U.S. Economy Grew At Brisk 4.2 Percent In Q2

I'm posting this as a contrast to the previous blog post. The U.S. economy expanding and picking up steam. there many reasons why we should be happy and optimistic about the economy  heading into 2015.


From The Huffington Post via AP:

WASHINGTON (AP) — After a bleak start to the year, the U.S. economy grew at a brisk annual rate of 4.2 percent in the April-June quarter, the government said Thursday, slightly faster than it had first estimated. 

The upward revision supported expectations that the second half of 2014 will prove far stronger than the first half.

The Commerce Department's second estimate of growth for last quarter followed its initial estimate of 4 percent. The upward revision reflected stronger business investment than first thought.

The seasonally adjusted 4.2 percent annual growth rate for the gross domestic product — the nation's total output of goods and services — came after the economy had shrunk at a 2.1 percent annual rate in the January-March quarter. That was the economy's biggest drop since the depths of the Great Recession, and it reflected mainly the effects of a harsh winter that kept consumers away from shopping malls and disrupted factory production.

Many economists say they expect growth of around 3 percent in the current July-September quarter and for the rest of the year.

The government's upwardly revised estimate of business investment last quarter showed capital spending growing at an annual rate of 8.4 percent last quarter. That was sharply higher than the government's initial 5.5 percent estimate.

Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said the strength in business investment has likely extended into the current quarter, lending support to the economy.

In its second estimate of growth for last quarter, the government said companies' restocking of supplies contributed less than it had first estimated. But a higher trade deficit subtracted less from growth than initially estimated.

The downward revision in inventory building will likely help boost growth in the current quarter because it means that businesses may need to restock their supplies to meet demand....


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Property tax burden up 13 percent under Christie, AP analysis shows

If you haven't seen the following article that was published the other day now is a good time to do so. The Associated Press did an in depth analysis and has shown that the tax burden for NJ residents has increased 13 percent since Chris Christie has been in office, the key poin tof the article being: “…[New Jersey] homeowners continue to shoulder the highest property taxes in the nation, with an average assessed house value of just under $300,000. The average property tax bill for owners of homes and apartment buildings last year was $8,100, up from $7,500 in 2009”.

You can link to the article on NJ.com or read it below:

TRENTON — The net household property tax burden in New Jersey rose 13 percent during Gov. Chris Christie's first three years in office — a number that reflects both his success in reining in local government spending and his inability to restore a relief program that was gutted by his predecessor during the Great Recession, an Associated Press analysis of tax data has found.

The growth is only slightly lower than it was in the last three years of Democrat Jon Corzine's time as governor, when the net tax bill went up 15 percent.

But it reflects a different approach: Christie, a Republican, has gone further to force local governments to keep costs down — and give them help doing it. Corzine also tried to control local government costs but did much of his work on trying to control taxes by expanding a rebate program, which he then cut.

Christie's approach differs from what he said on the campaign trail in 2009 when he unseated Corzine. Then, he pledged to control costs and to restore some of the relief programs that Corzine scaled back. Now that he is seeking re-election, this time against Democrat Barbara Buono, Christie is emphasizing how his policies have controlled costs.

Buono says that as governor, she would raise the income tax on high earners to bring back a bigger rebate program. "It's about what families are seeing in the bill and what they're paying every month," said her campaign spokesman, David Turner, "Right now, they're paying more."

Kevin Roberts, a spokesman for Christie, said the governor's views in 2009 represented his vision, not necessarily what he could accomplish in four years. He also said Christie found the state budget in much worse shape than expected, requiring him to reset priorities.

If re-elected, Christie intends to keep pushing to control school and local government spending and to offer taxpayers direct relief in areas where the Democrat-controlled Legislature has not gone along. "At present, we think there is still unfinished business," he said.

COMPARING CANDIDATES
The gubernatorial campaigns have used different and simpler analyses of tax growth, each to its own advantage.

The Christie campaign has focused largely on the property tax cap without mentioning that the real cost to taxpayers has risen faster than the bills.

Buono's campaign, on the other hand, has cited calculations that incorporate only the big tax rebate and credit program, making it appear that the average bottom-line property tax liability has risen more than it has.

