The Sweeney Four

I'd like to see these four guys win public office again without one vote from a public employee or his/her family:

TRENTON — Senate President Stephen Sweeney’s plan to require public workers to kick in more for medical benefits is getting little support from his fellow Democrats, which means it may be doomed without Republican help, according to a Star-Ledgersurvey of lawmakers.

And as Sweeney scrambles for votes, Senate Republicans say they favor Gov. Chris Christie’s proposal, which a new non-partisan report predicts would save about 16 times more money than Sweeney’s plan next year for state workers alone. Democrats, however, have even less enthusiasm for Christie’s plan.

Of the 23 Democrats in the Senate, seven told The Star-Ledger they oppose Sweeney’s bill — leaving the bill five votes short of the 21 needed for passage unless Republicans support it.

Four Democrats are undecided, with all saying they hoped the issue would get resolved through collective bargaining but not closing the door on supporting the bill. One senator refused comment and seven did not respond to repeated phone calls from the newspaper over a four-day period.

Only four — Sweeney, Brian Stack (D-Hudson), Jim Whelan (D-Atlantic) and James Beach (D-Camden) — said they support it. [emphasis mine]

Remember those names come November; or, even better, come primaries.