aGameOfThrones
02-14-2014, 12:31 AM
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New Jersey is giving Illinois a run for its money as America’s most corrupt state. Four of the past eight governors from the Land of Lincoln have landed in the pokey, and Chris Christie could share their fate if the worst comes to pass out of recent scandals.
Even without Christie in the clink, senators, congressmen, county bosses, and mayors of almost every major city in New Jersey have been convicted of crimes. What gives? Why does New Jersey government seem like it’s run by the Sopranos?
As the former mayor of Fort Lee, I have some personal insight into New Jersey corruption. In 1974, I turned down a $500,000 bribe from developers linked to the mob to rezone 17 acres adjacent to the George Washington Bridge right where the access lanes were closed this past September in “Bridgegate.” The land was zoned single-family residential, and the developers wanted to build 3,000,000 square feet of retail, hotel, and office space. Had they gotten their way, the $500,000 bribe would have been chump change compared to the tens of millions of dollars they would have made.
New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the nation. Almost 9 million people live in New Jersey, yet you could fit a sizeable chunk of the state into Yosemite National Park in California. Years ago, a rocket was shot and lost in Nevada. It took searchers almost two weeks to find the errant missile. Imagine a rocket being lost in New Jersey. Within seconds of hitting the ground, millions of residents would be calling in with its exact location.
More at link: http://news.yahoo.com/why-jersey-corrupt-104500949--politics.html
New Jersey is giving Illinois a run for its money as America’s most corrupt state. Four of the past eight governors from the Land of Lincoln have landed in the pokey, and Chris Christie could share their fate if the worst comes to pass out of recent scandals.
Even without Christie in the clink, senators, congressmen, county bosses, and mayors of almost every major city in New Jersey have been convicted of crimes. What gives? Why does New Jersey government seem like it’s run by the Sopranos?
As the former mayor of Fort Lee, I have some personal insight into New Jersey corruption. In 1974, I turned down a $500,000 bribe from developers linked to the mob to rezone 17 acres adjacent to the George Washington Bridge right where the access lanes were closed this past September in “Bridgegate.” The land was zoned single-family residential, and the developers wanted to build 3,000,000 square feet of retail, hotel, and office space. Had they gotten their way, the $500,000 bribe would have been chump change compared to the tens of millions of dollars they would have made.
New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the nation. Almost 9 million people live in New Jersey, yet you could fit a sizeable chunk of the state into Yosemite National Park in California. Years ago, a rocket was shot and lost in Nevada. It took searchers almost two weeks to find the errant missile. Imagine a rocket being lost in New Jersey. Within seconds of hitting the ground, millions of residents would be calling in with its exact location.
More at link: http://news.yahoo.com/why-jersey-corrupt-104500949--politics.html