Unethical Lawmaker Seeks New Complaint Hurdles
One of New Jersey's most unethical lawmakers has proposed a bill that would require any complaint filed with the Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards to be in writing and signed by the complainant with a notarized certificate of acknowledgement.
In addition the legislation, Assembly Bill 2713 sponsored by notoriously unethical Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, would bar the committee from accepting a complaint that is submitted by fax.
Cryan, who has been the subject of numerous ethical allegations, reportedly accepted a $2,000 cash contribution that never turned up on his campaign finance reports.
Cryan also has another government job as a top deputy to Union County Sheriff Ralph Froehlich, who is constitutionally prohibited from holding a seat in the General Assembly.
Besides holding two apparently conflicting jobs at taxpayer expense, Cryan is chairman of two Democratic Party committees, each serving a distinct level of jurisdiction.
As state party chair, Cryan is the chief apologist for the ethically-slow Gov. Jon Corzine, while Cryan hand picks members of the Union Township Committee as that municipality's political boss.
The Union Township Committee awarded two charitable organization taxpayer-funded no-bid grants, one for $17,000 and another of $26,000, on Sept. 13, 2005 -- just weeks after each of the groups made illegal political contributions to Cryan's election fund.
The Center for Hope Hospice made its donation to Cryan on Aug 8, 2005 and the Boys & Girls Clubs delivered a check for the political committee on Aug. 1, 2005.
In another apparently corrupt political deal, Union Township's governing body granted a developer rights to build housing on a parcel of land owned by somebody else, just days after he hosted a $75,000 fundraiser for Cryan.
By making it more onerous to file charges with the ethics committee, Cryan clearly hopes to create opportunities for the panel to dismiss accusations on technical grounds instead of holding lawmakers to account for their actions.
The ethics panel was recently the subject of reform because, as it was previously constituted, the committee overlooked such acts as those for which former Sen. Wayne Bryant is serving federal jail time.
The most recent ethics complaint against Cryan, filed on Jan. 9, alleges that the politician abused his office by having a legislative aide perform work related to the assemblyman's role as state party chairman.
"There is no less an ethical conflict to employ legislative staff at taxpayer expense in performing political tasks related to Mr. Cryan's role as chairman of a partisan organization, than it would be for a mayor to have a city public works crew repair his home driveway," said James J. Devine, a Democratic strategist and author who has been a frequent critic of corrupt politicians.
Froehlich appointed Cryan , although he has no law enforcement experience, to the $97,138 a year job as undersheriff just weeks after Cryan lost his job at a Metuchen bar owned by his father. Cryan's Sheriff's Office salary has since increased by more than $15,000 a year.
To see the legislation, please visit the official State of New Jersey website at http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2008/Bills/A3000/2713_I1.PDF
Friday, January 16, 2009
Friday, December 26, 2008
New Jersey's hard working people deserve an honest government.
That's why Democrats must nominate an alternative to Jon Corzine in the 2009 primary election for governor.
Corzine's name is attached to inaction, failure and corruption and that reputation was earned by the former Wall Street CEO during his foray into politics.
The politics and the problems facing our country are very different today than they were when this political speculator got booted out of the board room decided to buy himself an elected office.
The mentality of Wall Street and Washington and Trenton has been revealed as being in conflict with America's main stream thinking.
In democracy, we have a political system that holds everyone is equally valuable and entitled to basic rights. Capitalism is an economic system that rewards those who exploit people the most and gives inordinate advantages to those who are already better positioned financially.
Our common people have lost faith in politicians and corporate thieves like Corzine and his ilk because they have betrayed our trust.
Those arrogant people who once believed themselves to be Master of the Universe are no longer respected. They are masters of lies and greed and they offer society nothing.
Putting government back to work for people requires that we eliminate the influence and control of greedy, sinister forces. This is the change Americans want.
New Jersey's hard working people deserve an honest government and the Democratic Party must rise to the challenge of giving it to them.
That's why Democrats must nominate an alternative to Jon Corzine in the 2009 primary election for governor.
Corzine's name is attached to inaction, failure and corruption and that reputation was earned by the former Wall Street CEO during his foray into politics.
