Want access to post press releases? To sign up, use this form. You must be logged in.
BURLCO GOP CHAIR QUESTIONS BROWN OVER DISMISSAL OF SOLICITOR
By Jeff BellBurlington County Republican Chairman Bill Layton today demanded an explanation from Evesham Councilman Chris Brown for the “sudden replacement of the municipal solicitor literally days after the attorney suggested in a newspaper article that Brown may have violated the Township’s pay to place ordinance by accepting contributions from firms who Brown later voted to award municipal contracts.”
“The timing of the replacement of attorney William Ruggierio smacks of political retribution for the attorney’s published remarks that the campaign contributions be investigated to determine their legality,” Layton said. “It’s highly suspicious at best and bare knuckled political revenge at worst.”
“Did Brown insist Ruggierio be replaced following the newspaper article?” Layton asked. “Did he pressure Ruggierio out of office? What reasons were cited to Ruggierio for his dismissal? Did the awarding of a contract for a new solicitor take place at a public meeting? What was the explanation for the action?”
“Brown’s role in this entire episode demands a full airing to allow the public and the taxpayers to decide whether Brown acted in their interests or in his,” Layton said.
Layton said that in an Aug. 5 Philadelphia Inquirer article, Ruggierio recommended that the township investigate certain campaign contributions that appeared to be violations.
“A key point made by Ruggierio was that an investigation should be launched into contributions made by a political action committee despite being made prior to the effective date of the pay to play ordinance,” Layton said.
“Ruggierio’s questions and concerns go directly to the heart of Chris Brown’s argument that the contributions he accepted were legitimate because they were made prior to the ordinance becoming effective,” Layton said.
“Brown’s further contention that the pay to play ordinance does not apply to his Freeholder campaign fails every reasonable test,” Layton said. “He voted to award public contracts to firms which then gave money to him for his county campaign. That is the very essence of pay to play and no amount of tortured semantics by Brown can alter that basic fact.”
“Chris Brown takes campaign contributions; the township attorney suggests publicly they may have been given illegally and recommends an investigation; a few days later the lawyer is out of a job,” Layton said. “How hard is it to connect those dots?”
Contributors
Wally Edge
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a watchdog group that promotes ethics and accountability, has filed a complaint with the ... >
Bob Torricelli
There's nothing more difficult to see than the history before your eyes. It sometimes takes generations to understand the significance of ... >
Michael Patrick Carroll
OK, he didn't say precisely that, but when the Chairman of the Budget Committee informs us that governmental spending is the key to prosperity, ... >
Debbie Holtz
Score one for the Governor’s public relations team. For the last few weeks, they have been working overtime to fuel speculation Corzine was being ... >
Dr. Joseph Marbach
I am pleased to report the results from the first national poll conducted by Environmental Studies Program in the College of Arts and Sciences at ... >
Rob Tornoe
To view a larger version of this cartoon, click here. >
Michael P. Riccards
The media, which loves headlines and knows little history, is trying to sell President Elect Obama as another Franklin Delano Roosevelt. But that ... >
Joey Novick
When I was eleven, way back in 1965, my family was invited for Thanksgiving to my cousins’ cousins, a Jewish-Italian family who lived in the ... >
Juan Melli
After the entire Star-Ledger editorial board opted to accept the paper's buyout offer, John Farmer, a 26-year veteran of the paper, was tasked ... >
Carla Katz
A couple of weeks ago, my mother, Angelina Katz, did her second debate on behalf of Barack Obama. A debate? My mother? If you knew her, you’d be ... >
Patricia Quattrocchi
A rained out MusicFest this past September has provided Union County with $275,000 in insurance monies. The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders ... >
Murray Sabrin
Today the Asinine Watch begins. With so many illiterate statements made about the economy by elected officials in recent days and weeks, it was ... >
Poll
PolitickerNJ Partners
Hot Topics
| Politicker INTERACTIVE | |
 |
Lawmaker Profile Follow the funding of your representatives |
 |
270 to Win See how Obama got to the magic number |
Most Active Stories
- Lonegan enters race for Republican gubernatorial nomination
- David Crabiel, longtime Middlesex Freeholder, dead at 78
- Christie says give him four to six weeks
- Team Lonegan
- Lonegan to kick off his second gubernatorial campaign today
- Amid economic downturn, mayoral backlash, Lesniak anticipates COAH finetuning
- Ariyan mum on BCDO chairmanship prospects
- Some county chairs keep their gubernatorial options open -- for now
- Marra will be Acting U.S. Attorney
- Breaking a glass ceiling: will New Jersey get a Latino Secretary of Agriculture?
