Free Republic

Fiscal Policy: Too many of those pain-in-the-neck productive people living in your state, making everyone else look bad? Want to get rid of them? Let the Garden State show you how it's done through the tax code. At one time in the not-too-distant past, New Jersey was by some measures the wealthiest state in the country. No more. Wealth is fleeing at an alarming rate. Between 2004 and 2008, more than $70 billion in wealth headed for the exit, according to a new study by Boston College's Center on Wealth and Philanthropy. Worse, it's not being replaced. Though more people...

...BLIZZARD WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 4 PM FRIDAY TO 7 PM EST SATURDAY... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOUNT HOLLY HAS ISSUED A BLIZZARD WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 4 PM FRIDAY TO 7 PM EST SATURDAY. THE WINTER STORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT. A STORM SYSTEM DEVELOPING OVER THE GULF OF MEXICO TODAY WILL PASS OFF THE CAROLINA COAST FRIDAY NIGHT AND THEN CONTINUE TO THE NORTHEAST ON SATURDAY. SNOW FROM THIS SYSTEM WILL OVERSPREAD THE REGION FROM SOUTH TO NORTH FRIDAY AFTERNOON...THEN CONTINUE THROUGH MUCH OF SATURDAY. SNOWFALL TOTALS OF 12 TO 18 INCHES ARE EXPECTED...

Since this is originally from the AP click the link. Mainly, A plane carrying a news traffic reporter had a malfunction and landed on the New Jersey Turnpike.

New Jersey is expecting a "surge" of refugees from the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, which would create a humanitarian crisis and put new pressure on a state treasury already in peril, according to confidential documents obtained by The Star-Ledger.

An Amtrak train bound for Chicago was stopped suddenly Tuesday when a man began spouting terrorist threats.

Keith Ellison, widely hailed as America's first Muslim congressman, could more accurately be described as CAIR and Hamas' man in Congress. Congressman Ellison has been a regular presence at CAIR fundraisers and at pro-Hamas rallies in the United States. As a former member of Farrakhan's Nation of Islam , Ellison has enough anti-semitic and Islamist credentials to satisfy anyone, and had expressed openly anti-semitic beliefs in the past. Since Ellison got his start with CAIR , his attempt to provide support for Hamas is completely unsurprising. Both Hamas and CAIR are projects of the Muslim Brotherhood, which also helped...

The New Jersey Star-Ledge is reporting that police have apprehended one Lloyd Woodson, 43, of Reston, Virginia who had a grenade launcher and a weapons cache secreted in a Somerset County motel. When arrested, Woodson was wearing a "military-style ballistic vest with a reinforced steel plate and carrying a .223-caliber assault rifle that had been altered to fire .50-caliber ammunition." Read the rest at Publiusforum.com...

A Virginia man who once spent eight years on the run from naval investigators was arrested in Somerset County early today with a trove of high-powered weapons, including a grenade-launcher and two assault rifles, along with maps of a U.S. military base and a civilian neighborhood, authorities said. The federal government’s Joint Terrorism Task Force quickly joined the investigation into Lloyd R. Woodson, 43, who had been staying at a Branchburg motel since last week. Woodson, whose last known address was in Reston, Va., was wearing a bullet-proof vest and carrying one of the assault rifles — customized to shoot...

Be sure to crack open a cold one on Jan. 24, the day canned beer celebrates its 75th birthday. New Jersey's Gottfried Krueger Brewing Company churned out the world's first beer can in 1935, stocking select shelves in Richmond, Va., as a market test. The experiment took off and American drinkers haven't looked back since, nowadays choosing cans over bottles for the majority of the 22 gallons of beer they each drink per year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Canned brewskies may have only hit shelves in 1935, but the drink's history goes back much further — at least...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 21, 2010 Contact: Zach Goldberg 202-225-5801 (office) HOLT TO HOST TOWN HALL MEETING IN MARLBORO ON MONDAY, TELEPHONE TOWN HALL ON TUESDAY Washington – U.S. Representative Rush Holt (NJ-12) will host two listening sessions next week to talk about issues of concern to Central New Jersey residents, including the economy, health care, education, and national security. On Monday, January 25 at 7 p.m., Holt will host an in-person town hall in Marlboro at the Marlboro Memorial Middle School. The school is located at 71 Nolan Road in Marlboro. On Tuesday, January 26 at 7:45 p.m, Holt...

