In the Cross Hairs

New Jersey and corruption are indeed perfect together as ongoing investigations into various politicians continues. However, why is it that the political affiliation of those politicians buried deep into articles?

The road doesn't end with Sharpe James' indictment.

Still in the cross hairs of federal prosecutors are a half-dozen members of the state Legislature, including Sen. Joseph Coniglio of Bergen County, as well as U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of Hoboken and people connected to the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in Newark. State Sen. Wayne Bryant, who was in federal court Friday, is awaiting trial.

For those suspected of using taxpayer money for personal benefit, it's an inconvenient truth: More than at any other time in the past three decades, public corruption has been a primary focus of federal and state crime fighters.

"I think scrutiny on corrupt politicians is as intense as it's ever been," said Walter Timpone, a defense attorney and former federal prosecutor. "And politicians ought to be cautious to look carefully at their actions before those actions cause them to cross lines -- either intentionally or unintentionally."

James, the former mayor of Newark and a sitting state senator, is only the most recent public official tagged by U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie, a Republican who has netted more than 100 public-corruption convictions in six years, including some of the state's most powerful politicians.

A grand jury indicted James on Thursday on charges of using taxpayer dollars to take lavish trips to exotic locales and charging them to city credit cards. It also charged him with defrauding taxpayers by selling discounted city land for profits -- in part, benefiting a female companion.

Christie was asked whether the former five-term mayor of New Jersey's largest city was his biggest catch.

"We don't rank 'em, we don't rate 'em," he replied. "What I hope it shows is that no matter how long you're in office, no matter how powerful you're perceived to be, that we will chase down every lead. And if we believe we have proof we'll bring cases against you."

The quarry includes Coniglio, a Democrat who lives in Paramus, where he formerly served on the Borough Council. Christie's office is investigating whether the retired plumber used his Senate post to steer more than $1 million in taxpayer dollars to Hackensack University Medical Center at the same time the hospital employed him as a consultant.

Coniglio insists he has done nothing wrong. Asked during a March interview whether he played a role in steering grants to the hospital, he said, "No." He later said, "I don't recall."

Bryant, a Camden County Democrat who sat on the Senate's powerful Budget and Appropriations committee with Coniglio, was indicted in March on charges that he steered millions in state tax dollars to UMDNJ in exchange for a "no-work" job.

His attorney, Carl Poplar, said Friday that no plea deal is on the table, and that Bryant, who has pleaded not guilty, is gearing up for a scheduled January trial.

Others under scrutiny include state Assemblyman Brian Stack, the Democratic mayor of Union City. Prosecutors have subpoenaed records while examining whether he steered taxpayers' dollars to build a park next to his wife's day care center.

Stack and his wife, Katia, have acknowledged that the mayor played a role in grants that also benefited the day-care center that she directs. But they say the money was earmarked for construction -- and, therefore, separate from the director's salary.

The mayor said last spring that he welcomes a complete and thorough review, which he predicted would "put this thing to rest once and for all."

Another Union City property that has attracted Christie's interest is a house owned by Menendez that was rented by a social services agency. Prosecutors are probing whether Menendez, a Democrat, helped secure federal tax money for the agency.

I've highlighted the political affiliations from the article. We quickly learn that the prosecutor investigating the matters is a Republican, but only later do we learn that most of the targets are Democrats.

I completely understand that New Jersey's political scene is heavily tilted towards Democrats - they outnumber Republicans on voter rolls statewide, and Democrats have had strong showings in elections around the state. However, that is not a reason to bury the political affiliations.

It's also a matter of statistics - more Democrats will be the focus of corruption scandals in New Jersey simply because there are more Democrats in office. That should not give them a pass on the issue and voters shouldn't simply write this off as business as usual in New Jersey. Those soft expectations only harm New Jersey's long term fiscal stability and when politicians engage in corruption, bribery, and fraud, they are stealing from taxpayers. It hits you in the pocket.

When Sharpe James helped out one of his girlfriends by giving them a sweet deal on property in Newark, she flipped a small investment and turned it into a profit of hundreds of thousands of dollars. James spread the largess around to his friends and cronies and Newark suffered for it.

UPDATE:
Sharpe James is working the crowds as though he's campaigning to stay out of jail. The paper trail says something quite different. He was giving his friends and cronies sweetheart deals and they profited from the close relationships. Credit cards issued for the City of Newark were used for personal trips and purchases - and never reimbursed.

If he's trying to sway the jury pool with this nonsense, then the prosecutor may well have to seek another venue to assure an impartial jury.