Congressman Pascrell Supports Staffer Who Shoved Senior Citizen

Fellow Tea Partiers,

There is at least one aspect of what happened at Congressman Bill Pascrell's August 9th Forum on Senior Issues -- a forum open to the public, and held in a public building -- that is not getting nearly as much attention as it should: nobody disputes that Pascrell staffer Ann Mega physically attacked a senior citizen at this forum. Given this context, it is disgusting that Pascrell continues to show his support for his employee by not firing her, and by not apologizing for her thuggish behavior.

The reason that Pascrell and his staff know they can't get away with lying about what happened with regard to the particular senior citizen who was attacked is simple. A reporter for the Montclair Times personally witnessed Mega shove this senior citizen, and the reporter was honest enough and brave enough to write about it. Here is some of what the Montclair Times reporter wrote:

* "Ann Mega, Pascrell’s field representative, physically pushed [the senior citizen] out of the chambers..."

* "When [this senior citizen] ventured into the chambers, Mega put her hands on him and pushed him out of the room, an action witnessed by a Times reporter."

At no point in this Montclair Times article -- or a subsequent follow-up -- do Pascrell, his spokesman Paul Brubaker, Mega, or anybody connected with Pascrell's campaign deny that Mega physically attacked a senior citizen.

In fact, a thorough Google search of the internet turns up absolutely no evidence whatsoever of Pascrell, Brubaker, Mega, or anybody else associated with Pascrell's campaign denies that Mega physically attacked a senior citizen at the August 9th Forum on Senior Issues in Montclair!

In other words: their silence about the matter is their tacit admission that it happened.

This of course is bad enough -- Mega has no right to physically attack a senior citizen.

But it gets worse. By now -- more than a week after this incident -- Pascrell should have fired Mega, and sincerely apologized for her actions (which, after all, were undertaken in her role as Pascrell's field representative).

Pascrell's refusal to fire Mega, Pascrell's refusal to offer an apology for his employee's actions, Pascrell's refusal to do ANYTHING to right this wrong show that he supports her actions, and hopes that they blow over without any serious repercussions to him or to Mega.

In the private sector, Mega likely would have been fired by now. For one thing, companies don't want to risk potentially costly lawsuits by showing support for unhinged, physically violent employees.

But in Washington D.C. -- or at least, the part of Washington D.C. that Bill Pascrell Jr. inhabits -- apparently shoving senior citizens is permissible.

I find this reprehensible, as any fair-minded American would. Senior citizens do not deserve to have the use of physical force initiated against them by any government employee -- much less a key staff member of a powerful United States congressman!

For more information about the two -- yes, two! -- peaceful constituents that Pascrell's employee attacked in separate incidents on August 9th, please refer to the following blog posts:

"Eyewitness Describes Physical Attack by Congressman Pascrell's (D-NJ) Employee at Town Hall Meeting":

http://njteapartiesunited.blogspot.com/2010/08/fellow-tea-partiers-as-you-may-have.html

"Calling on Congressman Pascrell to Immediately Fire Staffer Ann Mega for Physically Attacking Two Peaceful Constituents":

http://njteapartiesunited.blogspot.com/2010/08/calling-on-congressman-pascrell-to.html

Details in these links include the identification of and some additional details about the two individuals who Ann Mega physically attacked. Media outlets are encouraged to learn more by contacting the second individual attacked -- me -- by e-mailing me at:

nnjteaparty@gmail.com


The North New Jersey Tea Party Group continues to call on Congressman Pascrell to do the honorable thing, by immediately and permanently firing Ann Mega from his staff, and by sincerely apologizing for her thuggish behavior -- and his shameful support of it.

To date, no such actions or apology have been forthcoming.

*** The North New Jersey Tea Party Group is the largest New Jersey-based tea party organization on Facebook in terms of members, with over 4,500 of them combined in our two group pages. ***

*** As always, feel free to pass on the above information! ***

Mark Kalinowski
North New Jersey Tea Party Group
Liberty, Free Markets, and Individual Rights
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=172402990061
and
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=111373848903476
E-Mail: nnjteaparty@gmail.com