NJ Sheriff and Former Chief Show Contempt for Oaths with 2nd Amendment Infringements

Sheriff Saudino insists men like those he controls should be the “Only Ones” allowed to have “weapons [that] are designed to take out mass amounts of people…” (Bergen County Sheriff’s Office/Facebook photos)

Extensive quotes from two New Jersey law enforcement officials leave little doubt that they would gladly support any and all citizen disarmament edicts. Opinions expressed by Bergen County Sheriff Michael Saudino and former Tenafly Police Chief Michael Bruno in Monday’s Pascack Press appear representative of predominant command attitudes in the Garden State. (Note the story is not online so there is no link to offer—I was sent a photo of the April 16 page 3 story “Mental health ‘highest priority’ for public, school safety” written by Michael Olohan. I have not received a response from the paper to an inquiry I sent them yesterday. This post will be updated if a link becomes available. )

Sheriff Saudino says it’s “fortunate” that New Jersey has draconian infringements and hopes to see them become a “model” for the rest of the country. And naturally, he repeats the same lie many prominent gun-grabbers offer while they’re doing the direct opposite of what they say.

“I don’t say it very often, but I do believe in the Second Amendment,” Saudino protests.  “However…”

Who didn’t see that huge, in-your-face “but” coming?

He doesn’t think the “average person” should have the very weaponry the Second Amendment is supposed to guarantee. To underscore his point, Saudino smears those who disagree as “the NRA and some gun nuts.” And here’s the kicker, a talking point getting moldy it’s growing so stale:

“Those weapons are designed to take out mass amounts of people, for the military to use, for the police to use, should they have to…”

First of all, both the military and Saudino’s tactical police teams have access to full auto. And note he doesn’t define when his sworn duties will require him to issue them orders to “take out mass amounts of people.”

If taken literally, and I would, the oath-breaking maniac is talking about making war on American citizens. Naturally he doesn’t want those who would defy tyranny also being able to resist it.

Former Chief Bruno, no longer in a position to actively take anyone’s guns, has his own way of harassing edict-abiding gun owners.  He wants gun-grabber sympathizers to “contact their local police chiefs and ask to see the firearm files of legitimate registered gun owners in town.

“The hot topic today is guns,” Bruno asserts. “Everybody’s talking about guns, restricting guns, eliminating guns, taking guns.”

Wait a minute – for years the antis have been calling gun owners paranoid, insisting “No wants to take your guns.” Does this mean they were lying?

That was a rhetorical question. And Bruno ignores that some of us are talking about protecting our guns.

“I guarantee you it will be an eye-opener for you, because when you talk about that person who snaps and can go right into their own home, take a weapon go out and do something with it—you have hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands of guns in your communities,” he bemoans, insulting citizen trustworthiness by insinuation while being part of a system that protects and rewards enforcer misdeeds.

Like the problems come from “legitimate registered gun owners” who strive to comply with all prior restraint mandates, no matter how offensively oppressive.

Still, in order to keep their lucrative double-dipping gigs going, New Jersey sheriffs like Saudino need to sell out their countrymen and parrot the narrative expected by their masters. Besides, he and Bruno are taken care of as LEOSA beneficiaries, “eligible to carry a concealed firearm in any jurisdiction in the United States or United States Territories, regardless of state or local laws…”

It’s the “Only Ones” loophole. They have their seat at the table, so why should they care if you’re outside looking in. Still, Mr. Mason’s “except for a few public officers” observation comes to mind.

The sad thing is it hasn’t always been that way, even in New Jersey. Those of us who have been around a while well remember this 1993 quote from the testimony of Trenton Deputy Chief of Police Joseph Constance before the Senate Judiciary Committee:

“Since police started keeping statistics, we now know that ‘assault weapons’ are/were used in an underwhelming 0.026 of 1% of crimes in New Jersey. This means that my officers are more likely to confront an escaped tiger from the local zoo than to confront an assault rifle in the hands of a drug-crazed killer on the streets.”

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If you believe in the mission of Oath Keepers, to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, please make a donation to support our work.  You can donate HERE.

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David Codrea’s opinions are his own. See “Who speaks for Oath Keepers?”

 

The post NJ Sheriff and Former Chief Show Contempt for Oaths with 2nd Amendment Infringements appeared first on Oath Keepers.

NJ Kid Suspended from School for Going to Gun Range with Family on the Weekend

By The Daily Sheeple | 

This is what we’ve come to in the United States. Children are getting suspended from school for going to a gun range as a family over the weekend to practice their fundamental human right of self-defense.

According to Fox News, a New Jersey high school came under fire Friday after it allegedly suspended two students over a gun photo taken during a family visit to a shooting range. News of the unnamed students’ suspension circulated through a Lacey Township Facebook group, according to NJ.com.

The kids were both in high school, but their suspension caused an uproar with a potential lawsuit against the school coming. The photo of four rifles, magazines, and a gun duffel bag was shared by one of the students on the social media app Snapchat with the caption “fun day at the range,” according to Lacey Township resident Amanda Buron, a family friend of one of the students.

The school claims that the students violated the school’s policy on weapons possession. Apparently, the school thinks they have the authority to extend any policy to weekends and the homes of the children as well now. This is like suspending a girl for wearing a spaghetti strap tank top to a bar-b-que on a day off school because she violated the dress code. Yes, it’s that insane, but that’s what their policy literally says.

The reality of the whole situation is that the school enacted an overreaching policy, which actually stated that “students could be suspended for up to a year if they are ‘reported to be in possession of a weapon of any type for any reason or purpose on or off school grounds,’” NJ.com reported further. Which basically means, the school is attempting to control kids even when they go home.  So don’t practice or exercise your natural human right to self-defense if you attend a public school.

Lacey schools Superintendent Craig Wigley said in an email to NJ Advance Media on Thursday that “information posted on social media is incorrect” and that private matters involving students cannot be discussed. He declined to say what aspect of the accounts posted on social media is inaccurate.

Since the suspension, NJ.com reported that the “Lacey school district quietly changed” the policy, scrapping the off-school-grounds prohibition and eliminating suspension-length specificity. “‘Students are forbidden to carry any type of weapon or simulated weapon to school,’ the revamped policy states. ‘Strict disciplinary action and legal actions will result if this occurs,’” the news outlet detailed.

The post NJ Kid Suspended from School for Going to Gun Range with Family on the Weekend appeared first on The Sleuth Journal.

