, Buono expects to pay for everything with higher marginal tax rates on income over $1 million. The “millionaires tax” would bring in the revenue Christie’s budgets always lack, but that would only go so far. The state still needs to get its fiscal house in order.
Even some of us who do not support Christie have found him entertaining, and at times useful. But most are disappointed that his accomplishments have not matched his rhetoric.
In particular, the last four years have been a gubernatorial “lost term” for jobs and the economy in New Jersey. Our unemployment rate is eighth worst among the 50 states, tied with Tennessee and Mississippi.
Since January 2009, when Christie took office. New Jersey has added 9,000 employed people, and 54,000 unemployed. The Governor’s “job creation” ranks 44th in the country.
Average home prices are down 6.7 percent, although property taxes continue their sharp rise. Mortgage delinquencies are up, but Christie waylaid federal aid intended to help people keep their homes.
Residents of storm-devastated communities served as useful props for Christie and other politicians. Since then, his Administration has taken some helpful measures, such as pushing for protective dunes and bit of state money on top of federal aid, such as $17.3 million in loans and incentives last week for affordable housing in areas blasted by Sandy.
But a Monmouth University poll found 75 percent of those hard-hit by Sandy feel they have been largely forgotten. Only 25 percent believe the state’s efforts are focused on helping them.
While climate change remains “esoteric” to the Governor, its impacts on New Jersey are not. While he is off running for president, our state may well be weaker than the next storm.
Christie did succeed brilliantly in getting legislative Democrats to role back overly generous public pensions, which needed to be done, while demonizing police officers and teachers, which was juvenile.
Christie signaled Wall Street to pay no attention to the “reform” part of his “education reform” by appointing Christopher Cerf as education commissioner. The new appointee could then approve the changes to Newark schools proposed in a secret report by a firm run from his home. That was an actual conflict of interest, not just a perceived one.
We understand why poorly served communities look to charter schools as a possible alternative. But we are skeptical of the funds being funneled to a closed-door network of interconnected back-room firms. Real educational reforms would differ from political “Education Reform,” the Tammany Hall of Consultants.
Buono’s choice for lieutenant governor, Milly Silva does lack experience as a politician. More worrisome to bosses of both parties, as a leader of the Service Employees International Union, she is a throwback to the days when the Democratic Party represented working people instead of investment banks and hedge funds.
The point may be moot, though, for the current occupant of the office’s lone accomplishment is demonstrating that New Jersey could cut its budget harmlessly by eliminating the Office of Lieutenant Governor.
Increasingly, Chris Christie is restless in Trenton. He prefers hobnobbing with celebrities and glad-handing Republican voters in other states. So let’s give him what he wants, and give New Jersey what it needs, a new direction with Barbara Buono.
****************
NewJerseyNewsroom.com is a cooperative newsroom of more than 200 independent journalists and contributors. It was formed in 2008 when the state’s traditional media starting reducing the size of their staffs
No comments:
Post a Comment