Christopher J. Christie Jr.., A former federal Prosecutor known for corruption cases and a Republican, was elected governor of New Jersey in November 2009. The combative Mr. Christie has gained a national standing in the GOP through changes wrought locally.
In the first year of the Christie administration, lawmakers adopted a $ 29.3 billion budget, closing a deficit estimated at $ 11 billion with cuts to education, local Governments, tuition aid for college students, mass transit and tax breaks for the elderly and poor. They reduced pensions and benefits for public workers and raised employees' contributions to Those systems.
School districts reacted to the cuts with property tax increases, Helping propel a new state law limiting future increases. The governor and the Legislature enacted other laws limiting the power of public employees in bargaining with local Governments.
In 2011, Mr. Christie proposed a no-growth budget. Declaring That the deep cuts in 2010 Had established "the new normal," he carved out a modest increase of for public-school aid, municipal aid Kept flat, Offered small increases for indigent care at Hospitals, financial aid for college students and set aside a bigger amount to support improvements in the state's vital transportation system.
Often the governor has adopted a damn-the-torpedoes tone, heaping ridiculous on his adversaries and the status quo. But he has turned out to be a far more deft than his detractors Politician - and even some supporters - Had expected, making compromises Few as he pursues a broad agenda for New Jersey's profligate was getting political scene.
To pay for his priorities, Mr. Rhetorical Christie has waged a war against the teachers 'and other public-sector unions and stepped up the pressure to slash Their members' health and retirement benefits.
In a major victory for Mr. Christie, New Jersey lawmakers in July approved a broad rollback of benefits for 750,000 government workers and retirees, the deepest cut in state and local costs in memory.


Background
Mr. Christie was appointed United States Attorney for New Jersey in 2002. Before that, he specialized in corporate securities and election law and worked on the 1988 presidential campaign of George H. W. Bush and as a top fund-Raiser for George W. During Mr. Bush. Bush's 2000 presidential run. He based his gubernatorial campaign almost entirely on his credentials as a corruption fighter, while battering Mr. Corzine for raising taxes.
After 44 people, many of Them Democratic officials and operatives in Jersey City, Hoboken and Several other communities, were the resource persons charged in a bribery sting in July 2009, Mr. Governor Corzine Christie accused of lacking the character and courage to reform what he called "the broken state living in We Are All." (A Justice Department report released in November 2010 showed Mr. That Pls. Christie was a top federal Prosecutor, he routinely billed taxpayers for hotel stays Whose cost exceeded government guidelines.)
Mr. Corzine's popularity nosedived along with New Jersey's economic Fortunes.
In August 2009, Mr. Christie's campaign was jolted by news That he Lent $ 46,000 to one of his top aides in 2007 but failed to disclose it in his financial records. A contrite and humble-Mr. Christie apologized for failing to report the loan on his tax returns and financial-disclosure forms. The aide, Michele A. Brown, resigned less than two weeks later.
But Mr.. Christie overcame a huge Democratic voters-registration advantage and a Relentless Barrage of negative commercials to defeat Mr. Corzine, an unpopular incumbent WHO outspent him by more than two to one and drew heavily on the political help from the White House, including three visits to the state from President Obama.


