PUT SHRUB UP OR SHUT UP - Why Are You Hiding Your Farm?

October 1st, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Oct 1, 2008
Contact: Jeff Hauser, 201-767-8162, jeff@shulmanforcongress.com

Questions That Deserve an Answer, Part 3: The Shulman Campaign will press Scott Garrett for an answer to a critical question each day between now and the election

Haworth, NJ - The Shulman for Congress campaign today called upon Scott Garrett to answer the many lingering questions concerning his “tree and shrub” farm and his many other ethical concerns.

Today’s question:

“Garrett owns a `tree and shrub farm,’ or so he tells the state of New Jersey each year when applying for a massive tax break,’” said Jeff Hauser, campaign manager for Dennis Shulman, the Democratic nominee in New Jersey’s Fifth Congressional District.  “Federal law is quite explicit - all assets worth more than $1,000 that produce income must be listed on a Congressman’s disclosure form.  Garrett tells the state of New Jersey he owns a farm worth well more than $1,000 and that it produces more than $520 a year in income… and yet he hides it from the public on his disclosure form.  Our question for Garrett: if you are hiding your farm, what else are you hiding?”

“And this disclosure requirement is not merely technical - it is how we ensure that we understand a member of Congress’s conflicts of interest and how wealthy they are,” continued Hauser.  “Garrett pretends that by `assigning income’ to his brother, he can hide this property - that trick is neither legally valid nor ethical.  If the land he and his wife own completely generates income, some of it is their income and Scott Garrett is breaking the law.”

BACKGROUND: 

Shulman for Congress recently launched an ad across the district assailing Garrett’s property tax shenanigans surrounding land he has hidden from his federally-mandated asset disclosure. 
The ad and backup material can be found at www.GarrettShrubs.com .
The Bergen Record has noted that “a similar attack of being a fake farmer cost Ellen Karcher, a Democratic state senator from Monmouth County, her seat in 2007.” http://www.northjersey.com/politics/Fake_farmer_TV_ad_could_hurt_Garrett_.html
Garrett has not yet answered Question 1 (whether he indeed maintains “five contiguous acres” as a “tree and shrub farm,” as he has sworn to the state of New Jersey) or Question 2 (whether his farm produces more than $520 in income a year, as he has sworn to the state of New Jersey).
New Jersey Law can be found at: www.state.nj.us/agriculture/FarmlandAssessmentGuide.pdf
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Dennis Shulman was recently profiled by The New Yorker and Time as momentum for his campaign continues to grow, and recent polling in the district validates the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s decision to upgrade NJ-5 as an “Emerging Race” and to buy advertising time in the district.  Only 31% of likely voters in NJ-5 plan to re-elect Garrett and, by a 68-17% margin, the district seeks change from George Bush’s policies.
Dr. Dennis Shulman has gained international recognition for his 30 years of work as a psychologist, educator, and author.  An ordained rabbi for five years and blind since childhood, he has lived in New Jersey’s Fifth District for more than 25 years with his wife, Dr. Pamela Tropper, an obstetrician. They have two adult daughters.
Additional background on Dr. Dennis Shulman and his challenge to Scott Garrett:
“Rabbi With the Compelling Back Story Is Not to Be Ruled Out,” Peter Applebome, The New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/nyregion/14towns.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion&oref=slogin
“A Rabbi in Congress?,” Adam Goodman, Time, http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1824434,00.html
“On the Trail: First Timer,” Jeffrey Toobin, The New Yorker, http://www.newyorker.com/talk/2008/07/28/080728ta_talk_toobin

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