May 29, 2008

Dina Matos McGreevey Back on the Stand; Poor Dear Struggles to Survive Without Personal Chef

From AP, via Gay.com:

Mrs. McGreevey: I paid for the wedding

The estranged wife of New Jersey’s gay ex-governor says she agreed to live in the governor’s mansion to please her new husband, even though their condo was an hour closer to her job.

Dina Matos McGreevey says Gov. James McGreevey wanted a working spouse to “enhance his image.”

She portrayed herself as a dutiful spouse and dedicated political ally who went so far as to pay for their $30,000 wedding and to add his political cronies to the guest list. …

Matos McGreevey, 41, wants compensation for losing out on the perks of his job — state police transportation and a 24/7 security detail, a household staff and use of two beach houses — because he resigned 13 months shy of completing his first term.

McGreevey maintains that perks of the governor’s office are not a marital asset. …

Matos McGreevey said she paid for her own car, insurance and clothes out of her salary as a hospital executive, estimated at $55,000 a year. She said being on the arm of a politician sometimes required three changes of clothes a day.

Matos McGreevey’s accountant, Kalman Barson, placed the value of their so-called gubernatorial lifestyle at $51,000 a month… McGreevey’s accountant puts the value of maintaining that lifestyle at a far more modest $16,000 a month. …

Besides finances, the other unresolved issue is whether McGreevey committed fraud by marrying Matos McGreevey.

She claims she was duped into marrying a gay man who needed the cover of a wife to advance his political career. He said she knew their union was “a contrivance on both our parts.”

And via the New York Daily News:

No personal chef! Tough times for Dina Matos McGreevey, she protests at trial

New Jersey’s former first lady says she lives frugally since leaving the governor’s mansion four years ago.

Dina Matos ended direct examination by her lawyer saying she can no longer afford expensive clothes or vacations.

Like her husband, Matos testified about a lifestyle funded by taxpayers, contributors, lobbyists and other benefactors.

She says she and daughter now make due in her $430,000 home without a personal chef, state car or state police security — all perks of the governor’s office.

Our hearts bleed. sarcasm