When did we become such an unforgiving people?
By Wally EdgeNew Providence Councilman Brooke Hern tells a great story about his experiences as an aide to then-Congressman Robert Torricelli:
"I had only recently graduated from the Political Science program at American University, and I had landed a job working for the Torch. It was my responsibility to keep the Congressman on schedule and fully briefed for each stop along the way. Typically, I would begin and end most days either at the Congressman's house or at our district office. But this not-so-typical day in politics would end dodging cars in the streets of Newark.
Moments before my unexpected stop, we were making our way past was was the site of the Torch's Senate office in the Gateway complex. The Congressman was talking on his cellular telephone. As we turned the corner and proceeded along McCarter Highway, he suddenly ended his call and issued an unexpected command: "Stop the car, right here!" Naturally, I checked the mirror and began to pull into the far right lane, when he commanded, "No! Right here!" That was quickly followed by a resounding "get out! Get out! GET OUT!" At first I thought perhaps the car was on fire, and that he was merely concerned for my safety. But as I stepped out of the car and watched him slide into the driver seat and speed away, it was quite clear that I had just been tossed aside like a dead armadillo.
As I watched the Congressman drive away, I realized that my keys were in the ignition of his car, and that he was approaching a red light at the corner. I quickly made my way to the car and tapped on the window, and told him that I needed to retrieve my keys. Otherwise, I would not be able to drive my car and get into my house. When the light turned green, he pulled through the intersection and over to the right side of the road. As he twisted himself into the back seat and aggressively wrestled with his suit jacket, he reprimanded me because he could not find his keys. I reached into the car and removed my keys from the ignition. He finally located his keys, closed the window, and drove away.
Then I walked to Penn Station and took a bus to our District Office in Hackensack, where I retrieved my car and drove home. I appeared at his house the next day to pick him up. Thereafter, we never spoke of the incident. We simply carried on as if it never happened."
Hern is now a Republican.
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Torch was in a rush...had to get to David Chang's house.
Torch was in a rush...had to get to David Chang's house.
Who cares?
Who cares?
I think the funnier image was when Bob and Bianca drove in the b
I think the funnier image was when Bob and Bianca drove in the backseat of Mike Flynn's car. Now that's an image
Nobody cares about Bob Torricelli (yet another indication that w
Nobody cares about Bob Torricelli (yet another indication that we have, indeed, becaome an uncaring society), but he is always an interesting read.
He's sort of like John Lynch -- used to be important, short, dating/married to a a hot woman with a hot temper, dancing on the razor's edge of ethics.
Torch or Lynch stories are always fun even though nobody cares.
Walt
Walt, you are right. E.g., stories like, "Never f**k with the
Walt, you are right. E.g., stories like,
"Never f**k with the Sho-gun!"
Or my favorite Trentonina headline "Senate Big in Bedroom Blopw-
Or my favorite Trentonina headline "Senate Big in Bedroom Blopw-up" after Lynch got thrown in the slammer for kicking in his wife's door and then arrested on a domestic violence charge in Brielle.
Of course, I'd rather spent time in the local lock-up then to have her brother the mafia hitman come after me!!
That's a great story. But my only question is why didn't you pu
That's a great story.
But my only question is why didn't you punch him in the face the next day and quit?
With the telling of this story Brook "Silver Spoon" Hern has bro
With the telling of this story Brook "Silver Spoon" Hern has broken the golden rule of being a driver. Keep your mouth shut. Everything is confidential. Regardless of what you think of the Torch or any of the statewide officials over the past few decades, these men and women lead very stressful lives and deserve to have some measure of privay.
I'll agree with that Midstate but once you disgrace yourself, th
I'll agree with that Midstate but once you disgrace yourself, the office and the people of the state you represent. When you're the embarrassment of the nation, when your a criminal and crook, you lose any rights to privacy. period! As for stress who isn't, go for a run or down a scotch.
Come on Brooke, you have been "dining out" on that story forever
Come on Brooke, you have been "dining out" on that story forever. It happened about twenty years ago, most of us have moved on. The fact that you left out a number of salient details is of course just as telling about your ethics as it is of the trustworthiness of Wally's reporting.
Oh, and you were the world's worst driver and aide. But you knew that.
Norm is clearly not as friendly as George Wendt's character on C
Norm is clearly not as friendly as George Wendt's character on Cheers.
Torricelli's litany of offenses towards his colleagues, subordinates, and humanity in general disqualifies him from any right to privacy (or any other rights for that matter) or require any expectation of decency or discretion from anyone who wants to "dine out" on Torch's memory.
As someone who was Brooke's aide during his short-lived, but very educational (the Somerset County Convention of 2000 was the most interesting piece of political drama that I have experienced in my lifetime) Congressional run, I can speak firsthand to the fact that his experiences with the ugliest human being to ever participate in NJ politics taught him how NOT to treat an aide.
While Brooke's turn from Democrat to Republican was disappointing, between his experiences with Torch and the way that he was chewed up and spit out by the Union County Democratic machine, I more than understand.
I think that if Maryanne Connelly wasn't given a role with the DNC after she was screwed over in 2000 by Charlotte DeFilippo and Donnie D's old legislative district hadn't been completely dismantled, she could have become the most liberal Republican in the State Assembly or Senate.
If the national and state leadership of the Republican Party weren't so completely reprehensible in their own right, I think that the bossism and cronyism that infects and infests the Democratic Party in this state would have produced significantly more converts than Brooke Hern et al. When I lived in Essex County, there were times that I seriously considered changing teams myself.
But with a fearless leader like Dubya at the top, it puts everything else into perspective. That is, until the next time Joe Ferriero et al do or say something, raising the same old questions once again.