THE BOOK THE ACLU DOES NOT WANT YOU TO READ ! - And it’s FREE !!

Now, we're not prone to Public Service announcements. Not in keeping with our brand image, ya know. But, it’s the end of summer and we're bored beyond belief. So;


An organization named American Vision is selling the book "The Christian Life and Character of the Civil Institutions of the United States of America. Their price is $39.95.


The claim is the book is a "140-Year Old Book [that] Challenges the ACLU". Also, it is "The Book the ACLU Does Not Want You to Read!"


It also appears the book is in the public domain. And, it appears to be worth a look. So, for all you tremblingly ACLU'ers, godless liberals, and commie-pinko ner-do-wells quit quaking and link to Google for your free copy.


Hey! You might even take that $39.95 you saved and send to the ACLU.

WILSON v. CORZINE & KATZ: NO SHIELD FOR ROGUE COMMUNICATIONS

At first glance it seems that Tom Wilson has a steep mountain to climb if he is to gain public access to the Union email negotiation communications between Governor Corzine and Ms. Katz. News articles’ phrases like “executive privilege”, “confidential process privilege”, and “rights of privacy” portray a daunting challenge. So let’s play Devil’s Advocate. Let’s conjure up some offhand scenarios, amateur views and quite possibly totally wrong conclusions. And unfold them in the court of public opinion (“be they the quick or the dead”). Let’s think about why the underdog should win this one.

There seems to be no factual issue Governor Corzine abused his Office by placing his personal emotional attachment to Ms. Katz above his official duties when the Governor accepted and perpetuated the practice of receiving secret emails and telephone calls from Ms. Katz. Governor Corzine and Ms. Katz knew the proper negotiating procedures and their subsequent acts and omissions in opposition to those procedures show that, because of their personal relationship, they willfully violated the procedures. Since neither New Jersey nor Ms. Katz have any legitimate interest, let alone a substantial or compelling confidential privilege interest, in rogue communications, the emails and telephone conversations fall outside any exceptions to public release. Conversely, since the Government and the Public have a substantial and compelling interest in the appearance and actual integrity of the negotiating process and both the Government and Public have a substantial and compelling interest in both the appearance and actual trust in the integrity of Government functioning, the emails and telephone conversations should be released to the public arena.

THE SECRET COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN GOVERNOR CORZINE AND MS. KATZ CONSTITUTE AN ACTUAL IMPROPRIETY.

The Governor’s Ethics Advisory Panel condemned the act of secret communications, regardless of content, between the Governor and Ms Katz because such communications, standing alone, are in and of themselves an actual impropriety.

“Our advice, moving forward, is the Governor’s friends and other close associates be briefed in advance by the Governor’s Counsel or Ethics Liaison officer that they must have no direct communication with the Governor concerning matters involving the exercise of his duties as Governor in which they have a personal, professional, or pecuniary interest. If the close associate is unable or unwilling to honor such a commitment, then the governor must cease communicating until the issue is resolved. This is a difficult standard to meet; it is by its nature awkward, and may strain relationships. It is never easy to rebuff a friend or a loved one … [S]uch a bright-line prohibition is the surest way to p[reserve the Governor’s private life while respecting his public duties. The boundary between public duty and private life must be strictly observed, or it will not be respected.” Ethics Advisory Panel Report, May 8, 2007, P.33.

BOTH GOVERNOR CORZINE AND MS. KATZ NEW THE SECRET COMMUNICATIONS WERE FORBIDDEN.

It is a common experience in collective bargaining that a participants attempt to ‘end run’ the process by approaching interested parties informally. At the outset of the State’s process, Mr. Genova cautioned the entire State team, including the Governor, of this likelihood. Mr. Genova further instructed the State team, including the Governor, to try to avoid such informal discussions, and to redirect the caller to the formal bargaining process. According to Mr. Genova, he instructed all involved that ‘[t]he extent a Union official would seek to barging, and you find yourself in a position where such an exchange occurs, you should undertake efforts to divert that Union official to the bargaining table and back to me as lead negotiator as best as you can. …’ The Governor recalled that this cautionary instruction was ‘drilled into me’ by the negotiating team”. Ethics Advisory Panel Report, May 8, 2007, pgs. 13-14.

