Governor Christie has just re-mounted his high horse of ethics reform. His focus has long been elsewhere so his sudden concern appears self-serving and hypocritical. Nonetheless, there are specific bills for important ethics reforms languishing in the legislature's "nowhere land."
At this moment it is not up to Christie but up to the legislators to move the bills into committee where some need further strengthening and clarification, and then onto the floor. Many legislators quickly become conflicted and inattentive when ethics bills may negatively affect them or their donors. Other legislators seem more open. Lets not be cock-eyed optimists, but stranger things have happened when people set aside self-interest and act for the broader public good.
Many of the bills are sponsored by Republicans, but the issues are significant for both parties and impact all constituents. Democrats have the ability to make needed modifications. Here are a few of the bills which can't seem to find their way out.
Uniform Public Contracting Standards (Pay-To-Play) - S2320. Introduced on October 7 2010. A provision which allows continuation of the "fair and open" rule for contracts less than $17,500 should be removed as it perpetuates pay to play at this lower amount.
Pension Forfeiture for Convicted Public Officials - A1765. Introduced on January 12 2010.
Ban on Dual Office Holding and Dual Public Employment - A2556. Introduced on March 16 2010.
Ban on campaign contributions between county party committees - A275. Introduced on January 12 2010
Annual Financial Disclosure Statement - A2768. Governor Christie used a conditional veto because the bill did not require such disclosure from State legislators - a reasonable request.
Ethics reform should not be stranded in nowhere land. Let's get these bills debated, revised and enacted.
The hoped for sea change last November with voters throwing out Democrats and placing a majority of Republicans on the BC Board has produced only more of the same. On September 7 six freeholders voted during a first of three readings to support a plan that provides minor improvements but continues the so-called "fair and open process" which is so vague that it perpetuates pay-to-play - particularly among moneyed professionals. Heather Taylor of the Citizens Campaign, which also advocates for campaign finance reform, points out "Business entities will be able to give up to the current limit, which is $37,000 - that's per year to a county party. That would be continuing business as usual." State law permits the "fair and open process" loophole, but it should be ended. With no sign of legislators rescinding it, the simplest method of stopping pay-to-play in county and municipal government is to adopt the Citizens Campaign model ordinance for public contracting.
Without citizen activists quickly contacting their freeholders the answer to the question posed in the lyrics, "Will you defeat them, The plans that they have made?" is an emphatic NO! And this Band will continue marching to the tune of those who seek government business by making large donations, in concert with the politicians who acquiesce and wallow in the spoils.
With legislative campaigns looming this fall, county party committees jointly have $1.0 million in reserve after raising nearly $1.1 million during the first three months of 2011, according to quarterly reports filed with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.
Reports show Democrats outraised Republicans during the quarter, but GOP committees reported a higher net worth, meaning cash-on-hand adjusted for debts owed to or by the committee. Numbers should be treated as preliminary because four county party committees had yet to file reports through 5 p.m. Friday, April 29.
Between the two parties over a million dollars were spent in the last three months. The Republican but especially the Democratic numbers are way down compared to 2007: Recession? Tougher pay-to-play laws? No Jon Corzine?
New Jersey has at least two such Republican shadow groups: Reform Jersey Now, which says it ceased its operations after raising $624,000, and The Center for a Better New Jersey which is still operating. Both hew close to Governor Christie's agenda, and the latter seems most active in influencing a favorable Republican outcome in the current redistricting process. Both groups gain the advantage of not having to disclose their donors while they operate at the margins of two IRS requirements and wreak havoc on our pay-to-play laws.
Today's Quote of the Day comes via Senator Loretta Weinberg, and it took a day or so to sink in, how cheeky it is. We're glad we've got a senator way up in the 37th District who rides it right up to the Governor's door. As her first year with us closes, we're also glad she's part of the Blue Jersey community, too. Here's LW, as quoted by The Record's Charles Stile, after Gov. Christie disparaged her work to reform pay-to-play rules, an effort she invited him to collaborate in, but he never returned her calls or any of her efforts to include him. Stile's last line is her quote:
Despite the sharp words, Weinberg said she would be willing to discuss the matter with Christie privately, "as long as I have a chance to answer before I'm escorted out."
Promoted by Jason Springer: We've written plenty about Christie's Slush Fund, Reform Jersey Now. Senator Buono tells us more about the approach they are taking in the Legislature.
Operating in the shadows, this group is raising unlimited sums of money to advocate in support of Governor Chris Christie's policies and agenda. That's because 501(c)4 organizations like Reform Jersey Now are not subject to campaign disclosure requirements, pay-to-play rules or contribution limitations. This is a clear loophole in our campaign finance laws. And we must close it.
