Bipartisanship working in New Jersey

By John Avlon, CNN Contributor

September 28, 2010 5:00 p.m. EDT

 

Editor’s note: John P. Avlon is a CNN contributor and senior political columnist for The Daily Beast. He is the author of “Wingnuts: How the Lunatic Fringe Is Hijacking America.”

(CNN) – Oprah had a question: “In this age of red states and blue states, with everyone being so partisan against everything, that fact that you could all come together — you’re a Republican and he’s a Democrat — did that ever come into it?”

“No,” said New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. “It’s about the children.”

They were seated on stage Friday on Oprah Winfrey’s show next to Newark, New Jersey, Mayor Cory Booker — the aforementioned Democrat — and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who was announcing a $100 million challenge grant to support that city’s aggressive effort to reform its struggling public schools.

The real news wasn’t just the money; it was the surprising across-the-aisle partnership on education reform between two of the nation’s brightest rising political stars.

In a time of poisonous party polarization, Christie and Booker are becoming a constructive model of cooperation.

Christie has quickly emerged as one of the most broadly popular Republicans in the nation: a no-nonsense chief executive, unafraid of taking on powerful special interests like the teachers union, the New Jersey Education Association. His talent for calling out biased questions and hecklers has made him an unlikely YouTube folk hero.

Now, he’s one of the most in-demand campaigners for GOP candidates across the country, offering a blueprint for how to govern as a fiscal conservative who is able to connect with independents and centrist Democrats. Already, some are calling on the man who transitioned from U.S. attorney to Garden State governor less than a year ago to consider a run for president.

Booker was drawing “future president” buzz when Barack Obama was still a state senator.

A documentary, “Street Fight,” was made about this suburban Rhodes Scholar-turned-inner-city councilman’s first run for mayor of Newark. He ran unsuccessfully against the corrupt, and ultimately imprisoned, incumbent Sharpe James.

He has faced opposition from the local teachers’ union because of his support of charter schools and school vouchers. Members of the Bloods gang plotted to assassinate him because of his tough stand on crime. But he was re-elected in a nonpartisan election in 2010 with 60 percent of the vote.

Booker has been an aggressive and independent reformer in office, using his celebrity to draw attention to this too-often-forgotten major American city.

In our hyper-partisan era, two high-profile executives operating in the same state would normally mean they would act like mortal enemies. But since Christie took office, Booker has stood alongside him on pivotal policy issues in the face of partisan complaints.

First, they agreed on Christie’s proposal for a 2.5 percent cap on property taxes (New Jersey is among the most highly taxed state in the nation). But the urgent area of education reform is where their partnership promises to show the greatest results.

First, consider some sobering statistics: America rates 25th in math and 21st in science scores among industrialized nations. Children are in danger of being less literate than the generation that came before. And a child who doesn’t finish high school is eight times more likely to go to jail.

“Either kids are getting stupider every year,” says education innovator Geoffrey Canada, “or something is wrong in the education system.” The answer is B.

This is a fight for our times, brilliantly captured in the acclaimed new documentary “Waiting for Superman,” by the director of Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth.” But now it’s the institutionalized left that’s getting its ox gored.

The problem with our education system isn’t money. As President Obama said Monday in an interview with “The Today Show,” “We can’t spend our way out of it. I think that when you look at the statistics, the fact is that our per-pupil spending has gone up during the last couple of decades even as results have gone down. … Money without reform will not fix the problem.”

In Newark, per-pupil spending is a record $20,000 per student — but students there were twice as likely to fail to meet the standards set by the No Child Left Behind law. Because of the chronic problems in Newark, the state has long run its local school system. Thanks to Christie and Booker’s partnership, that’s about to change.

Along with Zuckerberg’s $100 million gift, the duo announced that Booker would be assuming control of the school system, appointing a chancellor in consultation with the governor, generally following the improvements implemented by Mayor Michael Bloomberg across the Hudson River in New York.

