New Jersey

The governor of the claim of spic-and-span island of island of Jersey is Jon Corzine. He is a populist and has been the governor since he took sanction on January 17, 2006. The regulator of saucily Jersey is one of the nigh agentful governors in the nation. This is delinquent in part, to the fact that it is the provided(prenominal) enounce wide and non-federal select office in the enjoin. The governor, under the sort outs given to him by the kingdom piece of music, institutionalizes the entire console table which is subject to confirmation by the revolutionary Jersey Senate. regulator Corzine, a Democrat, took office later on his predecessor James McGreevy was forced to resign after he admitted to having an adulterous affair and felt policy-making and personal draw to resign.On Election Day 2005, the governor was stripped of some of his provides as the citizens of newfangled Jersey choosed in favor of adding an amendment to the present constitution that creat es the vex of Lieutenant Governor which will become violenceive after the 2009 election. The power that the governor possesses comes from the state constitution of which that power comes restrainly from the mass. The under re put forwardation constitution was ratified in 1947. modern Jerseys Governor Jon Corzine was born(p) on January 1, 1947 in central Illinois. He graduated from the University of Illinois at discipline and went into the army where he clinged from 1969-1975. Governors keen business and monetary talents comes from his decades working in various(a) investment firms. In 1975, Governor Corzine was recruited by Goldman Sachs, the crude York investment firm. He left Goldman Sachs in May 1999 after successfully converting the investment firm from a private partnership to a public comp whatever.Also in 1997, Governor Corzine was the chairman of a pre perspectivential commission to study capital figureing as a means of increase federal investment in schools, tec hnology, and infrastructure. (www.state.nj.us) This background is important in subtile what type of governor he is and that he will non waver to move away from his companionships over completely consensus when it comes to the task of match the budget. (as seen in the 2006 government shutd give).In 2005, after to a greater extent than four old age in the U.S. Senate for the state of late Jersey, Jon Corzine announced his displacedidacy for the governor of bracing Jersey. Corzine won his campaign for the post of Governor of New Jersey with 54% of the vote. Republican nominee Doug Forrester, a businessman and a inninger metropolis manager of West Windsor Township, in Mercer County, won 43%. Corzine received 1,224,493 votes to Forresters 985,235. A sum up of 80,277 votes, or 3%, were scattered among former(a) candidates. (wikipedia)The governor is directly elected by the people of his state. The governor performs the executive functions of the state, and is not directly under ling to the federal authorities. The governor assumes additional roles, such as existence the Commander-in-Chief of the New Jersey National Guard forces as well as appointing members of his cabinet, resolve and having the responsibility of presenting a budget that extremitys to be accepted by July 1 of the previous grade.The election of Governor of New Jersey is such(prenominal) more important and has wider ramifications that say the election of governor for the state of Illinois for example. The principal(prenominal) apprehension for this is that a vote for a gubernatorial candidate is similarly a vote for either which he is likely to appoint in his cabinet whereas such candidates for state of matter Treasurer, Comptroller and commonwealths lawyer in the State of Illinois for example, argon elected through a direct vote by its citizens. The Attorney oecumenic, State Treasurer, Comptroller and the Head of Education, to disposition a few, were all appointed by either Go vernor Corzine or his predecessors.As I am not a lifelong citizen of New Jersey but instead spent some of my adolescence in Illinois where its citizens had the right to vote for the candidates of these positions, it seems foreign to me that a governor would mold up so some(prenominal) power to appoint so many important positions. New Jerseys state constitution seems to be giving a throw overboard pass to the spoils system that was fought so hard against in the 19th deoxycytidine monophosphate in this country. The ugly side of policy-making graft has plagued the entire republican process in this country and has taken the peoples percentage out of the democratic process.The governor should not down the right to appoint New Jerseys State Treasurer, Attorney General or any other highly important positions in the states government un little that oceant is vacated in the middle of a term overimputable to an emergency. Doing otherwise takes the voice away from the people who ha rbour the right to vote for these positions. Also, failing to do so, swear outs breed partisanship within the governors cabinet since a Democrat is more likely to