THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume VI, Issue # 182, August 16, 2004
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
THERE'S NO DEFENDING NEW JERSEY & ITS POLITICS
By Alan Caruba
FULL STORY:
The former Governor of Louisiana, Edwin Edwards, used to say, "They'd have to catch me taking money under the table or find me
on top of a chubby boy to get what they're after." What they were after was a jail term for the charming rogue, and they got it. The
cause was money, not some chubby boy.
Now we have in James McGreevey, the not-resigning-soon-enough Governor of New Jersey, the confession of a homosexual
extra-marital affair and a host of charges of corruption involving a number of people who have given money to his campaign. That
pretty much fulfills Edwards’ formula for losing a public office as the result of what we shall gently call inappropriate behavior.
The fact is, New Jersey has been poorly served by a succession of governors starting with Jim Florio, a Democrat who raised taxes
and got thrown out in favor of Christie Whitman, a Republican who further ran up state indebtedness with bonding schemes and
such. When she stepped aside early as President Bush’s choice to run the Environmental Protection Agency, the voters were left
with an interim Governor, Donald T. DiFrancesco, who was forced to step aside under the shadow of wrongdoing. The voters
eventually chose McGreevey over Bret Schundler, a Republican who wanted to give the taxpayers a break.
In the meantime, the Democrats had forced former Senator Robert Torricelli to step aside from running for reelection, due to
allegations of corrupt behavior, and replaced him barely weeks before the last election with former Senator Frank Lautenberg. This
shameful political heist was blessed by the New Jersey Supreme Court and confirmed by the voters.
Former Governor Whitman was invited to leave the President's Cabinet when it became apparent to everyone that she had no clue
whatever about the environment. I often tell friends from out of state that, in New Jersey, we don’t trust any air we can’t see.
The duplicity, corruption, and just outright stupidity this brief recounting of our chosen leaders (I am a lifelong resident of New
Jersey) is offered by way of indicating that something is terribly wrong with voters who have demonstrated a virtual death wish so
far as any sensible governance of the state is concerned.
Sadly, aside from the personal embarrassment of the Governor and whatever assessment New Jerseyeans make of this latest
debacle, the real damage he has done the State is to sign, just days ago, a bill that puts aside 450,000 acres of a northern New
Jersey area called “the Highlands,” barring the area from any further development. In doing so, he robbed every home and
property owner in the area of the value of his home or property because, in the name of protecting the environment, he rendered
that property worthless. No new homes or apartments will be built, nor will there be any other kind of development. Welcome to
the People’s Republic of New Jersey.
Add to this the appalling indebtedness of New Jersey and the impossibly high property taxes, and “New Jersey and you. Perfect
together” no longer applies to anyone living here. The Garden State is, for all practical purposes, in the poorhouse. For that we
can thank the succession of governors and the most profligate, for-sale-to-the-highest-bidder legislature in the nation.
Therefore, if you think your state is the worst run in the nation (other than pre-Schwartzenegger California), I invite you to
measure it against New Jersey and will caution that there is no defending New Jersey anymore.
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
American Politics & Political Competition
Alan Caruba is a veteran business and science writer, a Public Relations Counselor, Communications Director of the American Policy Center,
and Founder of the National Anxiety Center, a clearinghouse for information about media-driven scare campaigns. Caruba writes a weekly
column, "Warning Signs," posted on the Internet website of the National Anxiety Center
(www.anxietycenter.com). A compilation of his past columns, entitled Warning Signs, is published by Merril Press. In addition
to Warning Signs, Caruba is the author of A Pocket Guide to Militant Islam and The United Nations vs. the United States,
both of which are available from the National Anxiety Center, 28 West Third Street, Apartment 1321, South Orange, New Jersey, 07079.
Copyright 2004 Alan Caruba
Published with Permission of Alan Caruba
ACaruba@AOL.Com
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Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
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