Yet another losing Democratic county commissioner candidate was rewarded with a patronage job Thursday night when, in a 3-2 vote, Very Silent Glenn Mason was appointed as the county's Emergency Management Coordinator. He joins Silent Steve Schueler (Assistant County Counsel) and Rebecca Aaronson (MVC Agent) on the public dole. Read Art Gallagher's post here and the Asbury Park Press article here. Appointing a political crony to an Emergency Management post in a post-9/11 environment is like a platonic version of the Jim McGreevey - Golan Cipel fiasco. In a possible violation of the Open Public Meetings Act, Republican Freeholders Lillian Burry and Rob Clifton have been kept out of the loop and in the dark on appointments and other issues.
This is yet another example of the flip-flopping and hypocrisy that has been rampant in the less than 90 days that the Democrats have held the Board. In fact, at the same meeting we had the Democratic flip-flop on Amy "Hammerhead" Mallet's risky scheme to gut the County's open space tax. When they saw the public outcry, they backed off. Still, Michael Harmon, of the Board of Recreation Commissioners, discovered that fund moneys were proposed to be diverted from capital to operating expenses. According to Burry, "They changed their minds because it was a bad idea and because of the outcry against it."
Sheriff Kim Guadagno spoke about proposed layoffs of county employees and how it would affect her department's ability to serve the public, and was, in a Union County moment, actually gaveled down by Figurehead Director Barbara McMorrow for having the nerve to exceed the 5 minute limit on speaking. Reduced staffing at the County Jail will result in mushrooming overtime costs. It could also have other, more physical results. It really could.
Her predecessor as sheriff, County Chairman Joe Oxley, also blasted the Democrats, "The fact that you're about to hire Amy Mallet's running mate and still plan to lay off people from the Sheriff's Office is a disgrace".
The Sheriff also blasted County Commissioner John "Flippy" D'Amico (The Prime Minister) for interfering in the labor situation with her officers; Flippy was later blasted for the same thing by former Howell Mayor Joe DiBella, who dubbed Flippy, "Stone Cold" for his wooden, uncaring detachment at meetings. DiBella also pointed out that members of the public who exceeded the meeting room capacity were denied access to the Hall of Records itself, and forced to stand out in the cold. (That also sounds like Union County.)
Speaking of Flippy, and proving that the Inspector General issue isn't dead, the Board appointed by a party-line vote, former Freeholder Director Tom Powers, former Prosecutor and Judge "Hollywood Al" Lehrer and former state Chief Justice James Zazzali as the Ethics Review Committee, to determine that being bad is, well, bad. They will also advise the Board as to whether they should create and staff a new department of Inspector General.
This fiasco was just one meeting. These idiots have the whole rest of the year to screw things up royally. So, let's pack the house at every meeting. It's far from boring. That ZZZ isn't someone snoring, it could be the county's future bond rating.
November can't come soon enough!
6 comments:
Oxley is upset? Gimme a break...I just can't believe the bullshit coming out of the GOP camp...this is from Red Bank Green...
"It took a tiebreaker vote by the newly elected Wall Township mayor, a Republican, to hand the job of town attorney to Monmouth County GOP Chairman and former Sheriff Joseph Oxley last night, today's Asbury Park Press reports.
The appointment follows a $4,000 contribution to the successful campaigns of the two GOP township committee members who voted in favor of hiring Oxley, the Press says."
And, should we go on about Tobia, Carton, Czech, and all the other republican cronies that got hired? How about right here in Colts Neck where the former Mayor Thom " who cares what you think" Hennessy was appointed with absolutely no qualifications to a $62K recreation commissioner post that WAS part time, but made full time with a bump in pay just for him by the all republican committee.
What a bunch of whining hypocrites...
First about Oxley. The Press flat doesn't like him. Something about him pulling the Sheriff's Department advertising from their paper and going with the weeklies. So they whine. As to Wall Township, no tiebreaker vote in a township committee - the mayor is a voting committeeman who chairs the meetings. So it was a majority vote for Oxley. If this was a political vote, wasn't it equally political for the Democratic majority in Highlands to remove Oxley as borough attorney? But the Press didn't whine about that one and they won't if the Dems get back in power in Wall and oust Oxley. Enough on that, it's old news.
Tobia? He's turned out to be a very effective manager in anyone's book, to the extent that McMorrow and Flippy voted with the majority last year to extend Tobia's term to five years.
As to Curmudgeonly County Counsel Carton, this blog has been critical of him. Read it.
Czech has had many years experience working in North Jersey for Democratic towns in Hudson, Passaic and Essex counties before coming to Republican Middletown. I don't know his party affiliation; some have even said that he's actually a Democrat himself.
Oh, and about Czech. Flippy and Barbara voted to extend him to 5 years, too.
What a bunch of whining hypocrites...
Hypocrisy is appointing an outside person (Mason) to a job during a fiscal crisis when the county is talking about layoffs, when a subordinate already doing the job could be promoted, and the subordinate's old position eliminated.
Or, maybe there isn't really a fiscal crisis???
Tobia? Come on. Before he was mayor of Wall he was a councilman in Long branch with Palugi.
And I don't know whether the two even served together or if they even ran on the same slate. Being on the council with a crook doesn't make him a crook too.
Abe, they're actually dusting off Tom Powers? He's the last one to talk about ethics. His wife worked for the school district, he's got 1 son the Aberdeen police chief, 2 in the prosecutor's office and his daughters are all teachers, so we know he is in favor of nepotism. Not to mention the fact that he was freeholder in charge of public works when Palughi, O'Grady, Broadrick, Joey Buses and all the rest were doing their thing. Ethics? HA!
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