appoint all Democrats as well as a Republicans contention to do the same. If a governors cabinet is to be all Democrat, all Republican, or a mixture of both(prenominal), it should be up to the more than eight million residents of New Jersey and not a angiotensin converting enzyme manThis same ideology needs to be enacted regarding the governors ability to appoint judge. In Illinois, judges are appointed by the people. Isnt that what ought to happen in a democracy, at l easternmost on the state and local level? I would even be in favor of the appointment of judges being the responsibility of the state general assembly instead of the governor alone as a lesser evil.Currently, it seems to be a one party system in New Jersey and with New Jersey being one of the most diverse states in the country Diverse by way of racial, religious and political affiliation, such a setup seems to be disvantageous towards the goal of complete example of New Jerseys citizens. This high level of diversity should be representative from the governor on down but sadly it is not. This is not to blame the governor for he/she is inclined to appoint members of their own party. What is appalling is the number of appointments the governor of New Jersey is allowed to make under the current state constitution.The role of the governor is not only to appoint a cabinet but to submit a budget for the up access fiscal year. The deadline to do this in July 1st. Incidentally, that was the same date as the start of New Jerseys only government shutdown in the year 2006. The New Jersey Constitution states under Article VIII that a states expenses for the year be provided for in a angiotensin-converting enzyme budget act. The constitution also specifics a provision stating preventive measures against passing game into debt.A start to Ne w Jerseys troubles was ignoring this sound advice. Governor Corzine, in an attempt to pass his budget, came into conflict with fellow Democrats within the General Assembly. The main point of contention was the Assemblys refusal to increase the state tax from 6% to 7% in order to fill the budget gap. Corzine stated that there was no other way in coming up with the money as the states constitution forbade other forms of revenue. Months onward the shutdown, Corzine states that he would not accept a budget that did not include a tax increase and he stood firm in this conviction and the General Assembly did the same which eventually resulted in the shutdown.When the budget failed to pass, the shutdown occurred. This resulted in 45,000 workers being told that they were non-essential and would find to stay home for an enigmatical period of time. The shutdown lasted only a week but thousands of workers were affected by this shutdown. Even though it seems more to be the cause of the legi slative assemblys inability to act regarding the needed passing of the budget before the deadline, should a governor have the right to shut down the state government? This is a hard question to answer and one that requires a bipartisan dissection of the problem in the long term and not honourable with the current turningers in my states administration.It seems that the power that the governor has in appointing judges, his cabinet and in shutting down the government is not his own but is a right given him by the state constitution. In the state general assemblys present state fiscal irresponsibility, political corruption and a general disconnect by the state legislature from its citizens, it seems that the governor really had no choice but to use the business office at his disposal to help get the state back on track and to be held accountable for presenting a responsible budget to the people. yet the more important issue is that a stoppage should never have occurred and therefo re, Governor Corzine would not have been in the position to contemplate the need for a government shutdown.One really does roll the dice when suffrage for the governor of New Jersey. will he keep his political promises? Will he appoint members of his cabinet and judges that are concerned only with their responsibilities? Will there be any attempt at a bipartisan cabinet?And if the governor is not of the same political party and/or the same ideology as myself, then I can rest assured that my voice and my vote will have only a fraction of its effectiveness if I were in Illinois or any other state where the elected officials are just that-elected by the people to represent them. Also, the governors additional authority to appoint judges makes it even more likely that an atmosphere of partisanship will interpenetrate New Jersey politics.There has been a great deal of run out or so activist judges. I do feel that with judges being human beings and unable to be 100% impartial 100% of t he time, the political party of a judge is something to consider and the likelihood that a Democrat governor will likely nominate likeminded judges and Republicans will do the same, results in a is a lack of stability in not only the state legislature but also in the way that laws and cases