New Jersey's state Senate has delayed on voting to continue the state's Clean Elections pilot project, and two articles in Jersey papers today take them to task for it. The Courier Post delivers the harshest critique, saying the Senate has let down the people of New Jersey by stalling the vote. Meanwhile, Phyllis Salowe-Kaye of New Jersey Citizen Action, writes in the Ashbury Park Press urging the Senate to do the right thing and approve the pilot project. Salowe-Kay's piece is an excellent summation of both the havoc money has wrought on the electoral process, and the common sense solutions a Clean Elections program provides. On the ongoing problem of corruption: While handcuffed New Jersey politicians in orange jump suits provide continuous fodder for late-night comedians, the damage to our state is much more insidious and lasting. Voters feel ashamed and apathetic, fewer people go to the polls, not as many young people see public service as a worthwhile career path, the cost of elections continues to skyrocket out of control, campaigns are more and more only the purview of the uber-rich, and businesses think twice about locating in a state whose reputation is one of politicians seeking to line their own pockets. And on the opportunity Clean Elections will offer: "Clean elections" also lets elected representatives be better politicians — to spend more time with constituents and more time on the issues that are important to voters. In other states that have "clean elections," there is more competition for office, and more nontraditional candidates, including women and people of color, have a real chance to run and win.  Will the New Jersey Senate take these words to heart, or will they, as The Courier Post speculates, "give us another example of their inability to serve the public good" even as "public confidence in the government continues to disappear?"