(no subject)
If the people of New Jersey elect either of these idiots, then we deserve what we get
When Chris Christie is the less "Republican" choice in a primary, that really says a lot about the person who's running against him. Christie made his name as a Republican stooge, one of the US attorneys who were appointed by Dick Cheney for the sole purpose of making cases against Democrats while ignoring similar cases against Republicans. Now that he's running for governor he wants to lower taxes at a time when the state can't even balance its budget with revenues at their current level. This may not concern rich people in the New York Metro or out in Ocean County, but we all know that the poor in Camden and Newark and Jersey City among other places are the ones who will suffer most. As was proven when Gov. Corzine tried to cut the budget, every program has its boosters who will stop at nothing to preserve funding for their pet projects. The only programs that don't have such well-funded defenders are the ones that help the poor and defenseless. While the Republicans attack Corzine for his failure to balance the budget, they systematically prevent him from making cuts in any programs aside from the ones whose elimination will cause the most misery. We all know that, if the Republicans have their way, it will be programs like Legal Aid and tax rebates for the elderly and disabled that will suffer. You can forget about social welfare if Christie becomes governor, unless of course you're rich in which case all the corporate welfare programs will certainly stay in effect. Most troubling is his plan to decrease regulation. Do people really have that short of a memory? Lax regulation is the reason we're in our current economic mess, in the absence of oversight corporations look to maximize their profits with no regard for long-term consequences or the effect on ordinary people. People need to realize that a vote for Chris Christie is a vote for Dick Cheney, because he's the one who put Christie where he is. Christie is a maverick about as much as John McCain is, and New Jersey really doesn't need to take a step backward into the days of Bush and Cheney.
As disastrous as Christie might be, Lonegan would be a worst-case scenario. Right off the bat he calls for a flat tax, an idea that would simultaneously increase the wealth of the already wealthy while destroying the programs that keep the middle class from sinking into poverty and keep the poor off the streets and out of the grave. New Jersey is suffering as much as most when it comes to foreclosures and layoffs, crises that require economic relief as well as legal aid to keep people in fragile situations from falling victim to unscrupulous lenders and employers. If the ultra-right gains control in this state, these vital programs will be the first to go and will be replaced by rules and regulations that favor the very people who are trying to hurt the poor for their own benefit. Lonegan claims that Christie is too "moderate" to win hard-core Republicans (which basically means that he doesn't favor hunting the poor for sport), but what the Republicans are forgetting is that their devotion to the far right at the expense of the middle is what caused their downfall in the first place. If McCain had run as a man apart from his party then he might have stood a chance, instead he begged the support of Limbaugh-style conservatives and allowed them to choose for him a running mate who had no experience or insight into how to run a government. He claimed to be a maverick, but at every turn he allowed the party machine to dictate his opinions and his platform. The Republicans who retained their positions, with the exception of those in the Deep South, did so by distancing themselves from the national party machine and appealing to moderates and independents. New Jersey is not a southern state, regardless of how some people like Christie and Lonegan would like us to become one, and the people of this state proved that they are not ruled by the Republicans when they voted for Obama last year. I just hope that we have the good sense not to make the mistake of responding to economic catastrophe by voting for the very people who caused it in the first place and who would gladly worsen the situation if given the chance.
In some ways I really hope that Lonegan beats Christie in the primary, if only because he stands less of a chance of beating Corzine in the general election. No matter what Lonegan might say, the people of New Jersey are not that conservative and even the Republicans tend to be more moderate than the national party in general. Lonegan could be another Bret Schundler, which would of course be advantageous to the chances of Corzine to win another term. Many people, on the other hand, seem to think that Christie is independent in spite of much evidence to the contrary, and I wouldn't be surprised if people kept that misguided belief until after they had voted for him. Christie is Cheney, he was created by Cheney and he'll be beholden to Cheney for the rest of his political career. Lonegan is just a nut who will fiddle while New Jersey burns, and who will be joined by all the other super-rich people who think that they control this state. Corzine might not be perfect, but we need to realize how many great things we have in this state that simply don't exist in solidly conservative states and that we would lose if we allow the Republicans back into power. We've come too far to slide back now just because of the slick words of a political hack.