Reform Jersey Now needs to live up to a higher ethical standard. Many of these so-called "issue groups" are simply political machines marching under a different name and to a different set of laws. Allowing this disparity to continue would only render our campaign finance and pay-to-play laws useless. It's obvious that this organization is operating under the radar. Except, of course, for those times when they send out invitations detailing how supporters can navigate around campaign finance limits to support Governor Christie.
As Governor Christie is well aware from his days as US Attorney, New Jersey has an unfortunate history of corruption and high-dollar malfeasance. This checkered record costs our taxpayers their hard earned money and erodes confidence in our state government. In these challenging economic times, when everyone is tightening their belts, we need to make sure every dollar is being spent wisely and within the intent of our campaign finance laws.
One of the great influences of my life was my maternal grandfather, a WW2 POW who was fond of saying things like, "Lead, follow, or get the Hell out of the way." There are a lot of things that people can say about me, both good and ill, but no one can ever say that I didn't take those words to heart. So much so that I simply abhor anyone whose primary purpose in life seems to be the obfuscation of progress.
The national Republican Party is often derided as being "The Party of No" - and rightly so - but what then do we say about the New Jersey Democrats? Even as a report on the insanity of Bergen County's Sherrif's Department the Bergen County Freeholder Democrats were busy voting as a bloc against pay-to-play bans. Meanwhile, every level of government that impacts the daily lives of Bergen County residents is being cut to the bone.
This level of political chutzpah rivals that of Richard Nixon telling David Frost that "there are some things that, when the President does them, they are not illegal."
Then I saw this article out of the corner of my eye. You'd think a budget deal would be front-page news. After all, there is no more high profile issue than the state budget. But then I read this part:
The deal would also entail a legislative maneuver placing responsibility for the budget on Republican lawmakers, a rare move with Democrats controlling both houses of the Legislature.
Yes, that Democratic majority some of us worked so hard to maintain is being forfeit. Our legislative leadership is leading by retreating from responsibility.
In an Open Letter I posted here to the next Democratic State Chair - aimed to John Wisniewski - Point #5 was Listen to the Citizens' Campaign:
New Jersey has an idea factory for vibrant civic engagement and good government. They're about clean, fair politics, and they have the sharpest tools in the toolbox to get us there. They don't work for you - and that's good - but they have all the answers. Same suggestion, by the way, for my GOP brothers and sisters.
On June 9th, Wisniewski is one of the panelists at the Jersey Call to Service Summit, convened by the Citizens' Campaign. I plan to be there too; Citizens' Campaign is expecting 1,000 people. It's free to most (read).
Panels on Party Democracy Act, Citizen Journalism, Property Tax & Government Waste & Government Policy Boards and speakers include: Govs. Brendan Byrne and Donald DiFrancesco, Wisniewski and Sen. Joe Kyrillos, Mayor Dana Redd and Michele Brown, who serves Gov. Christie. The Citizen Journalism panel seemed heavy on non-political featurey stuff, but I'm open to listen.
I've had to explain the Citizens' Campaign to a few people since I wrote that post. I'm no expert, but I've studied with them, and watched them develop good-government legislation - they were key in stronger pay-to-play legislation (which Bergen just voted down) and the Party Democracy Act. Citizens' Campaign is non-profit and non-partisan.
In fact, it is relentlessly non-partisan. They teach ways citizens can take stake over policies and laws that govern daily life; power that's always been available, but often goes begging. Think of it as a giant civics lesson for grownups, which is hotter than you think, given that it has the power to take complainers and turn them into leaders. It applies equally, no matter what Party. That's the relentless non-partisanship; less how you should participate but that you can participate.
Most of us here are daily combatants in the cage match of partisan politics. For us, it may be a little hard to wrap around raw info about the infrastructure of governing, given we spend so much time pounding inside it. But knowing the fundamentals is crucial. And it's a heady, buzzy atmosphere - ordinary people all angling for greater democracy. I'm bringing my local candidates. Networking and bouncing ideas around so many good-government advocates is exactly what I where I want them to be.
With the Citizens United decision, the SCOTUS allowed the direct influx of corporate money into the electoral process. This decision also allowed unions to make the same monetary donations as corporations.
Up against this is Gov. Christie's executive order prohibiting unions from making political donations, ostensibly because unions are exempt from "pay-to-play" rules. In response, CWA District 1 has filed a suit challenging the constitutionality of Christie's executive order. But instead of relying on Citizens United, their basis is that they should not be equated with businesses, since they do not do business with the state.
In my opinion, they would have a better case relying on the Citizens United decision (no matter what one may think about it), which would trump anything on the state level, perhaps pay-to-play rules as well.
This SCOTUS decision may have the effect of striking down "pay-to-play" rules as an abridgment of the free speech of corporations. Who knows what else may be in its path?
