Fair Lawn NJ, A 64 year old grandmother and her 11 and 8 year old grandsons were all struck by a vehicle while crossing Fair Lawn Avenue near Chandler Drive in Fair Lawn at approximately 11:15 am on Friday, 07/01. All three (3) victims were transported by an ambulance to The Valley Hospital with non life threatening injuries. The driver of the vehicle involved, a Volvo SUV, stayed at the scene and was cooperating with investigating police officers.
Ridgewood NJ, In case you missed it, earlier this week Rep. Scott Garrett asked Fed Chair Janet Yellen why the Fed of pursues policies that help the rich at the expense of the poor. Garrett schooled Fed Chair Yellen on the damaging impact her policies have had on the middle class in this country . Garret said the net effect of Fed and administration policy has been to widen income inequality.
In this clip Garrett turns the Fed’s own language against itself and details how Fed policies have hurt African America’s and other minority groups , as well as the middle class .
Ridgewood NJ, THE MOST important financial decisions in life aren’t made in Wall Street board rooms or by bureaucrats in Washington — they’re made around kitchen tables. Around these tables families look at their bills, their savings, their job prospects and their personal finances and try to figure out how to get ahead in this terrible economy. Unfortunately, the Dodd-Frank Act, the law that was enacted in 2010 with huge promises of economic recovery, has stifled the financial success of families, businesses and entrepreneurs.
And while you might not know Dodd-Frank by name, you have certainly felt its impact in your wallet. The architects of Dodd-Frank crafted an onerous maze of regulations and rules that put Washington priorities ahead of the needs of American families. Since Dodd-Frank became law, free checking has largely disappeared, and the American Dream has become more difficult to make a reality — especially if you’re self-employed — since it’s become harder to obtain a loan to buy a new house or start a business. In fact, the rate of new business start-ups is near a 20-year low, and last month’s jobs report was the worst since 2010.
Not only has Dodd-Frank made it harder for Americans to get ahead, it makes yet another bailout of Wall Street more likely. During the 2008 crisis, the taxpayers were forced to bail out big banks considered “too big to fail.” Today, those banks are bigger, and Dodd-Frank enshrines in law the expectation that taxpayers will once again be on the hook for costly bailouts.
I’m joining my colleagues on the House Financial Services Committee to propose a blueprint for American financial success. The Financial CHOICE Act — which stands for Creating Hope and Opportunity for Investors, Consumers and Entrepreneurs — is designed to revitalize economic growth through competitive capital markets. This plan will fix the problems of Dodd-Frank by increasing punishment for crooks, ending taxpayer bailouts, scaling back poorly designed regulations and holding Washington accountable to We the People.
Penalties for fraud
To better protect consumers, the Financial CHOICE Act imposes the toughest — and most expensive — penalties in history for fraud and deception. The Securities and Exchange Commission will have new authority to increase punishment for repeat offenders and link fines to investor losses. This will make sure that fraudsters who stole or scammed huge amounts of money from inno-cent people won’t get just a slap on the wrist for their crimes.
Our plan offers economic opportunity for all and bailouts for none. Dodd-Frank made promises to end “too big to fail” that were never kept. We can end this cycle by forcing failing institutions to file for bankruptcy. Our plan reforms the bankruptcy code to protect taxpayers and instill much-needed market discipline. Taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook for the mistakes of big banks and Wall Street, and under our plan they never will be again.
One of the key tenets of the Financial CHOICE Act is an optional “off-ramp” for financial institutions to break free of Washington’s one-size-fits-all rules. But the condition for being free of excess regulation is a strong capital standard, which means that banks will be forced to hold assets to back up their liabilities. By passing the CHOICE Act, we can both manage liabilities and let banks do what they do best: invest in the next American Dream.
Washington desperately needs transparency. Dodd-Frank created bureaucracies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that gave immense power to a single, politically appointed director who makes economic decisions on your behalf. The CFPB tells you what financial products you can have or not have because they think they know what’s best for you when it comes to loans, mortgages and car purchases.
Our plan makes the CFPB, and other unaccountable agencies, into bipartisan commissions. We would also require all financial regulations to undergo strict cost-benefit tests to make sure they’re not doing more harm than good. And we would change the system to ensure that all major financial regulations are approved by Congress before they are imposed on the American people.