In addition, a nonunion curriculum panel will be formed to shake up the system and improve the quality of education.

Both Booker and Christie support reforms like merit pay for teachers; charter schools, which have increased under their watch; and school vouchers. Their mantra is accountability. They have been willing to shut failing schools and reward a more results-oriented, entrepreneurial approach to education. This, they argue, is more compassionate than sticking with the slogans of compassion that accompany the status quo.

Their foes are the teachers’ unions, which have tried to block individual accountability measures and educational innovations in New Jersey and around the nation.

They have the shadow of former Washington Mayor Adrian Fenty hanging over their efforts: After empowering D.C. schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee to reform schools, the teachers union put more than $1 million into this month’s closed partisan primary to defeat Fenty.

Already, in reaction to Christie’s proposal of a one-year teacher salary freeze and 1.5 percent health benefits contribution to avoid layoffs, the teachers union has been treating Christie like Public Enemy No. 1 — with the head of the Bergen County teachers union sending an e-mail to his members, jokingly praying for Christie’s death.

Booker and Christie’s fight for reform is an example of purposeful bipartisanship that is entirely absent from Washington these days. When Booker was criticized on the left for working with the Christie, he correctly diagnosed the problem: “We’ve come to the point where if you work with someone across the aisle on an issue you agree with, you’re a turncoat. … That’s toxic politics. It’s the same thing Republicans are doing in Washington with President Obama. I don’t have time for that nonsense.”

It does not matter that Zuckerberg announced his gift on the eve of the apparently unflattering Aaron Sorkin-penned tale of Facebook’s creation, “The Social Network”; it is a selfless investment that will have a real return. And with greater accountability and flexibility for innovation, more philanthropists will step up to the plate and pledge to help improve our students.

Education reform is an area in which public-private partnerships will prove as necessary as overcoming partisan divides to achieve real and lasting results. Hyper-partisan politics stop us from solving our common problems. The cutting-edge Christie and Booker partnership offers a model of how our nation can move forward, stronger and smarter.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John P. Avlon.

Christie Ethics Reform Plan: Creating a New Climate that Demands Accountability and Results

Governor Christie has put forward a series of rigorous ethics reform measures that are in step with his commitment to change the culture of government in New Jersey and demand accountability to better serve the people.

These comprehensive reforms are tough, but fair and guided by common sense, which is what the people of New Jersey expect.  The proposed measures include:

1. A New, Detailed Annual Financial Disclosure Statement From Both The Executive And Legislative Branches.  Governor Christie issued a conditional veto of, and called upon the legislature to pass, A-2768.  The conditionally vetoed bill would set in statute a May 15^th deadline for the filing of financial disclosure statements (FDS) and sets the filing requirements of an FDS in law – making them permanent.  The Governor’s conditional veto also requires, for the very first time, members of the legislators and their senior staff to file the same FDS as the executive branch. 

Governor Christie’s conditional veto of A-2768 increases transparency by expanding the statutory requirements of financial disclosures to more closely track federal guidelines.  Changes include:

• Expanded value classes for asset and income disclosure (a maximum category of 50M instead of the current 500K);
• Inclusion of members of the Legislature and the Legislature’s professional staff;
• Filers required to provide detailed disclosure of all assets, real property, and contractual arrangements with former and future employers;
• Required disclosure of all parties for whom compensation was received to promote, oppose or prepare legislation; and,
• Codification of all disclosure requirements listed on current state FDS forms as well as certain information presently required to be disclosed on federal disclosure forms (e.g. expanded value classes ranging up to $50,000,000.00)

2. A Full Ban On Dual Office Holding That Ends Grandfathering.  Governor Christie’s plan eliminates dual office holding, and institutes a specific end to the grandfathering period at the conclusion of 2010-2011 Legislature rather than the current open ended grandfathering period that permits dual office holding to persist.

