Wayne Bryant - The NJ Democrat Culture of Corruption Marches On

Former State Senator and power broker in South Jersey politics Wayne Bryant rested his defense in his corruption trial yesterday(From the Courierpostonline):

In closing arguments, the attorneys attacked the prosecution's case as an overzealous concoction, a blend of "innuendo, spin and interpretation," in the words of Bryant attorney Carl Poplar, emanating from what he called a "nasty investigation."

"They have accused, alleged and asserted," Poplar said of the prosecution team from the office of the U.S. attorney for New Jersey. "But they have not proven that a single crime was committed, much less that Wayne Bryant committed any."

The entire case apparently is about perception according to the defense. But across the river, there is another Democrat politician being prosecuted for corruption for the "perception" that he strong armed donors to maintain his shore house, give him gifts and prop up his lifestyle. For if you accept the "perception" defense, anything goes if you believe that you are "entitled" to receive taxpayer money for doing nothing.

Here are the facts of the case:

1. The Wayne Bryan strong armed the College of Medicine and Dentistry to give him a $35,000 a year job. In essence, he suggested that the Dean of the school Michael Gallagher that we would allowed him to pad his salary in return for the bribe of a job.
2. This would be a job he very rarely showed up for nor did he show any interest in the school when he was there.
3. He used his chairmanship of the Senator Budget committee to funnel in excess of 10 million dollars of taxpayer funds to the school during 2003 through 2006.
4. He engaged in a pension padding scheme to bolster his pension by having others do his legal work while he did nothing.

You can view the full indictment here.

The defense was simple. Everyone does it so it is okay.

---

Pelosi Orders Wall Street Probe - here is my list of witnesses.

From Politico:

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has ordered a broad, swift investigation of Wall Street and will demand testimony from Bush administration officials and captains of finance, congressional officials said

Let's help out with the witness list:

1. Franklin Raines
2. Jamie Gorelick
3. Chris Dodd
4. Barack Obama
5. Joe Biden
6. Andrew Coumo
7. William Jefferson Clinton
8. Hillary Clinton
9. John Kerry
10. Jim Johnson

And here is what you should ask. For all the former Democrat appointees from the Clinton administration, ask them why they lined their pockets while creating an environment that destroyed the mortgage industry in the United States by purposely breaking down the controls for mortgage lending to non-qualified buyers. And ask the politicians on this list what thhey received for the tens of thousands of donations they received from their corrupt friends.

After you are done with that, sure, go to Wall Street. But I suspect you won't have to or want to.

---

Federal Workers can make tax laws but won't pay!

From foxnews.com:

The Internal Revenue Service is trying to collect billions of dollars in late taxes from nearly half a million federal employees.

Documents obtained by WTOP radio through the Freedom of Information Act show the federal employees and retirees did not pay more than $3.5 billion in taxes owed last year.

Just like with Charlie Rangel and his lack of tax responsibility while reaching into others pockets, this is outrageous. But the article isn't finished:

The Executive Office of the President, which includes the White House, has 58 employees who did not pay more than $319,000. More than 1,000 Capitol Hill workers are on the list.

So 58 people in the White House don't bother to pay taxes. That's bad enough. But 1,000 people who work on the Hill? Are you kidding me? I wonder how many normal citizens are afforded the same courtesy. Frankly, the IRS should release exactly who these people work for and their role in the setting and execution of tax policy decisions.

---

Charlie Rangel and Fairness

From this morning's New York Post:

Rep. Charles Rangel, the powerful head of the congressional committee that writes the country's tax laws, blamed his ignorance - and not being able to understand Spanish - for failing to report $75,000 in rental income from his Caribbean holiday home.

So let me get this straight, the man in charge of the committee that sets tax policy in the House wants us to believe that he shouldn't be in trouble because he didn't know the rules. Funny. He wrote them.

But he also believes that he shouldn't be held accountable:

"I really don't believe that making mistakes means you have to give up your career."

That is funny. Isn't this the same man who wanted Trent Lott drawn and quartered for a comment praising a colleague at a party. Isn't he also the one who wanted his corrupt colleague in Louisiana to step down from his committee assignment for wrongdoing (maybe Charlie just wanted his seat).