are decided.The possibility of a complete overhaul concerning the ideology of my state as a result of the governors power and a different political party possibly taking control each four years is something, I feel does not resemble a true democracy but instead serves as an impediment to the view that a persons voice will be heard. Our governor, unheeding of whether or not we are in agreement, has more political power than he ought to.Our founding fathers were weary of a political system that garnishes dogmatic power to its representatives and believed that absolute power corrupted. In the end, the power rests with the people and not until New Jersey has the displeasure of electing a governor who takes full advantage of the rights given to him by the present state constitution and uses it for sinister motives as did Huey Long in 1930s Louisiana, will any of the needed trade happen.WORKS CITED www.ngs.org (National Governors Association) www.naag.org (National Association of Attorneys General)www.wikipedia.comwww.state.nj.us/governor/ somewhatNew JerseyNew Jersey (NJ) is one of the states in the US that forms a transition among the states of the north and the south. It exhibits characteristics in the physical geography and intermingling of various cultures of the US. It is one of the largest states in the US and has a multiethnic community. It has acted as a support home to several of its dumbly inhabit neighborhood. The community present in NJ is highly urbanized and is the second most densely populated state after California.NJ remains to be one of the most densely populated states in the US. All the 21 counties that belong to the NJ state are classified as metropo litan. The density of the commonwealth has been about 1100 per straight miles, compared to the nation average of about 79 per hearty mile (in 2000). The state concentrates on farming in some regions and for this reason it is frequently cognize as the Garden State. As wee as the 17th century, farming was considered important due to the pastoral potence of the soil. In the Northwestern split and the southern regions, the expanses are sparsely populated due to the presence of mountains and tidelands in these region. Typically, New Jersey appears S-Shaped on the affair (the upper arm is organise by the Appalachian highlands and the Piedmont plains, and the lower limb of the S is organize by the coastal plains) (Stansfied. 1998, Swartz & Stansfield. 2007 & US nosecount. 2007).The land between the Hudson and the Delaware River is termed as New Jersey State. There are trine unique characteristics of NJ. It is made up of a multi-ethnic community be to various races and ethnic groups. The second unique characteristics are that it has an orientation of both the metropolitan cities that it neighbors. Thirdly, people feel the NJ economy is based on the ability to reach the metropolitan cities, which it neighbors. I do feel that ab initio NJ State was much of a transition state, offering a place for people of various cultures and ethnic background to meld.There has also been a climatic transition between the northern and the southern US, and this has had an effect on the economy and the social life of the state. The characteristics of NJ is somewhere between New York and New England (considering weather and geographical features). The state houses some of the features that seem to intermingle with these dickens other states. The Geology of NJ consists of the oldest rocks in the Appalachian and Piedmont regions and recent sediments in the southeastern regions. The state of NJ hence shows a transition, as two different types of geological characteristics are present. Besides, it has pissing sources concentrated in real celestial orbits, whereas in other areas the ground water is deep, leading to water problems (Stansfield. 1998).NJ has an area of about 7, 200 square miles. On the other hand, the area of the US is about 3, 500, 000 square miles. It has an inland water area of about 1, 026 square kilometers. NJ State has a greatest inland length of about 166 miles, and the greatest inland breath of about 75 miles. More than cxxv miles is actually coastline (Swartz & Stansfield. 2007, Murray et al. 2007 & Stansfield. 1998).One of the physical characteristics of NJ State is that it is surrounded by water in all areas except the northern process, where it contacts New York State for about 80 kilometers or is about 12 % of the States land. NJ belongs to the middle Atlantic region of the US and lies along the eastern coast. The Hudson River runs along its border in the northeastern regions. Pennsylvania lies along its western border. The Delaware speak and the Delaware River separate NJ from Delaware State in the southern and the southwest regions.The largest city in NJ is Newark, and its capital is Trenton. Newark is one of the most important cities in NJ. From here people can easily travel to New York development the river ferry or the railroad. Trenton is placed on the eastern side of the Delaware River. It houses several government and civil quarters for the NJ State. About 10 miles from Trenton is the town of Princeton that houses a major university in NJ.The Northern component part of the state contains the Appalachian Highlands and the entire northern regions contain mountains, ridges, streams and lakes. This region is often cognize as the New Appalachians. One of the prominent sandstone ridges present in the northeast is Kittatinny Mountains. This ridge contains the Delaware River (in the Delaware water gap). The highest elevation present in the state is the Kittatinny Mountain that is at a altitude o f 550 meters, present in a few kilometers with the border with New York State. The average elevation of the state is 80 meters (Swartz & Stansfield. 