Jersey City Mayor Bret Schundler recently won an upset victory for the Republican nomination for governor of New Jersey over former Congressman Bob Franks.
I can say good things about Bob Franks. He supported term limits in Congress and even set a limit on his own time in office. He campaigned on establishing a citizen initiative process where New Jersey voters could truly take charge of their government. But political analysts suggest Franks wasn’t credible on those issues, in no small part because he had the support of Governor Donald DiFrancesco and the GOP establishment who simply could not be trusted.
Republicans took control of the New Jersey Legislature a decade ago promising to enact term limits, voter initiative, and other reforms. But once in power, Republicans turned on the people. Term limits had passed the House and was ready to be taken up by the Senate, with enough votes lined up, when Senate President DiFrancesco pulled it from the calendar. The Senate never voted on the issue. DiFrancesco himself had been the frontrunner for the gubernatorial nomination until several months ago when his unethical dealings as township attorney in Scotch Plains became public. He was forced to pull out of the race for governor. That’s why DiFrancesco is the real loser in the election along with his rusty GOP machine. After Schundler’s victory, Governor DiFrancesco even refused to endorse his fellow Republican. That may, in fact, prove to be another big boost to Schundler’s candidacy.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.