This week, congressmen Frank Pallone and Bill Pascrell testified before the House Judiciary subcommittee investigating Deferred Prosecution Agreements. They followed Chris Christie's prickly testimony.
Pallone, who called Christie the "poster child for abuse" on Blue Jersey Radio [listen here], and Pascrell, laid out the real costs to our economy of not reining in people like Chris Christie, and propose a legislative fix.
Pascrell first, Pallone after the jump. Sound quality is from the House Judiciary Committee website feed.
The title is true, but sadly only by implication. Assembly Republicans Caroline Casagrande, Declan O'Scanlon, and Jay Webber today complained that the new ethics restrictions for the Lieutenant Governor are not strong enough, stating in their press release:
In contrast to the O'Scanlon/Webber proposal, the bill fails to speak to such topics as: basic anti pay-to-play provisions prohibiting a government contractor who derives over $17,500 or more from the state from making contributions;
Anti pay-to-play provisions of this type are in effect thanks to executive orders by Governors McGreevey and Corzine, and I feel they should certainly also be passed as law. But Casagrande, O'Scanlon and Webber didn't notice that Chris Christie is for pay-to-play.
While much of the focus on these cracks in Christie's "ethical armor" has been on political contributions that smell an awful lot like pay-to-play, very little has been paid to a multi million dollar contract that Christie awarded to David Kelley - who just so happened to indict 14 colleagues/employees of Christie's brother on criminal securities fraud charges while letting his brother avoid any punishment.
Todd Christie committed more that 1,600 improper trades between January 1999 and March 2003, generating "riskless profits" of more than $1.59 million for Spear Leeds (his own company) and costing investors $1.4 million. Fifteen of the 20 specialists facing civil charges were also charged with allegedly ripping off investors to the tune of $19,000,000.00, in the biggest crackdown on illegal trading in the Big Board's History.
As it related to Todd Christie, 3 people above him and the 11 below him were all indicted. What is amazing to note is that one of the indictments was for someone who profited to the tune of $14,000.00 while Todd Christie, who profited to the tune of $1,590,000.00 was never indicted
With Christie on the defensive, the Asbury Park Press isn't really buying his so-called "explanation" over his deferred prosecution agreements:
Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie's defense this week of his handing out a multimillion-dollar, no-bid contract to a former federal prosecutor who let Christie's brother off on stock fraud charges was unconvincing. He needs to do better.
If Christie wants to keep the issue from haunting him throughout the campaign, he must provide a full explanation of the selection process. As former Republican state Sen. Dick LaRossa said, the citizens "need full and open disclosure as to the process and criteria used by Mr. Christie to select Mr. Kelley, if only to put our minds at ease."
Put our minds at ease?..make sure there is no legal or ethical violations?..And, here's another thought: find out why Christie's brother was never indicted in the first place.
Kelley investigated a stock fraud case involving Todd Christie and 19 other traders. Fifteen traders were indicted; Todd Christie's case was handled civilly and later settled with no fine and no admission of wrongdoing.
That is fishy in and of itself - especially when Christie?s brother was the highest ranking Executive NOT to be indicted, but there were 11 lower level people who made less money off of fewer improper trades who were indicted. However, the case ultimately fell apart due to prosecutorial "missteps" and nobody ended up getting convicted.
But here's the kicker--
Despite screwing up the case against his brother's colleagues and not indicting his brother, Christie felt that David Kelley, the US Attorney in charge of the case, was the most qualified law enforcement official in the entire country to give a multi-million federal monitoring contract to. No bidding process involved - this is at the choice of the US Attorney and the Justice Department.
To summarize:
Christie's brother is found to have made close to 1,600 "improer trades" as a top executive on Wall Street;
14 other colleagues, including 3 above and 11 below him are indicted, while Christie's brother settles a civil suit and admits to nothing (even though the SEC knew he made close to 1,600 "improper" trades;
The US Attorney who didn't indict Christie?s brother ended up not convicting anyone in this case because of errors on his office's part;
Two years later, Chris Christie gives this now former US Attorney and colleague a multi million dollar contract, saying that he was the most qualified law enforcement official in the entire country for this job.
This is something that Christie will simply not be able to run away from, ignore or BS his way through. This speaks right to the heart of everything that is wrong with NJ politics. It would make Christie no different from the very people that he indicted and convicted.
In fact, this is precisely the situation that Chris Christie would pride himself on investigating when he was US Attorney. If it was a Democrat and not himself, of course.
Over the past few years - the subject of Pay-to-Play has been debated across our state. This corrupt process, where government contracts and jobs are doled out based on campaign contributions from job or contract recipients, is a major concern to all residents of our state, county, and town. The Daily Record noted recently that while necessary actions to ban this practice statewide have not materialized in the state legislature - there is nothing standing in the way at this time from taking action right in our own communities.
