“Real change has come to New Jersey,” said Governor-elect Chris Christie after he beat Gov. Jon S. Corzine in Tuesday’s gubernatorial election. His statement on change, followed with a short “Yes, we did” chant by the crowd may have been the most encouraging aspect of his lackluster acceptance speech. While it is encouraging that Corzine will no longer be running Trenton, it is time that Christie exhibit a comprehensive platform on how he will attempt to change the Garden State.
During the campaign, Christie seemed hesitant to present specific actions on how he will cut taxes, create jobs and improve education — yet he promised to do all of the above, striking a similar image to the presidential campaign of President Barack Obama. One of the greatest factors leading to the election of the current president were the hideous approval ratings of former President George W. Bush. Christie, like Obama, had the privilege of facing an opponent who was despised by the general public, more or less granting Christie the statehouse on a silver platter. The “non”-campaign Christie ran almost cost him greatly, and after leading Corzine by 15 points in July, the two were statistically tied going into Election Day, with Christie beating the incumbent by a mere four points.
The animosity toward Corzine allowed Christie to coast by during the campaign cycle —especially when it came to students at the University. While Corzine made numerous attempts to campaign at the universities, Christie’s presence on campuses was minute. If this was the future governor’s idea avoiding a budget question he is going to have to face in the future, he did a great job at evading the opinions of students. We all enjoy tax cuts, but will the tax cuts Christie proposes signal even further cuts in the school budget? Will professors and programs need to be cut? These questions need to be answered, and while the campaign season entitled Christie to be mysterious about his spending goals, that season is now over, and real leadership begins now.
Surely every citizen wants to see lower taxes, more jobs and improved education, but how are we going to get there? Christie is setting himself up for unattainable promises — promises that if not met — may cost him his popularity before the end of 2010 and his job in 2013. While his campaigned mirrored that of Obama’s, Christie perhaps has assembled a similar first year in office, chasing promises without plans and policy without goals. New Jerseyans need to see a set list of plans, policy and goals before Christie takes office in January.
Education is of the utmost importance in creating future jobs, less crime, less poverty and more prosperity. While New Jersey as a whole ranks fifth in terms of overall education quality, according to Education Week, our inner cities continue to suffer from overcrowded classrooms and uninspiring teachers. While this is not the case for every inner city public school and teacher, Christie let the world know that his family left Newark when he was a child, in order to attend the “best” public schools in New Jersey in Livingston. It is nice that the Christie household could afford to leave an area with sub-par schools; unfortunately not all families in Newark have that opportunity. How will education throughout the state thrive? How will the new governor implement a sound education policy? New Jersey needs a plan.
Perhaps the most pressing matter at the time Christie will be inaugurated is the loss of jobs in New Jersey. Unemployment buoyed around the 10 percent margin in October for state, and we know that Christie will not attempt to expand government in order to increase the work force, so how is it then that the governor-elect will create these jobs he has promised to create? New Jersey needs a plan.
With one of the most expansive public work forces in the nation, the size of New Jersey government and bureaucracy has exploded out of control. Surely, unnecessary jobs must be cut and unqualified workers must be fired, but these are jobs that many people rely on for their livelihood. One can argue that some of these jobs should have never been created in the first place, but that time has come and passed. Now more than 460,000 New Jersey citizens depend on government jobs as their basic form of income. How will the future governor cut workers that are not producing, while keeping those workers that are? Will broad department be cut at the throat, or will systematic layoffs be implemented from the Statehouse down? New Jersey needs a plan.
Lastly, and perhaps the stance that propelled the Republican into the Statehouse for the first time in 12 years, is his pledge to lower taxes — all of them. In theory, the mantra of lowering taxes has resonated time and time again. From presidential campaigns, to local freeholder positions. Obama simply laid out that he would tax the wealthy in order to cut taxes for the middle class. Whether or not his idea is feasible, at least he had a plan. Christie now must come through with his promise to lower taxes, be it property, income or sales taxes. However, he must also grapple with a $31 billion debt, a debt that will continue to climb unless spending is cut. Christie is now in a predicament that will put him at odds with both cutting taxes and lowering the state debt. The only way to pay off debt is with revenue, and the only way the government can make revenue is by taxing its citizens and corporations. We all know that Christie wants to cat taxes, but how will the new governor-elect cut taxes, and whose taxes will he cut? Christie, New Jersey needs a plan, and we need one now.
New Jersey needs real change
Editorial
Published: Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Updated: Wednesday, November 4, 2009 21:11
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