You might be from New Jersey...

Some years ago southern comedian Jeff Foxworthy made popular a series of jokes that became his trademark. These jokes began or contained the refrain “You might be a redneck…”.

He was poking fun at himself, one would think as a 'good ole southern feller' juuust might ---in the tradition of Jerry Clower, Andy Griffith and Minnie Pearl. Such jokes as “You might be a redneck if you've been married three times and still have the same in-laws." Or You might be a redneck if think TACO BELL is the Mexican Phone Company. Or your state's got a new law that says when a couple get divorced, they are still legally brother and sister.

If you like these, you can yuck it up some more with Foxworthy on either “Blue Collar Comedy” or the quiz show: “Are you smarter than a fifth grader?”

What got me thinking about all this was a conversation I had with a good ole Democrat buddy of mine in Flemington. He has lived in town just about a year, and is originally from Georgia.

He was asking me questions about New Jersey, “Like why do they call the beach “The Shore”? Or why does it always seem that Bruce Springsteen is singing about cars?” I said I did not know, because I am not from New Jersey, I was born in New York and raised in Brooklyn. Then he smugly replied in his slight Bill-Clinton-esque southern accent, “Well, you’d certainly know that information if you were from New Jersey. You might be from New Jersey if…”. His voice trailed off. But it got me thinkin'.

So, if you’re from New Jersey ---- please feel free to share your favorite, “You might be from New Jersey if …." phrases . We’ll call this the start of a summertime contest, and here are the rules:
I will name the winner when I think I have found one. And he/she/they will receive four free tickets to New Jersey’s preimier comedy club, Bananas, located in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey.

Here some starters purged from the ‘net:

You might be from New Jersey if…

• You live in a town with there are no self serve gas stations.
• You know what a "jug handle" is.
• You only go to the "City" for day trips.

And some I just wrote:

You might be from New Jersey if…

• You think Don Imus is an asshole.
• You know that the 65 MPH speed limit is merely a suggestion.
• You're tired of hearing New Jersey jokes on The Tonight Show, but laugh at them anyway.

May the best New Jerseyean win, [and void where prohibited by law.]

Bring Back Miss America to New Jersey....or Miss PA is next.

"In her quest to become Miss New Jersey, Amy Polumbo based her platform on Internet safety, cautioning about the dangers of online predators. Now, the 22-year-old Howell Township college student claims she is the victim of a different kind of Internet predator -- one who is using photographs she posted on her own Web site to blackmail her into relinquishing the crown she won three weeks ago.” (Spoto, Star-Ledger)

As soon as The Sopranos leave the airwaves, somebody tries to blackmail Miss New Jersey? Coincidence? I don’t think so. Did someone at the pageant forget to pay the protection money? Hmmm.

Actually, I think it’s the first salvo in an attempt to get back the Miss America pageant to Atlantic City.

For years, the pageant was New Jersey’s own. Hosted by the likes of Bert Parks, whose statue appears in the plaza between the Sheraton Hotel & Conference Center, and the AC Expo Center. Mr. Parks is holding a crown, and if you place your head in the crown juuuust right, he will sing his version of "There She Is, Miss America" just for you.

The hallways of the Sheraton Hotel are decorated with dresses and crowns of the Miss Americas of old: There is the first Miss America, Margaret Gorman from 1921 [who, quite frankly, looks a little like my grandmother]. There is the 1988 Miss America with too many names, Kay Lani Ray Rafko, [now married with even more names --- Kay Lani Ray Rafko Wilson]. And the completely unbeatable deaf 1995 Miss America, Heather Whitestone McCallum.

As matter of fact, they are only missing two things in AC with regard to the Miss America pageant:

A tribute to my favorite Miss America contestant, former Miss New Jersey 1995, Dena Blizzard. She is now a very funny mother and professional stand-up comedian.

And, of course, the Miss America contest itself.

Once hosted by Parks and filled with sappy and saccharine tradition, ---and predictably held each year in AC over Labor Day Weekend.

Now the contest has been moved to glitzy Las Vegas, and has lowered itself to being hosted by Mario Lopez [formerly of “Saved By The Bell” ----a show itself, riddled with scandal.]

Worse yet, they have no set date or location for this year. Is that sad or what?

So, the extortion of Miss NJ is just the beginning.