The enormous waste of taxpayer money that has actually occurred, and can potentially take place, because of these corrupt practices should be of great concern to every citizen and elected official. With this concern in mind - I would like to introduce to the Council a model ordinance, drafted by Citizen's Campaign, a non-partisan citizen empowerment group, for your consideration and adoption.
The Key components of this legislation are as follows ...
> Sets limits on contributions from professionals, such as attorneys, auditors, and engineers in the year prior to negotiations.
> Bans all political contributions by contractors from the beginning of negotiations through the performance of the contract.
> Limits contributions to $300 to town candidates and local political parties, $500 to county political parties, and limits professional firm to $2,500 in aggregate.
> Individuals who break the law, or try to circumvent it are banned from receiving no-bid contracts for 4 years.
Please keep in mind that my intention to put this ordinance in place is not to insinuate any past or present wrongdoing as Citizen's Campaign advocates a no-blame approach to adopting these measures. However, this is a tremendous opportunity to demonstrate to the citizens of Parsippany your dedication to preventing situations that violate the public trust. I look forward to discussing this ordinance with you at your convenience. Please feel free to call me to discuss your ideas or concerns at 973-xxx-xxxx. I look forward to working with you on this important issue.
The state of NJ, even though they haven't a clue about how to get COAH workable at the moment, made darn sure that municipalities had to submit their COAH plans by Dec 31, dammit. Or else.
Well, in Englewood, a Planning Board assembled by the Mayor himself, Michael Wildes, made sure the City found out what the "Or Else" meant. You see, the City Council made sure they sent their COAH plan to the Planning Board in time to meet the deadline. ( In Tenafly we realized our plan wouldn't be perfect either, but we had to meet the unrealistic deadline - we would definitely have to revise and amend the plan later due to the extremely unreasonable pressure placed on us by the incompetent Keystone Cops of COAH in Trenton.) Well, because the Planning Board decided not to hurry, the City missed the COAH deadline. And so, guess who was waiting in the wings to profit from the "apparent" oversight and late filing?
Hekemian. Business partner of one Mike Kasparian former President of the company.
Before you could blink, they hit Englewood with a lawsuit - a builder's remedy lawsuit, about not having a COAH plan. Now remember, TRENTON dictated the unrealistic deadline and Englewood missed it by mere days. "How ConVENient!" the church lady would say.
The reason why this is SO infuriating to Englewood Dems and the reason they voted to REJECT the election of Kasparian to the BCDO Chairman is that they have a history with these guys. HKT attempted to take over downtown with emininent domain. The K in HKT stands for Kasparian.
Here is a little story about Englewood and emminent domain from 1999, just ten years ago:
Englewood
In 1999, the City of Englewood designated a 60-acre redevelopment zone, and began working with developer Hekemian Kasparian Troast LLC (HKT) on a plan to replace an industrial area with an office/retail/residential development. Under the $500-million proposal, HKT would cover all of the City's costs in condemning properties and relocating the displaced businesses. Also, the developer would own and manage the development. In order to accommodate HKT, City officials claimed that the properties targeted for condemnation were blighted and had caused a steady erosion of Englewood's tax base. However, the City's own study of the area found that active businesses occupied, or had plans to develop in the near future, more than 97 percent of the properties within the redevelopment area. The study also determined that only three of the 37 properties were poorly maintained, and only one building was not occupied and productive. Furthermore, most of the disputed land was located within one single office-industrial park that generated 1.2 million per year in property taxes. In June 2001, 19 of the targeted property owners sued Englewood, seeking to reverse its 1999 designation and stop HKT's attempt to steal their land. The owners argued that the City's own findings contradicted the claim that there was 'lack of proper utilization of land, which was necessary to justify eminent domain. Those issues never got decided, however, because the owners discovered that the City had failed to publish a proper notice of its 1999 hearings. The lack of notice was a "fatal defect," ruled Judge Jonathan N. Harris, a New Jersey Superior Court judge. The judge dismissed the condemnation actions.
At first, City officials retaliated with a smear campaign in which they distributed fliers portraying the challenging property owners as greedy individuals willing to use "scare tactics" to preserve their "tax haven." David Ulrich, one of the owners, explained why he brought the lawsuit: "I don't think anybody down here is against the concept of redevelopment. Our concern from the beginning is, "Do not threaten to take away our properties." City leaders implied that they would simply approve another plan, without making any technical mistakes this time. In the end, however, HKT came up with a modified development proposal, one that won't require condemning property. This project features 350 apartments, an 11-story office building, three retail structures and a parking garage, and can be accomplished without the City resorting to eminent domain.