The AP used records from 2006 to 2012 on statewide property tax levies and all the state's property tax relief programs to calculate the average net property tax bill. The aid programs range from the narrowly focused, such as one that pays disabled veterans' property taxes, to the general, including one that knocks at least $50 off the income tax bill for anyone who pays property taxes or rent. Some of the numbers used in the calculations came from estimates for 2012 provided by the state Treasury Department rather than final numbers.

While any broad-brush way of looking at taxes has its limitations, this approach attempts to show what has actually happened to tax liabilities.

CORZINE'S IDEAS
New Jersey officials have taken some steps over the years to try to lessen the tax burden, but homeowners continue to shoulder the highest property taxes in the nation, with an average assessed house value of just under $300,000.

The average property tax bill for owners of homes and apartment buildings last year was $8,100, up from $7,500 in 2009. The net cost after the relief programs was $7,600, up from $6,800.

Property taxes fund local government and New Jersey's relatively high-performing public schools, which account for the biggest share of the bill.

An income tax was introduced in 1976 with the intent of funding schools and property tax relief programs for homeowners. Elected officials have also tinkered endlessly with those relief programs.

Corzine imposed a 4 percent cap on property tax growth, though it had several exemptions.

And during his last two years in office, as the economy was sinking fast, he scaled back property tax relief to help balance the budget.

By the time he left office, non-senior citizen, non-disabled homeowners making more than $75,000 lost their rebates. In 2008, those making $75,000 to $150,000 had received rebates averaging around $1,000. Corzine also barred households bringing in more than $250,000 from deducting property taxes from their earnings on state income-tax forms.

CHRISTIE'S SOLUTION
Enter Christie, who in his campaign to unseat Corzine focused largely on taxes and blasted the incumbent for cutting the rebates as the economy faltered and people needed the money the most.

Christie promised to slow the growth of property tax bills — and he did by capping how much they could grow and passing cost-saving laws that have helped local governments comply. He also said he would restore the slashed property tax relief, though he said he might not be able to do it right away and did not promise a specific level that the rebates would be.

When Christie took office in 2010, the economy was still on the ropes and the state revenue outlook was not good — worse than he was led to believe, he often says.

A higher income tax rate on high earners had expired and Christie refused to bring it back, despite lawmakers' efforts to do so. The federal economic stimulus money that Corzine had relied on to balance his last budget had also run out. Things were so bleak that Christie made major midyear cuts to the budget that had been adopted under Corzine.

The deductions for higher earners — worth a maximum of $897 — returned in his first budget.

He also overhauled the rebate program, replacing checks that had been sent to taxpayers with credits applied to bills. The state did not issue any of the credits in 2010 and delayed this year's. The credits have never been returned for non-seniors with incomes over $75,000.

For senior citizens earning under $150,000 and non-seniors with incomes under $75,000, the benefit has increased gradually under Christie but still remains well under the rates in 2007, when the rebate program was at its largest.

5-YEAR GROWTH
The AP's analysis found that the average net property tax obligation in 2012 was 31 percent higher than in 2007. For those cut from the program altogether, the increase has been even greater.

The Christie administration says focusing on those numbers minimize the governor's property tax relief accomplishments.

The governor signed a law capping property tax growth at 2 percent per year — and with fewer exceptions than Corzine's 4 percent cap.

To ease spending pressures on towns, he also achieved a major breakthrough when he got a Democrat-run Legislature to go along with an overhaul of pension and health insurance for one of the party's main constituencies, public-sector employees.

His administration says that action will save local governments $900 million over its first three years and will save increasing amounts each year.

The governor did agree last year to plan for an income tax reduction based on the amount of residents' property taxes, a variation on the rebate and credit programs. But the Legislature balked, saying the state couldn't afford it. Christie, meanwhile, has rejected Democrats' calls to increase income taxes on high-wage earners to pay for property tax relief for people who make less.

Christie is continuing to push for a version of the tax cut and for more controls on local spending, including not letting government employees get paid for unused sick time when they leave and offering incentives for communities to share more services.

David Rousseau, a state treasurer under Corzine who now works at the liberal New Jersey Policy Perspective, said he believes Christie has focused on controlling government spending not because it's inherently better but because tight budgets haven't given him enough money to do more with direct relief programs.

But Charles Steindel, the chief economist at the state's Treasury Department, said Christie has also made a philosophical choice that could potentially lower taxes for years to come. "If you want to address the problem, it's better to deal with the ultimate driver, which is the cost side," he said.

