Murphy puts the brakes on sports betting at NJ racetracks despite legislature’s green light

Don’t count on placing a bet on the NBA Finals or the Yankees/Mets subway series games this weekend at Monmouth Park.  Governor Phil Murphy has not signed the bill regulating sports betting that passed the legislature unanimously yesterday and the New Jersey Racing Commission, which Murphy controls, warned the state’s three tracks not to take bets before he does, according to a NJ.com report.

Following the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning the nationwide sports betting ban, except for Nevada, Dennis Drazin of Monmouth Park announced he was prepared to start taking bets at the William Hill Race and Sports Bar on Memorial Day. New Jersey already had a law on the books, and a state constitutional amendment, that allows sports betting, so with the federal ban overturned by SCOTUS, there was no legal barrier to accepting bets.

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Welle Underperforms Against Keady, Smith Overperforms Unopposed

By Art Gallagher

While much of the media is reporting how poorly U.S. Senator Bob Menendez performed in the  Democrat primary yesterday, I couldn’t miss how poorly Josh Welle, address none of your business, performed against former Asbury Park Councilman Jim Keady, Spring Lake, in the 4th congressional district primary.

With all three county party lines, more money and the endorsement of his former landlord, State Senator and honorary volunteer firefighter Vin Gopal, Welle only got 57% of the vote against Keady’s 43%.

Congressman Chris Smith, Hamilton, overperformed expectations, especially given that he was unopposed in the CD-4 Republican primary.

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Murphy could hold sports betting bill as a chip to play in budget negotiations

The William Hill Sports Race & Sports Book at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, New Jersey. Photo By Bill Denver/EQUI-PHOTO.

Dennis Drazin and his partners at Monmouth Park were ready to accept sports bets on Memorial Day weekend.  They wisely didn’t after Senate President Steve Sweeney announced he was inserting a provision in the state legislation regulating sports betting that would prohibit anyone who took bets before the regulations were passed from getting a license.

Sweeney was looking out for the Atlantic City Casinos who weren’t ready to take bets yet.   In the meantime, Delaware passed their spots betting regulations and bets will start being taken there today.  New Jersey loses out again.

What was considered a two or three week delay while legislation was passed now threatens to deprive New Jersey’s racetracks and casinos of sports betting revenue, and the related jobs, for a third or more of their summer season.  According to a report on Politico, Governor Murphy is prepared to hold the sports betting bill as a chip to play as he negotiates his first state budget with the more moderate Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin.

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Congratulations to Senator Gopal…

…for complying with the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, as interpreted by U.S. Judge Naomi Buchwald, and unblocking MMM’s Art Gallagher before U.S. Senator Cory Booker unblocked Save Jersey’s @MattRooneyNJ.

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What if Menendez resigns?

It’s not considered likely that Senator Bob Menendez will resign as a result of the bi-partisan admonishment he received from the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics.  NJ and Washington Democrats have become a much more forgiving people since Senator Bob Torricelli was forced out of office after his admonishment 16 years ago.

As Bret Stephens wrote in a Trump bashing piece in the NY Times yesterday, America’s standards have declined over the years.   Menendez’s admonishment for trading the power of his office for luxury travel and massive campaign contributions will likely blow over as the Democrats and their media partners continue their mission to destroy the Trump presidency.

But what if the Russian collusion with the Senate Ethics Committee works and Menendez decides to take a job running Dr. Salomon Melgen’s port security business in the Dominican Republic while looking over his luxury villa?

If Menendez resigns, Governor Phil Murphy gets to appoint someone to fill the vacancy until January. That person would run in Menendez’s place for a six year term in the November election. Who would Murphy choose? Read the rest of this entry »

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Gopal wants Freeholders to be called County Commissioners

State Senator and honorary volunteer firefighter Vin Gopal finds the term “freeholder” offensive and, for Monmouth County voters in particular, confusing.

Gopal co-sponsored a last minute change–a substitution– in legislation that passed in the Senate last week which, if passed in the Assembly and signed by Governor Murphy, will mandate that the name of the office of Freeholder be changed to County Commissioner. Read the rest of this entry »

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Gopal calls Trump supporters sneaky and underhanded

State Senator Vin Gopal referred to supporters of President Donald Trump as “sneaky and underhanded”  in an email to Monmouth County Democrats today, according to a report at NewJerseyGlobe.com .

“This type of sneakiness and underhandedness is something I would expect to see from Trump supporters or the far-right, not someone who claims they are acting in good faith to build the Democratic Party,” said Gopal.

Gopal was referring to Jennifer Fluharty, a self-proclaimed nasty woman, who is supporting former Asbury Park councilman Jim Keady for the Democrat nomination to lose to Congressman Chris Smith in November. Read the rest of this entry »

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NJ Dem Chair Gets Pension Boosting Job

NJ Dem Chairman John Currie, standing between Congressman Frank Pallone and state Senator Vin Gopal in 2014. That’s Dem Freeholder candidate Lawrence Luttrell, left of U.S. Senator Cory Booker

Congratulations to NJ Democratic Party Chairman John Currie on his new job as the Public Information Officer of the Passaic County Board of Social Services.  And congratulations to the Board on finally finding the right man for the job after an exhaustive 14 year search.

Currie is the perfect man for the $92,000 part time job because, as the head of the Passaic County Democrats, the New Jersey Democrats, the Passaic Board of Elections and his partnership in a Chevrolet dealership, “he knows everybody,” BSS director Tony Desimone told The Record. Read the rest of this entry »

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Gopal endorses his tenant for Congress in CD-4

Josh Welle and Senator Vin Gopal

State Senator Vin Gopal has endorsed Josh Welle, address unknown, for the Democratic nomination to lose to Congressman Chris Smith.

Welle, who has already violated the Ethics in Government Act with late and inaccurate Financial Disclosure Reports, rented office space from Tic Tac Toe Development, LLC last fall, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Tic Tac Toe is Gopal’s company that paid $900K in cash last year for an office building in Tinton Falls.  The Tinton Falls property still has no mortgages or liens filed on it with the Monmouth County Clerk’s Office.

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