The other GOP candidate for governor
By Seth Grossman
Gov. Christie is not yet running for reelection against state Sen. Barbara Buono (D., Middlesex). He is not officially the Republican party nominee until he defeats his GOP opponent in the June 4 primary election. That opponent is me.
With such a small percentage of voters taking part in primary elections, one vote carries more weight than in November general elections. That’s why primary challenges terrify the insiders who dominate the Democratic and Republican parties with big campaign contributions.
I am running for governor against Christie because I am far more qualified to shrink the size and cost of government, to cut taxes, business, and insurance costs, and to rebuild the New Jersey economy.
Growing up in Atlantic City, I heard stories of how the town thrived during the Depression because people who lost their jobs started new businesses. They never could have been successful if they were burdened with all the regulations and need for lawyers, consultants, permits, and political “access” that are par for the course for starting a business today.
I studied history, government, and business at Duke University, served in my local National Guard unit, and earned a law degree from Temple. Along the way, I learned what worked and didn’t work in government – not only from books and professors, but also from African American business and political leaders of Atlantic City.
My family had few political or business connections. In 1975, I moved back to Atlantic City, and built a law practice from scratch. I started by taking the hard-work, low-pay cases that other lawyers didn’t want.
I also formed a community organization to challenge the pay-to-play politics that had killed Atlantic City. In 1978, the casinos came and revived the town – and they also bailed out the politicians who had created the mess. Within 10 years, a handful of casinos were sending buckets of money to the city, county, and state governments.
I battled to limit the size and cost of county and local government so this windfall would make real estate in Atlantic County virtually tax free for both homes and businesses. I also fought efforts to expand state government so that we could keep our low 3 percent state income tax and 5 percent sales tax.
In 1986, I overcame Democratic and Republican opposition to win a seat on the Atlantic City Council. Two years later I became a county freeholder. But when I ran for mayor in 1990, Democratic and Republican leaders worked together to defeat me.
Since then, Republicans and Democrats have run New Jersey and Atlantic City their way. They have expanded the size of almost every layer of government. We now have some of the highest sales, income, and property taxes in the country. We also have high tolls, permit fees, small taxes on dozens of things, and hidden taxes that give us the fourth-highest electric rates in the country.
These taxes do little to benefit people. They mostly support complicated new laws that put almost every business in violation of something, and smother the economy with additional costs for lawyers, consultants, political donations, and endless lawsuits and permit applications.
There is nothing hard about fixing New Jersey’s economy. We can bring back the prosperity of the 1980s by bringing back the low taxes, simple laws, and the smaller government we had in those days.
What makes this task difficult is that the people who now control both parties with their campaign cash want things to remain the way they are. They would rather kill the state than change things for the better for the average New Jersey taxpayer.
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As a novice to local politics, I enjoy following Art’s site and learn a lot. Sometimes I feel like I need to chart this stuff on my whiteboard to piece it all together.
I do have one question, what does constitutionally certified mean exactly? I don’t want to assume there is an actual certificate of achievement involved.
Mr. Grossman, I’ll be very honest, I just one person who is mostly yawning at your campaign and I’ll explain why and hopefully you can follow-up with something to excite me and others.
You’re certainly not the first to run on such an idealistic platform, I think Murray Sabrin might have run on a similar platform years ago trying to take on Whitman, who like Christie is a “barely good enough Republican for NJ”, but falls far short of where us few conservative Republicans left in NJ stand or would want to see our state under Republican leadership.
So here are my problems and concerns. How would you, or how do you think, that you’re going to get any of the BS you’re talking about done in a democratic system of checks and balances (that are weighed heavily towards to the left)? Suppose you took the major talking points alone, and these aren’t even the actual issues just the big stereo typical talking points — how are you going to ban abortions in NJ? Nevermind, the legislature and courts aren’t going to have it. How are you going to move 2A from among the most strict laws in the nation (that don’t work) to a Right To Carry state? Nevermind, the legislature and courts aren’t going to have it.
