Be careful what you ask for...

The live public exchange between the President and the entire House Republican caucus was unprecedented, and clearly to the White House’s benefit. So much so, Fox News had to cut away when it was clear the President was “putting on a clinic”. FOX was the only network that chose to limit coverage. I wonder why?



All-in-all, I hope this event leads to more cooperation amongst the players in Washington.

Flea Market Financials!

A lot has been said about the possibility of the Chester Lions Club bringing their flea market to Long Valley. Here is their formal proposal to the township.  One thing that jumps out - the public toilets will remain onsite thoughout the entire 6 month operating period each year.

Earlier this week I received a call from a resident who wanted to know the tax impact of the proposed maximum $60K annual payment to the township in terms of how it would benefit the “average” homeowner. With the average home in the township assessed at $500K, the "tax reduction" benefit comes out to $8.90 a year.


So for $8.90 a year we get to turn the land behind LVMS into a weekly "hillbilly" yard sale, complete with outhouses that remain onsite. Go Howard!

Municipal Budget Update

Despite holding a budget meeting this past Tuesday, the Township Committee made no progress in terms of reducing a projected 10.6% municipal tax increase if their budget was adopted as it now stands. Having reviewed Police operations during Tuesday's meeting, the Committee was unable to make any decision on what should or should not be cut. The inability to make decisions is not surprising when you consider a majority of the Committee now consists of former WTBOE dead weight (Harmon, Roehrich, & LiaBraaten) that didn't contribute much intellectual heft as school board members. Throw in the well documented incompetence of Ken Short & Howard Popper and it's not a pretty picture.

This probably explains why Ken Short is so hell bent on deflecting blame for high property taxes on the WTBOE as opposed to accepting responsibility for his own budget failures. Let us not forget how in 2009 it was Short's administration that imposed a "skyrocketing" property tax increase seven (7) times LARGER than the WTBOE's 0.52% property tax increase.

Say what?

According to Republican Steve Lonegan, "less than two weeks into office, Gov. Chris Christie seems poised to break his signature campaign promise to cut taxes for all taxpayers — instead, agreeing to raise taxes for all businesses and workers. This is unacceptable."

No need for me to add anyting else!

More wisdom from Howard Popper

Within the same DR article quoted in my previous posting, Vice Mayor Howard Popper makes the following statement:

"Residents in Washington Township already don't get much for the taxes they pay, and I don't want them to have to get less."







So according to Howard, other than having...

1. Our children educated
2. Roads maintained and cleared of snow in the winter
3. Recreational programs and fields maintained in the summer
4. Fires extinguished in homes
5. First aid responders show up when we are sick
6. Police who protect us
7. A bus that transports our seniors
8. A prosecutor, judge, and court that holds us accountable
9. A health department that monitors the quality of our drinking water
10. A building department that ensures safety within our homes
11. Free use of county and municipal libraries

...we don't get "much" for our taxes. Go Howard!

This from a man who has yet to deliver on his "Lower Taxes Now!!!" promise. Is Howard the dumbest man on the planet or what?

Thank you Mr. President!

This morning the government announced 4Q2009 GDP growth of 5.7 percent. The highest it's been since 2003. I am sure the GOP will do everything it can to discount the numbers, but in the end it's much better than when "what's his name" was in office!

Another Ken Short Lie!

This DR story contains another purposely misleading quote from Mayor Ken Short:

"All of the committee members already donate their stipends back to the budget."

By law, the committee must pass an ordinance each year declaring the salaries of all township employees. In 2007, the ordinance set a salary of $500 for each committeeman. In 2008 and 2009, no salaries were declared for committeeman, meaning they received no pay. How then can one donate something they never received in the first place?

So here is a question for Mayor Short...if committeeman received no pay in 2008 and 2009, how much did the committee members actually "donate" back to the town? Did it come close to the $50,000 of taxpayer provided health care benefits you sucked down during your first two terms?

