New Jersey takes a lot of abuse from late night comedians and others who haven't a clue. Where I live in South Jersey, you could drive for miles and see nothing but pine trees and corn fields. Granted, Northeastern Jersey is a sewer that we'd like to cede to New York but they won't take them, but I digress. We don't need anymore bad press than we already get so the arrests of 11 politicians in a bribery scandal is not helping our case.

Corruption in the Garden State is nothing new, hell, this is the state that the Soprano's was filmed in and it wasn''t too long ago that organized crime was flourishing from Bayonne to Atlantic City and over to Camden. Unions now rule and the politicians will do anything to secure their votes. Our long, proud history of corruption also includes the Abscam scandal--one of Representative John Murtha's shining moments. In the last five years, over 100 politicians in the state have been convicted of some crime.

As we speak, former Senator and now Governor Jon Corzine is fighting serious charges related to his ex-girlfriend who he showered money upon and leads one of the most powerful unions in the entire state. Add that to the resignation (for corruption of course) of U.S. Senator Bob Torricelli and the scandalous way the Democrats cheated state law to get Robert Menendez on the ballot (Menendez stayed true to N.J. Democrat form and got himself into an ethics scandal) and you have an idea of just how strong the Democratic machine is in this state. I haven't even mentioned Jim McGreevey and his secret trysts with anonymous men at truckstops throughout the state.

Update (9/7/07 1606): Another Dem scandal and guess whose name arises again? Rep. John Murtha and this one is $9-million+ in lost funds.

There's an interesting article at NJ.com about speculation that Democrat Senator Frank Lautenberg might resign, primarily because of new polling that shows that New Jersey voters think that the senator, at 83, is too old to seek another term next year. In that case, it would be up to Democrat Gov. Jon Corzine to appoint a new senator, his second senatorial appointment. That would enable the newly appointed senator to run as an incumbent, a huge advantage.

First, the poll:

But the Quinnipiac University Poll July 9 was more unkind toward Lautenberg. It said 54 percent of those polled believe Lautenberg, 83, is too old to serve another six-year term in the U.S. Senate. Another 40 percent said he's not too old. Even Democrats, by a 49-44 percent margin, said Lautenberg is too old. So did Republicans, 62-35 percent, and independents did the same, 51-41 percent...The poll found only 31 percent said he deserved to be re-elected; 42 percent said he doesn't.

Next, the all too familiar New Jersey Democrats' solution:

If Lautenberg stepped aside, merely speculation, Gov. Jon S. Corzine of Hoboken would be expected to appoint Andrews {Rep. Rob Andrews, D-Haddon Heights} - just as he did then-Rep. Robert Menendez of Hoboken, which could become a habit in Democratic New Jersey.

Nothing can stop the New Jersey Democratic Party from doing this, but I'm wondering if the electorate in that state might be getting a bit tired of the party's gaming of the system.

This case just keeps getting more interesting. In 2004, the Senator Jon Corzine broke up with his girlfriend Carla Katz. As she does now, Katz is the leader of Communications Workers of America Local 1034. The CWA is one of the strongest unions in America.

It was previously revealed that Corzine forgave a $470,000 loan to Katz she used for a mortgage. The media have been burying this story to this point, but now it's too big to cover up any longer:

It (the NY Times report--ed) said its investigation found no clear explanation as to why Corzine paid the money, although it said Katz once threatened to stage a news conference to embarrass Corzine as they were breaking up.

According to the newspaper, the agreement included a trust for Katz's two children, now 12 and 15, to attend college; a sport-utility vehicle that cost about $30,000; and a cash payment used by Katz to buy a $1.1 million condominium in the same building where Corzine lives.

All told, it adds up to $6,000,000. Now the next logical question would be why would Corzine give an ex-girlfriend all that money? What could she have said in the news conference that would "embarrass" Corzine? It just doesn't make sense that Corzine would pay an ex six million big ones, even with his money. It just doesn't add up.

