October 16, 2013 at 2:10 P.M. As of this writing it is uncertain whether the U.S. Senate's plan to forestall a further catastrophe will be approved by the House of Representatives. One can only hope and expect that, given the loss of 160 million dollars per day for the national economy resulting from this "shut-down," cooler and wiser voices will prevail among Republicans: 20% of America's economic recovery is gone because of this self-inflicted wound.
Many nations in the world are wondering whether America is determined to commit suicide. Me too. A move is being planned to change the base currency in the world because, as China's news agency expressed it, we seem incapable of getting our "economic house in order."
We will see where things are five years from now. New Jersey has become symbolic of national corruption, incompetence, failure and apathy. This is true not only for me, but for many observers in the world.
Please deal with this problem, Mr. Rabner and Mr. Christie.
Michael Powell, "The Quashing of a Case Against a Christie Ally," The New York Times, October 11, 2013, p. A1.
Eric Schmidt, "C.I.A. Noted Its Suspicions Over Snowden: Red Flags Overlooked 4 Years Before Leaks," The New York Times, October 11, 2013, p. A1. ("What did you know, Mr. Rabner, and when did you know it?")
Stephen Jacino, "Ex-Mayor Sentenced to 28 Years in Corruption Case That Helped Detroit Go Broke," The New York Times, October 11, 2013, p. A12. ("I should've gone to Jersey!" the former mayor said.)
The latest corruption and cronyism scandal in New Jersey is helpful in explaining to readers exactly what is wrong -- and demonstrated to be wrong in the hundreds of essays in these blogs -- with the state's pervasive legal farce. ("New Jersey's Politically-Connected Lawyers On the Tit" and "Corrupt Law Firms, Senator Bob, and New Jersey Ethics" then "Law and Ethics in the Soprano State.")
It is not simply thefts in the millions of dollars, gross incompetence, officials lying about disastrous failures, cover-ups, obstruction of justice, tainted police departments, mutual back-scratching among police and prosecutors involved in organized crime, but disparities throughout the system that are only explicable on the basis of the proverbial thumbs on the scales of justice. ("New Jersey is the Home of the Living Dead" and "Cement is Gold.")
The legal system is used by "bosses" of various kinds to enhance personal power and destroy enemies, often by facilitating the commission of crimes. The distinction between those wielding illicit power, as crime bosses corrupting officials, and the legal decisions of judges and officials in the state, ostensibly on the merits, is being lost, so that everything (including the few things, if any, that aren't dirty) looks dirty because so many things ARE dirty. ("You Gotta Pay to Play!")
The rottenness in New Jersey has contaminated just about every aspect of the state's legal system and many uses of police power. In fact, persons entrusted with "policing" themselves or the system may be the most corrupt players in the legal game:
"FLEMINGTON, N.J. -- Prosecutors sent tremors through rural Hunterton County when they announced a sweeping indictment of the Republican sheriff and her two deputies in 2010."
Now it is Mr. Christie, allegedly, providing assistance to dirty cops and prosecutors (or judges) who happen to be his political loyalists. Similar conduct, however, may be attributed to others -- conduct that was the subject of irate responses from Mr. Christie when he was U.S. Attorney in New Jersey and the culprits happened to be Democrats! -- violating legal ethics rules and statutory law to "assist" or secretly target persons based on their political affiliations or because of a lack of loyalty to the "boss." By the term "boss" I do not mean Bruce Springsteen. ("Let's see what Buono has under her fingernails!" Christie is alleged to have said.)
Is it likely that Mr. Christie would take such tactics to Washington, D.C. if he were elected to national office? You decide.
After Rand Paul's obvious affiliation this week with the shut-down proponents, it seems that Republicans have shot themselves not in the foot, but in the head before the next presidential election.
It certainly seems clear that Mr. Menendez has done exactly such dirty "things" (a little of this and a little of that usually with underage girls!) as U.S. Senator. It may be absurd to expect anything different from New Jersey's politicians regardless of their party loyalties. This includes politicians like Mr. Booker, Mr. Codey, or Middlesex County's own Steven Sweeney. ("Menendez Consorts With Underage Prostitutes" and "Does Senator Menendez have mafia friends?" then "Senator Bob, the Babe, and the Big Bucks.")
