False attacks won't fly

Last week, I was personally attacked in this paper’s editorial section by Alish Hambel, a failed Republican Freeholder Candidate and former Mayor of Sparta. She accused me of being dishonest over my and my running mate’s plan for school consolidation, which would reduce local property taxes, protect teachers’ jobs, and encourage economic development. Mrs. Hambel claims that simply because we have the support of the NJ teachers’ union, we would instead work to increase property taxes past the 2% cap set by the state. She and her GOP party bosses would do well, however, to actually read our position, instead of making knee-jerk partisan attacks. She should also keep in mind that working Sparta families remember that when they re-elected her in 2002, the first thing she did was raise property taxes 3.16%, and that was just part of the 17% increase she pushed through in the next four years. No wonder she was not re-elected again.
The fact is, we received the NJEA’s endorsement, for which our opponents also applied and were rejected. They would have gladly accepted it, but since they were passed over their only recourse is to blindly attack us.
Gina Trish and I are committed to fighting for the working people of Sussex County, and no amount of partisan mudslinging will change that.
Kate Matteson
Candidate for State Assembly 2017
Sparta
(Matteson and Gina Trish are the Democratic candidates for the state Assembly from the 24th District, which includes the municipalities of Sussex County as well as some municipalities in Warren and Morris counties.)