N.J. farmer cuts corn maze of Gov. Christie and Dem challenger

Regardless of what you may or my not think of the candidates running for New Jersey's governorship this fall, you have to admit this is pretty cool!

From the Associated Press and CBS News:

CHESTER, N.J. A New Jersey farmer has cut the faces of Republican Gov. Chris Christie and his Democratic challenger into a corn maze to highlight the state's gubernatorial election.

The corn was planted in June at the Stony Hill Farm in Chester.

Owner Dale Davis tells Newark's The Star-Ledger newspaper he chose the maze to get people interested. He says everybody recognizes Christie but he doesn't know whether a lot of people would recognize gubernatorial rival Sen. Barbara Buono.

Christie is far ahead of Buono in public polls and leads among nearly every demographic group. He's seen as a viable contender for the 2016 Republican nomination for president.

The Morris County maze will open to the paying public Aug. 31. The election is Nov. 5.

Groundhog Day Forecast; Phil Says It Will Be An Early Spring

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — It's Groundhog Day and Punxsutawney Phil has made his prediction. He says expect an early spring.

With thousands watching on Gobbler's Knob in west-central Pennsylvania, the furry rodent emerged from his lair Saturday but didn't see his shadow.

Legend has it that if the groundhog sees his shadow on Feb. 2, winter will last six more weeks. But if he doesn't see his shadow, spring will come early. At least that's what the Inner Circle says — the group that dons top hats and tuxedos on Groundhog Day each year to oversee the ceremony.

Inner Circle president Bill Deeley says that after "consulting" with Phil, he makes the call in deciphering what the world's most famous groundhog has to say about the weather.

U.S. Supreme Court upholds individual mandate in Obama health care act

From the Associated Press
Crossed posted from NJ.com

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court upheld the individual insurance requirement at the heart of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.

The decision means the huge overhaul, still only partly in effect, will proceed and pick up momentum over the next several years, affecting the way that countless Americans receive and pay for their personal medical care. The ruling also hands Obama a campaign-season victory in rejecting arguments that Congress went too far in requiring most Americans to have health insurance or pay a penalty.

Chief Justice John Roberts announced the court's judgment that allows the law to go forward with its aim of covering more than 30 million uninsured Americans.

The justices rejected two of the administration's three arguments in support of the insurance requirement. But the court said the mandate can be construed as a tax. "Because the Constitution permits such a tax, it is not our role to forbid it, or to pass upon its wisdom or fairness," Roberts said.

The court found problems with the law's expansion of Medicaid, but even there said the expansion could proceed as long as the federal government does not threaten to withhold states' entire Medicaid allotment if they don't take part in the law's extension.

The court's four liberal justices, Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor, joined Roberts in the outcome.

Justices Samuel Alito, Anthony Kennedy, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas dissented.
"The act before us here exceeds federal power both in mandating the purchase of health insurance and in denying non-consenting states all Medicaid funding," the dissenters said in a joint statement.

The court devoted more than six hours to arguments about these issues over three days in late March. The justices met March 30 to take a vote on the case and sort out who would take the lead in writing the opinions.

The 26 states and the small business group challenging the law seemed to have the better of the courtroom arguments in March. Conservative justices peppered Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. with hostile questions about both the insurance requirement and the Medicaid expansion.

The case began almost as soon as Mr. Obama signed the law on March 23, 2010. Even before the day was out, Florida and 12 states filed the lawsuit that ended up at the Supreme Court. Another 13 states later joined in later.

The heart of the challenge was the claim that Congress could not force people to buy a product – health insurance.

The administration advanced several arguments in defense of Congress' authority to require health insurance, including that it falls under the power to regulate interstate commerce.

The government also argued that the insurance requirement was necessary to make effective two other undoubtedly constitutional provisions: the requirements that insurers accept people regardless of existing health problems and limit what they charge older, sicker people.

The administration also said that even if the court rejected the first two arguments, the insurance requirement and penalty are constitutional as an exercise of Congress' power to enact taxes. The penalty assessed for not buying insurance functions like a tax, the government said.

Wastewater Well in Ohio Triggered Quakes in Ohio; Is Fracking To Blame?

Did fracking cause the 4.o magnitude earthquake that rocked Northeastern Ohio on Saturday? Experts are begining to think so:

CLEVELAND (AP) — A northeast Ohio well used to dispose of wastewater from oil and gas drilling almost certainly caused a series of 11 minor quakes in the Youngstown area since last spring, a seismologist investigating the quakes said Monday.

