This past week, we've seen a lot about the impact of congressional redistricting and the positioning of candidates in North Jersey for the upcoming election. Congressman Steve Rothman has declared that he will move and challenge his colleague Bill Pascrell in a primary rather than face incumbent Republican extremist Scott Garrett. Whether or not Rothman's decision is a good one, it hurts me to see two Democrats spending a million dollars to knock each other off when the money could be better spent in an all-out effort to oust Garrett, one of the worst members of Congress.
It also bothers me that the Fourth Estate has virtually ignored the important race in the Third District. Another member of the "worst congressman's club" is former NFL bad boy and current congressman Jon Runyan. Runyan's voting record is as bad as Garrett's, and over time if Runyan builds up seniority in the House, his impact will be just as deleterious.
U.S. Rep. Steve Rothman (D-9th Dist.) is telling Democrats he plans to challenge Bill Pascrell (D-8th Dist.) in the June primary, according to two Democratic sources with knowledge of the congressman's thinking.
A few anonymous sources are quoted for the article. An announcement from Rothman is apparently due this week.
Needless to say, I am sorry to have found this out, and I hope a strong Democrat will come forward to take on Garrett. It's obviously going to be someone without a $1.5 million war chest, but we need to support them all the same.
Jay Lassiter's Blue Jersey diary, Paging Bill Pascrell, posted at 09:43:28am today, is already out-of-date.
And that's good news.
Garden State Equality just announced a few minutes ago, that the Respect for Marriage Act, intended to repeal DOMA, is now a clean sweep of support by NJ Democratic members of Congress:
BREAKING NEWS: Every Democrat in the New Jersey Congressional delegation is now a sponsor of the Respect for Marriage Act to repeal DOMA. That includes Senator Lautenberg and Senator Menendez, and Congressmen Andrews, Holt, Pallone, Payne, Rothman and Sires - and Congressman Pascrell just told us that he, too, will sponsor. (To facebook supporters, it urges): Click LIKE to thank our unanimous Democratic Congressional delegation.
I don't know if Jay's diary helped edge Rep. Pascrell into our column on this, or if his decision was already made. Doesn't matter. His support on this issue is very welcome.
Just yesterday, Jeff Gardner wrote about Senator Bob Menendez joining the marriage equality efforts, long in coming, and gratifying.
For disclosure's sake, as I've said here before, I'm a member of GSE's board. I'd be writing about this anyway. It's exciting stuff.
Surely by now you've heard that Senator Bob Menendez has signed on to co-sponsor the (LGBT-friendly) Respect for Marriage Act.
Good deal.
Now I don't have an official whip count, but based on lists I've seen, Congressman Bill Pascrell is the only Democrat in the New Jersey delegation to not sign on to this bill. Last I checked, fighting anti-gay discrimination is a part of the Democratic party platform, so surely the Congressman will be on board soon.
So WTF, Pascrell? Don't you want to come to my gay wedding?
UPDATE: We know a little more now about how this video was compiled. Senator Lautenberg with his staff took the initiative, in recognition of National Bullying Prevention Month, which is October. To accommodate busy schedules, blocks of time over two weeks were reserved at the Capitol Visitor Center Recording Studio, with invitations to members of NJ's congressional delegation to record. There are a few faces missing - it would be even better with Reps. Andrews, Garrett, Frelinghuysen, Pallone and Smith. And we must point out that Lance & LoBiondo voted NO on DADT repeal, as Runyan might have but he wasn't sworn in yet. But the effort, and especially Senator Lautenberg's initiative, are much appreciated.
BTW - I'm told this is the first-ever It Gets Better video that includes elected Republicans.
The New Jersey suicide of Rutgers freshman Tyler Clementi and other other young gay people prompted the It Gets Better Project, a labor of love from columnist Dan Savage and his husband Terry Miller. The project took off like wildfire; over the last year celebrities, sports teams, and ordinary people have turned their webcams on themselves to give encouragement to teens and kids of a welcoming future for themselves. And those videos, some of them simple and low-tech, made by ordinary people, are bouncing all over the internet.