Charie Rangel has been outspoken about taxing all of us from every angle while posing as a man of the people. However, he accepted 4 rent controlled apartments which should have gone to working families. He also didn't pay his taxes on his place in the Dominican Republic. Why? Because he thought he would get away with it.

One more question. If Charlie Rangel was a Republican, would he still be the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee today? I think we all know the answer to that.

---

NJ Democrats Culture of Corruption Continues

From this article in today's Trentonian:

Federal agents raided the law office of one of North Jersey's most powerful Democrats Thursday, part of their continuing investigation into the dealings of the political powerbroker, Joseph Ferriero, and party lawyer Dennis Oury.

The Record of Hackensack reported that 18 boxes of documents and computer hard drivers were seized.

The inquiry is said to focus on Government Grants Consulting, a consulting firm where the two men were partners. The now-defunct firm held contracts with local governments in North Jersey.

Another day, another Federal raid. The sad thing is that this will probably result in another Federal indictment and conviction. And the voters in New Jersey will continue to do nothing about it. And that is mainly because they will never have the opportunity to vote on candidates that will change anything.

Meanwhile, Assembly Republican leader Alex DeCroce questioned Gov. Jon Corzine's leadership on political corruption issues.

"If Jon Corzine is truly committed to cleaning up New Jersey, he could start by using his clout within the Democrat Party to stamp out the appearance of corruption within the party's leadership."

Neither Ferriero nor Oury have been charged with any crime.

As the head of Democratic politics in the state's most populous county, Ferriero has significant influence. Many officials owe their election to the party's financial backing.

His lawyer said Ferriero still planned on going to Denver for the convention.

Asked about Ferriero's role in Denver, Corzine defended the party boss' right to attend.

"I believe in Constitutional due process, and there is a fundamental issue of him being elected a delegate," Corzine said during a meeting with reporters Friday.

And there you go. Corzine himself is supporting another Democrat who is going down to corruption charges. Afterall, he is a superdelegate. Remember from the primaries what that is, a non-duly elected party boss designee. Corzine is wrong. He wasn't elected by the people at all, he was elected by party insiders. And he is corrupt and corrupts every politician to who he directs funds.

---

Poor Spending Drunk Governors

In this article in the Press of Atlantic City, the story of how poor Northeastern governors got together to discuss how the Federal government should bail them out on transportation.

High fuel prices, crumbling roads and bridges, and how to replace a rapidly vanishing industrial base aren't just New Jersey's problems.
Governors from this and four other Northeast states commiserated about the similar issues facing them and traded ideas for the future at a Monday morning forum in Atlantic City.

Every administration of every state has challenges. But it seems to be a unique perspective that governors in this part of the country accept no responsibility for anything except begging for money from the Federal government.

But as Rendell recounted another scheme that used tax-exempt bonds to encourage private investors to underwrite highways, Corzine said there are a whole series of strategies, adding, "Our challenge is politics."

Rendell said a federal government that drastically scaled back on infrastructure spending was also to blame.

He said at the end of the Eisenhower years, the government spent 11.5 percent of the federal domestic nonmilitary budget on roads, bridges and other improvements. He said that figure is now less than 2.5 percent, with the costs shifted to the states.

Rendell said Pennsylvania started a crash $1 billion program to fix its 411 worst bridges, but it would cost $140 billion to repair them all. Other states are in similar situations. "Its craziness to think the states will be able to handle that alone," he said.

These issues like many facing the states in the Northeast are typical of today's new politics. Since Rendell and Corzine both got into office by pandering to various special interest with freebies and program enhancements, they are part of a "spend the money and hope we find a way to pay for it" mentality. And they are so vested in these politics (yes Gov Corzine-you got it right), they cannot do what is right for the state's citizens without committing political suicide.

Case in point, Governor Corzine was sold to NJ as a brilliant businessman who would fix New Jersey's fiscal issues. What we actually got was a dopey rich guy into social engineering without a trace of fiscal self control. So when this year's budget came around he praised himself for making minor cuts while increasing the burden to most towns (thereby forcing them to look to increase property taxes yet again). He also pushed through a 4 billion dollars in new school borrowing for the very agency whose corruption with money like this in the past is legendary. So cry foul and then spend.