The politics and the problems facing our country are very different today than they were when this political speculator got booted out of the board room decided to buy himself an elected office.
The mentality of Wall Street and Washington and Trenton has been revealed as being in conflict with America's main stream thinking.
In democracy, we have a political system that holds everyone is equally valuable and entitled to basic rights. Capitalism is an economic system that rewards those who exploit people the most and gives inordinate advantages to those who are already better positioned financially.
Our common people have lost faith in politicians and corporate thieves like Corzine and his ilk because they have betrayed our trust.
Those arrogant people who once believed themselves to be Master of the Universe are no longer respected. They are masters of lies and greed and they offer society nothing.
Putting government back to work for people requires that we eliminate the influence and control of greedy, sinister forces. This is the change Americans want.
New Jersey's hard working people deserve an honest government and the Democratic Party must rise to the challenge of giving it to them.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Is any real Democratic leadership left in NJ?
The election of Barack Obama only reinforces my belief that Gov. Corzine can be defeated in a Democratic primary next year. Let's face it, there may be something wrong with turning the Democratic Party over to former Wall Street CEOs who spent their lives vigorously pursuing money until they decided to buy an elected office.
Obama is not going to spare New Jersey of its disastrous governor and if he is not challenged by a Democratic candidate who actually shares the values of this party, then we are handing the GOP a chance to regain power in this state.
Three problems face America under all the talk about economic crisis and war in Iraq and terrorism and health care...
One, too much wealth is concentrated in fewer and fewer hands. This upsets the balance of things necessary to maintaining the nature of capitalism and it allows the rich and powerful to undermine democracy. America faces a risk that democracy will be lost unless our government acts to balance the scales. The rich should pay their fair share in taxes to support the state, which enabled them freedom and security to become rich.
Two, the instrument for containing "the moneyed interests" -- government -- seems dominated by ideologues who profess that this concentration of wealth is a good thing and others, who seem only interested in their own status. Aside from the evil or corrupt, there are a large number of cowards who won't take on battles so big that they can make a difference, for fear of offending the rich and power or their greedy counterparts.
Three, Democratic Party leaders have become much like the Republicans, leaving the large majority of people unrepresented in the halls of power. A former Wall Street CEO like Jon Corzine cannot share the values of common middle-class and poor people who should be the bedrock of the Democratic Party. Do you have the capacity to understand and sympathize with billionnaires?
Corzine promised an ethical performance, but instead he bought himself the loyalty of power brokers and political bosses with our tax dollars. Corzine promised financial wizardry, fair taxes and education reform, but he delivered only band aids and proposals for digging NJ deeper in debt while discarding our assets.
Corzine has been an empty suit when it comes to real ethics reform. We have elected officials benefiting from public contracts and holding multiple taxpayer-funded jobs, which puts them at the mercy of those who control such contracts and jobs.
When did the Democratic Party become the party of aristocrats and crooks? More than 100 political figures have been indicted or convicted of corruption but no real law enforcement action has come from the state.
After Jim McGreevey led what may have been the most corrupt administration in NJ history, people want a change. Corzine promised that change and he cheated us by being just like McGreevey.
You know, my dog could be remembered as the greatest governor in history if we put him in the State House and let him borrow $40 billion, but someone who followed would suffer for it along with all the residents remaining when the bills came due. Corzine failed to hoodwink us the first time around but whether he may do it in a second term unless a Republican replaces him.
Either way, New Jersey deserves better. New Jersey deserves real Democratic leadership. The only question is, 'Is any out there?'
A candidate who challenges Jon Corzine in the 2009 Democratic primary would be entitled to two dollars in public funding for every qualified dollar raised from grassroots supporters (once the threshold is reached). While Corzine may again write a $60 million check to fund his own campaign, he cannot escape from his record and a Karl Rove style campaign will only make him look more like a George Bush clone.
With the $4 million-plus available to a Democratic challenger who is successful at maximizing public funding, the smaller and more sophisticated primary electorate may be reached in a way that levels the playing field and gives real people the chance to take back out party. Remember when Hillary Clinton was the inevitable nominee?
These are times of great change, but people better avail themselves of this opportunity.
