Corzine must provide full accounting of funds secretly funneled through port

Senator Phil Haines, a member of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, called on Governor Jon Corzine to provide a full accounting of the monies routed through the South Jersey Port Corporation (SJPC).

“I was shocked when I learned that the South Jersey Port Corporation’s payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) to the City of Camden had quadrupled this year,” Haines stated. “New Jersey taxpayers already provide Camden $115.8 million in direct state aid, roughly $50 million from the distressed cities program and now $6 million more through a back door deal with the SJPC.

The governor has stated that New Jersey is broke. Where is this additional money coming from?”
The SJPC is a tax exempt agency, established in 1968 for the development of port facilities in the South Jersey Port District. Formerly administered by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the SJPC was placed under the Department of Treasury in 2007.

The State Treasurer or his designee is an ex officio member of the SJPC board.
“It defies common sense that the same Department of the Treasury helped Camden craft its budget, then turned around and filled the budget gap it helped create with a secret payment through the SJPC,” Haines continued. “It is appalling that at the same time the Corzine administration is sneaking money into Camden through a back door, it is cutting school aid, municipal aid, and state police patrols, increasing taxes and adding onerous COAH fees in almost every other area of New Jersey. Where is the accountability the governor promised us in his inaugural speech?”

Three vote to censure fellow public officials Action revolves around Manalapan legal matter

BY KATHY BARATTA Staff Writer

MANALAPAN — Township Committee members Anthony Gennaro and Susan Cohen were publicly censured by their fellow municipal officials during a meeting on Nov. 12. A resolution that passed by a 3-1 vote castigated Gennaro and Cohen for actions they took in a matter of civil litigation that Manalapan has brought against attorney Stuart Moskovitz in regard to actions Moskovitz took when he served as Manalapan's township attorney in 2005.
The case of Manalapan v. Moskovitz is continuing in state Superior Court. Although Manalapan is represented by legal counsel in the matter, Gennaro and Cohen — without notifying the counsel — submitted certifications to Judge Dennis O'Brien this past summer. O'Brien, who is presiding in the case, rejected the certifications. Cohen and Gennaro have said the township's legal counsel was not responsive to inquiries they had about the litigation.
Moskovitz later resubmitted both certifications as part of a brief he filed with the court. At the end of the Nov. 12 committee meeting, Committeeman Andrew Lucas proposed the resolution of censure against Cohen and Gennaro. The resolution was supported by Lucas, Mayor Michelle Roth and Committeeman Richard Klauber. Gennaro voted no. Cohen was not present at the meeting, having been released from a hospital that day following a 48-hour stay. Klauber said he was "very troubled" by the action taken by Gennaro and Cohen to submit material to the court without notifying any township official or professional.

"I expect more as a resident of this town and more of them as members of this governing body," he said. "Whatever your reason, you released confidential information. It was a breach of your ethical obligations, whatever your reasons."
Klauber said asking for Cohen and Gennaro to resign from office might be going too far, but said he felt the public censure was appropriate.

Roth observed that there had been a previous instance when Gennaro had chosen to disregard that a document disseminated to the governing body had been marked confidential and had nonetheless made information from the document public.
In defending that action, Gennaro said it was a matter regarding the township's budget and said he had only read aloud a particular excerpt and not the entire document.
Regarding Manalapan's ongoing litigation against Moskovitz, Gennaro said, "I never challenged the merits of the case, it was the mechanics of the case." Gennaro's reaction to the censure was, "You people do what you want." Cohen later said she had no regrets about submitting a document to the judge. She said she had sent the same information in the form of a letter to a judge who had previously been hearing the Manalapan v. Moskovitz case.

Cohen said it was her understanding that the first judge had only rejected her letter because she had not sent it by certified mail. She said she did not think there was anything wrong in resubmitting the information in the form of the certification she said she hand-delivered to O'Brien.
READ THE REST HERE

A Time to give back: Maybe we'll make it all year 'round?

The folks at Caffe-Amante have kicked off a campaign today where customers can direct what charity they'd like them to support. With a specific "PASSCODE" upon check-out in the memo field, Caffe-Amante of Manalapan, NJ, will donate 7% of that order to the customer's charity of choice. What's interesting is there's no deadline in sight.

Here's an excerpt from their blog:

Therefore - starting today, Nov. 18th to celebrate my birthday, until, sometime in 2009 maybe, Caffe-Amante will donate 7% of every order placed with the PASSCODE "FOR OTHERS" in the CHECKOUT memo field, to the charity of YOUR choice.

What we need from you:
The Name (and contact) of the Organization
Mailing address

We will email you a confirmation of how much we sent, and when we sent it so you can confirm that we're truthful to what we say!

Visit their blog HERE
You can also go right to their website HERE

They have Gourmet Coffee roasted to order - usually packaged and shipped within 24 hours.
They have a tantalizing line of gourmet teas, giftsets, and other accessories. Remember - 7% goes to the charity you decide!

Visit them for their Fundraising program opportunities tailored specifically for you. The program allows your organization to raise up to 50% profit.

Ruling to come on Obama birth case

By Sheila McLaughlin • smclaughlin@enquirer.com • October 30, 2008

A Warren County magistrate said he’ll decide tomorrow whether Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner has to get proof that Barack Obama was born in the United States.

David M. Neal, a Turtlecreek Township resident who runs a political Web site, filed suit last week, saying state and federal government leaders have failed to verify that Obama was born in Hawaii, instead of Kenya.

The U.S. Constitution requires presidents to be natural-born citizens who are at least 35 years old.

Neal says he’s part of a nationwide grass-roots movement that has questioned Obama’s birthplace and qualification to run for president.

Neal’s complaint asserts that Obama’s Internet site does not disclose the name of the hospital where Obama was born and that an original long version of the birth certificate should be made available before the election.

The controversy has lingered even though various fact-checking groups and journalists have concluded that the Hawaiian birth certificate appears to be authentic.

Neal contends that Obama should be removed from the Ohio ballot if Brunner can’t confirm that Obama was born in the United States.

Oct 31: FOX News Poll: McCain Closing Fast

By: Rick Pedraza

A FOX News poll released Thursday shows the race between presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama has tightened considerably, with Obama now leading McCain by just three points among likely voters, 47 percent to 44 percent.

Just last week, Obama held a 49 percent to 40 percent lead over his Republican rival, but changes in several swing states has narrowed the margin the Democratic junior senator from Illinois has over McCain.

Among likely voters who say they are independent, Obama has gone from a 9 point lead over McCain last week to just 5 percentage points.

"Independent voters have long been regarded as one of the keys to this race and these results may foreshadow a tightening in the battleground states where independents carry disproportionate weight," says Ernie Paicopolos, a principal of Opinion Dynamics Corporation.

In addition, among white Catholics, Obama has completely lost the 11-point edge he held over McCain last week to a split this week of 46 percent to 46 percent.

McCain also has considerably increased the support he receives from his own party over Obama. Fully 88 percent of Republicans now back McCain, up from 83 percent last week, while Obama’s 89 percent of support among Democrats is only slightly up from the 88 percent he was receiving last week.

Among his backers, 88 percent say they support Obama "strongly" and 12 percent "only somewhat." For McCain, 78 percent of his voters support him "strongly" and 22 percent "only somewhat."

Among those who have voted early, Obama leads 52 percent to 43 percent over McCain, and newly registered voters say they will come out for Obama by 54 percent to 38 percent.

Opinion Dynamics Corp. conducted the national poll from October 28 to October 29. The poll has a 3-point error margin. "

© 2008 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

Supremes asked to halt Tuesday's vote: Constitutional crisis feared over Obama's 'qualifications'

WorldnetDaily

The U.S. Supreme Court is being asked to help the nation avoid a constitutional crisis by halting Tuesday's election until Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama documents his eligibility to run for the top office in the nation.

Democratic attorney

Philip Berg had filed a lawsuit alleging Obama is ineligible to be president because of possible birth in Kenya, but as WND reported, a federal judge dismissed the complaint claiming Berg lacks standing to bring the action.

The 34-page memorandum that accompanied the court order from Judge R. Barclay Surrick concluded ordinary citizens can't sue to ensure that a presidential candidate actually meets the constitutional requirements of the office.

Instead, Surrick said Congress could determine "that citizens, voters, or party members should police

the Constitution's eligibility requirements for the Presidency," but that it would take new laws to grant individual citizens that ability.

"Until that time," Surrick says, "voters do not have standing to bring the sort of challenge that Plaintiff attempts to bring."

Berg has maintained that uncertainty about how the U.S. does enforce the requirements of presidency may result in a constitutional crisis should an ineligible candidate win the office.

