Garden State Patriot

After some 9 months worth of campaigning, starting with the Republican primary season, Judgment Day is at hand in the New Jersey governor’s race.
In fact, like many New Jersey political bloggers, this campaign really started the moment The Anointed One, Barack Obama, was declared the winner of last year’s presidential election. And like many fellow Republicans and conservatives, my goal at that time was to do everything possible to oust Governor Corzine from office.

As this crucial election now falls upon us, I have come to the conclusion that this still remains my goal – and ought to be the goal of anyone who cares about the future of this state.

Like so many of my fellow conservatives, this race has left me troubled and conflicted. Little did I know a year ago just how much this race would divide us. The split between the Establishment of the party and grassroots conservatives is one that has reared its head – and likely will continue in the days and months ahead regardless of who wins on Tuesday. This battle, of course, is by no means limited to New Jersey. It stretches up to New York’s 23rd district, to a coming Senate primary battle in Florida, and likely into 2012’s presidential primary. I still firmly believe that the only way forward for the Republican Party, if it wishes to re-establish trust and a majority status, is by adopting conservative values and principles. And, ultimately, that means putting forth conservative candidates.

In this respect, this voter has been skeptical, perplexed, and, admittedly at times, downright disappointed with Mr. Christie. His campaign has left much to be desired in strategy, execution and philosophy. On various issues of great importance to New Jerseyans, such as COAH, property taxes and state aid to schools, I remain unconvinced that he will address them to my satisfaction and to the satisfaction of my fellow conservatives. On the other hand, I do believe he will improve our business climate, perhaps even enact some meaningful educational reforms via initiatives like vouchers and promoting more charter schools and, hopefully, live up to his promise to nominate conservative judges to the bench. Above all, though, I believe he will at least stop the bleeding caused by the destructive fiscal policies of Corzine, McGreevey and the Democrat-controlled legislature.

The alternative – a second term for Jon Corzine – is one I believe this state cannot bear. Jon Corzine has had four years to prove himself and he has failed miserably. By every measure, his term has been a disaster for New Jersey. Under his watch, the state has firmly established itself as the worst in the nation for taxes. He has shown himself to be disdainful of the plight of taxpayers while he protects government workers and curries favor with public sector unions like the NJEA. He will continue to appoint far left judges to the NJ Supreme Court – a court that, in the past, has handed down the terrible Mt. Laurel and Abbott decisions. A court that will have much to say on these matters, as well issues like gay marriage, in the future (if not near future).

The view of many conservatives – that four more years of destruction under Corzine would increase the chances of a conservative being a viable candidate in 2013 – I do believe has merit. Some lessons may well need to be learned the hard way. But that is an awfully tough path to choose when the stakes right now are so high. Four more years of Jon Corzine’s policies likely will lead New Jersey to financial ruin. If New Jersey fails, all of her citizens will likewise suffer. This is a choice I cannot make in good conscience.

Other factors, also, are difficult to ignore. At the national level, we are witnessing the most radical left-wing agenda in our history. We are painfully close to witnessing a government takeover of our healthcare system by a bunch of ruthless, power-hungry, liberal statists who have no regard for our constitution and the nation’s founding.

While I do believe that when next year’s mid-term elections finally arrive, voters will base their decision on issues other than this New Jersey gubernatorial election, a Chris Christie victory (along with victories in Virginia and NY-23) very well could contribute to building momentum for a Republican resurgence.

In the near-term, it could well damage Obama and help defeat the healthcare legislation before Congress. Democrat ‘blue dogs’ and other fence sitters may well ‘read the tea leaves’ and not want to risk their seats by voting for this agenda.

If circumstances were different, and the polls suggested Mr. Christie were on his way to a runaway victory or, conversely, a sound defeat, lodging a ‘protest vote’ would be a far easier choice. But this is not the case. If the polls are to be believed, this election will be a nail biter and Mr. Christie needs every vote possible.

Just yesterday President Obama said this of Governor Corzine:

He’s one of the best partners I have in the White House. We work together…We know our work is far from over.

Is this the kind of person we really want to remain in office? Knowing what we know now, are there any among us who would not prefer John McCain to be our President despite the fact that a McCain presidency might have been bad for the conservative movement?

Chris Christie is by no means my ideal candidate. I would much prefer to pull the lever for on Tuesday for Steve Lonegan (or even Jason Cullen for that matter). But given our current circumstances, and after much soul searching, such a vote in my mind cannot be justified.

On this Judgment Day, there is only one choice. We must terminate Jon Corzine.

Cross-posted at Red County and Conservatives with Attitude!

***Warning: Extremely Violent Content***

Why do I show you this? Watch here.

