Opinion

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AP Newswire
 
It seemed like a natural phrase for a new, inspirational presidential campaign: Yes, We Can. But, as it turns out, it has been the trademarked slogan for the National Center for Home Food Preservation and Canning -- the trade association folks in DC who advocate for the many ‘canning’ companies around the nation.
 
“It’s outrageous,” declared Homer “Deacon” Jones Jr., the president and grandson of the founder of the Intercourse Canning Company of Intercourse, Pennsylvania. “Over the years, we have suffered enough from the ‘Intercourse’ jokes. My father, Homer Sr, and his father, Malcolm before him, just took it all in stride. But when someone takes our prideful slogan, ‘Yes, We Can!’ and usurps it for political purposes, well, that makes my blood boil. That slogan is known all over the country for just one thing: Canning.” The Intercourse Canning Company is known for canning beets, pickles and tomatoes. Mr. Jones was the President of the National Center for Home Food Preservation and Canning from 1996 to 2002.

Though I have been following the escapades of the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders for a number of years, I was totally unaware that a seat on the board came complete with its very own “Bully Pulpit.” Now not to be misunderstood -- I do believe that there are those public offices, such as the American presidency, or perhaps U.S. Senate which are of a high enough rank as to provide the office holder with an opportunity to speak out and be listened to on any matter, within the parameters of good taste and sportsmanship. However holding the office of freeholder does not automatically award that public official the license to publicly malign and criticize the opposition political party and candidates. Nor is it acceptable to use the public’s time to extol the self-perceived virtues of one’s own party candidates. But this is exactly what happened during the last Union County Freeholder meeting when sitting Freeholder Dan Sullivan engaged in blatant electioneering which has absolutely no place in a forum that is intended to carry out the “public’s business” -- to govern the county.

Playing off Thursday’s Philadelphia Inquirer headline, New Jersey’s newspapers can’t exactly wash their hands of the “business as usual” culture that allowed the so-called ‘MAC account’ to flourish for two years.

If you look at past news stories about the MAC accounts, a.k.a. Property Tax Assistance and Community Development Fund, the coverage did not exactly live up to Woodward and Bernstein standards.

Case in point.  Daily reporting coming out of Wayne Bryant’s federal corruption trial would now leave readers to believe that nobody in state government had final responsibility for overseeing the distribution of more than $120 million in ad hoc budget funds. That’s contrary to how it was once reported.

At times over the last two weeks, the testimony offered by one witness even contradicted what he had previously told reporters.

So it raises the question, how was the slush fund characterized by the press in past reporting?

Politicians spin for a living, but they're rarely held accountable for what they say after the fact. So today I'm taking a look back on what they were saying about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin when she was announced as John McCain's vice presidential running mate.

State Sen. Bill Baroni predicted that Palin would appeal to "a broad spectrum of New Jersey voters," especially the state's "vast independent voting bloc." Asked about accusations that she pressured the former Commissioner of Public Safety to fire a state trooper, Baroni replied: "There's no evidence of it. It will be completely vetted [in] the next 48 hours."

In fact a bipartisan legislative panel found that Palin violated the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act when she "abused her power in pushing for the firing of an Alaska state trooper."

Baroni wasn't as far off on the other point, though. In the latest Survey USA poll, McCain leads among independents in New Jersey by 45 to 40 percent, although voters who identify as "moderate" break for Obama by 58 to 36 percent. Still, Obama has a 15 point lead in the poll.

State Sen. Kevin O'Toole called the Palin pick "a stroke of brilliance." If this is his idea of brilliance, I don't want to know what other good ideas O'Toole has in store.

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Via AP Newswire
 
The McCain Campaign finally released its long-awaited Economic Stimulus Plan today at a campaign event in Boston, Massachusetts -- a state where the Arizona Senator trails Senator Barack Obama by more than 17 points, according to the latest Rasmussen polling data. “My friends, the fundamentals of our campaign in the Bay State are sound,” declared McCain. “And our economic plan will take a hatchet to budget earmarks. Maverick. Maverick. And you will know their names…Maverick.”