Christie: “If I turn out to be right, and you turn out to be dead, that’s not a good equation. Don’t be stupid. Get out.”

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Hurricane Sandy updates for Monmouth County

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Governor Chris Christie Requests Pre-Landfall Emergency Declaration for New Jersey in Anticipation of Hurricane Sandy

Trenton, NJ – Governor Chris Christie this morning formally requested that President Barack Obama declare a pre-landfall emergency for New Jersey. This declaration would allow the State to request funding and other assistance for actions taken in advance of Hurricane Sandy, which is expected to make landfall in New Jersey late Monday evening.

“We have taken this action to assist communities which have taken extraordinary measures to insure the safety of the public during this very serious and dangerous storm,” said Governor Christie.

“The National Hurricane Center predicts that Hurricane Sandy will move along the New Jersey coast beginning on or about October 28, 2012, bringing the potential for severe weather conditions, including heavy rains, high winds, dangerous storm surges and stream and river flooding that may threaten homes and other structures, and endanger lives in the state,” added Governor Christie.

Hurricane Sandy is expected to bring flooding, high winds and heavy rain across the state over a period of 36 hours starting early Monday morning.

A copy of the Governor’s letter to President Obama is attached to the here.

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Christie activates National Guard and Airmen, Closes State Offices, Closes NJ Transit and PATH. Suspends tolls on GSP north and Atlantic City Expressway. MVC Operations Suspended

Governor Chris Christie has activated the National Guard to assist New Jersey during Hurricane Sandy.

State offices will be closed on Monday.

NJ Transit and Access Link will gradually shut down all operations starting at 4PM and continuing until 2am Monday morning.

The PATH system will close at midnight.

Tolls on the Garden State Parkway North from Cape May through the Driscoll Bridge are suspended.  Tolls are suspended both ways of on the Atlantic City Expressway.

The Motor Vehicle Commission’s operations are closed on Monday.  All scheduled drivers tests, both road and written are cancelled on October 29, 30, and 31.

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Glory be, APP endorses GOP

“Club Monmouth” is kaput.   The Asbury Park Press negative monkier for the Monmouth GOP is obsolete now that their editorial board has endorsed the entire Monmouth Republican slate using the adjectives “innovative.” independenct,” and “effective.”

Accordingly, MMM is retiring the moniiker “Neptune Nudniks,” for now, that we have used for the last few years in naming the APP Editorial Board.

Their endorsements of John Curley and Serena DiMaso for Freeholder are right on the mark.

Curley has demonstrated leadership, independence and fiscal conservatism during his time as a freeholder. His tireless research and persistence in uncovering the excesses and illegalities of former Brookdale Community College President Peter Burnham led to Burnham’s ouster and guilty plea on official misconduct charges this summer.

DiMaso and Curley  helped pare $4.1 million from the county’s $487 million spending plan this year, without laying off any employees and keeping property taxes stable. Curley has pledged to continue with plans to consolidate county jobs as people leave and to explore more opportunities to outsource county services.

DiMaso’s insistence on the need for the freeholders to keep our state legislators’ feet to the fire when it comes to the federal government’s lack of transparency with the redevelopment of Fort Monmouth is welcome, as is her focus on continuing to find ways to share services with neighboring counties and municipalities.

As they did in endorsing M.Claire French for County Clerk,  the APP simply dismissed the Democratic opposition as not up to the jobs.

“What’s next, endorsing Romney?” one MMM reader asked.  That would be something.  The APP’s sister publication with the same website design, The DeMoines Register, reversed their 2008 endorsement of Obama yesterday, declaring,

Which candidate could forge the compromises in Congress to achieve these goals? When the question is framed in those terms, Mitt Romney emerges the stronger candidate.
The former governor and business executive has a strong record of achievement in both the private and the public sectors. He was an accomplished governor in a liberal state. He founded and ran a successful business that turned around failing companies. He successfully managed the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
Romney has made rebuilding the economy his No. 1 campaign priority — and rightly so.

