Star-Ledger Staff

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(Photo by Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

The following exchange between former New Jersey governors Brendan T. Byrne and Tom Kean took place via telephone last week.

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Q: Now that Gov. Christie has signed his final budget, can we assess whether the state's financial condition improved or worsened on his eight-year watch?

GOV. BYRNE: It probably worsened. And I'm not sure I can put my finger on how to improve it. I think the next governor has got to deal with the budget as a priority and deal with it pretty firmly.

GOV. KEAN: It's a bit of a wash. In his first term Christie made a deal with Sweeney that helped with the pension problem. Now, however, the problem is again out of control. Similarly, he put a cap on the growth of property taxes. Now, however, the cap's developed leaks, and property taxes are again rising at a rate faster than inflation. And people with high incomes who pay a lot of taxes are still moving out of state in unacceptable numbers.

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RELATED: What 2 ex-N.J. govs say about GOP health care bill; funding pensions with the lottery

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Q: Was a beach closure on a holiday weekend the kind of thing that further erodes public faith in government?

BYRNE: It made a comedy out of the government. And that's not good.

KEAN: We've had government closings before. This was a silly one. How can you close state government because of a dispute over the use of Horizon reserves? It's the kind of thing that makes people lose whatever trust they have in government.

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Q: Assembly Speaker Vince Prieto was at the center of the budget standoff. Do you think we're likely to see changes in the Democratic Assembly leadership?

BYRNE: He stood his ground, and it sounds like he is a man of principle. That may help him retain his leadership. But it looks like there is a viable challenge, so anything can happen.

KEAN: I've never gotten involved in Democratic disputes. But press reports indicate that the majority of Assembly Democrats want a new speaker.

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RELATED: What 2 ex-N.J. governors say about who will be the next gov; Comey, Russian probe

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Q: Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno has proposed selling the beach house the state maintains for sitting governors. Is this a good idea?

BYRNE: I don't believe in selling anything that we own, and the beach house is one of the things we own. We owned it in my day, and way before that. It's useful and it's helpful to have it.

KEAN: No, that's not a good idea. That beach house has been useful in the past and I suspect it will be again in the future. I used to have a number of prominent groups – such as the press corps and the state Legislature – down in the summertime.

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Q: President Trump's voter fraud commission has met resistance from many states in providing personal voter data. Are there legitimate concerns here?

BYRNE: From what I know, the amount of voter fraud that exists is fairly small. Unless it's found I'm wrong, I'm satisfied. The data the commission wants is dangerous and unnecessary to give out.

KEAN: A good, bipartisan look at voter fraud is useful. I suspect there's not a great deal, but we should find out. This group, however, does not seem to have the public trust. People worry about what they plan to do with the information they plan to gather.

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Q: A number of leaders at the G20 conference expressed apprehension over President Trump's commitment to international cooperation. Is this a problem or does it seem like political rhetoric?

BYRNE: The G20 conference normally relies on the U.S. as one of its leaders. If that is not the case, the G20 is not what it should be. I worry about Donald Trump. I don't defend Donald Trump, and I don't explain Donald Trump.

KEAN: The G20 has been very useful in the past as a sort of high-level UN Security Council where leaders can discuss problems at the highest level. We don't have enough forums where leaders meet and talk and, hopefully,

prevent crises. President Trump's emphasis on nationalism makes groups like this even more essential.

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