The first cut — and all the cuts — are the deepest

I don’t envy Jon Corzine. He inherited a disastrous budget situation created by a decade and a half of neglect and self-deception (on the parts of lawmakers, governors of both parties and taxpayers), began the process of reform and then gets smacked in the face by the worst recession in years.

So balancing the budget has been nearly impossible.

That’s not to say that he hasn’t made things worse by seeking to avoid confrontation. He has. Armed with a set of powerful tools — the governor of New Jersey is among the most powerful executives in the country — and faced with a Trenton culture that has allowed entrenched politicians to amass far more power than they are entitled to have, he too often has folded his hand, giving in to the legislative power-brokers.

That said, we need to be honest. He has done more budget cutting than any governor in years, slashing programs that cut across a host of constituencies that should be Democratic power centers. The cuts are problematic — aid to the state’s colleges and municipal governments, to its arts programs, to the DEP — and some may have been avoided with a) earlier and more aggressive budget and government reform during his first two years in office and b) targeted increases in taxes.

But the alternatives being put on the table right now — and this could change — by his chief rivals (Chris Christie and Steve Lonegan) are unlikely to address the deep-rooted budgetary problems we face.

Author: hankkalet

Hank Kalet is a poet and freelance journalist. He is the economic needs reporter for NJ Spotlight, teaches journalism at Rutgers University and writing at Middlesex County College and Brookdale Community College. He writes a semi-monthly column for the Progressive Populist. He is a lifelong fan of the New York Mets and New York Knicks, drinks too much coffee and attends as many Bruce Springsteen concerts as his meager finances will allow. He lives in South Brunswick with his wife Annie. View all posts by hankkalet