As the GOP machine lines up behind Jon Runyan and he prepares to launch his campaign this week, Justin Murphy isn't ready to give him the primary victory just yet:
"If Jon prevails, I would be happy to support him in the general election (against incumbent U.S. Rep. John Adler), but while he's been a registered Republican for three months, I've been a registered Republican for 30 years," Murphy adds. "We need more substance."
With some of Runyan's positions, it will be interesting to see what the Tea Party does and if they get behind Murphy's effort. Up until now, the GOP has been able to avoid the brutal primary that plagued them last time around.
It's becoming clearer by the day that Burlington County GOP chairman Bill Layton and his boss Glenn Paulsen don't really care where Jon Runyan stands on the issues, they're just seeing dollar signs:
"Adler's been raising money for a year. That's why Jon Runyan is a game changer for us. He has the ability to raise just as much money as John Adler," Layton said. "I clearly think that out of all the candidates, Jon Runyan is our best chance to take back the 3rd District."
You see it doesn't matter where Runyan stands on anything as long as he has the money to get the GOP back the power they had and lost. While Layton is clearly looking for a handout, George Gilmore doesn't seem intimidated by the fundraising challenge that Adler presents without a self funding candidate. This is going to be a reporters dream with Layton and Gilmore not wanting the other to get the last word. I'm amazed someone higher up in the Republican party hasn't stepped up to tell them keep their fights outside of the media. It really seems like the up front aggressive approach taken by Layton and Runyan is making Gilmore want to fight more, just out of protecting his reputation. Not that I mind. Let them spend all their money fighting about money.
Toms River Township Councilman Maurice "Mo" Hill, a retired Navy rear admiral and dentist, said he will run for Congress even if party leaders from the district's three counties - Ocean, Burlington and Camden - are not unified.
"If I got the support of the Ocean County organization, then yes, I would move forward," Hill said Friday.
Hill has already met with the chairmen in Burlington, Camden and Ocean Counties as has Runyan. While Republicans have said they want to avoid a primary this time around, Hill says if he gets the support of one county party he will run. For his part, Ocean County GOP boss George Gilmore has his own list of potentials:
Gilmore has his own short list of candidates, including state Sen. Christopher Connors (R-Lacey Twp), Toms River Councilman Moe Hill and former State Lottery Commissioner Virginia "Ginny Haines." Gilmore said there are also a couple other potential candidates who do not want their names floated publicly yet.
"I'm not simply going to say 'Oh yes, Jon Runyan is our guy.' There are a lot of good people out there, including Moe Hill, Chris Connors and Ginny Haines. It doesn't matter how many statements Jon Runyan puts out, it's going to be the same answer: we have a process and we're going to go through it."
We'll see whether the GOP is able to avoid a competitive primary this time around like they were unable to do in their last shot at the seat.
For the first time since 1882, a Democrat will be sworn in as the next Congressman from New Jersey's 3rd Congressional District. The perfect political storm known as the 2008 election has broken a 126-year drought and turned an impressive state Senator into a promising Congressman-Elect. But it was not a storm that "just happened". It was a storm that was planned and executed with precision.
State Senator John Adler announced his campaign for Congress to challenge then sitting Congressman Jim Saxton very early, on September 20, 2007. From the beginning, Adler waged his campaign on progressive values; his decision to challenge Saxton came shortly after Saxton voted against expanding S-CHIP. This would have been his second time challenging Saxton (Adler ran in the then 13th Congressional district in 1990), but on November 9, 2007 Congressman Saxton announced he would not seek re-election due to health reasons. Now the race was for an open seat, an easier proposition for Adler.
To understand the political dynamics at play, you first have to understand the geographic composition of the district. The 3rd District includes Cherry Hill in Camden County, most of Burlington County and a sizable chunk of Ocean County. On the Democratic side, the field cleared for Adler and he received the early support of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. On the Republican side, many wanted Burlington County native State Senator Diane Allen to run. When she declined, Chris Myers emerged as the Burlington County Candidate.
