Tom Wilson Proves Corzine's Point

[Kire]

Check out this letter from the chair of the NJ-GOP.

Is this genuine outrage? I think not.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: TOM WILSON
FEBRUARY 11, 2005 [phone]

GOP Calls on Corzine To Apologize For Mudslinging
--Campaign “Talking Points” Encourage Dem’s to Make Personal Attack--

Trenton, NJ – New Jersey Republican Chairman Tom Wilson sent Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Jon S. Corzine the attached letter via fax today asking him to apologize to Republican candidate Doug Forrester for a personal attack his campaign encouraged supporters to make in “talking points” issued by the campaign (attached).

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February 11, 2005

Jon S. Corzine
1 Gateway Center
11th Floor
Newark, 07102

Dear Senator Corzine:

Today, your campaign issued “talking points” to your supporters (attached) which included the following statement:

“The GOP’s hypocrisy is ridiculous, their outrage is about as genuine as Doug Forrester’s smile.”

Senator Corzine, I hope you would agree that personal attacks on in individual running for office have absolutely no place in politics. I cannot imagine that you approved these so called talking points before they were issued.

You have the responsibility to send a clear message that you reject and will not tolerate such baseless and demeaning mudslinging from anyone on your staff or anyone within the Democratic Party organization that you now head by virtue of being your party’s nominee for Governor. I respectfully request that you issue a public apology to Mr. Forrester for this vicious personal attack and terminate the individual responsible for this cheap, undignified, personal attack.

I know that you share my goal of a campaign that is based on issues, not personal attacks. I look forward to putting this unfortunate incident behind us and proceeding with a spirited debate of the issues.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Tom Wilson

http://www.politicsnj.com/wilson021105a.htm

[GetTheRightVote]

1. Do you have a number for Sen. Corzine, I would like to hug him

It is about time that the Dems start fighting back and not apologize for it either. To bad so sad if we hurt your feelings you pack of liers. Though I would try to better state it in the future.

:kick:

[Kahuna]

2. I want a number for Tom Wilson. My message to him:

You'll get an apology when pigs fly.

[TreasonousBastard]

3. Pot, meet Kettle.

[karynnj]

4. After the last year's Republican slime machine

he wants Corzine to apologize for criticizing Forrester's smile? I would be way more sympathetic if the Republican's had limited their personal attacks on John Kerry and his wife to criticizing their smiles. (Though I think it's hard to beat Kerry's grin).

Nothing as dirty of despicable has ever happened in NJ politics compared to disparaging smiles.

[Kire]

5. More on Tom Wilson.

For Immediate Release Contact: Andrew Poag

February 11, 2005 Office: 609-392-3367

Cell: 609-744-9060
State GOP Was Against Ethics Reforms
Before They Were For Them

Trenton, NJ - Eight years after Christie Whitman (the queen bee of pay-to-play) last ran for office, her former Campaign Manager, Tom Wilson, is now the state Republican chairman – and he’s begun lecturing the voters of the state on ethics. A little bit, ironic? We think so. The state GOP may have forgotten about the EZ Pass and Parsons scandals but the people of New Jersey haven’t.

In 1998 the Republican Administration awarded a $463 million no bid contract to Parson Infrastructure and Technology to run New Jersey’s recently privatized auto inspection program. It was later revealed that this no bid contract was awarded in exchange for $250,000 in contributions to state GOP campaigns. Adding insult to injury the program was grossly mismanaged.

The inspection system proved to be a disaster for New Jersey’s drivers from its start. Drivers “fumed in lines 20 cars deep” at more than 30 inspection stations across the state beginning in Dec. 1999.

Then came EZ Pass, another republican state contract mired in pay to play scandal. Instead of putting the contract out to bid, it was revealed that State Transportation Commissioner Frank Wilson helped steer the $500 million dollar contract towards MFS Network Technologies in exchange for a private sector employment. Once again, poor contracting led to mismanagement and countless problems.

“When the state signed the $500 million E-ZPass contract with MFS Network Technologies in 1998, officials predicted that the system would be $34.9 million in the black by 2008 and that there would be no cost to the public… However, the new projections… show a $64.8 million deficit in eight years.”

During their ten-year rule the GOP didn’t do a thing to curb the pay to play problems they crow so loudly about today. Now to show their commitment to “reform” the state GOP has hired a former lobbyist to head their party.

GOP Chair Tom Wilson passed in and out of the “revolving door” from a job in lobbying state government to a job working for state government and then back to lobbying in just four short years. Upon Wilson’s exit from Acting Governor Difrancesco’s office he immediately registered as a lobbyist and engaged in several contracts with clients who lobby the state government.



At the time when Mr. Wilson was asked whether or not New Jersey needed additional “revolving door” lobbying rules Mr. Wilson Replied, “There are plenty of rules and guidelines.”

State Democratic Party spokesman Andrew Poag offered the following, “The state GOP is a lobbyist led party that set the high watermark for pay to play and didn’t propose a single ethics reform during their ten years in power. They’re rife with hypocrisy.”

A brief history of Wilson’s abuse of the “revolving door”:

1997: Tom Wilson serves as Campaign Manager for Gov. Whitman’s re-election.

January 1998 to February 2001: Lobbyist Employment

Tom Wilson is a partner with The Strategy Group, a Trenton public relations and lobbying firm

February 2001 to December 2001: Government Employment

Tom Wilson leaves his lobbying post and immediately becomes Communications Director for Acting Gov. DiFrancesco.

January 2002: Returns to Lobbyist Employment

Tom Wilson returns to his position as partner with The Strategy Group and re-registers himself as a lobbyist by the 2nd quarter of 2002. http://www.elec.state.nj.us/pdffiles/Lobby_Qtr/Part_2%20.pdf >

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[njdemocrat106]

6. "Their outrage is about as genuine as Doug Forrester’s smile"

LOL! So true. Forrester always looks peeved, IMO.