Last month, an upstate New York 14-year-old named Jamey Rodemeyer killed himself outside his house. A smart kid, with supportive parents, and friends who cared about him. A kid whose NY state senator had led other Republicans to reverse course and help pass marriage equality in New York State, in part after Jamey's hero Lady Gaga had asked her Buffalo audience to ask him to. Jamey's last message was a thank you to Lady Gaga for her message of self-worth to gay kids. And Jamey had himself just months earlier made an 'It Gets Better' video to give confidence to other kids. Jamey himself died last month, after a particularly rough bout of online bullying.
Proof if ever there was any that there's work still to be done. This is the 'It Gets Better' video that's going to the press later today, with our thanks to Senator Frank Lautenberg's office for the advance heads-up:
Bob Menendez: Banking (chairs the Housing, Transportation, and Community Development subcommittee); Energy and Natural Resources; Finance; Foreign Relations (chairs the International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs, and International Environmental Protection subcommittee)
Frank Lautenberg: Appropriations (chairs the Homeland Security subcommittee); Commerce, Science and Transportation (chairs the Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety and Security subcommittee); and Environment and Public Works (chairs the Superfund, Toxics, and Environmental Health, Chair subcommittee)
Former prosecutor and current New Jersey governor Chris Christie is no stranger to tampering with the independence of the judicial system to fulfil his political agenda. His refusal to re-nominate State Supreme Court Judge John Wallace is the most notable example.
Now, there could be something fishy about his announcement of his intention to appoint 9/11 defense counsel Sohail Mohammed as a Superior Court judge in Passaic County.
As an attorney, Mohammed has defended Muslims who were detained in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. If that’s where the story ends, then it would be a no-brainer. All Americans, no matter how heinous the crime of which they are accused, have a constitutional right to a defense lawyer. And in the aftermath of the tragic events almost a decade ago, Mohammed was actively promoting dialog between the Muslim community and Jewish organizations.
But it’s more complicated than that.
One of Mohammed’s more notorious clients was Mohammed Qatanani, who was the imam of the Islamic Center of Passaic County during the reign of Chris Christie as U.S. Attorney. In 2008, the Department of Homeland Security initiated deportation proceedings against the imam, alleging that Qatanani was connected with Hamas. Sohail Mohammed was his defense attorney.
Here’s where it gets really complicated.
Professional terrorism watcher and author Steve Emerson has written extensively in support of deporting the imam. He points out Qatanani’s connections not only with Hamas but also with other terrorist organizations in the Middle East. Is Emerson one of those “sky-is-falling” terrorist-under-every-bed-sheet alarmists, or does he have some credibility? There are endorsements (on Emerson’s web site) from reliable people like Richard Clarke and A.M. Rosenthal, so that needs to be factored into the equation. (Not surprisingly, Emerson is also praised by Bill O’Reilly and Senator Jon Kyl - not exactly bellwethers of fair play.)
Further complicating the story...
The night before the immigration judge was to announce his decision regarding Sohail Mohammed’s client, U.S. Attorney Chris Christie praised the defendant, announcing at a Ramadan break-fast dinner, “My view is he’s always had a very good relationship with us, and he’s a man of great goodwill.”
But Christie was not alone. Then-governor Corzine and Democratic congressman Bill Pascrell joined Christie in intervening on behalf of Qatanani.
Some aspects of this story are not unexpected.
Not surprisingly, the conservative bloggers and right-wing Jewish writers are apoplectic about Christie’s nomination of Sohail Mohammed to the Superior Court. Yet both of these groups decry Mohammed’s association with Qatanani, and present very little credible evidence that Mohammed himself is associated with terrorist organizations. The anti-Mohammed writers accuse Governor Christie of pandering to the growing Islamic community in Passaic County.
So how will this play out?