As long as Northeastern states continue to maintain a one party system (in many cases, there is no different between the Republicans and Democrats in these states), the working class will continue to work long hours to support state workers, teachers unions and giveaways that are administered by corrupt individuals looking to line their own pockets. And then they will move south.

---

Too Tired of Obama's Weakness being Hillary's Fault

In the election cycle, the Democrats kept attributing Barack Obama's failure to secure the deal on Hillary's cynical attacks on him. I am not nor have I ever been a Hillary fan outside of general respect for her and Bill's Presidency which I respect as I respect any President of the USA. But the creepy thing is that somehow, she gets brought up as a problem for Obama and his failure to get beyond black voters, elitists and the general uninformed. What cracks me up is that Obama is getting beat up by normal folks that don't seem to get his 'holier than thou' rhetoric.

John McCain had a good week. While Obama was on vacation, McCain (who I am still not sure I could ever vote for) acted presidential. And Obama tried to play politics and have it both ways. It is a shame we can't have Lincoln/Douglas style debates between these two. The Obama camp won't have it until it is too late. And McCain wants it until Obama tanks. Either way, the one on top doesn't want to take a chance. If Obama wants real change, he should debate everywhere. Debate in the street, the hills, the mountain top and the workplace. But he won't. Because I suspect he is more formidible as a myth than as a real person. Shame.

---

CAGW - Tell your representative you want energy independence!

From the Citizens Against Government Waster comes a great utility. Follow this link and tell your Senators and Congressman that you want action on oil and gas policy!

---

Off-topic: Local Response to 2nd Amendment Ruling

This isn't about taxes, but I thought I would share a letter that I sent to my Mayor and Assemblyman, John McKeon, today. It's in reference to his press release about the Supreme Court second amendment ruling.

Mayor / Assemblyman McKeon,

I read your press release this morning and would like to respond, as a double constituent of yours.

Briefly, I disagree with your position, and I think your press release is misleading and inappropriate. I expect the first, and am able to handle disagreements cordially even when my ideas are not those that rule, but I very much dislike political statements that try to hoodwink the public.

Specifically:

* The first line says that you "blasted a...ruling creating a blanket right to gun ownership."

This statement is false, because the Court specifically ruled that the right was created by the founders in the bill of rights; when you claim that they "created" a right, you have deliberately misinterpreted the ruling. The Court has not "created" anything. It has interpreted the Second Amendment. For you to disagree with their interpretation is one thing, but you have dissembled about what it means to have a ruling.

The statement is also, in another way, misleading. As Justice Scalia discussed in his written opinion, the right to gun ownership is limited. For you to use the term "blanket" must either mean that it is a right that covers all appropriate circumstances (as any right does), in which case your claim is redundant, or it means that it is a right that can't be constrained, which is false. Since the first usage is defensible but redundant, it sounds like you're trying to say that the right "created" by the court is unconstrained, which is misleading the public.

* Although "we can build guns today the killing capacity of which the Founding Fathers could not have imagined in their wildest dreams", the Founding Fathers knew about handguns (though ours today are better) and knew how to disassemble their muskets; they never imagined that the government they were building would have allowed local governments to break down and lock up their weapons, and, revolutionaries that they were, if a government had told them to do so they no doubt would have rebelled with those very same weapons.

* Your statement that "The Court has essentially given gang members the express right to stockpile guns in their homes under the guise of self-preservation" is particularly egregious. Gang members have no problem getting guns, and you have no right to break into their homes to find them without probable cause, so if the Court had ruled differently this would still be a problem. Moreover, as Justice Scalia pointed out, the ruling does nothing to prevent state and local governments from restricting the gun ownership of felons -- and someone who has not been convicted of a crime should not have his rights curtailed.

While I hope that you will reconsider your position on gun control, I think it unlikely and I respect your right to your beliefs. However, I firmly request that you stop using your position to spread misleading statements about the nation's highest Court's decision.

