Letter: Keady Candidacy Stands For Social Justice

The expressed opinions or views of this letter does not necessarily represent the opinion of the MiddletownMike blog:

Dear Editor,

I first met Jim Keady while he was working full-time as an activist for the rights of Nike sweatshop workers in Indonesia. Over the years, I have followed his journey from activist collegiate Men’s Soccer Coach, to Asbury Park City Councilman to Restauranteur.

(Jim Keady, Candidate 30th Assembly District)

Given Jim’s history of doing the right thing, it wasn’t surprising that he was the one to stand up to Governor Christie on the lack of Sandy relief at a Town Hall meeting in Belmar. Governor Christie showed his true colors by bullying Jim Keady (a former elected official) for asking questions.

Jim Keady is now running as a Democrat for State Assembly District 30. I know that with Jim Keady and his running mate Jimmy Esposito of Lakewood, our state has a unique chance to bring two dedicated advocates of social justice into our lawmaking process.

I hope Jon Bon Jovi and his wife Dorthea also support Keady, as I believe he could be a strong advocate in the legislature to support the goals of their generous philanthropy that continues to help so many.



Eric Hafner
Toms River

Monmouth Democratic Slate of Candidates for 2013

The Monmouth County Democrats will be getting together later this morning in Asbury Park to nominate their slate of candidates to for state and county offices. Below are the likely nominees that will get the lines in Monmouth County.


Sheriff - Ruben Scolavino,    Freehold    (Former Prosecutor)
Freeholder - Brian Froelich,    Spring Lake (Former Congressional Candidate)
Freeholder - Larry Luttrell,    Holmdel (Former Prosecutor)

LD-11

Assembly -  Kevin McMillan,   Neptune (Twp Committeeman)
Assembly -  Will Potter,   Asbury Park (NJEA)
Assembly - Ed Zipprich,  Red Bank (Councilman)
State Senate -  Doc Brantley,  Neptune (Committeeman)

LD-12

Assembly - Nick Nellegar,  Matawan (Social Worker)
Assembly - Larry Furman,  Manalapan (Environmentalist)
State Senate - Ray Dothard, Millstone (Retired Air Force)

LD-13

Assembly - Matthew Morehead, Middletown (Business Owner)
Assembly - Allison Friedman, Aberdeen (Attorney)
State Senate -  Sean Dunne, Holmdel, (Professor)

LD-30

Assembly - Ocean County Dems Pick
Assembly - Ocean County Dems Pick
State Senate - William Field,  Howell (Former Municipal Candidate)

Governor

Senator Barbara Buono

Clean sweep for Republicans in Legislative and County Races in Monmouth

Besides being an other tough election night in Middletown it was also a tough night for Democratic candidates that were running in the 11th, 12th and 13th Legislative Districts as well as Monmouth County.

The Teams of Santiago, Gopal & Horigan (11th), Brown, Spedding & Rome (12th) and Cullen, Lavan & Short(13th), Morlino, Klienhendler & O'Rourke (30th) as well as, Monmouth County Freeholder Amy Mallet, her running mate Bill Shea and Surrogate candidate Michael Steinhorn all lost their respective races.

The big upsets out of this bunch needless to say, are the losses of Amy Mallet and Vin Gopal who both gained the endorsements of the Asbury Park Press.

Mallet presence on the Board of Chosen Freeholders will be missed. She was responsible for spear heading the effort to create the County's Department of Veterans Affairs (at no cost to tax payers), the County's solar initiative and was a leading voice for the ouster of the Brookdale trustees who where responsible for giving such lavish perks and contract to former Brookdale President Peter Burnham. Mallet was also an advocate for term limits for appointees of various boards and commissions through out the County so that abuses like the one discovered at Brookdale would not be repeated elsewhere.

After picking up the endorsement of the Asbury Park Press expectations skyrocketed for Vin Gopal to wrestle 1 of the 2 available Assembly seats away from the incumbent Republicans. The Republicans thought that Gopal's election to the Assembly was such a strong possibility, they resorted to an all out personal attack on him by sending out inflammatory and totally misleading campaign material about him that both the Newark Star Ledger and the Asbury Park Press condemned as dirty and false.

