New Jersey Corruption UPDATE

Want an apartment in New Jersey? It will be costlier than it should be because of politicians who hold up promising developments to help their cronies.
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I first covered the hold-up about 3 years ago, after I confronted Edgewater, New Jersey mayor Michael McPartland.

"Are you on the take?" I asked at a town council meeting, after he'd ignored interview requests.

He never answered.

McPartland was accused of corruptly blocking an exciting new development of hundreds of waterfront apartments -- all to protect his powerful developer friend Fred Daibes.

He and other city council members lived in one of Daibes' buildings.

A lawsuit alleged that nearly 2,000 competing apartments were blocked by Daibes and the town council.

The mayor and council got aggressive, even at one point attempting to seize the competing developer's land using eminent domain. That was stopped in court.

Since my first reporting, a few things have changed. After the developer sued, claiming corruption, McPartland and the city council switched sides. The corruption suit was dropped, and the politicians agreed to approve most of the developer's proposed construction.

Sadly, the exciting development still remains unbuilt. That's because now a spa — with close connections to Daibes, according to the developer — has sued Edgewater, saying the council was not allowed to approve the development under duress of a corruption lawsuit.

Thanks to politicians, lawyers, and their cronies, beautiful waterfront property remains... a dump. Taxpayers, and renters, lose.

[inlettwister]

John, this has been New Jersey’s major problem with development for decades!! It’s all political!

[bnbwhitezombie]

Instead of going legit, the mob just gets into politics.

[JeffreyBue_imtxsmoke]

Corruption in politics really isn't new. I just find it funny how they react when you confront these crooks to their face. They act like "you're" the asshole.

[powercomm]

These are real criminals who should be in jail.

[ThioJoe]

Disgusting, classic politicians. Glad you bring stuff like this to light

[SoloRenegade]

Stossel: "are you on the take?"
politician: "your done."
Me: " so that's a Yes."

[forrest]

Mafia never left jersey. They just got into politics.

[stevewill]

They have a lawyer present at a simple council meeting, yeah they're totally innocent

[RJRussoVids]

In Jersey when politicians say, “No” they usually mean the envelope is not thick enough.

[mustang]

"Are you on the take?"
Most truly honest people would simply answer, "No."
This politician consulted his lawyer.

[JackC]

I love to see real journalism, it is very rare nowadays

[dcttd]

He was just sentenced to 7 years in jail on bribery charges! Stossel you are ahead of the game!

[sdanbewa]

When the mayor at a council meeting has to consult with his attorney before answering, that’s not a good sign

[agnichatian]

Don't euphamize this by saying it's "political" - it's "Criminal" and should be treated as such.

[timtrainage]

"Objectionable tone"
John was cool and collected. His "tone" was totally fine

[uncletaylorify]

New Jersey and corruption? That's like asking if the sky is blue.

[SabbathSOG]

This is what happens to a country before it dies. The corruption is everywhere.

[AlienRelics]

"...not with that objectionable tone..."

Who knew politicians were so sensitive?

[Axtrosity]

“Certainly not with that tone” WTF he asked politely. These politicians should be impeached ASAP

[MFMP]

They need to be held accountable for their corruption.