And we thought liberals didn’t like torture. Yet the White House’s current Communications Director says Mao Tse Tung - the killer of upwards of 70 MILLION people – is one of her favorite philosophers?!?! Absolutely sick.

Oh, and what else is Dunn known for lately? That’s right, she’s the point woman in the White House for attacking Fox News…

God help us.

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

COOPERSTOWN, NY — The Baseball Writers Association of America has just named Barack Obama the winner of this year’s Cy Young Award. In fact, in an unprecedented move, the Association has handed the President the award in both leagues citing his work in forging a post-League era. In the past Obama has called the two leagues ‘divisive to the nation.’

The BBWAA said Obama’s first pitch at this year’s All-Star Game in the new Yankee Stadium was a landmark moment in the game. They cited his new pitch, now known as The Flop, as ‘revolutionary and transformative.’ Bud Selig was quoted as saying, ‘It didn’t matter of it wasn’t a strike. Like any good pitcher, it’s the illusion of a strike, an ability to fool the hitter, that matters most.’

If you missed it, here is that famous pitch!

Word is that Commissioner Selig is considering Obama for the Hall of Fame and may retire the #44 throughout baseball. Such an honor would make Obama the second baseball player in baseball history, along with Jackie Robinson, to have his number retired league-wide.

Some in baseball, though, are questioning the merits of MLB bestowing such honors on Obama. At his blog 38 Pitches, former big leaguer Curt Schilling said the whole thing was “(bleeped) up” and promised to run in 2012. Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo reportedly had a complete meltdown on his radio show: “(cackling) What are they, nuts!’…(cackling) ‘What are they nuts!’ (laiughing). And Jose Canseco, via Twitter, said in his next book – preliminarily titled The Audacity of Juice! - that he had information that Obama was actually on steroids when he threw out the first pitch.

Meanwhile, Obama accepted the honor unhesitatingly. In a statement in the Rose Garden, Obama said he hoped the AL and NL would now be able to move forward to a new day of ‘mutual interest and mutual respect’ and that ’no league should ever be considered better than another.’ Obama also continued to take on baseball’s third rail – the Designated Hitter. Obama said it was unfair for pitchers to have to both pitch and hit. When asked if the DH was just ‘welfare for pitchers’ the President said the time had come to ’spread the at-bats around’ and that the DH helped ‘create more jobs.’ He also said he hoped that ‘one day baseball could rise above being just a game of winners and losers and that one day the league would stop keeping score altogether.’

More on this story as it unfolds….

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

In case you missed it, here is Dear Leader caught lying about his desire for a single payer system.

I remember when Bill Clinton was President, Senator Bob Kerrey of Nebraska said of him that he was “an unusually good liar.” Well, let me say this of Barack Obama. He is an unusually great liar. At least Clinton bit his lip when he lied. Obama doesn’t flinch.

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

According to Rasmussen Reports, Barack Obama, aka CEO of Government Motors, has seen his approval index chart into negative territory for the first time in his Presidency.

Obama’s numbers have been in steady decline from Day One. Now, his weak response regarding Iran, his desire to socialize health care, his runaway spending and the worsening economic situation appear to have driven his numbers into negative territory.

The question now is, how much further will his numbers fall? I anticipate his approvals will be down to 40 before long, meaning his support will be coming only from his base.

The Iranian people, desirous of reform and po’d at the sham re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadine-jihad, have taken to the streets in mass protest.

The protests have turned violent, with some Iranians having been killed already. Check out Gateway Pundit who has a ton on this (some of which I’m almost hesitant to post to be honest).

Meanwhile, where is the leader of the free world on this today? The man who thinks it’s OK for the mullahs to have nukes? The guy who was foolish enough to say this just last Friday?

We are excited to see what appears to be a robust debate taking place in Iran…Whoever ends up winning the election in Iran, the fact there has been a robust debate hopefully will advance our ability to engage them in new ways…

Is he making public statements in favor of the reform-minded protesters? Is he acting like an American President should and supporting people who clearly want more freedom and liberty? Is he anywhere to be found today on this at all?

Nope. Instead, he’s stone cold silent.

Truly. Sad.

The cost of the Democrats’ plan to socialize health care? How does more than a $1,000,000,000 sound? How does $600,000,000 in tax increases sound? The cost in our freedom and liberty? Immeasurable. 

June 12 (Bloomberg) — Health-care overhaul legislation being drafted by House Democrats will include $600 billion in tax increases and $400 billion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel said.

Democrats will work on the bill’s details next week as they struggle through “what kind of heartburn” it will cause to agree on how to pay for revamping the health-care system, Rangel, a New York Democrat, said today. He also said the measure’s cost will reach beyond the $634 billion President Barack Obama proposed in his budget request to Congress as a down payment for the policy changes.