When Chris Christie is the less "Republican" choice in a primary, that really says a lot about the person who's running against him. Christie made his name as a Republican stooge, one of the US attorneys who were appointed by Dick Cheney for the sole purpose of making cases against Democrats while ignoring similar cases against Republicans. Now that he's running for governor he wants to lower taxes at a time when the state can't even balance its budget with revenues at their current level. This may not concern rich people in the New York Metro or out in Ocean County, but we all know that the poor in Camden and Newark and Jersey City among other places are the ones who will suffer most. As was proven when Gov. Corzine tried to cut the budget, every program has its boosters who will stop at nothing to preserve funding for their pet projects. The only programs that don't have such well-funded defenders are the ones that help the poor and defenseless. While the Republicans attack Corzine for his failure to balance the budget, they systematically prevent him from making cuts in any programs aside from the ones whose elimination will cause the most misery. We all know that, if the Republicans have their way, it will be programs like Legal Aid and tax rebates for the elderly and disabled that will suffer. You can forget about social welfare if Christie becomes governor, unless of course you're rich in which case all the corporate welfare programs will certainly stay in effect. Most troubling is his plan to decrease regulation. Do people really have that short of a memory? Lax regulation is the reason we're in our current economic mess, in the absence of oversight corporations look to maximize their profits with no regard for long-term consequences or the effect on ordinary people. People need to realize that a vote for Chris Christie is a vote for Dick Cheney, because he's the one who put Christie where he is. Christie is a maverick about as much as John McCain is, and New Jersey really doesn't need to take a step backward into the days of Bush and Cheney.
As disastrous as Christie might be, Lonegan would be a worst-case scenario. Right off the bat he calls for a flat tax, an idea that would simultaneously increase the wealth of the already wealthy while destroying the programs that keep the middle class from sinking into poverty and keep the poor off the streets and out of the grave. New Jersey is suffering as much as most when it comes to foreclosures and layoffs, crises that require economic relief as well as legal aid to keep people in fragile situations from falling victim to unscrupulous lenders and employers. If the ultra-right gains control in this state, these vital programs will be the first to go and will be replaced by rules and regulations that favor the very people who are trying to hurt the poor for their own benefit. Lonegan claims that Christie is too "moderate" to win hard-core Republicans (which basically means that he doesn't favor hunting the poor for sport), but what the Republicans are forgetting is that their devotion to the far right at the expense of the middle is what caused their downfall in the first place. If McCain had run as a man apart from his party then he might have stood a chance, instead he begged the support of Limbaugh-style conservatives and allowed them to choose for him a running mate who had no experience or insight into how to run a government. He claimed to be a maverick, but at every turn he allowed the party machine to dictate his opinions and his platform. The Republicans who retained their positions, with the exception of those in the Deep South, did so by distancing themselves from the national party machine and appealing to moderates and independents. New Jersey is not a southern state, regardless of how some people like Christie and Lonegan would like us to become one, and the people of this state proved that they are not ruled by the Republicans when they voted for Obama last year. I just hope that we have the good sense not to make the mistake of responding to economic catastrophe by voting for the very people who caused it in the first place and who would gladly worsen the situation if given the chance.
In some ways I really hope that Lonegan beats Christie in the primary, if only because he stands less of a chance of beating Corzine in the general election. No matter what Lonegan might say, the people of New Jersey are not that conservative and even the Republicans tend to be more moderate than the national party in general. Lonegan could be another Bret Schundler, which would of course be advantageous to the chances of Corzine to win another term. Many people, on the other hand, seem to think that Christie is independent in spite of much evidence to the contrary, and I wouldn't be surprised if people kept that misguided belief until after they had voted for him. Christie is Cheney, he was created by Cheney and he'll be beholden to Cheney for the rest of his political career. Lonegan is just a nut who will fiddle while New Jersey burns, and who will be joined by all the other super-rich people who think that they control this state. Corzine might not be perfect, but we need to realize how many great things we have in this state that simply don't exist in solidly conservative states and that we would lose if we allow the Republicans back into power. We've come too far to slide back now just because of the slick words of a political hack.