In a statement today, Berg said he is applying to Justice David Souter for an "Immediate Injunction to Stay the Presidential Election of November 4, 2008."

"I am hopeful that the U.S. Supreme Court will grant the injunction pending a review of this case to avoid a constitutional crisis by insisting that Obama produce certified documentation that he is or is not a "natural born" citizen and if he cannot produce documentation that Obama be removed from the ballot for president," Berg said.

"We must legally prevent Obama, the unqualified candidate, from taking the office of the presidency of the United States," Berg said.

Get the book that started it all – Jerome Corsi's "The Obama Nation," personally autographed for only $4.95 – an amazing $23 discount!

The issue of Obama's eligibility first got traction among Internet bloggers and later was heightened when several campaigns were launched to determine whether a "certificate of live birth" posted on the Internet by the Obama campaign was valid.

The issue gained more attention when Berg told radio talk show icon Michael Savage he had an admission from Obama's grandmather that she was at his birth – in Kenya.

"This is a question of who has standing to stand up for our Constitution," Berg told Jeff Schreiber of America's Right blog. "If I don't have standing, if you don't have standing, if your neighbor doesn't have standing to ask whether or not the likely next president of the United States – the most powerful man in the entire world – is eligible to be in that office in the first place, then who does?"

As WND reported, Berg filed suit in U.S. District Court in August, alleging Obama is not a natural-born citizen and is thus ineligible to serve as president of the United States. Berg demanded that Obama provide documentation to the court to verify that the candidate was born in Hawaii, as Obama contends, and not in Kenya, as Berg believes.

---

If you would like to sound off on this issue, participate in today's WND Poll.

---

Related offers:

Get "The Audacity of Deceit," and learn about the looming hostile attack on Judeo-Christian values and freedoms Americans hold dear

Get Jerome Corsi's "The Obama Nation," autographed by the author, exclusively from WND's online store.

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Get the book that launched the "None of the Above" political movement – personally signed by the author. It comes with a free "None of the Above" magnetized bumper sticker.

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Proudly display the hottest campaign button in the nation – "None of the Above." Buy them in bulk at phenomenal prices.

---

Previous stories:

Democrat: Obama's grandma confirms Kenyan birth

Judge dismisses Obama birth certificate lawsuit

Obama 'admits' Kenyan birth?

DNC steps in to silence lawsuit over Obama birth certificate

Democrat sues Sen. Obama over 'fraudulent candidacy'

2 campaigns seek 'truth' about Obama's birth

Obama birth certificate: Real or phony baloney?

Blogger reveals Obama birth certificate

Is Obama's candidacy constitutional?

Limbaugh shows Obama stumbles without his notes

Obama denies Michelle made derogatory remark

Obama's VP team has link to Marc Rich

Did Hamas 'un-endorse' Obama?

Nation of Islam activists on Obama camp payroll

Obama's military claims inconsistent with records

Can Obama see dead people?

Obama commits Holocaust gaffe?

Obama misrepresented tie with Palestinian activist?

Report: Obama mentored by Communist Party figure

Obama raised funds for Islamic causes

Obama worked with terrorist

Obama campaign: Mum's the word!

Obama-Farrakhan link off-limits

NBC admits bias toward Obama

*Breaking* Michelle Obama Confirms Barack Is Indonesian -OBAMA is Constitutionally INELLIGIBLE

Accusing API of colluding with American internet bloggers in an effort to bring down her husband, Mrs Obama said she decided to call API because of what she termed, API’s help to spread rumours created by American bloggers and other racist media outlets in their efforts to damage a black man’s name, saying she hopes African Media was mature enough to be in the front to give unwavering support to her husband, a man Africans should identify themselves with.

When API told her that our online news media was only relaying what the American Bloggers and other media outlets had discovered through their investigations, Mrs Obama was angered and she came out loud with the following: “African press International is supposed to support Africans and African-American view,” and she went to state that, “it is strange that API has chosen to support the racists against my husband.

There is no shame in being adopted by a step father. All dirt has been thrown onto my husband’s face and yet he loves this country. My husband and I know that there is no law that will stop him from becoming the president, just because some American white racists are bringing up the issue of my husband’s adoption by His step father.

The important thing here is where my husband’s heart is at the moment. I can tell the American people that My husband loves this country and his adoption never changed his love for this country. He was born in Hawaii, yes, and that gives him all the right to be an American citizen even though he was adopted by a foreigner; says Michelle Obama on telefon to API.”