It was just a technicality that saved Englewood property owners temporarily from condemnation of their properties for the private gain of Mr. Kasparian. Some Democrat.
You also may remember why Hekemian was in the news recently in Englewood:
Michael Wildes got to help dispense "gifts" from Hekemian to his favorite charities in Englewood just a month or two before these same "humanitarians" slapped the very same city with a COAH builder's remedy lawsuit they apparently had in the works BEFORE the City even missed the Dec 31 deadline. For land located in a COMMERCIAL zone.
Like I said - "How ConVENient!"
So, how is Joe Ferriero related to this story? He was HKT's land use attorney.
What is really sad and infuriating about this whole saga for Englewood is that they have actually built affordable housing there. They were acting in good faith to submit their plan on time. But the Mayor's minions saw fit to leave the door wide open for the fox to get into the henhouse.
I don't care if Kasparian supported Obama. I hardly think Obama, who was a community organizer in Chicago, would approve of the way, Mr. Kasparian and his friends treat a City's residents and business owners so cavilierly for profit. It shows to me a willingness to profit off of others backs, to twist government for that aim and to take from those who have less than you. That is not a Democrat, my friend. THAT is a Republican.
If the Rs were in control right now, how much would you bet, Kasparian would be one?
Well, in the New York Times yesterday, the editorial compares our very own Boss Joe to the Boss Tweed of yesteryear. The only difference is the scenery.
Bet Boss Joe is gonna hate this. He hates to be called a Boss, you know. But that is exactly what he is. And his minions - like Lynne Hurwitz certainly owe him everything.
And so I pulled out a little ode to our Boss Joe that I wrote a while ago:
The recent article in the newspapers where Joe Ferriero had a sit down like Dick Cheney has sometimes with Tim Russert really cracked me up. The Chairman has a lot of problems with the Boss title.
Oh, but he has earned it. Why deprive the man of the honor of elevating Pay to Play to an art not even dreamed of in Tammany Hall?
I was watching the History channel when the story of Boss Tweed was on. I was struck by just how similar these stories are. Tweed had begun as a humble civil servant - a volunteer firefighter but soon realized his inner politician and capitalized on it in a big way.
I thought as a fun little thought experiment I would compare the two men and their legacy:
Tweed: initially a volunteer firefighter
Joe: the son of a firefighter.
Tweed: Progressed from alderman in New York city in 1851 and to NY State Senator.
Joe: Dumont Councilman at age 20 - failed in run for Assembly - but liked the behind-the-scenes action much better and became Chairman of the Bergen County Democratic Organization at the age of 45.
Tweed: In 1868 he handpicked a slate including Governor of NY and Mayor of NYC
Joe: Handpicks ALL candidates down AND UP the ticket. He is a Kingmaker in NJ politics.
Tweed: took kickbacks from contractors after awarding them contracts. Allowed them to overcharge for services and the City footed the bill.
Joe: Is publicly in favor of Pay to Play where contributors to the Bergen County Democratic Organization are often granted no bid contracts for bond work, insurance, engineering, construction, and borough Attorney. He calls Pay-to-Play Free Speech.
For example:
Schoor DePalma, a Monmouth County engineering firm, gave $10,000 to the BCDO and $1,000 to Democrats Council candidates in Rutherford in 1999. Barely a year later, Schoor DePalma became borough engineer in Rutherford AND Ridgefield after Dems won election there too. That $11,000 investment netted them $771,857 from Rutherford and Ridgefield. It worked so well - Schoor DePalma has donated $100,000 to local and county Democrats since 1999.
Tweed: Commissioner of Public Works
Joe: Influences who gets appointed to Utilities Authorities and quasi-governmental bodies who spend lots of taxpayer dollars for bonds, and insurance, and large capital projects in NJ (NJ's modern form of shadow government.) Think Bergen County Improvement Authority, Passiac Valley Sewer Commission, etc.
Comic Relief
Tweed: the subject of Thomas Nast's cartoons that finally swayed public opinion. Folks who couldn't read could get the gist.
Joe: Jimmy Marguiles 2007 cartoons of Boss Joe are legendary already
Tweed: bribed opposition Republicans not to vote
Joe: has folks elected to Council flip allegiance to him - as in Hasbrouck Heights immediately after taking office on Republican platforms. He uses Republicans when he needs to.
Tweed: Controlled Democratic nominations of both the State and NY City by various means: Intimidating and bribing Republicans, paying crooks and drifters to vote. Controlled all Democratic New York state and city nominations from 1860-1870.