DWI-Droning While Intoxicated: Drinking While Flying a Drone Could Land You in Prison

Lawmakers have passed a bill to criminalize flying a drone while drunk and offenders could face up to $1,000 in fines and six months in prison.

Bakers Sue State Because Selling Cake is Illegal and Will Get You Thrown in Jail—Seriously

Bakers are fighting back against the only state that makes selling home-baked goods "illegal" and they are arguing that the law is meant to protect commercial bakers.

Hilarious Fallout from Oregon Gas Pumping Law Reveals Alarming Effects of Gov’t Dependence

Many Oregon residents are panicked after their state has given them a new freedom—it is no longer illegal for them to pump their own gas in certain counties.

Cops & Gov’t Workers Arrested in Massive Sting, People Buying Kids as Young as 4 for Sex

A massive sting targeting society"s worst, who prey on children, ensared scores of people including a police officer, postal worker, and a teacher.

Two Top Republicans Cast Doubt On A Second Term For Donald Trump

According to two top republican politicians, Donald Trump may not seek reelection in 2020, in spite of already raising millions for his campaign. Chris Christie and Rand Paul are casting doubt on Trump’s desire to remain president.

“If he runs again I would support him, yes, but I’m not so sure what will happen,” Chris Christe, the governor of New Jersey said on the Today show on Friday. Senator Rand Paul also cast doubts over whether President Trump would throw his hat into the presidential ring again and argued Republicans should not merely assume he is running.

“I think no one can stop primaries from happening and there could well be a primary that happens,” Paul said on MSNBC when probed about whether the US could benefit from a Republican party primary in 2020. “Before you even get to that, you need to know, is President Trump running for re-election? I think you won’t know that until you get into sort of – second, third year of his presidency,” he said. Paul said he could not see himself supporting anyone else he did suggest the chance of him supporting a candidate who would end the war in Afghanistan.

“So I see the glass as half full. Doesn’t mean I agree with him on everything,” he said. “You know, there would be people that – if we could end the Afghan war, that’s who I would support. But I don’t think that’s going to be an alternative to President Trump.”

Paul’s sentiments are similar to those expressed by Christie. “Four years is a long time, and especially for someone who has not spent a lifetime in politics, so I think those years affect him differently. So I’m sure the president will make whatever decision is best for him and his family and the country,” said Christie.

Christie and Paul both said that if Trump runs again, he’d have both of their support in a reelection campaign. Not running for a second term would be a highly unconventional move for a sitting president. Only three other presidents have deliberately moved out of the White House after just one term as president.  But Trump has invested money in his reelection campaign already.

According to the Centre for Public Integrity, Trump’s re-election campaign committee raised just over $10 million from July to the end of September. The former reality star and real estate mogul held a $35,000-a-plate fundraiser event a few blocks from the White House at his Washington hotel back in June. Trump’s historically early campaigning has seen his campaign accumulate more than $7 million in the first three months of this year via small donations and selling Trump-themed merchandise such as his trademark “Make America Great Again” hats.

WATCH: Cop Violently Assaults Twin Sisters as School Principal Tries to Stop Him

Orange, NJ — A disturbing video of a large cop manhandling two twin sisters outside of a restaurant just after school had let out has provoked protests and the suspension of an Orange police officer.

On Thursday, two sisters were outside of the restaurant when the Orange police officer approached them. While the nature of the stop was unclear, the officer’s actions seem entirely apparent. As the sisters talked he grabbed them both by the hair, threw them to the ground, pushed, kneed, and held them down for seemingly no reason.

In a statement released just after midnight Friday, the Orange Police Department and Mayor Dwayne Warren said the officer in the videos, Hanifah Davis, “has been relieved of duty pending the outcome of an investigation.” Protests almost immediately ensued as a result of the officer’s actions.

Orange police rally pic.twitter.com/VEEplalohq

— Jessica Mazzola (@JessMazzola) October 13, 2017

Multiple videos captured the violence unfold as Davis slammed one of the sisters into the window and then grabbed the other. While being shoved to the concrete, the sisters do appear to struggle but pose no threat to the officer who is twice their size.

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The officer’s actions were so outrageous that the Vice Principal from the school nearby—who knew the two students—came over to intervene.

The video was posted to Instagram with the following description about the vice principal’s role and how the officer and his fellow cops reacted.

So, the man (the VP) arrested in this video is a family member of mine. This incident occurred shortly after school was let out this afternoon. The vice principal was coordinating traffic when all of the sudden he heard students screaming his name in front of a pizzeria down the street from the high school. He ran over to this scene, an officer throwing down and striking two teenaged twin sisters. Naturally, he told the officers “I’m a vice principal at the high school, these are my students. What’s going on here?” to which he was told, “Mind your fucking business and back up, we’re not on school grounds.” He repeatedly pleaded with the offending officer to stop assaulting these two girls, and tell him what the problem was. At this point the officer pushed him away from the scene and punched him in the face before arresting him, as well as both girls. He was later released without being charged, the girls were released as well but I’m not sure if they ended up receiving any charges.
I can’t divulge any further details due to legality but that’s all the setup for this video.

According to many on Facebook, the principal was arrested for intervening, however, the mayor released a statement late Thursday confirming that he was only cited.

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“Contrary to rumors on social media, an Orange Board of Education staff member was not arrested; he was issued a ticket and the issuance of that ticket is part of the investigation,” the city said in the statement.

According to NJ.com, a spokeswoman for the school district did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday morning.

The Orange Police Department and Essex County Prosecutor’s Office are investigating the incident, the statement said. A prosecutor’s office spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment, the newspaper reported.

In an attempt to calm the subsequent unrest by local citizens who took to protesting the incident, the mayor released the following statement.

“This matter is being taken seriously by the Orange Police Department and the Warren Administration. All the facts will be shared with the public as soon as they are available. Meanwhile, the OPD and Mayor Dwayne D. Warren ask that citizens withhold judgment and act responsibly until all the facts are known, at which time the Administration will take all appropriate action,” the statement read.

