BREAKING: Hirsh Singh Didn’t Even Bother Showing Up For His Own Recount

Hirsh Singh

In the ongoing saga of the Republican U.S. Senate primary, Hirsh Singh’s requested recount commenced in Sussex County.

A source close to the situation informed us that a “small recount of a few districts in just two towns is over. No change. No one from the Singh campaign bothered to appear.”

All the noise Singh is making about a recount and when recounting of votes begins, he can’t be bothered to show up or send a representative. Singh showed more commitment to winning a beauty contest.

Maybe it’s just me, but if I made a bunch of noise about getting a recount and a county started recounting I would show up.

The $65 Million Jail That Will Never Be A Jail

I was all set with a post today complaining about the lack of local media coverage of the $65 million jail that isn’t. That changed because Joe Smith at The Vineland Daily Journal has a piece in the paper today. So does the Press of Atlantic City.

Fortunately, I can still complain about the $65 million the County Freeholders already bonded (borrowed) to build the jail.

Before I get to complaining consider what was reported in The Vineland Daily Journal:

Cumberland County Jail would cease holding prisoners on more than a short-term basis under a plan county government is  formulating to outsource inmates to one or more facilities in South Jersey.

The plan was confirmed publicly on Monday and follows on a July 17 announcement from Freeholder Director Joseph Derella that the county would not start construction of a jail off South Burlington Road in Bridgeton to replace the current jail at 54 West Broad St. That announcement had described the construction suspension as a pause to examine options.

To put that in plain English for you – what has been reported is that even though Cumberland County has already borrowed $65 million to build a new jail, they have plans to not hold prisoners in any jail, old or new.

So where does the borrowed $65 million go? Does the county simply pay it back, lump sum? How about the interest payments on the borrowed money? Are taxpayers still on the hook for the interest payments?

I don’t know the answers to those questions. I do know the Daily Journal’s report said:

(Freeholder Director) Derella, in a statement on Wednesday, said the county would save $8 million to $10 million in the first year of revised operations. Savings would be in the millions in following years, too, he said.

“With savings of this magnitude, we are anticipating no increase to the county tax levy for the next three years,” Derella added. The tax levy is the amount of money property owners pay toward the annual county government budget.

Savings? What savings? You borrowed $65 million. Someone has to pay that back with interest. That someone is the taxpayers of Cumberland County.

Cumberland County taxpayers would have been better off just flushing money down the toilet!

Cumberland County taxpayers should be angry. Their Democrat led Freeholder Board, the folks beholden to the Norcross political cartel, borrowed $65 million to build a floor on some dirt. No walls, no roof, no nothing. Just a $65 million floor. To add insult to injury they didn’t even bother laying any tile on the floor.

If nothing else, Cumberland County taxpayers now have 65 million reasons to vote Republican.  Victoria Lods, Darwin Cooper, Tony Romero should have no problem laying out their opponents on this $65 million floor.

There’s going to be more to come on this story. Stay tuned!

PRESS RELEASE: Donald Norcross Is The Last Person Who Should Be Throwing Around Words Like “Catastrophic” And “B.S.”

Claire Gustafson, the Republican candidate for Congress in CD1, went off on Congressman Donald Norcross via press release today. Her release follows:

Claire Gustafson, Republican candidate for Congress in New Jersey’s First Congressional District, said today that Congressman Donald Norcross is the last person who should be throwing around words like “catastrophic” and “B.S.”

At issue is that according to published reports Donald Norcross, at a press conference at the Bellmawr Postal Service processing center, referred to changes made in Postal Service operations by the Post Master General as “catastrophic” and said, “It’s B.S.”

“It’s laughable that Congressman Donald Norcross would refer to anything as catastrophic when the real catastrophe in our congressional district was created by him,” Claire Gustafson said. “In February 2014, when he announced his first run for Congress, Norcross bragged that he ‘led the charge on getting the Economic Opportunity Act passed into law,’ the very law that led to his family and friends getting $550 Million in tax breaks.”

Gustafson continued, “Norcross went on to refer to Postal Service changes as ‘B.S.’ when we all know the real B.S. comes from his mouth every time he mentions being a union electrician when he hasn’t set foot on a job site in around 20 years. I interact with union labor more at industry trade shows for my business on job sites more often than he does.”

Gustafson added, “The catastrophic B.S. is local media allowing Donald Norcross to back away from his early bragging about the role he played in passing the law that ensured his family and friends got all those tax breaks. It must be nice to be part of the political cartel that rules South Jersey, the media even gave Norcross a free pass when he compared Camden City workers to children while backing up Holtec’s owner after he made controversial comments.”

Gustafson continued, “Many of those tax incentives created by the law Norcross bragged about passing could have been used to help other areas of the district that are hurting. Imagine if businesses were helped move to the area of the Paulsboro Port. We might be bringing in steel from Brazil rather than wasting opportunity on Russian steel and taxpayers might finally be getting a return on their $255 million investment. Instead Donald Norcross worked hard in the state Senate to get tax breaks for his family and friends in Camden. As a member of Congress he seems to forget the district runs south to the Gloucester County Border with Salem County. He represents more than just the political cartel that rules South Jersey.”

“It’s time to put an end to the catastrophic B.S. created by Norcross and the political cartel he happens to be a member of and that’s why I’m running for Congress,” Gustafson said.