Put Integrity Above Dirty Deals In The Pinelands

Theresa Lettman Should Withdraw Her Nomination And Resign If Confirmed

“I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president.” ~~~ LBJ, 1968

It’s no secret that just about every public institution has lost the respect, confidence, trust, and support of a large segment of the American people.

As someone who spent my youth observing my mom in public service and years in academic preparation for a role in public policy and government, this disturbs and hurts me to my core. [Note to those who don’t know me: I criticize government to make it better and stronger, not to dismantle and weaken it.]

The loss of credibility and legitimacy has been extremely damaging, but – in many cases – was well earned, via decades of corruption, dishonesty, and ambition (politicians and bureaucrats putting their personal careers and corporate interests ahead of principle, public policy, and the public interest).

In fact, those abuses spawned an entirely new right wing theory of political economy, known as “Public Choice Theory”.

Author Nancy MacLean has written a devastating history of the rise of Public Choice Theory and it’s leading theoretician James Buchanan in her superb must read book “Democracy in Chains” (another superb explanatory book about our current crisis is Wendy Brown’s “In The Ruins Of Neoliberalism“)

It’s time to stop the slide and begin to restore the credibility of government institutions.

Which takes me to the reason for this post.

I assume that today, the NJ Senate will confirm 3 of Gov. Murphy’s nominees to the Pinelands Commission.

As I’ve written, 2 of them are totally inappropriate and unqualified corporate lobbyists with fundamental conflicts of interest (more to come on that soon) that would replace 2 strong and independent conservationists, tipping the balance on the Commission by a net of 3 pro-development votes.

The third nominee is a wonderful, qualified woman and long time advocate for preservation of the Pinelands, Theresa Lettman.

However, it is now very obvious that her nomination and confirmation were part of a dirty package deal for the Gov.’s slate of corporate nominees.

I can smell the stench of that deal from 2,500 miles away in the Sonoran desert.

When Robert Barr – an otherwise fine man – was nominated to the Pinelands Commission under similar circumstances  as part of a corrupt deal  by Gov. Christie, I called on Barr to withdraw his nomination:

• Mr. Barr, Please Withdraw Your Nomination to the Pinelands Commission

Dear Mr. Barr:

Sometimes, a good man of conscience and integrity  – which I believe you are – needs to take a step back from the daily hubbub and reflect on the essence of things.

This is one of those moments.

As a good man of conscience and integrity, I now urge you to do so, and, upon reflection, withdraw your name from Senate consideration as a Pinelands Commissioner. Here’s why:[…]

The context for your nomination by the Governor is deeply troubling.

You personally had nothing to do with creating this context, but you are immersed in its fabric and caught in the crossfire.

You now must make a choice. Your choice will have consequences. Listen to reason and follow your conscience in doing so.

Your confirmation by the Senate would do lasting damage to individuals and institutions, including yourself.

I am certain that you would never cause this kind of damage, but your decisions now may contribute to it.

The same circumstances now hold for Theresa Lettman.

I urge her to put integrity above the politics of this dirty deal.

If she accepts the nomination and is confirmed and sworn in, she will have legitimized this corruption.

It’s time to stop the slide.

Do the right thing.