Regards,
Jake Freivald
West Orange

If your local politicians are responding to the ruling, now is the time to show your support or disapproval of their positions. They are all thinking about how to make this play out in the next election.

---

New Jersey - The Corruption State

Newsday today reports on New Jersey's corrupt political culture and the massive number of indictments and convictions of public offials in the past few years:

Since 2002, 128 public employees in New Jersey have been convicted on federal corruption charges. About a third of those were elected officials, including state lawmakers, mayors and town council members.

Those numbers back up New Jersey's reputation as a corruption hotbed, fueled by TV shows like "The Sopranos." Experts say the state's labyrinth of local boards, commissions and councils has created fiefdoms where fraud and abuse flourish.

This amounts to a lot of work the federal government to prosecute. What strikes me however is the complete lack of local and state prosecution of corruption. With the number of both local and state police jurisdictions around the state, it seems that if public corruption is being ignored that our entire justice system in NJ is only serving to provide traffic enforement and to protect citizens from the recidivist drug and criminal culture in our cities.

New Jersey's federal corruption arrests in 2007 included:

_ Six former mayors, including James, who was convicted of steering cut-rate city land to a one-time mistress.

_ Assemblymen Alfred Steele and Mims Hackett, Jr., charged with trading public influence for bribes. Steele pleaded guilty in October. Hackett has pleaded not guilty.

_ State Sen. Wayne Bryant, charged with steering millions to a medical school in exchange for a no-work job worth tens of thousands of dollars every year. He has pleaded not guilty.

_ Five Pleasantville school board members convicted of steering public contracts in return for bribes.

Of New Jersey's 150 public employees facing federal corruption charges since 2002, 49 held elected office, including 18 mayors, 15 councilmen and six state lawmakers. All but 20 defendants pending trial were convicted by plea or by jury. Two officials charged in 2005 died before they were tried, according to an AP analysis of U.S. attorney arrest announcements.

Federal. Always Federal.

Read the entire article here.

---

General Petraeus and the Senate - Maybe a cardboard cutout would be better

As I watched the Senate Armed services committee meeting with General David Petraeus testifying to the panel, I am struck by the lack of seriousness of some of the senators especially the chairman. As he attempted to get the General to give him a soundbyte that he was looking for, it was clear he wasn't going to give up. So he proceeded to testify to a conclusion that General Petraeus did not draw.

The entire process (possibly with the exception so far of Senator McCains respectful questions and actually listening to answers) suggest that maybe the panel should get a full sized cardboard cutout of Petraeus to testify. In that way, the panel can blather on to their hearts content and the General can get back to work in Iraq.

I see no difference here between the silly MLB seroid hearings and this hearing. And the sad thing is that if these non statesmen were doing their job, they wouldn't be sleeping when others are speaking (Martinez), they would listen not go fishing for headlines (Levin) and they would ask relevant questions and not testify themselves.

---

Dodd lives in glass house over mortgage meltdown!

Chris Dodd(D-Conn), protector of the poor, tough guy against big business, hater of all things Bush and a big reason why the Senate should have term limits. While Senator Dodd has been blaming everyone under sun the for the mortgage meltdown, perhaps he should look no further than his desk. From the Virginia Pilot on March 21, 2008:

In addition to having regulatory responsibilities, the seven members of the Fed's Board of Governors sit on the Federal Open Market Committee, which shapes the nation's monetary policy by influencing interest rates and using other tools.

In an Oct. 3 article, The Wall Street Journal quoted the banking committee's chairman, Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., as saying he had no plans to move the three nominations through the committee and to the Senate floor for confirmation. "The Fed nominations are not a high priority at this point," Dodd said. "We've got some legislative stuff to get out."

So apparently, Senator Dodd had more important things to do for the past several months than allow nominations to the Federal Reserve to be voted on by the Senate which would result in their being seated as this is not a political position. At least it wasn't until Dodd politicized it.

Speaking tonight on Philadephia's Big Talker 1210(WPHT) on Anthony Mazzarelli's(Dr Maz) evening show, fellow talk show host and financial analyst Steve Cordasco called Dodd "a snake". He was referring to Dodd's tendency to speak one thing in public and do another. He also hinted breaking this news on Glenn Beck tomorrow so if you are reading this, you may want to tune in to Glenn on CNN.

