Remember that guy whose budgets forced the College to raise your tuition, mandate your professors take unpaid furlough days and cut the school’s budget? Guess what he did this time?
No, he didn’t burn your crops and pillage your town, but Gov. Jon S. Corzine sure isn’t coming to the College anytime soon.
As reported this week, Corzine turned down an invitation from the League of Women Voters to debate Republican candidate Chris Christie and Independent Chris Daggett at the College in October. Christie declined to debate without Corzine.
Corzine’s campaign staff has told various New Jersey media outlets that the governor’s schedule doesn’t allow him to participate in another debate. (He is already participating in two hosted by the Election Law Enforcement Commission).
Apparently the schedule of the governor’s staffers doesn’t allow them to return phone calls. A Signal reporter tried to contact the Corzine camp. through both e-mails and phone calls to no avail. (For the record, Christie’s people did not return our inquiries either).
Sure, Corzine is busy campaigning all over the state for another term as governor, but his office is in Trenton — as in the next city over, a mere 10 minutes from the College. Surely the governor still spends minimal time in his office? You know, running the government?
And even if he doesn’t spend much time in his office because he’s too busy campaigning, did it ever occur to the governor that we have a vote too?
Yes, that’s right. The college-aged generation. Remember us?
We’re the ones who made history when we came out in droves for Obama last fall.
We’re the seniors who remember when the Outstanding Scholar Recruitment Program still existed, before state budget cuts forced the program to be axed.
We’re the students who attended the Governor’s Schools before they were almost eliminated by the state and now operate under severely reduced budgets.
We’re the voters who have had to take out student loans as our tuition bills spiked year after year.
We’re the residents who have seen our professors’ and administrators’ hair get progressively grayer as their salaries get cut and they are forced to take unpaid furlough days.
We’re the residents who live in this state, and who, unlike many of our high school counterparts, chose to go to school in this state. We’re the potential tax payers who may choose to leave after graduation if things don’t improve.
But, if the governor doesn’t have time for us, maybe we won’t have time for him come Nov. 3.