Resistance by banks
I expect that it will be difficult to get support for bottom-up solutions like the Financial CHOICE Act in Washington. This plan is hated by big banks and crony capitalists that are all going to lose influence and power over the rest of America if this bill is passed. However, I believe that Congress can make this necessary reform with the support of people who are more concerned about the financial decisions made around kitchen tables than they are with protecting the interests of Washington insiders.
People in northern New Jersey don’t need economic reports to tell them that the economy is still in bad shape. We see it every day in our bank accounts and in our towns. Recovery can happen, and we can be prosperous again, but it has to start in our communities — not in Washington. The Financial CHOICE Act can help make that possible.
Rep. Scott Garrett, R-Wantage, serves New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He is chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises.
Reader says , Thanks NJ for killing one of the few remaining good things about NJ (low gasoline prices)
.
Thanks for moving NJ’s gasoline tax
From the 2ND LOWEST state gasoline tax in the USA (49th place)
To the 7th HIGHEST state gasoline tax
.
thanks
If these morons had half a brain, the would find ways to LOWER gasoline prices and increase consumption.
This would:
– increase overall gasoline tax revenue
– increase business (which brings along increased job employment and increased spending) – resulting in even more tax revenue for the state
– result in happier residents and taxpayers who get to spend and save more money and enjoy their lives more.
.
too bad resident’s pursuit of happiness is not on the agenda for NJ politicians.
Ridgewood NJ, State lawmakers passed a 23-cent gas tax hike overnight that Gov. Chris Christie is set to sign by Friday saving the Transportation Trust Fund of TTF from running out of money.
There was no mention of auditing the TTF ?
The Christie backed plan is a 23-cent gas tax hike that Gov. Chris Christie is set to sign in to law by Friday.
The vote came early Tuesday came after a day of backroom talks between Christie and legislative leaders such as Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto. In the brokered deal the Democrat-led Assembly passed legislation to hike the state’s gasoline tax by 23 cents per gallon, while cutting the sales tax from 7 to 6 percent.
Motorists could see the hikes take effect by Friday. The state’s gas tax would increase from 14.5 cents per gallon to 37.5 cents per gallon under the plan.
Today the average price of a gallon of gas in New Jersey is $2.10 according to AAA Mid-Atlantic, down a penny overnight and down a penny in the last week.
Christie, in a statement, highlighted the sales-tax-cut portion of the proposal, saying he was “pleased that the Assembly has heeded my suggestion for tax fairness, which I have been calling for for a long time.”
Ridgewood NJ, Here’s what we all need to know: The TTF has been a cesspool of waste and inefficiency. Sarlo and Sweeney use the TTF to buy union votes from their pals like Sanzari. It costs NJ state taxpayers $2.0 million per mile of state road, 12X the nation average and 3X the next highest state. Every other state in the country does it for considerably less, with MA next highest under $700,000 per mile. The funding for state roads is there from current gas taxes, bridge & tunnel tolls and commuter pass taxes. All Trenton needs to do is renew the funding on July 1st, but this should only come after an independent audit of the current TTF. Until then, not a penny more in gas taxes should be raised.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s immigration decision puts 200,000 New Jersey residents and their families in limbo, advocates said Thursday. Jonathan D. Salant, NJ.comRead more
Steve Adubato goes on location to the CIANJ Annual Legislative Dinner and speaks with Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli (R) who says our tax code needs to change if we want to improve our economy. As just one example, Ciattarelli believes we need to eliminate the Estate Tax to keep people in the state. Max Pizarro, PolitickerNJ Read more
Washington Twp, A large limb fell from a tree located near the intersection of Washington Avenue and Van Emburgh Avenue in Washington Township on Wednesday afternoon, 06/22, igniting a significant brush fire, snapping a utility pole, knocking out electric, cable and telephone service to several homes, and closing a portion of Washington Avenue for an extended period. Washington Township PD, FD, and EMS units responded to the incident. Traffic control assistance related to the road closure was provided by HoHoKus PD units. PSE&G and Cablevision crews were also observed working in the area.
Paramus NJ, Two (2) drivers involved in a late Wednesday afternoon, 06/22, three (3) vehicle collision at the intersection of Oradell Avenue and Pascack Road in Paramus were transported by ambulance to The Valley Hospital with non life threatening injuries. Two (2) of the three (3) vehicles involved were heavily damaged and removed from the scene by a flatbed tow truck. Paramus PD, FD Company #1, and EMS units responded. A minor crash related fluid spill was attended to by fire department personnel. The crash was reported at 5:55 PM.
