Despite resistance from some NJ Republicans, 2nd Amendment advocates score victories

By Sussex County Watchdog

What began in Virginia as an important demonstration of popular support for the Second Amendment has spread all across America with towns and counties formally passing resolutions declaring public support for the Second Amendment and the Bill of Rights.  These resolutions have served as a rallying point for political action – bringing people together, educating voters, recruiting new activists – which has manifested itself in grassroots political action and lobbying.
 
What started out as a movement to pass pro-Second Amendment resolutions in Virginia became a grassroots effort that shaped a surprise win that successfully blocked passage of an “assault weapons” ban in the Democrat-controlled Virginia Legislature.  The resolution movement quickly turned into a wide-reaching and comprehensive grassroots movement that frightened 4 Democrat legislators into joining a solid block of Republicans to kill the “assault weapons” ban. 
 
Here in New Jersey, grassroots activists Bill Hayden and Mark Cheeseman have led a similar pro-Second Amendment resolution effort that has led to the passage of resolutions in towns and counties across the state.  This effort has aided the work of longtime Second Amendment advocates – like the 2nd Amendment Society’s Alex Roubian – who successfully stopped two anti-Second Amendment bills on Monday. 

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The Second Amendment Society has taken legal action against 28 towns in New Jersey and won every battle.  They have sued the state 3 times and won every time – winning back legal fees of more than $200,000.
 
Imagine the grassroots movement that could be built if even just a portion of New Jersey’s Republican establishment would lend a hand?  There have been some notable heroes – the District 24 legislators, particularly Parker Space, as well as freeholders from half a dozen counties, particularly Sussex County’s Dawn Fantasia – but too many pretend not to notice as the Bill of Rights is assaulted. 
 
Worse still are those who actively talk down the work of Second Amendment advocates and the grassroots resolution movement.  This includes the campaign of Mayor Michael Ghassali of Montvale, a Republican candidate for Congress in CD05. 
 
Ghassali has resisted passing a pro-Second Amendment resolution in his town, which is controlled by the GOP.  But he had no hesitation in adopting a leftist “anti-hate” resolution authored by a Democrat “social justice” activist and elected official.  
 
And Ghassali’s campaign has gone even further, by publicly crapping on the pro-Second Amendment grassroots movement itself.  His campaign issued this statement in a two-part social media post yesterday:
 
“The 2nd Amendment on its face is the right to bear arms as such, why would a municipality need to pass a 2A resolution?”
 
“Exactly, it’s one of the dumbest things I’ve heard…”
 
While we don’t expect establishment GOPer’s to possess the imagination to energize the Republican base, they should at least have the intelligence to copy what conservatives in Virginia and many other states are successfully doing.  The grassroots resolution movement is producing victories, which is more than can be said of these establishment types.
 
Ghassali is a victim of one of those GOP confabs where a few insider consultants are presented as “experts” (while their actual win-loss record are, shall we say, glossed over if mentioned at all).  For some establishment GOPers, the idea of a grassroots movement mobilizing the Republican base and bringing in thousands of new pro-Second Amendment voters is a nightmare that disrupts all their calculations.  They don’t want that.  That doesn’t serve their interests.
 
But Mayor Michael Ghassali – who after all was mentored and urged to run by Steve Lonegan – should have better instincts than those he hired to run his campaign.  We expect better from anyone who is a Lonegan person and Michael is a Lonegan guy.  So what’s the deal?  Is Ghassali afraid to take a stand and help grassroots conservatives?
 
Steve Lonegan had no problem standing up for what was right.  Say what you will, the guy had balls.  Does that make Michael Ghassali a Steve Lonegan without the balls?
 
Michael Ghassali needs to get real and soon.  And stop taking the advice of GOP establishment wimps.    

Gottheimer climbs into bed with the Banks, McCann heads to Court

You would think that New Jersey's bankers are free market capitalists, but then you remember the cronyism, the bailouts, and legislation like the New Jersey Residential Destruction Act.  You remember that brilliant idea, don't you?

Yep, the capitalist banks got together with some redistributionist Democrats to come up with a doozy.  See the bankers had a problem.  After the nation's biggest banks had crashed the economy by selling AAA-rated shit products that were actually worthless, a huge number of hardworking Americans were screwed.  First dad lost his job, then mom, unemployment ran out, and the family had to depend on the food bank to eat.  Next came their home -- it was pushed into foreclosure and this hard-working family was facing homelessness. 

