How the whisper campaign costs taxpayers

County politics in Sussex County was once a village.  It was more than close knit, it was closed.  This presented a problem for reformers.  In closed societies, people tend to overlook the corrupt practices of others, so as not to rock the boat.  Go along to get along.

The problem with this is that corruption ends up costing everyone who pays taxes -- everyone that is except the people making money off the corruption.

In closed societies like this anyone who identifies or even talks about problems is considered "impolite".  Steve Oroho was impolite in 2004 and especially so in 2007.  Parker Space was impolite in 2010 and Gail Phoebus in 2012.  Space, Phoebus, and George Graham have been very impolite this year, because they asked that a deal that was sold to the Freeholder Board with false promises be investigated and that those who made money by ripping-off Sussex County taxpayers be held to account.

Reform is Rude in Sussex County.  At least as far as the county's political  class is concerned.  The fact that all of those mentioned above romped to victory (some by big upsets) indicates that most residents of Sussex County do not share the same opinions as the county's political class.

When he was United States Attorney, Chris Christie used to talk about the "corruption tax".  This was the extra-cost to taxpayers that came from the single-bid wired for a political insider or from hiring someone "connected" instead of someone competent.

Because it is such a closed society, county politics in Sussex County was once largely controlled by an exclusive group whose business was politics.  That is how they made their money.  Turnout at elections was low and campaigns were conducted mouth to mouth, whisper to whisper, for in politics here it is rare for people to be straight with you.  To your face it is all smiles, behind your back, it's the whispers.

And then along came Steve Oroho.  He hired a consultant who worked with him to expand the number of residents who participated in politics.  Turnout at elections went up and the mouth to mouth campaign counted for less.  No longer could you get over on someone by pretending to like him while helping his opponent, because it didn't matter as much.

Steve Oroho opened the door to allow new people to participate and voter turnout went up.  It also let the fresh air of reform in. It became safer to speak the truth and identify bad practices.

There are those who long for the days when they could ostracize anyone who dared blow the whistle on corruption, theft, or malfeasance.   Those days are gone and, though some may try, they will not come back. 

The voters will not allow the county political class to steal their government from them.  They will not be content to "shut up and pay" ever rising taxes so that this "wired" county politico can get a no-show job in order to qualify for a state pension.  They will not "shut up and pay" so that local elected officials can be a sales reps for vendors who demand government use a product that nobody asked for.  This is the past and those who benefitted from these corrupt practices had better get used to it.

Will the last person left at the Sussex GOP Please remember to turn off the lights.

Last Friday evening, the Sussex County Republican Committee ran its annual gala.  This is no longer the 300 person event that some of us remember.  The gala, a key fundraising event for the committee, now draws less than one hundred – far less.  And missing from the gala are some of the new factions that have come to life again since last year’s election battle between Surrogate Gary Chiusano and Glen Vetrano stand-in Alicia Ferrante.

In fact, Vetrano and much of what was once called the Littell faction didn’t participate in the gala or the party fundraising.  Same goes for the Skylands Victory PAC and its associates in the Vernon municipal government.  No shows to the gala. 

Is the county committee becoming irrelevant?  Don’t look for any answers from Tuesday’s primary election results. 

Republican turnout was an abysmal 14 percent in the county.  Low turnout usually means that the 500 or so connected GOP “insiders” and their friends and families will dominate the election, so you would expect a 70-30 or better win for an incumbent with all the money and all the support of the county GOP.   

That didn’t happen.  Instead we got a much closer 60-40 race between incumbent Freeholder Phil Crabb and challenger Wantage Committeeman Ron Bassani.  This despite the fact that Crabb spent significant money on his re-election campaign, including at least two direct mailers, radio ads, and other voter contact.  Bassani spent next to nothing and had no radio or direct mail.  Yet he managed 40 percent. 

Imagine what would have happened if he had a campaign?

Does this mean that 40 percent of the county’s Republican “super-voters” are unhappy with the people who are the faces of the Sussex GOP?  Maybe, but it could even be worse.

In a U.S. Senate race between four relative unknowns, one of these unknowns had the support of some of the county’s top elected officials:  Senator Steve Oroho, Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose, and Assemblyman Parker Space.   Despite this and the fact that they took out ads under their own names, the unknown with the support of the LD24 team managed less than 25 percent of the vote in Sussex County and lost Warren County too.  

At the Sussex GOP’s Election Night gathering Freeholder Crabb thanked former Freeholder Rich Zeoli for his help while all but ignoring Senator Oroho and Assemblywoman McHose. Both of whom were early financial and political supporters of Crabb’s re-election.  Does he consider them now to be irrelevant? 

One thing certain is that the big winner on election night in Sussex County was former Steve Lonegan protégé Rick Shaftan.  Shaftan managed to put together a Tea Party network that dominated Tuesday’s Senate primary in the county.  Despite having the county’s top Republicans out there for candidate Murray Sabrin, Shaftan’s candidate, Rich Pezzullo, took 44 percent of the vote in a four-way race.  This was a solid and impressive win.

Shaftan, who works for Hudson County Democrat State Senator/ Mayor/ School Superintendent Nick Sacco, was defeated just one year ago in a campaign for Republican State Committee.  With Tuesday’s win Shaftan is now the county’s “top dog” consultant.   We will all be waiting to see his next move.

The political education of Phil Crabb

When he was first appointed to the Freeholder Board in Sussex County, Phil Crabb was a self-proclaimed "moderate" Republican, following the way of Glen Vetrano and Sue Zellman.  And while it was his friendship with Hal Wirths that got him the job, Crabb was never part of the Wally Wirths' conservative crowd -- Crabb was a Bob Littell guy. 