Below is one of the many videos of the incident. It was posted with the following description:

Officer Davis, an Orange, NJ police officer first mush me in the chest, then grabbed me by my arm and I yanked away. Then he physically violated my two twin cousins. This ain’t even all of of it! They were punched on as if they were grown men. One twin have a black eyes and they other one have a busted knee. When my mom pulled up, she tried to get the officers off of her, he told her that she’d get locked up if she didn’t move. He even fought our assistant principal! He did it out of spite! This is the same police officer that pulled us over in a Uber last night, telling the Uber driver his light was broke, when nothing was wrong with the light. I believe he did it because he didn’t have a legitimate reason to charge the Uber diver last night, so he took his anger out physically! 

Hee is the other video in which the principal is seen stepping in to stop the violence.

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In another video, we see what appears to be the girls’ braids on the ground after the officer apparently pulled them from their heads.

WATCH: Crazed Cop Beats Innocent Man With a Baton, Forces Him Onto Electric Train Tracks

Cherry Hill, DE — Ryan Patterson of Philadelphia was visiting a friend last year when he got off on the wrong train stop. As he sat and waited for the next train, however, he was approached by a tyrant cop who began beating him with a baton and pepper spraying him. Eventually, the violent cop would force Patterson onto the electric train tracks almost killing him.

The entire incident was started because Patterson accidentally got off at the wrong train stop. Patterson had bought a round-trip ticket to Haddonfield and was returning to Philadelphia but had gotten on a train going in the wrong direction. He had committed no crime and had harmed no one when a cop with a short fuse decided to make his life a living hell.

According to Police documents, Port Authority Transit Corp. Officer Michael Fiocca followed Patterson to the westbound platform about 7:45 p.m. and asked for his ticket. Patterson responded angrily, according to the report, but showed the officer his ticket, which was not for Woodcrest Station, and then showed him identification.

At this point, Fiocca should have let Patterson go about his business. However, he decided to try to arrest him for no reason instead. Patterson, not wanting to be unlawfully kidnapped by this crazed officer, remained seated, noting that he wanted to simply get back on the correct train and continue to his destination.

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Again, at this point, the officer — who had no legal basis for arrest — should’ve walked away. Instead, he chose to pepper spray Patterson in the face.

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After he was hit with a chemical agent for refusing to be unlawfully kidnapped, he stood up and backed away with his hands up. At no time, during the entire interaction, did Patterson ever pose a threat or try to harm the officer.

However, the officer, who described Patterson as “much larger than me in stature and weight,” escalated force once again and began beating Patterson with his baton. Again, Patterson remained calm and simply stated that he is not under arrest.

Patterson then sat down again, at which point the officer began hitting him. This time, however, having been beaten about his legs and lower body—and, after being pepper sprayed a second time—Patterson lost his balance and fell onto the electric tracks below.

Had Patterson landed on the actual tracks, and made contact with the rail’s electrical current, he would have been fried instantly.

Seemingly realizing he’d messed up big time, Fiocca went from hurting Patterson to helping him and called in other officers to hoist him up back onto the platform.

Patterson was taken to Kennedy-Stratford Hospital and was released with a citation for resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. Both of these charges would be dismissed once authorities saw the video. And instead of Patterson getting in trouble, the Delaware River Port Authority fired the PATCO transit officer in September 2016 after initially suspending him.

“We have made a determination that the incident reflects actions inconsistent with our organizational core values and in direct conflict with the high standard of conduct we demand from our law enforcement officials,” DRPA CEO and PATCO President John Hanson said in a statement last year about the decision to fire Fiocca.

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This week, Ryan Patterson filed a lawsuit against the former police officer in the Court of Common Pleas.

“Unfortunately this type of officer misconduct reaches all of our communities with increasing regularity,” said Thomas Fitzpatrick, an attorney representing Patterson. “We will fight for justice for Mr. Patterson and others like him who have their rights violated by those that swear to protect them.”

Another Gun-Grabbing Criminal Bloomberg Mayor Guilty

Fake backdrop and false front — as phony as his oath to the Constitution … (Mayor Jose “Joey” Torres/Facebook)

“The mayor of Paterson, New Jersey, resigned on Monday, a city official said, after the mayor pleaded guilty last week to a state criminal conspiracy charge that he ordered city employees to perform work at a warehouse leased by his family members,” Reuters reports. “Mayor Jose “Joey” Torres, 58, pleaded guilty on Friday in state superior court to second degree conspiracy as part of an agreement in which prosecutors will recommend a five-year prison sentence…

“The plea agreement also required that Torres relinquish his office, never again hold a government job in New Jersey and repay Paterson $10,000 for the time city workers spent at the private warehouse,” the report explains. Left unsaid is another ironic result of the felony conviction: Torres is now a “prohibited person,” forbidden by law to own a gun.

I say “ironic” because Torres was a vocal member of Michael Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a coalition of oath-breaking urban chief executives committed to treating “shall not be infringed” as an option to ignore or eviscerate as suits their agenda.

When he was mayor of New York City, Bloomberg actually called Torres out for special recognition in a “State of the City” address:

“Today, we’re joined by the mayor of Paterson, Jose (Joey) Torres. Mayor Torres, New York City offers its deepest condolences to you and your city. And we’ll also join you in working to bring sanity to gun policy in our nation. Next week, more than 50 mayors from across the country — who are part of our coalition of Mayors Against Illegal Guns — will gather in Washington, D.C., to take up this challenge.

“And I’m happy to say that Mayor Torres will be with us. Our goal will be getting Congress to overturn a wrong-headed law — one that blocks access at the local level to federal data that would let us hold gun dealers accountable for illegally selling to gun traffickers. Mayor Torres and I have a simple message for Congress: It’s time to take ideology out of crime-fighting and time to give mayors — the people who are responsible for policing our streets — the tools we need to protect our citizens.”

In other words, not content to disregard the Bill of Rights in their own ruined corners of the Republic, they’re intent on imposing their edicts everywhere, in Everytown, bending everyone to their will.  And as for that “wrong-headed law” Bloomberg and Torres sought to overturn? If they do, they’re likely to screw things up and get people killed:

“Both BATFE and the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) oppose release of trace data. In fact, BATFE has fought for years in the federal courts to keep trace records confidential, because they contain information (such as names of gun buyers) that could jeopardize ongoing investigations—not to mention law enforcement officers’ lives.”

It’s like Mos Eisley in Star Wars: “A wretched hive of scum and villainy.”

The galling thing about this to gun owner rights advocates is that criminal mayors like Torres appear to be the exception rather than the rule. Just two weeks ago I reported on another Bloomberg coalition member who resigned after years of child rape accusations.  It’s actually something I’ve been reporting on for years, documenting instance after instance of corruption, violence, substance abuse, sexual perversion and more.