3. A Ban On Dual Employment For All State, County And Local Officials And Employees.  All employees would be prohibited from drawing a salary at a 2^nd government position – state, county or local.

4. An Effective Conflict Of Interest Standard For Legislators.  Governor Christie’s plan redefines conflict of interest disclosures for Legislators to require mandatory recusal and strict disclosure of legislative conflicts of interest.  This puts an end to self-evaluation of whether a Member of the Legislature “feels” there is a conflict.

5. Real Penalties For Those Who Violate The Public’s Trust.  Governor Christie’s plan puts in place real consequences for public officials who break the law:

• Requiring Pension Forfeiture For Public Officials Convicted Of Crimes That Involve Or Touch Upon The Public Office.
• Requiring Forfeiture Of Campaign Funds For Officials Convicted Of A Crime For First Through Fourth Degree Offenses.
• Ban On Use Of Campaign Funds For Criminal Defense Costs.

6. Comprehensive Legislation To Fix Pay-To-Play, Effectively Restrict “Wheeling” And Close Loopholes In Restrictions On The Awarding Of Government Contracts.  The Governor’s plan includes sweeping legislation that will increase transparency and the integrity of the electoral process by fixing loopholes and shortcomings of current pay-to-play restrictions.  Governor Christie’s proposals will:

• Restrict The Practice Of “Wheeling” by imposing contribution limitations on county and municipal committees for committee-to-committee contributions and committee contributions to out-of-county or out-of-municipality candidates.
• Impose A Uniform Set Of Contract Award Standards on all levels of government and all branches of state government.  Governor Christie’s proposal would end the “fair and open contract” exception for businesses that make reportable campaign contributions at the legislative, county and municipal levels, yet are able to receive contract awards valued greater than $17,500 with local governments – a practice that is not permitted at the state/gubernatorial level.
• Close Pay-To-Play Loopholes by leveling the playing field with changes to law that would make labor unions subject to the same contribution requirements which apply to other entities doing business with the state.

As a complete package, Governor Christie’s Ethics Reform plan will increase transparency in government, accountability to the public from elected officials and strengthen New Jersey’s existing laws to ensure that the electoral process is conducted with integrity – a critical step in gaining and keeping the public’s trust in their government. 

Governor Christie has said from the beginning that we need to create a new climate in Trenton that fundamentally changes the way our government is perceived by both New Jerseyans and everyone outside New Jersey.  He aggressively began this process in January 2010 by:

• Signing EO-15, directing a comprehensive review of all state authorities, boards and commissions and taking immediate action to reform abusive fiscal practices signed.
• Signing EO-7 which modifies prior Executive Orders implementing “pay-to-play” restrictions.
• Signing EO-8, which orders and directs the Department of the Treasury publish quarterly reports on all State expenditures, which they are already doing.
• Debuting YourMoney.NJ, an online government transparency center  and increasing transparency of government priorities and performance with the online Governor’s Performance Center.
• Calling for additional, critical reform measures to overhaul the Delaware River Port Authority and bring accountability to the hundreds of boards, commissions and authorities that form the until now invisible and unaccountable layers of government in New Jersey.

Former President Bush welcomes soldiers home in surprise visit to airport

August 18, 2010

As 145 soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan walked through the double doors in Terminal D at DFW Airport last week for two weeks of R&R, they were greeted not only by their families, but by former president George Bush and his wife Laura. 

It is refreshing to see how pro-American and patriotic our former Commander-in-Chief is. Please take a moment to watch this heartwarming and inspirational video of President Bush welcoming home our military heroes (turn on volume).

President Bush is putting something in each one of these soldiers hands. Wonder what it is? It’s a George W. Bush Presidential Coin. It’s part of the handshake and often done this way in the Military. In the Military they call it a “Challenge Coin”. If a soldier does a “Challenge” the person who has the highest ranking coin gets his meal or drink paid for. It will be hard to top that coin!!