Another ignorant "Tea Party" racist

Dale Robertson, a Tea Party activist who operates TeaParty.org, is getting stung for this photo — taken at the Feb. 27, 2009 Tea Party in Houston — in which he holds a sign reading “Congress = Slaveowner, Taxpayer = Niggar.”

The only thing worse than a racist, is an ignorant racist who can't spell.

Also, notice this coward "Photoshopped" his sign for his organization's website.

Let's go to the video tape!

For the second time in a month, Republican Rudy Giuliani managed to make a total fool of himself.



The only person who can match Rudy lie-for-lie is our own Ken Short!

Initiative and referendum within NJ

It's good to hear Governor Chrisite backs a proposal that provides for initiative and referendum within NJ.  This is long overdue and would allow Washington Township voters to weigh in on "quality of life issues" like the flea market.

SOTU

The President's speech was inspiring, unifying, and confrontational, all at the same time. The Republican response from VA was beyond embarrassment.

The Peter Principal

Jim LiaBraaten's appointment to fill the open Township Committee's seat is a another example of the local GOP demonstrating it's mastery of the "Peter Principle".

Having served without distinction on the WTBOE, LiaBraaten's most recent contribution to the community was his demand of a 20% across the board cut of the district school budget. A demand of his former peers AFTER he left the board.

What are the odds of LiaBratten calling for a 20% across the board cut of the municipal budget? Probably about the same as a 0% tax municipal increase!

Do The Right Thing!

As some of you know, I am a bit of a movie buff. So much so, I recently rented the 20th Anniversary Edition of Spike Lee's "Do The Right Thing" on Bluray.

Ironically, this is also the title of Paul Krugman’s latest NYT op-ed urging House Democrats to "Stop whining, and do what needs to be done."

I could not agree more.

Congressional Democrats are Clueless!

Based on this news and what I have seen in the past three days, it's quite clear Congressional Democrats have no clue in terms of what to do on health care. As a result, Democrats most likely will lose their majority in the House in the fall and quite frankly, deservingly so. Nothing is more unbecoming that a bunch of weak politicians who care more about their own survival as opposed to the needs of the American people.

Guy Gregg's senior moment

While leaving last night's Township Committee meeting, I had a short conversation with Washington Township Republican Committee Chairman Guy Gregg. I asked Guy if he had read my DR opinion piece, which he said he had. I told him I looked forward to the lower taxes Christie has promised. At this point Guy seemed to suffer a senior moment. To insure Guy's condition is not contagious amongst all NJ Republicans, below you will find Christie’s tax promises as they appeared on his campaign website:

New Jersey has the highest tax burden in the country and it’s getting worse - the latest Corzine budget just raised taxes by another $1.2 billion. We’re also burdened with the highest property taxes in the country, but that didn't stop Jon Corzine from taking away property tax rebates from 1.2 million New Jerseyans in this year’s budget. In fact, Jon Corzine and Jim McGreevey have raised taxes on the average New Jersey family by more than $10,000 since 2002 – over $22 billion in taxes, the highest in the nation. In all, Corzine and Governor McGreevey have raised over 100 taxes on New Jersey’s hardworking families.

This will change in a Christie Administration. New Jersey’s hard-working middle-class families can no longer handle the weight of these out of control taxes. The first step to reversing New Jersey's declining economic climate and giving New Jerseyans a little relief is by cutting property taxes.

Provide Property Tax Relief

The last thing Chris will do is to follow Corzine's lead in eliminating property tax rebates for 1.2 million New Jerseyans. The rebate currently is the only property tax relief we have, and it provides much needed, meaningful help while we put in place other reforms. We keep the rebate in place to give taxpayers some breathing room in these tough economic times.

Reduce New Jersey’s income tax

Chris Christie will commit to cutting New Jersey’s gross income tax during his first 4-year term as Governor. Cutting these taxes will make New Jersey more affordable for our hard-working families, encourage investment in and expansion of New Jersey-based small business, and make our tax policies more competitive with the other states in the region that have better private sector job growth.

