Editorial Of The Day

The editorial board of the New York Times has endorsed Cory Booker for the US Senate. But perhaps more interesting than the endorsement is what they say about his opponent.

Mr. Lonegan, a former mayor of Bogota, N.J., says he wants to focus on economic issues. But his method, like that of one of his role models, Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican of Texas, could only add to the senseless partisanship that has now taken the economy to the brink of disaster. He would, for example, raise the debt ceiling only “in alignment with budget cuts.” He has a plan to try to close all regulatory agencies every 7 to 10 years and start each agency over from scratch.  Mr. Lonegan is out of the mainstream on many other issues. He once said he believed it was a mistake to create Social Security and Medicare; such obligations, he said, should instead have been left to charity. He has argued for eliminating the minimum wage. He opposes abortion, even in cases of rape and incest. He opposes same-sex marriage, and he is pushing to delay the Affordable Care Act. His past record on immigration became a national scandal when, in 2006, he tried to get McDonald’s to take down a billboard printed in Spanish. He later tried to have English declared the official language in his hometown.

The election is Wednesday and Booker presently leads by 12 points.