A few months ago, Blue Jersey's Jason Springer detailed Republican congressional candidate Chris Myers' selective amnesia about GOP corruption in Burlington County. It was when Myers was pressed by a reporter about his campaign contributions from de facto BurlCo GOP boss Glenn Paulsen and Garfield DeMarco, former BurlCo Bridge Commission boss, that he rather incredulously said "You'll have to talk to Glenn about that." Besides being stunned by Myers' refusal to acknowledge corruption in his own party - I've gotten used to Myers demurring from answering tough questions in public - I was struck at how one of the state's most corrupt party bosses was on a first name basis with a congressional candidate.
I like to think that it's hard to stump me. But I'm at a loss for words on this. It's a bit long, but it's worth the time:
Send the video to Anne Milgram and Chris Christie. Hell, send it to the New York and Philadelphia corporate press. Send it to your local Congressman and ask them to publicly demand an investigation.
Thanks to the BurlCo Dems for working with the netroots and giving us the scoop here at Blue Jersey. They'll be rolling out their own statement later today (Wednesday).
Things have gotten pretty ugly in the 3rd District GOP primary this last week. Jack Kelly went up on TV with an ad that really has gotten the attention of his opponent Chris Myers...
Myers for his part has gone after Kelly as a political hack who's used government to serve himself, but those accusations aren't what has Kelly so mad...
Kelly, for his part, said Myers crossed the line with a mailer about him that features a pig wearing a crown.
I haven't seen the mailer because I'm not exactly the voter Myers is trying to reach, but I'll take Kelly's word for it. I guess we all have our limits.
My favorite is the 3rd candidate in the race, Justin Murphy who sums up the Myers and Kelly campaigns with this great line in his press release, Another Corruption Eruption From the boss controlled candidates for the 3rd District Congressional Seat...
...Murphy says Ocean County voters "should know that a vote for Jack Kelly or Chris Myers is a vote to validate the corrupt power of County Bosses in both Burlington and Ocean Counties."
While I've had enough of some primary campaigns, this one is the gift that keeps on giving. This GOP primary continues to get uglier and John Adler gets to raise money while building an organization and enjoying the show. He probably can't ask for much more.
Chris Myers, 3rd District candidate for Congress in the GOP primary doesn't like being asked about who he takes contributions from, but maybe someone should fill him in...
Democrats have already tried to tie Myers to a machine that's responsible for fiscal waste and mismanagement, pointing to $4,600 in donations that he accepted from former Burlington County GOP Chairman Glenn Paulsen and J. Garfield DeMarco.
DeMarco presided over the Burlington County Bridge Commission during a period when lobbyist Bob Stears - who pleaded guilty to over-billing the county by $1 million - said he was forced to fill the party's coffers with some of that money.
"You have to talk to Glenn about that," said Myers. "I don't know any issues about that so you'll have to talk to them about it."
"I do not have any information regarding that. Right now I am proud of every donation my campaign has received. But I do not have any information regarding that," Myers said.
"I got sucked into a group of corrupt people," Stears said. "I allowed myself to engage in fraudulent schemes."
"The contributions were mostly in Burlington County, but there were other contributions they would ask us to make."
"You're saying that money was paid back in political contributions that wouldn't otherwise have existed?" Simandle asked.
"Yes," Stears responded, adding that "I wish my case were unique, but it's not."
In case Mr. Myers is still confused, those corrupt people Stears referred to are now helping to finance his campaign. And just in case Myers is confused about whether this is still a problem, Stears would disagree...
Some $3,000 to $4,000 a month would then be made in political contributions, Stears said. He said most of that money was spent in Burlington County and some of it was spent elsewhere in the state. Stears founded the Trenton-based Strategy Group with Tom Wilson, the current chairman of the New Jersey Republican Party."That's pretty serious money at the local level," the judge said. "Yes it is and it continues today," Stears replied. He also agreed with the judge when he pointed out that kind of cash could help shape the political landscape.
I just want to make sure he is aware in case Glenn is too busy to fill him in.
But before sentencing, he told Judge Jerome Simandle that he was forced to contribute between $3,000 and $4,000 every month to the Republican Party as a condition of keeping his lucrative contract with the bridge commission.
