Bayshore Tea Party Group Co-founder Speaks Out About Monmouth GOP Convention, Publishes The Candidate Speech He Didn’t Get To Deliver

The following is a statement from Robert Gordon, Co-founder of the Bayshore Tea Party Group, which includes the speech he would have delivered to the Monmouth GOP Convention last week had him nomination been accepted.

Given the points Gordon makes, MMM asked him why he is not challenging the Chairman’s election.  He said the had thought about it but concluded that such action would not be productive.

On Tuesday evening, June 12, 2012, we attempted to get my name entered into nomination for chairman of the Monmouth County Republican committee. That attempt failed for a variety of reasons. First, I was told by Joe Oxley, the current chairman, that we were discourteous in not notifying him of our intention at least two weeks in advance. What transpired after our exchange with Mr. Oxley, was unfortunate, but predictable because of the absence of bylaws or the adherence to Robert’s Rules of Order. I did offer my apology to Mr. Oxley, however I was dismayed by Mr Oxley’s adamant aversion of rules and the resulting response from the floor when my nomination was denied without explanation. It is unfortunate that a simple matter of producing County committee bylaws was not undertaken at a much earlier time, thereby short-circuiting any issues of this type. It was not our intention to embarrass Mr. Oxley or anyone else in this organization.

My considering running for this office came about as a result of several issues. First was the failure to produce bylaws in compliance with Title 19. Our first priority should be to comply with this requirement. Second was the nature of the campaign for chairman being contested by Christine Hanlon and John Bennett. For two weeks my mail box was filled with what in my opinion was negative campaign material. I felt that I should be receiving materials that clearly define what each of these candidates intended to do in strengthening the Republican Party, and this particular County committee. This clearly was not the case. I felt the need for an expanded responsibility for each of the members of this committee in communicating with the public in their respective districts. We represent those people and that representation requires us to convey information from the County committee to the public, and convey the public’s concerns to that same committee. I believe that we should expand this responsibility, and ask our committee members to become more active in the processes of local and state government. We must be the conduit that enhances the flow of information to our constituents and ask them to contact their local and state representatives on all of the issues that will have a bearing on the quality of life in their neighborhoods. We must be diligent in monitoring the activities of our local and state representatives. We must be confident that they are acting in a manner that is consistent with the qualities of good government and conforming to the principles which got them elected. We should not discourage the participation in our local committees as has been the case in this last election.

I am a conservative. I believe in smaller government, fiscal responsibility and adherence to the Constitution of the United States and the state of New Jersey. My speech, a copy of which follows, outlines my sincere wish for unity and a return to the conservative principles of Ronald Reagan. I have stated some items of concern where Republican representatives have not been consistent in sticking with conservative principles. This should concern us all.

John Bennett was elected chairman in a very closely contested election. I congratulate him on his victory. We wish to offer whatever help is necessary to ensure the restoration of unity in this party and the return to conservative principles, so necessary to restoring the quality of life that we have come to expect in New Jersey.

THE FOLLOWING IS THE NOMINATION SPEECH THAT I HAD PREPARED FOR THE EVENING OF JUNE 12TH, 2012:

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Courthouse contamination still a mystery

Monmouth County officials remain stumped about what caused the reported sicknesses at the courthouse on Friday and again yesterday.  The courthouse is closed today as testing for the source contaminant continues.

Freeholder Director John Curley told MMM that he received a report at 8am this morning indicating the facility had been tested for chemical contaminants overnight.  The test came back negative.  Curley said the facility is being swept for mold and pollen today.

Sheriff Shaun Golden said that all systems have been checked and rechecked and that environmental testing is being conducted today.

A message on the Court’s website states that General Equity at the Hall of Records and the Probation offices at Mechanic Street, Freehold and in Ocean Township are open today.

Bail can be posted at the Monmouth County Jail.  Temporary restraining orders will be handled by the local police.

Child support payments can be mailed to NJFSPC, PO Box 4880, Trenton, NJ 08650-4880 or dropped off at the 30 Mechanic Street, Freehold office.  Probation payments will also be received at Mechanic Street.

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Beck & Sweeney Bill to Crack Down on “Fake Farmers” Cleared for Full Senate Consideration

Trenton— Legislation long-championed by Senator Jennifer Beck (R- Monmouth) and Senate President Steve Sweeney (D- Gloucester/Cumberland/Salem) to prevent abuse of the state’s farmland assessment law has cleared the final hurdle to passage by the full Senate. The Legislation, S-589, was approved the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.

“The current threshold of $500 in agricultural sales set forth in New Jersey’s farmland assessment law has not been increased since its inception and is easily abused,” said Beck. “This bill modernizes the law to better ensure that only those who actively work the land receive the 98% property tax break on their property.”