This is a very interesting turn of events. The American man Dr Corsi was recently reported to have been arrested in Kenya because there was fear that he might reveal information on Obama when he wanted to hold a press conference in Nairobi.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now wait a second...
If Obama was adopted by his Step father as was conjectured, he was a citizen of Indonesia, which did NOT recognize dual citizenship. This means that Obama upon return to the United States would be a NATURALIZED citizen, regardless of where he was Born. He is Constitutionally INELLIGIBLE to run for President of the United States!!!!
~~~~~~~~~~

Verification of the story:
We have found it necessary to publish a telephone number that can be used to reach us should anyone doubt the story. We are doing this because of many requests by many people who want to know more abouth the story.

We are able to receive calls tomorrow the 16th of October through to the 18th October. We find it important that our readers get the truth and not be misled in any way. This is a true story and we stand by everyone written.

NB: For verification, we can be reached on 004793299739

HEY.. DIDNT OBAMA SAY IT WAS BELOW $250,000 A YR? THEN IT WAS $200? NOW $150K?

Guess what people?? It's even much lower than $150K - Obama and Joey are lying thru their teeth. It's as low as $42,000 a year that'll see a tax increase.
~~~~~
IT ADDS UP TO TROUBLE: Joe Biden, campaigning yesterday, spelled out his ideas on who should benefit from a tax cut - appearing to break with Barack Obama, who has said he'll cut taxes on all who earn less than $200,000.
~~~~~~

By CARL CAMPANILE in Hershey, Pa., and BRENDAN SCOTT in NY

Gaffe-prone Joe Biden put his foot in his mouth again yesterday, mistakenly excluding millions of Americans from his running mate's tax-cut proposal.

The Delaware senator's latest blunder came while discussing Republican tax policies during a television interview in his hometown of Scranton, Pa.

EDITORIAL: Fair Warning

"What we're saying is, that $87 billion tax break doesn't need to go to people making an average of $1.4 million," Biden said.

"It should go to middle-class people, people who make $150,000 a year."

The empathy to understand what it's like to be poor, or African-American, or gay. And that's the criteria by which I'm going to...

Obama's redistribution Constitution

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By STEVEN G. CALABRESI

One of the great unappreciated stories of the past eight years is how thoroughly Senate Democrats thwarted efforts by President Bush to appoint judges to the lower federal courts.

Chad Crowe

Consider the most important lower federal court in the country: the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In his two terms as president, Ronald Reagan appointed eight judges, an average of one a year, to this court. They included Robert Bork, Antonin Scalia, Kenneth Starr, Larry Silberman, Stephen Williams, James Buckley, Douglas Ginsburg and David Sentelle. In his two terms, George W. Bush was able to name only four: John Roberts, Janice Rogers Brown, Thomas Griffith and Brett Kavanaugh.

Although two seats on this court are vacant, Bush nominee Peter Keisler has been denied even a committee vote for two years. If Barack Obama wins the presidency, he will almost certainly fill those two vacant seats, the seats of two older Clinton appointees who will retire, and most likely the seats of four older Reagan and George H.W. Bush appointees who may retire as well.

The net result is that the legal left will once again have a majority on the nation's most important regulatory court of appeals.

The balance will shift as well on almost all of the 12 other federal appeals courts. Nine of the 13 will probably swing to the left if Mr. Obama is elected (not counting the Ninth Circuit, which the left solidly controls today). Circuit majorities are likely at stake in this presidential election for the First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eleventh Circuit Courts of Appeal. That includes the federal appeals courts for New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia and virtually every other major center of finance in the country.

On the Supreme Court, six of the current nine justices will be 70 years old or older on January 20, 2009. There is a widespread expectation that the next president could make four appointments in just his first term, with maybe two more in a second term. Here too we are poised for heavy change.

These numbers ought to raise serious concern because of Mr. Obama's extreme left-wing views about the role of judges. He believes -- and he is quite open about this -- that judges ought to decide cases in light of the empathy they ought to feel for the little guy in any lawsuit.

Speaking in July 2007 at a conference of Planned Parenthood, he said: "[W]e need somebody who's got the heart, the empathy, to recognize what it's like to be a young teenage mom. The empathy to understand what it's like to be poor, or African-American, or gay, or disabled, or old. And that's the criteria by which I'm going to be selecting my judges."

On this view, plaintiffs should usually win against defendants in civil cases; criminals in cases against the police; consumers, employees and stockholders in suits brought against corporations; and citizens in suits brought against the government. Empathy, not justice, ought to be the mission of the federal courts, and the redistribution of wealth should be their mantra.

In a Sept. 6, 2001, interview with Chicago Public Radio station WBEZ-FM, Mr. Obama noted that the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Earl Warren "never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth and sort of more basic issues of political and economic justice in this society," and "to that extent as radical as I think people tried to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn't that radical."

He also noted that the Court "didn't break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution, at least as it has been interpreted." That is to say, he noted that the U.S. Constitution as written is only a guarantee of negative liberties from government -- and not an entitlement to a right to welfare or economic justice.

This raises the question of whether Mr. Obama can in good faith take the presidential oath to "preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution" as he must do if he is to take office. Does Mr. Obama support the Constitution as it is written, or does he support amendments to guarantee welfare? Is his provision of a "tax cut" to millions of Americans who currently pay no taxes merely a foreshadowing of constitutional rights to welfare, health care, Social Security, vacation time and the redistribution of wealth? Perhaps the candidate ought to be asked to answer these questions before the election rather than after.

Every new federal judge has been required by federal law to take an oath of office in which he swears that he will "administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich." Mr. Obama's emphasis on empathy in essence requires the appointment of judges committed in advance to violating this oath. To the traditional view of justice as a blindfolded person weighing legal claims fairly on a scale, he wants to tear the blindfold off, so the judge can rule for the party he empathizes with most.

The legal left wants Americans to imagine that the federal courts are very right-wing now, and that Mr. Obama will merely stem some great right-wing federal judicial tide. The reality is completely different. The federal courts hang in the balance, and it is the left which is poised to capture them.

A whole generation of Americans has come of age since the nation experienced the bad judicial appointments and foolish economic and regulatory policy of the Johnson and Carter administrations. If Mr. Obama wins we could possibly see any or all of the following: a federal constitutional right to welfare; a federal constitutional mandate of affirmative action wherever there are racial disparities, without regard to proof of discriminatory intent; a right for government-financed abortions through the third trimester of pregnancy; the abolition of capital punishment and the mass freeing of criminal defendants; ruinous shareholder suits against corporate officers and directors; and approval of huge punitive damage awards, like those imposed against tobacco companies, against many legitimate businesses such as those selling fattening food.

Nothing less than the very idea of liberty and the rule of law are at stake in this election. We should not let Mr. Obama replace justice with empathy in our nation's courtrooms.

Mr. Calabresi is a co-founder of the Federalist Society and a professor of law at Northwestern University.

OOps - another Anchor asks REAL questions: Biden Angered At Philly Anchors During Tough Interview-UPDATE: CBS 3 Philly Denies Reports on 'Banning'

First it was in Orlando, now a Philly station gets banned for asking Biden questions he didn't like

Remember Barbara West's interview with Joe Biden? Biden was upset enough to basically ban the Florida network from access to the Obama-Biden campaign. Here’s a link to the interview: http://www.wftv.com/video/17790025/index.html

Well, it happened again. This time, a Philadelphia station, CBS3, has been added to the list of news stations banned by the Obama-Biden campaign for this interview:

A second television station, CBS 3 Philadelphia, had the audacity to ask Joe Biden tough questions.
The reporter not only brought up Barack Obama's socialistic "spread the wealth around" philosophies, but Biden's ethical lapses involving his son, Hunter.

After the interview, well sort of interview, since Biden didn't answer all of the questions offered (just as with WFTV's Barbara West), the Obama-Biden campaign cut off CBS 3 from future interview opportunities.

This is frightening.

By Kerry Picket
***UPDATE: See Below The Fold

CBS 3 Philadelphia interviewed Senator Joe Biden last Thursday, and he was none too pleased with the line of questioning.

Co-anchors Chris May and Angela Russell asked about Barack Obama's "spreading the wealth" remark and about a Washington Times report concerning Biden campaign cash donations going to Biden family members for campaign services.

Like the most recent interview with Orlando's WFTV's Barbara West, Biden is visibly annoyed and blows off questions as nonsense.:

BIDEN: Whoa whoa, slow up here old buddy...you're getting this mixed up here with all due respect. This is apples and oranges.

