Use of Christie in Sandy ads cleared by feds

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Christie dancing with the star

Governor Chris Christie danced with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show last night and said that “hypothetically” he could beat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Presidential election.

The appearance made me feel nostalgic for the #Stonger Than The Storm ad campaign and Jay Leno.

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Stronger than the storm?

New Jersey’s economy should be booming with reconstruction. It isn’t.

There should be hundreds of construction workers in Highlands, Union Beach, Sea Bright and other Sandy impacted communities every day.  They are not working and don’t look to be anytime soon.

Short changed by insurance companies/the National Flood Insurance Plan. Arduous applications for aid followed by red tape, bureaucratic incompetence and rules that halt rebuilding.  Expensive and time consuming zoning approvals to rebuild what was there before.  Pleas for help are answered with finger pointing between bureaucrats at different levels of government who are getting paid for their bullshit and going home every night.

“GO, GO, GO, REBUILD, you’ll get reimbursed,” we were told after the storm. We trusted our government. They lied.

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Stronger Than The Storm: Sport Illustrated’s Swim Suit Edition Features The Jersey Shore

Sport’s Illustrated’s annual swim suit edition, usually shot in tropical island locations, features supermodel Hannah Davis enjoying the boardwalk at Seaside Heights and the beaches of Island Beach State Park and Cape May.

It is not known at this time if any federal Sandy Relief funds were used to recruit SI and Davis to the Jersey Shore, but Congressman Frank Pallone will probably call for an investigation.

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Pallone’s Lies to HUD, The Media, Continue To Unravel

Congressman Frank Pallone moving his lips, and fingers

On early Monday morning, 6:54, in the midst of the Bridgegate network and cable TV media feeding frenzy engulfing Governor Chris Christie, CNN reported an “Exclusive” story that  “federal officials” were investigating whether Christie had “improperly used” some of the Sandy Relief money used to produce the Stonger than the Storm tourism ad campaign.  The source of the “Exclusive” was Congressman Frank Pallone.

Within the hour, Pallone had widely released a statement to the media and posted it on his federally funded website, that contained the information reported “Exclusively” by CNN.

That should have been the media’s first clue that Pallone is not trustworthy.  He offered an exclusive to CNN, and then spread, the story, like a crack whore needing another fix.

But no, the media lapped up the story.  It led the 8 am hour of most network morning news shows, and dominated the the political news of the day as an “additional federal investigation” that Christie was facing.

The story was a lie. Not an exaggeration. A lie.

MMM was the first media outlet to fact check the story. We started doing so immediately upon reading it on CNN.

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Reckless Media Reports Federal Investigation Into Christie On Pallone’s Say So

Governor Chris Christie and HUD Sec Shaun Donovan announce Sandy Relief Grants in Highlands, April 29, 2013

More on this story here and here.

UPDATE:  Ian O’Connor of the HUD’s Inspector General’s Office responded to our inquiry regarding the audit into the #Stronger Than The Storm ad campaign.

We asked:

“Is this audit anything other than what would occur in the normal course of events regarding any HUD grant?

Congressman Frank Pallone thought it would be clever to inform the media that the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s audit into funds granted for Sandy Relief was an investigation into Governor Chris Christie and his appearance in last summer’s #Stronger Than The Storm ad campaign.

CNN and the left stream media either fell for it or went along this morning. 

MMM asked Ray Zaccaro, Pallone’s press contact in Washington for documentation that the audit is anything other than the normal course of business. Zaccaro said there was no documentation, just a phone call from someone at HUD responding to Pallone’s August letter on the matter saying, “yeah, we’ll look into it.”  Zaccaro said that HUD wouldn’t discuss investigations, “except with us, Members of Congress.”

MMM reached out to Brian  Sullivan in HUD’s press office for confirmation of a separate investigation.  Sullivan referred us to Marta Metelko in the HUD Inspector General’s office.  We received an auto reply from Ms. Metelko referring us to Mr. Ian O’Connor. We’ve yet to hear back from O’Connor.

