Medical care

In addition to watching the people of New Jersey get hoodwinked by an alleged tax relief program that can't be funded beyond the November election, we also witnessed the final nail in the coffin of the Republican Party yesterday. Three Republicans not seeking re-election, Bob Martin, who wants to be a judge, Martha Bark who is under investigation for alleged no-show jobs, and Bob Singer who wants -- well, we're not sure what he wants -- were called behind closed doors. They came out and went to the Senate chamber and voted for the farce of a tax relief bill. That opened the flood gates. Nine Republicans climbed onboard. The Senate leader of the Republicans, Leonard Lance, long has been called weak and all but useless except to pontificate ad nauseum. The way the GOP threw in the towel illustrates Lance can't control his caucus. We will have to look to Democrat senators John Adler, Nia Gill, Shirley Turner and Wayne Bryant to remind us what a farce this was. But for this year, voters will get checks and be tricked into thinking something has changed. Only when they realize they have even less in their wallets and there is no money for another round of giveaways and there were no bold moves or reforms will some of them realize they've been had. Maybe.