"We love to see healthy, happy pets" is PetSmart's motto — but apparently the policy doesn't apply to pets belonging to employees. Eric Favetta, a 31-year-old PetSmart employee, was fired for "theft of services" after bringing his dog to work during an overnight shift he'd picked up as a favor to his manager, according to the Newark Star-Ledger. (The Secaucus, N.J., store added an overnight shift in order to prep the store for a visit by officials from Martha Stewart's company, who wanted to discuss selling products at PetSmart.) Favetta — a former military dog handler who'd worked at PetSmart...

It would be great if we could organize a series of rallies all up and down the I-95 Corridor to cheer Scott Brown on as he drive the truck down to Washington DC. He is supposed to be driving down Thursday or Friday, so time is obviously short. Maybe it is just a fantasy, but wouldn't it be grand to have a Scott Brown Truck Tour, so all of the folks who weren't lucky enough to be in Massachusetts to vote for him got a chance to come out and show their support? Think of all the free publicity, and...

Today at noon Chris Christie relieves failed governor Jon Corzine and becomes the first Republican to serve New Jersey since RINO Christine Todd Whitman eight years ago. People are already wondering whether Christie will renege on his many campaign promises, such as reining in out-of-control spending in Washington and lowering our notoriously hight property taxes. I think he's going to try his hardest. He's already showed some big cajones by taking on the NJ teachers union. If certain

NEW JERSEY ELECTION CENTRAL If we are going to make a difference in the upcoming election, we need to KNOW the candidates. Please post the names of ALL your Congressional candidates on this thread along with any and all information available. We need names, positions, platforms, news articles, statements, pictures. We need to separate the RINOS from the Conservatives, and most of all, we need to get the liberals of either party OUT!We can do this if you help. I have started this thread. All you have to do is contribute a little time and a little research. Help...

TRENTON — The man once described by teachers’ union leaders as “the antithesis of everything we hold sacred about public education” was chosen to serve as state education commissioner by Governor-elect Christopher J. Christie on Wednesday. The nomination of Bret D. Schundler to the post underscored the governor’s determination to press ahead with his push for school vouchers, more charter schools and merit pay for teachers. It was the first selection by Mr. Christie to suggest even the possibility of a confirmation battle with Democrats, who control both houses of the Legislature. Thus far, the governor-elect has chosen nominees heavy...

"We spent a fortune to elect Barack Obama - $60.7 million to be exact - and we're proud of it," Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President Andrew Stern proclaimed last year. Now he and other labor leaders want a full return on their investment. "A full return," more than anything else, means getting Congress, the executive branch and the courts to transform labor law and policy into vehicles for a massive expansion of union membership and bargaining power. That goal surely would have been realized were it not for dogged and principled opposition. The 2008 presidential and congressional elections provided a...

We’re just days from the installment of Republican Chris Christie as New Jersey’s new governor. I admit I’ve had pangs of worry that, despite promises of changing the way business is done in heavily Democrat New Jersey, Christie was going to end up just another establishment elitist politician once he moved into Trenton. But my worries were assuaged by two bits of news, which I heard about this morning on NJ 101.5 FM. First, his appointment of anti-NJEA Republican Bret Schundler as education commissioner: N.J. Gov.-elect Christie targets teachers' union with Schundler appointmentTom Moran/ The Star-LedgerJanuary 13, 2010, 10:00PMTRENTON —...

The probe into a bizarre kidnapping in New Jersey and a related home invasion in Missouri has taken another wild turn with the arrest of a fourth suspect, a man who claims to be the son of Hell's Angels founder Sonny Barger. Deputy sheriffs arrested William James Barger, 48, early this week at a home outside Nevada, and he remained in custody Wednesday at the Vernon County Jail without any bond set. Warrants were issued late Tuesday charging Barger with 11 felonies as the purported ringleader behind a home invasion two months ago near the town of Richards. Authorities believe...

The Trinity United Methodist Church in Hackettstown, NJ is praying for 15 missing members who are in Haiti. The missionaries went to Haiti to deliver medical supplies to Grace’s Children Hospital in Port-au-Prince.

·11250 Waples Mill Road ·   Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683   Two Against Two: Bloomberg And Lautenberg Pair Up To Violate The Second And Fourteenth Amendments   Friday, December 04, 2009   Is your name the same as, or similar to, that of someone on the FBI’s “terrorist watchlist?”  Or, have you been erroneously placed on the watchlist?  You can’t find out because the FBI won’t say exactly why people get watchlisted, won’t say who has been watchlisted, and therefore doesn’t offer watchlisted people the chance to clear their names immediately.  In fact, small children, federal air marshals, military personnel who have...