The election of Barack Obama only reinforces my belief that Gov. Corzine can be defeated in a Democratic primary next year. Let's face it, there may be something wrong with turning the Democratic Party over to former Wall Street CEOs who spent their lives vigorously pursuing money until they decided to buy an elected office.
Obama is not going to spare New Jersey of its disastrous governor and if he is not challenged by a Democratic candidate who actually shares the values of this party, then we are handing the GOP a chance to regain power in this state.
Three problems face America under all the talk about economic crisis and war in Iraq and terrorism and health care...
One, too much wealth is concentrated in fewer and fewer hands. This upsets the balance of things necessary to maintaining the nature of capitalism and it allows the rich and powerful to undermine democracy. America faces a risk that democracy will be lost unless our government acts to balance the scales. The rich should pay their fair share in taxes to support the state, which enabled them freedom and security to become rich.
Two, the instrument for containing "the moneyed interests" -- government -- seems dominated by ideologues who profess that this concentration of wealth is a good thing and others, who seem only interested in their own status. Aside from the evil or corrupt, there are a large number of cowards who won't take on battles so big that they can make a difference, for fear of offending the rich and power or their greedy counterparts.
Three, Democratic Party leaders have become much like the Republicans, leaving the large majority of people unrepresented in the halls of power. A former Wall Street CEO like Jon Corzine cannot share the values of common middle-class and poor people who should be the bedrock of the Democratic Party. Do you have the capacity to understand and sympathize with billionnaires?
Corzine promised an ethical performance, but instead he bought himself the loyalty of power brokers and political bosses with our tax dollars. Corzine promised financial wizardry, fair taxes and education reform, but he delivered only band aids and proposals for digging NJ deeper in debt while discarding our assets.
Corzine has been an empty suit when it comes to real ethics reform. We have elected officials benefiting from public contracts and holding multiple taxpayer-funded jobs, which puts them at the mercy of those who control such contracts and jobs.
When did the Democratic Party become the party of aristocrats and crooks? More than 100 political figures have been indicted or convicted of corruption but no real law enforcement action has come from the state.
After Jim McGreevey led what may have been the most corrupt administration in NJ history, people want a change. Corzine promised that change and he cheated us by being just like McGreevey.
You know, my dog could be remembered as the greatest governor in history if we put him in the State House and let him borrow $40 billion, but someone who followed would suffer for it along with all the residents remaining when the bills came due. Corzine failed to hoodwink us the first time around but whether he may do it in a second term unless a Republican replaces him.
Either way, New Jersey deserves better. New Jersey deserves real Democratic leadership. The only question is, 'Is any out there?'
A candidate who challenges Jon Corzine in the 2009 Democratic primary would be entitled to two dollars in public funding for every qualified dollar raised from grassroots supporters (once the threshold is reached). While Corzine may again write a $60 million check to fund his own campaign, he cannot escape from his record and a Karl Rove style campaign will only make him look more like a George Bush clone.
With the $4 million-plus available to a Democratic challenger who is successful at maximizing public funding, the smaller and more sophisticated primary electorate may be reached in a way that levels the playing field and gives real people the chance to take back out party. Remember when Hillary Clinton was the inevitable nominee?
These are times of great change, but people better avail themselves of this opportunity.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
More of the same with Sen John Complain
Why would any American believe Sen John Complain can effect 'change' after 26 years in Washington, DC? Consider this Republican records and ask yourself if America can afford more of the same with John Complain:
• Perpetual War with Death, Chaos, and Destruction
• Mismanaging Federal Treasury Funds
• Fear Mongering at Home
• Increased Governmental $pending while cutting Taxes to the Wealthy
• $11 Trillion Dollar National Debt
• Privatizing Profits while Socializing the Bailouts of failed Corporations
• Unfair Taxation of the Middle Class
• High prices for GASOLINE, Electricity, and Everything Else!
• High Medical Costs and Prescription Drugs
• Bank Failures and Record Home Forclusures
• Pollution
• Invasion of Privacy and disregard for our Constitution
• Corruption, Corruption, Corruption!