Joe: Folks ineligible to vote, wound up casting votes at County Committee elections for his handpicked candidates. He has challenged legally seated County Committee members to prevent their votes from being cast. His henchmen have actually forged the signatures of county committee members to get them off the Committee. He routinely throws incumbents who dissent (like me) from the BCDO line on the ballot even though they received tremendous public support in general elections.. He has done this to sitting Council members like Real Bergen Dems County Clerk candidate Gail Frasco. He has failed to allow Committee Members to speak from the floor. He has denied calling a convention although the proper signatures were obtained by the required number of Committee members.
Tweed: Contractors overcharged for work done, false bills presented, no show jobs were granted
Joe: Will not release records of financial transactions as is required by the Bylaws and requested by Committee members. A majority of the County Committee Municipal Chairs now have County jobs. Engineering firms who get no-bid contracts with the county charge a lot for their services - then donate $$$ to the BCDO.
Tweed: Cost of doing business was passed on to the city - 1869 - 1870 the debt was $97 million and he responded by making his flunkies auditors. Municipal services went down.
Joe: His attack on the government of Englewood is nearly complete. He took over the government in Englewood and supported Mayor Michael Wildes at the same time Wildes dismantled an effective planning board. Buildings with extra floors got built, right across the street from the Borough Hall. Contracts got awarded, zoning applications got passed and government services failed in early 2008. Streets were not salted during snow storms resulting in dozens of accidents and calls for aid to surrounding towns. Bergenfield struggled under the weight of Pay to Play until last year when several of Joe's cronies were ousted and the Borough got rid of Joe's favorite Borough Attorney.
In 1999 any freeholder candidates were required to sign over all control over fundraising and campaign spending to the BCDO. He encouraged money to be dumped into the BCDO from outside the county in return for help in statewide elections. He put all funds into one big pot instead of having candidates raise and spend their own money. Individuals can contribute a limit of 2,200 to a candidate's campaign, but can contribute up to $37,000 to the party coffers.
Tweed: Patronage was only given to loyal supporters. The effect was that anyone who gave money to an opponent - like the Republicans were denied gov't contracts and jobs.
Joe: You get help from Joe for an election, you are asked to promise to let him or his cronies choose the Borough Attorney or Borough Engineer. This happened in Tenafly. We manage our own fundraising and spending without BCDO help so we were able to tell Joe "No thank you. You've done enough. Really". Bergen County government is completely controlled by Joe now. He spent $3 million to keep McNerney's seat. Why so much?
Tammany came from an Indian name and was a sort of social club.
Ferriero holds court in restaurants in the Hackensack area. A sort of boys club where things get decided. Pity the poor Bergen County Democrat who gets called to a meeting at a North Jersey diner with Boss Joe.
Joe gives jobs to people to get their loyalty. And he offers jobs to people to buy their silence. It's sort of like getting a bribe BEFORE you are a government employee. Gordon Johnson was offered a job to drop out of the Assembly race recently. He refused and ran for office without Joe's help and won handily. Joe runs an operation mostly on what was affectionately called "honest graft". Basically legalized bribery. You know it as Pay to Play.
Tweed: The Tammany Hall honest graft method was to buy land up before the government needed it and sell it back at a high profit.
Joe: He and his consigliere Dennis Oury are both land use attorneys who have profited mightily in this era of real estate fever. Zoning variances wanted were mostly zoning variances granted in Bergen County for both Dennis and Joe - especially if the attorneys and engineers involved got their jobs thanks to the BCDO.
Tweed: Conned and plundered the city of New York out of between 30-200 million dollars
Joe: The cost of taxes in NJ is out of control and going higher. Patronage jobs DON'T help the property tax situation on either a County or LOCAL level. Ask the folks in Bergenfield who overpaid for land thanks to Governmental Grants Consulting, the firm that got Joe and Oury in hot water with the Feds.
Tweed: Elected a New York State Senator in 1867
Joe: Not a state Senator himself but controls several State Senators by withholding or granting financial support. Senatorial courtesy is a huge incentive for Ferriero to control the appointment of anyone from districts that are served by that Senator. Disgraced Joe Coniglio was one of those Senators. Paul Sarlo is another. Ken Zisa would have been another if our votes from Tenafly were not counted in 2005. Lautenberg even needed Joe's support to win re-election. Everyone need to kiss Joe's ring at one time or other - no matter how high up the political food chain.
Tweed: Built his power in Tammany Hall through the appointment and election of his friends (called the 'Tweed Ring')
Joe: has a loyal and loud group of supporters who think he is a Democratic god because he made sure they got high paying county jobs.
Tweed: Elected into the US House of Representatives in 1852
Joe: Enjoys being kingmaker for Congressmen and Senators alike. Rubbed shoulders with Hillary Clinton on stage last year while she extolled the virtues of getting rid of "crony capitalism". What you'd call "IRONY".
Tweed: Used illegal means to force election of his choice for New York governor, New York City mayor, and speaker of the assembly.