The Star-Ledger reports that once again the Department of Justice is interfering with testing--this time for New Jersey policement--based on "disparate impact:" New Jersey's civil service test for police officers seeking a promotion to sergeant discriminates against African-American and Hispanic candidates, according to a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice Thursday. Even African-Americans and Hispanics who pass the multiple-choice test are less likely to receive promotions because their scores are lower, according to the 10-page lawsuit filed against the state and the Civil Service Commission. The suit seeks to block the state from using the test. At least...

New Jersey Senate Defeats Gay Marriage Bill AP New Jersey's state Senate has defeated a bill to legalize gay marriage, the latest in a string of setbacks for advocates. TRENTON, N.J. -- New Jersey's state Senate has defeated a bill to legalize gay marriage, the latest in a string of setbacks for advocates. The defeat, by a vote of 20-14, likely ends any chance that the state Legislature approves gay marriage soon. Five senators did not vote; there is one Senate vacancy. Gay rights advocates had been pushing hard for the bill because on Jan. 19, new Republican Gov. Chris...

Quote: Update: TSA seeking man who may not have been screened at Newark Airport; passengers being moved from 'sterile' to public area - CNN less than a minute ago from BreakingNews Headquarters Security breach leads to lockdown at Newark Airport's Terminal C; male passenger being sought - CNN 10 minutes ago from BreakingNews Headquarters

New population figures give a boost to the GOP By: Chris StirewaltPolitical EditorDecember 28, 2009 The 2010 census is sure to be controversial.Republicans will thunder about the community organizers who get hired to do the counting, and Democrats will wail that the homeless and migrant workers are undercounted.But in the final pre-count estimate just released by the Census Bureau, we already have a broad idea of where the results are headed and what they will mean politically.The numbers are cause for alarm for Democrats.Of the states gaining House seats -- Texas (three) and Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah...

A brutal attack on an eighth-grade New Jersey honor student has left the young teen recovering in the hospital, shocking students and outraging administrators at his suburban middle school, WCBSTV.com reported. Police said up to eleven students at Janis Dismus Middle School in Englewood beat up 13-year-old David Muneton, leaving him severely injured, the Web site reported. Muneton has been in the hospital since he was attacked Friday. He has undergone facial reconstructive surgery to mend broken bones and may lose his sight. "It's so hard ... I'm his best friend," said fellow student Denise Melendez, according to WCBSTV.com. Investigators...

TRENTON -- Gov.-elect Chris Christie and his transition aides are compiling plans to slash New Jersey state spending and state programs by as much as 25 percent in response to the continuous flow of dim financial news from the New Jersey Treasury Department, according to an internal document obtained by The Star-Ledger. Even before he takes office next month, his team is looking for programs that can be eliminated entirely and calling on state administrators to find untapped federal funds to cover whatever they possibly can.

18 states allow for recall votes on US Senators. The 18 states allowing for recall are as follows: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin. The Senate oath of office is: I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well...

 TRENTON, NJ — The New Jersey Senate’s health committee on December 7 passed a bill that would require fluoride to be added to public water supplies throughout the state, The Star-Ledger reported December 8. Environmental advocates, utility companies and some parents object to the bill (A3709/S2856), which would require public and private water utilities to start adding fluoride within a year of the law’s enactment. Some lawmakers say the bill would be too costly to the consumer, yet the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee voted 6-0 with three abstentions to approve the bill. There are more than...

The man who sucker-punched Jersey Shore’s Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi in promotional clip that quickly went viral, it turns out, is a New York City public school teacher, according to The New York Post.

I am having an email argument/discussion with my son's social studies teacher. He distributed a study guide about how unfair it was that the founding fathers at the Constitutional Convention did not include African Americans, Native Americans, women and poor people. I discussed with my son who is 12, that the only people who received an education at the time were white wealthy land owning men. I disagree with the use of the word unfair and let the teacher know my feelings politely. It was indicative of the era. Why would we send uneducated people to a meeting to start...

I am having an email argument/discussion with my son's social studies teacher. He distributed a study guide about how unfair it was that the founding fathers at the Constitutional Convention did not include African Americans, Native Americans, women and poor people. I discussed with my son who is 12 that the only people who received an education at the time were white wealthy land owning men. I disagree with the use of the word unfair and let the teacher know my feelings politely. It was indicative of the era. Why would we send uneducated people to a meeting to start...