The banks, they don't give a damn about these families, they just want the property foreclosed upon off their hands.  So they cooked up a scheme with the Democrats that had the State of New Jersey buying the properties and -- NO, NOT GIVING THEM BACK TO THE FAMILIES FORCED FROM THEM -- but rather turning them over to far-left organizations like Citizen Action.  In this way, Citizen Action could determine who was "deserving" of these properties.  So the dirtbag Democrats made a list of who would get first dibs -- and who do you think was at the top of the list?  Did you guess "ex-offenders"?  If so, you'd be right. 

No shit.  Convicted criminals were earmarked to benefit.  So this couple works their tail off.  They get a house, have some kids... then the big banks destroy the economy and they lose their jobs.  They get pushed out of their home and onto the street by the bank -- but it is no loss to the bank because their Democrat political pals use taxpayers' money to buy the foreclosed property to redistribute it to their criminal friends.  Oh, and the hardworking family ends up living in their car and eating out of trash cans.  Maybe their daughter ends up a victim of human trafficking "industry" -- that's a whole other group of corporate scum the Democrats shill for.

Now Congressman Josh Gottheimer has used the promise of the incoming Democrat Governor to tap into bankers' greed once again.  Today, in Bergen County,  the Democrat met with members of the banking industry to talk politics and opportunity.  It was a closed door meeting.  You have to wonder what sort of mischief they'll get up to this time.  After all, in corporate life Josh Gottheimer did public relations work for folks on the receiving end of those taxpayer-funded bailouts.  These scumbags were Josh Gottheimer's clients.  They're his people.

Meanwhile, back in the Mad, Mad World of Stumbling John McCann...

Candidate John McCann is heading into court for a hearing on Thursday, December 14th.  In what continues to be one of the strangest candidacies we've ever come across, McCann appears to have pissed the bed once again.  We'll let the Empire State News take over from here:

McCann has flouted publicly, on numerous occasions, that he has served as the attorney for the Bergen County Sheriff, Democrat Michael Saudino. This specific lawyer position has led to additional legal problems for the ineligible barrister.

Legislative District 39 Republican Executive Director Joseph Hakim filed a criminal complaint against McCann on November 16, asserting that McCann committed the third degree crime of threats and other improper influence in political matters, as well as the petty disorderly persons offense of harassment. The complaint specifically states:

“John McCann, a candidate for Congress in New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District, did threaten unlawful harm against Joseph Hakim with defendant John McCann doing such in his capacity as a lawyer for the Bergen County Sheriff’s Department and knowing that he had no legal authority to conduct such investigation, with the purpose to influence Joseph Hakim in an opinion, recommendation, and vote as both a party official, in Joseph Hakim’s capacity as Executive Director of the Republican Party’s 39th legislative district, and as voter, with regard to the 2018 New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District election, wherein defendant, stated to Mr. Hakim, ‘Joseph, I know all things about you. I know what you are about. Parts of my job allow me telling you that I had access to information on any one and I looked you up. That was the benefits of my job,’ making such threat to Joseph Hakim because he does not support defendant John McCann in his candidacy for Congress, in violation of NJSA 2C:27-3A(1).”

Montvale Mayor Mike Ghassali provided a written statement to the police department in Woodcliff Lake, the locale where he said the incident between Hakim and McCann occurred. Ghassali’s statement provides:

“On Saturday Sept. 23, 2017, I witnessed the following at the Wel Tice Community Center at about 9a.m. John McCann told Joseph Hakim that he knows everything about him as his job was the attorney for Bergen County Sheriff. And that he can have access to information to investigate him. Hakim asked if he was being threatened and both got loud. Because Hakim is not supporting him for his run for Congress.”

Obviously, this is not a he-said she-said case, with the incident being witnessed by Mayor Ghassali. The criminal statute, 2C:27-3, provides that a person commits a third degree crime if he:

“Threatens unlawful harm to any person with purpose to influence a decision, opinion, recommendation, vote or exercise of discretion of a public servant, party official or voter…in any public election.”

Per the complaint and witness statement, McCann, in his capacity as attorney for the Bergen County Sheriff’s Department, “threatened unlawful harm” (in conducting an investigation into Hakim with no legal authority) with the purpose to influence his opinion, recommendation and vote as a party official (Legislative District 39 Republican Executive Director) and voter in a public election (the Congress election in the 5th District). As the complaint stated, McCann issued the threat because Hakim “does not support defendant John McCann in his candidacy for Congress”

McCann denies any criminal conduct. A probable cause hearing for the case is scheduled on December 14 at a municipal court located at the Bergen County Justice Center in Hackensack. Hakim is represented by well-known Bergen County lawyer, Douglas Anton. It is unknown whether McCann has representation, but he can legally represent himself despite his current ineligibility to practice law in New Jersey (defendants are always permitted to represent themselves pro se).

So the madness continues.  Stay tuned...