Bobby Can’t Voo Doo Like Drew Do Voo Doo

Keyport Thursdays Kicks Off With 2000+ Visitors At Stronger Than The Storm Throwdown

With over 2000 Superstorm Sandy survivors cheering him on, Drew Araneo had the home field advantage in the Voo Doo Shrimp Throw Down against celebrity chef Bobby Flay as the Keyport Bayshore Business Cooperative kicked off their Keyport Thursdays promotion with a big assist from the State of New Jersey’s Stronger Than The Storm campaign.

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O’Scanlon Bill Increases Penalties For Phoney Robocalls

Wake voters up with a 4am robocall purporting to be your political opponents and you could go to jail for 3-5 years if legislation proposed by Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon becomes law.

Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon

O’Scanlon and his colleague, Assemblyman Scott Rumana of Wayne, have proposed amending the “Fair Campaign Practices Act,” to provide that no person can direct, order or assist another person to produce, transmit or disseminate any communication that purports to originate from the campaign of a candidate for public office but is actually for the purpose of impeding the campaign of that candidate.  Such activity would become a third degree crime which calls for a 3 to 5 year prison term and a fine of up to $15,000.

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Money Can’t Buy Love For Pallone

Congressman Frank Pallone has the weakest support of the four candidates vying the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, according to a Kean University poll released yesterday, three weeks into the ten week campaign for the nod.

Of the 366 likely Democratic voters Kean surveyed, only 6% say they will vote for Pallone of August 13.  49% say they favor Newark Mayor Cory Booker.  Congressman Rush Holt and State Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver each are supported by 9%.  5% favor an other candidate and 22% are unsure.

In a June 10 Quinnipiac poll that did not include Oliver, Pallone came in last with 9% to Booker’s 53% and Holt’s 10%.

Both polls were taken before Pallone asked for and received MoreMonmouthMusings endorsement.

Pallone had $3.7 million in campaign cash as of his March filing with the Federal Election Commission.  Booker had $1.6 million and Holt had $797 thousand.

Steve Lonegan is leading Dr. Alieta Eck, 45%-15% among the 321 Republican voters Kean surveyed.

Governor Christie’s approval rating is 70% and wins reelection over State Senator Barbara Buono by 30 points, according to the Kean poll.

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Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County This Weekend, June 28-30, 2013

SPONSORED BY SEASTREAK

By Greg Kelly

Friday, June 28

• Colts Neck Country Fair – MORE INFO

• Jersey Shore Greek Festival (Ocean Twp) – MORE INFO

• Happy at NJ Repertory Theatre (Long Branch) – MORE INFO

• Courtney Love at The Stone Pony (Asbury Park) – MORE INFO

• Present Laughter at TRT (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

• Wall Township Fair – MORE INFO

• Pier Village Sidewalk Sale (Long Branch) – MORE INFO

• Lone Ramblers Country Rock (Belmar) – MORE INFO

• David Byrne & St. Vincent at Count Basie Theatre (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

• Peace, Love & Art! (Middletown) – MORE INFO

• Sport Literature Association Conference at Monmouth U (WLB) – MORE INFO

• Rumson-Fair Haven Run – MORE INFO

• Ice Cream Sundae & Boat Tour (Howell) – MORE INFO

• Seining at the Bayshore (Port Monmouth) – MORE INFO

• Nancy Scharff God & Country Concert (MIddletown) – MORE INFO

• New Jersey State Fair (Meadowlands) – MORE INFO

*     *     *

Saturday, June 29

• Wall Township Fair – MORE INFO

• Summer Flea Market at Allaire Village – MORE INFO

• NY Mets vs. Nationals via Seastreak Ferry (Highlands) – MORE INFO

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Who Makes The Best Vodoo Shrimp? #STTS

Drew Araneo

The Food Network’s Chef Bobby Flay will face off in a Voodoo Shrimp Throw Down against Keyport’s Drew Araneo of Drew’s Bayshore Bistro  Thursday afternoon at Keyport’s Waterfront on American Legion Drive.

The event sponsored by New Jersey Stronger than the Storm and the Keyport Bayfront Business Cooperative starts at 2PM.  The gates open at 1pm.  Bring a chair.

Governor Chris Christie will be on hand to kick off the festivities. The Culinary MC, Billy Harris is the Master of Ceremonies.

Disco Queen Gloria Gaynor will survive as a celebrity judge and never says good bye to good shrimp.  James Oseland, editor-in-chef of Saveur Magazine and former NBA star Darryl Dawkins will also be celebrity judges.

There is no charge to attend the event.

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SCOTUS: Same Sex Marriage Is Legal In California

The Supreme Court of the United States ruled on jurisdictional grounds that the Supreme Court of California had the right to overturn the Proposition 8 referendum to amended the State’s which made same sex marriage illegal.

The effect of the ruling is that same sex marriage is legal in California.

From SCOTUSblog:

Here’s a Plain English take on Hollingsworth v. Perry, the challenge to the constitutionality of California’s Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage:  After the two same-sex couples filed their challenge to Proposition 8 in federal court in California, the California government officials who would normally have defended the law in court, declined to do so.  So the proponents of Proposition 8 stepped in to defend the law, and the California Supreme Court (in response to a request by the lower court) ruled that they could do so under state law.  But today the Supreme Court held that the proponents do not have the legal right to defend the law in court.  As a result, it held, the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the intermediate appellate court, has no legal force, and it sent the case back to that court with instructions for it to dismiss the case

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Supreme Court Declares DOMA Unconstitutional

The United States Supreme Court has the struck down the Defense of Marriage Act as an unconstitutional violation of the 5th Amendment’s protection of equal liberty.

“DOMA singles out a class of persons deemed by a State entitled of recognition and protection to enhance their own liberty.”

“The federal statute is invalid, for no legitimate purpose overcomes the purpose and effect to disparage and injure those whom the State, by its marriage laws, sought to protect in personhood and dignity.  By seeking to displace this protection and treating those persons as living in marriages less respected than others.”

The 5-4 decision was written by Justice Anthony Kennedy.

The Court’s 76 page decision can be downloaded here.

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Congressman Chris Smith: FEMA OK’s 90% Reimbursements For Towns Hit By Superstorm Sandy

FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, left, and Congressman Chris Smith, center, meet with their staff members in Smith’s office on June 6, 2013

FEMA will be reimbursing New Jersey towns impacted by Superstorm Sandy 90% of their cleanup and rebuilding costs, Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ4) announced on Tuesday evening.

The approval will provide an immediate and additional $262 million for already obligated funding and it will cover all additional local government approved funding.  Funds will cover: Public Assistance Grant emergency work and permanent work including debris removal; emergency protective measures; road systems and bridges; water control facilities; buildings; contents and equipment; utilities, and; parks.

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More Monmouth Musings Endorses Frank Pallone

We received an email from Frank Pallone today asking for our endorsement.

Dear Art,

I need your endorsement. The support of friends like you is what has allowed me to fight for the issues that matter most to New Jersey families. But fighting is not enough. We need true leadership in Washington that stands up for what is right. ….

Congressman, we’re honored that you asked. We’re happy to accept.

MoreMonmouthMusings hereby endorses Congressman Frank Pallone in the Democratic Special Senate Primary on August 13.

Pallone has the best of the slim chances to defeat Newark Cory Booker for the nomination.

If Pallone is the Democratic nominee in the Special Senate Election on October 16, the Republican nominee, either Steve Lonegan or Dr. Alieta Eck, would have a much better chance of winning, than if Booker is the nominee.

Booker has been endorsed by the Essex County Democratic machine and the South Jersey/George Norcross Democratic machine.  If Pallone beats Booker, Essex County Executive Joe DiVincenzo and Norcross won’t have a U.S. Senator at their beck and call.  Pallone won’t owe them.  He’s never been much of a team player with them.  He certainly wouldn’t be beholden to them if he beats Booker.

In that case, Norcross and DiVencenzo might sit out the October 16 Special Election or secretly help the Republican nominee win, figuring that Pallone would be finished if he lost to Lonegan or Eck.  They would then make sure Booker gets the 2014 Democratic nomination and count on winning the Senate seat in 2014.

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Buono’s Daughter Comes Out Against Christie

Tessa Bitterman, State Senator Barbara Buono’s 23 year old daughter, sent a fundraising email to her mother’s supporters this morning where in she declared she is gay and blasted Governor Chris Christie for vetoing same sex marriage.

Growing up, my mom was always there for me no matter what. I’m gay and from an early age I felt free to express myself with my mother, knowing she would always support me for who I am.

As a gay American I have a stake in what our governor says about marriage equality. And I have been deeply shocked by Chris Christie. As governor, he has been a giant roadblock to New Jersey achieving equality for all. By failing to support marriage equality, Christie is blatantly delegitimizing an entire group of people.

I have also seen Chris Christie misrepresent himself as a moderate to New Jersey – that’s why it’s even more important to stop him before he takes his radical show on the road when he goes national after this election.

My mom is facing a huge deadline on June 30th at midnight. If we want to stop Christie – if we want to keep his politics of polarizing and dividing people from spreading beyond New Jersey – we’ve got to click here and donate to my mom’s campaign before the big deadline on Sunday.

Now that Christie is running for re-election, he is more than happy to try and portray himself as a moderate. But the truth is – his record scares me. It scares me because if he takes his brand of deception national, all Americans are in for a rude awakening.

It might not seem like a lot but anything you donate now will go a long way. Can you click here and donate today?

Thanks,

Tessa

Bitterman, of San Francisco, California, is Buono’s daughter by her first husband, Lawrence Bitterman.

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