Politickernj is reporting that New Jersey’s construction unions are leaning on Democratic lawmakers not to criticise Governor Christie over the proposed 50% toll and fare hikes by the Port Authority of NY/NJ. Yet.
The labor unions want New Jersey commuters to fund the $33 billion in NY and NJ infrastructure projects, including the rebuilding of the World Trade Center, that the toll hikes will support.
Trenton Democrats and U.S. Senators Robert Menendez and Frank Lautenberg had initially come out strongly against the toll hikes. Governors Christie and Cuomo claimed they were caught off guard by the toll hike proposal and would review it. Most observers expect Christie and Cuomo to approve lower toll increases than the Port Authority has proposed.
Trenton Democrats are now holding their powder on criticising the proposed hikes, figuring that Christie will look good politically if he responds to the criticism by scaling back the increases. Instead they will attack Republicans after the final hikes are approved.
Christie has blamed the need for toll hikes on years of mismanagement in the Port Authority and has claimed that the people he has appointed are improving the operations and finances of the mega agency. Cuomo said that the proposed toll hikes don’t work for him.
The Record is reporting that even after New Jersey’s pension system has been reformed that employees of the NJ League of Municipalities, the NJ School Boards Association and the NJ Association of Counties are eligible to collect state pensions.
As of 2009, retirees of those lobbying groups were collecting pension of $1.3 million annually, according to The Record.
Senate President Steve Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver say they are working on the problem.
Throughout the spring and summer the conventional wisdom has been that the Monmouth GOP will not face serious challenges in legislative and county races of 2011. 2011 is supposed to be a “good Republican year.”
It still could turn out that way. Probably will. But MMM has learned that the Democrats think they have unexpected opportunities.
On the legislative level, the Trenton Democratic machine has taken interest in the new 11th district.
Back in April after the new legislative map was released the Democrats were scrambling to field a slate of candidates. No Democratic elected officials would challenge Republican incumbents Senator Jennifer Beck or Assemblywomen Caroline Casagrande and Mary Pat Angelini. Now the Democrats think the 11th is in play and will dedicate financial and human resources to elect Ray Santiago to the Senate and Marilyn Schlossbach and Vin Gopal to the Assembly.
Both sides fear that Independent Assembly candidate Dan Jacobson will draw votes away from them and could end up being a spoiler. In his column in last week’s triCityNews, Jacobson said that he expected to take votes from both sides and that he would need 20% of the voters to cast an uninformed protest vote for him in order to win a seat. Jacobson said he expects Beck, Casagrande and Angelini to prevail in November.
On the county level, the Democrats are planning a character assassination on Freeholder Lillian Burry. They will allege conflicts of interest on Burry’s part going back to her tenure as Mayor of Colts Neck and continuing in Freehold.
A Monmouth University/Gannett poll released this morning indicates that 54% of New Jersey residents approve of President Obama’s job performance while 37% disapprove. 52% of registered voters approve of the President while 39% disapprove.
The poll of 802 adult resident was taken between August 3 and August 8. Polling Director Patrick Murray notes that survey was taken after S & P downgraded the nations debt but before the stock market’s steep losses on Monday.
Congressional Republicans registered a dismal 19% approve to 62% disapprove on how the debt ceiling was handled. Congressional Democrats fared better 27% approve to 52% approve.
Governor Chris Christie will being holding a press conference in Belmar on Wednesday as one of the stops in a series of beach and boardwalk visits to reaffirm the administration’s commitment to protecting and promoting New Jersey’s beaches and waterways.
The press conference will take place on the Belmar boardwalk between 6th and Ocean Avenue at 3:30PM. Following the press conference the Governor will walk the beach and boardwalk.
Belmar Mayor Matt Doherty said he will be participating in the event and welcomes Christie to his town. “Promoting tourism and the Jersey Shore is what Belmar is all about,” said Doherty.
The once mighty New Jersey Education Association announced their endorsements for the upcoming legislative elections over the weekend. All 120 seats in the State Legislature are up for grabs this November. 40 Senate seats and 80 Assembly seats. The NJEA only endorsed 68 candidates. 66 Democrats and 2 Republicans.
In many districts the teachers’ union did not endorse for all three offices, 1 Senator and 2 Assembly Members. In 11 out of 40 districts they announced they were not endorsing any candidate.
But in the 13th legislative district their endorsements are “pending screening.”
The new 13th is comprised of northeastern Monmouth County; the bayshore towns from Aberdeen east to Highlands, the Two River towns of Rumson, Fair Haven, Little Silver and Oceanport, and the coastal towns of Sea Bright and Monmouth Beach, and Marlboro.