“Clearly this program is being taken advantage of and it’s the taxpayers who ultimately lose the most. It’s long past time we update the farmland assessment law. This protects both real farmers and the taxpayers of New Jersey, ” said Sweeney.

The bill would boost the threshold of sales derived from farming activity to $1000 per year from the current $500, and provide for a review of the sales threshold every three years. This number was selected based on a 2007 study by Rutgers which calculated how many farms would be disqualified at minimum revenue qualifications of $1000, $2500 and $10, 000. A $10, 000 was estimated to take 398, 093 of New Jersey`s approximately 982, 000 acres of farmland off the preservation rolls.

The legislation also would require program applicants to submit evidence of agricultural sales and/or income to the Department of Agriculture, and require tax assessors to undergo training in farmland assessment as a condition of licensure. Most importantly, the State Division of Taxation and State Board of Agriculture would issue guidelines to tax assessors to aid them in defining legitimate farming activity.

Abusers of the program would face a $5000 fine, in addition to restitution of all taxes inappropriately avoided on property fraudulently claimed under the assessment exemption and other penalties.

“There is something wrong when an individual can sell three cords of firewood to himself and claim the same tax break as farmers producing legitimate agricultural output,” Beck continued. “The abuse of this program is well documented in the press and by the State Auditor and needs to end.”

Press Release

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Christie orders stepped up oversight of halfway houses

Responding to the New York Times series on on the lax conditions at New Jersey’s halfway houses, Governor Chris Christie has ordered Department of Corrections Commissioner Gary Lanigan to step up inspections of the facilities and report violations and recommendations for changes to the Governor’s office.

“While many of the disturbing accounts reported in today’s New York Times documenting lax oversight and accountability in some of New Jersey’s halfway houses took place prior to this administration, we have an obligation to ensure the community placements program is effectively and safely operating today. This administration takes its responsibility to properly administer this program very seriously which is why we have increased monitoring of halfway houses with enhanced site visits, fines for noncompliance and a new inspection monitoring system that has led to a dramatic decrease in the number of walkaways under this administration.

“New Jersey has been on the cutting edge of pursuing policies that both ensure our most violent offenders stay off the streets, such as closing the early release loophole, and support a more rehabilitative approach focused on nonviolent offenders. We need to constantly ensure these policies are being responsibly and safely implemented which is why I am calling on the Department of Corrections Commissioner Gary Lanigan to immediately step up inspections of all halfway houses and report any violations and recommendations for changes to the deputy chief of staff for policy.”

Parts one and two of the NYTimes series can be found here and here.

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An Open Letter of Thanks

From the Desk of Christine Giordano Hanlon, Monmouth Republican State Committeewoman

Dear Monmouth County Committee Members and Fellow Republicans:

I want to take this opportunity to thank all of my supporters who stood behind me in my candidacy for Monmouth Republican Chair.  Your support has meant a great deal to me and I will be eternally grateful.

 I would also like to reiterate my congratulations to our new County Chairman, John Bennett.  I wish him well in his Chairmanship.

We must now come together to focus on that which is most important – continuing to work toward the election of Republicans at every level of government.  As Abraham Lincoln once said, “a house divided cannot stand.”   Monmouth Republicans cannot be a house divided.  

We have many challenges ahead.  We must work together to elect our local and county candidates, and to send Republicans toWashington so that we can begin moving our nation back in the right direction. Monmouth County will play a critical role in the election of Mitt Romney and Joe Kyrillos, and must set the standard for the rest of the State.  I look forward to working with all of you in the future to accomplish these goals.

Respectfully,

Christine G. Hanlon

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Kudos to the Red Bank and Middletown Patches

Unlike the major local news outlet, Patch seems to be taking its duty to inform the public about its most important civic duty….voting….seriously.

Middletown Patch and Red Bank Patch both published Election Guides last week, listing the Municipal, County, Congressional,  U.S. Senate and Presidential candidates who will be on the general election ballot in November.

The Patch editors only made one error and one categorical omission.   They listed the 12th congressional district as including part of Monmouth County which it no longer does.  New Jersey’s congressional district lines were redrawn in January as a result of the 2010 U.S. Census.  Monmouth County is now divided between the 4th congressional district, represented by Congressman Chris Smith-R and the 6th congressional district, represented by Congressman Frank Pallone.  

The 2012-2021 New Jersey Congressional Map can be found here, courtesy of our friends at Save Jersey.

Patch neglected to report that most New Jersey communities will elect their Board of Education members in November, for the first time this year.