Research is continuing on the now-shuttered injection well at Youngstown and seismic activity, but it might take a year for the wastewater-related rumblings in the earth to dissipate, said John Armbruster of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, N.Y.

Brine wastewater dumped in wells comes from drilling operations, including the so-called fracking process to extract gas from underground shale that has been a source of concern among environmental groups and some property owners. Injection wells have also been suspected in quakes in Ashtabula in far northeast Ohio, and in Arkansas, Colorado, and Oklahoma, Armbruster said.

Thousands of gallons of brine were injected daily into the Youngstown well that opened in 2010 until its owner, Northstar Disposal Services LLC, agreed Friday to stop injecting the waste into the earth as a precaution while authorities assessed any potential links to the quakes.

After the latest and largest quake Saturday at 4.0 magnitude, state officials announced their beliefs that injecting wastewater near a fault line had created enough pressure to cause seismic activity. They said four inactive wells within a five-mile radius of the Youngstown well would remain closed. But they also stressed that injection wells are different from drilling wells that employ fracking....

Read more ...Here

The evidence seems to be piling up on the harmful and potential cataclysmic effects that fracking can have on the environment, is there any good reason now to oppose a moratorium on this process of energy recovery until the consequences of this process is fully known?

Learn what you can do by stop fracking by going to the website for Food & Water Watch, get educated and sign their petition to congress.

There is also a move afoot to ban fracking in NJ, by overwhelming bipartisan support our State Legislature passed a ban on fracking last year, only to have Gov. Christie veto the bill.

Food and Water Watch is urging Senate President Stephen Sweeney to hold a vote to override the Governor's veto and are asking residents to call his office and ask that he do so by calling 856-251-9081.

Residents can also sign-on to a letter asking Senator Sweeney to hold a vote to override
Governor Christie's veto of NJ's fracking ban by contacting Rachel Dawn, NJ's organizer for Food and Water Watch at RDawn@fwwlocal.org before tomorrow, January 5th

Associated Press: Today in History for December 7th

On this date in 1941, Japanese forces attack the home base of the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii - prompting America under President Franklin D. Roosevelt to enter World War II. (Dec. 7)

AP Raw Video: Christmas Comes to the White House

Published on Nov 30, 2011 by AssociatedPress

The White House gets decked out for Christmas, with a shiny decor reflecting the theme 'Shine, Give, Share.' Visitors are asked to give thanks to members of the military in forms like written notes

You can watch Michelle Obama's address to military families prior to the opening of the White House holiday decorations preview event ... Here

Associated Press NFL Week 3 Preview

From: AssociatedPress

AP Pro Football Writer Barry Wilner previews three top games this week in the NFL, including a meeting of undefeated teams as Buffalo takes on New England. Redskins visit the Cowboys and the Panthers tangle with the Jaguars.

Middletown residents describe death of bin Laden as 'awesome'

I would have liked to have seen this for myself this morning.

By The Associated Press

MIDDLETOWN — A home improvement contractor read Bible verses aloud this morning at the train station in Middletown, where 37 residents lost their lives in the 9/11 attacks.

The news that Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. forces sparked elation in this community, which suffered the second-worst loss of life in New Jersey during the 2001 attacks by al-Qaida terrorists.

Several commuters used the word "awesome" to describe their reaction to the news of bin Laden's death.

But their enthusiasm was tempered with sadness over the lives of Middletown residents lost in the attacks.

Contractor Mike Lonergan read biblical passages to commuters waiting for trains, proclaiming "the wages of sin is death."

Nearly one-quarter of those killed in the 9/11 attacks were New Jersey residents.

Fitness guru Jack LaLanne, 96, dies

I mean really, I thought he was already dead. It just goes to show ya, that when it is your time to go, it's your time to go. It doesn't matter in the how well you take care of yourself, because even the most fittest of us will succumb in the end.

From the Associated Press -

MORRO BAY, Calif. (AP) — Jack LaLanne, the fitness guru who inspired television viewers to trim down and pump iron for decades before exercise became a national obsession, died Sunday. He was 96.

LaLanne died of respiratory failure due to pneumonia Sunday afternoon at his home in Morro Bay on California's central coast, his longtime agent Rick Hersh said.

Lalanne ate healthy and exercised every day of his life up until the end, Hersh said.

