New Jersey Republican US Senate candidate Steve Lonegan blasted Newark Mayor Cory Booker as being even less effective than his predecessor, Sharpe James — a convicted criminal who spent 18 months in federal prison for fraud.
In the final days of the spirited race for the Senate seat vacated by the late Frank Lautenberg, Lonegan, the mayor of Bogota, NJ, charged yesterday that Newark has declined since Booker took the reins from James, who was found guilty of steering sweetheart city land deals to his then-mistress.
Sharpe James spent 18 months in federal prison for fraud.Photo: Christopher Sadowski
“This guy is worse than Sharpe James,” Lonegan told The Post.
“James was a convicted criminal, but he was a better mayor than Cory Booker.”
Lonegan claimed that unemployment and the high-school dropout rate have risen since Booker took office. He added that robberies are at a 14-year high.
“There were two shooting deaths in Newark [Monday] night,” he said.
James, who lost his mayoral seat to Booker in 2006, pushed aside the bad blood and endorsed him for Senate earlier this month.
A spokesperson for Booker disputed Lonegan’s claims, citing a newspaper article that praised Booker for Newark’s progress.
“When it endorsed him, the Newark Star-Ledger said that the progress in Newark under Mayor Booker is ‘undeniable,’ ” Kevin Griffis said. “Since 2006, when the mayor took office, crime is down.”
Booker now has a 14-point lead, according to the latest Quinnipiac poll.
Yahoo Local News – New York Post
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