Authentic Democrat?
I read with interest the letter from Mrs. Sotillaro, and I am baffled by her recollection of events. Maybe she has selective memory or she just wrote this letter to get political support in her effort to run for Committee Person. Mrs. Sotillaro asked us, the citizens of Perth Amboy, to vote for the most authentic Democrats. What is an “authentic Democrat?” She claims that Democratic Senators want to control Perth Amboy. Is she against Senators, who were elected by the people, cooperating with our city and Mayor? Isn’t it in our best interest to get assistance from Senators and to maintain a good relationship with them? I do not recall Mrs. Sotillaro being upset when the same legislators and freeholders were involved in the politics of Perth Amboy during the Joe Vas era. She had no problem with the same sort of financial help and support at that time!
It is laughable that Mrs. Sotillaro claims the lives of Mr. Kevin McCabe and the Mayor revolve around one major thing… thinking of ways to get rid of Leslie Dominguez Rodriguez. She claims there is some sort of vendetta which she doesn’t explain. She also claims claims that her position as the chair of the Board of Library Trustees was taken away from her due to some imaginary hatred that the Mayor has for her.
Let me clarify her claims with facts:
1. The court-ordered new City Council election had exactly the same result as the first. Fernando lost at the polls, but was able to claim victory with absentee ballots. If he is so popular why can’t he get his supporters to come out and vote at the polls? Fernando was a councilman for four years. His only big ideas were for the City of Perth Amboy to declare bankruptcy, and to conduct investigations which led nowhere and wasted thousands of taxpayer dollars.
2. Leslie lost the election for Committee Woman of her district. Yet, against the will of the people, Barbara Sotillaro and others who had supported Joe Vas and Leslie gave her back her position as Chair of the party.
3. When she mentions the protests of Council President Nanton, Wilma Matey and Sharon Nagy-Johnson, she fails to state the truth about Leslie’s actions. Leslie circumvented the rules to appoint herself and others into positions in the party which previously did not exist. She also neglects to mention the rudeness and bad behavior of Leslie’s supporters toward newly elected committee members.
4. In the court case regarding the City Council election, the judge stated that Leslie facilitated fraud in the absentee ballot process. This is not simply an allegation. This is a fact that was proven in court. After the court decision and the judge’s statement regarding Leslie’s fraud, Mayor Diaz and Mr. McCabe(Chair of the Middlesex County Democratic Party) asked for Leslie’s resignation. This was completely appropriate and something we all should be supporting and applauding. Our community deserves to have a fair democracy that values each person’s vote as a sacred right. However, Mrs. Sotillaro persists in claiming Leslie’s proven behavior is “alleged.” I am in agreement with the actions of Mr. McCabe and Mayor Diaz. We should never allow our party to be associated with these types of things. This is not about vengeance; it is about doing the right thing.
5. Mrs. Sotillaro claims the Mayor doesn’t support unions simply because the Governor of this state came to her inauguration. This is absurd. We should all be attempting to unite instead of divide. The Mayor also attempted to unite our local party by trying to have Leslie considered for the position of Vice Chair of the Democratic Party. Why would the Mayor do this? Because she wants to unite the party. The Mayor was gracious enough to allow Leslie to run her campaign from the Mayor’s headquarters. So, while the Mayor continues to attempt to unify the party, Leslie continues to divide it. One only needs to look at Leslie’s actions over the past seven years to understand the truth.
6. It is interesting that Leslie and Mrs. Sotillaro attack others who changed their party from Republican to Democrat. However, when Billy Delgado ran for Mayor, they seemed to have forgotten that he too was once a Republican.
7. Mrs. Sotillaro and Leslie are very selective in their principles regarding campaign finance. It seems strange that they suddenly believe certain campaign contributions to be attempts to take over our city. When Mrs. Sotillaro and Leslie were part of the Joe Vas team, and when her husband ran for City Council (5 times), she never objected to similar campaign contributions.
8. While Mrs. Sotillaro was in charge of the Perth Amboy Library Board of Trustees, employees were forced to work in a building with no heat, mold, leaks and lack of funding. I remember attending a meeting of the Perth Amboy Library Board of Trustees, and asking Mrs. Sotillaro what steps she had taken to address these conditions. This was during the time that Joe Vas was Mayor. Her answer was that she had sent a letter to the Mayor but received no answer. I then asked her if she had sent an email. She responded that she did not know how to send an email. I then asked if she had sent a follow-up letter including a return receipt to ensure the Mayor received it. She stated that she hadn’t thought of that. The strange thing is that her husband was a councilman for years and nothing was done to alleviate the poor and hazardous conditions that the employees of the library had to endure all those years.
We need to start evaluating our leaders and elected officials for what they DO. This is not about who is an “authentic Democrat.” This is about doing the right thing for ALL citizens instead of just a few. It is about ensuring we have a fiscally solvent government, a quality educational system, public buildings and services that ensure the health and safety of our people, and a fair democratic process. In order to achieve these things we need people to work together and to reach across the aisle. A true leader will understand what’s at stake, stop creating diversions for personal political gain, and take actions to move our city forward.
Maria Garcia
