HERGET, APP BACK TO SIDING WITH THE GOP

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Publication

January 29, 2007

POC: Joe Caliendo
Chairman, Middletown Democrats
8 Daniel Drive, Middletown, NJ 07748
Cell: 732-299-6470/Email: joe_caliendo@yahoo.com
Web site: http://www.democratscalling.blogspot.com

HERGET, APP BACK TO SIDING WITH THE GOP

MIDDLETOWN TOWNSHIP (MONMOUTH COUNTY, NJ): Asbury Park Press reporter Alison Herget published an article in the Bayshore Reporter on January 25, 2007 entitled “Motor vehicle agency opens new office in Hazlet.”

In that article, Ms. Herget was decidedly biased against Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Victor Scudiery, Middletown Democratic Chairman Joe Caliendo said.

While Mr. Scudiery owns Airport Plaza, where the motor vehicle agency recently opened, there has never been any finding from any governmental agency or elected official that there was any influence used by Mr. Scudiery as part of this deal. Caliendo said, “All this deal has done is saved taxpayers statewide money. Despite the Asbury Park Press making claims to the contrary, the fact is that Vic Scudiery’s plaza is just a better site for the agency and that is why the state Treasury Department made the deal. There’s also the fact that the state will spend a lot less money for relocation to his plaza also.”

Caliendo said that is it his opinion that Ms. Herget is biased toward the Monmouth County Republican Organization. “That was made clear last election when, in Middletown, the Republican chairman had unobstructed access to her while I would not even get a call on stories about the Democratic Party involving me personally. This is despite the fact I gave her all my numbers and my e-mail address. Everything has been one-side with her and with the Press, in favor of county and local Republicans. Democrats don’t get a say even when stories are about them to any degree like Republicans do. I think this is about clear partisanship.”

Caliendo said that prejudice in APP reporting is evident. “The paper even went so far as to have a reporter, Bob Jordan, work on the Scudiery storyline who had a relative with an axe to grind with county Democrats and especially Victor Scudiery,” Caliendo said. “How is that ethical, and how is that supposed to be anything like ‘best practices’ in journalism? That’s a conflict of interest.”

Caliendo added, “When it comes to Ms. Herget, she has never written a good word about any Democrat in her career. When it comes to the story she wrote in the Reporter, she was more than happy to use ‘facts’ presented by Bob Jordan. But those ‘facts’ of Mr. Jordan’s have yet to accurately give either the floor space or the accurate rent the DMV is going to pay. Likewise there is nothing by way of even intelligent speculation that anything was wrong with the Airport Plaza deal. To the contrary, all digging into this situation has proved there was no inappropriate conduct by Mr. Scudiery at all. This is about some kind of ridiculous vendetta. Someone has a grudge over in the APP, whether it is Mr. Jordan, Ms. Herget or the powers that be over in the APP. But it sure isn’t any kind of straight reporting that is going on.”

For more information, call Caliendo at (732) 299-6470.

###

SCUDIERY CALLS OUT JORDAN ON REPUBLICAN-SLANTED ARTICLE

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Publication

January 26, 2007
POC: Victor V. Scudiery
Chairman, Monmouth County Democratic Party
Tel: (732) 739-3232

SCUDIERY CALLS OUT JORDAN ON REPUBLICAN-SLANTED ARTICLE

Questions Puharic on GOP credibility on criticisms of party funding

HAZLET TOWNSHIP (MONMOUTH COUNTY, NJ): In a January 24 article written by Asbury Park Press Staff Writer Bob Jordan, the reporter wrote an advocated piece that appeared on Page A8 entitled :Treasurer: Monmouth County Dems owe chairman $150G."

In response to allegations made in the article by Jordan, Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Victor Scudiery said, "Bob Jordan is saying that I am owed $150,900. He is saying I forgave $4,000. He is saying in one paragraph in his story that "...The amount owed to Scudiery -- whose benefit from political clout was called into question when the state Motor Commission began renting space for more than $100,000 a year in a Hazlet shopping plaza he owns – has accumulated over a number of years."

In fact, Scudiery said he did lend the party over $200,000 when he took office 18 years ago as the Monmouth County Democratic chairman. "This was a promise that I made when I sought office as the county leader. I have been personally forgiving the debt and that is something that is not negative. It is not even something that is unusual in politics," Scudiery said.

Scudiery cited a written report by The Courier, a weekly Monmouth County newspaper, which stated that under former Monmouth County Republican Chairman Fred Niemann, Republicans received $200,000 in contributions and in-kind contributions from the state Republican Party, largely when it was under the leadership of Sen. Joe Kyrillos (a Monmouth County Republican).

"No one has accused Sen. Kyrillos of doing anything wrong. But, in that case, it was political contributions and not personal funds. In my case, I used my own money to back a party I believe in. I am not beholden to anyone and, as anyone in my party can tell you, I don't make anyone beholden to me," Scudiery said.