 
The Budget
After taking office, Mr. Christie found Himself facing a budget gap estimated That he at $ 11 billion. On March 16, 2010, he Presented his first budget proposal, a $ 29.3 billion That plan relied almost exclusively on spending cuts to reverse the sagging Fortunes of a state he sees as Battered by the recession and choking on its tax burden.
Mr. Christie Called for the layoffs of state workers 1.300, closings of state psychiatric institutions, an $ 820 million cut in aid to public schools, and Nearly a half-billion dollars less in aid to towns and cities. He also suspended until May 2011 a popular property-tax rebate program, breaking one of his own campaign promises.
The April school-budget elections capped weeks of political drama of the between Governor Christie and the state's largest teachers' union, the New Jersey Education Association, over his Efforts to pressure teachers to renegotiate Their contracts.
Mr. Christie exhorted New Jerseyans to use the budget votes to take a stand against school spending, particularly in districts where unions refused to freeze wages. The results suggest That people Listened: Statewide, voters turnout rose to 26.7 percent from 15 percent in 2009.
A week after voters rejected 58 percent of school district budgets put to a vote across the state, some 18.000 students Walked out of class in one of the largest grass-roots demonstrations to hit New Jersey in years.
The state budget for the fiscal year began July 1 That is almost $ 3 billion Smaller than the one passed in 2009, and more than $ 5 billion less than the peak spending year, 2007-8. It closed a deficit the governor's office That Had projected at $ 11 billion.
Mr. Christie's reputation for cost cutting has not always included Apparently Himself. A report from the Justice Department's inspector general, released in November 2010, Examined travel expenses for the 208 People who served as a United States attorney from 2007 to 2009. Mr. Christie's tenure was from 2002 to 2008. The report spoke of five who "exhibited a noteworthy pattern of Exceeding the government rate and Whose travel documentation provided insufficient, inaccurate or no justification for the higher lodging rates."
While the report did not identify anyone by name, the travel patterns of an official called "U.S. Attorney C "- the one" who most Often exceeded the government rate without adequate justification "in terms of percentage of travel - about Mr. match records. That Christie were the resource persons released in the 2009 governor's race by Mr.. Corzine, his Democratic rival.

 
A Stumble on Schools
In late August 2010, Mr. Christie suffered a triple embarrassment over the state's failed application for a federal "Race to the Top" education funds. First CAME That the revelation of New Jersey's application omitted Had a simple piece of data - the state's 2008-9 spending on education - that was required to show a continuing commitment to supporting schools. Including That number would have raised the state's score enough to win the $ 400 million it sought.
At a news conference on May. 25, 2010, Mr. Christie assailed federal officials for not crediting the state for the information, saying the state's education commissioner, Brett Schundler, Had the numbers given orally to federal education officials in an interview Earlier in the month to review the application. That prompted the second embarrassment, Pls federal officials released a video recording of the session showing That Pls asked about the missing data, Mr. Schundler and his staff were the resource persons Unable to come up with it.
The third blow CAME after the governor fired the commissioner. Mr. Schundler hit back, saying the governor Had defamed him and knowingly misstated his role. He said That he Had Mr. repeatedly toll. Christie and his aides That Had he not given the numbers to the federal officials, but that the governor Had That made the claim anyway to deflect Blame onto the Obama administration.
Major Victory Over Unions
In June 2011, New Jersey lawmakers approved a rollback of benefits for 750,000 government workers and retirees, in what was a major victory for Mr. Christie and the deepest cut in state and local costs in memory.
In a statement released after the vote, Mr. Christie said, "We are putting the people first and online to touch the third rail of politics in order to bring reform to an unsustainable system."
The legislation will from sharply increase of what state and local workers must Contribute for Their health insurance and pensions, suspend cost-of-living increases to retirees 'pension checks, raise retirement ages and Curb the unions' contract bargaining rights. It will from local and state Governments save $ 132 billion over the next 30 years, by the administration's estimate, and give the troubled benefit systems a sounder financial footing, Mostly by shifting costs onto workers.
The fight over benefits reflected Both Mr. Christie's ability to exploit the divisions Among Democrats, through his alliances with more conservative Democratic legislators and party bosses, and his success at using the public-sector unions as a foil in his drive to shrink government spending. It has also allowed a nationally known but highly polarizing governor to claim the mantle of bipartisan Conciliation, telling audiences That New Jersey is setting an example That other states and the federal government Should follow.
In his campaign to rein in the unions and shrink government, Mr.. Often Christie has been helped by New Jersey's unique political culture, where local political machines Dominate still some areas, and many state legislators also hold local government jobs. That Gives striking influence in Trenton to Mayors, county executives and local party bosses WHO struggle with rising labor costs and have repeatedly sided with the governor's push to cut benefits and wages.
Until recently, the public employee unions were the resource persons Among the most feared forces in state politics. They were the resource persons a major source of votes, campaign cash and foot soldiers for Democrats, but officials in Both parties were the resource persons eager to please Them. For years, Governors and legislators from Both parties Their sweetened pension benefits but did not put any money into the system to pay for Them.
As a result, the state's pension funds are Among the most underfunded in the nation - last year estimated at $ 54 billion short of the amount needed to meet future obligations. Mr. Christie and others have warned That mounting pension and health care costs Could eventually bankrupt the state and local Governments.

Related Posts