Assemblyman Bramnick Discusses Economy, Gov. Christie at Local Event

New Jersey Assemblyman Jon M. Bramnick (R-Westfield) kicked off a busy week at the yesterday to visit with the League of Women Voters of Berkeley Heights, New Providence, and Summit.

The Assemblyman, who serves as Conference Leader and is the second-highest ranking member of the New Jersey General Assembly’s Republican caucus, discussed items on the 2011 legislative agenda for the state of New Jersey.

Prominent on the minds of the Assemblyman and those who gathered to meet with him was the issue of what to do with a limited budget and a state economy bordering on crisis-level.

“There’s something about not having any money at all that dictates the legislative agenda,” Bramnick said. “In 2005 and 2006, you had revenues of 32 and 33 billion dollars coming into Trenton. In 2010, you had 27 billion dollars in revenue. That’s bad, but it’s worse when everything was predicated… on rising revenue, including pension, health benefits, and salaries.”

The economic problems of the state, including the deep debt that the state is trying to endure at the moment, could be resolved somewhat by what Bramnick sees as a quick fix: for politicians to develop the ability to say “no” to providing funds to special interest and other groups.

The hard part for politicians, however, is the fact that such a move works against building a loyal base of public supporters.

“Government doesn’t want to say 'no' to everybody. All of us in Trenton, other than (Gov.) Chris Christie, have a model where we don’t like to say no,” Bramnick said. “We were presidents of the student council, we were mayors, freeholders, or some sort of county official. We’re all used to being nice to everybody. No politician likes to say no. It’s counter-intuitive to have people dislike you.”

Where Gov. Christie differs is in the fact that he has said "no" to giving funds to special interest groups during his term.

“What Chris (Christie) did, which is unheard of, is if you go to him with some kind of special interest, you’re not on the radar. (The economy) is such a mess that he’s not going to help you,” Bramnick said. “If I go to him and say, ‘I need money for the firehouse in Westfield’, (I) would know better to say it (before I did). He’d just say 'no.'”

While the governor’s denial of funding to special interest groups is considered a radical measure by many within the political spectrum of New Jersey, Bramnick believes this to be the quickest way to fix the state’s ailing economy.

“It is very difficult to solve this problem if you don’t say no, and we have a tough time as politicians to say no. If he looks like a tough guy, he is tough. I’m not sure there are a lot of good answers," Bramnick said. "In politics, there are not many people who are good at saying no. (Governor Christie) happens to be able to do that, and the reality is that someone’s got to say no.”

In order to successfully resuscitate the economy, Bramnick stated that another important task that those in Trenton must undertake is the practice of civility with one another. Bramnick emphasized that all members of the state government must be willing to work together—regardless of party—in order for the state to recover effectively.

“When I first got into Trenton eight years ago, one of the first things I did, subject to a lot of criticism, was ask the legislature to vote on a resolution asking people to be more civil to each other,” Bramnick said. “I was the subject of ridicule, not only around the state house, but on the Internet from around the world. They said, ‘why is this legislator in New Jersey trying to tell people to be nicer to each other?’”

“In today’s society, I have deep concern about (the fact) that you can be extremely concerned and passionate about how you feel, and I think you can articulate without making the other person evil,” Bramnick added.

A busy week for the Assemblyman will continue on Wednesday, when he makes two scheduled appearances. The first will be at 8:30 a.m. when Bramnick, joined by Senator Tom Kean and Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz, will meet with local business owners at Rockn’ Joe’s in Westfield. He will later venture to the Borough School Library in Morris Plains to meet with the Morris County Board of Education at 7 p.m.