please stop lying. the US is not a centrally planned economy. seriously mods why haven't you banned him for rampent violations of the forums rules. not to mention his massive intelectual dishonesty.
Christie Earns NJ Another Rating Downgrade Fiscal Responsibility and the Republican Way Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Well, there is Kansas, and we would all enjoy a hearty laugh if the fiscal disaster there did not carry such severe human implications. But as the trickle-down model fails the Sunflower State spectacularly, a growing spectre looms over New Jersey, and it has nothing to do with the George Washington Bridge: Wall Street analysts at Fitch Ratings today downgraded New Jersey's bond rating for the second time this year, citing the state's poor economic performance, Gov. Chris Christie's rosy revenue forecasts — which failed to materialize — and his decision to plug the resulting budget gap by cutting $2.4 billion in funding for the state's strained pension system. Fitch said Christie's decision to cut the pension payments this year marked a "repudiation" of a bipartisan plan he signed to fix the beleaguered retirement system for public workers, which is underfunded by nearly $40 billion, according to state estimates. Instead of pumping bigger cash infusions every year into workers' retirement accounts to save them from collapse — as Christie and lawmakers agreed to do in his first term — New Jersey is now stepping away from its plan, Fitch said. "Following significant revenue underperformance, the state relied upon the repudiation of its statutory contribution requirements to the pension systems to return to budgetary balance, exacerbating a key credit weakness," the Fitch analysts wrote in a note to investors, lowering their rating on the state's debt from A+ to A. Salvador Rizzo also notes that Fitch is hardly alone; earlier this year, Moody's and S&P also downgraded New Jersey's bond rating. Then again, it works out nicely for Republicans, who loathe the obligations of the public trust: "Every time the rating goes lower, the state's borrowing costs for major projects such as schools and road upgrades are likely to increase." If Christie is succeeded by a Democrat, you can expect to hear Republicans howling about the cost increases, and the only real question is whether anyone will remember why those particular costs are rising. But this is what trickle-down gets. We've seen it on the national level, and now we're seeing it play out in particularly determined states. The result is consistent and predictable. While Christie continues to posture himself as a presidential candidate for 2016, despite the growing corruption scandal that has rocked his administration and personal credibility, voters can now add another bond rating downgrade to the governor's résumé. In which case the question becomes, "Christie is running for president? Why?" ____________________ Notes: Rizzo, Salvador. "Fitch downgrades N.J. debt, saying Christie is repudiating his pension reform". 5 September 2014. NJ.com. 8 September 2014. http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ss...ristie_is_repudiating_his_pension_reform.html
Why is he running for president? Well, isn't it obvious? If he can tank the economy of the entire country, nobody will complain about the sorry state New Jersey is in!
Life's a Beached Whale, Rotting in the Sun ... Sometimes Couldn't See This Coming To the one, it isn't as spectacular as it sounds, since this is sort of the other shoe ... kind of. To the other, it is rather quite ... er ... ah ... something. Of magnitude. Significance. Whatever. You know, the sort of thing voters aren't really supposed to care about. In May, New Jersey's debt was downgraded for the sixth time since Gov. Chris Christie (R) took office. It was right around the time the governor scrapped his state pension-reform plan, once considered Christie's “landmark achievement.” Last week, Christie saw downgrade #7, which helped set the stage for today's news. New Jersey had its credit rating cut one step by Standard & Poor's, handing Chris Christie his eighth downgrade, the most ever for a Garden State governor. The reduction to A, the sixth-highest level, with a stable outlook follows a Sept. 5 downgrade by Fitch Ratings .... Only Illinois has lower ratings than New Jersey among U.S. states.In a press statement, S&P analyst John Sugden said, “New Jersey continues to struggle with structural imbalance. The governor's decision to delay pension funding, while providing the necessary tools for cash management and budget control, has significant negative implications for the state's liability profile.” When I noted the other day that Christie has only been in office five years, and he had time to break his own downgrade record, I didn't think it would happen quite this quickly.Steve Benen may or may not be overstating the point; last time it took more than a week for other ratings agencies to follow S&P on the downgrade path, but the two hits that did come closer together, in May, also likely considered the fact of the NJ FY end on June 30. Additionally, there is the fact that since the last downgrades NJ has shown no sign of caring about the downgrade. Michelle Kaske and Elise Young of Bloomberg reported yesterday: The reduction to A, the sixth-highest level, with a stable outlook follows a Sept. 5 downgrade by Fitch Ratings. It gives New Jersey the same general-obligation grade as California, which is on track for an upgrade as revenue exceeds Democratic Governor Jerry Brown's estimates. Only Illinois has lower ratings than New Jersey among U.S. states. “New Jersey continues to struggle with structural imbalance,” S&P analyst John Sugden in New York said in a statement today. “The governor's decision to delay pension funding, while providing the necessary tools for cash management and budget control, has significant negative implications for the state's liability profile.” Christie, a 52-year-old Republican in his second term, broke his promise this year to make $2.5 billion in extra pension payments in fiscal 2014 and 2015 