Then add in the conduct of other gun-grabbing politicians higher up in the food chain, like California gun-runner-to-the-gangs Leland Yee, or just sentenced while weeping control-for-thee-but-not-for-me freak Anthony Weiner.

That society compensates such corrupted ethics with political power, when by all objective standards these degenerates should be regarded as weaklings and reprobates, speaks not of their achievements but of the misplaced cultural values they exemplify and feed off of. These oath-breakers conduct their lives with arrogance, deception, deviancy and gall. They seek to control good Americans when they won’t control themselves, and as such merit nothing but loathing, defiance and resistance.

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If you believe in the mission of Oath Keepers, to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, please make a donation to support our work.  You can donate HERE.

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David Codrea’s opinions are his own. See “Who speaks for Oath Keepers?”

Tags: Anthony Weiner, BATFE, David Codrea, Every Town, Fraternal Order of Police, Leland Yee, Mayor Jose “Joey” Torres, Mayors Against Illegal Guns, Michael Bloomberg, New Jersey, Paterson

How Did Toys "R" Us Implode So Fast? The CEO Explains

Reviewing first day motions from a company"s chapter 11 docket, and more specifically the CEO"s declaration, can be a great way to learn exactly what happened in the days/weeks leading up to a bankruptcy filing.  The company spends millions of dollars every month on expensive lawyers (Kirkland & Ellis in the case of Toys "R" Us), investment bankers (Lazard), turnaround advisors (Alvarez & Marsal), claims administrators, etc., who all spend many sleepless nights in the days leading up to a filing trying to make sure the first day motions are as informative as possible.

With those high expectations, you can imagine our surprise when we opened the Toys "R" Us CEO"s declaration to find this "preliminary statement":

Yes, Kirkland & Ellis was paid $800 an hour (ish) to type up the Toys "R" Us jingle in a court filing.  Bravo!

In any event, once you get beyond the amateur-hour antics, CEO David Brandon explains why Toys "R" Us was forced to file for bankruptcy in such a hurry.  While debt service on a excessively levered capital structure was a big part of it, Brandon explains that media speculation over a potential bankruptcy filing led to a rapid tightening of trade terms just as the company was trying to build inventory ahead of the holiday season.  Here are the details:

1.  Debt - Apparently spending the majority of your FCF on debt service while ignoring capital improvements and store remodels is a bad long-term business strategy for a bricks-and-mortar retailer.

Toys “R” Us, however, has been operating for more than a decade with significant leverage, necessitating the use of substantial amounts of cash each year (approximately $400 million) to service the more than $5.0 billion of funded indebtedness.  But these substantial debt service obligations impair the Company’s ability to invest in its business and future.  As a result, the Company has fallen behind some of its primary competitors on various fronts, including with regard to general upkeep and the condition of our stores, our inability to provide expedited shipping options, and our lack of a subscription-based delivery service.

2. Vendors - Media speculation of an imminent bankruptcy filing starting on September 6th caused 40% of vendors to restrict shipments and demand "cash on delivery" for new inventory purchases which would have required $1 billion incremental liquidity.

More recently, the Company’s need for a comprehensive solution to its capital structure issues caused widespread “bankruptcy” speculation in the media, leading to a severe constriction in the Company’s trade terms.  More specifically, in late July the Company hired Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Alvarez & Marsal North America, LLC, complementing its retention of Lazard, to consider restructuring and capital structure solutions.

A news story published on September 6, 2017, reporting that the Debtors were considering a chapter 11 filing, started a dangerous game of dominos: within a week of its publication, nearly 40 percent of the Company’s domestic and international product vendors refused to ship product without cash on delivery, cash in advance, or, in some cases, payment of all outstanding obligations.  Further, many of the credit insurers and factoring parties that support critical Toys “R” Us vendors withdrew support.  Given the Company’s historic average of 60-day trade terms, payment of cash on delivery would require the Debtors to immediately obtain a significant amount—over $1.0 billion—of new liquidity.

3.  Holiday Inventory Build - Finally, this all came at the exact moment that the company was trying to build inventory for the holiday selling season.

The timing of all of this could not have been worse, as the Company is in the process of building holiday inventory.  While birthdays, new game releases, and other special events drive year-round sales, the holiday season is the most important for annual results.  In the fourth quarter (the weeks prior to Christmas), the Company generates approximately 40% of its annual revenue.

To prepare for the holiday season, Toys “R” Us significantly increases inventory in September to fill store shelves with the selection and variety of products our customers expect.  Accordingly, I believe it is critical that the Company reopen its supply chain immediately to ensure a successful holiday season.

Given that, it"s somewhat ironic that Bloomberg notes this morning how important Toys "R" Us is to vendors and how Mattel and Hasbro couldn"t possibly allow the company to liquidate.

Rest easy, kids. Toys “R” Us Inc. isn’t going anywhere, at least not if the makers of Barbie and Transformers have their way.

Yet, the company, which operates about 1,600 stores globally, will likely survive because manufacturers such as Mattel Inc., Hasbro Inc. and closely held MGA Entertainment Inc. need the last remaining toy chain. These vendors are eager for whatever remaining leverage they have against the might of Amazon and Wal-Mart, the bane of all companies focused on a single category of shopping.

“Oh my God, they are very important, and people don’t understand,” Isaac Larian, founder and chief executive officer of MGA, said of the toy chain. “That’s the only place where kids can go and just buy toys. There is no toy business without Toys ‘R’ Us.”

In many respects, suppliers have been propping up Toys “R” Us for years, according to Moody’s Corp. analyst Charlie O’Shea; they give the chain exclusive products during the holidays and funds for promotions to help it compete with the general merchandisers. The manufacturers offer this support because they want a place to sell toys at full price, year round. Major brands have also been funding an overhaul of Toys “R” Us stores by adding more featured areas for top brands such as Mattel’s American Girl dolls.

In the toy business, the incentive is particularly powerful. Last year, Toys “R” Us accounted for 11 percent of sales at Mattel and 9 percent at Hasbro -- the second most at both companies after Wal-Mart.

Meanwhile, many have speculated this week over how/why TOY bonds traded off 75 points on the company"s filing?  How could they be so wrong?  While the timing of the filing was probably somewhat of a surprise, we can"t help but wonder whether this simplistic org structure might have contributed in some small way?

