Cumberland County GOP Freeholder Candidates Say It’s Time For A County Parks System

Earlier today, Arvene Kilby Hays and Frank Spatola, Jr.,  Republican candidates for Cumberland County freeholders said seven years to start developing a county park system is too long.

Given the fact the county paid $80,000 to study if a parks system is needed and adopted an Open Space and Recreation Master Plan seven years ago, Kilby Hays and Spatola may be on to something.

Their press release follows:

Kilby Hays And Spatola, Jr. Want Cumberland County Parks System

County parks system could help spur economic growth and help retain younger residents

 VINELAND – Republican candidates for Cumberland County Freeholder, Arvene Kilby Hays and Frank Spatola, Jr, said today seven years to start developing a county park system is too long.

In 2011 the Cumberland County Board of Chosen Freeholders paid $80,000 to a Pennsylvania company to “conduct an Open Space Planning Process and preparing an Open Space and Recreation Master Plan for the Cumberland County Department of Planning and Development.” Several reputable New Jersey companies submitted bids on the project for less. Later in 2011 the county adopted the Open Space & Recreation Master Plan.

“We find it difficult to believe our county government paid a company $80,000 to conduct a process and prepare a plan, adopt the plan and for seven years not move to implement the plan,” Arvene Kilby Hays said. “The study acknowledged over half of ‘area households use Cumberland County area parks, natural areas or open space areas.’ That fact alone should have been enough to see some movement over seven years.”

Frank Spatola, Jr. added, “To add insult to injury the study showed that a quarter of households using open space areas choose to go to a park in Salem County. It’s no wonder many of our younger residents don’t return to Cumberland County after graduating college, we can’t even keep families who live here in the county for leisure activities.

“We’re watching counties around us bring in new businesses, Amazon is bringing 1,000 new full-time jobs to Gloucester County and Camden is seeing a growth in new businesses. Sure, tax incentives play a role but study after study shows corporations like to move to areas that offer recreational opportunities.”

Kilby Hays explained, “We love Cumberland County and want to keep our young people here. The creation of a county parks system would help and could generate corporate investment in Cumberland County. We’ve said that streamlining government departments could save $2.25 million in overtime, so the money is there to create a county parks system.”

“The bottom line here is that there is no reason Cumberland County is the only county in the state not to have a county parks system. A little hard work and number crunching could provide a better quality of life for county residents, spur some economic growth and keep our younger population in the county at no additional cost to taxpayers,” Spatola, Jr. said.

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Bob Menendez’s “Bullshit” Remark Proves He And His Supporters Are Full Of It

U.S. Senator Bob Menendez made a lot of news for calling the FBI’s supplemental investigation into Brett Kavanaugh “Bullshit.” Let’s call Menendez’s remarks what they were, an effort to keep women and anti-Trump voters excited. That’s what his “Bullshit” remark had to be. His claim that he has “always defended women” is false. If you don’t believe me go ask the young women he helped get visas for to come to America to visit their sugar daddy, his best friend Salomon Melgen.

Menendez has no choice other than doing everything he possibly can to keep women and anti-Trump voters excited, he’s in the battle of his life.

Polls indicate Menendez has strong support among women, so the Kavanaugh issue is the perfect opportunity for Menendez to keep women in his column.

What makes absolutely no sense is that women support Menendez at all, that they buy into the “his record has always defended women” argument. That argument, to quote Menendez, is Bullshit!

I know of no woman on the face of this earth who would argue that a man who helped bring young women into this country to spend time with their married sugar daddy is a defender of women.

Make no mistake, Menendez did exactly that. I didn’t say it, Menendez’s own lawyers conceded it as fact.

Getting his married friend Salomon Melgen’s young girlfriends into the country was so important that the visa inquiries showed up in Menendez’s weekly staff reports. From the New York Post:

Prosecutors also introduced one of Lopes’ weekly staff reports showing that he placed the “Melgen visa inquiry” on a status report to the senator — alongside global issues like “Cuba Policy” and a “Pakistan/Afghanistan meeting.”

Yeah, that sounds like a guy who has “always defended women.”

I get it, women hate President Trump. My own mother hates Trump and isn’t happy about my support of the President, but she’s also smart enough to recognize that Menendez supporters are being untruthful when they say he has “always defended women.” A lot of men hate Trump too. I freely admit I came very close to voting for Gary Johnson for president, though on October 31, 2016 I filled out my mail-in ballot for Trump. The important thing to remember is Donald Trump is not on the ballot, no matter how much Menendez wants him on it.

Women need to remember, TRUMP IS NOT ON THE BALLOT. Women need to remember, MENENDEZ HAS NOT ALWAYS BEEN A DEFENDER OF WOMEN. Quite the opposite, he helped a married dirty old man exploit women and his own lawyers conceded that fact.

Battle Of The Bobs Moved From “Likely Democrat” To “Leans Democrat”

Three U.S. Senate race polls came out this week, Stockton, Farleigh Dickinson and Quinnipiac, two of the three excited Republicans, the Quinnipiac poll no so much. Those three polls were enough to have the Cook Political Report move the race from “Likely Democrat” to “Leans Democrat.”

The folks at Cook Political Report “doubt that Menendez is only ahead by two points and question the 11-point margin. His lead is probably in the mid- to high- single digits.”

The way I read that is that basically, the Bob Hugin versus Bob Menendez Senate race could be one of the most exciting races in the country. It also appears the Farleigh Dickinson poll is most accurate, and it still means Republicans have more work to do.

Frankly, that work, meaning extra votes for Hugin are going to have to come out of South Jersey. It can be done because every one of the polls shows that New Jersey voters have an unfavorable opinion of Menendez and voters believe he is dishonest.

Add to that the fact that Bob Menendez hasn’t a clue where South Jersey is. Cumberland County Republican freeholder candidates Arvene Kilby Hays and Frank Spatola, Jr challenged county Democrats to stop hiding from Menendez.

Kilby Hays and Spatola might be on to something. Menendez hasn’t been seen in Cumberland County, Hugin has been there as recently as Wednesday. Menendez couldn’t find the Cohanzick Zoo with GPS. For that matter Menendez couldn’t find Red Bank Battlefield in Gloucester County, Cowtown Rodeo in Salem County and the list goes on.

There’s a reason Menendez doesn’t come to South Jersey. Sources close to his campaign have said, privately, they know Menendez is going to perform poorly in South Jersey. It makes sense given that in Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem Counties Menendez’s primary election opponent, who spent no money, received 40% of the vote or better and won in Cape May and Salem. In Gloucester County Menendez won by the skin of his teeth.

Democrats in South Jersey simply aren’t excited about Menendez. In CD2 progressive Democrats aren’t excited about Jeff Van Drew nor are the progressives excited about Donald Norcross in CD1. If South Jersey Republicans can generate just a little more excitement for Hugin it might be enough to make those progressives skip the Senate portion of their ballot or maybe even #VoteGreen18 for Green Party candidate Madelyn Hoffman.

As the Cook Political Report put it:

This race is more competitive than a Senate contest in a good year for Democrats in a state as blue as New Jersey should be.  This is entirely on Menendez and the baggage he brings into the race.  He maintains the advantage going into the final stretch, but the race is worth watching and moves to the Lean Democratic column.

“The race is worth watching” means A Republican could win a Senate race in New Jersey for the first time since gas cost 55 cents a gallon. It’ll take a lot of hard work.