"I have not only lost my husband and a great American icon, but the best friend and most loving partner anyone could ever hope for," Elaine LaLanne, Lalanne's wife of 51 years and a frequent partner in his television appearances, said in a written statement.

LaLanne (pronounced lah-LAYN') credited a sudden interest in fitness with transforming his life as a teen, and he worked tirelessly over the next eight decades to transform others' lives, too.

"The only way you can hurt the body is not use it," LaLanne said. "Inactivity is the killer and, remember, it's never too late."
His workout show was a television staple from the 1950s to the '70s. LaLanne and his dog Happy encouraged kids to wake their mothers and drag them in front of the television set. He developed exercises that used no special equipment, just a chair and a towel.

He also founded a chain of fitness studios that bore his name and in recent years touted the value of raw fruit and vegetables as he helped market a machine called Jack LaLanne's Power Juicer.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by two sons, Dan and Jon, and a daughter, Yvonne.

Good News For Obama and Dems: January unemployment rate drops to 9.7%

There is some good news today for President Obama and the Democrats, contrary to what some had been predicting the unemployment rate did not rise as expected. The unemployment rate dropped in January from 10% to 9.7% thanks in part job growth coming from manufacturing and retail industries.

541,000 Americans left the ranks of the unemployed and found job last month. you can read about it below:

By CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER
The Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- The unemployment rate dropped unexpectedly in January to 9.7 percent from 10 percent while employers shed 20,000 jobs, the government said Friday.

The rate dropped because a survey of households found the number of employed Americans rose by 541,000, the Labor Department said. The job losses are calculated from a separate survey of employers.

The report also included an annual revision to the estimates of total payrolls, which showed there were 930,000 fewer jobs last March than previously estimated. The department also revised down its estimates for April through October of last year, adding another 433,000 job losses.

The November figure was revised higher, however, to show a gain of 64,000 jobs.

All told, the Great Recession has eliminated 8.4 million jobs, the department said. That's the most of any recession since World War II as a proportion of total payrolls.

Aside from November's gain, January's job losses were the smallest since the recession began. Employers cut 779,000 jobs in January 2009.

The report included more good news from the manufacturing sector, which is a key factor in the recovery. Manufacturers gained 11,000 jobs, its largest increase since April 2006.

Retailers added 42,100 jobs, the most since November 2007, before the recession began. Temporary help services gained 52,000 jobs, the fourth month of gains in that category. That could signal future hiring, as employers usually hire temp workers before permanent ones.

The number of part-time workers who want full-time work, but can't find it fell by almost 1 million. That lowered the "underemployment" rate, which also includes discouraged workers, to 16.5 percent from 17.3 percent.

Punxsutawney Phil & Milltown Mel Both Predict 6 More Weeks Of Winter

It seems as though the groundhogs have spoken, both the famous Punxsutawney Phil and his less than so brother from Milltown NJ, Milltown Mel, have seen their shadows this morning and are calling for 6 more weeks of winter!

I was really hoping for this winter to end soon, I've had enough already and can't wait for the warmer weather, but if there is any light at the end of this long winter tunnel, it's the fact that Punxsutawny Phil's predictions has been correct only 40% of the time.

Watch the videos below and see how they did this morning:

Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow

Milltown Mel declares Six more weeks of winter

Giuliani Not Running for NY Senate or Governor

NEW YORK (AP) -- Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani says he isn't running for political office next year so that he can concentrate on his lucrative law and consulting businesses.

Giuliani says his businesses have ''significant commitments'' for next year that would make it impossible to run for either governor or the U.S. Senate.

Giuliani spoke at a news conference in Manhattan to endorse former U.S. Rep. Rick Lazio in the governor's race. He told WABC-TV earlier Tuesday that he would not go into politics this year.

His most recent foray into politics ended with a stinging loss to John McCain in the race for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is >>> HERE.

AP: NJ biz travel rules would be looser under Christie

ANGELA DELLI SANTI,The Associated Press

TRENTON, N.J. - The Republican candidate for New Jersey governor, who regularly overspent the government rate when traveling as the state's top prosecutor, said if he's elected that his top advisers would be allowed to travel with fewer travel restrictions than under the current administration , at taxpayers' expense.

Chris Christie, the former U.S. attorney who has campaigned on a platform of ethical integrity and cutting government waste, said members of his Cabinet could bill taxpayers for overnight stays in expensive hotels if cheaper accommodations aren't available.