Below are the official results of each race from the Monmouth County Clerks webpage:

11th District Senate

REP - Jennifer Beck 20,156 - 56.59%
DEM - Raymond Santiago 15,419 - 43.29%

11th District Assembly

REP - Mary Pat Angelini	18,420	26.39%
REP - Caroline Casagrande	18,679	26.76%
DEM - Vin Gopal	15,333	21.97%
DEM - Kathleen Horgan	15,000	21.49%
- Daniel Jacobson	2,340	3.35%

12th District Senate

REP - Samuel D. Thompson	6,089	59.20%
DEM - Robert 'Bob' Brown	4,182	40.66%

12th District Assembly

REP - Ronald S. Dancer	6,155	30.27%
REP - Robert D. Clifton	6,090	29.95%
DEM - William 'Bill' Spedding	3,995	19.65%
DEM - Catherine Tinney Rome	4,076	20.05%

13th District Senate

REP - Joe Kyrillos, Jr.	24,041	59.89%
DEM - Christopher G. Cullen	14,739	36.72%
- Karen Anne Zaletel	515	1.28%
- Stephen J. Boracchia	554	1.38%
- MacDara F. Lyden	257	0.64%

13th District Assembly

REP - Amy H. Handlin	23,993	30.49%
REP - Declan O'Scanlon	22,685	28.82%
DEM - Kevin M. Lavan	15,118	19.21%
DEM - Patrick Short	15,286	19.42%
- Frank C. Cottone	830	1.05%
- William H. Lawton	751	0.95%

30th District Senate

REP - Robert W. Singer	12,991	63.58%
DEM - Steve Morlino	7,419	36.31%

30th District Assembly

REP - Sean T. Kean	14,058	34.22%
REP - David P. Rible	12,704	30.92%
DEM - Howard Kleinhendler	6,451	15.70%
DEM - Shaun O'Rourke	7,112	17.31%
- David Schneck	729	1.77%

Monmouth County Freeholder

REP - Gary Rich	54,979	26.60%
REP - Lillian G. Burry	54,969	26.59%
DEM - Amy Mallet	46,413	22.45%
DEM - William Shea	43,457	21.02%
- Thomas Markowski	5,418	2.62%
- Patrick Noble	1,389	0.67%

Monmouth County Surrogate

REP - Rosemarie D. Peters	62,108	60.23%
DEM - Michael Steinhorn	40,894	39.65%
Write-In	124	0.12%

NJ Watchdog: WILL VOTERS LET ASSEMBLYMAN DAVE RIBLE ESCAPE $650K DISABILITY PENSION SCANDAL IN NOV. 8 ELECTION?

NJ Watchdog reporter Mark Lagerkvist has uncovered yet another case of pension abuse by a double-dipping member of the NJ State Assembly.

This time the person in question is Republican Minority Whip Assemblyman Dave Rible, who is currently running seeking reelection in the newly formed 30th Legislative District.

After 5 years on the job as a police officer in Wall Twsp. Rible was injured and filed for early retirement with a disability pension that would pay him $55,000 a year for life with no further questions asked.

Fast forward to today and it seem that Rible, who retired due to a back injury, is healthy enough to strenuously work out at a local gym, go dancing and run 5K races in under 30 minutes.

He doesn't seem disabled to me.

Assemblyman David P. Rible retired as a Wall Township police officer at age 31 with a bad back and a fat pension. He’s collected $650,000 in disability payments since a state board decided he was “totally and permanently disabled.”
Yet Rible competes in five-mile and five-kilometer runs along the Jersey Shore. He exercises at a gym, dances as a celebrity and hauls trash to the curb at his Monmouth County home, according to a New Jersey Watchdog investigation first published in June 2010.

Rible commutes to Trenton to represent the 11th District in the State Assembly, where he holds a leadership position as Republican Whip and seeks publicity as a tax-fighter. Now, he’s seeking election to the revamped 30th District, where he hopes voters in Monmouth and Ocean counties have forgotten the negative publicity.

In addition to his $49,000 salary as a legislator, Rible continues to receive a state disability pension that pays $55,000 a year – without a second look from authorities.

Now 44, Rible is set for life. If he lives until 80, he will pocket another $2.5 million from the state pension fund. That would raise Rible’s jackpot above $3 million, not including cost-of-living hikes or his medical coverage.

“I do oppose government waste, but I don’t see this as government waste,” said Rible, leaving his health club after a workout. “This is something that has been set forth in the rules of the pension.”

Those rules can be costly. Lottery-sized payouts threaten to break the back of New Jersey’s retirement and benefits system for public workers, struggling under the weight of $110 billion in projected debt. The state pension plans are short $46 billion, according to the most recent audit – plus retiree health benefits are underfunded by $64 billion.

A New Jersey Watchdog investigation of Rible’s case revealed how wasteful that system can be.

In 1988, Wall Township hired Rible as a patrolman. Five years later – on October 17, 1993 – the young officer was injured on the job. Rible later recalled the incident in his retirement application.

In his statement to the pension board, Rible said he and two other township detectives responded to an early morning noise complaint at a gravel pit. On foot, the officers pursued three men suspected of igniting fireworks and drinking alcohol. Rible stated he fell from an embankment during the chase and hurt his lower back.

Nearly four weeks later, Rible went to the police department’s physician with complaints of back pain. Eventually, in January 1998, he had back surgery.

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