Bring back the pageant to New Jersey, or there will be consequences. You don’t want to know which state gets it next.

The Gostak distims the doshes: ACLU v. NSA, Round II

The New York Times, July 6th:

"A divided federal appeals court today dismissed a case challenging the National Security Agency’s program to wiretap without warrants the international communications of some Americans, reversing a trial judge’s order that the program be shut down."

"The majority in a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, in Cincinnati, ruled on a narrow ground, saying the plaintiffs, including lawyers and journalists, could not show injury direct and concrete enough to allow them to have standing to sue."

And, of course, how do you show that you have 'standing' ---- that you are an injured party and have been the victim of secret surveillance ----if it's secret?

The Gostak distims the doshes.

Top Ten Late-Night Jokes About Scooter Libby

I couldn't resist a Top Ten Late-Night Jokes List
About Scooter Libby.

After all, it is Friday.

10-"Earlier today, a federal judge sentenced Scooter Libby to 30 months in prison for lying. I believe prison is not the place to be when your nickname is Scooter." --Jay Leno

9- "Some speculate President Bush will pardon Libby right before he serves jail time, while others ... know he will." --Jon Stewart

8- "Scooter Libby was found guilty of perjury, obstruction, and making false statements -- or as the White House calls it, a press conference." --Bill Maher

7- "I say if Bush doesn't pardon him, at least he should give him a new nickname, because if you have Scooter on the back of your prison jump suit, you are just asking for it." --Bill Maher

6-"The Republican base is furious. They are saying it is wrong to convict someone of perjury and obstruction of justice unless there is proof of an underlying blow job." --Bill Maher


5- "Libby was indicted on two counts of obstruction of justice, three counts of perjury, and one count of not being as smart as Karl Rove." --Jon Stewart

4- "Personally, I think Libby got off easy -- usually when you take one for Cheney, it's a shot in the face" --Jay Leno

3-"In the Valerie Plame case, Scooter Libby was found not guilty ... on one of the five charges. ... But the media is instead focusing, of course, on the four counts of perjury, lying to the FBI and obstruction of justice for which Libby was convicted. It's typical. They always see the glass as 80% guilty." --Stephen Colbert

2- "Scooter Libby, who got indicted, has set up a legal defense fund to help pay his legal bills. It's pretty good, for a $1,000 donation you get a hand-written thank you note and the name of a CIA agent." --Jay Leno

And the number 1 Late-Night Joke About Scooter Libby:

1- "What did Scooter Libby say when he bumped into President Bush at the White House? ... Pardon me." --Jay Leno

Imus be Crazy

Is Don Imus making his way back to morning radio? Possibly so, according to that bastion of journalism excellence the New York Post:

While celebrating the sports station's 20th anniversary last Friday, Imus pals Mike Francesa and Chris Russo, of "Mike and the Mad Dog," hinted that a deal to bring the crusty talk-radio cowboy back is in the works.

"When we return to our regular schedule this September, I hope the team will once again be complete," Francesa said.

Imus has a lawsuit pending against CBS, the parent of WFAN. He claims in a breach of contract suit that he is stilled owed $40 million. So, with a big fan base, and a big pay check owed to Imus, maybe they will bring him back.

From Diversityinc.com, ----An article in the New York Daily News reported that WFAN was caught airing old episodes of the Imus show late last week.

Mark Chernoff, WFAN program director, commented on the broadcast, saying Imus' contribution to the station could not be ignored. "He was such a big part of the station for all those years," said Chernoff.

Should Imus come back? You be the judge.

Stay tuned, just not to WFAN.

Republicans about to take a right turn down a dead end street

From our friends at the Philly Inquirer:

"With the 120-member Legislature wrapping up the state budget last month, the political season is under way. And with every legislative seat up for grabs, Lance becomes one of the state's most important political figures as Republicans try to gain a share of power in Trenton...As the Democrats' power has grown, so have the conservative voices in Lance's own party, which argue that the GOP must run hard to the right to give voters an alternative. That's a tough fit for Lance, who is a fiscal conservative but a moderate on social issues and a favorite of environmentalists."



If the Repubs this year follow the likes of extreme right-wingers Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan, Assemblyman Mike Doherty, Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll, or Senator Tom Kean, Jr., etc ---- they will find themselves deeper and deeper in a political black hole.


