Sen. McKeon: “How would a Governor Ciattarelli protect our state from these deeply damaging cuts? We have no idea — and he doesn’t either.”
TRENTON, NJ – In an op-ed for The Record and NorthJersey.com, state Sen. John F. McKeon (D-West Orange) slams two-time gubernatorial loser Jack Ciattarelli for ducking and dodging on the steep healthcare cuts New Jersey may soon face.
“MAGA politics may soon do two things at once in this state: Earn Jack Ciattarelli the GOP nomination, and kick hundreds of thousands off their healthcare,” writes Sen. McKeon.
“Last week, when asked how he would respond to this impending crisis, Ciattarelli said, ‘I’m not going to comment.’… In his last two losing runs for governor, Ciattarelli kept Trump at arm’s length. Not this time. Now he’s embraced the same politics that are driving up costs, targeting essential services and putting New Jersey families at risk.”
Read the full op-ed below:
NorthJersey.com: Trump’s budget will gut healthcare in New Jersey. What’s Ciattarelli’s plan? | Opinion
By State Senator John F. McKeon
- What’s happening in Washington, D.C., right now should concern every New Jersey resident.
- House Republicans, at the urging of President Donald Trump and against the best interests of their own constituents, forced through a budget that would make deep cuts to Medicare and Medicaid.
- What this means for our state is starting to become clear: $3.6 billion in federal funding for NJ FamilyCare lost every year, and at least 360,000 people kicked off their coverage. And that might be just the beginning: NJ FamilyCare insures 1.8 million New Jersey residents.
- That’s what Trump has been up to lately. That, and endorsing Jack Ciattarelli to be our next governor; the same Ciattarelli who “now says he is full-blown MAGA.”
- And how would a Governor Ciattarelli protect our state from these deeply damaging cuts? We have no idea – and he doesn’t either.
- Last week, when asked how he would respond to this impending crisis, Ciattarelli said, “I’m not going to comment.” Later, though, he claimed that those “who need Medicaid … should continue to receive it, and I believe they will.”
- Of course they should. On that, both parties should agree. But belief is not a plan. Hoping for the best is not a solution. And silence is unacceptable, from anyone hoping to be the next governor of New Jersey.
- In his last two losing runs for governor, Ciattarelli kept Trump at arm’s length. Not this time. Now he’s embraced the same politics that are driving up costs, targeting essential services and putting New Jersey families at risk.
- MAGA politics may soon do two things at once in this state: Earn Jack Ciattarelli the GOP nomination, and kick hundreds of thousands off their healthcare.
- We deserve a governor who’ll stand up to Donald Trump when he attacks vulnerable New Jerseyans and who’ll fight to protect healthcare whenever it’s under threat. Jack Ciattarelli, it’s clear, would do neither – and we deserve better than that.
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