Poll: President Obama Hits New Low in New Jersey

A new Quinnipiac poll released today shows President Obama has fallen to his lowest approval rating in the Garden State ever.

From Politico:

Garden state voters disapprove, 52 percent to 43 percent, of the president’s job performance - his lowest score in the state since taking office, according to the Quinnipiac Polling Institute.

...

Disapproval of the president is 88 to 10 percent among Republicans and 60 to 34 percent among key independent voters.

New Jersey Democrats still overwhelmingly approve of the president, with 77 percent approving of his job performance and 19 percent disapproving.

There is also a large gender gap among voters in New Jersey, as 50 percent of women approve of Obama, with only 45 percent disapproving. 60 percent of men, on the other hand, disapprove of the president’s jobs performance, with only 36 approving of it.

Obama still polls well head-to-head against GOP challengers, however.

That said, Obama currently leads possible Republican challengers in head-to-head matchups in the state, beating former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney 47-41 percent; Texas Gov. Rick Perry 49-36 percent; and businessman Herman Cain 47-38 percent.

The final Quinippiac presidential approval poll taken in New Jersey before the 2009 gubernatorial election showed Obama enjoying a comfortable 55/39 approval split. Chris Christie, of course, won that contest over Jon Corzine by roughly 3.5 points even though Corzine received considerable help from Obama during the campaign.

Meanwhile, after Chris Christie's approval rating bottomed out at 44% in June of this year (47% disapprove), he has rebounded to an astounding 58% in Quinnipiac's latest poll (only 39% disapprove).

Can the GOP steal a win in New Jersey in next year's election? It's still a long shot, but polls are trending in the right direction.

Oh, this is my first post here. I'm John E. Nice to meet you.

Christie Not Running

He really means it this time.

After days of silence over whether he'll run for the White House, Gov. Chris Christie will finally address the question today in Trenton at 1 p.m., an adviser said.

For the past week, speculation has swirled that Christie would reverse more than a year of denials and enter a crowded Republican presidential primary. But the plan for today's Statehouse press conference, announced by the governor's office this morning, immediately set off speculation that Christie will not run.

ABC News and the National Review, a conservative magazine, are reporting that Christie isn't going to run.

Accompanying the story is an undated photo of what Christie might look like if he lost 100 pounds.

Had he run some believe he would have devoured the competition, but that might result in rapid weight gain.

We like him where he is. If he no longer has the desire to be governor come 2013 he'd make a decent Attorney General for the next president. Prosecuting his predecessor for Fast & Furious would be his top priority.

Christie Approval Surges, Up 10 Points Since May

With all the speculation of late whether New Jersey Governor Chris Christie may be running for president, his approval here in the state has risen sharply.

Gov. Chris Christie's approval rating has increased dramatically since he signed the pension and health benefit overhaul for public workers and publicly led the state through Hurricane Irene.

A Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll released this morning shows 54 percent of New Jersey voters approve of Christie's performance, while 36 percent disapprove. That's up from a 44 percent even split in May.

The number is the highest approval rating Christie has gotten in a Fairleigh Dickinson poll, although his disapproval ratings were lower early in his term, when many many voters had not formed an opinion.

"The spring budget battles at every level - municipal, county, and state - hurt the governor," said poll director Peter Woolley. "But he got a big win on pension and benefits reform in June, and weathered Hurricane Irene in August.

Eighteen percent of voters rated Christie's job performance excellent, 28 percent good, 29 percent "only fair" and 24 percent poor.

The favorable poll numbers come just as speculation that Christie will run for president reaches a fever pitch, despite his repeated denials that he's interested. The governor has a speech scheduled tonight at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.

I'm of the mind running in 2012 would not be worth it. He still has yet to even serve two years as governor and I do recall one of the negatives on Obama back in 2008 was he had little experience. Let us enjoy him for a full term and perhaps a second one. I don't see anyone on the horizon on the Democrat side who could beat him right now, although two years is a lifetime in politics.

His nemesis from the Star Ledger, Tom Moran, thinks he should run, although he seems to be a bit tongue-in-cheek. Moran, after all, was the guy Christie hammered in that famous viral video from last year.