The Working Class Can't Afford The American Dream

For millions of middle- and working-class Americans, the "American Dream" is all but dead.  Far from being able to afford their own homes, the Fed’s latest survey on the wellbeing of US households revealed that nearly a quarter of Americans are unable to pay their monthly bills on time, and nearly half have less than $400 in the bank…

But in what’s perhaps the most comprehensive analysis of the financial security of American workers, a study published by HowMuch.net explores the true cost of living for working-class Americans in dozens of US cities.

What they found is hardly surprising. In most areas of the country, the average working-class household would be running a spending deficit. According to HowMuch’s methodology, the best place to live from a financial perspective on an Average Joe’s salary is Fort Worth, Texas, which would leave a working-class family with a $10,447 surplus at the end of the year. On the flip side, that same family would need an additional $91,184 just to break even in New York City.

To arrive at these scores, the researchers used data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for income levels, the National Bureau of Economic Research for tax data, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the cost of food.

Newark, NJ, Chesapeake, VA and Jacksonville, FL are the only coastal cities where a worker can adequately support his family without accumulating debt. Notice there are exactly zero affordable cities on the west coast.

Likewise, San Antonio is the only one of the top 10 most populated cities where a working-class family can afford a decent living. Out of the top 50 cities, only a dozen qualify.

HowMuch illustrates its data in the map below. The darker the shade of red, the worse off the typical working-class family is. The darker the shade of green, the better off they would be. The size of the bubble also fits on a sliding scale—large and dark red means the city is totally unaffordable. Bigger dark green bubbles likewise indicate a city where the working class can get by.

And as you can see, the red is much more prominent than the green.

So where are the best places for working-class families to live? Here are the top five cities with the net surplus wokers are left with after living expenses.

1. Fort Worth, TX ($10,447)

2. Newark, NJ (($10,154)

3. Glendale, AZ ($10,120)

4. Gilbert, AZ ($9,760)

5. Mesa, AZ ($7,780)

And here are the five worst cities, with their associated cost-of-living deficits.

1. New York, NY (-$91,184)

2. San Francisco, CA (-$83,272)

3. Boston, MA (-$61,900)

4. Washington, DC (-$50,535)

5. Philadelphia, PA (-$37,850)

Readers can take a more in-depth look at the data using HowMuch’s True Cost of Living tool, which is available here.
 

States Across The US Mow Moving to Teach Kids How to Properly Submit to Cops

A new theme of laws in the United States appears to be geared towards teaching students how to properly submit to police by teaching them how to “interact” with the officers they encounter—and it could start with children as young as 5 years old.

In Texas, Gov. Gregg Abbott signed Senate Bill 30 into law, requiring “certain public school students” to study a curriculum that teaches them how to interact with police officers. The new law goes into effect on Sept. 1.

“The commission by rule shall require that information relating to law enforcement procedures for traffic stops be included in the curriculum of each driver education course and driving safety course. The curriculum must include: a demonstration of the proper actions to be taken during a traffic stop; and information regarding: the role of law enforcement and the duties and responsibilities of peace officers; a person ’s rights concerning interactions with peace officers; proper behavior for civilians and peace officers during interactions.” 

The curriculum will be created by the State Board of Education and the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement, and it will focus on students in grades 9-12. It will also include a civilian interaction training program for peace officers, and additional instruction on interacting with police for driver education and safety courses.

The law comes after high profile cases such as the death of Sandra Bland, a 28-year-old woman who was pulled over for allegedly changing lanes improperly, arrested, and then found dead in her jail cell three days later. There are still several questions surrounding the circumstances that led up to her death—from why she was arrested for such a minor infraction, to why the Dashcam video released by police was heavily edited.

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In New Jersey, the state assembly gave unanimous support to a bill that would start teaching children how to “interact” with police as early as kindergarten. Assembly Bill A1114 passed with a vote of 76-0 on Thursday.

While the initial version of the bill focused on teaching schoolchildren about “the role and responsibilities of a law enforcement official in providing for public safety; and an individual’s responsibilities to comply with a directive from a law enforcement official,” an amended version includes “an individual’s rights under law in interacting with a law enforcement official.”

“As amended, this bill requires school districts to provide instruction on interacting with law enforcement in a manner marked by mutual cooperation and respect, and on the rights of individuals when interacting with a law enforcement official, as part of the implementation of the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Social Studies, beginning with the 2018-2019 school year.”

The bill would create two sections of curriculum—one for kindergarten to 4^th grade, and one for 5^th to 12^th grade. The amended version puts the responsibility on the Department of Education to work with an advisory committee, in order to finalize the curriculum.

“The bill directs the Commissioner of Education to appoint an advisory committee to assist in the development of a curriculum for the implementation of the instructional requirement, and details the organizations that are to serve on the advisory committee.”

The New Jersey bill will now go to the state senate for approval.

While this new theme of legislation is still in its early stages, it raises some serious concerns. One of the main ways advocates are gaining support is by pointing out that the legislation includes sections that teach students about their rights when interacting with police. But it begs the question—why is this not already implemented in the education system, and why has it just now become increasingly important, only when other parts of the legislation have come under scrutiny?

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There is also a major problem with the fact that the states looking to pass this legislation are lobbying for curriculum that has yet to be created, but that will directly influence children. When it is created, it will be done so by the state, with little input from parents and community members.

To Protect Religious Freedom, NJ Governor Guarantees Old Men Can Marry Children

Few people in the U.S. would publicly advocate the need for children as young as 12 to marry; yet, Governor Chris Christie not only believes religious freedom erases Western mores about child marriage, he codified that personal belief for New Jersey residents — by vetoing a bill which would have banned the practice, outright.

“I agree that protecting the well-being, dignity, and freedom of minors is vital,” Christie opined, “but the severe bar this bill creates is not necessary to address the concerns voiced by the bill’s proponents and does not comport with the sensibilities and, in some cases, the religious customs, of the people of this State.”

Christie stunned lawmakers in his conditional refusal to sign into law A3091, which would have barred “persons under age 18 from marrying or entering into a civil union,” according to its text.

According to Politico, Republican Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz — a legislator from Christie’s own party — led sponsorship of the bill, which garnered virtually full support from the New Jersey Senate and Assembly, after hearing “compelling” anecdotal testimony from minors who had been forced into marriage under religious pretenses.