Joe: Joe and his Friend Dennis Oury stand indicted while His loyal supporters Elaine Rabbitt and Dennis Mulligan from Bergenfield stand indicted on forgery charges. Forgeries that surfaced in 2005 to aid the Chairman's candidate for State Senate to replace Byron Baer in D37.
Tweed: Raised public indignation against graft and was convicted and sentenced to prison (Note: He was also sued by the city of New York in a civil suit. He escaped from jail and fled to Spain. He was identified there from a cartoon drawn by Thomas Nast. He was returned to New York and died in jail there.
Joe: Recently indicted on corruption charges for concealing interest in a firm he founded to make money off grants obtained by pressuring elected officials around the state to give his firm business and $$$. But he is still supported by his loyal flunkies afraid to lose patronage jobs, even while Joe stands indicted.
I left before folks came to blows, but not before seeing another travesty of justice at 50 Main St in Hackensack. If you listened to Ferriero supporters, the criminal here is the Bergen Record for reporting on the illegal behavior of Boss Joe. Or the BCDO folks who tried to do the right thing, tried to call conventions but were denied, tried to clean house of corrupt pay-to-play but were forced to let the Democratic voters know what was going on in the BCDO. The honest Dems who tried to clean house before the Republicans did it for us.
I stand guilty as charged. I wouldn't have had to air the dirty laundry in the first place if Boss Joe ran the BCDO like it bore even a passing resemblance to a democratic institution instead of a dictatorship. The very fact that the District 37 meeting - the first one called in 2 years, BTW, was called AFTER the Executive committee met last nite. They just wanted us peons to feel important by letting us know what the Executive Committee decided for us. While the Chair of District 37 - Mr. Rivera tried to dance around the 8,000 lb elephant in the room - the fact that Boss Joe was INDICTED and a lot of folks in the room didn't have a problem with it.
Ferrierocrats complained about the fact that people were being "stabbed in the back" by folks who spoke to the press. Don't worry. You'll see me coming. I sign my name. I'm not shy. WE don't sneak up on folks and work in the shadows. That's Joe and Oury.
One concerned Dem mentioned that this was like what is going on in Illinois. For all the times that I've heard Oury and apologists for Ferriero say that nobody knows what pay-to-play is and nobody cares - I heard Chris Mathews mention Pay-To-Play many times while reporting on the story today from Illinois. After today - Pay-To-Play WILL be on the average voter's radar.
Another misguided Dem said we should keep Ferriero on because we get a lot of Press from the Record and the continued hounding of the BCDO will make the Record look bad. Scuse Me??? That got a round of outright laughs.
Jack Savage, who I nominated to replace Joe at his re-election (the only legal way to replace Joe currently), stood up and stated that the fish stinks from the top down, and that Joe is making us all tainted by association. Joe has to go.
What happened next was PURE unadulterated foolishness of the classic kind that only happens at the BCDO. They are so used to not having fair elections that a motion was called to second the recommendation of the Executive Committee to ask Joe to step down by Jan 15. The motion was seconded, but before a vote could be taken in the packed room, a Ferrierocrat stood up - true to form and motioned to table discussion - to basically prevent a vote. (I instantly was overwhelmed by deja vu) When the usual goons stood up to vote to table, the District Chair accepted the cessation of any discussion. Regina O'Neill then rightly pointed out that it wasn't a proper vote - folks who aren't even county committee were voting and no one actually counted the folks standing up. It was a farce and someone in the room said so - loudly. I felt the mood of the room turning ugly as once again the honest Dems were robbed of having a voice - AGAIN but started to balk and demand a proper vote.
As I left to go to a real council meeting of honest folks in my Ferriero-free town - Lynne Hurwitz stood up to plead the case for keeping the status quo. Apparently after that, according to my sources, someone then made a motion to adjourn the meeting - it was seconded, and Palisades Park and Hackensack Committees (remember - Lynne Hurwitz is the Chair in Hackensack, and the County Deputy Chief of Staff and this was NOT a secret vote) all voted to end the meeting. And so, long story short - even discussion of how to carry out a fair vote to end the discussion of the "Joe Problem" was cut short by Lynne Hurwitz and her minions. Need I say more?
The reason I am telling you folks is this: It is up to all of us. We can't do it alone - we NEED your help. DEMOCRATS vote for these folks during the Primary in District 37.
Time to really clean house. Joe is just the biggest bug in the house - not the only one. We have to wait another year and a half to get some more ethical folks in the BCDO. Till then we'll have to use the press to keep these folks honest. They sure have trouble telling the difference between the real criminals and the 4th estate who informs the public.
