The Sentinel Online - Santorum's "MAFIA" Tactics

The Sentinel Online - Archived Story: "Play nice with neighbors

By The Sentinel, Jan 08, 2006

What’s the matter with New Jersey?
Nothing, actually, as far as we can ascertain. But a couple of Pennsylvania’s best known politicians think otherwise.

Both Gov. Ed Rendell and Sen. Rick Santorum, two men not particularly well known for singing from the same songbook, have issued public threats to their counterparts in New Jersey over a proposed dredging project for the Delaware River.

The plan is to make the river five feet deeper through the Philadelphia-area shipping channel so that bigger deep-sea container ships and oil tankers can dock in the City of Brotherly Love, and probably on the New Jersey side of the river as well. The proposal is intended to boost the regional economy and create more jobs.

Not everyone is on board with the dredging plan, however. Labor organizations in the region are of two minds about the plan, and environmentalists believe dredging will upset the river’s ecosystem.

Now you might assume that there was some way for two adjacent states to discuss issues of interest to both, and you’d be right — the dredging plan is under discussion between the governor’s offices of both states. Indeed, a spokeswoman for outgoing N.J. Gov. Richard Codey said she’s “optimistic” that an agreement will be reached in the near future, though Rendell’s spokeswoman said there have been no “substantive” talks on the issue.

It may be that talks are going slowly since Codey is soon to be replaced as governor by just-elected Sen. Jon Corzine. And the price tag for this venture, estimated at $300 million in a recent Associated Press story, will almost certainly require negotiations in regard to which state will pay what amount.




We’re not sure why, but Rendell and Santorum were both motivated to blow their stacks over the status of this project in the past week. Rendell went first, suggesting a failure to make a dredging deal might be fatal to the PATCO commuter rail line that carries New Jerseyites to work in Philadelphia.

Santorum followed up a few days later with his own personal threat to stall any federal programs earmarked for New Jersey unless the dredging project goes forward.

Ed and Rick sound like they’re auditioning for “The Sopranos.” We doubt their counterparts in New Jersey will appreciate their impressions of Tony, Uncle Junior, Paulie Walnuts and the gang. Perhaps their families should switch the channel to “West Wing” on Sunday nights until they remember what it means to negotiate in good faith with their equals."