DALI, China — Justin Franchi Solondz, an environmental activist from New Jersey who spent four years evading charges of ecoterrorism in the United States by hiding out in this backpacker haven, was convicted by a Chinese court on Friday of manufacturing drugs. After serving a three-year sentence, Mr. Solondz, 30, who is on the F.B.I.’s most wanted list, will be deported to the United States, where he faces charges stemming from what the authorities say was his role in an arson rampage that destroyed buildings in three western states as a member of a group related to the environmental extremist...

DALI, China — Justin Franchi Solondz, an environmental activist from New Jersey who spent years evading charges of ecoterrorism in the United States by hiding out in China, was sentenced to three years in prison by a local court on Friday on charges of manufacturing drugs in this backpacker haven. After serving his time, Mr. Solondz, 30, who is on the F.B.I.’s wanted list, will be deported to the United States, where he faces charges stemming from what the authorities say was his role in an arson rampage that destroyed buildings in three western states as a member of a...

Note: The following text is a quote: Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMonday, November 23, 2009 Arrests Made in Case Involving Conspiracy to Procure Weapons, Including Anti-Aircraft Missiles Arrests were made today in a case involving a conspiracy to procure weapons, including anti-aircraft missiles. A criminal complaint, unsealed today, charged Dani Nemr Tarraf with conspiring to acquire anti-aircraft missiles (FIM-92 Stingers) and conspiring to possess machine guns (approximately 10,000 Colt M4 Carbines). In addition, Tarraf and other defendants — including Douri Nemr Tarraf, Hassan Mohamad Komeiha, and Hussein Ali Asfour — were charged with conspiring to...

MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. (AP) - One day after signing with the San Diego Chargers, Jon Runyan says he'll retire at the end of the season and run for Congress in New Jersey. The 35-year-old offensive lineman said Wednesday that he told Republican officials in Burlington County of his plans to challenge Democratic Rep. John Adler in New Jersey's 3rd District. "I look forward to a successful end to my career on the field," Runyan said in a statement, "and a spirited campaign against Congressman Adler in 2010."

SNIPPET: “In about less than a week, India will mark the first anniversary of the Mumbai terror attacks. After the US’ Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s Chicago breakthrough, now Italy has achieved some headway in the investigations relating to last year’s terror events(26/11). The Italian police have arrested, after almost a year long monitoring and surveillance, two Pakistani nationals (Father and Son duo) from Brescia city who are accused of sending funds from their money transfer agency and providing the logistical support to Pakistani terrorists. The suspects Mohammad Yaqub Janjua and Aamer Yaqub Janjua, owners of the Madina Trading telephone...

More than 150 leaders across a spectrum of conservative Christianity on Friday released a 4,700-word document vowing civil disobedience if they are forced to take part in "anti-life acts" or bless gay marriages. Called the "Manhattan Declaration," the six-page, single-spaced document was drafted by Prison Fellowship founder Charles Colson, an evangelical, and Princeton University professor Robert P. George, a Roman Catholic, and included a bevy of Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox bishops, archbishops and cardinals as signatories along with dozens of clergy and laity. Archbishop of Washington Donald W. Wuerl is one of the signatories. "Throughout the centuries, Christianity has taught...

MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. — Former NFL player Jon Runyan says he's considering running for Congress. In a statement issued Wednesday by the Burlington County Republican Committee, Runyan says he believes the country is being taken in the wrong direction by career politicians. Runyan, an offensive lineman, played 13 seasons in the NFL, the last nine with the Philadelphia Eagles. The 36-year-old is out of football this season, though he's talked to the Eagles and other teams about coming back. If he runs for Congress, it would be in New Jersey's 3rd District, which stretches from the Philadelphia suburbs to central...

From Yemen, Anwar Awlaki Helped Inspire Fort Dix, Toronto Plots Despite Terror Connections, E-mails with Major Hasan Did Not Raise Red Flags By RICHARD ESPOSITO, REHAB EL-BURI, and BRIAN ROSS Nov. 11, 2009 — In addition to his contacts with Major Nidal Hasan, the radical American cleric, Anwar al Awlaki, served as an inspiration for men convicted in terror plots in Toronto and Fort Dix, New Jersey, according to government officials and court records reviewed by ABCNews.com. Despite his ties to other plots, including the one against the Army post at Fort Dix, some 20 e-mails between Awlaki and Major...

