Ciattarelli-Allen Launch Website & 1st in a Series of Ads Targeting the Serial Mistreatment of Women Under Murphy

Jack Ciattarelli and his Lieutenant Governor running mate Diane Allen, by way of press release, have announced they “launched a website and the first in a series of ads targeting the mistreatment of women under Governor Murphy, starting with the Governor, First Lady, and Murphy's inner circle of powerful men who willfully ignored Katie Brennan's pleas for help at every turn as she sought to report her rape allegations and seek justice resulting from her harrowing experience on the Murphy campaign.”

This morning’s press release is below:

The Ciattarelli-Allen ticket today launched a website and the first in a series of ads targeting the mistreatment of women under Governor Murphy, starting with the Governor, First Lady, and Murphy's inner circle of powerful men who willfully ignored Katie Brennan's pleas for help at every turn as she sought to report her rape allegations and seek justice resulting from her harrowing experience on the Murphy campaign.

"Governor Murphy has continually covered up for powerful men throughout his career in government, politics and business at the expense of women who have stood up as victims of abuse, discrimination, misogyny and sexual assault," said Senator Diane Allen. "From his time at Goldman Sachs, to his tenure as Ambassador to Germany, to the women's soccer team he owns, to his campaign, and right through his administration, victims have been ignored and their pleas for help swept under the rug. Governor Murphy only acts when his career or his reputation are threatened. It's always about him, and never about the women who have been so badly mistreated, or worse."

The Ciattarelli-Allen campaign launched a website for New Jerseyans to learn more about the Murphy Administration's bad record when it comes to responding to women's abuse.

"No young woman should be forced to endure what Katie Brennan went through. Her courage in speaking out against the Murphy campaign's toxic culture took great strength and is rightfully admired by young women regardless of party affiliation," said Stami Williams, campaign spokeswoman. "Governor Murphy, on the other hand, should be ashamed of his behavior. At best, he is guilty of a stunning lack of leadership and empathy about what is happening within his own campaign after receiving Ms. Brennan's email, and at worst, a willingness to sweep sexual assault under the rug to get elected governor."

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View the Ciattarelli campaign’s digital ad:

Legislative Select Oversight Committee Report: So Much For A Stronger And Fairer New Jersey

Gov. Phil Murphy

Remember that time we wrote: “What we do wonder is who will Murphy blame for the lack of action he took in dealing with the Brennan situation. He can’t blame Christie for this one. Maybe, he’ll try to blame his staff, but he can’t. Remember, he did reply to Brennan’s email regarding a ‘sensitive matter’ with ‘Hang in. We’re on it.’ That response, at least to us, proves Murphy knew exactly what the ‘sensitive matter’ was that she wrote him about.”

Only in New Jersey can a single mother of four be sentenced to go to jail for emailing that it was “time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” but absolutely nothing happen to a member of the governor’s staff accused of raping another member of the governor’s staff – even after that Governor promised the woman making the rape accusation he was “on it.”

None of that sounds like New Jersey is any stronger or fairer.

In fact, it appears the only things to come out of the Legislative Select Oversight Committee Report is that (A) “the administration of Gov. Phil Murphy ‘mishandled’ an employee’s rape claim and suggested that top officials should be ‘embarrassed’ by their testimony,” (B) that it “rips Gov. Phil Murphy’s inner circle for failing Katie Brennan after she accused campaign worker turned transition staffer Al Alvarez of sexually assaulting her in April 2017” and (C) that the “committee’s report questioned the honesty of some officials.”

Mishandled? Embarrassed? They are the understatements of the year!

To add insult to injury, New Jersey Globe reported in part:

The Select Committee on Oversight won’t be making any criminal referrals following the issuance of a scathing report that said members of Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration failed state housing agency chief of staff Katie Brennan.

“The report is out there and any law enforcement agency that chooses to look at it can,” Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg, a committee co-chair, said. “We’ve issued our report, period.”

“Period,” apparently Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg forgot the “full stop” part of one of Gov. Murphy’s favorite lines, “period, full stop.”

Is Weinberg serious? Any law enforcement agency that chooses to look at it can? She knows as well as we do no one from law enforcement is going to look at that report.

It’s obvious that in New Jersey #MeToo and #BelieveWomen only applies when folks like Murphy and Weinberg are attacking Republicans.

We have written repeatedly about Murphy’s hypocrisy when it comes to his treatment of women. More than 30 times, on this blog, we’ve mentioned the mistreatment of women on Murphy’s professional soccer team. We lost count how many times the mainstream press mentioned the lousy way Murphy handled the Katie Brennan situation. And, don’t forget there was the much less covered Allison Kopicki who said she was resigning from her position in the Murphy administration because she alleged she has faced retaliation from Murphy’s administration.

Basically, the recently released Legislative Select Oversight Committee Report proves only that for women is not one thing in New Jersey that is stronger and fairer under Governor Phil Murphy.

It Took 8 Months For America To Learn Who Shot J.R., But New Jersey Still Can’t Find Out Who Hired Al Alvarez

Gov. Phil Murphy

Remember the Select Committee on Oversight that was formed in the aftermath of the Katie Brennan’s ordeal? Remember that Select Committee on Oversight was formed for the purpose of investigating hiring practices and the way in which Murphy’s administration handled the sexual assault allegations.

I think it’s amazing that it took only 8 months for America to find out who shot J.R., but New Jersey still hasn’t a clue as to who hired Al Alvarez, the man Brennan alleges raped her.

One would think that we would know who hired Alvarez by now. He was hired as the Chief of Staff at the Schools Development Authority which means he had to have been hired by a high-ranking official in Murphy’s administration – meaning someone who reports directly to the Governor.

How could Murphy not know the answer to the question? Not knowing means he’s either incompetent or stupid, and I don’t think Mr. Murphy is stupid.

Then again, maybe Murphy doesn’t want to know who hired Alvarez. He did arrange for a soft landing for Lizette Delgado-Polanco after she finally resigned as the CEO of the Schools Development Authority where Alvarez was chief of staff.

The soft landing? Delgado-Polanco went to Adam Alonso’s consulting firm the Cratos Group. Of course, the press in New Jersey forgot the fact that Alonso was Murphy’s Deputy Chief of Staff for Public Engagement and Governmental Affairs.

You decide, does Murphy really want to know who hired Al Alvarez?

[Full disclosure: there was a time Alonso worked with Republicans. I know because I hired his Cratos Group for fundraising for a campaign in New Mexico in late 2009/early 2010. The relationship ended due to billing “issues.”]