No one has accused New Jersey politics of being dull. So the confirmation hearings for Sohail Mohammed should be interesting. Will the Islamophobes dominate? Will Mohammed’s outreach to the Jewish community be a factor in the hearings? Will Christie’s support of a Muslim judicial candidate doom his presidential ambitions? Will Mohammed’s appointment be derailed because he aided Americans in exercising their constitutional rights? Is Christie pandering to the Muslim community, or is the governor nominating a well-qualified attorney who deserves this appointment? Will the Tea Party demand to see Chris Christie’s birth certificate?
Fasten your seatbelts, this should be an interesting ride.
If LGBT rights matter to you, you might wanna check out this website to see how your Congressman stacks up in the fight for gay rights.
I am in NJ's 3rd Congressional district where freshman Congressman John Adler turns in an impressive score of 92%. Looks like Adler gets an A in this class.
Police detectives talking God and socialism and traditional marriage ... firefighters talking Ground Zero Victory Mosque ... "Sand Flea" talk from the audience ... Um Wow. - promoted by Rosi
Roland Straten held a Town Hall Meeting on homeland security in Nutley NJ Tuesday night October 12 in his campaign to unseat incumbent William Pascrell Junior as Congressman from New Jersey's 8th Congressional District. The evening revealed more about his supporters than the candidate.
The candidate spoke briefly, touching on his background as a business owner and his belief that people are in a better position to make choices than government. Straten's campaign uses the mantras of "Less Government" and "Lower Taxes" which seemed okay, but his choice of guest speakers provided irony to the evening. Both speakers have worked their entire lives on the public payroll.
Our Quote of the Day today is from Rep. Bill Pascrell. The occasion was a field hearing before the House Energy & Commerce health subcommittee, chaired by Frank Pallone, to discuss the Concussion Treatment and Care Tools Act. Pascrell:
We don't want wussies on the field, but we need to protect our kids.
Okay, so the quote's a little cringe-worthy. But the legislation, for which Pascrell is prime sponsor, looks very sensible. The ConTACT Act - that's Concussion Treatment and Care Tools Act (HR 1347) - was created to prevent concussion and brain injury in young athletes. It would set federal standards for when an athlete could return to play following a head injury and provide federal grants to middle and high schools to implement neurocognitive baseline testing. And that would help temper the enthusiasm to jump back into play that young athletes who feel invincible have, even when they're vulnerable. To say nothing of coaches pushing for a win.
At yesterday's hearing, at the Prudential Center, a former NFL offensive tackle, two doctors, a high-school athletic trainer and an educator testified.
But one speaker was particularly eloquent, Niki Popyer, 17, who used to play on Marlboro High School's basketball team. She had 7 concussions, and several ambulance trips with loss of consciousness. And she was continually allowed to return to play, completely unaware that concussion is cumulative and that her "constant headaches, sensitivity to bright lights and loud noises, tingling hands, and difficulty concentrating" was brain injury that might become permanent.
She's not allowed to drive, by doctor's orders. She can't go in the ocean because waves could knock her down. She's had 5 more concussions since quitting basketball, and one was from an enthusiastic hug. Now, consider that children's brains - including teens - heal more slowly than adult brains do.
The crowd obsessed with government "interference" in schools is going to howl at this. But this is good legislation.
Tensions are high in Washington these days as campaigns gear up for the fall elections and many members face the challenge of a tough climate to run in. So you can imagine how happy members of the House were when Robert Gibbs said this on Meet the Press recently:
"there is no doubt there are enough seats in play that could cause Republicans to gain control"
Of course many people have been talking behind closed doors about the possibility, but it didn't sit well with everyone that the spokesman for the White House was giving such a candid assessment of the road ahead. One member of the New Jersey delgeation was not pleased at all and his thoughts made it into Chris Cilizza's story in the Washington Post today:
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) led a closed-door meeting of Democratic members that amounted to an extended Gibbs smackdown -- the proceedings of which inevitably were leaked to the media. In a subsequent interview, Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. (N.J.) nicely summed up the sentiment in the room. "What the hell do they think we've been doing the last 12 months?" he said of the White House. "We're the ones who have been taking the tough votes."
