Monmouth Dems to Outsource Key Jobs.

"You heard it right: If you want to work in Monmouth County, you have to ask Union County first," ~ Republican Freeholder Robert D. Clifton commenting on the Monmouth Democrats asking Union County Assemblyman Joe Cryan for help in filling key Monmouth County jobs. Cryan is the state Democratic Chairman.

I was all set to write a post criticising the Monmouth GOP Freeholders for the last minute change to the county administrative code. The Freeholders voted last night to give the authority to appoint department heads to the county administrator. That power has resided with the Freeholder Board. The GOP lost control of the Freeholder Board in the last election. The Dems take control next year.

While the idea of taking politics out of appointments to key positions might be a good idea, to make such a dramatic change during a lame duck session with control turning over looks like more politics as usual. It doesn't seem on its face to be reform.

However, the news that Democratic party hack Mike Mangan is using the Trenton Democratic machine to recruit for the the positions of chief financial officer, directors of the human resources and human services departments, and a new post, inspector general is alarming. Statements by Democratic Freeholders John D'Amico and Barbara McMorrow to the effect that they were unaware of the recruiting effort lack credibility. D'Amico's protests that the Republicans are attempting to block needed reform that the voters mandated by 300 votes rings hollow.

Mangan told the Asbury Park Press that he reached out to Cryan's office for help recruiting the best people for the jobs and that political paybacks had nothing to do with it. Yeah right.

Giving Mangan, D'Amico and McMorrow the benefit of the doubt, I propose the following questions: 1) Have you considered the possibility that the best people are already in those jobs? and 2) Where in New Jersey are Democrats doing a better job governing that Republicans have done in Monmouth County?

I can understand why they might not like those questions, but they are only questions. Think about it. Assuming you want to govern successfully, who would you rather emulate? Union County Democrats or Monmouth County Republicans?

As reported here last month the Trenton Democrats who funded the Monmouth Democrats campaigns are salivating to get their hands on Monmouth County treasure. What is going to be the guiding principle of the Democrats governing Monmouth? Will they goven based on what is best for Monmouth County citizens or for what is best for their futures in the New Jersey Democratic machine?

Republican Freeholder Director Lillian Burry said the timing of the administrative code change could have been better. That is the understatement of the year given the news that this change has has been on the table since 2004 and that we paid a consultant $60,000 to study the project in 2007. The Republicans should have instituted this change at a time when the politics of the move could not have been debated. Doing so when county administrator Bob Czech's contract was extended with bi-partisan support would have been a good move.

The Democrats will likely undue the administrative code change as one of their first orders of business. The fact that the change was made at the last minute by the Republicans will give them political cover for doing so.

Here comes Bergen County with Beaches.