Christie Responds After Assembly Speaker Calls Him 'Mentally Deranged'

The Speaker of the New Jersey Assembly had some choice words for Chris Christie the other day. Here he responds.

Trenton had one question on its mind Thursday: What was really said between Gov. Chris Christie and Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver?

Christie said Oliver asked him for Republican support if Democrats launched a coup to remove her as speaker and stop cuts to public worker benefits in June. She called the story a "blatant lie." Neither backed down Thursday.

But it’s clear the episode has hardened displeasure with Oliver among unhappy members of her caucus. Several Democrats, still raw from this summer’s divisive political battles, said Christie’s story reinforces their belief that Oliver (D-Essex) worked too closely with the Republican governor to pass benefit cuts despite objections from the majority of her party.

In an arena where perception can quickly become reality, these Democrats, who requested anonymity to discuss internal issues, say the episode highlights their concerns that Oliver is not the right leader for their caucus. Around the state, party members say they are discussing who could replace her, although they admit there is no clear frontrunner. Oliver’s two-year term as speaker, one of the most powerful positions in state government, ends in January, and she has not said publicly whether she wants another term.

Expect a coup before long. Oliver doesn't come off looking too stable.

The controversy erupted on Wednesday when Mother Jones magazine released audio of Christie’s June 26 speech at a Colorado retreat hosted by the Koch brothers, two wealthy conservative businessmen.

Christie made a brief, and undisclosed, trip to the retreat three days after the Assembly approved cuts to public worker benefits, and the governor regaled an adoring audience with the bill’s backstory. During the speech, Christie said Oliver was worried about a possible coup and asked him for Republican support. The governor then went to his party’s caucus and asked them to vote for the speaker if her control of the Assembly was challenged. A coup never materialized.

After the recording was posted online, Oliver unleashed on Christie, suggesting he is "mentally deranged" and lying about their conversations. She denied ever asking for his help or discussing Assembly leadership issues with him. Several Democrats have also doubted Christie’s account.

Christie didn’t respond to Oliver’s remarks Thursday, calling it "beneath the office I hold." But he stood by his account. "I know what happened," he said. "I said honestly what happened."

Christie to NJ Residents: 'Get the Hell Off the Beach'

I feel safer knowing the Baddest Governor on the Planet has my back. And even in times of trouble he still manages to be funny.

"I saw some of these news feeds that I've been watching of people sitting on the beach in Asbury Park -- get the hell off the beach at Asbury Park and get out," Christie said. "You're done. It's 4:30 -- you've maximized your tan. Get off the beach."

Obama Approval Hits New Low in New Jersey

I'm starting to notice a trend here. Yesterday the bombshell came that the failed president has hit a record low of 36% in New York. Now a new Quinnipiac poll released this morning show Obama fading to just 44% in New Jersey.

President Barack Obama is headed in the wrong direction as New Jersey voters disapprove 52 - 44 percent of the job he is doing, down from a 50 - 46 percent positive score June 21 and the president's lowest score ever in the Garden State.
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New Jersey voters say 49 - 45 percent that Obama does not deserve to be reelected, but say 45 - 37 percent that they would vote for Obama over an unnamed Republican challenger in the 2012 presidential race.

We'll see about that next November. If he's polling well under 50%, he won't be winning the state, let alone nationally.

Governor Christie, meanwhile, is more popular than Obama.

New Jersey Gov. Christopher Christie stops his slide and flattens out with a 47 - 46 percent job approval rating from New Jersey voters, his best score in four months, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

Chris Christie Hospitalized With Breathing Troubles

Well, this isn't a good sign.

Gov. Chris Christie has been hospitalized at Somerset Medical Center, according to his office.

He was having difficulty breathing and was taken "out of an abundance of caution," said spokesman Michael Drewniak.

Drewniak said he has asthma and is "doing fine" and having more testing.

No doubt the compassionate left will be sending their good wishes.

Neither Has an Ego as Big as Obama

So refreshing to see a politician with a sense of humor. Certain people in Washington could use one.

A politician and a comedian are going head-to-head to decide whose noggin is the biggest.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) tweeted a clip from NBC's "Tonight Show" on Tuesday, titled, "Is his head bigger than mine?"

