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but why did he have to resign?
New Jersey Governor Resigns, Disclosing a Gay Affair
By LAURA MANSNERUS
Published: August 13, 2004
Laura Pedrick for The New York Times
Gov. James E. McGreevey announced his resignation on Thursday, effective on Nov. 15. His wife, Dina Matos McGreevey, and his parents, including his mother, Veronica, were by his side at the State House in Trenton.
RENTON, Aug. 12 - Gov. James E. McGreevey of New Jersey disclosed on Thursday that he was gay and had had an affair with another man, and announced that he would resign on Nov. 15, more than a year before his term would have expired.
In a somber and unexpected announcement, while his wife and parents stood with him, the governor said his decision to step down from office was prompted by the conclusion that the cir stances surrounding the affair would impair his ability to govern.
Aides to the governor, a Democrat, said the affair was with a former aide, Golan Cipel, who was hired by the governor in 2002 as an adviser to the state Office of Homeland Security. He resigned eight months later as a special adviser to the governor, at a salary of $110,000. The aides said Mr. Cipel had threatened to file a lawsuit accusing the governor of sexual harassment.
A federal law enforcement official said Mr. McGreevey's office had called the F.B.I. in New Jersey on Thursday and complained that Mr. Cipel had requested $5 million to quash the suit, which assistants to the governor saw as extortion.
Neither Mr. Cipel, 35, nor his lawyer responded to calls for comment.
The aides said the threat of a suit set off agonizing days for the governor and some of his top advisers, ending on Thursday with Mr. McGreevey's six-minute announcement, which was televised nationally, from his outer office in the State House.
With his wife, Dina Matos McGreevey, by his side, he reflected on a life of tortured iden y.
"My truth is that I am a gay American," the 47-year-old governor said, his voice thick at first as he read a statement.
Mr. McGreevey provided no details about the man, including his iden y, and no details about their relationship could be learned. He said that he engaged "shamefully" in the adult consensual affair with another man, and said it "violates my bonds of matrimony."
"It was wrong. It was foolish. It was inexcusable," he said.
"Given the cir stances surrounding the affair and its likely impact upon my family and my ability to govern," he said, "I have decided the right course of action is to resign."
The announcement threw New Jersey's political leadership into confusion. Under the New Jersey cons ution, the Senate President, Richard J. Codey, will become acting governor upon Mr. McGreevey's resignation; New Jersey has no lieutenant governor. A special election is required only if a governor leaves office fewer than 60 days before the next scheduled election, which this year is Nov. 2. Mr. Codey, a Democrat, will also retain his Senate post.
However, some Republicans called for Mr. McGreevey to step down immediately, raising the possibility that he would not last until Nov. 15.
State Senator Joseph J. Kyrillos Jr., the chairman of the Republican State Committee, said in statement that Mr. McGreevey "should resign now because he can no longer effectively govern the state." But Mr. Kyrillos, like other Republican leaders, expressed sadness and declined to discuss the next governor's race.
Mr. Codey spent much of the day at a hospital in Livingston, where his wife was undergoing surgery. As he left his house in West Orange, shaken but resolute, he said, "New Jersey will be in good hands." He and aides said it was too early to say whether he would seek the governor's office in 2005.
Thursday's announcement followed hours of desperate strategizing among Mr. McGreevey, his top advisers, friends and family members. Aides said the governor changed his mind several times about whether to resign. For most of his term, the governor, who was previously the mayor of Woodbridge, has struggled politically, and the last few weeks have been especially hard for him as a top fund-raiser and his leading contributor have come under federal investigation.
Many Democrats wanted Senator Jon S. Corzine to step in and run for governor next year. In a statement, Mr. Corzine said that "any speculation about my own political plans in light of the governor's decision is entirely premature."
but why did he have to resign?
Irony here. New Jersey, home of the teamsters, the mafia, wise guys like Tony Soprano and Jimmy Hoffa, real men rock stars like Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi, and they have a fairy gay Gov. And California, a state known for its liberal artsy fartsy live and let live at udes, home of Richard Simmons and they have Arnold for their Gov....Just thought it funny.
like I said in another post,
suck one and they call you a ............whatever!
before too many stones are thrown from our glass house don't forget that there are rumors out there that the governor of the great state of Texas is gay too...
before too many stones are thrown from our glass house don't forget that there are rumors out there that the governor of the great state of Texas is gay too...
Let's calm down.......
I hate rumors like that.
Sincerely,
Troy Aikman
I agree, Chalupa.
Sincerely,
Mouse
So what about this made him have to resign? Just because he's gay? Does anyone really care? Or is there some other reason why he's resigning...
What else might cause a politician to leave office (well other than WJC himself)?
Litigation.
A18,
Apparently, there were indictments against two of his biggest contributors because of various reasons, talk of him being deeply involved in those crimes, etc.
It's a little odd that he is married and gay.
Well, until yesterday there were over 4000 couples in CA who were married and gay.
Until, BAMM!, the federal judge said they were not legal marriages.
WTF does it matter if Rick Perry is gay?
I dont think he is, there would have to be solid evidence, and solid prrof he is.
Also, a crooked politician in New Jersey???
NOOOOO! I WONT HEAR OF IT!
You mean "hard" evidence?
You want to know if met some dude and BAMM!, got it on?
Personally, I don't want to see such evidence.
*sigh*
TPark, I was trying to be funny.
Obviously you didn't get it.
It is common knowledge that the "Rick Perry is gay" rumor has been circulating in Texas since last fall and also common knowledge that no one has been able to find a single fact to confirm the rumor. There was even a rally of in front of the governors mansion in "support" of Perry and his being gay...
I just threw it out there for a little humor.
CC, *our* sense of humor is lost on a lot of people...
We know we're funny!
hehehe thanks darlin.
At least someone gets me...:wink
If he is getting sued for sexual harrasment my defense would be if it don't fit, you must acquit.
It's outrageous, egregious, preposterous!
TPark comes to the defense of Perry a republican and jumps all over the democrat from Jersey cause hes gay. Surprise surprise.
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