'Well, if you believe that, then I have a bridge to sell you.'

For years people have been repeating this phrase to gullible individuals to let them know when they have fallen for some unbelievable tale or a scammer's lies. We usually laugh when that phrase is said, since it usually follows some claim that is so absurd, that we actually feel bad for those who believe it.

Now, to our amazement, Gov. Corzine and the Democrat controlled Legislature are trying to redefine that phrase through a proposal that is so outrageous, that its mere existence demonstrates just how gullible they think New Jerseyans are.

New Jersey Democrats have a bridge to sell you, many bridges really, along with the New Jersey Turnpike on which they lie.

If you're waiting for the usual laughter that would normally follow such a statement, stop now. This isn't a joke, rather a sad admission by the Democrats as to the horrible state of New Jersey's fiscal affairs while under their control.

Since taking over state government in 2001, New Jersey Democrats have increased annual state spending from $22 billion to almost $31 billion, a nearly 40 percent increase. They have more than doubled state debt from $14 billion to more than $30 billion. They have increased virtually every tax and fee collected by the state and allowed property taxes to soar.

Now that taxpayers have been bled dry by this out of control spending, Corzine and his fellow Democrats are looking to sell the assets of the state, the very bridges and roadways that your taxes and tolls have paid to build and maintain, to the highest bidder.

In the private sector, the sale of assets by a business is one of the first signs of serious trouble on the horizon, and is often a harbinger of bankruptcy. What grim future does this fire sale of state assets and continued lack of fiscal discipline portend for New Jersey?

This fiscal hole that we are now in isn't one that New Jersey blindly fell into as the result of a bad economy and diminished tax revenues, but one that New Jersey Democrats dug the state into through unwise and unnecessary spending.

Over the past five years, more than 40 states have tightened their fiscal belts and are now enjoying surpluses and contemplating tax cuts. During that same time, New Jersey has increased spending, taxes and debt - and we still have a multibillion budget deficit.

Any private business owner will tell you that when you are in a hole, you must stop digging. Selling our roads and raising taxes will not stop the hole from getting deeper. The only way to restore fiscal order is to stop spending. There is no other magic bullet.

Still, the Democrats would have us believe that all we need to do to turn this ship around is sell our toll roads to a private company for $10-$20 billion.

They claim this money will pay for everything you want. Funding for new parks, open space preservation, transportation infrastructure, schools and property tax relief will all be in your gift basket. Christmas will come early this year, by early November at the latest. Sounds almost too good to be true, doesn't it?

If anyone seriously thinks Democratic leaders will manage the tens of billions of dollars gained from selling our toll roads any more responsibly than they have managed the state budget, taxes and debt over the past five years, well, we should talk. We might happen to know a governor who has a turnpike to sell you.

Sen. Andy Ciesla

Assemblyman Dave Wolfe

Assemblyman Jim Holzapfel

10th District Legislators