Steve Lonegan
Encyclopedia
Steven M. Lonegan was mayor of Bogota
, New Jersey
from 1995–2007 and a candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor of New Jersey
in 2005 and 2009. He is the Director of the New Jersey chapter of Americans for Prosperity
.
. He graduated from Ridgefield Park High School
where he set several high school track records. He was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa
at the age of 14, and is now legally blind
.
Lonegan has owned a custom homebuilding business and a cabinet-making business. He has a B.A. in Business Administration from William Paterson College
and an Master of Business Administration
degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University
.
He is married to Lorraine Rossi Lonegan and they have two daughters. The Lonegan family attends St. Joseph's
Roman Catholic Church
in Bogota
.
Leonard Nicolosi. He was reelected in 1999 and 2003 by double-digit margins.
The 2003 mayoral election in Bogota was chronicled in the documentary Anytown, USA
.
As Mayor, he cut municipal spending, merged several municipal departments and privatized some services. Lonegan ordered the municipality to hire civilian emergency dispatchers at lower pay than uniformed officers, angering the local Police union; successfully fought the implementation of LOSAP (Length of Service Award Program), which extended pension payments to volunteer fire and rescue personnel; and required that local union contracts exceeding inflation be put to voters for approval. While he was in office Republicans
, long in the minority in Democratic-leaning Bogota, controlled the municipal council for 11 straight elections.
Lonegan did not seek reelection in 2007.
, a conservative public policy organization founded with the support of billionaires David H. Koch
and Charles G. Koch
of Koch Industries
. . In 2009 he took a hiatus to run for Governor and resumed his post as director after the election. .
The organization fought three ballot questions in the state's 2007 election as well as paid family leave
, Low Income Housing
mandates and new mandates for sprinklers in fireproof high rise buildings and Gov. Corzine's proposed budget.
In 2003 Lonegan and the group "stopthedebt.com" filed lawsuits against the State of New Jersey in New Jersey's Supreme Court
, challenging state debt sold without voter approval in violation of the state constitution's "debt limitation clause". In its finding against Lonegan and the group, the court stated two reasons for not requiring voter approval of that debt. First, that the debt was issued to finance a constitutional mandate
: the requirement that "The Legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all children in the State between the ages of five and eighteen years" (Article VIII Section IV). Second, that the debt was technically not backed by the full faith and credit of New Jersey, and future lawmakers could refuse to honor that contract at any time.
Lonegan was active in the opposition to a proposed 2003 fifteen-cent per gallon gasoline tax increase and developed the website www.nogastaxhike.com to oppose the increase.
On July 28, 2008, Lonegan filed a third lawsuit in New Jersey Superior Court
in Bergen County
against Governor Jon Corzine
and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority
challenging the sale of $3.9 billion in additional state debt, purportedly for school construction, without voter approval. That suit was dismissed.
On December 1, 2008 Lonegan announced that he would run for the Republican nomination for Governor of New Jersey, his second run for the seat. Lonegan promised to cut the size of state government by more than 20% and said he would run on the issues of property taxes, school funding and affordable housing. Lonegan sought to run as a conservative alternative to the more centrist candidate, former U.S. Prosecutor Christopher Christie.
On June 2, Lonegan lost the primary to Christie by a 55–42% vote.
Lonegan ran for the Republican nomination for Governor in the state's 2005 elections
and finished fourth after the nominee, businessman Doug Forrester
, former Jersey City Mayor Bret Schundler
and Morris County Freeholder John Murphy.
In 1998 Lonegan ran unsuccessfully for New Jersey’s Ninth Congressional District
seat against then-freshman Rep. Steve Rothman
.
, to remove a McDonald’s advertisement in Spanish from a local billboard. The company refused. Without apparent legal remedy, Lonegan filed papers for a public referendum in Bogota on making English the official language for the municipality. The public question was rejected by the County Clerk’s
office, which is partly responsible for officiating elections, on legal advice that it violated state and federal law.
