Police Union Ruins Lives and Booker’s Future

167 police officers in Newark have turned in their guns and badges and have been laid off by the city in an effort to close an $83 million budget gap. Mayor Cory Booker, much like Governor Christie, is requiring that government be cut across the board in his city to get the books balanced. After weeks of fights between the Booker Administration and the police union leaders, the Mayor stuck to his guns and pulled the plug on the employment of nearly every officer hired by the city since 2006. For this, Mayor Booker should be commended, not because he fired cops, thats never popular and in a city like Newark may not even be smart in such great amounts, but because he exhausted every possible option with the union to meet the city’s financial need and did not back down when they refused to cooperate. Like Governor Christie, Mayor Booker realized that the city simply cannot afford to operate without cuts, and I endorse his hardline approach across the board. The savings from these cuts will shave $9.5 million annually from Newark’s budget.

One would expect that these officers would direct their anger toward Mayor Booker for being so fickle, much like how the NJEA members (at least the ones who are uniformed about how their union operates) direct their anger at Governor Christie. Surprisingly enough that is not the case. According to NJ.com, the union did not discuss the deal with the city with any of its members, save a select few. The offers made by the city that would have brought the unions meager concessions more in line with Booker’s goals were rejected outright by the bosses. Typical. According to one fired officer, Zack Vonlagen,

The union didn’t even let us vote on it. We were stuck between a rock and hard place. Now we’re just unemployed . . . They shouldn’t have even hired us . . . You don’t buy a house that you can only afford for eight months.

It is also being reported that senior officers, who were not subject to any concessions as a result of these layoffs, were instrumental in the rejection of the offers. One would think that these officers would see the writing on the wall, that revenues and state aid are not going to start flowing to Newark any time soon, and that once the young officers are removed from the chopping block (and removed from the budget altogether) the veterans will be up next, whether its in this year or the next. However, this is simply what happens when the union leaders at the top get to make all of the decisions. Rather than working out a deal that can benefit their membership as a whole, the organization cuts off those who are vulnerable in order to preserve prosperity for a few. Unions are built upon the idea of sharing in an increase of wealth for the workers, but apparently not the idea of shared sacrifice. Instead, they will just as quickly watch their own members join the unemployment line. Its disgraceful and very telling as to why union membership is at an all time low since the last century.

These events aren’t doing much for Cory Booker either. While being fiscally responsible may be a great credential for a Republican candidate almost anywhere in the nation, it doesn’t do much for a Democrat with Gubernatorial aspirations. The last time Newark cut its police force by similar numbers, crime went up considerably (however the correlation between police numbers and crime rates is marginal at best, and the late 1970s were a different time, I don’t actually know that the crime rate in Newark could get worse right now). A Democrat perceived as weak on crime and hard on fiscal responsibility would be one thing, but one who is also hard on the unions? Blasphemy! This will never stand in a statewide Democrat primary. In just one year Cory Booker has gone from the Democrat golden boy of the future to a moderate who actually works wants to work in the best interest of the city, even going so far as to take to the national stage with his would-be opponent on Oprah. Great for his political legacy, but not his political future. Cory Booker is now damaged goods, and he has himself (to thank?) and now the union to blame.