Politics & Elections

National & New Jersey political news, local talk & election results

Jeff Boss, the Guttenberg man who ran for president and U.S. senator last month under the slogan "Vote Here," has announced his candidacy for governor of New Jersey.

"I want to put our country and our state back on track," said Boss, who runs the Immortal Corporation, a firm that freezes deceased pets in hopes they can be resuscitated once a cure is found for the cause of their death.

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Former U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie said he will decide in four to six weeks whether to seek the Republican nomination for governor of New Jersey, according to a report in PolitckerNJ.com.

A day after leaving office, Christie was honored for his service Tuesday at an event in the lobby of the Essex Couty Hall of Records. "I would ask everyone to have a litte patience with me," Christie said, according to the report. "I want to take time to talk to folks over the course of the next four to six weeks. It's a personal decision and I will come to a decision based on what's best for us (his family)."

Investigators probing former Perth Amboy Mayor Joseph Vas' administration have subpoenaed records related to a 2006 land deal in which Vas sold a city apartment building he owned to a developer who was then awarded a $360,000 city rehabilitation grant a month later.

Perth Amboy Law Director Mark Blunda sent a letter to former city attorney Frank Capece last month requesting all information that resulted from Capece's review last year of the land deal at the city council's request. Blunda's letter, obtained by The Star-Ledger, states the subpoena involves "all documents relating to the transactions involving 97-99 DeKalb Ave., Perth Amboy."

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A former New Jersey Turnpike Authority employee pleaded guilty today to money laundering in connection with a long-running federal loan-sharking sting.

Leroy Robinson, 51, of Maplewood, was charged in January with using his consulting business to launder $120,000 in what he allegedly thought were loan-sharking proceeds from an undercover witness.

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Officials of New Jersey's school construction program today announced plans to step up the pace of work on at least six new schools next year, including a long-delayed Phillipsburg High School project, through a streamlined building process.

"What we're trying to do is work essentially toward meeting the governor's mandate to accelerate these projects," said Kris Kolluri, the former Department of Transportation Commissioner who announced the streamlined building program during his first meeting as chief executive officer of the state Schools Development Authority.

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PHILADELPHIA - President-elect Barack Obama told a meeting of the nation's governors this morning that he wants their help in designing and enacting an economic recovery plan that could provide "bottom-up" stimulus to the states.

"If we're listening to our governors, we'll not only be doing what's right for our states, we'll be doing what's right for our country," Obama said.

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Gov. Jon Corzine said he'll press the case for a $600 billion-plus economic stimulus package for the states when he and other governors meet with President-elect Barack Obama.

Corzine is among a group of governors meeting with Obama today in Philadelphia.

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Gov. Jon Corzine wants more New Jersey commuters to carpool, so he is expanding the incentives under the state Department of Transportation's "Carpooling Makes Sense" program.

Gas cards worth $150 to $200 will be given for newly formed carpools with more than two participants.

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