- Correction: Weiner departure was not his own idea
- Torricelli on COAH
- Two N.J. super delegates go to Obama; Norcross backs Obama; key Clinton supporters endorse Obama
- At energy policy meeting, Rose fights with cabinet and walks away
- Sixteen Democrats are on Norcross' short list for Andrews House seat
- Roughneen in court today on signature challenge
- Jackson will be Corzine's new Chief of Staff
- Obama bundler says he lost $25 billion of N.J. pension funds
- New Jersey's Most Powerful Law Firms
- Jersey City councilman makes it rain in Washington
Quote of the Day
"Because he had to dress for his speech immediately, he had to purchase an entirely new set of clothes. The campaign credit card used to pay for the clothing was reimbursed in total by the airline, which wrote a check for $952.04 to the congressman on July 20, 2007. The congressman then endorsed the check over to the campaign account on July 20, 2007. Thus, the campaign incurred no expense for the clothing." -- Francis Tagmire, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, on why Andrews used campaign funds to pay for clothing. A Washington, D.C. watchdog group has filed a complaint against him.
Recent Press Releases
- Dec 3 2008
In the News
Read the expanded Wake Up Call, our summary of today’s news media coverage.
Today’s Must Reads:
James R. Lambert: Convicted Felon, Head of Authority― ONLY IN NEW JERSEY...AND PENNSYLVANIA
Why can't we find a role for Christie in Washington? ― MIKE KELLY
Christie Gives Notice, and G.O.P. Gains Hope ― DAVID KOCIENIEWSKI
Christie's legcy― THE BERGEN RECORD
Corzine for Treasury? Don't Bet on It.― WASHINGTON POST
Immigrants still in New Jersey― THE BERGEN RECORD
Syndicate
Layton Nonsense
Billy Boy- put down the fork and come back to reality.
You talking about someone else engaging in the practice of pay to play is sort of like Elizabeth Taylor condemning people who remarry. It just lacks the most fundamental element of credibility.
You have 20 GOP insiders out of pocket to the tune of 600K and you have been pretty busy getting them work. Interesting.
You also spent several hundred thousand trying to defeat Chris Brown and the voters of Evesham saw through your gutter politics to the tune of an overwhelming defeat for your incumbents.
Expect the same outcome on November 4th.
The Chris Layton should be talking about is BAXTER
Reading this you would think Layton is running for office not Corrupt Woodend-Fenton-Jordan
Corrupt?
East 8th- you're calling them corrupt? Is that a bit harsh?
Woodend spearheaded the effort to get rid of Layton as chair but then relented when he was offered his long sought after county government position which, what did he say, "pay's 100K and chair pays nothing?"
Fenton oversees the Board of Social Services which pays Chris Baxter for sending internet articles and employs 6 other GOP insiders who contribute to the campaign and even sign personal loans to pay for the campaigns.
Jordan's father has a job at the GOP state committee to provide his health benefits while they run the family business in Ocean County.
Corrupt? Ah, maybe you're right.
Found this on the Site... Very Interesting.
Perr: “GOP Legacy of Indictments, Guilty Pleas And Tax Hikes Continue Under Layton’s Rule”
Burlington County Democratic Chairman Rick Perr today renewed his call for the immediate removal of Chris Baxter from the Board of Social Services despite the desperate, defensive plea of GOP Chairman Layton. Perr was responding to published reports in the Burlington County Times that allege Baxter made hundreds of thousands of dollars from multiple tax payer funded positions, including the Board of Social Services.