“… Thomas Shea, the Governor’s Chief of Staff … had been with Senator Corzine in Washington, D.C. and came to know Ms. Katz at that time. He said he did not need Mr. Genova to tell him that overtures might be made toward the Governor, and that caution need be taken. He informed us that as the Governor’s gatekeeper, he informed Ms. Katz that the Governor ‘is under strict instructions’ not to discuss these matters.” Ethics Advisory Panel Report, May 8, 2007, p. 22.

GOVERNOR CORZINE CONDONED ONGOING SECRET COMMUNICATIONS WITH MS.KATZ SOLELY BECAUSE OF HIS PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH MS. KATZ.

Although the Governor may not have created the situation, he certainly condoned and encouraged such communications by allowing them to continue. And, Governor Corzine, in opposition to his duty as Governor, did not attempt to end the secret communications and allowed them to continue because of his relationship with Ms. Katz. .

Ms. Katz “stated that she and the Governor have remained friends and acknowledged that they had contact through the early stages of the negotiations. Contact was by e mail and telephone.” Ethics Advisory Panel Report, May 8, 2007, p. 25.

“On several occasions during the process, State negotiators recalled, the Governor during the course of a conversation would mention the fact that Ms. Katz had contacted him.” Ethics Advisory Panel Report, May 8, 2007, p.19

“He [Governor Corzine] described that it is not easy to disengage from a relationship that is both personal and political.” Ethics Advisory Panel Report, May 8, 2007, p. 23.

ASSET MONETIZATION: SUBPRIME, HEDGE FUND & PRIVATE EQUITY MELTDOWN POINTS CORZINE TO LONGTERM STRATEGY

In the lead up to the November elections one would well expect Governor Corzine's "asset monetization" to take on an increasingly negative connotation and its supporters ostracized by the electorate as advocates of an "Ivy League Ponzi scheme.”

As the mainstream press gains a greater familiarity with the problems, as calls for greater disclosure by and stricter regulation of Hedge Funds and Private Equity Funds grows, and as the availability of buyers for structured product diminishes, the aftershocks of current global financial turmoil will leave a bitter aftertaste in the economy and a new sense the "cultural of credit" has come to an end.

Despite the current financial meltdown, however, Governor Corzine has made no showing that he has abandoned his drive to use asset monetization to restructure the State's balances sheet. Indeed, if we believe what former Chief of Staff Tom Shea told NJN’s Michael Aron (On The Record) the drive to securitize future revenue is more a function of when rather than if.

The question, therefore, is what is Governor Corzine's monetization strategy, and what is a likely timetable?

Part 1. It is said that it is better to be lucky than smart. Regardless of which is the case in this instance, Governor Corzine is positioned to weather the current financial storm. The Governor has, since returning to Office, been relatively silent on the subject. During this pause, the Governor has listened to objections, made several principle adjustments, but has generally refused to engage his critics on the particulars of his plan.

Silence prevents recrimination. No on can compare his plan to the hedge funds and private equity firms currently falling by the wayside or point out the structure of his proposed financing has defects similar to the financings that set off the current round of turmoil.

Indeed, watching the turmoil develop has allowed the Governor to preempt criticism. Hedge fund and private equity firm involvement would taint the plan and thus has been removed by committing not to “sell the turnpike” to such firms, but rather to sell future revenues to the State through a “public benefit corporation.”

Furthermore, seeking to place the approval of any asset monetization on the ballot not only disengages the issue from the November election (or at least provides Democrats with cover), it kicks the can down the road until there is a settling of the market’s dust. Maybe the next budget.