The next year, Lonegan hired two illegal aliens, paying them each $80 to put together political signs for Americans for Prosperity. Lonegan left the men to do the work at a property he owned in town, where they were picked up by police after a neighbor spotted them. Lonegan said the men had told him they had legal documentation and later argued that local police, angered by tough labor negotiations with his office, had targeted him.
On January 19, 2008, Lonegan and a local radio talk show host were arrested by New Jersey State Police
troopers for trespassing at a town hall meeting scheduled by Gov. Corzine at a high school in Middle Township, New Jersey
. Lonegan and the radio host were standing on the school's lawn protesting when police and school officials asked them to move to a designated protest area and remove a sign they were holding. Police arrested them when they refused. School officials later apologized and police dropped the charges.
." - Steve Lonegan, addressing a rally held by a coalition of conservative groups on Capitol Hill to express opposition to the health care legislation under consideration in the U.S. Senate.(28 Dec 2009)
Bogota, New Jersey
As of the 2010 Census, Bogota had a population of 8,187. The median age was 38.6. The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 61.0% White, 9.4% Black or African American, 0.8% Native American, 9.8% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander, 14.8% some other race and 4.1% reporting...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
from 1995–2007 and a candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor of New Jersey
Governor of New Jersey
The Office of the Governor of New Jersey is the executive branch for the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of Governor is an elected position, for which elected officials serve four year terms. While individual politicians may serve as many terms as they can be elected to, Governors cannot be...
in 2005 and 2009. He is the Director of the New Jersey chapter of Americans for Prosperity
Americans for Prosperity
Americans for Prosperity is a Washington, D.C.–based political advocacy group. According to their literature, they promote economic policy that supports business, and restrains regulation by government...
.
Early life and background
Lonegan was born in Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, New JerseyTeaneck, New Jersey
Teaneck is a township in Bergen County, New Jersey, and a suburb in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 39,776, making it the second-most populous among the 70 municipalities in Bergen County....
. He graduated from Ridgefield Park High School
Ridgefield Park High School
Ridgefield Park High School is a six-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in seventh through twelfth grade from Ridgefield Park, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Ridgefield Park Public Schools...
where he set several high school track records. He was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa
Retinitis pigmentosa
Retinitis pigmentosa is a group of genetic eye conditions that leads to incurable blindness. In the progression of symptoms for RP, night blindness generally precedes tunnel vision by years or even decades. Many people with RP do not become legally blind until their 40s or 50s and retain some...
at the age of 14, and is now legally blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
.
Lonegan has owned a custom homebuilding business and a cabinet-making business. He has a B.A. in Business Administration from William Paterson College
William Paterson University
William Paterson University is a comprehensive public institution located in Wayne, New Jersey serving nearly 11,000 undergraduate and graduate students through five colleges: , , , , and ....
and an Master of Business Administration
Master of Business Administration
The Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Fairleigh Dickinson University is a private university founded as a junior college in 1942. It now has several campuses located in New Jersey, Canada, and the United Kingdom.-Description:...
.
He is married to Lorraine Rossi Lonegan and they have two daughters. The Lonegan family attends St. Joseph's
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ ....
Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
in Bogota
Bogota, New Jersey
As of the 2010 Census, Bogota had a population of 8,187. The median age was 38.6. The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 61.0% White, 9.4% Black or African American, 0.8% Native American, 9.8% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander, 14.8% some other race and 4.1% reporting...
.
Mayor of Bogota
In 1995 Lonegan was elected Mayor of Bogota, defeating incumbent DemocratDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Leonard Nicolosi. He was reelected in 1999 and 2003 by double-digit margins.
The 2003 mayoral election in Bogota was chronicled in the documentary Anytown, USA
Anytown, USA (film)
Anytown, USA is a 2005 documentary film produced by director Kristian Fraga on the mayoral race in Bogota, New Jersey. The mayoral race was between Republican Steve Lonegan, Democrat Fred Pesce and independent Dave Musikant....
.
As Mayor, he cut municipal spending, merged several municipal departments and privatized some services. Lonegan ordered the municipality to hire civilian emergency dispatchers at lower pay than uniformed officers, angering the local Police union; successfully fought the implementation of LOSAP (Length of Service Award Program), which extended pension payments to volunteer fire and rescue personnel; and required that local union contracts exceeding inflation be put to voters for approval. While he was in office Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, long in the minority in Democratic-leaning Bogota, controlled the municipal council for 11 straight elections.