And with the easy and obvious ones out of the way — let’s talk about the issues less spoken about. How are you going to fix the school funding formula? Nevermind, the legislature and courts aren’t going to have it. How are you going to decrease the “temporary” 7% sales tax back to the “temporary” 6% and then back to none? How are you going to fix broken DMV, DOT, NY/NJ Port Authority and NJ Transit systems? How are you going to make the Turnpike, Parkway and NY Bridges and Tunnels affordable for commuters, and don’t feed me the line that you’re going to convince all of the businesses in NYC to move to NJ, it’s just not going to happen, ever and NJ residents will continue to work in NYC like it or not.
It’s a bit late for anyone else to get in on YOUR race — so do tell, HOW, and I do mean specifically, is anything as “radical” (not that I think it’s radical as in crazy, but radical as in radically different from today) as you propose going to be changed in a state that has such a wide difference in demographics and characteristics from Newark, Camden and Asbury Park compared to something like Franklin Lakes, Rumson or Saddle River? How are you going to convince a Democratic legislature to put bills before you that further your agenda? How are you going to convince the people to pressure their local representatives (and Art has demonstrated, MOST people don’t even know who their representatives are so that’s a challange itself) into supporting your agenda?
Unless you propose tyranny to get things done, and I’m not going to support you if that’s the answer, I don’t see any of your ideas being possible in this state; thus my yawning — same tired old song and dance, not wrongheaded, just more like slamming your junk into the car door.
Good luck, but unless you’re convincing in some plan to actually get things done, I’m sticking with Christie, if not just for the (VERY) small wins that he has managed, despite the deck being stacked against him.
I am curious: even if Mr. Grossman wins the primary, how is he going to carry the General Election, where moderates and liberals vote?
I still don’t know who you are…Christie 2013!!!
I would rather have experienced than a name tag such as “constitutionally certified.”
@TY-rant, be careful now. Political Pony will stomp on you and Helene will rip your heart out.
Signed,
Silence Dogood, Redux
My program is radical, workable, and not that difficult. The key is that I want to do it. Most officials make the problems seem complicated and not fixable because they don’t want to fix them.
The school funding is simple. Equally distribute all money to each town on a per student basis. Towns with better schools will attract more students and get more money. Towns with worse schools will lose kids and get less money.
Repudiate unconstitutional debt, not approved by voters as required by Article 8, Section 2 of NJ Constitution. No legislative action would be needed to do that. This would cut 15% off the state budget, and would allow reductions in state sales and income tax.
By refusing to bail out failed agencies like EDA, Port Authority of NY and NJ, etc. those entities will quickly become insolvent and dissolved, and functions taken over directly by NY and NJ state governments.
Declare NJ Pension funds insolvent, and immediately cap all pensions at a sustainable level.
Strictly apply all laws equally to everyone. As Republican President Grant said in 1868, “I know of no better way to secure the repeal of an unjust law, as by its vigorous enforcement.” No legislative action would be needed to do this.
Enough! http://www.grossman4NJ.com
Mr. Grossman, again, I’m just one guy, and I really want to be on your side, but saying “The school funding is simple” is a HUGE red light.
I’m certainly no expert, but your plan, while admirable, would not get through the legislature or courts, ever. Not to mention the voter backlash you would face as I again remind you that Newark, Camden and Asbury Park are larger than Rumson/Fair Haven, Franklin Lakes, etc and those “poor” towns will garner more sympathy than your, albeit better, plan. I fear that by suggesting the problem is “simple”, you’re not taking reality into account but just repeating the conservative line. Again, I do not disagree with the goal but then there is the reality outside of the literature; those are real people’s lives, real jobs (of teachers) and real education of real students who are real children of real families who are really struggling to get by, some by their own doing, some by factors that are difficult to control.
Regarding “unconstitutional debt” — maybe I’m taking a shot at her for nothing here — but this seems to be the Bellew model — rack up a bill, then walk away from it. Unconstitutional or not, it’s debt that this state owes the same way we unfortunately owe debt to retired public workers, who are again real people. Like the school funding issue, it’s not so “simple” to just walk away from debt. In my opinion, the only thing such an effort would do is give taxpayers a legal bill trying to defend the action, only to have the effort fail in the courts, that are weighed heavily to the left, and that we pay for.