In it, host Jay Leno compared his head size to that of the governor's. Leno's head appears to be bigger.

And, to answer the question posed by the segment's title, Leno states: "No."

Christie doubted that the results were definitive, though, tweeting, "Idk [I don't know] @jayleno, it’s a close call!"

Blockbuster: Christie Had Dinner With Roger Ailes

This was already information known to the public, but apparently some gadflies decided they need attention.

Just pathetic.

In apparent reaction to a lawsuit filed by Gawker and the American Civil Liberties Union, the office of the New Jersey governor, Chris Christie, on Monday released a record of a meeting last year between Mr. Christie and Roger Ailes, the chairman of Fox News Channel.

John Cook, a reporter for Gawker, had filed the suit to inquire into Mr. Ailes’s relationship with Mr. Christie as part of a series of stories about the political engagement of Mr. Ailes and his cable news channel. He asserted in an interview that Mr. Ailes, a former Republican strategist, continued to act in that capacity informally and behind the scenes.

The suit came about after Mr. Christie’s office resisted Mr. Cook’s request for public records of any meetings, phone calls or correspondence between the governor and Mr. Ailes. The governor’s office cited “executive privilege,” which Mr. Cook found to be unusual given that Mr. Ailes is the head of a news channel.

The suit was filed Monday morning. Within hours, Mr. Christie’s office sent Mr. Cook a letter that reaffirmed the “executive privilege” defense, but shared the schedule record of one dinner Mr. Christie and Mr. Ailes had on Sept. 11, 2010.

That dinner had previously been reported by New York magazine, which also reported that Mr. Ailes had, at a later date, encouraged Mr. Christie to run for president.

So what was the meaning of this pointless exercise other than a pathetic obsession with Fox News?

NJ Unions Dealt Crushing Defeat

A historic win for Chris Christie. Taste the bitter tears of union members "forced" to pay their fair share.

New Jersey lawmakers tonight voted to enact a sweeping plan to cut public worker benefits after a long day of high-pitched political drama in the streets and behind closed doors.

Union members chanted outside the Statehouse and in the Assembly balcony, and dissident Democrats tried to stall with amendments and technicalities. Although they successfully convinced top lawmakers to remove a controversial provision restricting public workers’ access to out-of-state medical care, they failed to halt a historic defeat for New Jersey’s powerful unions and a political victory for Republican Gov. Chris Christie.

Nearly 8500 people gathered in the streets surrounding the Statehouse in Trenton to defend their stance on pension and benefit reform. Collective bargaining was the overall theme, but some delved deeper as to what exactly is important to them and their families as a bill awaits a vote in the state assembly.

"Together, we’re showing New Jersey is serious about providing long-term fiscal stability for our children and grandchildren," Christie said in a statement released after the vote. "We are putting the people first and daring to touch the third rail of politics in order to bring reform to an unsustainable system."

Imagine, a governor keeping the promises he campaigned on.

By the way, support was bipartisan. The media should love that, right?

Supporters of the bill — including Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) and Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D-Essex) — have said the state needs to cut costs because the pension and health systems are underfunded by more than $120 billion in total.

Christie, who has staked his reputation on shrinking government costs, has called the bill an example for the rest of the country. New Jersey is one of 23 states that have asked employees to pay more for their pensions since the Wall Street financial crisis battered retirement systems in 2008, according to the Pew Center on the States.

Consider this a win-win for Christie, and a stinging defeat for the unions. Oh well.

Today’s union protest, like other recent demonstrations, did nothing to stop the bill. But it did highlight the growing fissures in the state Democratic Party, which has struggled to counter Christie.

The crybabies at the NY Times call it "deep cuts" and a "broad rollback" of worker rights. Aww.

What we've got here is a governor who's taken an unsustainable debt load and put our state on the path toward fiscal sanity. Contrast him with the current occupant of the White House, who's managed to do the exact opposite.

Flashback: Commission Recommends Choppers For NJ Governors After Corzine's SUV Crash

Interesting little tidbit here pertaining to the idiotic Chris Christie Helicopter Kerfuffle, which CBS buries way down in the next-to-last paragraph:

A special commission recommended New Jersey governors use helicopters as a matter of safety after the 2007 car crash involving then Gov. Jon Corzine.