And what was Dodd's big plan for the Senate Banking Committee?

When the Senate's current session began two weeks ago, Dodd announced his 2008 priorities for the banking committee, including efforts to enhance economic prosperity and national security. His statement, however, made no mention of whether the committee would vote on the nominations to the Federal Reserve Board.

What a cruel joke.

Read the entire article here.

---

Economic Stimulus Welfare!

I just received a notice from the IRS regarding the economic stimulus plan. The good news is according to the IRS, I have to do nothing to receive my money aside from filing my tax return. The bad news is that very few people I know in New Jersey qualify. You see, they explain that if you are a "higher income" person (that is someone making 75k single or 150k married), you get phased out. Of course, that would include a State Trooper(You're out!)especially if you are married to a teacher (double out!).

However, if you made more than $3,000 dollars last year you get $300.00. Why did I get this from the IRS? It should have come from the Social Security Admin or State Welfare agency.

---

Now Obama's preacher is FOX News Fault?

Obama's campaign blog is now blaming FOX News for calling attention to his preacher's hateful rhetoric.

We appreciate Chris Wallace for doing his job as a tough but fair journalist on a network that has been deeply irresponsible over the last week in its unrelenting and sensationalistic coverage of Senator Obama.

Senator Obama gave the speech he did on Tuesday because he believes that Americans are ready for a thoughtful, mature discussion about race, and are hungry to move past media-generated controversies that distract from the struggles they face in their everyday lives.

If Fox News wants to play clips of the same offensive sound bites every day from now until November, that's their right, but that type of coverage does a disservice to their viewers and to a nation that is facing serious challenges that merit thoughtful and honest reporting.

Earlier on this blog we discussed Preacher Wright and his comments and Barack Obama's answer to them. We didn't comment on his speech which seemed to strike people as more "the beauty is in the eye of the beholder". While I didn't agree with throwing grandma under the bus or his comments (which I heard) on a Philadelphia sports radio station (what was he doing interviewing with Angelo anyway)about "typical white person", I though his speech was at least interesting and unique. It also discussed race in a way that not many politician are willing to even touch.

But to blame this entire episode on FOX? Are you kidding me? Barack Obama has largely gotten a free pass from the media since day one. And to now accuse FOX of a media created scandal is beyond the pale. Grow up Mr. Obama. I don't agree with Hillary but you are now getting a dose of the treatment that she and most others have been getting all along. And for the record, FOX has this story a long time ago and aired it. It was only AFTER the other networks caught up to the story that it grew legs.

Maybe FOX should ask you why you won't wear a flag lapel pin but when you give an important speech, you chose to fill the screen backdrop with American flags. I guess our national symbols only exist as a prop. But, you also would probably comment that this is a smear too (oh, wait, you did that already).

Bringing up valid questions on the things politicians think, the people who influence them and the actions they have taken when given the opportunity to make real decisions is part of the primary and general election process. Just as these questions are valid, so are Hillary's First Lady logs and your criticism of them. Stop crying foul and start fighting back.

---

Attention NJ Residents - Here's who to blame for your higher tax bill!

Democrats in the House and Senate this week voted to end most of the Bush tax cuts and let them expire in 2010. This will result in the largest tax increase in years which will be on the back on the next President. Even the USA Today which is far from a conservative newspaper stated the decision by Democrats as the following:

House Democrats would allow all of Bush's tax cuts to expire, effectively raising taxes by $683 billion from 2011 through 2013

Democrats continue to fail to recognize that taxation is taking money from productive people believing that government knows better how to spend your money. No elected politician is ENTITLED to your money in the United States. And we should all remember our local elected officials that voted for this massive tax increase. They are as follows:

Senate
Lautenberg
Menendez

House
Andrews, Robert E.; New Jersey, 1st
Pallone, Frank; New Jersey, 6th
Pascrell, Bill; New Jersey, 8th
Rothman, Steven R.; New Jersey, 9th
Payne, Donald M.; New Jersey, 10th
Holt, Rush D.; New Jersey, 12th
Sires, Albio; New Jersey, 13th

These members of the House and Senate have let down the people of New Jersey. When you consider the poor rate of return that New Jersey already gets on its tax dollars sent to Washington, you would wonder why our representatives are so anxious to increase our taxes. Interestingly enough, our loss of representation was not as severe in the House with the New Jersey delegation voting 7-6 for higher taxes.