to help trim unfunded obligations. He has called for more changes to the plan as costs for employee benefits crowd out other state spending. Revenue shortfalls led all three credit-ratings companies to downgrade New Jersey earlier this year, leaving Christie with six downgrades as of May, tying him with Democrat James McGreevey for the most credit reductions for a New Jersey governor. Last week, Fitch cited the lack of progress in fixing budget gaps when it cut the state one step to A. S&P's rating move also applied to appropriation-backed debt, which was lowered one step to A-. Yields on some tax-exempt bonds issued by the state's economic development authority rose today. Securities maturing in September 2023 changed hands with yields as high as 2.93 percent today, the highest since June, data compiled by Bloomberg show. While the Christie administration certainly has its reasons for refusing to cover pension shortfalls— • 2010: Pension deficit = $53.9b • 2011 (approx.): Pension deficit = $36.3b • 2012: Pension deficit = $47.2b • 2014: For fiscal 2014, which ended June 30, Christie contributed $696 million, less than half the planned $1.6 billion. Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson, ruling in Trenton on June 25 in a lawsuit filed by state worker unions, said Christie was within his power to reduce the payment because he faced a fiscal emergency. The judge declined to rule on Christie's fiscal 2015 plan to trim the contribution to $681 million from $2.25 billion. —it seems almost insultingly simple: When your deficits are rising and you are deliberately shortchanging current obligations in order to increase the deficit with no real intention of actually ever covering the shortfall, credit ratings agencies will certainly notice. For its part, the Christie administration responded to the downgrade by touting the new rating as a reason to invest in New Jersey and denigrating the ratings agencies as "being significantly overaggressive because they were such bums back in '08 and '09". I suppose it's kind of funny, then, in a way, to consider that the Tough Guy from New Jersey might well tout that Ukraine would be safe if he was president on the grounds that Vladimir Putin wouldn't dare fuck with Chris Freakin' Christie, but, you know, if we take the Governor's remarks about the ratings agencies at face value, it would seem that they, certainly, are willing to fuck with Chris Freakin' Christie. Then again ... they may not have an army, but are the ratings agencies more powerful than Vladimir Freakin' Putin? This shouldn't be fun, but Gov. Christie keeps making this show ... I don't know, more interesting? You know, proverbially speaking? With a heavy dose of dark humor and political slapstick? This shouldn't be fun, but the guy still seems to think he should be running for president. He's like a one-man show. You know, like Mike Daisey, except not well-intended. ____________________ Notes: Benen, Steve. "And then there were eight". msnbc. September 10, 2014. msnbc.com. September 11, 2014. http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/and-then-there-were-eight-0 Kaske, Michelle and Elise Young. "N.J. Rating Cut by S&P as Christie Gets Record Downgrade". Bloomberg. September 10, 2014. Bloomberg.com. September 11, 2014. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-...t-rating-lowered-by-one-step-to-a-by-s-p.html Glass, Ira. "Retracting 'Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory'". This American Life. March 16, 2012. ThisAmericanLife.org. September 11, 2014. http://www.thisamericanlife.org/blog/2012/03/retracting-mr-daisey-and-the-apple-factory
A republican governor in a liberal state can't do the job right if he wants to stay in office. Liberals like debt, tax, waste and crony capitalism, and if he does not accommodate they will elect someone who will accommodate. He is not acting like a republican governor in a republican state or the rating would be going in the other way. The republicans expect; less debt, less tax, more efficiency and free market.
We get those every 2 years regardless. Thank God for DVR s. I don't watch commercials as a general rule.
Except as is the norm with you, your assertions are not consistent with known facts. How go you explain Georgie Junior or more recently Governor Sam Brownback a Republican governor in a solid red state with a solid Republican legislature who is running unprecedented state deficits and debt while cutting services like road maintenance? Kansas has suffered 3 credit downgrades under his administration. The Kansas attorney General owns a business selling guns to the state and local governments, and that isn't crony capitalism?The state has been shifting utility costs and taxes from the ultra rich onto the average Joe and Jane. The well documented facts are democrats are more fiscally responsible and economic growth is stronger under democratic control. You are consistent if nothing else.
Is This What They Wanted? A remarkable piece from yesterday's All Things Considered, Don Gonyea reporting: Working in Brownback's favor is the fact that Republicans outnumber Democrats in the state by nearly 2-1. But there are lots of independents. And while they tend to vote overwhelmingly Republican, it's not at all certain they will this time. That leaves Brownback — who got just about everything he wanted in his first term — with eight weeks to convince a wary public that it's what they wanted, too. (Boldface accent added)____________________ Notes: Gonyea, Don. "A Promise Fulfilled Upends Kansas Governor's Race". All Things Considered. September 11, 2014. NPR.org. September 12, 2014. http://www.npr.org/2014/09/11/347689750/in-kansas-governors-race-a-tale-of-two-states
It's amazing, I think Kansans have had enough of the strict Republican ideology. They may even elect an independent as senator this year. I thought hell would freeze over first. Brownback has implemented the Republican Party planks word for word in Kansas as Brownback had high presidential hopes. Well, it is clear from the Kansas experiment that Republican ideology doesn't work.