Oh, that's right.

Now, a more common-sense recommendation at the time might have been to, you know, drive in the vicinity of the speed limit and wear a seat belt. In other words, use your head. Obey the law. But, whatever. Helicopters.

For safety!

Added bonus: Helicopters, unlike SUVs, cost NJ taxpayers no additional money. Presumably, that is true no matter who is Governor.

Except I don't recall Corzine ever going the extra mile and actually reimbursing the state for the expense.

Cross-posted.

UPDATE: Silly me. I should have remembered that fat-cat gazillionaire Jon Corzine of course paid for his own helicopter rides.

My bad.

It Begins: Team Obama Digging Up Dirt on Christie

Well, I guess they ought to be prepared for any possibility. Despite repeated denials that he has any intention to run, the Obama opposition research team is already prying up any possible information to use against New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

President Obama's re-election campaign is trying to dig up dirt in the Garden State.

Despite New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's repeated pronouncements that he will not seek the GOP presidential nomination, Obama operatives are compiling a dossier of what they call "opposition research" -- material that could be used to damage Christie if he changes his mind, The Post has learned.

The Obama campaign is trying to keep its efforts from public view, concerned they would only elevate Christie's already impressive standing within the Republican Party, sources said.

Why waste any money when they can simply talk to reporters covering Christie. They all hate his guts and surely would be happy to contribute to Obama's efforts.

But party leaders have been pushing Christie to enter the race, saying his brand of New Jersey tough talk could put the White House within reach for the GOP.

Republican leaders from Henry Kissinger to House Speaker John Boehner have encouraged him to run.

And well-heeled GOP donors in New York have been spreading word that Christie has privately shown a willingness to consider it.

They say Christie might enter the race if he can get part of his pension-reform agenda passed in Trenton and score a GOP takeover of one of the Democratic-controlled houses of the state Legislature in November.

Christie spokesman Mike DuHaime said, "This is just wishful thinking . . . He is not running, and he is not cracking the door open even a little bit."

But, DuHaime said, the efforts of the Obama camp are flattering.

He said it's "an acknowledgment that Christie is a bold leader successfully taking on big challenges as governor. A leader who cuts spending and takes on the special interests tends to earn notice at the highest levels."

Top Dems applauded Team Obama's preparation.

"It would be irresponsible for them to not start looking at it," said a consultant who played a key role in Obama's 2008 campaign. "It would be malpractice for them not to."

Heck, all they need to ever do is float a single rumor and the entire media establishment would run with it anyway. Obama has to remember he has a trusty corps of stenographers always eager to do his bidding.

Unexpected! NJ to Take in $913M More in Tax Revenue for 2012

Naturally, before the money is even counted the Democrats are eager to spend it. Can we at least point out the Governor may be on the right track fiscally and applaud him for getting our finances in order?

New Jersey is projected to take in $913 million more than expected in tax revenue through June 2012, according to new projections by the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services.

The revised estimate will likely spark a partisan battle over how to spend the unexpected windfall as lawmakers consider Gov. Chris Christie’s proposed $29.4 billion budget.

Why do we automatically have to go and spend it? Why not step back and take a solid look at where the money would best go. I have an idea: Property tax relief. Of course the Democrats want to dump it right back into failing schools. What a surprise.

"The governor has balanced his budgets on the backs of the middle class, now this gives us an opportunity to undo that," said state Sen. Paul Sarlo, who as head of the Senate Budget Committee reviewed the OLS estimates.

Sarlo (D-Bergen) said he will push the administration to use the money for additional property tax relief and funding to schools, but stopped short of saying Democrats will offer their own budget proposal.

Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Lou Greenwald (D-Camden) said the money should be used to "restore some of the pain" Christie has caused with his budget cuts.

Why would anyone expect the Democrats to offer their own plan when they can stand on the sidelines and take cheap shots at Christie? They should give the man a standing ovation, yet instead they're stil whining like babies.

Christie spokesman Michael Drewniak said officials need to approach any good news prudently.

"While New Jersey is seeing signs of economic recovery, it is important to keep moving forward on a sound fiscal path and not revert back to Trenton’s out of control spending ways at the first sign of growth," Drewniak said.

