Beck and Kean Hold Town Hall Meeting to Discuss Corzine's Plan to Sell the Turnpike and Parkway for Quick Cash

Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck and Assemblyman Sean T. Kean yesterday held a second important town hall meeting in Freehold Township to discuss Governor Jon Corzine’s proposed fire-sale of state assets like the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway.

“Selling the state’s toll roads will have serious repercussions that could negatively impact New Jerseyans’ quality of life, the State’s economy, and our financial well-being for generations to come,” said Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck, R-Monmouth and Mercer.  “That is exactly why it was vital for us to come together again to hear from the people who will be directly impacted by this major policy initiative.”

Both Beck and Kean are members of the Assembly Transportation and Public Works Committee and both have been statewide leaders in voicing strong and consistent opposition to the Governor’s scheme, pointing out that it will only plunge the State into a deeper fiscal crisis.

“New Jersey is hemorrhaging private sector jobs even while the size of government is increasing at rates unseen in virtually any other state in the country,” said Assemblyman Sean Kean, R-Monmouth.  “The Democrats’ plan to ‘solve’ this problem is really no solution at all.  They refuse to cut wasteful spending and instead are conspiring to generate more revenue through increased tolls that will hurt middle class families the most.”

Beck and Kean have been encouraged by recent public opinion polls which show strong opposition to the Governor’s plan.  “What you’re seeing already, and what you can expect to see more of, is the Governor and his Democrat colleagues dressing their plan up in the cryptic terminology of Wall Street financiers,” Kean added.  “Thankfully, the public isn’t buying into the rhetoric.”

Beck agreed with Kean’s assessment of the Democrats’ strategy to sell their plan to the public.  “They may call this plan ‘asset monetization’ and they may well say that the public will remain in control of the Turnpike and Parkway,” Beck noted.  “But, at the end of the day, you can be sure that no one in his or her right mind is going to put up several billion dollars without getting something in return.”

Both legislators said they were encouraged by the public’s interest in attending their town hall meeting, noting that the more public discussion there is the on the topic, the more pressure Governor Corzine will be under to share the details of his proposal with everyone.

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