DCCC Chair Van Hollen tried to back things up and present a unified front, saying the Democratic Leadership had a positive meeting with the President. Van Hollen did acknowledge that there was some frustration, but it's clear that tensions are high as we head toward the general.
Rep. Bill Pascrell has called fellow Democrats "arrogant" and referred to a key party talking point as "BS." He slammed deals cut by leadership and special interests and said, "We're not going to accept that any longer."
Agitated and unfiltered, Pascrell has become the guy who's not afraid to go public with what many rank-and-file House Democrats have been saying behind closed doors.
Speaking directly to the White House, Pascrell had this to say about chief of staff Rahm Emanuel:
In a front-page POLITICO story Friday, he said he'd like to see White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel "come out from behind his desk" to talk to the common folk more.
He talked about the complexity of the bill and the difficulties getting people to understand what it really would do as a self inflicted wound:
"It's so complex; we made it complex," Pascrell said of the health care debate. "And we knew this from the very beginning."
So he's proposing to split the bill up an pass the more popular pieces, but those wouldn't be a public option or individual mandate.
"We are arrogant when we say, 'Well, as soon as the public understands what we're doing, they'll like it,'" he told a clutch of reporters. "That is not only arrogant, it's BS."
Rank-and-file Democrats are "tired of hearing about and not knowing about" the deals that leadership cut with industries for their support of this legislation, Pascrell said, and in expressing that, Pelosi became Pascrell's prime target.
"We're not going to accept that any longer," he said. "In fact, if you go back to those agreements, they should've been much more robust; talk about robust - those agreements should've been more robust.
The Democrats have been trying desperately to clean up the mess they've made of healthcare. A once popular concept has now become the boogeyman for many, including our elected officials. You've seen support splinter with everyone coming up with their own path forward, whether it be starting over, passing what's there or some path in between. And now the icing on the cake, Harry Reid said Democrats see "no rush" to keep moving forward at this time. I wonder how much more they would all rush if someone took away their health insurance while they waited?
The British commission originally ruled against the merger because it would prevent another company, CTS Eventim, from entering the British market. Since that October announcement, however, the commission said the partners provided evidence showing CTS Eventim would not be harmed.
Congressman Pascrell wasn't pleased with the ruling and questioned whether they really had the power:
"The commission clearly states that the deal it sanctioned today allows Ticketmaster to remove a major competitor in the ticket services market in the United States, but that finding is not within the scope of their authority," said Pascrell. "While in the United Kingdom they only control about 50 percent of the market, the two companies combined control between 70 to 80 percent of the market here."
The merger still needs the approval of the Justice Department and Canadian officials.
Let me preface this conversation by stating that I supported Senator Frank Lautenberg's re-election campaign during both the primary and general elections last year, but...
1) ...after seeing him speak in public numerous times at a dramatically reduced level of performance than in the past...
...and...
2) ...after last week's gubernatorial election results...
...and...
3) ...assuming that the aspiring Governors that are currently serving in the State Senate and State Assembly are not going to be willing to rescind the power that the Governor currently has to fill vacated U.S. Senate seats, I think that Democratic Party leaders, electeds, and rank-and-file members should reach out en masse to Senator Frank Lautenberg and ask him to resign his seat.
Amid fresh signs that the White House is preparing to back a scaled-down health care overhaul that would only include a public insurance option as a fallback plan, several House liberals told Roll Call that they could support such a bill depending on how it was structured.
The "trigger" approach has been considered a deal-killer by liberals on and off Capitol Hill, and the willingness of some Congressional Progressive Caucus members to entertain it reflects a recognition that a bruising August recess has imperiled prospects for reform and redrawn expectations for what is possible.
"This is a way to get a bill," Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) said. "I believe it's worth listening to because I want legislation that is going to, in some shape or form, expand coverage and bring down the cost of health care."