Exactly. Remmeber this is a projection. It could well fall short, we could have a double-dip recession or any unforeseen calamity could affect the budget. So Christie's thinking ahead, not looking to just go on a spending binge.

It should help his image nationally while you have the GOP gazing longingly in his direction. Just imagine if such success continues under his leadership for a few years.

Frankly, I'm surprised the Democrats haven't given Obama the credit yet.

Chris Christie Gets a Standing Ovation ... at Harvard

Wait, what? At Harvard? Indeed.

Conservatives may see Harvard as the heart of liberal darkness, but on Friday it gave a warm, even enthusiastic reception to Gov. Chris Christie and his ideas on education overhaul.

Speaking to almost 200 students and staff members at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the New Jersey governor drew rounds of applause with his talk of sharply limiting teacher tenure, rigorously evaluating teachers and administrators, curbing the power of teachers’ unions and pledging to appoint more-conservative justices to the State Supreme Court.

Mr. Christie’s first ovation came when he said, “The reason I’m engaging in this battle with the teachers’ union is because it’s the only fight worth having.”

The ground he covered would be familiar to anyone who has watched the town hall-style forums in New Jersey that have made Mr. Christie a YouTube star. There, at least a few detractors usually show up to question him, and his policies and pugnacious statements can make even some supporters uncomfortable.

But here, during Mr. Christie’s 40-minute opening talk and a question-and-answer session of the same length, the response was less equivocal.

“I came away very encouraged, and I admire him for saying things that might be unpopular,” said Matt Shiraki, 26, a graduate student at the Kennedy School of Government.

The closest thing to a hostile question Mr. Christie faced came after he embraced the title bestowed on him recently by The New York Times Magazine: The Disrupter. Jenny Hanson, a graduate student in education, told him that she liked his ideas, but added, “I think using language like ‘disrupter’ and ‘battle’ and ‘fight’ could prevent buy-in.”

Mr. Christie, uncharacteristically, said he often thought about — and “struggled a lot” with — the notion that he is too combative, his language too harsh.

But he said he would not change his tone until the teachers’ union, the New Jersey Education Association, agreed that schools are in crisis and showed more willingness to make major changes.

“I have to convince the public that the house is on fire,” he said.

He saved some choice comments for the thugs from the NJEA.

Christie spoke about various obstacles to reform and cited the New Jersey Education Association, which he called a “political thuggery operation” and said was “fat, rich and entitled.”

Earlier this month, Christie referred to the leadership as “bullies and thugs” during a speech in New York.

An NJEA spokes-thug responded.

Now the governor is exporting his lies to Massachusetts, maybe because they’re not selling here in New Jersey," Wollmer said.

Uh, yes, they are.

Update: Via the comments, a first-hand account. If anyone has video, feel free to forward.

Christie Calls Teachers Union 'Political Thugs'

Tell us something we don't know, Governor.

New Jersey's Gov. Chris Christie took another shot at his state's teachers today by describing their union leaders as "political thugs."

In an interview with ABC News anchor Diane Sawyer, Christie offered no apology for his often tough talk that has left some teachers feeling bruised. He also talked about the presidential possibilities of both himself and his "friend" Donald Trump, and criticism by Jersey rock icon Bruce Springsteen.

While sitting in the school library at Lincoln School in Kearney, N.J., Christie told Sawyer that it's essential for his state's education system to change and he blames the teachers union for the harsh cuts his administration is making, that includes layoffs and larger classrooms.

"I believe the teachers in New Jersey in the main are wonderful public servants that care deeply. But their union, their union are a group of political thugs," Christie said.

Typically, ABC failed to note union leaders have openly fantasized about his death.

Meanwhile, a lighthearted moment from Christie today.

Judge Decides NJ Isn't Spending Enough on Public Schools

Why do we even bother having governors and a legislature if judges can simply decide on their own how much taxpayers are forced to pay for schools?

Gov. Chris Christie's deep cuts to state school aid last year left New Jersey's schools unable to provide a "thorough and efficient" education to the state's nearly 1.4 million school children, a Superior Court judge found today.

Judge Peter Doyne, who was appointed as special master in the long-running Abbott vs. Burke school funding case, today issued an opinion that also found the reductions "fell more heavily upon our high risk districts and the children educated within those districts."