RUSSELL: Obama talks about spreading the wealth around and everyone does better that way...is that not kind of being a socialist... That's what your accusers are saying here.

BIDEN: No, No, No

RUSSELL: And wouldn't they just pass that on to the consumer?

BIDEN: Absolutely not...absolutely not.

RUSSELL: Well please explain that.

BIDEN: Absolutely not.

Biden's response seems typical of him, when he is forced to deal with difficult questions. Trying to discredit the interviewer and making the question look silly, in fact, was a tactic the Clinton administration mastered.

Unfortunately, an Obama/Biden administration is more than likely to be no different.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***UPDATE: CBS 3 Philadelphia spokeswoman Shelley Hoffman has denied any reports to Eyeblast.tv that their station has been banned from the Obama/Biden campaign media list.

Kerry Picket is an associate producer with the Media Research Center's Eyeblast.tv

Political Punch: Sources Say Sarkozy Finds Obama's Iran Policy ‘Arrogant,’ ‘Utterly Immature’

Power, pop, and probings from ABC News Senior National Correspondent Jake Tapper

October 28, 2008 11:39 AM

The respected Israeli newspaper Ha'artez reports that according to a "senior Israeli government source, the reports reaching Israel indicate that Sarkozy views the Democratic candidate's stance on Iran as 'utterly immature' and comprised of 'formulations empty of all content.'"

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., met with Sarkozy in July and they are said to have discussed Iran at length.

French authorities are said to be concerned that the international community doesn't take the Iranian threat seriously enough. French intelligence has concluded that Iran has already obtained up to 40% of the enriched uranium it needs for a bomb, the newspaper reports, and will have obtained the rest next summer.

"According to the reports reaching Israel, Sarkozy told Obama at that meeting that if the new American president elected in November changed his country's policy toward Iran, that would be 'very problematic,'" Ha'aretz reports. "Until now, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany have tried to maintain a united front on Iran. But according to the senior Israeli source, Sarkozy fears that Obama might 'arrogantly' ignore the other members of this front and open a direct dialogue with Iran without preconditions."

The Obama campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

-- jpt

Pick up the phone and call the LA Times

Posted by: Erick Erickson

Tuesday, October 28, 2008 at 08:03AM CDT

What if the Los Angeles Times had video of John McCain toasting a known Islamic terrorist? What would the reaction be if the Los Angeles Times told everyone it had the tape, but refused the release the tape? And what if credible people who had seen the tape reported that other terrorists were in the room?

This is not a hypothetical. This is actually happening. Only it involves Barack Obama. And the Los Angeles Times has admitted it has the tape.

In 2003, Barack Obama lavished praise on Rashid Khalidi, a mouthpiece for Yasser Arafat. In the room were Weather Underground members Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn. It was all caught on video. The Los Angeles Times blandly described the tape some time ago, but I'm told there is more to it than that — the tape shows enough sympathy from Barack Obama toward the causes of an Islamic radical that the American public has a right to see the tape.

But the Los Angeles Times will not release the tape. Peter Wallsten, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times has seen the tape. He wrote about the tape.

Email Peter Wallsten. Tell him to release the tape.

Call the Los Angeles Times at (213) 237-5000. Tell the Times the American public has a right to see this for themselves.

Obama's Plan for Driver's Licenses for Illegals

Obama's Plan:
Mohamed Atta Gets His Driver's License

Did you know that Mohamed Atta, the 9/11 ring leader, had a valid Florida driver's license?

Did you know 13 of the 19 hijackers had obtained valid driver's licenses? Armed with these licenses, eight of the hijackers even registered to vote!

Here is the shocking fact: Obama strongly supports giving illegal aliens in America driver's licenses.

He said as much during two Democratic debates earlier this year.

The head of Homeland Security said such thinking was dangerous for national security.

Even Hillary Clinton backed away from Obama's radical driver's license plan.

Obama's position is not a new one: We discovered that Obama has been a major proponent of driver's licenses for illegals since his days as an Illinois state senator.

We have no doubt that, as president, Obama will also champion this radical plan.

With Osama bin Laden still at large, with al-Qaida promising "spectacular" attacks on the U.S homeland, with the threat of them using weapons of mass destruction against our cities — biological, chemical, and nuclear — can we risk putting such a man in the Oval Office?

Doesn't he remember what happened on 9/11? More than 3,000 Americans were murdered.

Doesn't he want to prevent that from ever happening again?

If he supports driver's licenses for illegals, the answer is clear.

Help Expose Obama's License Plan — Go Here Now

You Can Help Us — Donate Today by Going Here Now

. . . That's Because It IS Socialism

Posted by: Carol Platt Liebau


John McCain has likened Obama's economic policies to socialism.

He's right, especially about the supposed "tax cut for 95% of Americans." As the Wall Street Journal has pointed out, what that means is that approximately 63 million Americans who pay no tax would nevertheless get a check from the federal government.

That is, of course, "spreading the wealth around" -- and how.

Barack can act appalled that John McCain has called his policies socialist, but in all fairness, it's remarkable how enthusiastic the Communist Party of the USA is about his candidacy. Here's part of the CPUSA's newspaper's editoral about Obama's candidacy, titled "Eyes on the Prize":

A broad multiclass, multiracial movement is converging around Obama’s “Hope, change and unity” campaign because they see in it the thrilling opportunity to end 30 years of ultra-right rule and move our nation forward with a broadly progressive agenda.

The editorial also insists that, "The struggle to defeat the ultra-right and turn our country on a positive path will not end with Obama’s election. But that step will shift the ground for successful struggles going forward."

So if John McCain is so off-base about Barack's policies, what are America's Communists so excited about?

How to steal an election: About 200K Ohio voters have records discrepancies

Associated Press: By TERRY KINNEY – 16 hours ago

Brunner hides 200k registration forms
related article here

CINCINNATI (AP) — Close to one in every three newly registered Ohio voters will end up on court-ordered lists being sent to county election boards because they have some discrepancy in their records, an elections spokesman said Wednesday.

Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner estimated that an initial review found that about 200,000 newly registered voters reported information that did not match motor-vehicle or Social Security records, Brunner spokesman Kevin Kidder said. Some discrepancies could be as simple as a misspelling, while others could be more significant.

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati sided with the Ohio Republican Party on Tuesday and ordered Brunner to set up a system that provides those names to county elections boards. The GOP contends the information will help prevent fraud.

"Things already are in motion to comply," Kidder said. "We're working to establish these processes on how we can make this work. The computer work actually began last week."

About 666,000 Ohioans have registered to vote since January.

Brunner previously cross-checked new-voter registrations with databases run by the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicle and the Social Security Administration and made the results available online, but the 6th Circuit said the information was not accessible in a way that would help county election boards ferret out mismatches.

Brunner, a Democrat, told The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer on Wednesday that she is concerned the court decision is a veiled attempt at disenfranchising voters. Brunner said she'll urge counties not to force these people to use provisional ballots.

The court gave Brunner until Friday to get election boards the information but it was unclear whether that deadline would be met. The court set no penalty for missing the deadline.

County election officials were trying to determine Wednesday how they will respond once they get the information.

"I'm very concerned with these new requirements as we get closer to Election Day," said Steve Harsman, director of the Montgomery County Board of Elections in Dayton. He said his staff already is working 16 hours a day, seven days a week.

"It's clearly going to have an impact in regard to resources we have to expend to resolve discrepancies," said Jeff Hastings, chairman of the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections in Cleveland.

"We've had about 100,000 (registrations) since January and of those about 34,000 since the primary. We will do whatever is required of us."

Also Wednesday, the Ohio Republican Party said it has filed public records requests with all 88 counties for copies of forms submitted by newly registered voters, especially those who registered and cast an absentee ballot on the same day during a one-week window earlier this month.

Brunner has said that 13,141 Ohioans registered and voted immediately during the window.

"We've seen reports of fraudulent registrations, and we want to see those forms first-hand," said Jason Mauk, the state GOP's executive director.

Associated Press writers Jim Hannah in Dayton and M.R. Kropko in Cleveland contributed to this report.

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY TO REGISTER: Here's your Election Day Resources

...unless your associated with ACORN: they have a "special" way of doing things...

Information and resources
Division of Elections

Polling place Search

Voter Registration Forms, by County

Poll worker Application Form

Obama Sued Citibank Under CRA to Force it to Make Bad Loans - UPDATED

September 30, 2008 — iusbvision

UPDATE V: AUDIO - OBAMA SAID IN 2007 THAT GIVING SUB-PRIME LOANS TO PEOPLE WHO COULDN’T AFFORD THEM WAS A GOOD IDEA!!! Hotair.com comments HERE.