 

Brady said about 40 people, among them retirees and veterans, show up almost daily to help welcome home soldiers with ovations as they depart customs and enter the main terminal. More than 750,000 service members have been welcomed as part of the program, he said, and some purposely ask to reroute their return to the U.S. so they can come through DFW.

The Small Business…The 97% Fallacy

 

OPINION- SEPTEMBER 3, 2010

The president’s plan to raise top marginal rates is holding back the very people who should be leading the economic recovery.

By KEVIN A. HASSETT
AND ALAN D. VIARD

When Congress returns from its summer recess, members will face a pivotal decision about the expiring Bush tax cuts. President Barack Obama has called for their permanent extension for singles with incomes below $200,000 and married couples with incomes below $250,000, but has proposed that most of the tax cuts for households with higher incomes be allowed to expire.

To buttress this position, the president and his supporters have repeatedly asserted that the expiration of these cuts will have little impact, because they affect only a tiny fraction of the wealthiest Americans, people who “can afford it.”

Recently, for example, Vice President Joe Biden harshly rejected House Minority Leader John Boehner’s assertion that the hikes would harm small businesses, saying that “he has created this myth that a tax cut for millionaires is actually a tax cut for small business. There aren’t 3% of small businesses in America that would qualify for that tax cut.” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi flipped the number around, saying that the planned tax increases would exempt “98% of American families and about 97% of small businesses.”

The impact is far more severe than Mrs. Pelosi and Mr. Biden suggest. In fact, the sound bite about 3% of small businesses, which has been picked up by numerous pundits, is one of the more misleading statements in the long history of economic propaganda.

The 3% figure, which is computed from IRS data, is based on simply counting the number of returns with any pass-through business income. So, if somebody makes a little money selling products on eBay and reports that income on Schedule C of their tax return, they are counted as a small business. The fact that there are millions of people in the lower tax brackets with small amounts of business income may be interesting for some purposes, but it is irrelevant for the assessment of the economic impact of the tax hikes.

The numbers are clear. According to IRS data, fully 48% of the net income of sole proprietorships, partnerships, and S corporations reported on tax returns went to households with incomes above $200,000 in 2007. That’s the number to look at, not the 3%. Would Mrs. Pelosi and Mr. Biden deny that the more successful firms owned by individuals in the top income-tax bracket are disproportionately responsible for investment and job creation?

It’s clear that business income for large and small firms will be hit by the higher tax rates. And in point of fact, firms of all sizes contribute to the nation’s prosperity. So it’s a mistake to focus only on the impact of increased tax rates on small business. But will the higher rates actually cause a significant reduction in business activity?

Economic research supports a large impact. A pair of papers by economists Robert Carroll, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Harvey Rosen and Mark Rider that were published in 1998 and 2000 by the National Bureau of Economic Research analyzed tax return data and uncovered high responsiveness of sole proprietors’ business activity to tax rates. Their estimates imply that increasing the top rate to 40.8% from 35% (an official rate of 39.6% plus another 1.2 percentage points from the restoration of a stealth provision that phases out deductions), as in Mr. Obama’s plan, would reduce gross receipts by more than 7% for sole proprietors subject to the higher rate.

These results imply a similar effect on proprietors’ investment expenditures. A paper published by R. Glenn Hubbard of Columbia University and William M. Gentry of Williams College in the American Economic Review in 2000 also found that increasing progressivity of the tax code discourages entrepreneurs from starting new businesses.

Because marginal tax rate increases impede long-run growth, they should be avoided in good times and bad. But now is a particularly inopportune time to raise rates, as small businesses are still struggling from the recession. According to the ADP National Employment Report for July, goods-producing small businesses have reduced their total payroll employment by 117,000 jobs since January of this year, and they were still posting declines in July.