"Despite spending levels that meet or exceed virtually every state in the country, and that saw a significant increase in spending levels from 2000 to 2008, our 'at risk' children are now moving further from proficiency," he said.

Gov. Chris Christie's office said that Judge Doyne himself acknowledged that the Supreme Court limited his inquiry by excluding consideration of the state's budget crisis.

"Critically, he also noted that, despite the fact New Jersey meets or exceeds all other states in spending for 'at-risk' students, many of those students continue to fail to meet basic educational proficiency," said spokesman Michael Drewniak. "The Supreme Court should at last abandon the failed assumption of the last three decades that more money equals better education, and stop treating our state’s fiscal condition as an inconvenient afterthought."

Maybe if these kids are still failing we ought to look at the teachers.

Oh wait, we already tried that and it resulted in death wishes for the governor.

We're already spending well over $13,000 per pupil already and cannot afford the runaway spending. Christie has tried, but it seems nothing he does matters when a judge can just decide it isn't enough.

Christie on Illinois Governor: 'He's a Disaster'

The baddest governor on the planet lays a smackdown on his counterpart in Illinois.

It's on!

Gov. Chris Christie said Friday that he's not worried about businesses leaving for Illinois because Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn is "a disaster." Christie's comments come as ads are set to appear in several New Jersey publications on Monday, including NJ Biz, criticizing the state's business climate. They were paid for by the advocacy group For a Better Chicago and are in retaliation for an ad campaign Christie launched to encourage businesses in Illinois to relocate to New Jersey.

"Let me tell you something: We won't lose any business to Illinois as long as Pat Quinn's the governor," Christie, a Republican, said during a news conference Thursday. "He's a disaster."

The Chicago group said it's taking out the ads to set the record straight on which state has the best business climate.

"We understand that governors have to be cheerleaders for their states, but the claims Gov. Christie is making are so far from the truth," said Jake Braun, For a Better Chicago spokesman.

The Chicago ads, which say "Rhetoric is nice, reality matters," focus on New Jersey's high property taxes and cost of living.

Christie launched his campaign after Quinn, a Democrat, raised personal income taxes to 5 percent from 3 percent and corporate business taxes to 9.5 percent from 7.3 percent to help balance his budget.

Shocking Report Recommends Evaluating Teachers By Performance

Next thing you know these teachers will start being held accountable for their performance. No doubt this will be interpreted as an attack on teachers.

New Jersey teachers should be judged by both their classroom performance and student test scores, a Christie administration task force recommended in a report made public Thursday.

This proposed evaluation system, if enacted by the Legislature, would influence high-stakes decisions about teachers’ pay and tenure once it’s phased in over the next few years. The report recommends piloting the system this fall.

"As a superintendent, it’s startling to me that we still use models of evaluations solely focused on teaching, rather than on teaching and learning," said Brian Zychowski, task force chairman and superintendent of North Brunswick schools.

The unveiling came one day after the state’s largest teachers union denounced any measurement of teachers based on student performance.

Yeah, how dare we judge them by how students perform. We should all just believe they're doing the best they can and take their word for it. And not even think of touching their lavish benefits or asking them to kick in more than 1.5% for their health benefits.

The New Jersey Education Association argued using student test scores to evaluate teachers would weaken curricula and promote teaching for the sake of passing a test. For this, Gov. Chris Christie once again publicly scolded the union.

"I find it fascinating that before the report was even issued or made public that the New Jersey Education Association already came out opposed to it," Christie said Thursday at a press conference. "Their charge is to protect the worst teachers, and they know the worst teachers will be outed."

Here's Christie discussing this radical plan to hold teachers accountable.

Change: NJ Unions Thugs Suspended For 'Sick-Out'

We highlighted this heartless group of spoiled union punks yesterday. Three of them are now suspended. Let's hope the rest of these greedy, heartless bastards are held to account and those suspended are soon fired.

Three union workers who called out sick to attend a labor rally at the New Jersey Statehouse last week have been suspended.

The move comes a day after Gov. Christie told NBC New York in an interview that "people who call in sick better be sick." Christie issued his warning ahead of another labor rally that drew thousands on Thursday.