~~~~

It's here too at Mediacircus.com scroll down to see the NYPost article and CNSNews.

UPDATED: Obama Sued Citibank Under CRA to Force it to Make Bad Loans

~~~~

Do­ yo­u r­e­m­e­m­b­e­r­ ho­w we­ t­o­ld yo­u t­hat­ t­he­ De­m­o­cr­at­s and gr­o­ups asso­ci­at­e­d wi­t­h t­he­m­ le­ane­d o­n b­ank­s and e­ve­n sue­d t­o­ ge­t­ t­he­m­ t­o­ m­ak­e­ b­ad lo­ans unde­r­ t­he­ Co­m­m­uni­t­y R­e­i­nve­st­m­e­nt­ Act­ whi­ch was a fact­o­r­ i­n causi­ng t­he­ e­co­no­m­i­c cr­i­si­s (se­e­ HER­E a­n­d HER­E ) … well lo­o­k­ at what so­me fello­w blo­g­g­ers hav­e d­u­g­ u­p­ while researc­hin­g­ O­bama’s leg­al c­areer. Lo­o­k­s lik­e a typ­ic­al AC­O­RN­ lawsu­it to­ g­et ban­k­s to­ han­d­ o­u­t bad­ lo­an­s.

In­ these lawsu­its, AC­O­RN­ mak­es a bo­g­u­s c­laim o­f Red­lin­in­g­ (d­en­yin­g­ p­o­o­r p­eo­p­le lo­an­s bec­au­se o­f their ethn­ic­ heritag­e). They p­ro­test an­d­ g­et the lo­c­al med­ia to­ raise a big­ stin­k­. This stin­k­ mean­s that the ban­k­ fac­es tho­u­san­d­s o­f p­eo­p­le c­lo­sin­g­ their ac­c­o­u­n­ts an­d­ g­et lo­c­al p­o­litic­ian­s to­ lo­bby to­ sto­p­ the ban­k­ fro­m d­o­in­g­ so­me fu­tu­re bu­sin­ess, exp­an­sio­n­s an­d­ merg­ers. If the ban­k­ g­o­es to­ c­o­u­rt, they will win­, bu­t the d­amag­e is alread­y d­o­n­e bec­au­se who­ is g­o­in­g­ to­ lau­n­c­h a big­ c­amp­aig­n­ to­ g­et the ban­k­’s rep­u­tatio­n­ bac­k­?

It is imp­o­rtan­t to­ u­n­d­erstan­d­ the n­atu­re o­f these lawsu­its an­d­ what their p­u­rp­o­se is. AC­O­RN­ filed­ to­n­s o­f these lawsu­its an­d­ ALL o­f them alleg­e rac­ism.

Cas­e­ Name­
B­uy­cks-Rob­erson­ v­. Ci­t­i­b­an­k F­ed. Sav­. B­an­k F­ai­r Housi­n­g/L­en­di­n­g/I­n­suran­ce
Docket­ / Court­ 94 C 4094 ( N­.D. I­l­l­. ) F­H-I­L­-0011
St­at­e/T­erri­t­ory­ I­l­l­i­n­oi­s
C­as­e S­ummary
P­la­int­iffs filed­ t­heir cla­ss a­ct­io­n la­w­suit­ o­n July 6, 1994, a­lleg­ing­ t­ha­t­ Cit­iba­nk­ ha­d­ eng­a­g­ed­ in red­lining­ p­ra­ct­ices in t­he Chica­g­o­ m­et­ro­p­o­lit­a­n a­rea­ in vio­la­t­io­n o­f t­he Equa­l Cred­it­ O­p­p­o­rt­unit­y A­ct­ (ECO­A­), 15 U.S.C. 1691; t­he Fa­ir Ho­using­ A­ct­, 42 U.S.C. 3601-3619; t­he T­hirt­eent­h A­m­end­m­ent­ t­o­ t­he U.S. Co­nst­it­ut­io­n; a­nd­ 42 U.S.C. 1981, 1982. P­la­int­iffs a­lleg­ed­ t­ha­t­ t­he D­efend­a­nt­-ba­nk­ reject­ed­ lo­a­n a­p­p­lica­t­io­ns o­f m­ino­rit­y a­p­p­lica­nt­s w­hile a­p­p­ro­ving­ lo­a­n a­p­p­lica­t­io­ns filed­ by w­hit­e a­p­p­lica­nt­s w­it­h sim­ila­r fina­ncia­l cha­ra­ct­erist­ics a­nd­ cred­it­ hist­o­ries. P­la­int­iffs so­ug­ht­ injunct­ive relief, a­ct­ua­l d­a­m­a­g­es, a­nd­ p­unit­ive d­a­m­a­g­es.

U.S. D­ist­rict­ Co­urt­ Jud­g­e Ruben Ca­st­illo­ cert­ified­ t­he P­la­int­iffs’ suit­ a­s a­ cla­ss a­ct­io­n o­n June 30, 1995. Buyck­s-Ro­berso­n v. Cit­iba­nk­ Fed­. Sa­v. Ba­nk­, 162 F.R.D­. 322 (N.D­. Ill. 1995). A­lso­ o­n June 30, Jud­g­e Ca­st­illo­ g­ra­nt­ed­ P­la­int­iffs’ m­o­t­io­n t­o­ co­m­p­el d­isco­very o­f a­ sa­m­p­le o­f D­efend­a­nt­-ba­nk­’s lo­a­n a­p­p­lica­t­io­n files. Buyck­s-Ro­berso­n v. Cit­iba­nk­ Fed­. Sa­v. Ba­nk­, 162 F.R.D­. 338 (N.D­. Ill. 1995).

T­he p­a­rt­ies vo­lunt­a­rily d­ism­issed­ t­he ca­se o­n M­a­y 12, 1998, p­ursua­nt­ t­o­ a­ set­t­lem­ent­ a­g­reem­ent­.
P­la­int­iff’s La­w­yers A­lexis, Hila­ry I. (Illino­is)
FH-IL-0011-7500 | FH-IL-0011-7501 | FH-IL-0011-9000
Child­ers, M­icha­el A­llen (Illino­is)
FH-IL-0011-7500 | FH-IL-0011-7501 | FH-IL-0011-9000
Cla­yt­o­n, Fa­y (Illino­is)
FH-IL-0011-7500 | FH-IL-0011-7501 | FH-IL-0011-9000
Cum­m­ing­s, Jeffrey Irvine (Illino­is)
FH-IL-0011-7500 | FH-IL-0011-7501 | FH-IL-0011-9000
Lo­ve, Sa­ra­ No­rris (Virg­inia­)
FH-IL-0011-9000
M­iner, Jud­so­n Hirsch (Illino­is)
FH-IL-0011-7500 | FH-IL-0011-9000
Oba­m­­a­, Ba­r­a­ck H­. (Illinois­)
FH-I­L-0011-7500 | FH-I­L-0011-7501 | FH-I­L-0011-9000
Wi­ckert­, J­o­hn­ Hen­ry­ (I­lli­n­o­i­s)
FH-I­L-0011-9000

UPDAT­E­ : Hota­i­r.com­ com­m­en­ts­ on­ thi­s­ s­tory­ HER­E .

Ne­w­ Y­o­­r­k Po­­st A­r­ticle­ HER­E :

T­HE seed­s o­­f t­o­­d­a­y’s fina­ncia­l melt­d­o­­w­n lie in t­he Co­­mmunit­y R­einvest­ment­ A­ct­ - a­ la­w­ pa­ssed­ in 1977 a­nd­ ma­d­e r­isk­ier­ by unw­ise a­mend­ment­s a­nd­ r­eg­ula­t­o­­r­y r­uling­s in la­t­er­ d­eca­d­es.

CR­A­ w­a­s mea­nt­ t­o­­ enco­­ur­a­g­e ba­nk­s t­o­­ ma­k­e lo­­a­ns t­o­­ hig­h-r­isk­ bo­­r­r­o­­w­er­s, o­­ft­en mino­­r­it­ies living­ in unst­a­ble neig­hbo­­r­ho­­o­­d­s. T­ha­t­ ha­s pr­o­­vid­ed­ a­n o­­pening­ t­o­­ r­a­d­ica­l g­r­o­­ups lik­e A­CO­­R­N (t­he A­sso­­cia­t­io­­n o­­f Co­­mmunit­y O­­r­g­a­niz­a­t­io­­ns fo­­r­ R­efo­­r­m No­­w­) t­o­­ a­buse t­he la­w­ by fo­­r­cing­ ba­nk­s t­o­­ ma­k­e hund­r­ed­s o­­f millio­­ns o­­f d­o­­lla­r­s in “subpr­ime” lo­­a­ns t­o­­ o­­ft­en uncr­ed­it­w­o­­r­t­hy po­­o­­r­ a­nd­ mino­­r­it­y cust­o­­mer­s.

A­ny ba­nk­ t­ha­t­ w­a­nt­s t­o­­ expa­nd­ o­­r­ mer­g­e w­it­h a­no­­t­her­ ha­s t­o­­ sho­­w­ it­ ha­s co­­mplied­ w­it­h CR­A­ - a­nd­ a­ppr­o­­va­l ca­n be held­ up by co­­mpla­int­s filed­ by g­r­o­­ups lik­e A­CO­­R­N.

In fa­ct­, in­timidatio­n­ tactics, pu­b­lic ch­ar­ge­s o­f r­acism an­d th­r­e­ats to­ u­se­ CR­A to­ b­lo­ck­ b­u­sin­e­ss e­xpan­sio­n­ h­av­e­ e­n­ab­le­d ACO­R­N­ to­ e­xtr­act h­u­n­dr­e­ds o­f millio­n­s o­f do­llar­s in­ lo­an­s an­d co­n­tr­ib­u­tio­n­s fr­o­m Ame­r­ica’s fin­an­cial in­stitu­tio­n­s .

T­he Wo­o­ds F­und rep­o­rt­ m­a­kes i­t­ clea­r O­ba­m­a­ wa­s f­ully a­wa­re o­f­ t­he i­nt­i­m­i­da­t­i­o­n t­a­ct­i­cs used by A­CO­RN’s M­a­deli­ne T­a­lbo­t­t­ i­n her p­i­o­neeri­ng ef­f­o­rt­s t­o­ f­o­rce ba­nks t­o­ susp­end t­hei­r usua­l credi­t­ st­a­nda­rds. Y­et­ he suppor­t­ed T­al­b­ot­t­ in­ ever­y­ con­ceivab­l­e w­ay­. He t­r­ain­ed her­ per­son­al­ st­af­f­ an­d ot­her­ aspir­in­g­ ACOR­N­ l­eader­s, he con­sul­t­ed w­it­h her­ ext­en­sivel­y­, an­d he ar­r­an­g­ed a m­ajor­ b­oost­ in­ f­oun­dat­ion­ f­un­din­g­ f­or­ her­ ef­f­or­t­s.

An­d, as t­he l­eader­ of­ an­ot­her­ char­it­y­, t­he Chicag­o An­n­en­b­er­g­ Chal­l­en­g­e, Ob­am­a chan­n­el­ed mo­­re­ fun­­din­­g T­alb­ot­t­’s way­ - ost­e­n­­sib­ly­ for­ e­ducat­ion­­ pr­oje­ct­s b­ut­ sur­e­ly­ suppor­t­iv­e­ of ACOR­N­­’s ov­e­r­all e­ffor­t­s.

UP­DA­TE­ 2: Fox N­­e­w­s ge­t­s on­­ t­h­e­ st­ory­

U­PDATE­ 3: CNS­ Ne­ws­ A­na­ly­s­is­

Un­der­ t­h­e Clin­t­on­ a­dm­in­ist­r­a­t­ion­, f­eder­a­l r­egula­t­or­s bega­n­ usin­g t­h­e a­ct­ t­o com­ba­t­ “r­ed-lin­in­g,” a­ pr­a­ct­ice by­ wh­ich­ ba­n­ks loa­n­ed m­on­ey­ t­o som­e com­m­un­it­ies but­ n­ot­ t­o ot­h­er­s, ba­sed on­ econ­om­ic st­a­t­us. “N­o loa­n­ is exem­pt­, n­o ba­n­k is im­m­un­e,” wa­r­n­ed t­h­en­-A­t­t­or­n­ey­ Gen­er­a­l J­a­n­et­ R­en­o. “F­or­ t­h­ose wh­o t­h­um­b t­h­eir­ n­ose a­t­ us, I pr­om­ise v­igor­ous en­f­or­cem­en­t­.”

Th­e Clin­ton­-R­en­o th­r­ea­t of­ “vigor­ou­s en­f­or­cem­en­t” pu­sh­ed ba­n­k­s to m­a­k­e th­e n­ow in­f­a­m­ou­s loa­n­s th­a­t m­a­n­y bla­m­e f­or­ th­e cu­r­r­en­t m­eltdown­, R­ich­m­a­n­ sa­id. “Ba­n­k­s, in­ or­der­ to n­ot get in­ tr­ou­ble with­ th­e r­egu­la­tor­s, h­a­d to m­a­k­e loa­n­s to people wh­o sh­ou­ldn­’t h­a­ve been­ gettin­g m­or­tga­ge loa­n­s.”

T­his t­hreat­ c­o­m­bined­ wit­h t­he g­o­v­ernm­ent­ bac­k­ing­ o­f Fannie and­ Fred­d­ie set­ t­he st­ag­e fo­r t­he c­urrent­ unc­ert­aint­y­, bec­ause t­he “bank­s c­o­uld­ just­ sell t­he lo­ans o­ff t­o­ Fannie o­r Fred­d­ie,” who­ c­o­uld­ buy­ t­hem­ wit­h lit­t­le reg­ard­ fo­r neg­at­iv­e financ­ial o­ut­c­o­m­es, Ric­hm­an said­.

h­t­t­p://www.cnsnews.co­m­/public/co­nt­ent­/a­r­t­icle.a­spx?R­sr­cID­=36048

Ref­erenced / A­s­s­o­cia­ted News­ A­rticles­ (A­uto­m­a­tica­lly Genera­ted):

Go­vernm­ent­ Engi­neered­ M­o­rt­ga­ge Cri­si­s: No­ Ra­ci­sm­ Here, M­o­ve A­lo­ng.

U­P­D­ATE 4: Ob­am­­a Au­d­io say­ing­ it was a G­ood­ Id­ea to g­ive p­eop­l­e l­oans that cou­l­d­n’t afford­ them­­.

We­ to­ld yo­u b­e­fo­r­e­ ho­w O­b­am­a s­ue­d b­anks­ wi­th s­o­ calle­d “co­m­m­uni­ty o­r­gani­z­e­r­s­” to­ fo­r­ce­ the­ b­anks­ to­ gi­ve­ b­ad lo­ans­ to­ pe­o­ple­ who­ co­uldn’t affo­r­d the­m­. We­ll no­w we­ have­ the­ audi­o­ o­f O­b­am­a s­ayi­ng i­n 2007 that gi­vi­ng s­ub­-pr­i­m­e­ lo­ans­ to­ pe­o­ple­ who­ co­uldn’t affo­r­d the­m­ i­s­ a go­o­d i­de­a.

Obama: I Have More Executive Experience Than Palin (Because I managed my campaign)

Thank you Obama - you just proved our point that you also have bad judgement in admitting it. It's laughable to say you are more experienced becuse you managed your Presidential campaign - you just proved our point..
~~~~~~~~~

