Folks outside of the Northeast have long been perplexed by an
apparent electoral anomaly; for years, these states that
consistently send liberals to Congress have chosen Republicans as
their governors. The GOP has held the title in Connecticut since
1995 while New York’s George Pataki reigned for twelve years
until the disastrous election of Eliot Spitzer. New Jersey
suffered through nearly a decade of financial degradation before
electing Chris Christie.
Those of us who live in the area are pretty well convinced
that the explanation for this is that our fellow northeasterners
want a daddy in charge of our particular nanny states. Thus do
they continue to elect what are euphemistically called fiscal
conservatives, Rockefeller Republicans or most commonly, RINOs.
That enables these folks to vote for candidates who are socially
liberal — supporters of abortion, gay marriage, etc, — but keep
an eye on finances; a combination which satisfies both their
consciences and their pocketbooks.
Now these Rockefeller Republicans have always bowed to
pressure from local liberals to grow government programs and fund
their partisan groups, particularly teachers unions. But the
times may be a-changin’, as they say. Republicans of the RINO
genus are still on the prowl here, but they are developing quite
a considerable set of horns. Take the newly elected governor of
New Jersey. The deeds of the redoubtable Chris Christie are
indeed incredible, beyond a doubt. In a few short months he has
managed to enrage just about every liberal in the Garden State by
slashing budgets, freezing teacher pay, cutting non-essential
programs, and swiftly vetoing a so-called millionaire’s
tax.
And although he may be moderate on a few issues, his words
are like sweet music to the ears of conservatives. As a candidate
he
promised, “I will remake the court and I will remake it on
this one simple principle: If you [want to] legislate, [then] run
for the Legislature, don’t put on a black robe and go to the
Supreme Court.” And when confronted by a reporter asking about
his “confrontational” tone in support of school vouchers, he
explained
an essential difference between liberals and conservatives: “They
believe in certain things. They believe in bigger government,
higher taxes and more spending. I believe in less government,
less taxes and in empowering local officials who were elected by
their citizens. Now, I can see where there could be a
disagreement or two.”
Over in New York, the big news was the hat tossed in the
gubernatorial ring by Andrew Cuomo, son of the man Rush Limbaugh
tagged, “Mario the Pious.” It seems that Merry Andrew has
inherited none of his father’s purported oratorical skills. He
burst into the campaign with
this succinct and detailed summary of his plan for
governance: “My mission is to develop an agenda for this state
and develop support among the people. I believe if you do that
successfully, the Legislature will pass an intelligent agenda
supported by the people. Otherwise, you would have to believe
that legislators would act adverse to the interests of the people
of their district.” But the real surprise is that young Cuomo is
said to be in favor of adopting some conservative stances like
support for charter schools and caps on state spending and
property taxes.
In nearby Connecticut, home of yours truly, the buzz is not
about our gubernatorial contest, but surrounds the replacement
for our ultra-liberal senator, Christopher Dodd. Short weeks ago,
Republicans held moderate hopes of seeing Dodd’s seat go the way
of his longtime pal Ted Kennedy’s. The fact that Dodd decided
against defending his incumbency was evidence enough that
Democrats were worried about affairs in the Nutmeg State, but
they were confident that voters would flock to the side of
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal. Of course, recent
revelations from his past have severely wounded his
chances.
Now in fairness, I must disclose that I have heard
Blumenthal speak at more than a few veterans functions where it
was common knowledge that he never saw active duty during the
Vietnam era. That said, I wholeheartedly agree with many who
characterize him as the worst AG in the nation and one
of the most dangerous men in America. It is only fitting that WWE
magnate Linda McMahon is prepared to go to the mat against him.
And although she is also a RINO, she would be the first
Republican senator — no, Lowell Weicker doesn’t count — from
our state since Prescott Bush, father of George H.W. and
granddaddy of George W.
So in New York and Connecticut, things are looking up for
those of us tired of big government, high taxes and other
countless manifestations of the tender mercies of the Nanny
State. And if, by some chance, our November dreams don’t come
true, we can always move to New Jersey.