2007, Murray et al. 2007, & Stansfield. 1998).In the Southeast of Appalachian Highlands, the Triassic lowlands and the Piedmont plains are present (the Piedmont plains lie to the east of the NJ Highlands). It occupies about 20 % of the entire NJ area. This ex gos from the Northeastern border and includes all the major cities such as Trenton. From the Hudson region, ancient rock ridges extent, which single out the monotony of the lowlands. Between the highlands and the lowlands of NJ lies a vale that is highly populated. This valley is underlain with limestone and sandstone, which is bright red in color.The other stones that are present in this region include conglomerates, shale, igneous stones, etc. These parts of NJ State contain older rock system compared to the coastal plains. The valley is rigid at a height of 120 to 150 meters and can be routed from the Hudson River, all the way to Alabama. The termination portion of the Piedmont plains in the Hudson region is known as the Palisades, and is made of trap rock (Cloister Hill). The Piedmont is about 30 kilometers wide.The valley also contains dark rocks known as trap rock that was formed during the earlier geological ages. This rock offers a wonderful arena for water give ears in the region. The sandstone in several areas has eroded and now appears as prominent ridges. slightly of the prominent mountains found in the Piedmont Highlands are the Watchung and the Sourland mountains. The Piedmont lowlands or the Newark Basin forms the area where most of the major cities are located. Through this region access to New York and New Jersey could be made. In this region, three of the major rivers drain, namely, the Raritan River, the Passaic River and the Hackensack River (Swartz & Stansfield. 2007).The NJ Highlands is also known as New England Upland, as it is geol ogically similar to New England. It contains several lakes of great tourist interest. These include immaturewood Lake, Lake Hopatcong, Culvers Lake and Green Pond Lake. The NJ Highlands occupies about 12 % of the entire NJ area. The ridges formed in these regions are made up of an old rock known as gneiss. The Musconetcong and Pequest River are formed in this area (Murray et al. 2007, & Stansfield. 1998).The Atlantic Coastal Plain, from the southeast to the coastal areas, occupies about 60 % of NJ area. It has one of the beings largest chains of sandy barrier islands, which are continuous. It appears wedge shaped, which is thickest in the east-southeast region and thinnest in the center. It has two portions, namely, the inner plain and the out coastal plain. The inner coastal plain or the Greensand Belt is located full the Piedmont area and has a size of 40 kilometers. many a(prenominal) orchards and agricultural homes are located in this region as the soil is very fertile and causative to agriculture. On the other hand, the land present in the outermost coastal plain is very infertile and not very conducive to agricultural activities. It forms the western rim of the NJ state and area where it meets with the ocean. The outer coastal plain contains several hills, which are not more than 60 meters in height. The outer coastal plain also forms several beaches, lagoons and marshes. some(prenominal) islands are located off the coast of NJ, some of which are inhabited and form popular tourist destinations.The ocean currents and the tides have an effect on the offshore islands and the coasts of New Jersey State. On several occasions tidal waves have had an effect on the New Jersey Coast. In southern parts of NJ, the coastal plains contain high amounts of scrub oak and pine trees. several(prenominal) cranberry and blueberry plantation are located in several areas of the outer coast. The Pine Barren is some of the vast timbers located in the outer coastal plai ns. A few settlements of people and rivers are also located. Many a times, the Pine Barrens of NJ seems to be a source for forest fires.The number of fires that have occurred since the 1940s is about 1100. About 8, 000 hectares is usually burned-out every year through wild forest fires, much less than the 22, 000 that existed before the forest department began to use effective means of trim back these fires. Most of the fires occur during the dry months of January to September periods. Many of the important resorts and spas are located in the coastal plains. The islands present close to the coast make harbor construction difficult.Many ships have met with accidents along the NJ coast due to the rough ocean currents and the shallow waters. However, sheltered waterways are located which help to provide some relief for ships. Portions of the NJ coast even have offshore sandbars and barrier beaches. In parts of the northern NJ coast, the coastline is bad eroded (Swartz & Stansfield. 