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Christie: “If it looks stupid, it is stupid”

Governor Declares State of Emergency

Orders Mandatory Evacuation of Barrier Islands and Atlantic City Effective 4PM Sunday

Urges Residents to Use Nice Weather Saturday and Sunday to Get Prepared

Warns Retailers Against Price Gouging

Governor Chris Christie thanks first responders from the East Keansburg Fire Company prior to his Hurricane Sandy preparedness briefing in North Middletown

Middletown- Governor Chris Christie flew into to Middletown this morning to announce that he has declared all of New Jersey under a State of Emergency in preparation of Hurricane Sandy.  The storm is expect to made landfall in New Jersey, somewhere between Cape May and Seaside late Sunday.

Christie has ordered a mandatory evacuation of New Jersey’s barrier islands south of Seaside and Atlantic City effective at 4PM on Sunday.  All roads heading into those locations will be closed.

Residents of the northern coastal regions of Monmouth and Ocean Counties are left to their own discretion to voluntarily evacuate, pending updates from the National Weather Service.

Christie said that when shelter is needed that, except in those areas being evactuated, residents should stay in their homes or arrange to stay with family members.  Shelters are being set up in all counties for those who can not stay at home or with family.  The State will have five shelters open in the event of overflow at the county shelters.

“As we move towards what is an increasingly likelihood of seeing Sandy make landfall in New Jersey, I am urging all New Jerseyans to take every possible and reasonable precaution to ready themselves for the storm’s potential impact. That means having an emergency action plan for their families and other loved ones who may require assistance, and avoiding unnecessary risks in the severe weather, including staying off of the roads,” said Governor Christie. “At the state level, we are taking immediate steps to prepare for the storm’s impact and ensure that state, local and county governments have the tools they need to manage and respond in a coordinated way. With this, government at every level can respond more effectively to conditions on the ground, activate emergency operations plans, and ensure that resources are being marshaled to assist and protect the public through this storm.”

Christie encouraged residents to stay off of the roads during the storm and announced that NJ Transit will cross honor tickets and passes, Monday through Wednesday, giving those commuting to work greater access and flexibilty to public transportation in the event that their normal routes are closed due to the storm.

The governor emphasised that, unlike previous storms that have move through quickly, Sandy is expect to move slowly and impact the area for up to three days.

Utilities repair crews will not restore power while the storm is ongoing. Power outages are expected to last for as long as 7 to 10 days.

Residents should consult http://www.ready.gov/ for updates and preparedness tips.

In response to a reporter’s question, Christie urged residents who are using power generators to make sure they are doing so correctly according to the manufacturers’ directions.  “If it looks stupid, it is stupid,” the governor said, responding to the question about residents sharing power from generators with their neighbors via extension cords.

Following Christie’s briefing to the press and about 200 Middletown residents, his office issued a warning to merchants against price gouging.

“During emergencies, New Jerseyans should look out for each other – not seek to take advantage of each other,” said Christie. “The State Division of Consumer Affairs will look closely at any and all complaints about alleged price gouging. Anyone found to have violated the law will face significant penalties.”

Price increases are deemed excessive under the law if they are more than 10 percent above the price at which the good or service was sold during the normal course of business, prior to the state of emergency.  The law does allow that, if the merchant faces additional costs imposed by suppliers or legitimate logistical concerns, a price increase is considered excessive if it is more than 10 percent above the amount of markup from cost, compared with the markup normally applied.

Violations of the price-gouging law are punishable by civil penalties of up to $10,000 for the first offense and $20,000 for the second and subsequent offenses. Each individual sale of merchandise is considered a separate and distinct event.

