New Jersey politics continue to be an indicator of future national trends. Republican Chris Christie's victory in the state's gubernatorial election last month was a loud and clear rejection of the liberal tax and spend policies of both incumbent Jon Corzine and President Barack Obama and now state Democrats are trying to head off a potential power shift in Washington DC.

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State Assembly Majority Whip John F. McKeon (D-Essex County) has introduced a bill that would force Republican Governor-elect Christie to select a Democrat to replace New Jersey's US senators (both of them Democrats) if either was unable to complete his term. Current state law allows the governor to call a special election to fill a vacancy or appoint a replacement from any party. (source)

This bill seems particularly ghoulish considering New Jersey's Senior Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-New Jersey) will be 90 years old when his term ends in 2014. No doubt Mr. McKeon and his fellow Democrats are concerned that should Senator Lautenberg be unable to complete his term, a Republican appointment by Christie could have a serious effect on the balance of power in the US Senate. If the 2010 midterm elections go as most polls currently indicate, the Democrats will need to hold on to every seat they can.

Assemblyman McKeon claims passage of his bill "would honor the will of the electorate by requiring that the appointee be from the same political party as the US senator elected by voters." He seems to have forgotten that those voters most recently chose a member of the opposite party to make that call.