Barack Obama contends that he is more experienced in executive matters than Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin because he has managed his presidential campaign for the past 18 months.

Speaking on a cable news channel Monday night, the Democratic presidential nominee said he is better prepared to handle a disaster like Hurricane Gustav because of his pursuit of the White House.

“Well, my understanding is that Governor Palin’s town of Wasilla has, I think, 50 employees. We’ve got 2,500 in this campaign. I think their budget is maybe $12 million a year. You know, we have a budget of about three times that just for the month. So I think that our ability to manage large systems and to execute I think has been made clear over the last couple of years,” Obama said.

John McCain’s spokesman called the suggestion “laughable.”

“For Barack Obama to argue that he’s experienced enough to be president because he’s running for president is desperate circular logic and its laughable. It is a testament to Barack Obama’s inexperience and failing qualifications that he would stoop to passing off his candidacy as comparable to Governor Sarah Palin’s executive experience managing a budget of over $10 billion and more than 24,000 employees,” said spokesman Tucker Bounds.

Republican National Committee Victory 2008 Chairwoman Carly Fiorina also blasted the Democratic campaign.

“I am appalled by the Obama campaign’s attempts to belittle Governor Sarah Palin’s experience. The facts are that Sarah Palin has made more executive decisions as a mayor and governor than Barack Obama has made in his life,” Fiorina said, adding that the Obama camp’s attacks raise the question of sexism.

“Because of Hillary Clinton’s historic run for the presidency and the treatment she received, American women are more highly tuned than ever to recognize and decry sexism in all its forms. They will not tolerate sexist treatment of Governor Palin,” she said.

Manalapan Republicans calling for positive committee campaign

This was reported in today's APP and reported by Alesha Williams Boyd

MANALAPAN — The GOP candidates for Township Committee have challenged their Democratic opponents to limit campaign spending to $5,000 per candidate and limit the signs they post to 250 per campaign.

But the Democrats say they plan to follow state and municipal guidelines — not their opponents' — in a "clean and fact-driven campaign."

"In this economy, never has it been more important to use money efficiently and make the most of every dollar. We're prepared to show the residents of Manalapan that we can do more with less. That's what's needed on the Township Committee," said Republican Ryan D. Green, who is seeking a committee seat in the November election with running mate William Garcia.

The Republican candidates say they're also challenging their opponents not to accept contributions from special interest groups and political action committees and to run a "positive, issues-based campaign."

But the Democratic candidates, Mayor Michelle Roth and running mate Donald Holland, say they already initiated a meeting in August with their opponents to discuss debates and keeping the campaign clean.

"We are pleased to see that the Republicans have agreed with our request for a clean and fact-driven campaign for Township Committee, free of any mud slinging," Roth said. "We intend to make sure the voters are well informed before Election Day utilizing town-wide mailers, walking door-to-door and publicly debating our opponents."

Regarding limiting spending, Roth said she and Holland aren't planning to comply with Green and Garcia's demands, adding "one mailer with postage and printing is over $5,000." Roth said she spent roughly $17,000 on her last political campaign in 2005.

"As always, we will abide by the state regulations concerning campaign spending and contributions," Roth said.

But Green and Garcia said state regulations, which allow the contributions, don't go far enough.

"We need to limit the power of special interest groups in political campaigns in Manalapan, and campaign spending limits are the best way to accomplish that," Garcia said.

"We just wanted to keep the air clear right from the start," Green said. "We just don't want to see third parties having too much say in what happens in Manalapan."

Campaign signs became the focus of another conflict down party lines in December when the Township Committee's Democrats, including Roth, voted against adopting an ordinance that would limit the signs. Republican Committeeman Andrew Lucas then said the signs caused "sight pollution" in town, but Roth said she was concerned the ordinance could violate First Amendment rights.

Green said he wouldn't comment on Roth and Holland's decision not to meet their challenge, but that he and Garcia planned to comply with the limits they set for themselves.

"People are tired of seeing a sign at every turn come the fall political season. Limiting campaign signs is a responsible way to consider the residents of Manalapan," Green said.

Sarah Palin - Everything Corzine isn't

NJ GOP PRAISES McCAIN VP PICK

Trenton, NJ – New Jersey Republican State Chairman Tom Wilson issued the following statement regarding Senator John McCain’s announcement that he has selected Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be his running mate and to serve as his vice president:

“New Jersey is going to love Sarah Palin, She is everything that Jon Corzine isn’t. She is a straight talking fiscally conservative reformer who has fought corruption, attacked wasteful government and delivered real results. Like John McCain, she has a record of doing what’s right and working with those from both sides of the aisle to deliver change and shake up the status quo.

When it comes to change the McCain Palin team hasn’t just talked the talk they’ve walked the walk.”

Discussion of degrees may come in Sept. ... yeah right

BY REBECCA MORTON Staff Writer, News Transcript

Members of the audience were not pleased when Freehold Regional High School District Board of Education Attorney Lawrence S. Schwartz advised board members not to discuss the issue of Superintendent of Schools James Wasser's doctorate degree at the Aug. 25 meeting of the board in Englishtown.

Schwartz said Wasser had not been provided with legal notification, referred to as a Rice notice, that the situation involving his receipt of the advanced degree could be or would be discussed by the board.

The board's next meeting is scheduled for Sept. 22.

Although the board members did not discuss Wasser specifically, they voted unanimously to accept the recommendations of the state Department of Education's investigative report to adhere to tuition reimbursement procedures that stipulate a reimbursement payment should be made to an individual upon the completion of course work.

Patricia Horvath, Ron Lawson, Joan Leimbach, Diana Cappiello, Kathie Lavin, Christopher Placitella, Thomas Caiazza and Bunny Hammer voted on the matter concerning the tuition reimbursement.

Katie Goon, who is Marlboro's representative to the board, was not present at the meeting. She was out of the country.

The Department of Education's investigation was sparked by a citizen complaint after questions were raised about the validity of doctoral degrees obtained by Wasser, Assistant Superintendent Donna Evangelista and Frank J. Tanzini, a retired assistant superintendent.

Wasser, Evangelista and Tanzini each received a doctorate from Breyer State University, an online institution that until recently was operated from Alabama.

Each administrator was awarded a $2,500 pay increase by the board for receiving a doctorate and the district paid $8,700 in tuition to the university.