Taxes appear to be part of the story. When the National Federation of Independent Business asked small business owners in June to list the most important problem they faced, 20% named taxes, making that the second most cited concern after weak sales. The expectation of tax increases, such as those in Mr. Obama’s plan, is on the minds of the people who should be leading the recovery.

The administration defends its desire to increase taxes by citing concerns about the deficit. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner recently asserted that “borrowing to finance tax cuts for the top 2% would be a $700 billion fiscal mistake.”

The administration is right to view the deficit as a serious issue, but this sudden commitment to fiscal responsibility is bizarrely inconsistent. The administration professes deep concern about the $700 billion revenue loss from extending the tax cuts at the top, but apparently views the revenue loss of nearly $2 trillion from extending the tax cuts for the middle class as too inconsequential to mention. Nor has the administration’s concern about the deficit driven it to reduce federal spending.

For those who are determined to tax the rich at all costs, and are therefore willing to accept the claims of the Obama administration without scrutiny, the tax hikes may well make sense. But the evidence is clear that lifting the top rates will hamper the business investment upon which our nation’s prosperity depends. That affects all Americans, not just 3%.

Mr. Hassett is director of economic policy studies and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where Mr. Viard is a resident scholar.

Copyright 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved

‘Morally Inexcusable’

 

AUGUST 5, 2010

Civil rights groups choose the teachers unions over black kids.

For the second time in recent weeks, the Obama Administration has been forced to defend its school reform agenda from its political left. The White House has been up to the task, but the episodes underscore liberalism’s vested interest in the tattered education status quo. 

House Democrats last month passed a spending bill that gutted funding for the President’s $4.3 billion Race to the Top competition, which rewards reform-minded states with education grants. Lawmakers removed the provisions only after a veto threat from the White House.

Next came news that a coalition of civil rights organizations, including the NAACP and the National Urban League, had released a document critical of the Administration’s education agenda, including Race to the Top and the expansion of charter schools.

The document argues that competitive grants hurt minority kids in losing states and that federal education dollars should be dispensed by formula so some states don’t receive more than others. The civil rights groups also said they were “concerned about the overrepresentation of charter schools in low-income and predominantly minority communities” and that “there is no evidence that charter operators are systematically more effective in creating higher student outcomes nationwide.”

The groups’ claims were remarkably similar to the those made by the teachers unions, which support some of the organizations. In 2009, for example, the National Education Association gave a total of $255,000 to the NAACP and the NAACP National Voter Fund, according to the union’s financial disclosure forms. The American Federation of Teachers gave $25,000 last year to Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow PUSH Coalition, another signatory. 

Notwithstanding these concerns about charters, parents in poor neighborhoods seem to prefer them. According to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, an estimated 365,000 students in the U.S. are on charter school wait lists. Studies have shown repeatedly that poor and minority kids have the most to gain from charters and other forms of school choice. Of the country’s 20,000 high schools, only 2,000 produce about half of all dropouts. And a black child has a 50% chance of attending one of these “drop-out factories.” The urban school problem isn’t too many charters but too many failing schools.

There has been notable dissent from the groups’ new document. Al Sharpton, who heads the National Action Network, told us in an interview this week, “I don’t agree with some of the conclusions” of the coalition opposing education reform.

“I have members of my board who run charter schools,” said Mr. Sharpton. “I’m not anti-charter schools. I’m pro-good charter schools. We want what’s best for our kids, even if it doesn’t follow the liberal status quo.” Mr. Sharpton said the Administration was right to focus on accountability. “I think there’s a new leadership in the black community, and we’re not wedded to the [teachers] unions calling our shots,” he said. “I think accountability must be part of what we do to make sure kids have the education they need to close the achievement gap.”

In a speech to the Urban League’s annual convention Thursday, President Obama was blunt: “This status quo is morally inexcusable.” So is the fact that the nation’s leading civil rights organizations are now siding with teachers unions and others working to preserve a public education system that is failing the millions of black families who can’t afford an alternative.

Copyright 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved