This week in Hoboken politics

And for some notable events that occured this week in Hoboken's politosphere.

DEFUSCO LOCKED OUT OF MARINE VIEW PLAZA MEETING

Tuesday night: PACKED MVP community meeting...

...and DeFusco loitering outside, barred by a vibrant bouncer

Lightning can strike twice!

Last Tuesday evening, over 100 Marine View Plaza residents packed their community room for updates on the December fires, and to learn about inspections of their heating/cooling units.  

This meeting was called by MVP management, who invited selected public officials-- including Hoboken Mayor Bhalla. Councilman Mike DeFusco was not selected. Rumor has it that MVP management intended to DeFusco-proof the meeting by scheduling it at a time the councilman was unavailable-- on the night of his own 2019 campaign Kick-Off fundraiser. 

Well, the Councilman was so livid about it that on the way to his Kick-Off, he stopped by Marine View Plaza where he was barred from the meeting by a vibrant security officer*.

*kidding...

SACCO EMISSARY TOM DEGISE ATTENDS DEFUSCO FUNDRAISER (WITH DARK SIDE LUMINARIES!)

Oh, boy. County Executive Tom DeGise sure gave the Middle Finger Salute to Hoboken's Mayor Bhalla!  Yep, DeGise really showed up to the re-election Kick-Off of Bhalla's chief antagonist, Mike DeFusco.

Of course, his presence was symbolic! DeGise doesn't pick his nose without permission from North Bergen political boss, Nick Sacco. Hence, DeGise let Hudson County know that Sacco's Machine is with Mike DeFusco; #ImWithHim. 

Hey, no big surprise. That's how they roll.

Of course, they'd go with the candidate who'd skip his municipality's Planning Board meetings to shill for variances in Jersey City for a donor's 13-story high-rise. Of course they'd go with the guy who took $1,200 from a Planning Board applicant, then tried to change Hoboken's zoning ordinance to increase lot coverage. Naturally, they'd pick the guy with the shameless appetite for PAC and Union money, eithout regard for NJ campaign contribution limits. 

And no wonder Carmelo Garcia,  Angel Alicea, and "The Hair" were there, too.  Ruben Ramos and Vanessa Falco were the only Council members in attendance. But...  rumor has it that DeFusco's prospective slate-mates are counting on him to carry ($) their campaigns, as once upon a time they rode Dawn Zimmer's ($) coat tails.

Now that Sacco's put his finger on the scale, it's safe to assume that it's not for the view. Fat, juicy contracts, patronage hires. Doesn't  Councilwoman Jen Giattino owe Sacco for taking the "free" Ryglicki opinion? 

CUNNINGHAM GETS THE RAMOS CRONY'S HOSPITAL BOARD SEAT

On Wednesday, Councilman Peter Cunningham was appointed to the HUMC Board of Trustees. Yep, thanks to Councilwoman Emily Jabbour's due diligence, Ramos' crony was expunged from the seat he was illegally-gifted by Ruben Ramos. 

Good. 

Board seats are not for hacks to give out to cronies like Halloween candy. 

But predictably, a dark, equine apparition who carries River Styx water for the Dark Side has been pimping fake news about the Cunningham appointment. To set the record straight...

No, Mike Russo was NOT the first appointee to the HUMC Board seat after the hospital sale. What a dope. Facts are not hard to find for those who look.  Anthony Pasquale was the first to hold the "Council designee" seat. He appointed by the "Council minority"-- a make-believe entity fabricated by Councilwoman Beth Mason.  It was only after Pasquale stepped down, that Ramos slid in his crony, Eduardo Gonzalez.

And no, Russo was nobody's pick. I'm personally glad Peter is on the hospital board; at least he's not a f*ck-up, like... 

CAMPOS SLAMMED WITH HEFTY ELEC FINE

On Thursday, we learned that time, tide and ELEC wait for no man; Campos got nailed for 12 year-old campaign reporting violations. 

Why did these take so long? Perhaps it was Campos' arrest for his role in the $7M car loan scam that got ELEC's attention. Does that mean that the recent federal indictment of Frank Raia will have NJ-ELEC scouring his campaign finance reports?

Funny how that works... when it rains indictments, it pours ELEC investigations.