State employees are currently required to stay within the government rate and are barred from most overnight trips, according to a review of the Corzine administration's travel policy guidelines.

A review of Christie's travel history through documents provided in a public records request showed he regularly exceeded the government lodging allowance while traveling as U.S. attorney, frequently staying at luxury hotels in New Jersey, across the United States and abroad. He said the trips were always justified and he always sought out the government rate before booking more expensive accommodations. He does not appear to have curtailed his travel due to the economic recession. "I would want my Cabinet to follow the same rules I followed as U.S. attorney," Christie said Thursday at a diner stop in the blue-collar community of West Deptford. "If they were traveling and they could find the government rate, they should use the government rate. If they couldn't, they shouldn't sleep on a park bench. They should find the best rate they could."

Christie said he logged more than 160,000 miles while serving as U.S. attorney for seven years during President George W. Bush's two terms. During that time, he stayed in some of the country's most luxurious and trendiest hotels, including the Mandarin in Washington, the NineZero in Boston and the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando. Sometimes the tab fell within the government allowance.

However, his hotel bills occasionally exceeded $400 per night and the tab was higher than the government ceiling on 14 of 16 business trips Christie took in 2008. Five nights in London were $401 a night per room for him and his top deputy, Michele Brown.

Gov. Jon Corzine issued a memo early in his first term saying he would continue to enforce business travel restrictions for state employees that his predecessor, Gov. Richard Codey, had instituted. Those guidelines require anybody making travel arrangements for state employees to search a Web site specializing in government-rate rooms. All travel must be preapproved at least two weeks in advance to allow greater possibility for savings.

Reimbursement costs for official travel must not exceed the federal per diem rates, according to the guidelines.

Corzine said his opponent's travel records are evidence that Christie has a different set of rules for himself than everyone else, a line the Corzine campaign has consistently used.

Christie has come under scrutiny for railing against Democrats' excessive spending while billing taxpayers for high-end business travel. The candidate disavowed any hypocrisy, saying his travel was necessary and exceeding the rate permissible.

"It wasn't waste," he said. "I had to go someplace for part of my job. We tried to get the government rate. We couldn't. So my only alternative would have been to not go."

Christie or Brown often signed a required waiver approving additional expenses; his reimbursement vouchers were certified by a third party.

Christie said his secretary was instructed to look first for accommodations within the government rate when she booked his travel. He said he sometimes needed to stay at a specific hotel because he was giving a speech there early the next morning.

His stay at the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando in January 2008 cost taxpayers $287 plus taxes and fees, more than twice the government's allowance of $121. The Orlando area has about 450 hotels.

Christie also billed taxpayers for in-state overnight stays , in Atlantic City and Cape May, for example. Such trips are barred by Corzine's administration.

Corzine, who became a multimillionaire on Wall Street and is the former co-chairman of Goldman Sachs, pays all his own travel expenses.

AP: GOP NJ governor candidate's spending questioned

By ANGELA DELLI SANTI (AP)

TRENTON, N.J. — The Republican candidate for New Jersey governor, who has campaigned on a platform of ethical integrity and cutting government waste, regularly spent beyond federal guidelines on business travel while U.S. attorney, records show.
The newly released travel records show that Chris Christie occasionally billed taxpayers more than $400 a night for stays in luxury hotels and exceeded the government's hotel allowance on 14 of 16 business trips he took in 2008.

"Generally, U.S. attorneys, assistant U.S. attorneys and all federal staff stay within the government rate," said Justice Department spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz. "The government rate is not a suggestion, it's a guideline."

Christie said he stayed in more expensive hotels only when cheaper ones weren't available.

"We always went for government rates first," he said. "I don't think there were a lot of stays in five-star hotels over seven years."

The travel records date to when he was sworn in as U.S. attorney in 2002. They were obtained this week by the campaign of Christie's Democratic opponent, Gov. Jon Corzine, under the Freedom of Information Act.

The AP has sought the same records, but the request was made later than the one by the governor's office and hasn't been fulfilled.

The limits are updated regularly to reflect inflation, seasonal price jumps and other economic realities of business travel, Schwartz said. Federal employees who exceed the allowance are required to explain why, though the justification merely requires an extra layer of approval that is routinely granted.

On trips in 2007 and 2008, his top deputy, Michele Brown, also exceeded the guidelines after Christie approved her requests for rooms in the same five-star hotels where he was booked.

