The amazingly sensational scandal that has mired the Governor’s mansion in New Jersey has to it all the hallmarks of the holy trinity of scandals… money, sex, and politics. So, it was only a matter of time before tabloid journalism got involved. And to add to the mix, the story behind the scandal has, in its own right, gotten just a little more soap opera-esque.
The highlights:
– The Globe, probably the most sensational among sensational tabloids, made the McGreevey scandal its cover story. True to tabloid form, details were jazzed up a bit. In its tale, McGreevey is “one of the nation’s most influential Democratic governors” and Dina is his “sexy blond wife.” Golan Cipel is McGreevey’s “Israeli boy toy.”
I don’t know about you, but neither are exactly my type. Certainly not the pictures that come to my mind when I think either “sexy blonde” or “boy toy.” But anyway…
It gets worse. According to the Globe, McGreevey’s first marriage dissolved when his wife found a stash of “love letters from a man;” ever-anonymous “insiders” claim that McGreevey “fantasized” about marrying a man, and that when he met his alleged “boy toy” [can you tell I’m milking this term for all its worth?] Golan Cipel, a sweep-you-off-your-feet Kodak moment kicked in: “The two men locked eyes and McGreevey liked what he saw. ‘There was some kind of instant recognition,’ says one source.”
Oh please.
Then there’s the allegations about McGreevery’s past buggerdry. Again, the Globe: McGreevey cruised gay bars and gyms in New Jersey and Times Square, calling himself “the Big Mac.”
Totally not believeable. Sorry Jim, you just don’t strike me as beefy or tasty… but then, neither does a Big Mac.
– Golan “Boy Toy” Cipel has avowed that’s he’s straight, never had sex with a man, let alone “the Big Mac,” and alleges that everyone’s favorite governor acted in a less romantic manner than what is portrayed by the governor’s aides, or by the tabloids.
– But, that doesn’t stop the rumours from floating about. Someone else claims to have had a tryst of his own with Cipel. However, he also claims to be a CIA intelligence officer, has made various threats regarding terrorist attacks in New Jersey, and is an all-around wacko, according to local authorities.
This is probably about as weird as such stories get without having a team of soap writers behind it all. How will Weird NJ top this?