President Bush's tax policies helped New Jersey. And as the federal tax bill went down, New Jersey's last two Governor's stepped in and took the money to feed their corrupt political machines. Now New Jersey residents face even higher federal taxes to match their worst in the US state taxes. And no-one seems to care...

---

National Security - Not from me

If you doubted my last post, read this one.

If it doesn't disturb you, you may have a problem.

---

House Blows Off National Security Responsibilities

The House of Representatives today decided to once again place politics in front of national security by taking no action on the FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act). While some Democrats insist this is no big deal, I wonder why the Senate thought it was a big enough deal to ensure they passed their version of the legislation before a recess was called. Given that the Senate is supposed to be the more deliberative body, I wonder why they were able to act when the House was not.

What's the big deal? In the wake of 9/11, the FISA law originally created in 1978 was altered to make it easier to work with today's tellecommunication companies and electronic exchange. This weekend, instead of the changes the Senate passed to improve these rules and modernize FISA, we will revert back to 1978. You do remember 1978. No internet. No cell phones. No data exchange.

Why you ask? Because the House is concerned with an immunity provision in the Senate version of the bill that protects telecom companies from lawsuits based on their work on behalf of the government. So instead of working out the disaagreements on the bill or passing a patch to at least continue under the status quo until they do, the House decided to turn the clock back to 1978.

What can you do? Let your representatives in congress know how you feel during their unearned recess. Here is a useful link courtesy of New Jersey Community Resource web site.

Tell them to get back to work and finish what they started.

---

Economic Stimulous Rebates - Not for NJ!

Once again a plan which on the surface rebates taxpayer money back with the objective of having you spend that money and help the economy. But wait, at the last minute an addition was made for anyone who makes over $3,000 in income-they get a $300 check. Of course, that isn't a rebate, it is welfare as you won't even pay tax at $3,000 income. But there's more(from this article on MSNBC):

The rebates would phase out gradually for individuals whose adjusted gross income exceeds $75,000 and for couples with incomes above $150,000. Contributions to IRA and 401(k) retirement accounts and health savings accounts would not count toward the income limit.

And at $174,000, the rebate phases out completely. Now, to someone is Omaha, these numbers probably seem high in terms of income eligibility. But we live in New
Jersey where $174,000 is less than what a policeman married to a teacher makes. Call this whatever you want but it isn't a tax rebate because it cuts out the people in this country who contribute most of the taxes (this group at $174k and above represent in excess of 40% of all tax receipts).

---

House Votes on Earmark Moratorium

The National Taxpayers' Union has sent out an alert that seemed a little confusing at first but makes sense when you parse it out.

There is a question on the table -- shall we reauthorize the Higher Education Act? -- that needs a "NO" vote.

Why? Because not reauthorizing the HEA would open the door to a full vote on H. Con. Res. 63 -- a vote that needs a "YES", because it would impose an immediate moratorium on earmarks.

Write those letters, people...

---

McCain Placing Increased Focus On the Economy - WSJ.com

McCain's not the most conservative guy in the world, but he may be dodging right: McCain Placing Increased Focus On the Economy - WSJ.com

At Boston's historic Faneuil Hall, Mr. McCain said he would "be coming out with more specific proposals," on the economy. "They will be based not on big government interventions and not on raising your taxes and not on increasing government," he said.

Mr. McCain's current economic plan centers around making permanent the Bush tax cuts and cutting corporate taxes and government spending. He has yet to make a specific housing-policy plan other than saying he supports President Bush.

Mr. McCain has portrayed himself on the campaign trail as a Reaganomics conservative, against government spending, taxes and regulation. But his record reflects Teddy Roosevelt's brand of government regulation, which serves the consumer to the benefit of no specific industry or company.

Let's see some more specifics, and let's hope.

---