The vouchers show Christie and Brown stayed at the NineZero Hotel in Boston on Oct. 16, 2007 and each billed taxpayers $449 plus taxes and fees for their rooms, more than double the government allowance for a Boston hotel room at the time, according to a General Services Administration travel reimbursement table.

A liberal ethics group called Christie's travel history "astonishing," noting a stay at the Four Seasons in Washington, one of the city's best hotels.

"I'm sure he knew better, and he chose to ignore the rules," said Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. "There is never a situation where the only available hotel in Washington is the Four Seasons. If you stay there, you've chosen luxury and you've chosen to ignore the rules."

The ethics group has also filed a complaint alleging that Christie violated federal law by discussing a possible run for governor while he was U.S. attorney, but federal officials declined to investigate because Christie is no longer a federal employee.

The former federal prosecutor submitted a waiver for the room in Boston, as required. In it, he requested additional lodging expenses because there were no rooms available at the $203 per night government rate "due to a high demand for rooms."
Christie made a mortgage loan to Brown five days after they returned from Boston, on Oct. 22, 2007. He failed to report the loan on federal ethics forms and on his 2007 federal income tax returns, omissions he later described as a mistake. Brown has since resigned and joined a private law firm.

Christie is locked in a tight race against Corzine, an unpopular governor bidding for a second term, and independent Chris Daggett. Christie has campaigned on his record of putting corrupt politicians in jail.

Records turned over so far show Christie exceeded the government lodging allowance on 23 of 30 business trips taken between 2004 and 2008. In some cases, his travel vouchers were approved first by Brown, then certified by a third person. Christie, who was Brown's supervisor, signed off on her travel, either in advance or when she submitted vouchers, the records show. The vouchers were all certified by a third party.

Christie's hotel tab exceeded $400 per night on four trips. A night at the Four Seasons in Washington in October 2008 cost taxpayers $475; five nights in London were $401 each for Christie and Brown, the records show.

The federal government policy manual states that employees "must exercise the same care in incurring expenses that a prudent person would exercise if traveling on a personal basis." The guideline says the agency will not pay for "luxury accommodations" or unjustified services.

Democrats were quick to condemn the travel expenses.

"It is outrageous that Mr. Christie made taxpayers foot the bill for his excessive and luxurious travel accommodations around the United States and to foreign countries, while his only job responsibilities were in New Jersey," said Corzine campaign spokesman Sean Darcy.

Corzine, a wealthy former Wall Street CEO, does not take a salary for being governor and pays for all his own travel, Darcy said.

Today In History: 10/11/09

Highlights of this day in history: Congress OK's U.S. military force against Iraq; Former President Jimmy Carter wins Nobel Peace Prize; Anita Hill accuses Supreme Court pick Clarence Thomas; Second Vatican Council opens; 'SNL' premieres

Corzine Narrows Gap to 3 Points New Poll Shows

By The Associated Press
October 01, 2009, 5:11AM

Another poll out today finds Democratic incumbent Jon Corzine closing the gap on Republican challenger Chris Christie in the New Jersey governor's race.

Forty-three percent of likely voters in the Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey Poll out Thursday favored Christie, 40 percent Corzine and 8 percent independent Chris Daggett. The 3-point difference is within the poll's sampling error margin of plus or minus 4.3 percentage points.

Corzine's disadvantage is down from 14 percentage points in August.

A Quinnipiac Poll released Wednesday found similar erosion of Christie's margin. Christie led 43 percent to 39 percent among likely voters. A Sept. 1 poll had Christie up by 10 percentage points.

The Monmouth/Gannett poll surveyed 527 likely voters from Sept. 24-29.

The election for New Jersey Governor will be held on Nov. 3.

Obama Yuks It Up

Last night President Barack Obama got a chance to poke fun at a few targets _ including himself. It happened during Friday night's Radio and Television Correspondents' dinner. - AP

He's "Lord Of The Flies"; Obama That Is

He's a Harvard educated lawyer, leader of the free world and has the reflexes of a highly trained ninja. America's enemies, beware.

During an interview with CNBC, President Barack Obama was forced to swat away a fly. The President was able to quickly kill the bug.

After killing the fly, the president said: "That was pretty impressive, wasn't it? I got the sucker." then continue with the interview.

Hat tip to The Daily Beast, The BBC and the Associated Press