Vin Gopal
I don't get involved in local political races unless there is something outrageous going on the rest of the state needs to be aware of. In today's column in print and online that's the case. In Monmouth County's 11 District, the Republicans are trying to smear a young man named Vin Gopal who is the kind of person we need in Trenton. He's 26 and while other people his age are still in school or struggling to find themselves he is a businessman, owning a retail outlet and several neighborhood publications. He doesn't always agree with Democrats or Republicans but he does think we have to work together for a better state and country. When he was 20 and a political science student at Penn State he worked in about 10 campaigns for class credit and a small amount of money. One of those campaigns was for Joe Vas, who later pleaded guilty to corruption. Vas got what he deserved. But, the New Jersey Republican State Committee has lowed itself to the gutter in a mailer that tries to make Gopal look corrupt and connected to Vas and his crime. I deal with it in the column. My colleagues at The Asbury Park Press dealt with it in an editorial, saying "The mailer lacked a complete sense of decency and fair play, further contributing to voters’ cynicism and disgust with politicians who will do anything to win election."
PolitiFact New Jersey also investigated the mailer and found that readers of the ad could infer improprieties by Gopal, but there’s no proof that he did anything wrong. It said "Given that law enforcement and a public database all confirm that Gopal had no connection of any kind to the Vas criminal case, the implications made by the ad aren’t just ridiculous, they’re also outrageous ... This claim is Pants on Fire!"
The "Pants on Fire" rating means the Republicans went beyond misleading the public. It is a 100 per cent bald-faced lie and one they conceived to benefit their candidates who should be able to campaign on the issues. It's not like the sate doesn't have serious problems. They may think it's only a political campaign and will pass but the GOP State Committee needs to know after this, anything else it sends out will be suspect and deservedly so.
The three Republicans in the 11th District should have rejected this ad. They are Sen. Jen Beck and Assemblywomen Caroline Casagrande and Mary Pat Angelini. But they didn't. That's pathetic and shameful. It speaks to their morals and ethics or lack thereof.