New Jersey Republicans are going for the jugular and if more details come out that implicate Corzine in paying hush money, things could ge ugly for the Guv:

"The time line established by the New York Times leaves little room to conclude anything other than that candidate Corzine paid Ms. Katz $6 million to keep her silent and that the payout schedule was designed to give her the appropriate incentive to keep quiet," said Wilson. "If that's true, Gov. Corzine would have no choice but to resign immediately."

New Jersey, it's not only the Garden State but the state where every governor gets involved in deep scandal as fast as possible.

Our old buddy Barbara Boxer is not happy, but then, when is she ever based on this speech:

I know this is a very hard and emotional week given everything that's happened," Boxer said at the opening of a speech on global warming in Washington, D.C. She then listed "continuing violence in Iraq ... the accident that our good, dear friend Gov. Corzine is suffering from, the Virginia Tech tragedy ... and today a Supreme Court decision that I believe endangers women's health."

Got that? I understand that every death in Iraq is sad and the VA Tech murders were appalling. Why didn't she just stop there? To go on and list a car accident involving my governor when his driver was speeding and he wasn't wearing a seat belt then segue into a woe is me attitude about the Supreme Court's decision to outlaw a horrific procedure is appalling. The fact that she also added global warming to the mix is absolutely reprehensible.

I'm sorry senator, I just can't see the correlation between soldiers and Marines dying and 32 people murdered juxtaposed with a one degree rise in temperature over thirty years and the banning of a procedure that involves a needle in a baby's skull. Maybe I'm just sane or something. Especially when we had a storm that dumped a foot of snow on the northeast in the middle of April.

That is the liberal mind in a nutshell; global warming and a ban on killing babies as they are born is right up there with soldiers being killed and a gunman laying waste to thirty two people then sending a video out bragging about it. What a depressing world it must be to live in as a liberal. Note that the VA Tech murders were listed after the Corzine accident. Priorities Senator, priorities.

New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine was seriously injured in a hit and run accident on the Garden State Parkway in South Jersey:

When Corzine arrived at the hospital, doctors said he was conscious but had suffered several injuries: a femur bone broken in two places that had lacerated his skin, a broken sternum, six broken ribs on each side, a head laceration and a minor fracture on a lower vertebrae.

Ostrum said Corzine did not have any brain or spinal damage. And the governor's injuries were not considered life-threatening.

Corzine was on his way to a meeting between Don Imus and the Rutgers women's basketball team at the time of the crash. A breathing tube was inserted to ensure that his breathing is steady.

Jon Corzine is a major money man for the Democrats. He is a serious fund-raiser who will be courted by every presidential candidate. With the NJ state legislature moving the primary up to February, the state will become a major campaigning area for the candidates, especially the Democrats as New Jersey is about the bluest of the blue states.

Previously on 'The Stump':
· Endorsements, Endorsements, Endorsements
· The Man Who Could've Been President

Jon Corzine has enjoyed a meteoric rise in politics. The former executive for Goldman-Sachs bought his way to the Senate. In the midst of his first term in the Capitol, he realized that most senators who run for president don't win so he embarked on a gubernatorial campaign and was elected governor of New Jersey.

Corzine clearly has his sights set on the White House and would have at least a shot at getting the nomination if he could do the one thing that has eluded New Jersey governors for the last three decades: lowering property taxes. He made this his primary mission during his campaign and to his credit pushed some good ideas for achieving that goal. The only thing he failed to realize is that the Democrat-led legislature would have to play along and they have too much stake in maintaining the status quo. I completely believe that should he have succeeded at this, he would've declared for president.

Corzine proposed to consolidate school districts throughout the state in large districts with one school board instead of the hundreds of school boards we currently have, which each have their own elected board. The cost for each student in New Jersey is a staggering $12,000 per year. That money comes not from the state, but from local property taxes. approximately two-thirds of all property taxes go to schools and property taxes average north of $6,000 per year. In many communities, such as where I am writing these words, the taxes are as high as $9,000 annually.