Chris Christie will seek two types of income tax reductions:

• “Across the board” rate cut for all taxpayers

• Additional cut or credit for those taxpayers who derive business income from New Jersey-based small businesses.

Reduce the corporate business tax rate to give New Jersey a competitive advantage

It will be a top priority for the Christie Administration to reduce corporate business tax rates.

Reducing the corporate business tax rate, as part of an overall economic recovery effort, will create a better business climate to attract private sector investment.

Eliminate the “double-taxation” on New Jersey S-Corporations

80,000 S-Corporation taxpayers currently pay the corporation “minimum” tax, up to $2,000 per year, based on their total gross receipts. The Christie Administration will eliminate the “double taxation” on New Jersey’s S-Corporations in line with the other 47 states and federal government which have implemented this policy.

Eliminate the hidden “investment tax” on New Jersey-based businesses

The “investment tax” acts as a penalty for businesses for being based in New Jersey. Instead of being taxed for only the amount of sales in New Jersey, the “investment tax” also factors in the level of investment (i.e., real estate, payroll, etc.) a company has in New Jersey. Chris Christie will change New Jersey’s tax policy to enact a “single-sales” factor for New Jersey-based companies to enable them to better compete.

Dear Governor...

Fred Snowflak of the Daily Record asked if was interested in writing an opinion piece providing advice to our new governor. Here is my take.  Thanks to Fred and to anyone who cares to comment.

Kevin Walsh

It is with deep sadness we learn former Township Committeeman Kevin Walsh passed away yesterday at his home here in Long Valley. He loved our township with all his heart.

Our prayers are with his family.

Why we lead the free world...

This picture is worth a thousand words.

Please join me in making a donation to the CLINTON BUSH HAITI FUND.

Thank you!

Axelrod vs. Rove!

In today's Washington Post, President Obama's senior advisor David Axelrod pretty much mopped up the floor with Karl Rove. It doesn't get any better than this!

Howard Popper Strikes Out on Local Ethics Board

Remember back in 2007 when Howard Pooper ran for Committee and promised to create a local ethics board? This despite being told by yours truly and others there is already a similar body at the state level charged to handle issues of impropriety by local officials. Instead, Howard stuck to his guns and with the aid of local GOP operatives, insisted a local committee was needed in our town. When the potential cost of such an entity was pointed out, Howard again insisted this could be done at virtually no cost to the taxpayer. After two long years and a recent hammering on this blog, Howard Popper seems to have had an ephipany at this week’s Work Session agenda included "Ethics Board" as a discussion topic.

So you would think after two years of silence, Howard would finally be ready to publicly announce his plan to implement something so central to his campaign it ranked second only to his “LOWER TAXES NOW!!!” pledge, right? Wrong! After a ten minute discussion, Howard and his fellow GOP committeeman conceded it wasn't needed after all and that the cost of creating such an entity are far beyond what the township could have EVER afforded.

Perhaps had Howard read the following language from the NJ LOCAL ETHICS LAW, he would have realized his transparent campaign promise was doomed at the moment he first proposed it back in 2007 during his campaign.

40A:9-22.20 Provision of offices to municipal ethics board

a. The governing body of the municipality shall provide the municipal ethics board with offices for the conduct of its business and the preservation of its records, and shall supply equipment and supplies as may be necessary.

b. All necessary expenses incurred by the municipal ethics board and its members shall be paid, upon certification of the chairman, by the municipal treasurer within the limits of funds appropriated by the municipal governing body by annual or emergency appropriations for those purposes.

c. The municipal ethics board may appoint employees, including independent counsel, and clerical staff as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this act within the limits of funds appropriated by the municipal governing body for those purposes.

Bottom Line: This was just another empty unfulfilled campaign promise from Howard Popper, who has yet to demonstrate any value during his tenure on the Washington Township Committee.