It is the right of constituents to hear the debate of their congressional candidates.

In the background of Chris Christie’s aspirations to run for President are thousands of New Jersey homeowners who’ve been tossed aside in favor of Wall Street and the Big Banks. In fact, the foreclosure crisis in New Jersey leads the nation – and the Christie administration has favored the desires of the banks over the needs of New Jersey residents. Several big banks have negotiated large settlements with the US Attorney General’s Office for their role in the housing bubble and subsequent economic collapse – but homeowners in New Jersey and around the country have not benefited from these agreements. While the historic settlements sound promising on the surface, a study by Denbeaux & Denbeaux law firm exposes why struggling homeowners shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for relief. The report, “Mortgage Fraud” finds that New Jersey homeowners were stripped of their legal rights by back room settlements between banks like Wells Fargo and various state Attorneys General. New Jersey homeowners were sent a settlement agreement which contained promises and protections they already had and a check in the amount of $178.04 in exchange for all their rights and defenses! The result of the legal acrobatics and out-of-court settlements has essentially let Wells Fargo and other big banks off-the-hook for their predatory lending practices in low-income communities of color. Wells Fargo preyed on these communities then negotiated away the rights of homeowners to take legal action. Homeowners deserve their day in court – or at the very least, enforcement from the Office of the New Jersey Attorney General. Join NJ Communities United to demand that Chris Christie and the State of New Jersey report results of mortgage settlements, release assurance reports required by settlement agreement(s), enforce homeowner protections according to state laws and the original agreement between New Jersey & Wells Fargo, and enforce & enhance homeowner protections & predatory lending laws! The full report, “Mortgage Fraud” from Denbeaux & Denbeaux can be found online at: http://bit.ly/1vJ0tqm The white paper, “Stagecoach Robbery” from NJ Communities United can be found online at: http://bit.ly/10ERmeQ

Years from now, it will be considered bizarre that anyone would have opposed the right of all committed couples to marry. Perhaps those who opposed marriage equality will apologize some day to the Americans whose rights they refused to acknowledge until the courts forced them. Until that happens we have to hold them accountable.

America has enough hateful people, the world does not need him on air spouting hate.

I BELIEVE THAT PRAYER WORKS FOR ALL, ALLOWING OUR CHILDREN TO HAVE THAT "MOMENT OF SILENCE" TO PRAY THEIR PRAYER WILL GIVE THEM THAT FEELING OF SECURITY THROUGH OUT THAT DAY. IF A PERSON CAN PRAY FOR A CAR, MONEY, HOUSE, HUSBAND, AND WIFE...I SAY LET THE CHILDREN HAVE A "MOMENT OF SILENCE" IN THEIR SCHOOLS. THIS IS NOT ABOUT A PERSON'S RELIGION ....THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO PRAY THEIR OWN PRAYER IN THAT "MOMENT OF SILENCE"

Signers of this petition support and agree that Federal and State action is required for safer operation of trains through our communities by reducing risk that arises from relying on a single individual. Currently, 99% of US railroad companies have two crew members, a Conductor and Engineer. However, railroad companies keep asking their employees to do more with less or go further when Federal Hours of Service time is short. Single crew operation is inching its way into the industry. Look no further than the (MM&A) disaster in Quebec. Railroads are much safer than they used to be, but this trend can be reversed if action is not taken. Modern trains are much longer and carry tremendous tonnages, including hazardous materials. If a train breaks down for some reason with a single person crew, a blocked railroad crossing takes away valuable time when Police and Fire units need to respond to emergencies. Train crews work as a team to clear blocked crossings and a two person train crew is what is needed for safe train operation. Currently, HR 3040, and S 2784 have been introduced on a Federal level. State Legislation is either pending or in the works across the nation. The Canadian Transportation Safety Board has issued a mandate to force Rail companies to operate with two person train crews. The US Federal Railroad Administration has formed a Rail Safety Advisory Committee to look into minimum train crew size regulations.

Breakfast is the most important meal the day. Allow students to go to Tim Hortons in the morning, again, before school starts. Why take away their only freedom?

The Department of Corrections has created a sex offender house in your neighborhood. They need to change their policy of establishing housing for sex offenders without first determining if the location is appropriate. When this house was established in July, no contact was made with the town, the local police or the Department of Education. If they had looked at the number of single women and children in this area, it would have been clearly seen that this is no place for a sex offender house. The DOC needs to revise their policy and remove their house from this neighborhood.

Sometimes children only eat their school lunches, or they don't eat at all. Some of them won't eat the lunches what-so-ever because they look so unappealing. We need to focus on making them appealing along with making them healthy as well.

Many of the people I know including myself have talked about how much easier it would be to go to school in the morning if it where just an hour or so later. That little amount of time can make a big difference. Personally I've had occasions where it almost seems impossible to get out of bed that early when its still dark out. Starting school can give students more sleep, more time in the morning and all around a better start to their day.

In September, Gov. McAuliffe announced his approval of a plan to allow Dominion Resources to build a new natural gas pipeline originating in the West Virginia gas fields, through Virginia, and into North Carolina. Dominion's proposed pipeline is the wrong energy choice for Virginia. It will negatively impact the agricultural, cultural, and natural resources in the region, especially water. It will impact valued public lands, among the most significant and unique in the East, that are relied on by millions for public drinking water as well as for outdoor recreation. Finally, through gas transport and combustion, it will expand greenhouse emissions from methane, eighty times more potent than carbon as a heat-trapping gas, and continue to fuel climate change. 

I hope you will join us in calling on the Governor to reconsider his endorsement of this destructive project.

This petition is to let the city council of Mountain View that they have community support for raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour. The cost of living in Silicon Valley has increased tremendously. This has negatively impacted low wage workers. Income inequality is severe in Silicon Valley: high tech wages and profits are skyrocketing while low tech workers with low wages endure lower quality of life due to the high cost of living.