For Immediate Release:  September 24, 2008

Contact: Amanda Woloshen, 908-267-1613

STENDER STILL SILENT ON CORZINE TOLL-TAX PLAN

-- While Leonard Lance Leads Fight Against New Taxes, Linda Stender Still Silently Sits On Her Hands - 

GREEN BROOK, NJ - While Seventh District Congressional Candidate Leonard Lance and New Jersey taxpayers speak out this week against Governor Corzine's plan to boost tolls in New Jersey, Lance's opponent Linda Stender continues to sit silently on the sidelines in support of the Corzine toll-tax hike proposal.

"This week the state Turnpike Authority is scheduled to hold its first of three public hearings on Governor Corzine's proposal for sharp increases in tolls on the Turnpike, Parkway and Atlantic City Expressway," said Leonard Lance.  "I am against the Governor's toll-tax plan and have been a forceful advocate for New Jersey's over-taxed citizens.  Sadly, my opponent Linda Stender has said nothing about the Corzine plan.  No public statements.  No postings on her website.  No comment at all.  That's not surprising considering she has consistently supported Gov. Corzine's tax-and-spend policies that have put New Jersey into a fiscal mess of record-high taxes and state debt."

Let's look at some of the news Leonard Lance is making on the Corzine toll plan issue:

"The state senator from Hunterdon County has compiled a reputation over the years as the leading legislative opponent to the state's bonding practices, even those of his own Republican Party. This deal's another abuse of bonding power, he argues." - Star-Ledger, 9/18/08

"Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Hunterdon) and Senate Minority Leader Thomas Kean Jr. (R-Union), who are spearheading the veto plan, said the OLS opinion does not address the core question of whether highway funds can be used for a rail tunnel.  'I can understand that the legislative process was not designed to veto necessarily a toll increase from x to y to help improve projects on the Parkway and Turnpike. I respect that. That is not what we're suggesting," Lance said. "We don't oppose the tunnel. We favor the tunnel, but we believe there has to be a substantive debate on how to pay for it.'" - Star-Ledger, 9/18/08

"GOP lawmakers maneuver to block highway toll hikes" - CourierPostOnline, 9/16/08

"[Tom] Kean and Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Hunterdon) plan to introduce a resolution that, if adopted by a majority of the Legislature, would authorize a veto vote on the Turnpike Authority's toll hike plan. Democrats have majorities in both the Senate and the Assembly." - Star-Ledger, 9/16/08

"A Republican state senator is questioning whether it's legal for revenue from the proposed toll hikes on the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway to fund a new rail tunnel between New Jersey and Manhattan. Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Hunterdon) says state law prohibits toll revenue from the two roads to be used for anything but toll road expansion and maintenance." - NJBiz.com, 9/15/08

"GOP senator notes concerns over use of toll hike money" - Star-Ledger, 9/11/08

"Leonard Lance, the ranking Republican on the senate Budget Committee, chided Corzine for trying to ‘ram a toll increase down the throats of middle class commuters.'" - Gloucester County Times, 9/11/08

"Emily Dickinson once wrote, ‘saying nothing...sometimes says the most,'" said Lance for Congress campaign manager Amanda Woloshen.  "Linda Stender's silence speaks volumes.  Stender silently sits on her hands giving tacit approval to yet another Corzine tax-and-spending plan.  More taxes, more wasteful spending, more Linda Stender.  Can New Jerseayeans really afford to send Linda Stender the Spender to Congress?"

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