Minor to mayor: 'Lose the Blackberry, Mr. Booker'

In a statement he sent to PolitickerNJ.com this weekend, Newark Mayoral candidate Clifford Minor slammed Mayor Cory Booker for twittering a reaction to three shooting fatalities in the city on July 20, a response Minor called "insensitive." 

"At a time when Newark reels from the murders of three people and several others maimed by gunfire, citizens look to their elected officials for guidance and strength," wrote Minor. "In the immediate aftermath of this violence, what did Newark get that would reassure its grief-stricken citizens? A message from the mayor. On Twitter. Mayor Cory Booker condemned the violence through his Twitter account, calling the violence “outrageous” and “unacceptable”. Yes, and water is wet."
 
Already irritated by a Time Magazine feature story on Booker that depicts the youthful mayor as a Batman-like superhero, Minor unleashed his own image of Booker as a press hungry, caped evader. 

"Newark is more than a backdrop for interviews," fumed the mayoral candidate. "There are real people who live here. People who do not fit into the simplistic roles of 'drug-dealer' or 'car-thief' assigned by the media. Homeowners, taxpayers and folks  struggle against high taxes, crime, and joblessness. They need their leaders to show up when tragedies occur—in person, not online.

"Lose the Blackberry, Mr. Booker, and connect with the citizens who elected you way back in 2006, when you told them to 'hold me accountable.' Twitter is great for connecting with the glitterati at fundraisers, but a lousy substitute for old-school leadership."

A former Essex County Prosecutor who now runs his own law practice, Minor began his career with the Newark Police Department, where he served for 17 years. In advance of next year's mayoral election, he has lately accelerated his fundraisng activities and amplified his criticisms of Booker.