Cliff Birge of Montgomery
The promise of American democracy has drawn many talented and hard-working people to our shores, and in the aftermath of the Tiananmen Square massacre, it drew my wife, Cecilia Xie Birge — a protestor for democracy then and a Democratic candidate in the race for Somerset County freeholder now.
From precarious beginnings in the Cultural Revolution and Chinese labor camps where she spent time as a child, a scholarship to Bryn Mawr College opened the door to America, and she has never looked back. In 2006, she became the first Asian-American woman mayor in New Jersey, having already left behind a successful career on Wall Street as a financial analyst to raise our four children. The obstacles she has overcome and the level of achievement she has attained are a tribute to her tremendous strength of character, her determination and her grace. Put simply, she is a remarkable woman — and precisely the kind of leader our county needs.
With an impressive record of budget-control during her six-year tenure on the Montgomery Township Committee, including two years as mayor, Cecilia brings fresh ideas for controlling county spending, continued open-space preservation and desperately needed tax relief.
With some of the highest property taxes in the nation, you would think that the freeholder board would already be scrambling for solutions and abuzz with debate. To the contrary, since the beginning of 2008, the five Republican members of the freeholder board have, with little open discussion, voted “Yes” 5,26 times compared to just 1 “No” vote by a single freeholder. A record of 99.98 percent unanimous votes without real debate is a not-too-surprising outcome of complete and longstanding one-party control. No Democrat has held a seat on the freeholder board in nearly 30 years.
While my own political views have traditionally leaned Republican, the Republican party I always identified with no longer seems to exist. And after so many years of complete domination, the Republicans in Somerset County seem to have themselves become part of the problem — too vested in the ‘pay-to-play’ culture that rewards loyalty over competence to offer any real hope of reform or solutions to the difficult problems our county faces, and 5,626 to 1 odds of a freeholder dissenting makes a mockery of the reason we even hold elections and have a five-member board.
There is a certain irony in Cecilia’s having fled one-party rule in China only to face it again here in central New Jersey. Unlike China, however, we hold elections here, and the voters of Somerset County do have a choice. Nevertheless, our democracy is only as strong as we make it. It is up to the voters to bring some desperately needed openness and reform to our county government.
Cecilia Birge will be a tireless advocate for clean government and fiscal restraint so please join me in supporting her and her running mate, Doug Singleterry, in their campaigns for Somerset County freeholder.
Cliff Birge
Montgomery