Lonegan did not seek reelection in 2007.
Political activism
Since 2007 Lonegan has been state director for Americans for ProsperityAmericans for Prosperity
Americans for Prosperity is a Washington, D.C.–based political advocacy group. According to their literature, they promote economic policy that supports business, and restrains regulation by government...
, a conservative public policy organization founded with the support of billionaires David H. Koch
David H. Koch
David Hamilton Koch is an American businessman, philanthropist, political activist, and chemical engineer. He is a co-owner and an executive vice president of Koch Industries, a conglomerate that is the second-largest privately held company in the U.S...
and Charles G. Koch
Charles G. Koch
Charles de Ganahl Koch is co-owner, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries Inc., the second-largest privately held company by revenue in the United States according to a 2010 Forbes survey...
of Koch Industries
Koch Industries
Koch Industries, Inc. , is an American private energy conglomerate based in Wichita, Kansas, with subsidiaries involved in manufacturing, trading and investments. Koch also owns Invista, Georgia-Pacific, Flint Hills Resources, Koch Pipeline, Koch Fertilizer, Koch Minerals and Matador Cattle Company...
. . In 2009 he took a hiatus to run for Governor and resumed his post as director after the election. .
The organization fought three ballot questions in the state's 2007 election as well as paid family leave
Paid family leave
Paid family leave refers to leaves taken from work for the purpose of recovering from a serious illness, to care for a seriously ill family member or to bond with a newly born or newly adopted child, during which the leave-taker receives some level of financial support from the employer, an...
, Low Income Housing
Affordable housing
Affordable housing is a term used to describe dwelling units whose total housing costs are deemed "affordable" to those that have a median income. Although the term is often applied to rental housing that is within the financial means of those in the lower income ranges of a geographical area, the...
mandates and new mandates for sprinklers in fireproof high rise buildings and Gov. Corzine's proposed budget.
In 2003 Lonegan and the group "stopthedebt.com" filed lawsuits against the State of New Jersey in New Jersey's Supreme Court
New Jersey Supreme Court
The New Jersey Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It has existed in three different forms under the three different state constitutions since the independence of the state in 1776...
, challenging state debt sold without voter approval in violation of the state constitution's "debt limitation clause". In its finding against Lonegan and the group, the court stated two reasons for not requiring voter approval of that debt. First, that the debt was issued to finance a constitutional mandate
Abbott District
Abbott districts are school districts in New Jersey that are provided remedies to ensure that their students receive public education in accordance with New Jersey’s state constitution. They were created in 1985 as a result of the first ruling of Abbott v. Burke, a case filed by the Education Law...
: the requirement that "The Legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all children in the State between the ages of five and eighteen years" (Article VIII Section IV). Second, that the debt was technically not backed by the full faith and credit of New Jersey, and future lawmakers could refuse to honor that contract at any time.
Lonegan was active in the opposition to a proposed 2003 fifteen-cent per gallon gasoline tax increase and developed the website www.nogastaxhike.com to oppose the increase.
On July 28, 2008, Lonegan filed a third lawsuit in New Jersey Superior Court
New Jersey Superior Court
The Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with state-wide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The Superior Court has three divisions: the Appellate Division is essentially an intermediate appellate court while the Law and Chancery Divisions function as trial courts...
in Bergen County
Bergen County, New Jersey
Bergen County is the most populous county of the state of New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 905,116. The county is part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Hackensack...
against Governor Jon Corzine
Jon Corzine
Jon Stevens Corzine is the former CEO of Goldman Sachs and of MF Global, and a one time American politician, who served as the 54th Governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. A Democrat, Corzine served five years of a six-year U.S. Senate term representing New Jersey before being elected Governor...
and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority
New Jersey Economic Development Authority
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority is an independent, quasi-governmental self-supporting entity in the U.S. state of New Jersey dedicated to broadening and expanding the state's economic base....
challenging the sale of $3.9 billion in additional state debt, purportedly for school construction, without voter approval. That suit was dismissed.
