NJ Judges: Out Of Touch

New Jersey State Senator Gerald Cardinale, the senior Republican Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement regarding the refusal of 30 members of the judiciary to take a furlough:
“The refusal of 30 judges to take a furlough demonstrates how out of touch some members of the judiciary are with the people of New Jersey. Apparently, these judges either don’t understand or don’t care about the severity of New Jersey’s budget situation.
“Every legislator and every legislative staff person are taking two unpaid furlough days, voluntarily. The judges who are refusing to take two days should reconsider, especially after receiving an 11 percent pay raise at a time when many taxpayers are losing their jobs.
“As the senior Republican member of the Senate Judiciary Committee I will call on Chairman Sarlo to undertake a review of the recent pay raise and to explore methods to encourage our judges to do right by the taxpayers. We must be careful to strengthen the separation of powers and preserve the system of checks and balances and the members of the judiciary must be more sensitive to the fiscal pressure the taxpayers are under.