New Jersey voters support stem-cell research.
They are pro-choice and pro-environment.
They oppose the War in Iraq and do not support President Bush.

Someone should buy the right-wing Repubs a clue.

"Congress Commutes Bush Sentence on the American People, Saying 19 More Months ‘Is Excessive’ "

The Republicans running for President are showing what spineless, slimy, 'law & disorder' folks they really are. Here is what some of them had to say about President 28%’s (and falling) commutation of the sentence for Scooter Libby:

TV DA: Fred Thompson:
"I am very happy for Scooter Libby. I know that this is a great relief to him, his wife and children. While for a long time I have urged a pardon for Scooter, I respect the President's decision.”

Former real-life Federal Prosecutor Rudy Giuliani:
“After evaluating the facts, the President came to a reasonable decision and I believe the decision was correct."

Clue to Rudy: This is a president who has no idea what the ‘facts’ are any day of the week. Obviously, neither one these former DAs, real or imagined, have any idea what real “Law & Order” is. They are both equally clueless.

The Democratic candidates were a bit more on target:

"This is exactly the kind of politics we must change so we can begin restoring the American people's faith in a government that puts the country's progress ahead of the bitter partisanship of recent years." - Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.

"This commutation sends the clear signal that in this administration, cronyism and ideology trump competence and justice." - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.

"The arrogance of this administration's disdain for the law and its belief it operates with impunity are breathtaking. Will the president also commute the sentences of others who obstructed justice and lied to grand juries, or only those who act to protect President Bush and Vice President Cheney?"
- New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson

Here is the headline from the NY Times:

"Bush Commutes Libby Sentence, Saying 30 Months ‘Is Excessive’ "

Here is the headline I would like to see:

"Congress Commutes Bush Sentence on the American People, Saying 19 More Months ‘Is Excessive’ "

Yo, New Jersey, How You Doin’?

One of the best resources local New Jersey officials have in order to govern effectively is the New Jersey State League of Municipalities.

The League has the largest state conference in the nation. The folks at the League ----Bill Dressel, Helen Yeldell and Mike Darcy --- do a heck of a job advocating for all the towns in NJ. They are and have always been a great resource for locally elected officials in NJ. And as a state with this much government [566 municipalities at last count] and a committment to local control, the League is invaluable.

Since we are at the half-way mark in 2007, here for your perusal is the NJSLOM legislative agenda as established back in January.

How is NJ doin’?

LAND USE & AFFORDABLE HOUSING
• Strengthen participatory democracy by safeguarding the institutions, through which people can, cooperatively, shape the future of their own communities.
• Defend the local planning and zoning review process from attack by those who value private profit more than the public’s interest.
• Urge support for initiatives which would encourage those who reap the greatest benefits from new development to, more equitably, share the costs of the infrastructural improvements, which that development necessitates.
• Continue our review of potentially unnecessary and duplicative bureaucratic requirements which inhibit the construction and renovation of sufficient safe and affordable housing for the families of our less-affluent fellow citizens.

PUBLIC HEALTH & ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
• Promote policies that will permit communities to achieve and sustain compliance with appropriately high public health and environmental standards.
• Advocate a spirit of cooperation among state and local governments, which emphasizes the solution of problems, rather than the assessment of blame.
• Foster Legislative and citizen awareness of, and respect for, our public health and environmental priorities; and, thereby, increase our communal quality of life, while decreasing the costs, which will accrue in the long run if remediation efforts become necessary.
• Support policies that will permit communities to create flexible solutions to site remediation problems.
• Champion efforts to maintain, for future generations, the natural diversity which draws millions of visitors to our State, and to bequeath to our children a healthier and cleaner environment.

