Getting some distance from Forrester

On Thursday, Democrat Assembly candidate Dan Benson held a press conference to attact Assemblyman Bill Baroni (R-Hamilton.) Benson was surprised when Baroni showed up and turned it into a debate. The two sounded off on property taxes until Benson's staffers pulled him out.

Baroni's big attack on Benson is that as a township councilman, Benson voted for the ill-advised, ill-considered and possibly corrupt Klockner Woods deal. Benson is hitting back at Baroni because he was on the Assembly Republican Policy Committe, who devised the property tax plan which was co-opted by Forrester as his ill-advised and ill-considered "30 in 3" sound byte. Baroni insisted his name was eventually taken off the plan; Benson believes that was only after Forrester said he'd lay off 6,000 state workers to pay for it.

When Benson repeatedly asked Baroni if he helped write the plan, Baroni replied, "What part of no didn't you understand? The "n" or the "o"?"

It's interesting that a Republican Assemblyman trying for re-election is actively distancing himself from Forrester and the property tax "plan" he espouses, especially when Forrester's narrowing Corzine's lead in the polls to single digits. Baroni was on that committee that developed the gimicky "30 in 3" bit but is adamant in his rejection of it- it's almost as if he knows something about it that Forrester won't say. Such as, it won't work?

(Cross-posted at Blanton's and Ashton's)