Opinion: Protecting the wealthy

The Record
July 2, 2012
Lou Greenwald

DEMOCRATS approved legislation to help low-income New Jerseyans needing legal services.

Governor Christie vetoed it.

Democrats approved helping women obtain quality health care.

Governor Christie vetoed it.

Christie’s war on New Jersey’s middle class marches onward. The governor’s mania to protect tax cuts for the mega-rich over providing property tax relief for the middle-class and senior citizens is appalling.

We gave the governor one more chance to help beleaguered homeowners across this state and once again he failed miserably.

Blatant effort to distract

Monday’s speech was a blatant attempt by the governor to distract from his opposition to middle-class New Jerseyans. The governor has made his choice – he will protect the mega-rich to the detriment of middle-class taxpayers.

In his desperation to deliver tax cuts to the wealthy during his audition for the vice presidency, Christie has put his own political ambitions ahead of New Jersey’s middle class. As he spouts distortions and slogans, the governor cannot escape the facts: He keeps protecting huge tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires while property taxes in New Jersey just keep rising.

Democrats wanted to correct that injustice but the governor simply wants to prolong it.

Democrats are not about to make the same mistake Republicans made with Gov. Christie Whitman and President Bush by passing tax cuts that cannot be paid for and contributed to economic turmoil.

But what the governor did highlight was his continued opposition to middle-class and senior-citizen property tax relief, even as he’s overseen a net 20 percent property tax hike.

That is not the message New Jerseyans want to hear, especially from a governor breaking his promise to fully restore property tax relief.

Support for millionaires and opposition to property tax relief is not what New Jerseyans wanted when they elected Christie as governor.

Repeated vetoes

Democrats have sent the governor tax relief and this governor has repeatedly vetoed it. Just on Friday he vetoed a plan to increase income tax relief for the working poor. And on Monday he vetoed a plan to triple property tax relief funding under the state’s existing property tax relief credit program.

The plan would have helped middle-class and senior citizens, but the governor would have none of it.

And Democrats have agreed to give additional tax relief if the revenues are there, but let’s be clear — Christie has presided over a 9.2 percent unemployment rate, a gross domestic product ranking 47th among the states and revenue collections that have consistently come in below projections.

An additional 1,000 jobs were lost last week when Roche announced it was leaving the state.

Failings

Time and time again the governor has failed when it comes to tax relief and helping working class residents. Tax relief is not something that should be subject to the governor’s political theater and misleading statements.

Enough with the theatrics. Enough with the tax breaks for the uber-rich. Enough with the opposition to middle-class property tax relief.

Democrats have given Christie numerous chances to prove his tax-cutting worth, and the governor has failed over and over again. Actions speak louder than words, and the actions prove this governor has overseen a net 20 percent property tax hike while rejecting middle-class property tax relief and vetoing income tax relief for the working poor.

Again, actions speak louder than words, and the governor’s actions prove real middle-class tax relief is not his real priority.

Lou Greenwald, D-Camden, is Assembly Majority Leader.