TAXATION & FINANCE
• Evaluate the outcome of the Special Legislative Session
for Property Tax Reform to determine its impact on New Jersey’s over-reliance on property taxes to fund essential public services and programs.
• Determine the need for further reforms, which could be effected by a special citizens’ property tax reform convention.
• Oppose the continued diminishment in property tax relief funding, which would inevitably exacerbate the burden borne by New Jersey’s families and small businesses.
• Oppose further Administration and Legislative Budget proposals that would shift costs from the State to local governments, because of their contributions to the property tax crisis.
• Champion policies that will permit local governments to jointly negotiate and enter into contracts so as to provide, for our citizens, the best possible supplies and services at the lowest possible rates.
• Support fair and reasonable public pension and benefit reforms that appropriately reward current and retired public servants for their service without inappropriately burdening their fellow citizens.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS
• Promote and participate in discussions among public servants representing their fellow citizens at the local, state and federal level, in order to best meet the challenges and respond to the opportunities emerging from developments in our state’s and nation’s capital.
• Tackle existing mandates by supporting legislative review and repeal or relaxation of unnecessary, unfunded requirements imposed on municipalities in the past, which remain in effect today.
• Review, with the intent to repeal, statutory impediments to greater intergovernmental cooperation.
• Promote the continuing dialogue between and among neighboring municipalities and school districts in order to find creative and cooperative solutions to existing and emerging problems.

Disorder in the Court: A Scalia-nation

“This court has shown the same respect for precedent that a wrecking ball shows for a plate-glass window.”
Ralph G. Neas, president of People for the American Way

Sad, but very true.

As the Supreme Court goes, so goes the nation.

The lasting legacy of this incompetent president and the stolen election of 2000 is a Supreme Court that has turned back the clock on integration in public schools, Affirmative Action, investor lawsuits, freedom of speech, and a woman’s right to reproductive freedom. The one area, surprisingly, where they supported a progressive agenda was in environmental.

The Supreme Court, by the numbers:

There have been fewer decisions this term [68] than in any other term since 1953.
With the decisions these folks are making, I guess that is the good news.

A solid third of the decisions were by a 5-4 margin.
A majority of those decisions were made along ideological lines. This means that the conservatives [Scalia et al] are in solid control, and the more progressive thinking justices are marginalized.

And now Justice Kennedy is the swing vote, where Justice O’Connor used to be.
Jury is still out on this, however it does not bode well. Kennedy was in the voting majority in EVERY 5-4 decision thus far.

More than who controls Congress, more than who is the president, the Supreme Court decides the path the nation takes.

The march to a more conservative nation has taken its first giant step backward.

The antidote: A progressive Democratic president, and a bold, progressive Congress

No Holiday From Politics as House Dems Launch Ad Blitz

The Democrats will be launching an ad blitz this July 4th weekend, attacking Repubs on a range of issues.

The key targets will be those Republican members of Congress who have been solid supporters of President Bush's failed policies in Iraq.

Well, it's about time. If you cannot muster the votes to change the President's policy, at least attack those who do. Way to go Dems.

Two Republicans — Phil English of Pennsylvania and Mike Ferguson of New Jersey — will be targeted with Web ads.

I am very glad we're starting EARLY to bring Linda Stender to represent the 7th Congressional District in Washington.

Hope-
fully, Mike is waving NJ-7th Good Bye!

Full Political Friday: Debate, breakfast with a Congressman, then “Sicko”.

Going to the candidate's debate.
Laugh about it, shout about it
When you've got to choose
Every way you look at this you lose

(But only if you vote Republican...)

After the Democratic candidates debate Thursday night [courtesy of Rosi of DFA], we had a brief breakfast with Congressman Dennis Kucinich and his campaign staff. It was a good conversation about his policy and his campaign.

The debate itself was a very inspirational event for me ---given the subject matter and the Tavis Smiley book ---assuaging a portion of the political cynicism that has been haunting my brain of late.

I thought I would use this opportunity over the next few days and briefly post about the Dems who want to sit in the White House. First up: Kucinich.

Although, I would imagine, that any of them will have to get the While House clean and fumigated upon entry to get rid of the Cheney/Bush stench.

Kucinich is a real true believer who is right on target [and has been for years] on the majority of the issues important to me. He is right on the War in Iraq, global warming and healthcare. And he has never been afraid to speak his mind on the issues that matter in the debates.

He got off the best line on Thursday’s debate: “The Republicans want everyone to lift themselves up by their own boot straps, and then they steal the boot from you.” All too true.

But for Howard Dean, he would have been my candidate in ’04. And there is the issue with the Congressman for me: Elect-ability. While Dean was perceived as having been able to win the Presidency, Kucinich is not. In order to get my support, he will have to persuade progressives he can win.

