A Trenton councilwoman exploded into a homophobic tirade against the city’s mayor during a coronavirus conference call on Saturday, according to officials and audio of the call obtained by NJ Advance Media.
The 10-minute expletive-laced rant by Councilwoman Robin Vaughn included calling Mayor Reed Gusciora a “pedophile.” She also accused another city official of performing a sexual act on the city’s first openly gay mayor. She also referred to the mayor as a “woman” and a “bitch a**.”
The audio of the call was obtained by NJ Advance Media through the city and its authenticity was confirmed by the mayor.
“This is pretty much par for the course, unfortunately, for the councilwoman," Gusciora told NJ Advance Media. “She went on a complete meltdown, tirade.”
Trenton West Ward Councilwoman Robin Vaughn.File photo
Vaughn, who represents the West Ward of the capital city, did not return a call to her cell phone seeking comment.
The eruption came shortly after a discussion about the city obtaining $3 million in federal grants from the Community Development Block Grant Program. At the 20-minute mark, Vaughn expressed concern about the level of engagement of non-profit organizations. That’s when the mayor brought up allegations Vaughn had made on social media in regards to “funding a bunch of do-nothing organizations," Gusciora said.
“She just spews out her hatred when she disagrees with what you have to say,” Gusciora said.
Councilman Joe Harrison tried to intervene but instead found himself in a shouting match with Vaughn. Harrison called Vaughn a “crazy person” in which she replied: “Why don’t you go find your father, Joe Harrison?” an apparent reference to his absent father.
Harrison responded, “Be careful what you say, ugly."
The back-and-forth between Harrison and Vaughn continued for minutes. Harrison also called the councilwoman “Radioactive Robin,” an apparent remark about her sudden outbursts.
The Trenton City Council has been having conference calls regarding the coronavirus outbreak on a daily basis. Those calls, however, stopped about three or four weeks ago after Vaughn had yet another outburst, Gusciora said.
The mayor said the Council needs to revisit how the calls can continue “in a productive manner.”
This isn’t the first time Vaughn has been the subject of controversy.
In September, after Council President Kathy McBride used the phrase “Jew her down” when referencing a city attorney, Vaughn swiftly defended McBride’s use of the anti-Semitic slur. Vaughn then issued an apology, calling her defense of the comments “an error of my judgment.”
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Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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Councilwoman attacks N.J. mayor in vulgar, homophobic rant during coronavirus conference call - NJ.com
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