TRENTON – Councilwoman Robin Vaughn claimed in defending embattled council president Kathy McBride that “to Jew someone down is a verb” and demanded the city law department investigate the source of the leak of closed-door conversations.
McBride is under fire after she allegedly said during a Sept. 5 executive session that a city attorney was “able to wait her out and Jew her down” to settle a personal injury lawsuit for a lower amount.
“We really need to get a more acute meaning and understanding of ‘anti-Semitic,'” Vaughn wrote in comments on Facebook responding to questions from constituents about the controversy, which were obtained by The Trentonian. “I believe her comment ‘Jew down’ was more in reference to negotiating not ‘I hate Jews.’ Inappropriate in today’s PC culture absolutely, but to Jew someone down is a verb and is not-anti-anything or indicative of hating Jewish people.”
At-large councilman Jerell Blakeley called on McBride to resign as council president over her alleged remarks, made at the Sept. 5 executive session while council was discussing a settlement of Vivian Soto’s personal injury lawsuit against the city.
Mayor Reed Gusciora in an email obtained by The Trentonian demanded the council president apologize for the anti-Semitic remark.
“As the mayor of this city that encompasses diverse communities of racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds, I find this to be offensive,” Gusciora wrote. “This anti-Semitic remark, particularly about an attorney in our law department that happens to be Jewish, should have no place in our public discourse. I hope that after some reflection you would apologize for these remarks.”
McBride has not responded to repeated phone calls from The Trentonian, but told the New Jersey Globe earlier this week she could not talk about privileged discussions made in executive sessions, which are closed to the public.
The council went into executive session Sept. 5 to discuss settling Soto’s lawsuit for $22,500 at the recommendation of the city law department.
The Trentonian on Saturday requested a copy of the recording through the Open Public Records Act. The city has seven business days to respond to the newspaper.
Sources with intimate knowledge of the conversations said the recording plainly captures McBride making the slur.
Blakeley wrote to McBride on Saturday calling on her to resign over her “insidiously bigoted and anti-Semitic perspective of Jews as parsimonious and cheap.”
Councilmen George Muschal and Santiago Rodriguez quickly jumped to the defense of the council president.
They said they did not hear the alleged offending remark and accused Blakeley of being behind the leak of the mayor’s email.
Calling the at-large councilman a “loaded bomb,” Muschal promised the council would bring up Blakeley, who was not present at the executive session, on “hardcore charges” if he’s found to have leaked privileged executive sessions discussions.
“All this sh*t going out in the paper, they better watch their ass,” South Ward councilman Muschal said. “Because it’s not going to be good.”
Rodriguez suggested Blakeley was in “cahoots with the [mayor]. Mr. Blakeley sold his soul to the devil and now he’s paying for it. He’s not trustworthy at all.”
Vaughn, who has not returned the newspaper’s phone calls, became the latest member of the legislative body to chime in on the controversy.
She said McBride will “respond appropriately in her own time” to the allegations. She suggested the city attorney who was offended by McBride’s alleged remark “could have just stepped to her and spoke their mind.”
Vaughn said McBride has a track record of speaking up against inflammatory remarks, mentioning a time when a “union president” allegedly used a racial slur at a community forum.
“If you listened to the video, you would have heard and seen Hon. Kathy McBride and many of the community members attending the meeting responding and encouraging the union president not to use that term.”
The West Ward councilwoman went further in an email Saturday night to Mayor Gusciora and fellow council members. In it, she took shots at Blakeley and Gusciora.
“No one calls for the ouster of a Councilman who has proven to the public, all captured on the record, his propensity for misogynistic behaviors by verbally abusing and physically intimidating and threatening women,” she wrote. “Time and time again, during his public outbursts of rage, he opts to go after a Councilman’s wife, and he speaks, posts to social and/or submits to print media negative and slanderous comments, specifically targeting the three Councilwomen. Not once has he gone after Councilmen Santiago, Muschal, or Harrison exerting the same level of toughness. NOT. Even. Once.”
Blakeley did, in fact, criticize Muschal at a recent meeting for supporting a salary ordinance that could give each council member a $10,000 raise.
“It is utterly astounding that the same Councilman whose disturbing physical behaviors on numerous occasions continues to go unchecked, to be tolerated and given the proverbial pass, by the mayor, and that he has the gall to call for the ouster of Hon. Kathy McBride, President of Trenton City Council for allegedly making one anti-Semitic comment,” Vaughn wrote.
Vaughn accused Gusciora of “grandstanding and pretending to care about racism and discrimination issues” and demanded the law department find out who leaked McBride’s alleged comment.
“His purported outrage is not about fighting racism and discrimination. His purported outrage is really a thinly disguised pretext for going after Council President McBride to discredit and undermine her accomplishments because she takes her job seriously and openly challenges his commitment to the City of Trenton,” she wrote.
“Detractors need to stop with the distractions,” Vaughn continued. “The City of Trenton is in fiscal distress and facing so many societal ills. And, an alleged anti-Semitic remark is front page news! Please stop the madness and political jockeying.
“What’s more, it’s outrageous and unethical that a comment that was part of a confidential private discussion during an executive session was leaked to the media. I will request the Law Department to open an inquiry to this matter and revert to Council and the public its findings. It is important that a violation of the public trust is taken seriously and that we send a message that a breach of this nature will be investigated to the fullest extent of the law.”
