McGreevey not gone yet
and won’t be for a while — last Saturday‘s NYTimes:
IN the waning days and weeks of his aborted administration, Governor McGreevey has drawn unwelcome attention – including from his successor, Senate President Richard J. Codey – by making nearly 200 nominations for an array of prestigious, sensitive and sometimes lucrative public positions, although it has evoked little in the way of a public outcry.
As far as lack of “public outcry” goes, it’s probably related to a lack of reporting. As visitors to this blog can see, I’ve been following McGreevey stories for a while and these appointments haven’t exactly been taking up a lot of dead-tree and ink, but may I remind you that many, if not most, of the appointees will qualify for state pensions. A few appointees have been mentioned, among them James P. Fox, the governor’s chief of staff; Michael DeCotiis, the chief counsel; and Kevin Hagan, the executive director of the state’s Democratic Party. Rutgers Student Council members have spoken against another McGreevey appointee
A group of students at the state university, led by the president of the student government association, objected to the naming of George Zoffinger, the president of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and a political ally of Mr. McGreevey, on the ground that he is already on the board of the New Brunswick Development Corporation, a nonprofit agency that funnels public and private investment into projects in the city. In other words, his opponents complained, in the natural order of town versus gown, Mr. Zoffinger would have a difficult time straddling both camps.
The Star Ledger opines on the subject, agreeing with the students.
The Star Ledger, however, has so much as admitted that it kept information from the public regarding The Governor’s Secret Life
On Oct. 21, 1997, after a gubernatorial debate, a Star-Ledger reporter confronted McGreevey about Rosa’s allegations. He burst into tears and said he knew about the claims, but he vehemently denied them.
Two days later, a Jersey City lawyer, Daniel Welsh, faxed the newspaper a letter saying he represented Rosa and that she was retracting her story.
The Star-Ledger tracked down Rosa on Oct. 29, 1997, at Lucky 7 Bail Bonds, where she had purportedly found a job. The company, she said, was sending her to Florida for a seminar. Crying, she asked to be left alone.
Given Rosa’s retraction through the Jersey City lawyer and the proximity of the election, The Star-Ledger did not print the story. Four years later, on April 26, 2001, Rosa died of a drug overdose in Philadelphia.
I’ve been reading the Star Ledger for decades now and can assure you that the SL’s not above printing details of the private lives of what they consider public figures — the Johnson family (of Jasna Polyana) comes to mind. Roberto has a few comments on this.
McGreevey’s scheduled to deliver a farewell speech to his staff and supporters in Trenton on Monday — one week before he leaves office, and he moved out Friday. No letter of resignation has been signed yet.
