WASHINGTON, DC-Arizona Democrat Rep. Ruben Gallego, a former U.S. Marine Reservist will not be backing fellow Devil Dog and retired Marine Corps General James “Mad Dog” Mattis as the next United States Secretary of Defense.
Gallego said he will vote against Mattis’ required waiver.
“As a fellow Marine, I greatly admire General James Mattis’ dedication and leadership. We all should be incredibly grateful for his many years of service to our nation,” Gallego said. “As a veteran, I believe strongly in the principle of civilian leadership of the military. Current law requires that a military officer be out of active duty for at least seven years before taking the job of defense secretary. I do not believe this long-standing check should be cast aside, and I will oppose a waiver of this rule, even for someone as exceptionally qualified as General Mattis.”
That stance didn’t sit well with his fellow Marines and military veterans who gave the congressman a virtual blanket party on Facebook.
“You’re an embarrassment to the Marines,” said many who visited Gallego’s Facebook page today.
“It’s a weekend warrior disrespecting one of the greatest generals in Marine Corps history,” said David Dudley. “Catch a knife hand to the throat, pussy.”
“This is your last term in the house,” said Rich Baptist. “Get your resume ready, McDonalds probably is going to want to see it.”
“I guess your motto is ‘Semper I’, not ‘Semper Fi’, I’m ashamed to call you a brother,” said Marine Kerry McClanahan.
“You worthless shitbag,” wrote Chad Stanley. “You have no integrity!”
“Every unit had a guy like this,” wrote Marine Mitch Cogburn. “The little bitch that didn’t belong.”
Gallego was called everything from a “fat ass” to “blue falcon”, a code word we use to politely call a fellow Marine who goes against his own a, “Buddy F*&cker”.
“Wish we could take this guy to the tree line,” wrote … of all people… Al Swearengen.
Lace Carmouche bluntly told Gallego, “God you’re a pussy.”
TOMS RIVER-In a very rare public display of agreement, Ocean County Sheriff Michael Mastronardy and Freeholder Jack Kelly openly supported each other at Wednesday’s Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders meeting.
The two have been engaged in a behind-scenes-power struggle since Mastronardy was elected Sheriff in 2013, after Kelly made an unsuccessful attempt to be the Republican nominee after the passing of longtime Sheriff William Polhemus.
The two showed solidarity after last weekend’s terrorist bombing in Seaside Park, but also over the possibility to expand the role and staffing at the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department.
For years, Mastronardy, the former chief of the Toms River Police Department wanted to expand the role of the Sheriff’s Department beyond courthouse , administrative and investigative duties.
Kelly serves as the Director of Public Safety, a civilian oversight position, and is the civilian liaison between the Sheriff’s Department and the Board of Chosen Freeholders.
At the meeting Kelly said the county has been holding meetings to determine where and how to invest tax dollars to increase the role of the Sheriff’s Department.
Kelly most recently made a push to serve on the New Jersey State Parole Board, but that effort was thwarted by the media and political opponents.
New Jersey Democrat State Senator Raymond Lesniak effectively blocked that nomination citing Kelly’s handling of the Laurel Hester death benefits case just 10 years ago. Kelly’s anti-gay marriage stance at the time was a key highlight in the media coverage of the board denying the former prosecutor’s passing of her death benefits to her domestic partner, Stacie Andree.
After media outrage and public outcry, the Freeholders changed their decision in January of 2006. Hester died of lung cancer just one month later.
“In the aftermath of the Seaside Park incident this past Saturday our office will be providing additionally security and assets throughout Ocean County when deemed necessary,” the Sheriff’s Department said on Thursday. “The Ocean County Sheriff’s Office role is to provide public safety to the public.”
Kelly and Mastronardy are both running for re-election in November’s general election.
TOMS RIVER-Inside the packed Atlantis Ballroom at the TR Hotel on Tuesday night, Ocean County Republican leaders gathered to vote for the OC GOP’s endorsement of President of the United States. The room was jovial and a the atmosphere was cordial, unlike media reports depicting a GOP divided at the national level.
The county Republican Council, which consists of mayors, elected officials and municipal club leaders overwhelmingly supported Donald Trump, bucking the National GOP’s anti-Trump stance.
Trump won the election in a landslide, getting 105 of the 139 votes cast. John Kasich received 28 votes and national GOP posterchild Ted Cruz got just 6 votes.
Ocean County has historically been a Republican leaning county, a rarity in New Jersey. Often the Ocean County Republican Clubs are branded as “Establishment Republicans”, but this vote sends a clear message that the county and municipal clubs aren’t going to follow the national GOP’s lead behind Cruz.