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Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County this weekend, August 16-18, 2013

SPONSORED BY SEASTREAK

By Greg Kelly

Saturday, August 17

• West End Classic Car Cruise Night (Long Branch) – MORE INFO

• Spring Lake Summer Sidewalk Sale – MORE INFO

• Red Bank StreetLife – MORE INFO

• Dawn Patrol at Monmouth Park (Oceanport) – MORE INFO

• Navesink River Kayak Tour with NY/NJ Baykeeper (Locust) – MORE INFO

• You’re Good Man, Charlie Brown by Center Players (Freehold) – MORE INFO

• The Guess Who (Ocean Grove) – MORE INFO

• Monmouth County SPCA Yard Sale (Eatontown) – MORE INFO

• Manasquan Fine Art & Music Night – MORE INFO

• Grease by Garden State Players (Holmdel) – MORE INFO

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Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County this weekend, July 12-14, 2013 #STTS

SPONSORED BY SEASTREAK

By Greg Kelly

Sunday, July 14

• Shakespeare on the Lawn by BCC (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• The Diary of Anne Frank by Center Players (Freehold) – MORE INFO

• Rock Climbing (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• Asbury Fresh Local Artisan Market – MORE INFO

• Ocean Grove Choir Festival – MORE INFO

• Freedom Fest State Fair (Upper Freehold) – MORE INFO

• Shakespeare on the Lawn by BCC (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• The Music Man at Count Basie Theatre (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

• Manasquan Reservoir Boat Tours – MORE INFO

• Canoeing on Marlu Lake (Lincroft) – MORE INFO

• Bradley Beach Lobster Festival – MORE INFO

• Warmth at Grange Playhouse (Howell) – MORE INFO

• Dawn Patrol at Monmouth Park (Oceanport) – MORE INFO

• NY Yankees vs. Twins via Seastreak Ferry (Highlands) – MORE INFO

• Haskell Classic Car Show at Monmouth Park (Oceanport) – MORE INFO

• 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at Monmouth U (WLB) – MORE INFO

• Israel Film Fest (Asbury Park) – MORE INFO

• Diva on the Shore Dodgeball (Asbury Park) – MORE INFO

• Run-Swim-Run Competition (Avon) – MORE INFO

*     *     *

And Next Weekend . . .

Friday, July 19: Ocean Grove House & Garden Tour – MORE INFO

Saturday, July 20: Arts & Crafts Festival (Atlantic Highlands) – MORE INFO

Sunday, July21: Red Bank Food & Wine Walk – MORE INFO

Greg Kelly is a longtime Monmouth County journalist. He welcomes comments or questions at [email protected]

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ABC, Cops in Shops, Preventing Underage Drinking

As Revelers Return to Jersey Shore, Cops in Shops back for 17th Year

Division of Alcohol Beverage Control graphic

BELMAR – With the business of summer getting back to usual at  the Jersey Shore, the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control today joined with other  state, county and local officials to announce the summer kickoff of its  successful “Cops in Shops” enforcement initiative.

Under  the program, local police officers work undercover in participating retail  locations. Law enforcement officials either pose as store employees or are positioned  outside the establishment to apprehend adults who attempt to purchase alcohol  for underage drinkers. Cops in Shops is a program designed by the Century  Council, a national not-for-profit organization funded by distillers. The New  Jersey Cops in Shops program is recognized nationally as a successful program.

“Hurricane Sandy did some damage, but we are proud to be back here at the Shore,” said Division  of Alcoholic Beverage Control Director Michael Halfacre. “Given the incredible  progress this area has made in the last eight months, people are again flocking  to their favorite spots along the Jersey Shore. They’re back, which means we’re back.”

“Attitudes among some adults and young people about the dangers of  underage drinking can range from indifferent to dismissive, making our job that  much more challenging. But that’s a challenge we embrace at the ABC because we  are committed to preserving the physical and emotional health of the young people in New Jersey,”  he said.

This  summer, 28 Shore police departments are participating in the program, with approximately $61,000 in funding provided by the Division of Highway Traffic  Safety.

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Bobby Can’t Voo Doo Like Drew Do Voo Doo

Keyport Thursdays Kicks Off With 2000+ Visitors At Stronger Than The Storm Throwdown

With over 2000 Superstorm Sandy survivors cheering him on, Drew Araneo had the home field advantage in the Voo Doo Shrimp Throw Down against celebrity chef Bobby Flay as the Keyport Bayshore Business Cooperative kicked off their Keyport Thursdays promotion with a big assist from the State of New Jersey’s Stronger Than The Storm campaign.

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