Campaigns for Governor, Congress
On June 2, Lonegan lost the primary to Christie by a 55–42% vote.
Lonegan ran for the Republican nomination for Governor in the state's 2005 elections
New Jersey gubernatorial election, 2005
The New Jersey gubernatorial election of 2005 was a race for the Governor of New Jersey. It was held on November 8, 2005. Incumbent Democratic Governor Richard Codey, who replaced Governor Jim McGreevey in 2004 after his resignation, did not run for election for a full term of office.The primary...
and finished fourth after the nominee, businessman Doug Forrester
Doug Forrester
Douglas Forrester is an American businessman in New Jersey. He was the 2002 Republican nominee for New Jersey U.S. Senator and the 2005 Republican nominee for Governor of New Jersey. Forrester was defeated by his two Democratic opponents, Frank Lautenberg and then-U.S. Senator Jon Corzine,...
, former Jersey City Mayor Bret Schundler
Bret Schundler
Bret D. Schundler is an American politician from New Jersey. He served in the Cabinet of Governor Chris Christie as New Jersey Commissioner of Education until he was dismissed on August 27, 2010....
and Morris County Freeholder John Murphy.
In 1998 Lonegan ran unsuccessfully for New Jersey’s Ninth Congressional District
New Jersey's 9th congressional district
New Jersey's Ninth Congressional District is currently represented by Democrat Steve Rothman.-Counties and municipalities in the district:For the 108th and successive Congresses , the district contains all or portions of three counties and 37 municipalities:Bergen County:Hudson CountyPassaic...
seat against then-freshman Rep. Steve Rothman
Steve Rothman
Steven R. "Steve" Rothman is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:Rothman attended Washington University Law School...
.
Controversies
In 2006, Lonegan asked the outdoor advertising company, CBS OutdoorCBS Outdoor
CBS Outdoor is the outdoor advertising division of media conglomerate CBS Corporation. It is the third largest outdoor media owner in revenue terms...
, to remove a McDonald’s advertisement in Spanish from a local billboard. The company refused. Without apparent legal remedy, Lonegan filed papers for a public referendum in Bogota on making English the official language for the municipality. The public question was rejected by the County Clerk’s
Kathleen Donovan
Kathleen A. Donovan is an American Republican Party politician, who is currently serving her first term as County Executive of Bergen County, New Jersey. She previously served as County Clerk for four terms, one term in the New Jersey General Assembly...
office, which is partly responsible for officiating elections, on legal advice that it violated state and federal law.
The next year, Lonegan hired two illegal aliens, paying them each $80 to put together political signs for Americans for Prosperity. Lonegan left the men to do the work at a property he owned in town, where they were picked up by police after a neighbor spotted them. Lonegan said the men had told him they had legal documentation and later argued that local police, angered by tough labor negotiations with his office, had targeted him.
On January 19, 2008, Lonegan and a local radio talk show host were arrested by New Jersey State Police
New Jersey State Police
The New Jersey State Police is the state police force for the state of New Jersey. It is a general-powers police agency with state wide jurisdiction when requested by the Governor, designated by Troop Sectors.-History:...
troopers for trespassing at a town hall meeting scheduled by Gov. Corzine at a high school in Middle Township, New Jersey
Middle Township, New Jersey
Middle Township is a township in Cape May County, New Jersey, United States. It is part of the Ocean City Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 16,405....
. Lonegan and the radio host were standing on the school's lawn protesting when police and school officials asked them to move to a designated protest area and remove a sign they were holding. Police arrested them when they refused. School officials later apologized and police dropped the charges.
Quotes
"We cannot allow the pen to be mightier than the swordThe pen is mightier than the sword
"The pen is mightier than the sword" is a metonymic adage coined by English author Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1839 for his play Richelieu; Or the Conspiracy. The play was about Cardinal Richelieu, though in the author's words "license with dates and details.....
." - Steve Lonegan, addressing a rally held by a coalition of conservative groups on Capitol Hill to express opposition to the health care legislation under consideration in the U.S. Senate.(28 Dec 2009)