It also sends a message that Ocean County Republicans support Donald Trump and are not participating in the so-far unsuccessful national GOP campaign to sink the New York mogul.
The vote puts Trump in the Republican column on the June 7th New Jersey Republican primary election ballot.
Photo: Ocean County GOP Chairman George Gilmore announcing the election results to the county Republican leaders.
WASHINGTON — Hewlett-Packard chief executive Meg Whitman, a major contributor to Gov. Chris Christie’s ill-fated presidential campaign, called h is endorsement of businessman Donald Trump “an astonishing display of political opportunism.” In the statement, first reported by NBC News, Whitman called on other Christie supporters and donors to reject his lead. That put her at odds…
Bad news, the KKK has just endorsed Donald Trump, and BlackLivesMatter activists continue to bring up Hillary Clinton ‘s commentary in a past bid for president where she proposed tough Crime Bills for all families. Hillary Clinton was embarrassingly interrupted by a #BlackLivesMatter Activist during a fundraiser campaign. The unsuspecting activist unabashedly unraveled a t-shirt with…
The US president has said that an end to the conflict in Syria is key to dismantling the so-called Islamic State, or ISIL. Barack Obama has vowed to prevail in the fight to destroy the group. He was addressing reporters ahead of US-Russian ceasefire plan in Syria. “More people are realising that ISIL is not a…
Christie endorses Trump for presidency During a special announcement in Fort Worth Texas, Republican front runner Donald Trump announces the endorsement from Gov. Chris Christie. February 26, 2016. (Courtesy CNN) TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie is doing more than simply endorsing Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump. He’s hitting the road for the billionaire businessman and former…
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has announced his support for Donald Trump.
“It is my great honor to receive the endorsement of the Governor. We have had a wonderful relationship for many years. He is a solid person that I have tremendous respect for. I am really proud to receive the support of the Governor and his family,” Donald Trump said.
“Donald is a leader. He is a successful person that, like me, isn’t afraid to tell it like it is. Our system is broken and it won’t be fixed from the inside. I am proud to offer my endorsement of his candidacy for President,” Christie said.
TOMS RIVER-Less than one week after Toms River Township officials passed a cease and desist order against aggressive real estate agents from Lakewood Township, police here say they have arrested a man for trespassing after entering a foreclosed home.
On Wednesday, the day after the cease and desist order was enacted, numerous township police officers responded to a home on Crystal Mile Court in reference to a burglary in progress.
The residence lies just south of the Lakewood border and within the cease and desist zone.
“It was reported that a lone man was seen entering the home through a window. Upon arrival a secure perimeter was set up,” said Ralph Stocco of the Toms River Police Department. “Officers were observing through the open window and eventually saw the man emerge from the basement. He was then taken into custody. The man, Israel Feldbrand, initially claimed that an associate of his had told him that he owned the residence and that Feldbrand could go view it as a potential property to purchase. Feldbrand later stated that this man may work for a real estate company and the home may be in foreclosure.”
Stocco said investigating officers could not verify the legitimacy of Mr. Feldbrand claims and he was subsequently placed under arrest.
Mayor Thomas F. Kelaher stated, “The arrest of Mr. Feldbrand is further proof of the type of conduct taking place in Toms River by unscrupulous individuals and realtors. This type of behavior will not be tolerated and is added justification for the cease and desist ordinance unanimously approved by the Township Council on Tuesday, February 23, 2016.”
Council President Brian Kubiel adds that “This is the kind of behavior our residents have repeatedly complained about which is the reason the cease and desist ordinance was enacted. Residents should remain vigilant about the safety and security of their residences and report any suspicious activity to the Police.”
Israel Feldbrand, 36, of Twin Oaks Drive in Lakewood, was arrested at the scene and then transported to police headquarters for processing. He was charged with one count of criminal trespass and released pending a future court date.
Donald Trump is a the clear cut winner of Thursday night’s Republican debate in Houston, Texas according to a Drudge Report Poll. Of the 440,000 who took the poll, 56% felt Trump won. Ted Cruz had 20% and Marco Rubio had 16%. Trump had 247,401 votes, almost twice as many as Rubio and Cruz combined.
Trump’s showing in the polls was a result of his performance in the debate, fending off petty attacks from Cruz and Rubio and launching swift and brutal retaliations.
Former president george h. W. Bush gives an execution, neck slitting, gesture to the stage before the debate.
In a night that started off with former President George H.W. Bush’s giving giving the execution sign to his establishment candidate, Marco Rubio, it was Rubio who ended up with the most blood on the floor by the end of the night.