I think that most progressive Democrats would judge Kucinich with high marks on his policy. But, to do the job, he needs to get the job. Given the field for 2008, that will be tough for him.

Michael Moore supports HR 676, health care plan co-authored by Kucinich ---which leads me to "Sicko".

After the war, health care is the most important in the nation. Moore is right on target every moment of the film, “Sicko”.

Some facts to tell your right-wing Repub friends about healthcare:

1-Conservative governments in Canada, England and France all support universal health care. 2-the United States is the only developed nation without it.
3-In the US, there are four health care lobbyists for every congressman.

We have free public education, we road departments, police departments, fire departments---why not national healthcare? Makes sense to me.

The Democratic candidates need to be held accountable on this issue, as well as the war.

And the winner is…

I attended the debate of the Democratic candidates for President tonight at Howard University in DC. It is late and we just got back, so this will be short.

Subject matter for the first time was about race in America. Clearly, Hillary Clinton was the outstanding participant tonight. Her answers were sharp, clear and filled with good policy. A good portion of the audience was African-American, and included Dr. Cornell West and Rev. Al Sharpton. The moderator was Tavis Smiley, and the core subject matter was directly inspired by his book, “The Covenant” . Surprisingly, Barack Obama was not as compelling as one would think he would be in front of a mostly African-American crowd.

The best line of the evening came from Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, when Smiley cut the candidates’ time from one minute to just thirty seconds per question. “If I were Paris Hilton up here, you'd give a whole hour.”

The format ----which included questions on issues of concern to Black America as it relates to the Covenant with Black America book ---gave each candidate a very brief time to answer. Not the best format I thought for such a complex issue. Poor sound, along with too brief a time to answer the questions posed, made for a frustrating debate.

However, I discovered the real winner of tonight’s debate:
The Democratic Party.

Any of these candidates ---with the possible exception of Mike Gravel---is better than any of the Repubs. Including unannounced candidates Fred Thompson, Newt Gingrich or Mike Bloomberg.

So, bring it on. We are ready to win no matter which Democrat is nominated, and no matter who is the Repub opponent.

I am a Democrat, a member of the Democratic Party

On Tuesday night in Linden, I gave a presentation on clean community elections in NJ to the Linden Rotary. They were a nice bunch, and seem to enjoy the subject matter over all.

I mentioned that I was proud that New Jersey’s Democratic Governor Jon Corzine signed in to law a clean campaign bill earlier this year. A Rotarian, who I found out later was Republican, piped up in the group that “there is no Democratic Party. They are the ‘Democrat Party’. They are not and never been ‘democratic’. That name is just an attempt by them to tell the world that they are democratic, when they’re not.”

Now, this statement was so shockingly stupid on so many levels, I just didn’t know where to begin.

“The name is the Democratic Party. I am a Democrat, and the Party is the Democratic Party”, I tried to assure him. That, it is the DEMOCRATIC Party itself that should certainly be able to decide upon their name, not some Republican from Linden, New Jersey. He was unmoved.

However, it did give me pause for thought about the issue. I have heard for years in Hunterdon County, Republican elected officials refer to the Democratic Party as the “Democrat Party”. I always wondered where that came from, and how they always seemed to me like snickering adolescent school kids, chanting “I know you are, but what am I”, over and over again to be as annoying possible .

Bush uses the phrase lots of times, using the noun-as-adjective, Democrat Party instead of Democratic Party. He used it the State of the Union address several times. But then again, he is just plain stupid. Other Republicans, not as stupid, use it too. If a Republican knows your name, but gets it wrong anyway --- it either comes out of Republican stupidity or passive-aggressive behavior or both.

The Republican use of noun-as-adjective ‘Democrat’ has its history. New Yorker commentator Hendrik Hertzberg wrote:

"There’s no great mystery about the motives behind this deliberate misnaming. 'Democrat Party' is a slur, or intended to be - a handy way to express contempt. Aesthetic judgments are subjective, of course, but 'Democrat Party' is jarring verging on ugly. It fairly screams 'rat.'”

