July 4th Fireworks In New Jersey Canceled? Chris Christie Says It's Possible

The looming government shutdown in New Jersey has threatened to close national parks, which would endanger firework displays ahead of July 4th weekend. State lawmakers failed to pass the almost $35 billion budget Thursday and, subsequently, Republican Gov. Chris Christie told his Cabinet to prepare for a shutdown, according to US News.

At a press conference Thursday the unpopular governor warned that failure to pass the budget would disrupt the holiday weekend. He also put the blame on his political rival, Democratic Speaker Vincent Prieto, who he said would be "kicking people out" of state parks if the budget didn't pass.

"I don't want to see Speaker Prieto kicking people out of Liberty State Park for Fourth of July this weekend," Christie said, adding that the shutdown was "purely up to" Pieto.

More than 150,000 attendees are expected to spend their Independence Day for the show at Liberty State Park in Jersey City, which officials boast would be the "largest fireworks display" in the state, according to local website Patch. Kool and the Gang are expected to headline.

The state Assembly hopes to pass the budget by its midnight deadline. The state constitution requires a budget be enacted by July 1 or else the government shutdown would be triggered.

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Christie and Prieto are in a stalemate over whether or not to overhaul the state's largest health care insurer, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield.

The Governor said Thursday he wouldn't sign a state budget unless it was presented to him alongside his proposal to overhaul the state's largest health insurer and planned to dedicate lottery revenue to the state's underfunded public workers' pensions.

The Democrat State Senate approved the bills after Christie announced the conditions for him to approve their $34.7 billion budget proposal. The budget was passed over to the state's Assembly where Speaker Prieto agreed to the dedication of lottery revenue, but not the legislation affecting Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Prieto pinned the blame on South Jersey Democrats, who supported the budget but didn’t vote for it. He said that the lawmakers were "standing with Chris Christie to give him what he wants," adding that he "has to draw the line somewhere," according to Philly.com

"I negotiated in good faith," Prieto said. "You have to draw the line somewhere."

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In 2006, a similar shutdown occurred when the government shuttered under Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine. The shutdown resulted road construction projects were required to wind down, motor vehicle offices shuttered and around 45,000 state employees were furloughed.

However, during Jersey's 2006 shut down, state-run parks, beaches, and historic sites remained open through the July Fourth holiday but closed afterward. Christie said Thursday that if a deal isn't reached then the parks and beaches would be closed for the weekend before the holiday.