Let's put it bluntly - single payer was taken off the table before negotiations even started. And now, the public option, which is the damn compromise is now being compromised? Before reconciliation even occurs? A "trigger" will not work. There will either be too low of a bar in order to avoid the "trigger", too many millions will STILL be out of luck when it comes to coverage, and there is no reason to think that the "trigger" can't be compromised away for some other crap like a "co-op".
Please call Rep. Pascrell's office and ask for clarification as to why he was standing so strong for a REAL compromise bill a few short weeks ago but is now willing to back what will be a very costly failure in the name of "passing something":
Washington, DC (202) 225-5751
Paterson (Main District Office) (973) 523-5152
Bloomfield (973) 680-1361
Passaic (973) 472-4510
When we started the series on the Public Option Whip here at Blue Jersey, we stopped after Rep. Pallone since four out of the five Reps. that "took the pledge" represented districts that we didn't get to yet. But now, in looking back, maybe we should have - given that one of these four is already wavering.
Why would you keep taking things off the table before even getting to the table?
And we have gotten some good press and recognition around the intertubez for our efforts in this area. So, when I got an email from Jane Hamsher at FDL telling me that Mike Farrell had recorded a video thanking us for our efforts, I couldn't wait to see it and share it.
That being said, the fight is far from over, but at least we can enjoy some props:
Congressmen Bill Pascrell, Rush Holt, Donald Payne and Albio Sires deserve a standing ovation.
Before the Congressional recess, I started a series about calling our Representatives about the public option. And as fast as things were moving, our goal changed as quickly as we started - for a number of reasons. For starters, we wanted to have our Reps. commit to vote against any health care bill without a public option. And at the time, there were 2 (Holt and Payne) who committed to do so - Holt even did it on Blue Jersey Radio.
As bills passed the various House committees and the teabagging restarted, both Pascrell and Sires joined Holt and Payne in Taking the Pledge. So now, we are here, and we have a bit of a different take on things:
Instead of using a stick and "whipping the public option", a netroots-wide initiative is underway to use "carrots, not sticks", and thank those who have taken the "pledge" in the form of online donations to all members in the House who have taken the pledge.
For starters, here is the ActBlue page called They Took the Pledge that you can click on to show our 4 Reps. some love. I just donated $20 to each of them.
As my good friend, David Atkins (thereisnospoon) said the other day:
A new initiative organized by Howie Klein, Jane Hamsher, my brother Dante and myself to verbally and financially reward Congressmembers who pledge to vote down any healthcare bill that does not include the public option is catching fire. The objective is to use carrots as well as sticks to achieve progressive goals. As I said in the diary kicking off this intiative at DailyKos:
Human beings are psychologically predictable creatures, much like Pavlov's famous canine. We do respond well to punishment, but we respond just as well if not better to positive reinforcement. Do nothing but beat a dog with a stick, and the dog is likelier to be aggressive than lovingly loyal. Do nothing but scream at a child, and the child will eventually fail to respond to her abusive parent. Senators and Representatives, no matter how elevated, are still just people: the rules of psychological conditioning still apply. If all we can do is scream at people who don't do what we want, eventually no one will listen to us at all.
From this initiative, one that started 3 days ago, there is already $250,000 raised from over 4,000 donors - all to show that we have the backs of those who have ours.
Joe Cryan wants an an immediate investigation by ELEC into Christie's failure to disclose a personal loan of $46,000 to Michele Brown, currently the first assistant to the United States Attorney, promoted since Christie's resignation.
"Christie continues to fail to live up to the ethical standards he sets for others," said Cryan. "He is running for Governor -- failing to report a personal loan to a close colleague is a serious transgression and breaks both federal and state ethics rules. Christie, of all people should know - he has prosecuted public officials for similar offenses, yet, he dismisses his own unscrupulous behavior as a simply an 'oversight.' This situation demands an immediate and thorough investigation."
[snip]
"Christie also must come clean about the questions this blatant conflict of interest raises - does he discuss his campaign with Brown?" said Cryan. "How have their financial ties affected his candidacy? It raises serious concerns about the stark contrast between what Christie says and what he actually does. Despite Christie's dismissal of this serious violation he is not above approach and just like any other New Jerseyan who violates the law Christie must be held accountable for his actions."