Monmouth County officials said the three employees suspended without pay Thursday work for the county's Senior Citizen Area Transportation service and are members of CWA Local 1038.

The county said the workers were among 14 in the department who called out sick; officials alleged that 174 developmentally disabled adults who depend on the county's services ended up "waiting for buses that never came."

"These employees are being suspended without pay based on the fact that we have evidence to prove that they were not home sick as they had claimed," said Lillian Burry, a county official.

State Sen. Joe Kyrillos (R-Monmouth), who first complained of a "sick-out," applauded officials for the suspension, noting some workers were "caught on camera" at last week's rally.

He wants officials to keep reviewing video to see "if others were absent without proper excuse."

Some lamestream media outlets are making hay of the fact Governor Christie has said he supports collective bargaining. They want want to read the fine print.

"In fact, I love collective bargaining," Christie told the audience. "We're ready to collectively bargain. Let's have it be real collective bargaining, where someone is in there representing the people who pay the bills."

I suspect today's suspensions have Christie's fingerprints all over them. If the unions think they have a pushover in Christie, I wish them luck.

More here.

:This action by our SCAT employees is offensive to everyone because it adversely impacted our most vulnerable population," Freeholder Director Robert D. Clifton said in a statement. "The administration will continue its investigation into those who called out sick until we are satisfied that every employee who misused the county's sick leave policy is disciplined within the constraints of the Civil Service process. This is a prime example of why Civil Service reform is needed."

There's hope.

“Anyone who shrugs and abandons their contracted responsibilities should receive the strongest discipline allowed, up to and including termination,” Freeholder Deputy Director John P. Curley said. “They are responsible for aspects of government that are mandatory in dealing with public health, safety and well being.”

NJ Democrat Defies Union Thugs: 'We’ve Got To Be Fair With Taxpayers'

When you're a greedy, spoiled union goon used to life sucking off the public teat, those are words you never, ever want to hear. Especially when it's a prominent Democrat uttering them. Naturally they're already making empty threats against him and are having a temper tantrum. They just refuse to accept the fact the free ride is over.

Calling it an attempt to throw out collective bargaining rights, leaders of New Jersey’s public workers unions Monday said they will launch a full court press against a bill sponsored by Senate President Stephen Sweeney that would force public employees to pay more for their health care benefits.

Hetty Rosenstein, state director for the Communication Workers of America, said her union would picket, extract pledges from lawmakers to oppose it and hold "lobby days" against the bill (S2718) over the next several weeks.

"It becomes illegal to negotiate anything different than what’s in that bill," said Rosenstein. "It preempts all collectively bargaining."

Bill Lavin, president of the state Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association, said police and firefighters will protest it at a Statehouse rally Thursday and press all 120 lawmakers.

"It’s totally unacceptable. I think if that were to pass, it will guarantee that the Democrats will lose the majority," he said. "We’re shocked that Steve Sweeney, who calls himself a Democrat, would act in this manner ... He’s rolled over for the governor in every instance."

The pushback comes as the legislation has gained bipartisan support in the state Senate, with Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth) signing on as a prime sponsor.

Public employees pay 1.5 percent of their salaries towards their health benefits. Under Sweeney’s plan and a proposal by Gov. Chris Christie, workers would pay a portion of their premiums instead and would have more plans to choose from.

Under Christie’s plan, public workers would pay 30 percent of their premiums within three years. Under Sweeney’s, they would pay a sliding scale based on income, with the highest earners eventually paying 30 percent. Christie’s plan would require current retirees to pay part of their premiums.

"I understand people being emotional, but we really have to be fair with people. We’ve got to be fair with taxpayers," said Sweeney, who denied the bill was an attempt to eliminate collective bargaining. "I’m the guy that did paid family leave. I’m the one that did the minimum wage (increase). I’m absolutely pro-worker."

Anything above the current 1.5% they're paying and they come absolutely unglued. Is it any wonder they're not receiving an ounce of sympathy from those of us in the private sector who pay a much higher percentage?

By the way, when the shrill Ms. Rosenstein follows through on her promise to hold "lobby days," let's just hope her people don't leave seniors and dialysis patients stranded again.