Crabb's appointment coincided with a new political paradigm in Sussex County.  In 2007, longtime District 24 Senator Bob Littell decided not to run for re-election.  While conservative on issues like guns and abortion, Littell was an old-school moderate Republican.  He found consensus with the Democrats and avoided partisan rhetoric. 

In 2007, the Littell wing of the Sussex County GOP was faced with a dilemma and a choice.  The dilemma was popular District 24 Assemblyman Guy Gregg, a well-known conservative from Morris County, who wanted to become Sussex County's Senator.  To face him, the Littell forces had to choose between two well-qualified Freeholders:  moderate Glen Vetrano or conservative Steve Oroho.

We all know who got the nod and so began the rebranding of the Sussex County GOP into an organization with an explicitly "conservative" message.  The REAL CONSERVATIVE TEAM of Steve Oroho, Alison Littell McHose, Gary Chiusano, Hal Wirths, and Jeff Parrott carried the day on June 5, 2007.  A year later and Senator Oroho, Assemblywoman McHose, and Assemblyman Chiusano were recognized statewide as conservative leaders in the legislature.  Phyllis Schlafly called Bob Littell's daughter "New Jersey's Sarah Palin".  Bob Littell's successors had won by adopting the message of Wally Wirths.

There were some who were uncomfortable with this rebranding, Phil Crabb among them.  They faulted the political consultant team of Ed Traz and Bill Winkler who were responsible for the 2007 REAL CONSERVATIVE TEAM campaign message and accused them of over-stressing the "conservative" brand.  They criticized the connection to conservative firebrand Steve Lonegan and in return were sniped at on Facebook by Lonegan satellite Rick Shaftan.

But as election victory after election victory piled up, the moderates slowly came round.  The 2012 victory of conservative Christian candidate Dennis Mudrick, recruited by moderate Glen Vetrano, was in many ways a public act of surrender by the moderates.  A recognition that they could no longer elect one of their own.

In last year's Republican primary the HOMETOWN CONSERVATIVE  TEAM romped to victory and the final act of Sussex County's GOP "moderates" was to dutifully join the effort to elect conservative Steve Lonegan to the United States Senate.  After Lonegan was embraced by Governor Chris Christie, he was no longer the "radical" he had been on the lips of Sussex County moderates.  They rushed to embrace him and enthusiastically used their new conservative connections to scrub away their worn out moderate skins.

Which brings us to Freeholder Phil Crabb, the last of the moderates.  He sent out a very well done direct mail piece this week.  In it, he described his tenure on the Freeholder Board as "conservative", his successes on the Freeholder Board as "conservative", his leadership as "conservative", and he himself as a "conservative".

Somewhere, Traz and Winkler are smiling.

The pro-tax radical who runs Byram politics

Councilman Scott Olson made no bones about it.  He is supporting the candidacies of Jim Oscovitch for Mayor and Marie Raffay for Council.  And it’s easy to understand why – they supported Olson when he ran for Byram Council in 2011.

Led by Scott Olson, Oscovitch and Raffay make up the current political establishment in Byram Township.   Who is Scott Olson?

Well, you can tell a lot about someone by who he hates, and Scott Olson hates Republicans Governor Chris Christie and Senator Steve Oroho.  Olson runs a blog and he has posted a lot of nasty stuff about the Governor and Senator Oroho. 

Olson’s blog has attacked Senator Oroho for supporting Fair School Funding legislation that would bring more education money to Sussex County to provide property tax relief.  Olson attacks Oroho for fighting for Sussex County taxpayers.

Apparently, Olson wants most of the state income tax money we pay flowing to school districts like Hoboken to provide property tax relief for the millionaires and corporations there.  This ignores the fact that Hoboken has a far higher median income than Sussex County and higher education attainment levels.  Even some Democrats agree that Hoboken is now too rich to get so much of our tax money – but that hasn’t stopped Olson’s blog from attacking Senator Oroho for fighting for us.

Olson’s blog calls Senator Oroho “radical” for proposing legislation that would prevent companies who knowingly hire illegal aliens from receiving state contracts.  So let’s get this straight.  Is Olson advocating giving state contracts to companies who cut costs by BREAKING THE LAW to hire cheap illegal labor instead of American workers or Immigrants with legal work visas?

The Olson blog has opposed giving women the opportunity to have an ultrasound or sonogram prior to having an abortion. 

Olson’s blog has attacked Governor Christie and Senator Oroho for their success in passing the 2% cap on local government spending.  The cap has kept spending down with the result that property taxes have not gone up like they did under Jon Corzine.  Olson obviously misses the “good old days” of huge property tax hikes and wants them to return.

With winter heating costs what they are, it is nice to know that Olson supported the RGGI fuel tax.  He called the bi-partisan legislation to repeal the heating tax “right wing”.

Olson also backs the Highlands Act, in which sate government has taken the property use of Sussex County residents without compensation of any kind.  This is unfair any way you look at it, but Olson doesn’t seem to care about his neighbors and their rights.

Olson’s blog finds it “shocking” that Senator Oroho wants to make English the official language of New Jersey.

Olson’s blog advocates very strongly for abortion.  It has attacked Senator Oroho for suggesting that parents be notified when their minor children receive medical or surgical procedures relating to pregnancy.

Olson has described Sussex County as “militia-friendly” – which is a slur on the people he claims to represent as a Byram Councilman.  Does Jim Oscovitch and Marie Raffay share Olson’s contempt for Sussex County and the residents of Byram Township?  Do they share his agenda?

They should set the record straight and in a hurry.