• Religious Hypocrisy
• Politicalization of the Justice Department
• Degradation of our Infrastructure
• Continued overseas export of American Jobs
• Slave Labor
• Decline in US stature and respect among the World Community
Why would any American believe Sen John Complain can effect 'change' after 26 years in Washington, DC? Consider this Republican records and ask yourself if America can afford more of the same with John Complain:
• Perpetual War with Death, Chaos, and Destruction
• Mismanaging Federal Treasury Funds
• Fear Mongering at Home
• Increased Governmental $pending while cutting Taxes to the Wealthy
• $11 Trillion Dollar National Debt
• Privatizing Profits while Socializing the Bailouts of failed Corporations
• Unfair Taxation of the Middle Class
• High prices for GASOLINE, Electricity, and Everything Else!
• High Medical Costs and Prescription Drugs
• Bank Failures and Record Home Forclusures
• Pollution
• Invasion of Privacy and disregard for our Constitution
• Corruption, Corruption, Corruption!
• Religious Hypocrisy
• Politicalization of the Justice Department
• Degradation of our Infrastructure
• Continued overseas export of American Jobs
• Slave Labor
• Decline in US stature and respect among the World Community
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Presidential campaign takes on a new low
As America approached the seventh anniversary of 9/11, the presidential campaign took on a new low of irrelevance with Republicans taking a comment by Democratic nominee Barack Obama totally out of context. As it turns out, John McCain used the same line about lipstick on pigs earlier in the year in remarks specifically directed at Hillary Clinton while Obama made no comparable reference to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
With concrete differences between Obama and McCain on a host of issues, the national media dutifully wasted days on this nonsense. This is the genius of the Republican propaganda outlet, Fox News, because its role in subverting the attention of the voters actually turns real news organizations into weapons of mass distraction consequent to their 'follow the leader' mentality.
The meaningless flap was mentioned in at least 2,684 articles from newspapers, television, radio and other media. Instead of dealing with news, America's news organizations are talking about Palin who -- despite being unqualified, hypocritical, a religious extremist on par with anyone in al Qaeda and an ultra-right wing nut -- is the most widely discussed distraction in the campaign. John McCain used his years of Washington experience instead of putting country first by choosing as his vice presidential running mate an oddity who will enable the media to keep voters from thinking about any of the dozens -- maybe hundreds -- of reasons why a third presidential term for Republicans should be unthinkable.
A third presidential term for Republicans should be unthinkable.
The government wasted millions of dollars on no-bid contracts handed out for Hurricane Katrina work, including paying $20 million for a camp for evacuees that was never inspected and proved to be unusable, investigators say. New Orleans residents remain scattered and robbed of their property: homes, hospitals, schools and neighborhoods.
American troops remain bogged down in Iraq, while Afghanistan grows more turbulent and our military is dangerously unable to respond to other global threats or domestic emergencies.
The challenge of defeating crazed religious extremists is growing more complex and more dangerous, as one of them has been selected as the Republican vice presidential nominee. Al Qaeda, strengthened by years of Arab antipathy toward America due to the Iraq War, has begun a new campaign of terrorist bombings at US embassies.
McCain has spent most of his quarter-century in Congress advocating deregulation, the kind of lawlessness that allowed money market funds, insurance companies, banks and other traditionally conservative institutional investors to gamble in securities linked to subprime mortgages and other risky debt.
U.S. stocks tumbled as bank lending seized up in the wake of the government's takeover of American International Group Inc., raising concern that more of the nation's biggest financial companies will fail. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley, the two independent Wall Street securities firms remaining after Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. collapsed and Merrill Lynch & Co. was taken over, plunged the most ever. Wachovia and Washington Mutual, the nation's largest savings and loan association, are being watched for signs of an impending death.
General Electric Co., the world's third-biggest company, fell 8.7 percent and U.S. Steel Corp. slid 11 percent. Yields on three-month Treasury bills sank to a 54-year low as investors sought the relative safety of government debt, and a measure of corporate borrowing costs surged to the highest since the crash of 1987. Global banks racked up $516 billion in credit losses and asset writedowns stemming from the first nationwide decline in home prices since the 1930s.