In an early debate volley, Trump threw his endorsement by Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s endorsement of his candidacy.
“Well, I’m very glad that Ted mentioned Arizona because probably the toughest man on borders is Sheriff Joe Arpaio, and two days ago he totally endorsed me, so, thank you,” he said to Wolf Blitzer after Ted Cruz used Arizona’s handling of the immigration crisis as a model for his own plan.
When Rubio tried to invoke the name of Mitt Romney to push his support of the Republican establishment, Trump fired back.
“I criticized Mitt Romney for losing the election. He should have won that election. He had a failed president. He ran a terrible campaign. He was a terrible candidate,” Trump said.
Rubio continued baiting Trump, criticizing a contracting firm Trump hired back in the early 1980’s Trump Tower project. Trump said he had no knowledge the contractor had hired illegal immigrants, but the case was later settled out of court in an amicable agreement for all parties involved.
But, it didn’t end with that.
“You hired some workers from Poland,” Rubio chimed.
“No, no, I’m the only one on the stage that’s hired people. You haven’t hired anybody,” Trump replied. The audience erupted in applause. “And by the way, I’ve hired — and by the way, I’ve hired tens of thousands of people over at my job. You’ve hired nobody.”
“Yes, you’ve hired a thousand from another country,” Rubio said.
“You haven’t hired one person, you liar,” Trump said.
Trump didn’t take accusations launched by Ted Cruz well either, but dished out a rebuttal that once again had the audience cheering.
After Cruz jumped on Rubio’s immigrant labor bandwagon, Trump fired directly back at Cruz.
“I’ve had an amazing relationship with politicians — with politicians both Democrat, Republican, because I was a businessman. As one magazine said, he’s a world-class businessman; he was friendly with everybody. I got along with everybody,” Trump said. “You get along with nobody. You don’t have one Republican — you don’t have one Republican senator, and you work with them every day of your life, although you skipped a lot of time. These are minor details. But you don’t have one Republican senator backing you; not one. You don’t have the endorsement of one Republican senator and you work with these people. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
On the subject of Israel, Trump said, “Well, look, my response is very simple. There is nobody on this stage that has done more for Israel than I have. Nobody. You might say, you might talk, you’re politicians, all talk, no action.”
When asked why his opponents wouldn’t be able to negotiate peace between Israel and its neighbors, Trump said Rubio and Cruz would not be able to do what most politicians before them could not do.
“What I’ve seen up here — I mean, first of all, this guy is a choke artist, and this guy is a liar. You have a combination,” Trump said about Rubio and Cruz. “For the obvious reason, and he can’t do it because he doesn’t know how to tell the truth. Other than that, I rest my case.”
Trump also made it clear that he had previously donated to the campaigns of Cruz and Rubio.
“I know politicians — I know politicians, believe it or not, better than you do. And it’s not good,” he said. “I funded you. I funded him. Can you believe it? I funded this guy. I gave him a check. You know why? I didn’t want to, but he sent me his book with his autograph.”
“Yeah, you gave me $5,000,” Cruz replied. “You’re welcome to have the check back.”
Feeling left out in the free-for-all that went on beside him all night, Dr. Ben Carson said, “Can somebody attack me, please?” His comment was met with laughter from the audience.
HOUSTON,TX-Billionaire mogul Donald Trump lashed out Thursday night at past and present Mexican heads of state who challenged his plan to make Mexico pay for a wall along the southern U.S. border.
After beating up on Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz all night, Trump turned his attention to Mexican leaders who ridiculed his plan.
Former president of Mexico, Vincente Fox said his country would never build the wall trump is talking about. He said, “I’m not going to pay for that f’ing wall.”
When asked by Blitzer how he will make Mexico pay for a border wall, Trump replied, “I will, and the wall just got 10 feet taller, believe me.”
He reiterated his stance that in one way or another, Mexico will pay for the wall to be built, managing to take a shot at Rubio and Cruz, two U.S. senators on his left and right.
“We’re going to make them pay for that wall,” he said. “Now, the wall is $10 billion to $12 billion, if I do it. If these guys [Rubio & Cruz] do it, it’ll end up costing $200 billion.”
“But the wall is $10 billion to $12 billion. You need 1,000 — you need 1,000 miles. The Great Wall of China, built 2,000 years ago — 2,000, is 13,000 miles,” Trump said. “We need 1,000, because we have a lot of natural barriers. We can do it for $10 billion to $12 billion, and it’s a real wall. This is a wall that’s a heck of a lot higher than the ceiling you’re looking at. This is a wall that’s going to work. Mexico will pay for it, because they are not doing us any favors. They could stop all of this illegal trade if they wanted to mmediately. Mexico will pay for the wall. It’s a small portion of the kind of money that we lose and the deficits that we have with Mexico.”
