I've been wondering when this was going to SLAP Christie's delusions of grandeur in the face. A Republican governor whose BIGGEST TAX WINDFALL is going down property by property by property?? (Trump has what, 2-3 properties in chapter 11) Atlantic City meltdown may haunt Christie Its the latest in a series of home-state setbacks as he contemplates a presidential bid. By HILLARY FLYNN and BEN WHITE 2/15/15 7:54 AM EST ATLANTIC CITY, NJ - JULY 30: The recently closed Atlantic Club Hotel and Casino is viewed in Atlantic City on July 30, 2014 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Since January of 2014, four of Atlantic City's 11 casinos have announced plans to close, gone bankrupt or closed leaving thousands of residents without jobs. As neighboring cities open gambling businesses, fewer people are traveling to Atlantic City for visits to casinoes. Since 2006 Casino revenue in Atlantic City has fallen from $5.6 billion to $2.86 billion. Experts believe this is the biggest crisis Atlantic City has faced in its 36 year relationship with gambling. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Casinos on the famed boardwalk are failing. The crime rate is one of the highest in the state. And now the New Jersey governors decision to bring in an emergency manager to turn things around has created a nasty political backlash. Its the latest in a series of home-state setbacks for Christie as he contemplates a potential bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. Beyond Bridgegate, a recent Rutgers Eagleton poll shows Christies personal favorability rating is now at a new low of 37 percent. The governors potential primary opponents are watching closely and plan to highlight New Jerseys fiscal woes if Christie winds up in the race. The problem of Atlantic City is not all Chris Christies fault, as the gaming industry has been eviscerated, said Brigid Harrison, political science and law professor at Montclair State University. But why Atlantic City matters for him running for president is that South Jersey has lost 10,000 jobs, and that kind of drain means other statewide economic indicators are dropping, and his primary opponents can very easily use those against him. Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/...down-chris-christie-115204.html#ixzz3RpvAVMzx
The casinos have, AFAIK, done literally NOTHING to try and revive Atlantic City's former status of being the premier beach resort of the Mid-Atlantic, despite the fact that they knew their success would be self-destructive as other states legalized gambling. This is a failing we can lay directly at the Governor's feet.