If I had a voice to speak up to the Executive Committee - Here is what I would say: New bylaws should include the ten items that Robert Gulack and I tried to get a convention to vote on. We got the proper # of signatures and true to form, Joe Ferriero refused to call a convention like he was obligated to do. He refused to share the books, as he was obligated to do. New Bylaws should have a means to remove a chair - term limits, and the ten items we asked for over a year ago.
Next, we should lobby our legislators in Trenton to pass Senator Weinberg's Party Democracy act. That will be a major start. Today Illinois Pay-To-Play was the news, it could easily have been NJ.
One Dem put it well - we want a Democratic Democratic Party. We want a voice. If you don't listen to us, we will find folks who will. Oh, and stop doing illegal, unethical stuff, and we'll stop calling you on it. Period.
Uber-ambitious empty-suit Michael Wildes, currently "serving" as mayor of Englewood, has invented a new reason to oppose pay-to-play disclosure laws - everyone in the world is not required to file a disclosure. The Bergen News reports:
[Wildes] continued, "There are other grounds for objection to this provision. The Planning Board acts as a quasi-judicial body when it hears an application. The proposed ordinance requires that only "applicants" make disclosures of political contributions to various persons. The disclosure requirements, if deemed necessary, must also be applied to persons who object to applications before this Planning Board.
If disclosure is proper for an 'applicant', disclosure is equally proper for persons who object to proposals. If the aim is to maximize disclosure then an objector, or his lawyer or other representative should reveal if he has made contributions to any City official or candidate for public office. The treatment of both sides of a case under consideration must be even handed," Mayor Wildes reasoned.
Yes, if Michael Wildes has his way, a common ordinary citizen will be prevented from opposing over-development because they did not file the financial disclosure paperwork. If you didn't know better, you'd think that random home-owners are buying the Planning Board off to defeat development. Of course, the problem is that Wildes has stacked the Planning Board full of friends who have conflicts of interest with some of the developers that come before them - which has heretofore gone unnoted. This is nothing more than Michael Wildes defending his pay-to-play income under the guise of protecting the public.
I knew a guy in the Navy that would sometimes resort to what he called "creative financing". When his money ran out before payday, he'd go to the Food Lion and cash a check for $10 (which he spent on a Subway Cold-Cut-Combo and a twelve-pack of beer) and keep the money. Then next day, he'd go to Albertson's and cash a check for $20, put $10 in his pocket (which he spent on a Subway Cold-Cut-Combo and a twelve-pack of beer) and deposit $10 in his account to cover the original check to Food Lion. The next day, he'd be back at Food Lion, writing a check for $30 - $10 for him (which he spent on a Subway Cold-Cut-Combo and a twelve-pack of beer) and $20 to put in the bank to cover the check to Albertson's.
It was insane, but it worked. All he had to do was keep cashing larger and larger checks until payday, when a new wave of cash would largely get swallowed by his short-term debt. Meanwhile, he had sandwich and beer money that he wouldn't otherwise have. After reading this article I kind of wonder if my friend wasn't a Burlington County Republican. Click on through to the other side.
Ken Thoorbourne says that Jersey City is moving the goal post for a referendum proposed by City Councilman Steve Fulop to get on the ballot.
For months now, Fulop and a crew of activists have labored under the impression they needed 1,506 valid signatures of registered voters to qualify each of the two ballot initiatives.
Now the city says he needs 12,227 signatures, and Fulop would rather fight than pound the pavement for more signatures.
What happened? Well, first he got the 1,506 sigantures. Then the city finds a potential way to wiggle out:
Corporation Counsel Bill Matsikoudis told Byrne yesterday the Faulkner Act doesn't apply when it comes to initiatives involving salaries.
Based on case law, Matsikoudis said, those petitions are governed by a broader state statute that requires 10 percent or more of all the registered voters in the city.
As of January, Jersey City had 122,271 voters. So to qualify his salary initiative, Fulop would need to turn in 12,227 valid signatures - and do so in 10 days.
I'm not a lawyer, so I can't comment on the technicalities. What I can say is that Matsikoudis was given his job by Mayor Healy. Mayor Man-of-Principle has regularly opposed such measures. I'll let you decide why he would do that. More after the jump.
That most-common of all Jersey wildlife, the common political boss, is rearing its head in Perth Amboy. This one answers to the name Joe Vas.
Joe Vas lost his bid at re-election to upstart activist Wilda Diaz. Well, he lost one of his jobs - the one where he's mayor. He's still holding onto his State Assembly seat. And, by all indications, he intends to keep it for a good long time.
The first clue was the speed with which he suddenly decided to fill up the jobs in his local patronage mill. Of course, from his perspective, he's just trying to do his job. But anyone with enough brain cells left to play tag understand that the chief reason for giving away jobs on bloated municipal payrolls is to ensure that whole families vote "the right way" come election day.
