Daily Record hits back on Bucco blame claims

by: Jason Springer

Fri May 29, 2009 at 02:15:00 PM EDT

His e-mail included this line: "His coronary event was triggered just following a phone conversation with a member of the press who related to my father the details of the sleazy and untrue accusations against him that were being circulated by another challenger's campaign." (Full disclosure: the member of the press was Fred Snowflack, Daily Record editorial page editor).

OK, but as campaigns go, this has not been a particularly nasty one.

In fact, the senior Bucco has endured many tougher campaigns in a more than 20-year political career, with the most recent one being defending his seat from a well-financed challenge from Democrat Blair MacInnes in 2003.

The "sleazy and untrue allegations" in this year's Assembly primary revolve around the senator allegedly making phone calls to other Republicans in an effort to solicit political and financial support for his son. This is not exactly unheard of, and given the fact none of those receiving those reported calls have said so publicly -- courage is in short supply these days -- it's a moot issue.

We join Anthony M. Bucco in wishing his father the best, but we must seriously question if anything happening in Morris County politics caused the senator's medical problem. In the absence of a pronouncement by an attending physician, let's not politicize a man having a heart attack.