Nevertheless, Christie proffered religion as a central focus to rubber-stamping the continuation of legal child marriage in his state.

“Underage marriage is widespread in the United States, where about 170,000 children were wed between 2000 and 2010 in 38 of the 50 states where data was available, according to activists,” Reuters reports.

“Although age 18 is the minimum for marriage in most of the nation, every state has legal loopholes allowing children to wed.”

Indeed, definitive reasons may exist for minors to marry — opposition cited pregnancy or that 17-year-olds may enlist in the military with parental consent — but the law as it stands allows children under the age of 16 to wed with permission of a family court judge.

“An exclusion without exceptions would violate the cultures and traditions of some communities in New Jersey based on religious traditions,” Christie explained.

While maturity cannot be dictated by age, detractors feel the potential for abuse, mental health concerns, and the inherent rights of minors overwhelmingly preclude the dictates of any religious doctrine — leaving the legality of underage marriage untouched while exceptions are debated seems unwise.

Reuters notes, “Studies have shown that child marriage is associated with mental health problems, poverty and increased high school drop-out rates.”

“The shocking truth is that child marriage is legal right now in New Jersey, and it’s shocking that thousands of children have been married here recently, most of them minor girls married to adult men,” Fraidy Reiss, executive director of the nonprofit Unchained At Last, told the state’s Assembly last year.

Reiss also noted, reports Politico, “that almost 3,500 marriages involving at least one partner under 18 took place in New Jersey from 1995 to 2012. Of those, 163 involved at least one spouse 15 or younger. Most were religious arranged marriages.”

New Jersey isn’t alone, by far, in allowing teens — and, in some instances, preteens — to wed, though Americans would be shocked at a comparison to the rest of the planet.

Although the age at which each state allows exceptions for minors to marry varies greatly, several, including Massachusetts, will give the green light for the marriage of children as young as 12 to a partner — but that prospective spouse rarely also is underage.

Most often, child marriages involve underage adolescent girls and men decades their senior.

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“In Virginia itself,” The Independent reported in March, “according to state health statistics, more than 4,500 minors were married between 2000 and 2013, including about 220 who were 15 or younger.”

That any of the United States permit 12-year-olds to wed puts the nation on a questionable level matched only by war-torn Yemen and opprobrious human rights-abuser, Saudi Arabia.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, anti-choice activists rallied against the bill under the auspices pregnant youth should be allowed to marry under because it would be better for offspring.

Although the governor’s refusal to sign A3091 leaves New Jersey in line with multiple U.S. states on the topic, his conditional veto came with the proposal to ban marriage entirely for those under 16 years of age and require consent from a judge before 16- and 17-year-olds could wed.

“It is disingenuous to hold that a 16-year-old may never consent to marriage, although New Jersey law permits the very same 16-year-old to consent to sex or obtain an abortion without so much as parental knowledge, let alone consent,” Christie, quoted by Politico, asserted in the veto. “That inconsistency in logic undercuts the alleged logic of an outright ban.”

Munoz — bewildered, disappointed, and unsure precisely how to proceed — retained measured optimism in the governor’s suggestions that the restrictions on child marriage may still find their way into the New Jersey law books.

“It’s not an absolute veto, which is good,” she told Reuters.

Christie would likely sign the bill into law should legislators append its text to include his recommendations on age-specific exceptions.

“I thought it was a good bill,” Munoz continued. “I thought it was OK to be first in the country on this.”

Operation Gotham Shield: U.S. gov’t to “simulate nuke blast over Manhattan” as actual war nears

A general alert is out for something major in the near or immediate future. Hopefully, it is just another false alarm, instead of another false flag. Either way, and danger is at hand.

Given all that is going on in the world, it is downright eerie to discover that the federal government is once again staging mock disasters that draw disturbing parallels with current world events.

In just a few days, during April 24-26th, Operation Gotham Shield will commence.

It is a tabletop, joint agency exercise involving FEMA, Homeland Security and a myriad of law enforcement and military agencies. WMD, chemical, and biological units will all be on hand as a response is tested for a “simulated” nuclear detonation over the United States’ foremost urban center, in the iconic and densely populated island of Manhattan and nearby shores of New Jersey.

The potential for a more explosive false flag to spin out of control, by hijacking and ‘converting’ the simulated actions, is all too real.

This is closely related to the mechanism that many researchers believe was at work on the day of 9/11, nesting a false flag attack inside of a series of large-scale training operations which invoked emergency powers and simulated attacks in locations that were actually hit.

According to the Voice of Reason:

On April 18th thru May 5th, 2017, state, local, and federal organizations alike are planning for Operation Gotham Shield 2017 — a major nuclear detonation drill in the New York-New Jersey area, along with the U.S.-Canadian border. During this exercise, 4 nuclear devices, 2 of which are rendered “safe” during the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) Vital Archer Exercise, and one successful 10kt detonation in the NYC/NJ area, along with one smaller detonation on the U.S./Canadian border are to take place.

Among the organizations involved are:

– U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)

– U.S. Department of Defense (DOD)

– U.S. Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO)

– U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

– U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

– U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM)

– State of New Jersey Office of Emergency Management

– State of New York Office of Emergency Management

– City of New York Office of Emergency Management

The following document comes form The Nevada National Security Service. Their primary role with the government is to help ensure the security of the United States and its allies by supporting the stewardship of the nuclear deterrent, providing emergency response capability and training, and contributing to key nonproliferation and arms control initiatives.

Will anything catastrophic happen during or after that window of time? Will North Korea really attack the U.S. mainland? Will someone else do so, and blame their overseas enemies?

No one who knows the answers to these questions is willing to talk. For now, all we can do is watch, wait and listen.

Don’t jump to fear and speculation, but don’t lie down or look away either.

These will be trying times.

Via SHTF Plan

COG: Full-scale terror exercise in D.C. and surrounding areas Wednesday, entire Senate summoned to White House

It looks like it all may be coming to a head Wednesday, too many coincidences to be nothing

Ted Eytan/Flickr

WASHINGTON (INTELLIHUB) — The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) is conducting a last-minute full-scale terror exercise in the Capitol region on Wednesday which is the same day that 100 Senators are summoned to the White House to reportedly discuss the North Korean situation.

