Hi. I’m Barbara Buono, the Senate Majority Leader in New Jersey. I hope you will all welcome me to the Daily Kos community and support Congressman Frank Pallone in his re-election battle.
Election Day is just around the corner, and I'm sure by now you've heard all about the challenge my friend Congressman Frank Pallone is facing in the 6th District from Anna Little – a Tea Party approved extremist.
Just recently, Governor Christie was in Piscataway stumping for Anna Little. Something he said that day caught my attention and I've been unable to shake it ever since. The Governor said, "...what she believes is what she will do when she gets to Congress."
For once, I couldn't agree more with Governor Christie. The fact that Anna Little would fight tooth and nail to implement her uncompromising, out-of-the-mainstream views as public policy is exactly what the voters should be concerned about. And that is why it is critically important for voters to look at what Anna Little believes and understand how it will hurt the hard-working families of New Jersey and the 6th Congressional District.
To start with, Anna Little still wants to open up our shores and beaches to offshore exploration and drilling – a position even Governor Christie considers potentially devastating. On the other hand, even when President Obama came out for offshore drilling last Spring, Congressman Pallone stood up and organized his congressional colleagues against this dangerous idea. He stood up and renewed his call for President Obama to issue an Executive Order protecting our beaches and shore economies by preventing offshore exploration and drilling. And this happened mere weeks before the Gulf Oil Spill.
Right now, our beaches and ocean waters are under attack by Big Oil, their lobbyists and their friends. And Anna Little is leading the charge. Congressman Pallone believes we need real investments in renewable energies – not dangerous exploration that most scientists agree will not move us any closer to true energy independence.
When it comes to our health, Anna Little has made her promises to repeal the recent historic health care reform legislation a centerpiece of her campaign. In other words, she wants to allow insurance companies to continue kicking people off their coverage when they get sick, denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions and allowing insurance rates to continue skyrocketing out of control. The Asbury Park Press stated it best in its editorial endorsing Congressman Pallone and coming out against Anna Little’s campaign: "She would work to repeal the health care reform package and believes all that is needed to put the health care system on the right track is more competition and tort reform."
Simply put, these out-of-touch ideas are simply the same tired and failed policy initiatives the right wing has been pushing for years. Anna Little has no real ideas to move New Jersey forward. Rather, she's seeking to turn back the clock to the same failed Bush policies that caused the economic collapse, ballooned our deficits with irresponsible tax cuts to the wealthiest 1% and weakened environmental regulations. Anna Little is on the side of Big Banks, Big Insurance, Big Oil and the wealthy – as her positions clearly show. Congressman Pallone's record shows that he's always on our side.
While Governor Christie is correct in pointing out how we know what kind of legislator Anna Little would be, thankfully the families of the 6th District already know exactly where Frank Pallone stands on the issues, too. Even more importantly, voters can see the results Congressman Pallone is delivering. He fought to pass the Beach Protection Act this year – requiring tough new beach water quality testing and notification. And now, he's working to create a Clean Ocean Zone off our coasts and permanently prevent offshore drilling. Congressman Pallone is also fighting to make sure that those companies creating toxic messes are the ones paying to clean them up, rather than the taxpayers.
This election season, all you have to do is turn on the television to see that the Republicans are energized all over our nation. And they're laying out in no uncertain terms exactly what they'd do if they were to wrestle control of Congress. If we don’t bear down over the course of the next week, then all our hard work over the last few years could be lost. Worse yet, all our accomplishments could be repealed. We could be facing a hostile Republican majority in Congress that says "no" to everything and refuses to compromise. America simply can't afford a return to the regressive policies that caused so much harm to our economy and to our working families.
Right now, Congressman Pallone needs your help to keep our country moving forward. Please consider volunteering in these crucial final days to spread his positive record and message out to the voters. The stark differences between the two candidates on the ballot in New Jersey's 6th Congressional District couldn't possibly be any clearer. I'm proud of to stand alongside my friend Frank Pallone because he’s always stood up for us.
(Cross-posted at Blue Jersey).