Now that the gubernatorial election is over, Republicans in Burlington, Ocean and Camden Counties are starting to focus on recruiting someone to take on freshman U.S. Rep. John Adler (D-Cherry Hill) next year. There is a deep bench of potential candidates, but some Republicans have one in mind who could clear the field: Philadelphia Eagles legend Jon Runyan, a Mount Laurel resident. Sources tell PolitickerNJ.com that Assemblywoman Dawn Addiego (R-Evesham) - who knows Runyan because their children attend school together - has talked to him about running. Runyan, who is not currently active in the NFL but has not retired,...

In his election-night acceptance speech, New Jersey Gov.-elect Chris Christie aimed straight at the Garden State's entrenched political class, vowing to "turn Trenton on its head." As his victory suggests, many residents would welcome such dramatic reform. He has the opportunity to harness popular anger with the previous administration and make real reforms. Christie inherits a state that's in arguably the worst financial condition in its 233- year history. Last year's $7 billion shortfall, closed with stimulus dollars and tax hikes, has resurfaced at an even larger $8 billion for 2010. Residents face crippling property taxes (an average of $7,000...

Harding Township Manages To Keep Taxes Very Low Because Residents Volunteer, Do Many Things Themselves HARDING TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS) ― Across the Hudson River where property taxes are a hot button issue, homeowners in one New Jersey town know how to get more bang for their buck. What's Harding Township's secret? Lawmakers keep those taxes down and residents happy. It's a secret the residents don't want the rest of the state to know about -- how they've managed keep their property taxes down. When you step into Harding Township you feel like you've gone back in time. Horses, farms, barely...

Barack Obama and the Democrats want you to know they had a good week. Last Tuesday Republicans threw away a New York congressional seat they had held for a century, preferring to fight each other than win an easy contest. Excellent, say Democrats. Civil war in the Republican party augurs well for next year’s mid-term elections. What’s that, you say? Oh, yes, Democrats did lose the governorships of New Jersey and Virginia, with huge swings to the other side, but this was to be expected with the economy in such bad shape. Read nothing into that, say Democratic strategists. Still...

In November 2008, 658,000 Americans under 30 voted in New Jersey and 782,000 did so in Virginia. In November 2009, 212,000 Americans under 30 voted in New Jersey and 198,000 did so in Virginia. In other words, young voter turnout this year was down two-thirds in New Jersey and three-quarters in Virginia

Pfizer (PFE) has laid off 26,300 employees since 2005, and hopes eventually to lay off a total of 30,900 through 2012, according to its 10-Q filing with the SEC. The company had several rounds of layoffs before its acquisition of Wyeth in an attempt to get $6 billion in annual savings out of its business model. The company has said it wants to ax about 19,500 jobs to make the Wyeth merger work. The new company will have about 130,000 workers. The layoffs are ongoing, Pfizer said: In the third quarter of 2009, we reduced our workforce by approximately 1,100...

Full County Results for New Jersey with results for most towns.

In Ohio, citizens marched to the polls on Tuesday and voted to allow gambling casinos in the state. This was obviously a message to President Obama that independent voters are not happy with the way the health care bill is going. Really, I don’t see how else you can interpret it. Ohioans were looking forward to the lower insurance costs that would come with a robust public option, and if the president can’t deliver, they’re planning to pay their future medical bills with their winnings at the roulette wheel. Also, people here in Cincinnati rejected a proposal that would have...

In the process, they blew the opportunity to send a solid Reaganite to Washington. Now it turns out Dede is a turncoat (so much for party loyalty). Again, the fact that Doug Hoffman, an unknown, lost by only four percentage points clearly demonstrates a shift to the Right—not necessarily to Republicans.

Tuesday's GOP gubernatorial sweep revealed an electorate deeply anxious about jobs, the state of the economy and the wider Obama agenda. We realize we sound like St. Jude, the patron saint of lost causes, but if the Democratic establishment wants to avoid a repeat in 2010 they'll dump their current ambitions and start over.--snip--Democrats entered this year well positioned to get political credit for a recovering economy, whether or not their policies had much to do with it. Yet a year later their willy-nilly expansion of government is creating fear and uncertainty that are inhibiting the animal spirits crucial to...

Thought you might want to see the red/blue divide in New Jersey, comparing the 2008 and 2009 elections. Red/Blue NJ, 2008 presidential Red/Blue NJ, 2009 gubernatorial