Did you attend the Coronation of David R. Mayer? Scheduled to place the crown upon Mr. Mayer was none other than our illustrious Senator Robert Menendez. The published list of luminaries was extensive and lacked only one thing… a Republican. Within the published Agenda of the 2014 Re-Org Meeting of the Gloucester Township Council was a list of those to receive township appointments for 2014. Each and every coveted appointment was garnered through hard work and was well deserved and, since you might not have seen the list, I have gathered the information here for you.
Jack Kennedy : Chief Prosecutor/Municipal Prosecutor (1 yr)
Part of Wade, Long, Wood & (Jack) Kennedy LLC
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $14,500.00
Archer & Greiner : General Labor Counsel (1 year)
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $5,200.00
Capehart & Scatchard : Spl. Counsel-Workman's Comp (1 yr)
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $7,000.00
Acacia Financial Group : Financial Advisory Services (1 year)
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $6,900.00
J. Timothy Kernan : Spl. Engineer - Sidewalks (1 year)
2012-13 Democrat Contributions = $500.00
Remington & Vernick Engineering Inc.
Spl. Engineer - Streets (1 year)
2013-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $64,000.00
Pettit Associates, Inc. : Spl. Engineer - Recreation (1 year)
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $10,500.00
CES Engineers : Spl. Engineers - Storm Drainage (1 year)
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $9,200.00
United Computer : Computer Networking Consultant (1 year)
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $4,700.00
Blue Sky Power : Energy Consultant (1 year)
2012-13 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $2,000.00
T & M Associates : Redevelopment Planner/Architect (1 year)
2012 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $1,000.00
J.F. McKernan : Architect (1 year)
2013 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $500.00
The Koluri Group : Economic Development Consultant (1 yr)
2013 Democrat Campaign Contributions = $1,000.00
And they say money can’t buy you love. I think all this money bought a whole lotta love as in Kojak’s “Who loves ya, baby?” The list above is in no way exhaustive or complete, it’s really just what I came up with at the last moment. In fact, it does not define any actual contracts awarded so in one sense the appointment is just the gateway drug that leads one into the lucrative world of township contracts. Imagine what an engineering firm that contributes $64,000 in an election cycle anticipates in township work. The only way R & V could have funneled more money to the winning candidates would have been for R & V to establish its own independent PAC.
The above listed contributions were made over the last election cycle which comprised 2012 and 2013. Some of the contributions were made directly to David Mayer’s campaign and others were made to Democrat PACs in Gloucester Township formed by friends of the mayor specifically to support the mayor.
Why would contributions be made to a PAC instead of directly to the campaign? One reason is because the legal limit of contributions made to the campaign had been reached so additional money can only be contributed through a PAC. The PAC can then funnel its campaign chest into the candidate’s general campaign fund thus skirting the limits imposed by the law. This happened in at least one instance above. You should be able to see which engineering firm did that; follow the money.
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Another reason to give all or a portion of one’s contributions to a PAC would be to mask such contributions. If a contractor bidding on township contracts did not want it easily known that it gave $5,000, $7,500, $10,000 or more to a candidate, the answer is to contribute a portion to a PAC knowing full well that the PAC will eventually roll its unused funds into the candidate’s general campaign fund. And that’s exactly what each of the GT PACs did prior to the election. All this is public knowledge and can be found by anyone willing to invest a little time but the campaign financiers would really rather you didn’t.
Oh, just in case I offended anybody’s sensibilities with all this talk about free-flowing and, in my personal opinion, illicit monies…
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