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If Romney takes Pennsylvania he doesn’t need Ohio. Here’s why it could happen that way

By Stuart J. Moskovitz

There’s a serious flaw in all of the polls which is misrepresenting the current state of the presidential race.  As Dick Morris has pointed out, the pollsters all assume the demographic turnout will be the same as it was in 2008.  There are many reasons why this is simply not going to happen.  Many African-American preachers have already indicated that Obama hasn’t done anything for black people and that his views on gay marriage do not match their own.  They will not be lining up the busses to take their parishioners to the polls.

Let’s see what this means. At this point, it is fairly well predicted that if Romney takes Pennsylvania, he takes the election.

This seems clear from looking at RealClearPolitics’ current calculations.  Giving Romney Colorado, North Carolina, Iowa, and Florida, which is not unreasonable, Romney needs only 26 more electoral votes. If you give him Virginia, where he is slightly ahead, he needs 13.  He can do this with Ohio.  He can do this with Wisconsin and New Hampshire.  He can do this with Pennsylvania.  Few people believe he will win Pennsylvania, where he is trailing by 5% in some polls.  (Susquehanna Polling — which is very accurate in Pennsylvania — did a poll October 18 showing Romney up by 4%.  For some reason, RealClearPolitics is using its October 4 poll showing Obama ahead by 2%.)  In 2008, in Philadelphia, the mother lode for Democratic votes and a city with a majority-African-American population, approximately 688,000 people voted in the 2008 election.  Of these, 574,930 voted for Obama.  In 2010, however, when the Republicans swept to power in the House — due to disenchantment with Obama, primarily — only 422,283 people voted in Philadelphia.

Granted, there are always fewer votes in a senatorial/gubernatorial election than in a presidential election, but this is a dramatic drop-off.  To begin with, I should point out that Republican Tom Corbett won the gubernatorial race, garnering 54.49% of the vote statewide.  In their final polls, no pollster had the Republican above 52%.  In other words, they all underestimated him by nearly 2.5%.

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Frankenstorm Sandy

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Christie Administration Issues Generator Safety Advisory Ahead of Hurricane Sandy

State Fire Officials Warn of Electrocution Risk from “Backfeeding” of Power Lines

Trenton, NJ – New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) Commissioner Richard E. Constable, III today issued a warning to residents regarding the potential dangers of portable generators and “backfeeding” during power outages. An increase in the use of generators is expected with the arrival of Hurricane Sandy in the coming days, raising the importance of educating New Jerseyans on their proper and safe use.

Portable generators, widely used when power lines are down, can prove fatal to homeowners, utility workers and even your neighbors when used improperly. A generator connected to a home’s wiring or plugged into a regular household outlet can cause ‘backfeeding’ along power lines and electrocute anyone who comes in contact with them – even if the line seems dead.

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Governor Christie Directs Cabinet to Make All Necessary Preparations for Coordinated Response to Hurricane Sandy

Urges Residents to Take Commonsense Precautions as Movement
of Sandy Continues to be Tracked

Trenton, NJ – Governor Chris Christie today directed cabinet officials to mobilize preparations for a coordinated response to the potential October storm that is trending towards an impact on the East Coast. The Governor also urged New Jersey residents to take the time now – ahead of the storm – to activate and supply their family preparedness plans and to closely monitor the track of Hurricane Sandy.

“While Sandy’s exact track is still uncertain, New Jersey has the potential to experience a major impact from high winds, heavy rain, flooding and power outages,” said Governor Christie. “That’s why it’s important from the State level on down to prepare in advance of this serious storm. The New Jersey Office of Emergency Management’s Hurricane Survival Guide is available to residents online with important information about emergency preparedness. Now, ahead of any potential impact of Sandy, is the time for families to ensure they are prepared and are tuned in for the latest path of the storm for our coast. I encourage all of our families to stay informed, get ready, and reach out to those you know who may be isolated, or in need of extra assistance during adverse conditions.”

The State Emergency Operations Center was activated at 8 a.m. today to coordinate preparations related to the storm.

New Jersey residents can maintain situation awareness in the following ways:

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