Ridgewood NJ, The American people are just now learning the extent to which members of the Clinton family are willing to sell themselves and access to our government to the highest bidder.
Now, voters in the Fifth District are demanding answers to what role Josh Gottheimer played with the Clinton Foundation.
The very Liberal New York Observer said , “It comes as no surprise that Hillary Clinton’s closest allies are involved in a litany of ethics violations”
Recently Hillary Clinton’s 2008 campaign chair, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, came under investigation by the FBI and Department of Justice over questionable contributions to his 2013 campaign.
We already know, for example, that during Josh Gottheimer’s tenure at Microsoft, Bill Clinton was paid $225,000 to give one speech.
But the four years during which Mr. Gottheimer served as Executive Vice President for Burson-Marsteller are completely opaque.
Voters of the Fifth District want answers.
During his tenure at Burson-Marsteller, through how many clients did Josh Gottheimer funnel money to the Clintons and the Clinton Foundation? Did any of his clients that donated to the Clinton Foundation subsequently lobby the State Department during Hillary Clinton’s tenure as Secretary of State? Will Josh Gottheimer share his Burson-Marsteller client list, so we know the specific special interests to which he is tied?
Hackensack NJ, After what can be best described as a contentious, race between two local political allies-turned-rivals, Bergen county Republicans have chosen a new leader in former state Assemblyman Paul DiGaetano, who defeated controversial eight-year incumbent Chairman Bob Yudin in a party election held Tuesday.
The vote tally showed DiGaetano who was backed by the Ridgewood blog with and almost 2-1 margin of 539 votes and Yudin with 274.
DiGaetano has inherited a GOP in disarray and reeling from years of infighting . The Bergen GOP has suffered election loss after election loss and was once accused by the Ridgewood blog of losing on purpose . DiGaetano must now lead his embattled party in an effort to gain footing at the county level of politics after a steady decline in party power at that level in recent years.
While we have always liked Bob Yudin , the issues to the Ridgewood blog has been one of winning or in this case not wining .
The once sleepy chairmanship election ended a bitter race, which included allegations of ethnic slurs, a decade-old alleged death threat against a state senator and last-minute campaign literature, political endorsements and emails to party members urging support.
Bergen County Republican Organization Committee members cast their votes determining the outcome.
During Bob Yudin’s tenure as party chairman, BCRO members have watched the party go from having the county executive’s office, the sheriff’s office and a majority on the Board of Freeholders to now having only one incumbent Republican official running for office, Freeholder Maura DeNicola who was also endorsed by this blog.
With six county-level positions Sheriff, three freeholder seats, clerk and surrogate are all up for election on the ballot in November, the Republicans face the prospect of a shut out of county government or political Armageddon.
As repored on this blog a decade-old rumor surfaced when state Sen. Kevin O’Toole claimed that in 2005, when he was the Essex County Republican chairman, DiGaetano threatened his life after O’Toole refused to endorse DiGaetano’s bid for governor. We felt the allegations were fallacious given the source ,O’Tool is a known hot head and has been known to make threats himself.
BY COLLEEN DISKIN AND JAMES M. O’NEILL
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD
Twelve health care companies have expressed interest in taking over Bergen Regional Medical Center, including an overture from a coalition of local hospitals and a long-term-care facility.
County officials said the health care entities responded to a “request for qualifications” from those who might be interested in managing the county-owned, 1,000-bed hospital when the contract of its current for-profit operator expires next year.
Mahwah – As soon as June 23, the Township Council could propose revising its political sign ordinance to further limit how long political signs may be posted and how quickly they must be removed after an election.
The move followed a request at the council’s June 9 meeting by a resident to post 20 Donald Trump campaign signs on township property.
Ridgewood NJ, Josh Gottheimer and Ridgewood Mayor Paul Aronsohn are cut from the same political cloth . Both men have consistently put machine politics over the wishes of the voters .
Both men have made a career out of leveraging their connections to the Clinton family, but as Ridgewood voters have learned the hard way ,those connections don’t come for free.
As with any quintessential crime family, the Clintons will do you a favor, and someday, they’ll call upon you to do a service for them.
Well done, Josh. We’re sure you made The Family proud.
Voters of the Fifth District are understandably concerned about where Josh Gottheimer’s loyalties lie. But Mr. Gottheimer has been incredibly clear all along: everything he has, he owes to the Clinton family. They are his first and only constituency, and he is their loyal soldier.