Breyer State, which was declared to be an apparent diploma mill by the Alabama Community College System Department of Postsecondary Education, was unable to have its operating license renewed in Alabama in July. The school is said to now operate out of Idaho, but an operator told Greater Media Newspapers there is no listing for the school in the state.

The Department of Education's report found no violations except in the matter of tuition being paid by the FRHSD directly to Breyer State instead of being reimbursed to the individuals after they had paid the costs associated with the online school.

While the board members accepted the report of examination, they did not discuss recommendations made in the report by the Department of Education into what ways they may wish to adjust the school district's existing policies and contracts, which currently do not require a degree from a federally recognized accredited institution.

Part of the issue surrounding the degrees awarded by Breyer State concerns the fact that while the online institution is accredited by a private organization, that accrediting organization is not recognized by the federal government.

There have been questions raised about the legitimacy of the organization that accredited Breyer State and one other institution.

Schwartz suggested that all discussions and considerations related to the Department of Education recommendations be heard at the board's Sept. 22 meeting.

When the board's attorney noted that a Rice notice had not been provided to the administrators in question, Placitella, an attorney who is Colts Neck's representative on the board, asked if it would be illegal to discuss the situation that evening without the notice having been provided.

Schwartz said it would be illegal and explained that a Rice notice must be provided to an employee three to four days in advance of the meeting at which the matter may be a potential subject of discussion.

Residents asked why Wasser was not provided with a Rice notice when it was evident that concerned citizens would want the topic addressed at the Aug. 25 meeting. The subject of the administrators' online degrees was initially discussed by members of the public at the board's July 28 meeting.

"We will be prepared as a law firm to come forward with all changes that we deem necessary for you to look at or possibly adopt," Schwartz told the board in regard to possible policy revisions.

In a statement she issued on Aug. 21, Goon asked Wasser, Evangelista and Tanzini to return the tuition money and pay increases or, in the case of Wasser and Evangelista, to resign from their positions in the FRHSD.

Evangelista is the assistant superintendent in charge of curriculum/instruction, according to the district's Internet Web site.

Wasser oversees the operation of the entire district, which has six high schools and just under 12,000 students enrolled. He has been the superintendent since late 1998.

Wasser was an FRHSD assistant superintendent at the time Daniel McGuire left the position of superintendent in early 1998. Wasser was immediately named the interim superintendent and subsequently appointed as superintendent several months later.

Schwartz said since Goon was absent from the Aug. 25 meeting, any discussions relating to this topic should be conducted when she is present.

Some board members appeared frustrated at not being able to discuss the possible policy changes that evening.

Leimbach, who is one of Howell's two representatives on the board, asked if the board members could at least discuss what they may want to see included the district's policies.

"Yes, but forgive me, I think we (the legal firm) should have an opportunity to tell you what we think should go into those policies," Schwartz responded.

Leimbach said all contracts should now be reviewed for other possible loopholes that are not yet known.

The floor was opened to public comment.

One woman sarcastically complimented the board on orchestrating the strategy of not issuing a Rice notice to Wasser, which prevented board members from commenting on the superintendent.

A

nother speaker, Edward Tobias, discussed

the issue of accreditation. He said receiving that status is voluntary and would not guarantee the type of education an individual would receive. Tobias said the individuals' longstanding records with the school district should be considered more than the accreditation of their degrees.

"While accreditation may be a good thing, we must realize it's not the only thing," he said.

Other residents said teachers work hard, especially in attaining their degrees, and expressed the general belief that the way in which the three administrators' received their advanced degree was wrong.

Applause filled the meeting room when one woman told Wasser that if he is going to be the district's superintendent, he has to deserve it.

Marlboro resident Barry Hochberg asked the board members if they would tolerate this type of situation in their own businesses. Requesting that board members ask for the tuition money and raises to be returned to the district, Hochberg encouraged members of public to reject future school budgets and to elect new representatives to the board if their expectations are not met.

If a gasoline tax a burden, how is a toll hike not a burden?

Gov. Corzine was on Fox 29’s "Good Day Philadelphia” yesterday said raising New Jersey's gas tax "ought to be a very, very last resort."

"I'm not anxious to move forward with a gas tax. I really think we've got to find another way," he said, according to the Star Ledger. "I think it's a bad idea right now to put more burdens on individuals."

We couldn’t agree more. But we have a question: If a gasoline tax a burden, how is a toll hike not a burden?

Now that the budget is done, the governor is turning his attention to what to do about transportation funding. The budget he just signed included no extra money to replenish the transportation trust fund.

Key lawmakers, including Sen. Ray Lesniak and Assemblyman John Wisniewski, have endorsed the idea of increasing the tax about 15 cents a gallon. New Jersey’s current gas tax is 14.5 cents per gallon, the third lowest gasoline tax in the nation, collecting 14.5 cents per gallon.

And then there’s monetization.

Corzine's last attempt was to call for an 800 percent increase to pay for transportation and debt relief. He’s said to still want both. He talks about how the funding is needed to avoid tragedies like the recent Minnesota bridge collapse.

"We've got to come up with a plan. It's not to going to be something that people are going to like because there's nothing but tough choices if we actually want to do anything," he said.

Now, why is it that whenever we hear politicians talk about tough choices, we immediately reach for our wallets?

We know that the governor believes he made tough choices in his last budget, which cut spending by $600 million.

But the state budget has doubled – doubled! in just 10 years. From 2000 to 2008, spending has increased by 6 percent a year. The state payroll has increased by 10,000 employees in the executive branch, and 13,000 in independent state agencies, from 2000 to 2006.

In 2001, lawmakers and then-Republican Gov. Donald T. DiFrancesco on their own increased pension payouts by 9 percent.

That 9 percent hike, by the way, was not negotiated by a contract. It was just given.

So yes, governor, tough choices have to be made. But we would humbly suggest that those tough choices should be made in Trenton, and that Trenton should start with their own. Government has grown by leaps and bounds since 2000, and New Jersey families have had to scramble to find a way to pay the ever-increasing tab.

So before you come to New Jerseyans for higher taxes or tolls or fees, take another look at what you spend. That’s where the tough choices have to be made.

With all due respect, we’ve already paid.

From our friends at inthelobby.net

Manalapan couple led cocaine ring

Federal authorities are alleging that this home at the corner of Taylors Mills and Tennent roads in Manalapan was the base of operations for an international cocaine ring that was smashed with a series of arrests on May 29.

Prosecutor estimates take from drug sales at $1 million per week.
Article by Kathy Baratta, News Transcript

The investigation of an international narcotics distribution and money-laundering network based in Manalapan has resulted in multiple arrests, including two Manalapan residents.

The joint county and federal investigation, dubbed Operation Unbounded, alleges the ring was generating $1 million per week, authorities said.

Flanked by local and federal law enforcement officials at a June 2 press conference in Freehold Borough, Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis Valentin announced that a joint effort that began in spring 2007 ago netted the arrest of seven individuals so far. Officials said the investigation is continuing.

Two of the individuals arrested, Chantal Esteves, 30, who is currently in the Monmouth County jail, Freehold Township, with bail set at $5 million, and her husband, Vicente Esteves, 35, who is jailed on $10 million bail, live in a home at 162 Taylors Mills Road that Valentin described as being "something like out of

Scarface.' "

"Scarface" is a film starring Al Pacino playing the role of a drug lord.

The Esteveses' large home is at the corner of Taylors Mills and Tennent roads. The property is surrounded by trees that help shield the home from view.

Chantal and Vicente Esteves were charged with operating a major cocainedistribution network and money-laundering operation that spanned several countries.

Valentin said Vicente Esteves was the recognized head of the organization and said Chantal Esteves ran the organization when her husband was out of the country.

If convicted, those arrested face 10 years in prison for conspiracy and 10 years for money laundering, according to officials.

According to Valentin, the couple had set up a "business front" to launder the money generated by the sale of the drugs. He would not elaborate on the operations of what he referred to as the "shell business" except to characterize it as a "company used to transfer real property."

According to Gerald McAleer, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration special agent in charge of the investigation who was present at the press conference, "This was a major ring. Dismantlement of such an organization is a DEA goal so no one else can step right in.

"We used every tool in our tool box," he said, noting that drugs associated with the ring were seized throughout the state.

Officials estimated that the drug ring was bringing in profits that amounted to $1 million per week.

Valentin said when the Esteves home was raided by law enforcement officers on May 29, an unspecified amount of cash was seized, along with about $1 million worth of jewelry. The confiscated jewelry included 100 Rolex watches.

"I'm not sure that Donald Trump has 100 Rolex watches," the prosecutor said.

Valentin said Chantal Esteves had a walk-in closet so full of designer shoes that boxes were marked with photographs to show each pair.

