New Jersey, let's celebrate the beginning of the end of mean-spirited Christie era

New Jersey Governor-elect Phil Murphy and Sheila Oliver, the state's first African-American lieutenant governor-elect, celebrating their victory on Tuesday night in Asbury Park  (Photo by Amy Newman of NorthJersey.com).

-- HACKENSACK, N.J.

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

Governor-elect Phil Murphy and Lt. Gov.-elect Sheila Oliver won't take office until Jan. 16, but New Jersey residents are already cheering the end of mean-spirited rule by GOP-bully Chris Christie.

In his acceptance speech on Tuesday night, Murphy pledged to raise the minimum wage, provide equal pay for equal work, ensure "tax fairness" (a reference to taxing millionaires and wealthy corporations), and seek property tax relief for the middle class and seniors.

All of that stands in contrast to the nearly 8-year-long ordeal under Governor Christie and Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, whose campaign to succeed him was filled with Trump-like lies and demonization of illegal immigrants.

Instead of raising taxes on millionaires, Christie and Guadagno balanced one voodoo budget after another, literally stealing money from mass transit, and many other programs, including the environment, women's health and school-nutrition programs.

They also refused to fully fund education, forcing local school boards to raise their portion of the property tax bill to about 50 percent. 

600 vetoes

When Democrats Murphy and Oliver, the state's first black lieutenant governor-elect, take the oath of office in about nine weeks, they will have the support of Democratic Senate President Stephen Sweeney, who was re-elected on Tuesday, and the Democratic majority in the state Legislature.

That will herald a new era of cooperation after the legislative wars Christie waged by executing nearly 600 vetoes of Democratic initiatives, including bills to impose a tax surcharge on millionaires and raise the hourly minimum wage to $15 an hour.

Christie was elected governor in 2008 largely on his promise to provide more tax relief than Democrat Jon Corzine had, and his pledge to work on consolidating some of the state's 565 home-rule communities to eliminate costly duplication of services.

But on Tuesday, after he voted in Mendham Township, Christie complained that his town and Mendham Boro have two different police departments, two different fire departments and two libraries for a total of about 10,000 residents.

Then, Christie argued with a woman who asked why he hadn't forced the Mendhams to consolidate, saying he didn't have the power to do so as governor, and told her to run for council.

Already governor?

The Record, my local daily newspaper, is running a banner headline on Page 1 today:

"NEW ERA FOR N.J."

Also jumping the gun was Staff Writer Dustin Racioppi, whose lead paragraph declared Murphy "defeated ... Guadagno on Tuesday night to succeed Chris Christie as the next governor of New Jersey" (1A).

Of course, that won't happen until Jan. 16, and I'm wondering whether Christie will try to cause more damage or just devote himself to his crusade against pharmaceutical companies and opioid addiction.

The front page of the Woodland Park daily also carries a totally superfluous political column by Staff Writer Charles Stile on how Murphy made clear during the campaign "he was going to be the anti-Chris Christie" (1A).

WNYC-FM

This morning's report on WNYC-FM was one of the best I've heard on the New Jersey gubernatorial election.

For one thing, Managing Editor Nancy Solomon, who lives in Maplewood, said state residents shouldn't expect Murphy to be a clone of Corzine, who also worked at Goldman Sachs.

Click here to listen to the full report on New York City Mayor Bill De Blazio winning a second term, and the Democratic gubernatorial victories in New Jersey and Virginia:

The Brian Lehrer Show