"By defending Baxter's actions, Mr. Layton is accepting responsibility for the latest scandal at the Board of Social Services," said Perr. "Layton's actions clearly indicate that Baxter was not acting alone and provides further corroboration to the notion that Baxter's taxpayer funded position existed to benefit the GOP Political campaigns."
This conclusion is consistent with published reports and statements made in Federal Court which illustrate a long history of quid pro-quo insider deals transpiring in Burlington County.
"Of Course Chairman Layton would defend Baxter. Baxter is one of the "Paulsen's 20", a group of 20 individuals who provide personal guarantees for hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans," said Perr. "Without Chris Baxter he might not be able to run the negative ads that have been the subject of lawsuits, rebuked by editorial boards across the State, and criticized by the former head of all GOP County Chairs in NJ. He is going to need every dime to defend Freeholder Director Fenton's abysmal record of raising taxes, increasing spending and engineering an environment ripe with corruption."
"With the Burlington County GOP struggling to repay loans to their top insiders along with Chris Myers' floundering and bankrupt campaign, Layton can't afford to lose any of his top donors. It's extremely disappointing, but not surprising, that the Republicans are siding with one of their own over the taxpayers of Burlington County. This certainly isn't the first time," said Perr.
Perr has offered to take Layton down a ride through corruption memory lane.
* Martha Bark- Former State Senator declined to seek another term amidst a criminal investigation by the State Attorney General for two no-show jobs at Burlington County agencies. Bark collected over $330,000 in taxpayer funded salaries at the Burlington County Bridge Commission and Burlington County Institute of Technology but was unable to produce a single document substantiating her work. Bark's taxpayer funded pension benefits increased significantly based on these positions.
* Bob Stears- Former GOP insider and lobbyist for the Burlington County Bridge Commission plead guilty to federal mail fraud and tax evasion charges. Stears collected $2.7 million in taxpayer dollars FOR WORK HE ADMITTED HE NEVER DID and indicated he was asked to contribute $4,000 per month back to the Burlington GOP. "I allowed myself to engage in fraudulent schemes," Stears said. "I got sucked into a group of corrupt people..." Stears indicated he is continuing to cooperate in an ongoing federal criminal investigation. To this day, Freeholder Director Fenton has not taken action to recover any of the stolen money.
* John Comegno- Current Bridge Commission Chairman recently plead guilty to DUI despite having been chosen by the incumbent Republican Freeholders to make the Bridges safer and end the rampant corruption at the agency. Freeholder Director Fenton gave Comegno a vote of confidence.
* Glenn Paulsen- Former GOP Boss and mentor and next door neighbor to current Chairman Layton. Paulsen's politically connected law firm has collected millions in fees from Burlington County government, school boards and state government. Paulsen has cashed in on his connections by securing his law firm's position as bond counsel for the Bridge Commission, the County and local municipalities while millions of dollars in bond deals are consummated, some with the help of his son's then-employer, UBS-Paine Weber.
* As County Clerk, Sen. Phil Haines moonlighted as a lawyer for a firm whose clients included entities and individuals with business at the Clerk's office while working 'full-time' as the County Clerk * GOP campaign contributors received millions of dollars to work on the Palmyra Nature Cove even though the project could have been completed for only one-third of the cost
* Former GOP U.S. Senate and Gubernatorial candidate Doug Forrester and his company, Benecard, donated thousands of dollars to the Burlington County Republican Party and its candidates. During that time period, Benecard obtained pay-to-play contracts at the Burlington County Special Services School District even though it was not the lowest bidder.
"Now that the Burlington GOP has accepted responsibility for this latest scandal, it is obvious that the culture of corruption continues to thrive under Director Fenton," said Perr. "Apparently the business of enriching your friends with the public's money is recession-proof. It really is time for a change in Burlington County."