No one would expect the NJEA to endorse the Republicans, Senator Joe Kyrillos, Assemblywoman Amy Handlin and Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon. Why wouldn’t the Democrats screen? If the the screening in “pending” as the NJEA says, why didn’t the 13th district Democrats screen before the rest of the endorsements were announced?
NJEA endorsements come with lots of money and organizational support. Pending the pending screening and the pending endorsement or lack thereof, the LD 13 Democrats are raising money and support with a comedy night next week in Keasnburg.
I imagine the night going like this:
Funny Master of Ceremonies: “Thank you all for coming out tonight. We’re here to help Chris Cullen defeat Joe Kyrillos and to help Kevin Laven and Patrick Short defeat Amy Handlin and Declan O’Scanlon.”
Former Long Branch Councilman Anthony Giordano is the CEO of Colonial American Bank. The bank, which is headquartered in Horsham, PA, is expanding into Monmouth County later this year.
We will be discussing the potential impact of the S & P downgrade on United States debt on the local economy.
Also joining us on the show will be Laureen Cummings of Old Forge, Pennsylvania. Cummings is the founder and president of the Scranton Tea Party. She is a Republican Committeewoman in Lackawanna County, PA.
She is a single mother, a nurse, and a small business owner who is considering a race for the GOP nomination to challenge U.S. Senator Bob Casey in 2012.
Your calls to the show are welcome and encouraged. The numbers are 609-447-0236 and 609-447-0237.
Perhaps lost in the news of the S & P down grade of United States Treasury debt is the local news that the Port Authority of NY/NJ is calling for a massive toll and fare increases to fund capital projects. Tolls on Hudson River crossings would increase from $8 to $12 and fares on the PATH trains would increase from $1.75 to $2.75.
Governors Christie and Cuomo issued a joint statement that signals that toll increases are coming, but at lower rate than proposed by the Port Authority Board. We’ve seen this dance before. Port Authority proposes a huge increase and the politicians scale it back.
Mark Magyar has a comprehensive article at NJSpotLight highlighting the “need” for the $1 billion revenue increase that Port Authority is requesting.
Governors Christie and Cuomo have established themselves as credible reformers in reducing the size of state government. The proposal is another opportunity for them to improve government services and implement lasting reforms in the process.
Christie should use this opportunity to reform a major cost driver on public capital projects; “prevailing wage.”
“Prevailing wage” requires wages paid to employees of contractors working on government projects in New Jersey to be paid at a “union rate” determined by the unions and the Department of Labor, even if the winning bidders of the contractors are not union shops.
Eliminating the “prevailing wage” clause in government contracts would save taxpayers billions of dollars on construction projects. There is a huge over supply of labor available. Wages on government contracts should be set my market forces, not by unions who are making political contributions.
The savings associated with eliminating this practice would go well beyond the Port Authority projects. It would extend to DOT projects and county and municipal projects. The saving to toll payers, fare payers and property tax payers would be substantial.
Another area for savings is the largess of salaries paid to the political patrons who run the Port Authority. Just as Christie has mandates that school superintendents shall not earn more than the Governor, employees of the Port Authority should not earn more than the governors of New York and New Jersey.
I just saw an OP Ed story in the Press entitled “The Deadly sins of the Tea Party.
I take strong exception to that story. In fact I resent it.
Had it not been for the Tea Party Obama would have had a ” Clean” bill to raise the debt limit, without any spending cuts .
The Press has a very short memory. Obama’s last budget called for Trillions in new debt. It was voted down in the Senate 94 to 0. We the United States of America are working without a budget. That budget proves that he had no intention of reducing the debt. Just more spending as usual.
The Press said “compromise.” I say “BULLS SHIT”. It’s about time that someone stood up for their principles. The Tea Party stood up to be counted.
At the Alamo, Col. Travis drew a line in the sand with his sword and challenged 180 men to cross the line if they were willing to fight and die for their freedom. They showed the world what Patriot’s stood for.
You the former Asbury Park Press have shown the world how bias the news media really is. You mention the Koch brothers “Oil barons and billionaires who have supported the Tea Party”. I did not see any mention of George Soros and the billions he has spent to further his and Obama’s agenda.
I am a proud member of the Tea Party; you have called us rowdy, rude and disruptive at town hall meetings. Maybe we didn’t like Obamacare being rammed down our throats, with all the backroom deals going on just for votes. There was NO open debate. Where were you the Asbury Park Press defending our freedom?
You say that it is time for the Tea Party to learn a lesson. We have learned a good lesson.
A Rasmussen Reports poll released this morning indicates that only 17% of likely U.S. voters believe that the federal government has the consent of the governed. 69% of the respondents said the government does not have that consent and 14% are undecided.
Only 8% believe the average member of Congress listens to his or her constituents more than they listen to their party leaders. 84% believe the average congressman listens to party leaders more than constituents.