Americans have over $3.5 trillion deposited in money market funds and, if that money cannot be withdrawn, we could be looking at a depositor panic such as that of 1933, when thousands were pounding on bank doors to retrieve their lost life savings.
As the Bush administration takes over trillion-dollar AIG, there is a growing tide of anger as layoffs, long-term unemployment, home foreclosures, students struggling with college loans, and retirement savings evaporating become problems encountered by more and more people.
Republicans seem able to find sums seemingly too large to calculate being spent to bailout billionaires in the wake of reports of larcenous CEOs departing shipwrecks of their own making with untold millions while at least $10 billion a month is wasted bringing death and destruction to Iraq. The fact that our tax dollars are killing children has yet to emerge in the American consciousness, but 46 percent of the violent deaths involving coalition forces in Iraq were children younger than 15.
From the standpoint of your average American, the Republicans have done everything wrong.
The Republicans tried to 'privatize' Social Security and gamble your retirement on the stock market, which then crashed as a result of deregulation, another Republican initiative that created an atmosphere of lawlessness among investment banks, securities brokers as well as traditional thrift and insurance companies.
The Republicans shipped American jobs overseas plus sold off the companies that once paid taxes and employed US workers. They allowed unfair foreign trade competition to destroy America businesses and then permitted unsafe products from other countries to invade our markets.
The Republicans imposed racist barriers that prevented many people from legitimately pursuing the American Dream, but failed to control the borders so the number of undocumented immigrants doubled to 12 million after 9/11.
The Republicans decided it is okay to hold captives without charges indefinitely, deny such prisoners access to lawyers or courts, and even subject them to torture. The Republicans disgraced the meaning of our Constitution. They engaged in illegal spying on American citizens and retroactively forgave the telecom companies that aided in that crime.
The Republicans killed hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq without any cause because George W. Bush wanted to be remembered in history as a 'war president.' The Republicans lied to get approval to invade Iraq, they botched the job after our brave soldiers, sailors and marines executed their orders, and they created more sympathy for our terrorist adversaries. In doing so, they squandered they unanimous worldwide sympathy and support for America that followed the 9/11 attacks (which occurred while the Republicans were asleep at the switch) and instead they repeatedly exploited those horrors purely for political gain.
The Republicans have still failed to capture Osama bin Laden. Al Qaeda is reported to be twice as large as it was seven years ago. Iraq had absolutely nothing to do with the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers or the Pentagon.
The Republicans have for many years consistently made bad decisions in favor of big corporate special interests instead of America's working families.
The Republicans think they can fool Americans, and the sad part is that they did it successfully in 2004 and, at least according to polls, they have a chance to do it again this year.
Voting for Republicans is not patriotic, it's idiotic.
As America approached the seventh anniversary of 9/11, the presidential campaign took on a new low of irrelevance with Republicans taking a comment by Democratic nominee Barack Obama totally out of context. As it turns out, John McCain used the same line about lipstick on pigs earlier in the year in remarks specifically directed at Hillary Clinton while Obama made no comparable reference to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
With concrete differences between Obama and McCain on a host of issues, the national media dutifully wasted days on this nonsense. This is the genius of the Republican propaganda outlet, Fox News, because its role in subverting the attention of the voters actually turns real news organizations into weapons of mass distraction consequent to their 'follow the leader' mentality.
The meaningless flap was mentioned in at least 2,684 articles from newspapers, television, radio and other media. Instead of dealing with news, America's news organizations are talking about Palin who -- despite being unqualified, hypocritical, a religious extremist on par with anyone in al Qaeda and an ultra-right wing nut -- is the most widely discussed distraction in the campaign. John McCain used his years of Washington experience instead of putting country first by choosing as his vice presidential running mate an oddity who will enable the media to keep voters from thinking about any of the dozens -- maybe hundreds -- of reasons why a third presidential term for Republicans should be unthinkable.
A third presidential term for Republicans should be unthinkable.
The government wasted millions of dollars on no-bid contracts handed out for Hurricane Katrina work, including paying $20 million for a camp for evacuees that was never inspected and proved to be unusable, investigators say. New Orleans residents remain scattered and robbed of their property: homes, hospitals, schools and neighborhoods.
