Steve Kornacki was right, if this from New Jersey Mayor is to be believed:
The Supply of land is New Jersey is basically fixed; the Demand for it is not.
It is this simple economic fact that drives much of quest for local political power, as well as political scandals, when those previous quests fail (or are exposed).
Former Fort Lee mayor says potential source of NJ corruption is land shortage
by Naomi Nix, The Star-Ledger, nj.com -- Feb 13, 2014
[...] New Jersey is awash in political scandals.
[...]
[Burt] Ross, who was a mayor in Fort Lee during the 1970s, wrote in the Daily Beast today that New Jersey's low supply and high demand for land is the source of many political controversies in the state.
"Land in New Jersey is worth a fortune. Corrupt politicians sell their souls for power or money, and the dense development of land is where the action is. It’s as simple as that," he wrote.
[...]
[emphasis added.]
And the real money in land is in the high-density development, in the highly desirable neighborhoods, as he goes on to explain. And such profitable development often hinges on local approval (or local funding).
From his byline post today, the former Mayor of Fort Lee who actually cooperated with Investigators -- points to a recent Christie-approved land deal in the headlines, as an example of the kind of political power-broking in NJ, that makes his larger point:
A Mob-Defying Former Mayor Knows Why New Jersey Is So Corrupt
by Burt Ross, theDailyBeast.com -- Feb 13, 2014
[...]
The law of supply and demand applies to New Jersey real estate: there is very little of it and strong demand for it. Land in New Jersey is worth a fortune. Corrupt politicians sell their souls for power or money, and the dense development of land is where the action is. It’s as simple as that.
[...]
For many years Belleville’s public officials had tried unsuccessfully to raise the money for this development. When Christie was kind enough to cough up roughly $6,000,000 of Sandy aid for Belleville to build the project, it was no coincidence when the Essex County Chairman, a Democrat, and the Democratic Mayor of Belleville both endorsed the Governor’s reelection bid. The only problem is that this project has virtually nothing to do with Hurricane Sandy. In fact, Belleville was ranked 254th of cities affected by the hurricane.
Local officials love nothing more than supporting housing facilities for senior citizens. They are not motivated simply by pure love in their hearts, but rather because they understand that seniors vote in large numbers and tend to vote for the politicians who were kind enough to find them housing. Skilled politicians are expert in securing this vote often by putting voting booths in the lobby of the housing. Again it appears that the governor was using Sandy aid as a political slush fund.
[...]
[emphasis added.]
Burt Ross, the former Mayor of Fort Lee who actually cooperated with Investigators, chose those words for this incident "using Sandy aid as a political slush fund."
I hope that State Attorney who is presumably investigating the use/misused of Sandy Funds by the Christie Administration,
-- is paying attention, to what former NJ Mayor is now saying.
Untouched Belleville gets $6,000,000 in aid, while under-water Hoboken goes wanting.
This kind of "political" Abuse of Power has got to see the light day, with real-world consequences -- if this "kind of favoritism governing" is to ever, ever going to stop.