Looks like the feds were busy in Atlantic City and it wasn’t playing slots! Just their luck, right! Well, I’m not sure where this man was arrested, but the federal authorities arrested a Democratic operative who served as the former Atlantic City council president, and he’s linked to an alleged mail-ballot fraud scheme that was going on before a 2022 election. OK, saying he was linked to it was not very exciting, the official news report claims the man was allegedly MASTERMINDING the scheme. Now we’re talking!
A political news report on New Jersey Monitor says this man, Craig Callaway was working with some other folks and allegedly paying people who lived in Atlantic City to act as “authorized messengers” and try to get mail-in ballots for people they never even met. They got paid anywhere from $30 to $50. The crime goes further when the feds suggest these ballots were later used in the election and the people who’s names were actually on them had no idea. Imagine you voted for someone and didn’t even vote!
]Wow, that’s shady, and it shows you what people will do for such a low rate. Only $30 – $50? What a cheapskate! Then again, if you’ve ever been to Atlantic City, then you know what else goes for $30-50 and it ain’t mail-in votes. Let me tell ya! Wait, never mind, I won’t tell you that story, and it was way more than $50, but that’s for another day and another blog. Now back to Craig and his unfortunate case of Democratic fraud, allegedly. The New Jersey Monitor further reported the following:
The charges appear to stem from work Callaway did for Rep. Jeff Van Drew’s 2022 reelection campaign. There’s no indication Van Drew (R-02) knew about the alleged scheme.
“Holding free and fair elections is a bedrock principle of our democracy,” U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said in a statement. “As alleged in the complaint, the defendant attempted to deprive New Jersey residents of a fair election by fraudulently procuring and casting ballots. Today’s charges reflect our office’s commitment to hold to account those who try to undermine the electoral process.”
Prosecutors did not seek to detain Callaway before trial, though he must provide a $50,000 appearance bond, forgo international travel, and avoid contact with others involved in the case as conditions of his release.
Megan Davies, Callaway’s attorney, declined to provide immediate comment. Both parties agreed to a continuance order that would delay further proceedings until March 29.
So much for a fair election. I guess the people who say mail-in votes are bad are probably right. If you can’t vote in person and show your ID, then you shouldn’t even be allowed to vote. That’s just my opinion, and I’m pretty much always right, so take that with a grain of salt if you want. Or just be salty and cry about it, I couldn’t care less. I don’t even know you, but here’s a tissue if you need one.
Now here’s a plot twist. Craig Callaway apparently worked for numerous Democrats, but he also worked for Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew’s campaign. Van Drew said he had no idea what Craig was into. So take that for whatever you will. Seems like Craig is an equal opportunity guy to me! If your money is green, then he’s your guy! That’s how you do business, baby! And, well, could go to jail for it too, so maybe that’s NOT how you do business.
How many slaps on the wrist could Craig Callaway get? Well, he might actually go to jail if he’s found guilty. The news report said he could get up to five years in the slammer and watching his back in the shower. He might also get a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. This is only if he’s convicted on a charge of “procuring, casting, and tabulating fraudulent ballots.”
But wait. There’s more. New Jersey Monitor said this is not his first time getting in legal trouble. He was caught, and admitted to, taking $36,000 in bribes from a contractor. Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me bro. This story just keeps going down the rabbit hole. Hey look, there’s a carrot! The report weighed in on that crime, too:
The charges are not the first Callaway has faced. In 2006, he admitted accepting $36,000 in bribes from a contractor he helped to obtain city contracts. In 2008, he admitted guilt in a separate blackmail scheme targeting an Atlantic City councilman while serving the sentence of his bribery conviction.
In 2017, Assemblyman Don Guardian, then the city’s mayor, accused Callaway of a similar ballot harvesting scheme to boost Frank Gilliam, who won the election but resigned in late 2019 after pleading guilty to wire fraud over the theft of $86,000 from a youth basketball team he ran.
Sir Craig, I think at this point you should just become a blogger. Tell your stories and get the word out. Stop going to jail! Then hopefully you aren’t dealing with the police or ending up in jail or with big fines. I’m telling ya man, a life of crime is not worth it, especially in politics. This is not the way, bro! Get your life in order, sir! And great job to the New Jersey Monitor for doing real journalism so a blogger nerd like me can talk about it. Boom!
Meanwhile, enjoy this video below of a video from 2017 where Craig and his brother tried fighting people in the Atlantic City City Council Meeting! Video credit AC Primetime! “MEET ME OUTSIDE MOTHERF*CKER!” “ALRIGHT MARTY!”
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