Much to the chagrin of the establishment Republicans in the state, the candidacy of Steve Lonegan is gaining support from grassroots voters across the state. There is no doubt among any of us that Chris Christie is a decent man who would do his best to run the state to the best of his ability, but for me, that is not enough.
The conventional wisdom of the power brokers in the party is that Lonegan cannot win. If I recall correctly, the wizards of smart said the same thing about Ronald Reagan. They are of the opinion that New Jersey is far too left-leaning to ever elect a man of principles like Lonegan.
In this measure, they underestimate the electorate, because the philosophy that Steve Lonegan lives by resonates with all people regardless of party affiliation.
Republicans are not the only ones who are tired of the way this state is being run.
Do you think they are the only ones who notice that there are coastal evacuation signs all the way past Great Adventure?
The ideas that are being proposed by Steve Lonegan are innovative, commonsense proposals that will reduce the size of government, and therefore the burden on the citizens of New Jersey.
It is critical, in my view, that we in New Jersey elect someone who does not accept the premise of immoral policies like COAH [Council on Affordable Housing], Abbott districts, and the “progressive” tax structure, and other types of big government programs and reckless spending.
Christie probably believes that he can fix our problems through the government; Lonegan rightly sees the government as the problem.
James Fitzmaurice
Rumson