Cumberland County Republicans Hit Dems Hard With Web Ad

Frank Spatola Jr, Kim Codispoti & Arvene Kilby Hays

Republican candidates for freeholder, Arvene Kilby Hays and Frank Spatola Jr, and Surrogate candidate Kim Codispoti have launched a web ad that calls out the decades of Democrat leadership for placing Cumberland County first in all the wrong categories.

“Taxes, highest they’ve ever been. Crime, soaring, leaving our families unsafe. Unemployment in Cumberland County is ranked the worst in the state. We deserve better,” says the ad.

The Republicans’ ad is a good counter to the misleading one the Democrats released earlier in the campaign season.

Republicans have run a spirited race, even questioning why Democrats aren’t campaigning with Senator Bob Menendez. Kilby Hays and Spatola Jr hypothesized the reason Democrats don’t want to be seen with Menendez is that it might remind voters of the ethical issues of incumbent freeholders Jim Quinn and Joe Derella.

Quinn was fined $250 to settle a state ethics violation levied against him that said he cast public votes on issues involving companies he did hundreds of dollars of monthly private business with and Derella, in November 2017, had a 22-count complaint filed against him by the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC).

Yeah, being seen with an unethical guy like Menendez might remind voters of the incumbents’ own ethical issues.

The Republican’s ad follows:

2 Democrats, 2 Counties, 2 Brawlers, Silence From Their Party Bosses

Jason Ravitz - Bob Gant

Camden County and Salem County have something in common, I mean other than the influence of Democratic party power broker George Norcross. Both counties have alleged brawlers on their tickets and their party bosses have chosen to remain silent.

In Camden County there is Voorhees Township Deputy Mayor Jason Ravitz. This guy has been caught on video engaging in bar fights and wrote a letter to Township voters begging forgiveness. There’s a website dedicated to Ravitz bar brawls and an apparent reader of The Bob & Steve Show blog even went so far as to comment on one of our posts that Ravitz “was a bully in middle and high school.”

Despite the fact Ravitz’s bar brawls are on video and that he somehow managed to get into a fight at an Applebee’s of all places, local and county Democrats have remained silent. Imagine if there were video evidence of an elected Republican getting into bar brawls. Democrats would be screaming for that Republican to resign.

In Salem County there is a lieutenant in the Sheriff’s Department running for sheriff who allegedly beat a former inmate at the old Salem County Jail unconscious.

Gant supporters first denied, then demanded proof the incident happened. We provided court docket numbers. I wrote, “So, if you still doubt Gant beat a handcuffed, defenseless man unconscious with a weapon I do know Salem County imposed major discipline and terminated Gant's employment. I know because he appealed to the New Jersey Office of Administrative Law (Docket No.: CSV5577-91) and lost. I know he lost because Gant appealed to the Appellate Division, N.J. Superior Court (Docket No.: A-4025-91 T2).”

That wasn’t enough for Gant supporters so The Bob & Steve Show provided an actual court document and interviewed Gant’s alleged victim twice, once by phone and most recently in a call-in interview on our radio show.

Just like the Camden County Democrats, Salem County Democrats have remained silent on the Gant issue. A similar question has to be asked about Salem County Democrats. Could you imagine how loud the Democrats would be screaming if a Republican running for sheriff were accused of beating a handcuffed inmate unconscious? There would be calls for investigations and calls for the candidate to drop out of the race. Not in Salem County, the Democrats continue to wholeheartedly support the candidate.

Why the double standard from Camden County and Salem County Democrats? Is it the best they can do, put up with allegedly violent candidates for office?

When it comes to Ravitz irrefutable video proof has been offered. In Gant’s case plenty of evidence, including a court document and two interviews of the alleged victim have been provided. Still nothing but silence from Democratic Party bosses. Fortunately, the voters have the opportunity to speak loudly with their votes.

Former Salem County Sheriff Chooses Miller, Not Gant

Salem County Sheriff Chuck Miller

In the letters section of the South Jersey Times yesterday former Salem County Sheriff John Cooksey endorsed incumbent Sheriff Chuck Miller.

This is interesting, not only because as Cooksey wrote, that he “had the opportunity to work with and evaluate and observe their actions and dedication,” but Cooksey is also the man who re-hired Gant. Regular readers of The Bob & Steve Show blog should recall that after an incident with an inmate Gant lost his job, sued to get his job back, appealed after losing that lawsuit and agreed, according to court documents, “that he will not seek re-employment with the County of Salem at any time in the future.”

Gant obviously went back on his word and somehow Gant managed to convince Cooksey to re-hire him as a Sheriff's Officer providing courthouse security and serving warrants, writs and court process, as opposed to being a Corrections Officer. Given that Cooksey has chosen to publicly endorse the man who replaced him over the man he re-hired, it is entirely possible the reason Cooksey rehired Gant is the rumors he felt sorry for Gant are true.

No matter what the reason for the re-hire was the fact that the one man who was the boss of both candidates in the sheriff election chose one over the other speaks volumes.

The choice is clear, a candidate who obviously can’t be trusted to keep his word and allegedly once beat a defenseless man unconscious or a guy who has been endorsed by the man who was once the boss of both candidates. It’s an easy choice, now it’s up to the Salem County voters to make the right choice.