When asked if he would start a trade war with Mexico, Trump said if it came to it, he would because America has nothing to lose.
“Well, you know, I don’t mind trade wars when we’re losing $58 billion a year, you want to know the truth. We’re losing so much,” Trump said. “We’re losing so much with Mexico and China — with China, we’re losing $500 billion a year. And then people say, “don’t we want to trade?” I don’t mind trading, but I don’t want to lose $500 billion. I don’t want to lose $58 billion.”
Trump pointed out recent corporate moves from America to Mexico including Carrier, Ford and Nabisco.
“And I always say I’m not having Oreos anymore, which is true, by the way,” he added. “But they just took a big plant from Nabisco into Mexico. They’re taking our businesses. I don’t mind.”
Gov. Chris Christie spent about two hours with campaign workers in Morristown on Wednesday as his Facebook page announced he was quitting the presidential race. Chris Christie exits his Morristown campaign headquarters Wednesday after pulling the plug on presidential race. Image: News 12 NJ. Christie left his Speedwell Avenue campaign headquarters around 6 pm, blowing past…
After dismal performances in the Iowa and New Hampshire primaries, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie could be on the verge of hanging up the spikes.
Christie is expected to announce the suspension of his presidential campaign, according to national news sources today.
One thing the Governor failed to do was make a name for himself and make himself interesting or appealing. In that realm, the often abrasive governor was manhandled by Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. There was never an interest in Chris Christie on any level.
This is evident in Google Trends. Now, political pundits can mock the use of Google Trends in a political election, but let’s face it. Jeb Bush, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Donald Trump to date have owned all the buzz in the media.
Christie’s historic smackdown of Marco Rubio this weekend netted him more than just a blip on the radar nationwide.
Much of the investigative queries on Christie were negative. Of interest to Americans was the candidate’s weight and his post Hurricane Sandy bromance with President Obama.
The next Google Trends data shows searches for Marco Rubio. Having a better than average looking wife seems to have helped him along with his Google numbers.
When it comes to Donald Trump, again, the searches were positive. How much money does he have? What is he saying today? He has what is referred to sometimes as the Howard Stern Effect. Whether you hate or love The Donald, you always want to tune in to see what he says next.
The same went on for Bush and Cruz. Christie didn’t seem to figure himself out until Sunday, but it was too late to have any impact on a campaign that brought him criticism at home and on the road.
He also failed to improve his online market reach. His campaign page flatlined shortly after it launched.
Compared to Donald Trump’s campaign website. (Source compete.com).
Now you might say, being a political insider or pundit that this entire theory is hogwash, but ask yourself this question.. Why is your preferred candidate failing against the likes of Donald Trump. You’ll have four years to think about it and come to terms with what Americans want and how to get their attention in the age of social media and the internet. It’s not 1955 anymore and if establishment Republicans don’t get used to it, expect more of the same.
TRENTON-In a release issued today by the New Jersey Assembly Democrat, more New Jersey residents are in poverty than have been since 2008, when President Obama was elected. In fact, poverty in the Garden State has risen by 40% since Obama’s inauguration, according to the release. New Jersey Democrats have maintained a voting majority in both the New Jersey state senate and assembly during this period.
“According to a recent report by Legal Services of New Jersey, more New Jersey residents are in poverty now than in the past five decades. The agency estimates about 2.8 million adults and 800,000 children lived poverty in New Jersey 2014. That’s 40 percent higher than it was before the 2008 Great Recession,” Assembly Democrats said in a release today. “The current take home pay for a full time minimum wage worker in New Jersey is $17,430.40 a year.”
Democrats used those figures to introduce legislation to raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 per hour.
Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-Hudson), Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee Chairman John Wisniewski (D-Middlesex), Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic) and Senate Economic Growth Committee Chairman Senator Raymond J. Lesniak (D-Union) join New Jersey Working Families Alliance and a coalition of other groups at a news conference in which they call for increasing New Jersey’s minimum wage to $15 an hour.
“The legislation to increase the state minimum wage to $15 is part of the Speaker’s ongoing effort to have the General Assembly focus on ways to lift New Jersey residents out of poverty, rebuild the middle-class and make New Jersey more affordable,” they said.
They also admitted that the measure would fail help those earning $15 per hour achieve basic financial stability by $4.73 per hour.
“According to a United Way report on financial need in New Jersey, a single New Jerseyan with no children would need to earn $13.78 just to afford essential needs like food and shelter, and $19.73 to achieve basic economic stability,” they said.