In 1947, Republican leader Senator Robert A. Taft said,

"Nor can we expect any other policy from any Democrat Party or any Democrat President under present day conditions. They can not possibly win an election solely through the support of the solid South, and yet their political strategists believe the Southern Democrat Party will not break away no matter how radical the allies imposed upon it." President Dwight D. Eisenhower used the term in his acceptance speech in 1952 and in partisan speeches to Republican groups. Ruth Walker notes how Joseph McCarthy repeatedly used the phrase "the Democrat Party," and critics argue that if McCarthy used the term in the 1950s, then no one else should do so.

From the New Yorker article:

“…the use of " 'Democrat Party' is now nearly universal" thanks to "Newt Gingrich, the nominal author of the notorious 1990 memo 'Language: A Key Mechanism of Control,' and his Contract with America pollster, Frank Luntz." While Hertzberg noted that Luntz "road-tested the adjectival use of 'Democrat' with a focus group in 2001" and "concluded that the only people who really dislike it are highly partisan adherents of the ... Democratic Party," he also wrote that Luntz had told him recently that "[t]hose two letters ['ic'] actually do matter," and that Luntz "recently finished writing a book ... entitled 'Words That Work.' "

And now they have trained the media to use the term, too.

Politics aside, The Arts are good business for towns in NJ

As an actor and stand-up comedian, I have traveled in the world of entertainment for about twenty-five years. And as an elected official in my town of Flemington, I've been concerned about how to bring more business to Main Street . There is considerable debate in every community on just how to bring people in to town in order to help the downtown retail businesses come to life.

There is retail shopping, many a restaurant, and a good mix of historic sights to see in most towns in New Jersey. The Arts are a great way to bring business to any town ---whether it be the largest town in NJ of Newark or any small town like Flemington. It's just common sense.

This week in Trenton, there was a conference of towns, cultural organizations and businesses. Here is what was reported in the Star-Ledger:

“Theaters, museums and historic sites are valued as places of entertainment and education, but they also must be seen as employers, tax generators and magnets for shopping and dining, state officials said yesterday. In other words, culture means business in towns across the state. In towns like Red Bank, Madison, Newark, Trenton, Orange, Montclair and Lambertville, the catalyst for economic revitalization has been the arts," Secretary of State Nina Mitchell Wells told about 200 representatives of New Jersey's municipalities, cultural organizations and businesses at a conference in Trenton.”

The organization “Americans for the Arts” is the nation's leading nonprofit advocacy group for advancing the arts in the country. I have found their website an invaluable in helping to generate ideas for arts in local communities.

So, there you go. A good idea for any community in New Jersey. Republican or Democratic.

ComboNews: All The News That Fits, We Print

Here are the two most important news stories of the day.

Condensed and combined to save you, the busy New Jersey resident, lots of time:

A smiling Paris Hilton walked out of a Los Angeles County jail early Tuesday, officially ending a bizarre, three-week stay that ignited furious debate over celebrity treatment in the jail system.

A grim and serious Christie Todd Whitman officially ended her three-year silence on the issue of the EPA report that declared the air at Ground Zero was safe to breathe. A silence that ignited furious debate over who was to blame for causing irreversable health problems to Ground Zero workers.

The 26-year-old celebutante was greeted by an enormous gathering of cameras and reporters upon leaving the all-women's facility in Lynwood about 15 minutes past midnight.

The 61-year-old former Governor was grilled by a “largely hostile House Judiciary subcommittee that she relied on sound scientific data when she told residents of Lower Manhattan that the air around Ground Zero was safe to breathe.” The Ex-EPA chief Christie Whitman was bombarded Monday with boos, hisses, and a host of accusations.

Hilton smiled and waved as she filed past deputies and the media, her blond hair pulled back in a braided ponytail. Hilton, who was wearing a sage jacket with white trim over a white shirt and skinny jeans, did not respond to reporters' questions.

Governor Whitman looked stern and emotionless as she fielded aggressive questions from members of Congress, her hair pulled back to reveal a lovely pair of pearl earrings and a matching pearl necklace.
She responded to the inquiry regarding the EPA false reports by declaring she is tired of the "innuendo and outright falsehoods” and “I have been called a liar and a criminal.” She did not seem to respond well to Congress members' questions.

During her stay at the Lynwood facility, Hilton was mostly confined to a solitary cell in the special needs unit away from the other 2,200 inmates.

During her testimony before Congress, Whitman stayed mostly at the table in front of the House Judiciary subcommittee looking sort of ticked off; you know the way some Repubs do when they’re being sanctimonious and holier-than-thou.