However, it’s obvious that between this week’s Operation Gotham Shield exercise in New York and New Jersey, the COG exercise in Washington Wednesday, and the fact that the entire Senate is heading into the White House Wednesday to convene in what has been described as an “unusual” meeting, it’s likely that the U.S. government may be anticipating an event to happen here in the U.S. domestically or may be planning to strike North Korea preemptively and is bracing for a counter strike.

Interestingly enough, this Wednesday also dovetails with an ominous message that was broadcast over the airwaves last year. The eerie message which keeps repeating “Trump April 26” was broadcast on 1630 AM in New Jersey in September of 2016 and may have been a cryptic message foreshadowing this Wednesday’s events.

Then there is still the fact that a massive asteroid just narrowly missed Earth on Sunday and a New Jersey Emergency Management team member claims that there is a 50% chance of a meteor strike inside the CONUS on Wednesday.

And if that’s not enough, 9 states in Mexico were put on high alert after radioactive material was stolen that can be used to make a dirty bomb.

The entire press release dated April 24, titled “Full-scale exercise focused on preparing for complex terror attacks to include National Capital Region first responders, emergency managers” reads as follows:

Law enforcement officials and other first responders will participate in a full-scale exercise on April 26 designed to prepare for the possibility of a complex coordinated terror attack in the National Capital Region.

Emergency managers who work together at the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) planned the exercise to help protect residents by preparing for an attack involving multiple target locations and teams of perpetrators.

The regional exercise will be staged at six sites in the District of Columbia, suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia, and will involve hundreds of police, fire, and emergency medical service personnel and volunteer actors. The locations include neighborhoods in the northeast and southeast quadrants of the District of Columbia, Prince George’s County, and Arlington and Fairfax Counties.  Residents in those neighborhoods will be notified ahead of time to expect the exercise.

“Law enforcement officials practice and exercise their skills on their own regularly because that’s the best way to ensure we are always ready to respond quickly and professionally,” said Scott Boggs, Managing Director of Homeland Security and Public Safety at COG. “On April 26, we’ll go one step further and stage a very realistic emergency event involving multiple sites and actors posing as the casualties.  However, there is no reason for residents to be alarmed because the exercise will occur in a controlled environment.”

MEDIA AVAILABILITY PRIOR TO EXERCISE ONLY (see details below)

WHEN: Wednesday April 26, 7:30 – 8:30 A.M.

WHERE: Maryland National Capital Park Police Headquarters, 8100 Corporate Drive, Hyattsville, MD 20785

Shepard Ambellas is an opinion journalist and the founder and editor-in-chief of Intellihub News & Politics (Intellihub.com). Shepard is also known for producing Shade: The Motion Picture (2013) and appearing on Travel Channel’s America Declassified (2013). Shepard is a regular contributor to Infowars. Read more from Shep’s World. Get the Podcast. Follow Shep on Facebook and Twitter.

Featured Image: Ted Eytan/Flickr

©2017. INTELLIHUB.COM. All Rights Reserved.

Artist's Impression Of The Future Of Obamacare Repeal

I would have preferred Trump to keep other Campaign promises instead. I can"t understand why he invested so much political capital in repealing ACA when it was collapsing very nicely all by itself. The folks, including Dims, would then have been crying out for a new law. As it is, I can only assume that doing it this way allows the Corporations to slip in revised items which remain favourable to themselves, such as the subsidies no longer paid as "Taxes" to Gbumin (Remeber the penalties were classified by SCOTUS as Taxes, which allowed ACA to be approved) but now paid directly to Corporations (Health Insurers. How can it be legal for (re-defined) taxes to be collected by Private Corporations? 

Some "Walls" Should Not Be Built

Submitted by Duane via Free Market Shooter blog,

It seems I’m just no longer with the times.  Apparently throwing things like eggs and snowballs at cars traveling on freeways (dangerous enough in its own respect) doesn’t get a rise among children anymore.  Because kids have “graduated” to throwing much more dangerous objects at cars from freeway overpasses.

In May of last year, an 18-year-old in Philadelphia was charged with throwing railroad spikes and rocks from an overpass onto cars passing below, all for the fun of it.  I actually needed to see it to believe it:

Fortunately, in this instance, it did not take much to catch the perp, but the charges pressed were far too mild:

Blake Bowers, 18, is charged with aggravated assault and reckless endangerment of another person, police said Sunday.

Police were called to the 600 block of University Avenue in West Philly around 8:20 p.m. on Friday evening, where they found four drivers who had each had their vehicles damaged while driving under a railroad overpass toward I-76.

“The damage was caused by objects thrown from the overpass,” a police report states, a height of some 40 feet above the street.

A 45-year-old male driver told police “that after his windshield was broken by the thrown object, he parked, exited his vehicle and saw the defendant on the train tracks,” according to a police report on the incident.

Police said they found three metal railroad spikes, two metal railroad clamps and one rock at the scene.

Aggravated assault and reckless endangerment were the only charges this kid received?  You would think the baseline could be “attempted murder” or something just as serious.  Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt or killed in this instance, and the perpetrator was able to be apprehended quickly, in part to his disregard as to the severity of his criminal actions.  Perhaps the perpetrator did not think there would be any consequences?  Or any charges he might have faced wouldn’t be that serious?

It seems that this is precisely the case, as about six months later, in a similar incident on the New Jersey Turnpike near Philadelphia, the perpetrators graduated from railroad spikes to 50-pound dumbbells.

This story was shared by someone who has stated that the incidents of throwing objects from overpasses is very common in the Philadelphia area.  In this instance, the struck car had two passengers, the driver was (obviously) seriously hurt, and finally died on Tuesday night, which prompted this Wednesday story:

The man who was struck by a 50-pound dumbbell as it came crashing through his vehicle’s windshield on the New Jersey Turnpike has died.

New Jersey State Police tell CBS 3 that 75-year-old Jack DeCarlo died from his injuries around 7 p.m. Tuesday at Crozer-Chester Medical Center.

DeCarlo was driving his SUV on the turnpike on Jan. 9 when a 50-pound dumbbell smashed through his windshield, striking him in the head. His wife, Patricia DeCarlo, was not hurt.

Police have not said where they believe the dumbbell came from, but they did search a nearby overpass for any possible evidence.

Two possibilities have stood out so far in the case. One, the dumbbell fell off a moving car or truck or that it was possibly dropped from a turnpike overpass.

