Monday, July 16, 2007

CORRUPTION CONVERSATION

The latest corrupt politician to fall before U. S. Attorney Chris Christie's federal forces is State Sen. Sharpe James (D - Essex), the thuggish former Newark mayor who believed that the long - suffering Newark taxpayer owed him a lavish living. James apparently believed it was OK to charge such things as movies and trips on a city credit card.
Christie has rooted out corrupt politicians of all political stripes including such Republicans as former Essex County Executive Jim Treffinger and former Paterson Mayor Martin Barnes. Operation Bid - Rig caught both Republicans and Democrats here in Monmouth County.
Still, some Democrats have accused Christie of partisanship, notably when Sen. Wayne Bryant (D-Camden) went down.

This leads to the question: Who will take over the U. S. Attorney post when Christie leaves? That's right, Christie won't be there forever. The U. S. Attorneys are political appointments; the Administration in Washington gets to choose who gets the job. Christie was a Bush / Ashcroft appointment. Would a Fred Thompson, Rudy Giuliani or Mitt Romney administration reappoint Christie? Or if he's not interested would they appoint someone like him?

How about the Democrats? What sort of individual would they choose? Judging by some of the appointments made by former Gov. Jim McGreevey and the Bozo-coiffed Gov. Jon Corzine, we have reason to be apprehensive. McGreevey appointed Peter Harvey as Attorney General and Roberto Rivera - Soto to the State Supreme Court. And Corzine selected serial scofflaw Zulima Farber as AG, even after being warned that she was a foul ball. Farber had to quit after trying to fix a parking ticket for her boyfriend, fellow serial scofflaw Hamlet Goore, whose name sounds like a nursery rhyme character. If elected president, would Hillary Rodham Clinton appoint Harvey or Rivera - Soto as U. S. Attorney? Would Barak Hussein Obama choose Farber or even Goore?
These are some points to ponder as we approach the 2008 presidential election.

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