American troops remain bogged down in Iraq, while Afghanistan grows more turbulent and our military is dangerously unable to respond to other global threats or domestic emergencies.
The challenge of defeating crazed religious extremists is growing more complex and more dangerous, as one of them has been selected as the Republican vice presidential nominee. Al Qaeda, strengthened by years of Arab antipathy toward America due to the Iraq War, has begun a new campaign of terrorist bombings at US embassies.
McCain has spent most of his quarter-century in Congress advocating deregulation, the kind of lawlessness that allowed money market funds, insurance companies, banks and other traditionally conservative institutional investors to gamble in securities linked to subprime mortgages and other risky debt.
U.S. stocks tumbled as bank lending seized up in the wake of the government's takeover of American International Group Inc., raising concern that more of the nation's biggest financial companies will fail. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley, the two independent Wall Street securities firms remaining after Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. collapsed and Merrill Lynch & Co. was taken over, plunged the most ever. Wachovia and Washington Mutual, the nation's largest savings and loan association, are being watched for signs of an impending death.
General Electric Co., the world's third-biggest company, fell 8.7 percent and U.S. Steel Corp. slid 11 percent. Yields on three-month Treasury bills sank to a 54-year low as investors sought the relative safety of government debt, and a measure of corporate borrowing costs surged to the highest since the crash of 1987. Global banks racked up $516 billion in credit losses and asset writedowns stemming from the first nationwide decline in home prices since the 1930s.
Americans have over $3.5 trillion deposited in money market funds and, if that money cannot be withdrawn, we could be looking at a depositor panic such as that of 1933, when thousands were pounding on bank doors to retrieve their lost life savings.
As the Bush administration takes over trillion-dollar AIG, there is a growing tide of anger as layoffs, long-term unemployment, home foreclosures, students struggling with college loans, and retirement savings evaporating become problems encountered by more and more people.
Republicans seem able to find sums seemingly too large to calculate being spent to bailout billionaires in the wake of reports of larcenous CEOs departing shipwrecks of their own making with untold millions while at least $10 billion a month is wasted bringing death and destruction to Iraq. The fact that our tax dollars are killing children has yet to emerge in the American consciousness, but 46 percent of the violent deaths involving coalition forces in Iraq were children younger than 15.
From the standpoint of your average American, the Republicans have done everything wrong.
The Republicans tried to 'privatize' Social Security and gamble your retirement on the stock market, which then crashed as a result of deregulation, another Republican initiative that created an atmosphere of lawlessness among investment banks, securities brokers as well as traditional thrift and insurance companies.
The Republicans shipped American jobs overseas plus sold off the companies that once paid taxes and employed US workers. They allowed unfair foreign trade competition to destroy America businesses and then permitted unsafe products from other countries to invade our markets.
The Republicans imposed racist barriers that prevented many people from legitimately pursuing the American Dream, but failed to control the borders so the number of undocumented immigrants doubled to 12 million after 9/11.
The Republicans decided it is okay to hold captives without charges indefinitely, deny such prisoners access to lawyers or courts, and even subject them to torture. The Republicans disgraced the meaning of our Constitution. They engaged in illegal spying on American citizens and retroactively forgave the telecom companies that aided in that crime.
The Republicans killed hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq without any cause because George W. Bush wanted to be remembered in history as a 'war president.' The Republicans lied to get approval to invade Iraq, they botched the job after our brave soldiers, sailors and marines executed their orders, and they created more sympathy for our terrorist adversaries. In doing so, they squandered they unanimous worldwide sympathy and support for America that followed the 9/11 attacks (which occurred while the Republicans were asleep at the switch) and instead they repeatedly exploited those horrors purely for political gain.
The Republicans have still failed to capture Osama bin Laden. Al Qaeda is reported to be twice as large as it was seven years ago. Iraq had absolutely nothing to do with the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers or the Pentagon.
The Republicans have for many years consistently made bad decisions in favor of big corporate special interests instead of America's working families.
The Republicans think they can fool Americans, and the sad part is that they did it successfully in 2004 and, at least according to polls, they have a chance to do it again this year.
Voting for Republicans is not patriotic, it's idiotic.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
