Posted on 05/05/2020 5:41:06 AM PDT by MtnClimber
Interviewed by Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday, New Jersey governor Phil Murphy praises Donald Trump for having been supportive of New Jersey’s health care needs, but Wallace reminds him:
One area, however, Governor, where you haven’t gotten help, either from the president or from Senate Republicans, is on the question of state aid -- federal aid, passed by Congress, signed by the president -- to go to states like yours to pay for, uh, first responders, teachers, and all the services, with the huge revenue hit that you’ve taken because of the coronavirus. You’ve said this week -- your word -- that if you don’t get state aid, it’s gonna be “Armageddon.”
“The old legacy stuff.” That’s a pretty sly means of referencing New Jersey’s notoriously bloated pension promises that were negotiated and enshrined by generations of corrupt union bosses and state legislators.
Only a fool could be duped by this shell game. Yes, of course this would amount to a federal bailout of mismanaged and bloated state pensions.
And it raises an important moral question. Why should a private worker in, say, Texas, be liable to pay for the horrible financial quagmire that New Jersey union bosses and politicians created in their own state? What should a taxpayer in Texas have to do with any of that? Shouldn’t payouts to pensioners in New Jersey be adjusted, or perhaps the salaries for current public workers adjusted to reflect reduced revenue, or furloughs at least be considered to address the state’s lack of liquidity, before demanding that taxpayers from other states pay for the problems that reckless unions and politicians in New Jersey created all by themselves?
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Why not make them save in 401K accounts like everyone else. And, why don't they lose their jobs too if the government shuts down the economy?
Cap yearly pensions at $30k. That’s better than the rest of us. Next raise the age to 70. Cops are different but then very few make it to 20 years.
Why bailout the pensions and not the 401ks?
We are told that the stock market crash only affects “the rich” (including retirees). It hits pensions too.
No bailout.
New Jersey’s biggest problem by far is it’s Welfare rolls. People move there just for that!
Here’s modest proposal: cut government by 90%.
Taxation without representation.
The other irony is that the gross injustice of state-run pension systems played a much bigger role in the collapse of communist governments in Eastern Europe than most of us may realize.
Why are cops different? I would suggest that you get involved with your local city government or at least attend their budget hearings.
As a former city manager I hate to burst anyone’s bubble, but behind the closed doors the primary attitude of the police officers and their protected union bargaining status is more, more, more, as in give them all of the money they need and cut every other departments budget to pay for it regardless of impact to the public
If the city has healthy reserves, then the cops are gong to want that. They will play the “its for the safety of the children” card to get the public on their side. Behind the scenes they are the worst spoiled children of a rich daddy. They think it’s their right to everything. They milk overtime to increase their pension. And then there is the infighting. They will cut each other’s throat to take from a brother officer if they think that officer is getting something their not.
It’s not about your or my safety. Its always about the money.
It is not as if many of the government employees in these corrupt states did not have extra income from things like bribes, theft of government property and organized crime involvement.
It is high time governments do the same. However, if places like New Jersey get bailouts, it should only be under the following conditions:
Not just Jersey, every state that has suffered Democrat leadership
Exactly
Let the pension system go bankrupt. In bankruptcy, adjust the per-retiree payout to what is sustainable.
This accomplishes two things: it puts the pension fund into a sustainable state, and it gives notice to the public-employee unions that their pensions are dependent upon the health of the US economy, and that they should promote the health of the US economy.
🤔
The “legacy” stuff is the states’ responsibility. It ALL precedes the Wuhan Virus and arose from state mismanagement that went on for decades. They can spend decades now fixing those problems themselves. Those problems are a self-inflicted injuries that the people of the other states should not have to pay for through higher federal expenditures.
Other states did not make those mistakes, so to their credit they are in better shape now in spite of the Wuhan Virus. They are to be celebrated, not made to pay for poorly run states mistakes.
Shouldn’t all be responsible to choose wisely to select those who are responsible for managing retirement assets, including taxpayers?
When retirement funds are not fully funded or when the funding loses value due to risks of life that we all experience, then why should taxpayers be responsible?
The mismanagement by democrat governments and the wasteful spending should be dealt with by the voters of that government and not all voters (wealth redistribution).
Nope
No alternative and no bailout.
State and corporate pension funds use real estate as a safe means of investment. This shutdown is killing those incomes. I suspect by October that retirees are going to find those 5% safe incomes are half or less of what they were before.
Before we even have this discussion, all Public Employee’s should be Required to take their 60-90 day UNPAID FURLOUGH, Locked in their Homes, with Severe Penalties for any Violations, just like the Citizens had to do.
Then we can talk about Abolishing ALL Defined Benefit Plans, rel3enquishing All Pension Assets to Social Security and Rolling them All into Social Security for their retirement.
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