New Jersey Closed

Jon Corzine, the governor of my State, shut down the government today because he can't reach an accord with his fellow Democrats in the legislature over a budget. Corzine wants to raise the sales tax and his fellow Dems see that as political suicide.

If this continues for any length of time, it will be a huge problem for a whole lot of people. The Atlantic City casinos have to shut down because the State inspectors are not available. The DMV is closed, so those needing to renew or obtain drivers' licenses will be locked out. The liquor licensing commission is closed, so many bars and restaurants that need to renew their licenses will close. The state parks are about to close on the 5th of July. Welfare checks will not be available, etc., etc.

I don't have a good solution for this, but it sure doesn't bode well for the future of the Democratic Party in this state. It probably won't help Menendez in his Senate race against Tom Kean, Jr., either.

Meanwhile, Tom Kean, Jr. has adopted the Rove strategies. From what I can tell, he's produced a full length movie on Menendez' life that's full of distortions that he plans to have run in local movie theaters. Frankly, I don't know why anyone would want to go see it, but who knows?