What a turnabout! Or call it: "When The Hunter becomes the Hunted."
In this case, ethically compromised council members ("Hunters") call for the creation of an Ethics Board in order to legally obtain information from the Mayor ("Hunted")... but it looks their plan has boomeranged on them! Because the mayor is on-board with it, but... it appears the ethically challenged council members are doing the moonwalk!
That's right; GA contacted the Mayor directly today-- not through surrogates-- to ask for his thoughts about the Ramos plan to create a City of Hoboken Ethics Board.
GA asked, "Do you support Ruben Ramos' call to create an Ethics Board for Hoboken?"
Mayor Bhalla replied, "Yes, I do."
"I support transparency, good government and have nothing to hide."
There you go people.
RAMOS AND DEFUSCO THREATEN MAYOR AND DO THE MOONWALK!
GA was right. It appears that Council President Ramos has realized his call to create a City of Hoboken Ethics Board was a gargantuan mistake.
At the meeting, Corporation Council told the room about the statutory requirement for Ramos and DeFusco to pass their ordinance (adding reporting requirements to the Mayor's Office); the creation of a Hoboken Ethics Board. Ramos enthusiastically embraced the idea. He ordered the City's Attorney to draft "something" for the next meeting for the creation of an autonomous Ethics Board, so the council could pass his ordinance. Councilwoman Fisher appeared to like the idea, adding that she believed council members would be choosing the ethics board appointees. In hilarious fashion, DeFusco was the only council member who understood that voting for an Ethics Board would be akin to Donald Trump calling Mueller to investigate his tax returns!
How does GA know that Ramos knows he stepped in doody?
Because yesterday Ramos-DeFusco churned out a 402-word joint-threat demanding that the mayor comply with their defective ordinance or... or... or... quit his of-counsel gig! How many words out of 402 did they discuss the formation of an Ethics Board?
SIX. And couched softly as one of other "options" (false and misleading- there are not other "options"):
If Mayor Bhalla refuses, the Council members are calling on him to resign from the law firm and they will continue to pursue all options to ensure outside employment doesn’t create a conflict with Bhalla's role as Mayor, including but not limited to the formation of an ethics board.
Really, the balls on them. Did anyone ever threaten Ruben Ramos to quit one of his 3 taxpayer-funded jobs or try to legislate him out of a job? Chutzpah. Yes, Ruben was slurping off the NJ taxpayers teats in 2008-- an unrepentant triple dipper. See for yourself:
click on Ramos' Financial Disclosure report to read
In short, both Ramos and DeFusco know the statutory cure to get the information they seek is via a local Ethics Board.
Their 402-word shakedown is how organized crime does business. Legislators are supposed to follow the law. And the law calls for the creation of an ethics board as a statutory requirement for Ruben Ramos and Mike DeFusco to get what they want from the mayor. Instead, like gangsters, they make threats.
They make threats so the public will forget about Ruben's promise for an Ethics Board.
How would a local Ethics Board serve the people of Hoboken? In so many ways. An ethics board would deter all kinds of malfeasance, such as (1) quid pro quo between council members who accept gifts of value from North Bergen, (2) $93K in violations of local Pay-to-Pay law, and (3) current Pay-to-Play violations! Just imagine the stiff fines and penalties a local Ethics Board can enforce! Just imagine the press releases when the Ethics Board drops the hammer! Hudson County bosses drooling to get contracts in Hoboken as quid pro quo for unknown favors can kiss that goodbye! And election-time vote-buying! We'll have a citizen army out there on the streets with cameras! Yeah!
Every true believer in REFORM should support Ruben's call for an Ethics Board! Let's bring it!
I think the mayor should respond by wholeheartedly endorsing an ethics board and asking the CC to work on it as soon as possible because he has some ethics complaints he would like to file against certain council members for unethical conduct going back YEARS. Should be fun to shine some sunshine on their antics.
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