Finally, with Treasury Secretary Abelow as Chief of Staff, Governor Corzine makes a surrogate expert voice available to the press and the public. This voice serves to (1) deflect criticism of the concept, (2) rehabilitate legislative and public opinion about asset monetization and restore their confidence in, or at least a necessary evil acceptance of, the concept, and (3) to do all of this in a manner consistent with new legal, political and market realities. In effect, Chief of Staff Abelow is the Investment Banker brain, the deal man driving and reshaping both the product and the ongoing public relations effort.

Part 2. Going forward, the first task of Governor Corzine and Chief of Staff Abelow will be to defend their past actions and assure the public all is well. The New Jersey track record with the hedge fund world is mixed. Although Amaranth Advisors may have cost NJ $8 million on a $25 million investment, the thirst for higher returns has not been dampened by the higher risk. And, while NJ investment types are scattered throughout various sectors of the world economy, and thus generally impacted by the global crisis and any resultant downturn, primary focus will be on the infrastructure investments. As of May 23, 2007 NJ owned 32 million shares in the private equity firms of Cintra and Macquarie Infrastructure. Both Cintra and Macquarie are managers of public goods like toll roads and bridges. Both have been mentioned as potential buyers for the Turnpike.

Part 3. Words like monitor, assess, gauge and manage, adjust and refashion are the bywords for the foreseeable future. Short term, market volatility should set the tone for any monetization strategy. At this point tactics seem reactive. Only when the markets really stabilize and the damage to economic growth better understood will the Governor be able to shift asset monetization from a defensive to offensive posture.

WILSON v. CORZINE & KATZ – A TIME TO EVERY PURPOSE, EVEN EMAIL

This time and space had originally been blocked out to discuss why it is thought the Union negotiation emails between Governor Corzine and Ms. Katz should be released to the public via Mr. Wilson. It has, however, been decided to delay those posts at least until after the hearing – maybe until after the decision. Based on the considerations below it was decided there is “a time to every purpose” and the time for that discussion is sometime after the August 3, 2007 hearing. Here’s why.

When, logically speaking, the lawyers try to persuade Judge Innes their respective positions are correct and the opposing views are not as valuable to the debate, they will, by the nature of the issues, transcend parochial interests. Yes, it seems clear that Governor Corzine and Ms. Katz have an interest in keeping the emails confidential because they do not want to be embarrassed by any misinterpretation or just plain punditry humor. And, yes Republican Tom Wilson has a political interest in demonstrating the Governor showed poor Executive skills by the mix of his personal life with political decision making. And, yes both are important private interests.

But the potential of mere personal embarrassment does not seem to be enough to keep government records confidential. Conversely, charging a person with errors in political judgment would not seem to be enough to gain release of government documents. The Founding Fathers were well aware of the potential for individuals to use government office for their personal benefit. James Madison said it best:

“In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. ...” Madison, Federalist Papers, # 51.

His solution is equally straightforward:

“The interest of the man must be connected with the constitutional rights of the place. …” Madison, Federalist Papers, # 51.

Thus, it would seem Governor Corzine must show that he needs to keep the documents confidential in order to govern. It would also seem that Mr. Wilson needs to show the documents must be released to insure that the ability to govern actually includes the duty of the government to govern itself. And, after that hearing the weight of the world might well be sitting on Judge Innes’ shoulders.

One might well conclude that if the issues are so important, discussion of the issues are equally important. We each have an interest in the outcome.
ut it is also true that because the issues are so important the timing of the discussion is also important to everyone. As crafting current final drafts has approached their intersection with the hearing date the question of timing has grown. The question is simple: would posting them now be an unhelpful act of advocacy spin or a constructive search for the truth. Don’t know the answer. Maybe both. Both have many implications. However, since the issues are so important, since the answer isn’t clear, and since the shelf life of the posts hopefully extends beyond August 3rd its seems the better practice is not to post prior to the hearing.