Talk about getting kicked while you’re down. Atlantic City continues to be eaten alive by both its state and local governments with no mercy. As of May 27, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed a bill into law that would see Atlantic City casinos collectively robbed for a 9-year period, initially of the sum of $120 million, to increase by 2% every year for the 9 years. This is according to the New York Times.

I would say that the hypocrisy is astounding here, but there is nothing astounding anymore about what governments can do these days. What makes this especially infuriating is that Christie put out a big press release about how this “pro taxpayer” bill will really teach the Atlantic City politicians a thing or two about “responsible spending”. In what really amounts to nothing more than self-righteous buffoonery, Christie spewed forth this gem of a line:

“These new laws will ultimately accomplish my mission to reform Atlantic City’s overblown municipal government, and in turn protect local and state taxpayers from being perpetually abused by the special political interests who admit to owning this city’s elected officials.”

Pots have more of a right to call kettles black than Christie has the right to call Atlantic City’s government “overblown”, and then recharacterize yet another government bailout in terms of “protecting taxpayers” and casting himself as incorruptible. The truth is, New Jersey’s state government, headed by none other than Christie, is one of the most profligate in the United States, with the highest absolute and per capita debt levels in the country. The way Christie berates the spending habits of his Atlantic City underlings makes you think that he’s a Ron Paul libertarian, when he’s actually closer to Bernie Sanders when it comes to tax-and-spend like there’s no tomorrow.