Asked whether the cost of a health-care overhaul would be more than $1 trillion, Rangel said, “the answer is yes.”

House Democrats plan to release their legislation next week. Obama has made a health-care overhaul a top domestic priority and is working with Congress to get legislation to his desk by October.

Democrats in the House and Senate are working on legislation that would require all Americans to have health insurance, prohibit insurers from refusing to cover pre-existing conditions and place other restrictions on the industry.

The legislation would establish online exchanges for individuals to purchase insurance and would require employers to provide health benefits to workers or pay a penalty. Some Democrats also are backing creation of a government-run program to expand coverage to the uninsured. The issue is the subject of bipartisan negotiations with Republican opponents.

Obama was out on the stump today beginning to make the case for socialized health care. As is typical for our new president/CEO of GM, his words are meaningless. He claims that a public plan would not mean the end of private insurance. Of course, once a public plan is in place more and more people will be pushed into it as private insurers won’t be able to compete.

Interestingly, the battle over socialized medicine is nothing new. Most of us recall the 1993 battle over HillaryCare. Certainly, that was the biggest battle to date. But the fight dates back to well before this. It’s a fight that Ronald Reagan himself enjoined. He saw how socialized medicine was by its nature an anti-freedom, pro-socialism agenda. He saw that those who wanted socialized medicine would never win the day by passing it in one fell swoop. Rather, they would do so in incremental steps. This is exactly what is going on now. Obama claims a public plan won’t mean the end of private plans, but ultimately that’s what it will in fact result in.

With this huge battle looming, I can think of no better place to look to in order to prepare for this fight than Reagan himself. His message in this video couldn’t be any less relevant now than it was at the time he delivered it. It’s a message we need to heed and utilize in order to stop socialized medicine from becoming a reality in our nation. 

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

A few days after the inauguration, our intelligence agents obtained firm and incontrovertible evidence that the government of Nicaragua was transferring hundreds of tons of Soviet arms from Cuba to rebel groups in El Salvador. Although El Salvador was the immediate target, the evidence showed that the Soviets and Fidel Castro were targeting all of Central America for Communist takeover. El Salvador and Nicaragua were only a down payment. Honduras, Guatemala, and Costa Rica were next, and then would come Mexico.

The plans had been in the archives of Communism for a long time. I had been told Lenin once said, “First, we will take Eastern Europe, then we will organize the hordes of Asia…then we will move on to Latin America; once we have Latin America, we won’t have to take the United States, the last bastion of capitalism, because it will fall into our outstretched hands like overripe fruit.” –Ronald Reagan, An American Life

Following up on my post from last evening, I thought it was important to remind people just who Daniel Ortega is. Daniel Ortega is nothing less than a Marxist who brutalized his own people. If Daniel Ortega had his way, he would have created a second Communist satellite in the Americas; subjecting the Nicaraguan people to the same kind of tyrannical, oppressive regime as Castro’s Cuba.

As leader of the Sandanista rebels, he worked in concert with and drew support from the Soviets and Castro as they looked to spread Communism throughout Latin America and ultimately to America itself.

In An American Life, Reagan describes the barbarism of the Ortega-led Sandanistas.

…the brutal pro-Marxist rebels…were slaughtering innocent peasants, burning and pillaging their crops, destroying electrical power lines, and blowing up dams in their campaign to wrest control of the country… Unable to win the hearts of the people, they were depriving them of food, water, electricity, and the ability to earn a living and feed themselves.

Thankfully, Ronald Reagan understood the Communist threat in Latin America and stopped Ortega by funding the Contra freedom fighters (overcoming opposition from Congressional Democrats, as well as an unsupportive and gullible press at the time, I might add). But make no mistake; this is a man who has no moral standing whatsoever to critize our country in an way, shape or form. And for Obama to sit there and not defend America against the likes of Ortega is beyond deplorable.

President Obama, history does matter…even if it happened when you were in your crib.

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

See, this is what happens when you don’t take the teleprompter with you everywhere you go. You end up comparing your bad bowling game to the disabled. Nice going, Baracky.

Leno asked the president whether the White House bowling alley had been “burned and closed down” in light of Obama’s gutter ball embarrassment on the campaign trail last year.

Obama replied, “No, no. I have been practicing . . . I bowled a 129.”

The audience roared with laughter, and the late-night talk show host assured Obama “that’s very good, Mr. President.” To which Obama interjected, “It’s like — it was like Special Olympics, or something.”

And you know it’s bad when even Keith Olbermann can’t help but cringe. Of course, if it were “W” he’d have been leading the call for his impeachment.

Ahh, fun times in Obama’s America.

{UPDATE: Here’s the video straight from the Leno show}

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!