After spending only three days in jail, Hilton was released to home confinement by Sheriff Lee Baca for an unspecified medical condition that he later said was psychological.The following day, Hilton was called back into court and was ordered returned to jail, the judge saying he had not condoned her release. Hilton left the courtroom in tears calling for her mother and shouting, ''It's not right!''

After more than three years of silence, Whitman told the House subcommittee, "Let me be clear: There are indeed people to blame. They are the terrorists who attacked the United States, not the men and women at all levels of government who worked heroically to protect and defend this country.”

Yes, blame it on the terrorists. Aha! They must have been the ones to write the report that contained sound scientific data that told residents of Lower Manhattan that the air around Ground Zero was safe to breathe. So, it was not the EPA after all.

“I used to act dumb. It was an act. I am 26 years old, and that act is no longer cute,'' Hilton told ABC’s Barbara Walters. ''It is not who I am, nor do I want to be that person for the young girls who looked up to me.”

"I am disappointed at the misstatements, innuendo and outright falsehoods that have characterized the public discussion about the EPA in the aftermath of the terrorists' attacks," Whitman told Congress. "EPA's most extreme critics have alleged that I knowingly misled New Yorkers and the workers at Ground Zero about the safety risks associated with environmental contamination."

Hilton's stay in jail cost taxpayers $1,109.78 a day, more than 10 times the cost of housing inmates in the general population.

Whitman’s lies and this Administration’s incompetence in the days following 9/11 cost hundreds and hundred of workers and volunteers their good health.

Subcommittee chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), who represents Lower Manhattan, was among the most vociferous critics, accusing Whitman of reassuring the public when such reassurances were not justified.

"As a result of the actions by Whitman and others in the Bush administration', said Nadler, ‘our government has knowingly exposed thousands of American citizens unnecessarily to deadly hazardous materials.’

And so it goes.

It’s time to dump Doherty in the 23rd

The 23rd Legislative District is represented in Trenton by Senator Leonard Lance, Assemblywoman Marcia Karrow and Assemblyman Michael Doherty. As Repubs go, like the Meatloaf song says, “Don’t Be sad, ‘cause Two out of Three Ain’t Bad.”

In that mix, Doherty needs to be dumped in November. Doherty actually wants to be the US Senator from NJ. Yes, really.

He is bad for the 23rd, and would be bad for New Jersey in DC.

Assemblywoman Karrow and Senator Lance are moderates on many issues. However, every once and a while they go completely cold-stone conservative ---probably to retain their neo-con ‘street cred’ with their right-wing peeps.

For example, they both took a hard right-turn when they followed their Party line on domestic partnerships and civil union. Sometimes the two diverge on issues, too: Like Lance went environmentalist on the Highlands Act, and Karrow went anti-Democratic Party/populist. He supported the Highlands; she opposes it big big time.

But one thing they both agree on: Doherty should be the next U.S. Senator from the Garden State. Yes, really.

Now, I do not know what hallucinogens they have been downing at Hunterdon County Repub Party meetings ----maybe Kuhl-Aid? Who knows.

They have signed on to be part and parcel of Doherty’s Exploratory Committee for Senate. I know both of them reasonably well, and Karrow and Lance are way too smart to support a dullard like Doherty.

Doherty is a guy who is Ronald Reagan-ish all over, from head to toe: He opposes stem cell research. He denies the existence of global warming. He said that ‘it does not matter’ if one believes creationism or evolution. He supports President Bush’s war in Iraq.

This guy is out of touch with the 23rd district, and radically out of touch with the working families of New Jersey.

Other neo-cons who have signed on early to be part of the Doherty for Senate exploratory panel:

• Bogota Mayor and leader of the super right-wingers in the state, Steve Lonegan.
• Congressman Scott Garrett.
• Conservative activist and former election opponent to Rep. Rush Holt, Bill Spadea.
• Lance and Karrow round out the Committee.
  

It is doubtful that Doherty would even survive a primary, let alone a general election. And remember, he does not have to give up his Assembly seat to run.

But, we can work hard to dump Doherty early and derail his Senate plans by supporting full-throttle a great guy for Assembly in the 23rd ---Pete Maurer ---in November 2007.

More on Pete later, but he is the guy for the job.