MMM salutes Patch for bringing elections to their readers attention and encourages them to continue to do so.  The error and omission were easy mistakes to make, as both changes are recent and information about them not easy to find if you’re not a regular reader of a publication that focuses on politics and government.

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Steinhorn: “I’m waiting for Gopal to step up”

Democratic Monmouth County Clerk candidate Michael Steinhorn told MMM that he has not heard from Vin Gopal, the new Democratic County Chairman, since Tuesday night’s convention.  “I’m waiting anxiously for my running mates and I to be summoned so that Mr. Gopal can show us how to win,” said the Rumson Democrat, “I hope he doesn’t wait until two months before election day and then say he really doesn’t have enough time.”

Steinhorn, along with Democratic Freeholder candidates Bill Shea and Kevin Lavan, openly supported Gopal’s opponent, Marlboro Council President Frank LaRocca for Democratic Chairman. “I wish my running mates had staid out of the race, but after they endorsed Frank I felt like I was between LaRocca and a hard place,” Steinhorn quipped,  “I didn’t want to split the ticket.  I felt to was important that the three of us stay united for fundraising and the campaign.”

When asked if he has spoken to the members of his county slate, Gopal declined to comment.

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Party Unity

Based upon the voting results of the two Monmouth County political conventions that occurred on Tuesday evening, it would appear that the Monmouth Democratic Organization is united and the Monmouth Republican Organization is divided.

Vin Gopal’s margin of victory in the Democratic Chairman’s race was 73%-27%.  John Bennett scored a 50.24%-49.75% victory in the Republican race.

Both parties had extraordinarily high turnouts with over 600 committee members voting.  For a county party that has had no electoral success in recent years, the record turnout for the Democrats was an impressive showing. 

But all is not rosy for the Democrats.  Among Gopal’s minority opponents are his 3 county level candidates, Michael Steinhorn running for County Clerk and Freeholder candidates Bill Shea and Kevin Lavan.  Gopal, Steinhorn, Shea and Lavan were all general election candidates last year.  Gopal was an Assembly candidate in the 11th district.  Steinhorn and Shea were county level candidates, and Lavan was an Assembly candidate in the 13th district.  The divide is reportedly over Gopal’s relative (they all lost) success.  He raised more money, got more press and came closer to winning than Steinhorn, Shea and Lavan did in 2011.

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Republicans could be in for a long summer

In Chris Christie:The Inside Story of His Rise to Power, authors Bob Ingle and Michael Symons describe U.S. Attorney Christie’s reluctance to use Solomon Dwek as informant during the Operation Bid Rig investigation in 2006.  “Do I really want to get in bed with this guy?” Christie is described as asking his deputies who were pushing for approval to make Dwek an informant. 

Ironically given how Democrats and defendants have argued that the July 2009 arrests based on Dwek’s sting were politically motivated to help Christie, the Deputy U.S. Attorneys advocating the sting argued to Christie that he would have been acting politically if he did not approve Dwek’s cooperation.

If this Star Ledger article by Matt Friedman is an indication of charades to come this summer, the Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee will make Joe Oxley’s confirmation hearing for his Superior Court Judgeship nomination a payback for the unceremonious end to former House Speaker, Senator and Commissioner of Community Affairs Joe Doria’s career when he his home was raided during the July 2009 federal operation. 

Doria has been cleared of any wrongdoing.  He has a letter from the U.S. Attorney, just like John Bennett does, but his career in public service is over.   Maybe Doria can become Chairman of the Hudson County Democrats some day.

U.S. Senate nominee Joe Kryillos is in the Democrats sites as well.  Dwek is the ammunition.

Democratic State Chairman John Wisniewski Tuesday issued a list of questions for Kyrillos, including how often he met with Dwek, what was discussed, who else was in attendance and whether he was ever contacted by law enforcement about it. “If you deny this and suggest Dwek is lying, does that raise the possibility with you that Dwek’s testimony that convicted others should be questioned?” Wisniewski wrote.

Kyrillos campaign spokesman Chapin Fay did not directly respond to Wisniewski, instead repeating that Kyrillos did nothing to help Dwek.

During the trial of Ridgefield Mayor Anthony Suarez it was revealed that among the diobalical schemes Dwek deployed in the 14 years leading to his 2006 arrest was a life insurance scam.  Dwek paid the life insurance premiums of people close to death who could not afford to keep their policies.  Upon the death of the insured, Dwek would give the deceased’s family 10% of the policy proceeds and pocket the rest.

Dwek’s father tried to get Soloman a pardon from President George W. Bush.  Maybe President Obama will pardon Dwek if he helps knock Chris Christie down a notch and helps keep Bob Menendez in the Senate.

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Happy Father’s Day

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