According to Valentin, in the course of the arrests of all the individuals, more than 150 pounds of cocaine was seized, along with $2 million in United States currency. The prosecutor would not specify the amount of cash that was seized at the Esteves home.

Valentin said that at the peak of the organization's operation, the ring was distributing more than 1,000 kilograms (2,000 pounds) of cocaine per month.

Valentin said the estimated street value of the cocaine seized by law enforcement authorities exceeds $2 million. He said major airports were used to bring the drugs in from countries such as Mexico and Colombia.

When asked if airline employees were involved in the activities, Valentin said he would not comment.

He also would not comment on the whereabouts of the Esteveses' two minor children, except to say that as far as he knew, they are with relatives.

A seizure order has been filed on the Esteves residence and an individual from the prosecutor's office was seen affixing a notice to the front door of the TaylorMills Road residence in the hour preceding the June 2 press conference.

Others charged in connection with the drug ring are Alfurquan Barringer, 34, of South River; Mark Edwards, 39, of Metuchen; Hector Rodriguez, 40, of Perth Amboy; Michael Lopez, 35, of Perth Amboy; and Cesar Robert Cabrera- Cepeda, 39, of Old Bridge. They were all charged with conspiracy to distribute a controlled dangerous substance.

Edwards, both Esteveses, Lopez and Rodriguez were also charged with first-degree financial facilitation of criminal activity, which Valentin explained is commonly referred to as money laundering.

Manalapan: GOP PRIMARY JUNE 3 - ***VOTE COLUMN 1***

Candidates vie for GOP nomination

Manalapan Republican County Committee
has nominated Ryan Green and William Garcia

...there's a reason why...

****** ON JUNE 3rd - VOTE COLUMN 1 ******

From left to right: Kalman, Steven, Ryan, William

BY KATHY BARATTA Staff Writer

Four residents are continuing their campaign to secure the Manalapan Republican Party nomination in the June 3 primary and earn a place on the November general election ballot.

Two three-year terms on the Manalapan Township Committee will be up for grabs in the November general election.

The Manalapan Republican County Committee has nominated Ryan Green andWilliam Garcia to run for seats on the committee. They are being challenged in the primary by Kalman Budai and Steven Johnson.

The Manalapan Democratic County Committee has nominated Township Committeewoman Michelle Roth, who is serving as Manalapan's mayor this year, and Donald Holland to run for seats on the committee. Roth and Holland are unchallenged in the primary.

Individuals who are eligible to vote in the June 3 Republican primary are those people who are already registered as a Republican, or any unaffiliated individual who shows up at the polls on Election Day and registers as a Republican, according to Municipal Clerk Rose Ann Weeden.

Weeden said that after the primary election, people who switched from unaffiliated to Republican in order to vote in the primary may reregister as unaffiliated.

Polls will be open between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. June 3 at the municipality's regular polling places.

Green, 28, is a 20-year resident of Manalapan. He is a school social worker with the Perth Amboy School District in Middlesex County. Green is a member of the Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District Board of Education. If he wins the June 3 primary and is eventually elected to the Township Committee in November, he will have to resign from the school board.

Garcia, 42, is a project manager for a major financial institution in New York City. He has lived in Manalapan for two years.

Budai, 50, has been a resident of Manalapan for 12 years. He is the owner of a ceramic tile company. Prior to that he was a dispatcher for the Suburban Transit Bus Company.

Johnson, 54, is employed in the office automation business, He has been a Manalapan resident for 11 years. He said that in the past he has been responsible for managing a staff of 50 people and a business operating budget of $30 million.

•••

Budai and Johnson, who sought the Republican County Committee nomination but did not receive it, said they decided to mount a primary challenge and run for the Township Committee because Green and Garcia are, in their words, candidates "in name only." They said neither man was a registered Republican until February.

Green and Garcia responded to that broadside.

According to Green, who grew up in Manalapan and was re-elected to a second term on the school board in April, he had always kept his political registration as unaffiliated because he felt doing so would "leave the politics out of the school board, where I don't believe they belong."

However, Green said he has always been a Republican "philosophically" - a term Garcia also embraced when told that was how Green had put it - and has always voted Republican.

Speaking about his voting record on the school board, Green said, "I think my voting record as a fiscal conservative while on the board speaks to my Republican mind-set."

Garcia said when he moved to Manalapan from Queens, N.Y., in 2006, he registered as a Republican when he registered his motor vehicles and took care of other tasks. At least, he said he thought he had done so. He said it was not until he was looking into voting in the upcoming presidential election that he found out his voting registration had not been properly filed and he was listed in his voter affiliation as unaffiliated.

Garcia said he has been a registered Republican since he was 18. He said he explained all this to the selection committee at the time of his interview "and they were OK with it once it was explained."

•••

All four men who are running for a seat on the public body that governs Manalapan were asked to name something they like about the community.

Garcia said it was the "good schools and spaciousness" that hooked him when he was looking for a New Jersey community to move his family into; that and the fact his wife had family in the area made it a marriage of suburban ideals and commuter convenience, given Manalapan's proximity to Wall Street via public transportation.

Green said that given the fact that he grew up in Manalapan, he thought it would be almost impossible to instantly come up with a particular observation. Then he recounted something that happened in the past few weeks that reminded him how much he loves living in Manalapan and is looking forward to raising a family here.

He said shortly after moving into the home in the Yorktowne development where he now resides, there was a knock on the door. Green, who will be married in June, said he almost could not believe it, but "it was a neighbor from the block with an apple pie who just wanted to say 'welcome to the neighborhood.' It's people like that who remind you what a great place Manalapan is to live."

Johnson also mentioned the people who make up the community, but said there are other things he likes aboutManalapan.

"I like that we have Monmouth Battlefield State Park. I like that we have a fourtime championship cheerleading squad and I like that we have the western branch of theMonmouth County Library."

Budai, who has been a member of several committees and boards, including the Manalapan Recreation Advisory Board, said some of the highlights of Manalapan are manifested in its recreation center and programs.

"Manalapan's ball fields are state-ofthe art and the best in the county, if not the state," he said, while also alluding to what he called the spirit of the community and its residents, particularly those who volunteer for municipal boards and committees.

"We have the best volunteers and our police department is second to none. It's just the spirit of the community; it's everybody from the youngsters to the seniors," Budai said.

•••

Budai said he believes his experience as a business owner would serve him well as an elected official. He said his previous employment with Suburban Transit would give him an understanding of issues facing commuters and transportation companies.

Speaking about municipal finances, Budai said he would examine each municipal department to look at the staffing levels and the efficiency of the department with an eye on trimming costs.

Johnson said he would concentrate on finalizing plans for The Village at Manalapan, a 500,000-square-foot retail-commercial complex planned for the intersection of Millhurst Road and Route 33. The project received preliminary approval from the Planning Board more than a year ago but has never gotten off the ground for a variety of reasons.

"We should be concentrating on getting these ratables instead of spending a million bucks on a sports field," Johnson said, alluding to the construction of an $800,000 artificial turf playing field of which he has been critical.

Garcia said his professional expertise would serve him well in reviewing a municipal budget "to see where our money is being spent and how we could make operations more efficient."

However, said Garcia, "I would never advocate cuts that would adversely affect our safety and services."

He said he would focus attention on the types of service contracts the township has on all of its equipment in an effort to see if there can be consolidation and savings.

"It is the little things that add up," he said.

•••

All four candidates were asked why they should be the person Republicans choose on June 3 to run for a seat on the Township Committee in November.

"First and foremost, I am a husband and a father involved in community activities. I am one of my neighbors. I am not a politician," Garcia said. "Bill Garcia was born a Republican and a fiscal conservative. My blood is Republican and I want smaller government."

Green said his experience on the Manalapan Englishtown school board gives him a leg up because of that unique perspective and because the school district has been working with Manalapan to develop a shared services agreement. Green said he has been involved with the development of that agreement.

"I have the right experience at the right time," he said, adding that one area he would examine as a member of the Township Committee would be the administration salaries for Manalapan's summer recreation program, which he said have been increased for 2008.

Speaking about himself and Budai, Johnson said, "We are experienced, hardworking people dedicated to the town. That is who should be running in the general election."

Budai said if he is elected to the Township Committee, he will not take municipal health benefits. He estimated that decision would save taxpayers between $15,000 and $17,000 per year.

Johnson also decried taxpayers paying for health benefits for the members of the governing body. He said Township Committee members should get their health insurance through their place of employment and not expect the taxpayers to pay for health benefits for what is basically a part-time job.
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Remember - vote for the True Republicans -
the ones selected by the nominating committee.
************ VOTE COLUMN 1 ********************