"The 43 count indictment read like a primer in smalltown abuse of power. It accused Sheriff Deborah Trout of hiring deputies without conducting proper background checks, and making employees sign loyalty oaths. Her deputies, the indictment charged, threatened one of their critics and manufactured fake police badges for a prominent donor of Gov. Chris Christie." ("New Jersey's Office of Attorney Ethics" and "Is America's Legal Ethics a Lie?")
New Jersey's Office of Attorney Ethics (OAE) seems to have a similar double-standard when it comes to the criminal actions of its own attorneys: for instance, being complicit in the commission of crimes like theft, rape, false imprisonment, criminal violations of civil rights, tampering with witnesses, falsifying evidence, and much worse. ("New Jersey's 'Ethical' Legal System" and "Sexual Favors For New Jersey Judges" then "John McGill, Esq., the OAE, and New Jersey Corruption" and "New Jersey Lawyers' Ethics Farce.")
This Hunterton incident conceals as much as it reveals of realities in the reign of "Christopher the First." Is Governor Christie a bloody tyrant or friend of the people? You'll decide in November. Thus far, it seems, that Christie is no different from McGreevey or Corzine in terms of ego and cronyism. ("Christie Rails Against New Jersey's Corrupt Judges" and "New Jersey's Legal System is a Whore House.")
Christie is not unusual in having "friends" among cops and sheriff's officials (also journalists?) as well as prosecutors who will do "favors" (go after somebody he does not like or cover-up for someone he does like) for political reasons or a reward, both are usually bestowed behind the scenes.
The OAE, again, will ignore misconduct (or even crimes) by its people doing dirty work for powerful politicians or judges, or will target radical lawyers and other so-called "outsiders" to the club in Trenton.
The goal of these methods is to intimidate people into "playing ball" with the bosses sitting at the top of the power-structure -- which makes me feel sorry for those on whom Mr. Christie is, as it were, "sitting." There is no "h" in that last word of the previous sentence -- not yet, anyway.
"Undersheriff Michael Russo" and others, for example, assured friends that Mr. Christie would "take care of things" for him as well as all others in this conspiracy. Mr. Russo was right:
"On the day the indictment was unsealed, the state attorney general, a Christie appointee, [Paula Dow,] took over the Hunterton prosecutor's office. Within a few months, three of its most respected veterans lost their jobs there, including one who led the case [against the Christie loyalists.]"
It seems obvious that state prosecutors acted unethically (the OAE does not care), and that Paula Dow (who is now a Superior Court Judge and still a Christie soldier) was Mr. Christie's "garbage removal person" in this operation.
Does this behavior by Ms. Dow comport with the canons of judicial ethics? ("Deborah T. Poritz and Conduct Unbecoming to the Judiciary in New Jersey" and "Trenton's Nasty Lesbian Love-Fest!")
Some culprits were PROTECTED, crimes were COVERED-UP, there was blatant OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE as files were removed, then (secretly) shipped-off to undisclosed locations in Trenton.
Much the same has occurred in my matters. Mr. Rabner has chosen in every instance to look the other way -- as have other concerned police and judicial officials -- perhaps in exchange for a promised reward of some kind at some point "down the road." ("Have you no shame, Mr. Rabner?" and "No More Cover-Ups and Lies, Chief Justice Rabner!" then "Does Senator Menendez have mafia friends?" and "Is Menendez For Sale?")
The OAE, New Jersey's judiciary and legal profession is, once again, sitting on a pile of legal excrement:
"There is no [direct] evidence that Mr. Christie ordered the dismissal of the charges against Sheriff Trout. [Who else would have done so?] But his Attorney General, PAULA T. DOW, who had served as his counsel at the U.S. Attorney's office, supervised the quashing of the indictment and the ouster of the respected prosecutors."
Do you speak to me of ethics in New Jersey's soiled legal profession?