Where it involves the state Motor Vehicle Agency, Scudiery said, "Bob Jordan is trying to give the impression there was some misconduct involved. In fact, he is throwing around the fact that Rebecca Aaronson is a Democratic leader and she is a MVC manager as having something to do with this deal and there is no relationship involving Mrs. Aaronsson and this deal. The Asbury Park Press has yet to quote pricing for the space correctly, or the floor space involved, and when it comes to the bidding process, which has already been examined by governmental oversight. There was no politics involved in the move to Airport Plaza by the MVC. This deal only benefited the state of New Jersey and its taxpayers."

Scudiery said that, among other errors in stories by Jordan, the Asbury Park Press identified two towns, Matawan and Hazlet, as being represented by the 12th Legislative District. Those towns are actually represented in another legislative district. "I do not see a lot of attention to detail," Scudiery said.

Scudiery said that Bob Jordan should closely examine where he stands on this subject as a reporter, since it has been reported to Scudiery that there are family relations that Jordan has who are both political and adversarial to Scudiery. "Mr. Jordan is related to an ex-municipal chairman and county committeeperson by marriage and that person is someone whose actions I have not approved of now or in the past," Scudiery said. "I have been very vocal in my disapproval of this family member of Mr. Jordan's."

"If I was a reporter who had a relative with a problem involving a political leader, I would not write about that leader since it would be a conflict of interest involving family, in my opinion," Scudiery said. "News reporters need to have a certain distance and objectivity with what they are writing. When family is involved, how does that objectivity exist?"

Scudiery questioned Jordan's motivations and methods involved with this story, as well as the Asbury Park Press's oversight of Jordan and his work.

###

CHAIRMAN DEFENDS COUNTY CHAIR ABOUT DMV DEAL

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Publication

January 3, 2007

POC: Joseph Caliendo
Chairman, Middletown Democrats
8 Daniel Drive, Middletown, NJ 07748
Tel: (732) 299-6470/Email: joe_caliendo@yahoo.com
Web site: http://www.democratscalling.blogspot.com

NEWS MEDIA GOES AFTER SCUDIERY
OVER DMV DEAL WITHOUT CAUSE

MIDDLETOWN TOWNSHIP (MONMOUTH COUNTY, NJ): The News Media has been going after Democratic County Chairman Victor V. Scudiery recently over this Dept. of Motor Vehicles issue involving Airport Plaza, a center Mr. Scudiery owns in Hazlet, according to Middletown Democratic Chairman Joe Caliendo.

The DMV is moving from Matawan to Hazlet next week.

"Basically, for almost two years, Mr. Scudiery has been negotiating with the DMV after that state agency approached him after the site was put out to bid, and
no one bid the project, and then the state came to Mr. Scudiery about perhaps moving the DMV into his center," Caliendo said.

“No one bid the DMV because no one had the facilities to be able to handle that kind of activity in the vicinity,” Caliendo said. “Airport Plaza is really the only facility large enough and with enough parking to be able to handle this kind of activity.”

The DMV used to pay about $30 a square foot for its building in Matawan, Caliendo said. Now, the DMV is paying about $18 a square foot for its facility. “The state is saving money here and getting more parking and its closer to the Garden State Parkway, which has an exit in Keyport,” Caliendo said.

The Middletown Democratic leader reminded that Victor Scudiery is not an elected official for the public. He is a chairman of the county Democratic Party and has
been doing business as a businessman for more than 40 years in this state.

Caliendo said, “If you want to find some dirt in government, then you’re not going to find it by chasing someone who is charging the state less than its paying right now for more service, better access and a longer lease (that basically involves a 20-year
period, with options figured in).”

Caliendo countered, “Why is one individual not elected by the public being looked at like this when people like Assemblywoman Amy Handlin and Freeholder Robert
Clifton are not looked at by the News Media?”

Caliendo said that Amy Handlin worked for years on one of the most corrupt Freeholder Boards in the state and watched corruption take hold of this county for years as an elected official without doing anything about it. Robert Clifton is someone who has been proved to have taken wheeled money from a Middlesex County developer, who was doing business in his town, when he was a Matawan mayor, Caliendo said.

Caliendo said, "Mr. Clifton named this developer the “Lead Redeveloper” for a train station project when this Clifton was still serving on the municipal level. He gave the $5,000 in wheeled money back to the PAC after he was found to have it, but in the meantime he made a big deal about some big ethical campaign he was running during his election. And, he was running with Amy Handlin as his running mate at the time."

Caliendo said, "This Airport Plaza deal saves the taxpayers money, it was done in the right kind of way and it makes sense. It makes a lot more sense than elected officials turning a blind eye to criminal behavior for years, contractors being in elected office on the county level working government contracts in the county, and having someone who has a campaign finance problem sitting in charge of the county.

The News Media is singling out Victor Scudiery and trying to make something that is not political that way, but turning a blind eye to the real problems in government here in Monmouth County, Caliendo said.

30

_________________________________________