McGreevey, walking right along
Yesterday morning the governor was walking downtown, undisturbed, with his young child. People respected his right to a quiet walk. While I certainly want him out of Drumthwacket, I wasn't going to say anything that might be interpreted as unpleasant when he's walking with his child on a nice Saturday morning.

That I save for today, after reading Qualifications don't count when McGreevey hires young friends. The Asbury Park Press (APP)investigated several McGreevey appointees

• Theodore Pedersen, 26, who works at the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, earning $56,595


• Al Harris Jr., who works for the governor as an advance man, earning $35,000


• Labor Commissioner Kevin McCabe, 32, who earns $141,000. McCabe was a best man at the governor's second wedding.

That report from Sandy McClure of the APP was followed by an investigation by Lilo Stainton which showed that

under McGreevey, more than $2.6 million in special pay was distributed to employees. Between 2002 and 2004, two of every five raises went to political appointees, who account for 10 to 15 percent of the work force.
There is a little-known outfit to do the rewarding. It's called the Salary Adjustment Commission, an ad hoc panel consisting of the personnel commissioner, the state treasurer and the management and budget director. It has no office or stationery or standing schedule.
Where are the Republican watchdogs on this? Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, of course. They're no place to be seen or heard, as usual. They don't want to rock the boat in the unlikely event they should ever be in power again.
Only one stood up to be counted. Assemblyman Paul DiGaetano of Essex County

NJ needs more DiGaetanos. In the meantime, the lobbying campaign on behalf of Kevin McCabe , the commissioner of labor who is fighting to keep his job, is backfiring.

The Needle exchange [program's] on the ropes: Opponents fight off panel vote leaving passage unlikely before McGreevey exits, and the debate does not fall along party lines. In an article about the McGreeveys's real estate quest, the NY Post says "members of the governor's administration are in ongoing negotiations with the New Jersey Treasury Department to determine how large McGreevey's transition budget will be."

Yes, but, is he going?