Christie, arrogant staff are a bunch of greedy pigs

The Oritani Field Club on Camden Street in Hackensack was sold in July 2011, and is scheduled to close its doors at the end of 2015.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Foul-mouthed Michael Drewniak -- Governor Christie's press secretary -- got a raise to $134,000 from $129,000, probably $500 for every time he used the F-word to describe a reporter who was digging too hard.

Twenty-two other members of the GOP bully's staff got average raises of 23.1% -- this while the state budget is being balanced on the backs of the middle and working classes, and unemployment remains high.

There's no word in today's Page 1 story in The Record on what Bridget Anne Kelly, Christie's former deputy chief of staff, was paid for her dirty tricks in Democratic Fort Lee, summed up by the e-mail that broke open the George Washington Bridge scandal in January:

"Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee."

Papers pay far less

The Record reports "some of those who received the biggest boosts temporarily left state government to work on Christie's reelection campaign last year, then returned with new titles and higher salaries" (A-1).

One deputy press secretary left with a $75,000 salary and returned as the $110,000 deputy communications director. 

I can just see Staff Writer Melissa Hayes -- one of Christie's chief boosters -- looking at the state employee salaries in the story she wrote, and wondering why she is stuck in a relatively low paying job at The Record.

Houlton and Borg

The only person who likely got a raise anywhere near 23% at the Woodland Park daily is Liz Houlton, the six-figure production editor who was promoted from supervisor of the features copy desk, where she was dubbed "Queen of Errors."

Or Stephen A. Borg, who pushed his father aside, grabbed the titles of publisher and president of The Record, and got a $3.65 million North Jersey Media Group mortgage to buy a Tenafly McMansion.

Hackensack news?

Christopher Maag, the new Hackensack reporter, was pulled off his beat again, this time to write a front-page story on five New Milford High School students who are charged with counterfeiting $5 and $20 bills (A-1).

Maag tried his best to polish this turd, even invoking two huge counterfeiting cases in Georgia and California before he even mentioned the students. How pathetic.

The students reportedly used the fake bills to buy snacks or food at Dunkin' Donuts, 7-Eleven and the high school cafeteria -- in all cases, low-quality food not worth paying for (A-4).

Today's Local section is dominated once again by Law & Order coverage, with no municipal stories from Hackensack, Teaneck, Englewood and many other towns.

'Mediterranean' food

If there is anything worse than another Turkish restaurant, it's another casual Greek place, but that doesn't stop Staff Writer Elisa Ung from ferreting out every slice of baklava cheesecake in North Jersey (BL-16).

She gives Sofia's Mediterranean Grill in Hasbrouck Heights two and a half stars (Good to Excellent) despite botched cooking that would send customers racing for the door.

Why should she worry?

NJMG picked up the tab for dry sea bass ($28), oversalted octopus ($12.95) and overcooked pork and chicken ($16.50). 

What a waste of money.