I really mean it, good luck and thanks for making the effort and I’d stand by your goals most any day. However, in my opinion, suggesting that any of these issues are “simple” indicates a complete lack of understanding of the issues themselves. While I’m not entirely pleased with Christie’s performance, and my property tax bill continues to be reason number one, with income and sales taxes close behind, the truth is that Christie has navigated very difficult waters, a D state during the times of a popular D President with a D assembly and senate. There is something very admirable in Christie’s ability to manage the political process and still get a very small victories the way he has.
Thanks for taking the time to respond. Keep up the good fight my friend.
Ok…really can you stop with the ‘constitutionally certified’ rant. I mean seriously, are you ‘certified’ because you read the Constitution? …or because you read a case brief of Ex Parte’ Quirin?
And by the way, your ‘simple’ school plan is ludicrous and would not work in reality.
I’m so excited and can’t wait to cast my vote for the only candidate for Governor who actually read and understands the Constitution. Every real conservative and Citizen Patriot I know feels the same way. I feel it in my bones Seth is going to pull off the political upset of the century, and will start a political earthquake whose tremors will be felt inside and outside the Washington Beltway. All over the state Citizen Patriots will march to the polls in record numbers to cast their vote for Seth Grossman, and change political history forever. Anna Little did it in 2010, and Seth Grossman will do the same in 2013.
While most conservatives are familiar with the genius of the U.S. Constitution, few understand the genius of the NJ Constitution. During the 1820’s and 1830’s, NJ and most state governments were as corrupt as they are today. This led to America’s first economic collapse known as the Panic of 1837. New Jersey was one of the first states to dig out of the mess with our “new” state constitution of 1844. That state constitution had two basic principles: (1) All laws and taxes had to apply equally to everyone, and (2) State government could not borrow money without a vote of the people. Those principles ran NJ for 130 years from 1844 through 1974. In 1974, loopholes created by the NJ Supreme Court starting with former Gov. Richard Hughes and some new amendments messed up the 1844 Constitution. State government began making different laws and taxes for different people. And it allowed dozens of “independent” authorities to borrow money without voter approval. The people never voted on this debt–therefore, we have no legal or moral obligation to repay it. Enough! http://www.grossman4NJ.com.
Mr. Grossman, to get more than 5 or 6 votes your time maybe better spent out knocking on doors vs. replying to web posts. You seem like a nice guy and so I suspect you know your campaign can be summed up in 2 words, respectfully: “no shot”. Why not run for local office or against a D candidate for the legislature?
Excuse me but amendments to a constitution cannot be unconstitutional, unless they violate the federal constitutuion. Also, since 1801 Courts have had the authority to interpret the language of a statute and how it applies to the written constiturion. Lastly, the legislature passses the bills for the executive to sign as well as the apprppriations. Your simple solutions can only be effectuated via a dictatorial fiat unless somehow you can get an Assembly and State Senate of like minded candidates, and from the looks of the ballots in all the districts, that isn’t happening.
Joe D, in fairness, Mr. Grossman is going to reach more primary voters in a single day of MMM readership than he could possibly, physically reach trying to knock on doors and get people to give him even 2 minutes of their time; I know this from first hand experience.
Barry, exactly.
As I said Mr. Grossman, your proposals are very admirable, however “Unless you propose tyranny to get things done, and I’m not going to support you if that’s the answer, I don’t see any of your ideas being possible in this state;” and again, I’m certainly not loving every single thing about Christie’s performance, however, he has managed to figure out how to get some things done, very much in conservative Republican’s favor, despite all of the odds being heavily against him, and there is something to be said for his political savvy, patience and ability to manipulate those in Trenton, the left leaning courts and the left leaning media who would otherwise continue forward with the status quo or their “progressive” liberal agenda.