I understand the need to explore all possibilities and have an open mind when it comes to police work.  But c’mon; the cops should be able to figure out what happened rather quickly in this case.  Notice how high the dumbbell is on the windshield, the extent of the damage, and remember it was a 50-pound dumbbell.  Also factoring in the wound profile to the victim, it shouldn’t take more than a basic physics equation to rule out the possibility that it fell (or was thrown) from another vehicle.  To conclude that the dumbbell was dropped from an overpass should not be a difficult process.

Bear in mind, the incident in question occurred on Monday, January 9th, and I only found out about it after the driver had died.  Two weeks later, and the police haven’t figured out the cause of the crime in question, which should have taken no more than two days.  When it comes to solving the crime, ask yourself; how hard can it really be to determine where the dumbbell originally came from?  It’s not exactly as though the weights in question grow on trees – nailing down a manufacturer, gym and suspect should not take very long.

If the perpetrator doesn’t face a minimum of a murder charge, it will be a serious miscarriage of justice.  If parents are unwilling to teach their children to behave properly and not do deadly shit like throwing heavy objects from overpasses at cars, the law needs to take matters into their own hands.  Heavy-handed punishment is the only thing that can deter such reckless, dangerous, and yes, criminal activity.

Instead, how is the state of Pennsylvania proposing to solve the problem?  By mandating fencing be build around all highway overpasses.

Again, I understand how fencing would be necessary (if it’s a pedestrian safety issue), but not for the reason they are giving here.  The decision in question stems from a woman who was nearly killed when a rock thrown from an overpass hit her car and struck her in the head.  In the state’s infinite wisdom, they think perpetrators won’t instead throw rocks or rail spikes over/through the fence.  Someone strong enough could in theory still roll the 50-pound dumbbell off the top of the above fencing.  Not exactly a serious deterrent, wouldn’t you agree?

A state senator is not giving up on his effort to fulfill a wish of the late Randy Budd, husband of the Ohio school teacher critically injured when a rock smashed the windshield of their car on Interstate 80 in 2014.

The Senate this session failed to act on the bill that would require protective fences on new or rehabilitated overpasses over interstate and limited access highways in Pennsylvania.

Sen. Gene Yaw, R-Lycoming, the bill’s chief sponsor, said he will reintroduce it in 2017. He said he believes the chances of it passing will be better getting it in at the beginning of a session.

The legislation also would require PennDOT to consider, regardless of the type of highway, fencing for pedestrian bridges in urban areas and those from which objects have been thrown or dropped if the situation has not been alleviated by warning signs.

Wouldn’t a much easier solution be to simply prosecute these crimes incredibly harshly?  Throwing something like eggs or snowballs at cars is already dangerous enough and could cause a serious accident.  The best (and easiest) way to stop reckless behavior that goes above and beyond, involving rocks and other heavy objects thrown at cars, is to aggressively pursue the offenders who commit these crimes.  As it stands, a baseline for anyone caught doing this should be attempted murder, with some leeway given to the prosecutors and police when charging the perpetrators.

The state shouldn’t need legislation and/or a fence to deter this activity; better enforcement of the law, and classifying this behavior as a murder/manslaughter felony charge is the best, easiest, and likely most effective course of action.  And, in the case of whoever threw a gym dumbbell at a vehicle, it is more than deserved.  A fence is merely a paper-thin deterrent that is not only easily defeated, it does not get to the root of the problem – murderous behavior that is not classified as such by the authorities. 

Jury Finds Christie's 'Lieutenants' Guilty Of Causing Traffic Jams As Political Retaliation

The jury in the Bridgegate case has found Bridget Kelly, Christie"s former deputy chief of staff, and Bill Baroni, a Christie appointee to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, guilty of a plot to use traffic jams for political retaliation.

As NY Post reports, two former aides of NJ Gov. Chris Christie were found guilty of closing down Fort Lee, NJ, lanes to the George Washington Bridge to punish that borough’s mayor for not endorsing the governor’s re-election.

A jury of seven women and five men returned the guilty verdict after five days and 20 hours of deliberations in the Newark federal court trial of Bridget Anne Kelly, Christie’s former deputy chief of staff, and Bill Baroni, Christie’s appointee at the Port Authority.

The guilty verdict is more bad news for Christie, who saw his approval rating plummet to its lowest levels yet during the trial, where former staffers described him as a foul-mouthed bully who ordered subordinates to curse out his critics — and who once got angry over a playful box of donuts.

The government presented a mountain of evidence over the six-week trial, including testimony from Baroni’s former chief of staff, David Wildstein, who said he carried out the scheme at the behest of Kelly and Baroni.

The jury was also shown emails and text messages, including Kelly’s infamous email saying it was “time for traffic problems in Fort Lee.”

Christie has repeatedly denied knowing his staff was involved in the lane closures, which snarled traffic in Fort Lee for days in 2013, until the following year. Wildstein, however, testified that he and Baroni spoke with the governor about the lane closures while they were happening – and that the Gov. laughed about it. Several other witnesses say they warned Christie in 2013 that his staff might have been involved.

NJ.com notes, the jury of seven women and five men heard from 35 witnesses, including both defendants who took the stand on their behalf.

But the most damaging evidence might have been the now-infamous "time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee" email sent by Kelly less than a month before several local access toll lanes at the world"s busiest bridge were inexplicably closed for nearly a week in September 2013, leading to paralyzing gridlock on local streets.

The key witness against them was David Wildstein, a Republican operative who was on the stand for eight days. Wildstein acknowledged he was the one who came up with the lane closure idea as a point of leverage against Sokolich, and testified that both Baroni and Kelly helped him put it in play.

Baroni, 44, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Kelly, also 44, who served as a deputy chief of staff to the governor, were indicted more than a year ago after a 16-month federal investigation into the scandal that loomed large over Christie"s failed presidential aspirations.

Assistant U.S. attorney Lee Cortes, in his summations to the jury, said Baroni, Kelly and Wildstein all saw themselves as the governor"s "loyal lieutenants" who were free to use their public jobs to launch political attacks.

"They used their positions at the Port Authority and in the governor"s office to execute a malicious scheme to punish a local mayor by needlessly leading innocent travelers, adults and children who were pawns in a political game into a paralyzing traffic jam that went on for days," he said.

"They stopped people from moving freely about their community for no legitimate reason...just to mess with people, so they could send a clear and nasty political message. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what makes this a federal crime."

Chris Christie has made a statement: