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Oct. 7th, 2013
We hear so much today of Republicans preaching the gospel of fiscal responsibility. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has been one of them, that is at least when it suits him politically.
Frank Lautenberg was a liberal Democrat in the best tradition of the words and sadly he died early this year. As was expected, Newark Mayor Cory Booker, another who qualifies as a progressive Democrat won in the primary hands-down. Almost without a doubt he will trounce his Republican opponent, a tea partier, small-town ex-Mayor (whose name escapes me at the moment), in a special election later this month.
That's right, I said a special election – three weeks before Election Day.
The Office of Legislative Services has estimated the cost for renting polling places, transporting voting machines, printing and mailing ballots and hiring additional staff will be close to $24 million. That's money that will come directly out of the pocket of New Jersey's taxpayers.
Why is Gov. Christie doing this?
Politically, I don't think he wanted to be on the exact same ballot this November with a very popular Democrat running for Senate against a rather unpopular Republican. Hurts his political brand. And so to save his political brand, the taxpayers of New Jersey will fork out $24 million, perhaps more, that could've been used elsewhere. A magnificent example of fiscal responsibility, don't you think?
While I'm on this rant about Gov. Christie, let me not overlook his appeal of Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson's ruling that the state of New Jersey has to start offering marriage licenses to same-sex couples requesting them as of October 21. That appeal will be going to the New Jersey Supreme Court, a court that in 2006 ruled that same-sex and opposite sex couples had to be treated equally under New Jersey state law. Now that married same-sex couples in other states will get federal recognition along with all of its benefits, and New Jersey's domestically partnered same-sex couples will not, clearly New Jersey's domestically partnered couples are no longer being treated as equal to opposite sex couples who have the benefit of marriage. It is pretty damn clear that the Christie administration will lose their appeal. I can't imagine that New Jersey's Supreme Court is going to reverse their 2006 decision on equality.
I was talking to my mother last week (a New Jersey residents and taxpayer) and I was quite vocal with my distaste for the waste of money an appeal is going to cost, how it's only going to delay the inevitable push for equality for New Jersey same-sex couples, and in the process communicate to the children in those households that to some, their parents will always be less than equal. Mom's take was he's doing this to appeal to the Republican base. "My point exactly," I replied, "and you my darling mother as a New Jersey taxpayer will be helping to foot the bill. That doesn't tick you off?"
So the last part of my soapbox, is my utter disgust with the Republican-led House of Representatives. With their current push to guarantee that all federal workers furloughed during this unnecessary government shutdown will not suffer financially and will receive all their backpay for the time they have been off to work, they are in essence opting to give all of those federal workers a paid vacation. This is the fiscal responsibility they're so busy professing to have as their primary responsibility? Bullpucky!
Frank Lautenberg was a liberal Democrat in the best tradition of the words and sadly he died early this year. As was expected, Newark Mayor Cory Booker, another who qualifies as a progressive Democrat won in the primary hands-down. Almost without a doubt he will trounce his Republican opponent, a tea partier, small-town ex-Mayor (whose name escapes me at the moment), in a special election later this month.
That's right, I said a special election – three weeks before Election Day.
The Office of Legislative Services has estimated the cost for renting polling places, transporting voting machines, printing and mailing ballots and hiring additional staff will be close to $24 million. That's money that will come directly out of the pocket of New Jersey's taxpayers.
Why is Gov. Christie doing this?
Politically, I don't think he wanted to be on the exact same ballot this November with a very popular Democrat running for Senate against a rather unpopular Republican. Hurts his political brand. And so to save his political brand, the taxpayers of New Jersey will fork out $24 million, perhaps more, that could've been used elsewhere. A magnificent example of fiscal responsibility, don't you think?
While I'm on this rant about Gov. Christie, let me not overlook his appeal of Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson's ruling that the state of New Jersey has to start offering marriage licenses to same-sex couples requesting them as of October 21. That appeal will be going to the New Jersey Supreme Court, a court that in 2006 ruled that same-sex and opposite sex couples had to be treated equally under New Jersey state law. Now that married same-sex couples in other states will get federal recognition along with all of its benefits, and New Jersey's domestically partnered same-sex couples will not, clearly New Jersey's domestically partnered couples are no longer being treated as equal to opposite sex couples who have the benefit of marriage. It is pretty damn clear that the Christie administration will lose their appeal. I can't imagine that New Jersey's Supreme Court is going to reverse their 2006 decision on equality.
I was talking to my mother last week (a New Jersey residents and taxpayer) and I was quite vocal with my distaste for the waste of money an appeal is going to cost, how it's only going to delay the inevitable push for equality for New Jersey same-sex couples, and in the process communicate to the children in those households that to some, their parents will always be less than equal. Mom's take was he's doing this to appeal to the Republican base. "My point exactly," I replied, "and you my darling mother as a New Jersey taxpayer will be helping to foot the bill. That doesn't tick you off?"
So the last part of my soapbox, is my utter disgust with the Republican-led House of Representatives. With their current push to guarantee that all federal workers furloughed during this unnecessary government shutdown will not suffer financially and will receive all their backpay for the time they have been off to work, they are in essence opting to give all of those federal workers a paid vacation. This is the fiscal responsibility they're so busy professing to have as their primary responsibility? Bullpucky!