"Add this to the growing list of Christie's capers," said Pascrell. "Is it mere coincidence that Mr. Christie's personal life is again in conflict with his public obligations? A prosecutor at his level should know that once he gave that loan, no matter how well-intended it was, it changed the relationship between Mr. Christie and Ms. Brown. We have a right to know to what extent it changed. At the very least, this is a conflict of interest."
The Governor for his part has stayed focused on the Rove ties to Christie, stressing that he thinks the Hatch violations are the most serious. But his campaign did comment on the situation and tied it to their larger request for information that still hasn't been met:
"Serious questions remain about the loan Chris Christie gave to Michele Brown. Chris Christie had at least four opportunities to comply with the law and disclose this loan, yet he failed to do so each and every time. There seems to be no mystery that he was determined to keep it secret. The question is, why?"
"Christie and the U.S. Attorney's Office need to begin providing answers. They can start by immediately providing the specific dates of the promotions and salary increases Christie gave Michele Brown. We have filed a Freedom of Information Act request requesting this information, but our previous requests for such basic public information have been bottled up by Christie's friends for more than five months. The public shouldn't have to wait a day longer."
"Finally, as the number two in command in the U.S. Attorney's Office, Michele Brown must be objective about pursuing criminal cases in New Jersey in a non-partisan manner. But how can she possibly be objective when she remains indebted - literally - to the Republican candidate for governor? U.S. Attorney Ralph Marra is also reportedly facing questions about whether he inappropriately helped Christie's campaign. This whole episode raises grave questions about impartiality in our justice system, and the public deserves answers."
It's clear that the Democrats smell blood after the most recent weeks news and that's a question they will keep asking. The more they broaden the issue to show how connecting all of the dots continues to undermine who Christie wants people to believe he is, the more effective it will be I think.
As members of Congress headed home for break, the House Energy and Commerce Committee passed out their version of the healthcare bill. They wanted to arm members of Congress with the facts, so they put out district by district breakdowns:
The Committee has prepared, for each member, a district-level analysis of the impact of the legislation. This analysis includes information on the impact of the legislation on small businesses, seniors in Medicare, health care providers, and the uninsured. It also includes an estimate of the impacts of the surtax that is used to pay for the legislation.
America's Affordable Health Choices Act would provide significant benefits in the 7th Congressional District of New Jersey: up to 18,200 small businesses could receive tax credits to provide coverage to their employees; 8,100 seniors would avoid the donut hole in Medicare Part D; 800 families could escape bankruptcy each year due to unaffordable health care costs; health care providers would receive payment for $30 million in uncompensated care each year; and 21,000 uninsured individuals would gain access to high-quality, affordable health insurance.
You can see the benefits by district for each member of Congress:
You can see the full bill text and a summary put out by the committee as well. If you support this bill, your member of Congress needs to know about it. If you call, get your member of Congress to take the pledge. Our representatives are being inundated with phone calls and emails opposing healthcare. We need people who support the healthcare overhaul to start putting some action behind the talk, otherwise we'll be counting the time until the next chance to do something about healthcare.
I went through the FEC filings to see how our House members are fairing with their fundraising efforts. First here are some observations
Congressman Adler raised the most money in the 2nd quarter with over $518K, followed by Congressman Pallone and then Garrett.
Congressman Pallone has the most Cash on Hand by far and away with over $3.7 million. He has twice as much as the next member, Congressman Rothman who is followed by Pascrell and then Lobiondo.
Congressman Adler raised the most form individuals at over $267K, followed by Pallone, Garrett and then Rothman.
Congressman Adler raised the most from PAC's at over 250K, followed by Pallone, Lance and Frelinghuysen.
The members of the NJ delegation that raised more from PAC's than individuals were Congressmen Andrews, Payne, LoBiondo, Frelinghuysen, Pallone and Lance.
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