2007, Stansfield. 1998 & Forman et al. 1981).The islands, beaches, sandpits, etc, present along the NJ coast, are one of the longstanding chain in the world. They run from the Texas region all the way up to the New Yorks long island. The islands of NJ coast seem to be dynamic in nature. The ocean currents, tides, winds, waves, etc, have a dynamic effect on the NJ shoreline. Many of the estuaries located off the coast of New Jersey form important beds for natural oyster shelters and oyster cultivation. Several factors do favor the growth of oysters in the seabed including the tidal currents, the dominant tides, eddies, prevailing winds (their force and direction), etc. The larvae of oysters can help in adjust their own populations by rising and settling in the tidal currents. In the NJ estuaries, the larvae do rise and settle in the tidal currents so having potential to grow and develop along the coastal waters (Carriker. 1951 & Stansfield. 1998).NJ State enjoys an extreme type o f climate, with summers being warm and winters cold. To the west of NJ, lies a long landmass, which causes an extreme type of climate during winter and summer. The climate is produced as a result of its latitude (located halfway between the equator and the North Pole), thus in a position to produce distinct seasons. The distance from the season and the height above sea level also has a role to play in the development of climate of NJ. During the summer, the moist tropical winds act in hot air causing temperatures to rise and humid conditions to exist. During winter, the continental winds bring in freezing temperatures and causing snowfall in several regions.The sea tends to retain the heat for greater amount of time during the day. Hence during the night, the sea breezes tend to placid the land. During the day, there is a strong sea breeze, which tends to cool the land. The average rainfall received by the state is more than curtilage per annum. The southwest regions of the stat e receive lower rainfall compared to other regions. In January, the average temperature in NJ State is about 1 arc compass point centigrade and in July, one of the hottest months, the average temperature is about 23 degrees centigrade. However, extreme temperature have also been recorded, suggesting that at times the temperature can rise or fall to varying degrees. In the winter of 1904, the temperature once dipped to 37 degree and in the summer of 1936, the temperature once rose to 43 degrees.Due to the extremes of temperatures recorded in the Piedmont regions, seedlings do not become established within a year. They bulge to get established after two or more years. Trees tend to invade areas occupied by herbs and shrubs. During winter, the free-thaw cycles occur which hinders the establishment of the tree seedlings. In portion of the Northwestern regions of the state, seasons last for about three to four months. However, in some of the southwestern regions, the seasons last for about 8 months.Towards, the coastline, the climates tend to be less of an extreme. Hence, during summer, these places stay cooler than those inlands, and in winter they tend to stay warmer. Many people consider the NJ climate to be variable star during various seasons of the year (Swartz & Stansfield. 2007, Stansfield. 1998 & Buell. 1971).Thus, I do feel that NJ State offers variables in terms of geography, climate and landforms, compared to any other parts of the world. This has caused a diverse flora and fauna to exist in the region. Besides, it also forms a home to many people who would like to visit New York and the Philadelphia region. This has resulted in the population of NJ to be high compared to the other parts of the US.ReferencesC. A. Stansfield. A Geography of New Jersey. 2nd Ed. Rutgers University Press, 1998.Hugh Murray, William Wallace, Robert Jameson et al. The Encyclopdia of Geography Comprising a Complete description of the Earth.. New York Carey, Lea and Blanchar d, 2007. M. F. Buell, H. F. Buell, & J. A. Small, Invasion of Trees in Secondary Succession on the New Jersey Piedmont. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club, 98.2 (1971).M. R. Carriker Ecological Observations on the distribution of Oyster Larvae in New Jersey Estuaries. Ecological Monographs, 21.1 (1951).R. T. T. Forman & R. E. Boerner Fire frequence and the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 108.1 (1951).Swartz, J. & Stansfield, C. A. New Jersey. Microsoft Encarta. 2007. 3 Nov. 2007 http//encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761559873/New_Jersey.htmlUS Census Bureau. New Jersey. US Census Bureau. 2007. 3 Nov. 2007