"I got sucked into a group of corrupt people," Stears said. "I allowed myself to engage in fraudulent schemes."
"The contributions were mostly in Burlington County, but there were other contributions they would ask us to make."
"You're saying that money was paid back in political contributions that wouldn't otherwise have existed?" Simandle asked.
"Yes," Stears responded, adding that "I wish my case were unique, but it's not."
I wonder who directed him to make those contributions and who benefited from the money donated, possibly his partner and GOP State Chair Tom Wilson, County boss Glenn Paulsen or Ms. No-Show Job herself Martha Bark? Paging U.S. Attorney Christie...
We continue to urge other dual-office holders -- such as Assemblymen John Burzichelli, D-Gloucester, who also is mayor of Paulsboro, and Paul Moriarty, D-Gloucester, who also is Washington Township's mayor -- to put the interests of New Jerseyans first. We urge them to follow the lead of Addiego and Rudder and give up one of their public offices.
The editorial only mentioned that she was giving up her seat, not that she was going to wait until the Boss found his next stooge. It was also really nice of them to take the opportunity to hit the Democrats, but if those officials follow Addiego's lead, they'll continue to be dual officeholders and instead of trying to justify it, they'll just lie to the voters when asked.
Luckily the Burlington County Times brought some truth to the situation with their Op-Ed entitled, "A pledge unmet". Follow me below the fold to see how the BurlcoTimes got it so right where the Courier went so horribly wrong.
Republican Dawn Addiego ran her campaign for Assembly telling the voters she would resign her freeholder position if elected. She railed against opponent Tracy Riley over the possibility that Riley would hold two offices if elected...
I also want to see an end to the double-dipping and the pension padding. We have to bring confidence back to elected office.
Maybe Addiego isn't the one to bring that confidence back. Before she takes the Assembly oath of office on Tuesday, she will have already broken her promise and will join the distinguished club of dual office holders. The watered down dual office holding ban exempts those who hold more than one office prior to Feb 1 allowing Addiego to remain a freeholder and become an Assemblywoman. Today she is singing a different tune and not complaining about loopholes...
I want to give the party an opportunity to find a replacement, she said.
Well isn't it convenient that the county ban Addiego championed also allows her to serve out the remaining year of her term while the party searches for a "suitable replacement", aka someone willing to take marching orders from Boss Paulsen?
Not like the party hasn't had a couple months to be looking for someone, but I guess Dawn will just wait it out and enjoy collecting both checks. She'll probably cry all the way to the bank too.
We're all Republicans, but Republicans are different. … I'm not too familiar with Burlington, but the Ocean machine … is costing taxpayers millions of dollars."
Ocean County Republicans today picked Freeholder John Kelly as their candidate for Congress. Kelly, who was backed by the party screening committee on Saturday, won unanimously after Freeholder Joseph Vicari dropped out.
This sets up a battle of the bosses with Gilmore backed Kelly facing off against Paulsen backed Myers. State Chair Tom Wilson for his part has decided that issues don't really matter and it's all about the Benjamin's...
Campaign donations could help settle the contest between Burlington and Ocean counties, according to Republican state chairman Tom Wilson.
"Fundraising is a huge part of it," Wilson has said.
With his corporate ties, many expect Myers could raise big money before the primary election.
Paulsen and Gilmore are "very pragmatic people," Wilson said. If one candidate has raised "a prohibitive amount" of money by April, Wilson said he expected party leaders to avoid an inter-party fight.
So let them "fight it out on the issues" for now, but Wilson has signaled that if Kelly and Gilmore don't get going fast, they may be outbid for a shot at a Congressional seat.
So with news that Lockheed Martin executive Christopher Myers is mulling a bid for Congress in the third district (where is close friend, Jim Saxton, is retiring) came the obligatory check of his previous campaign contributions. They are mostly to Republicans like Saxton (and to Mitt Romney's presidential campaign), but earlier this year he did write a $500 personal check to Frank Lautenberg's campaign for re-election to the U.S. Senate. Does it matter?
That's a good question, does it matter? Enjoy the show.
For all the talk of the huge ugly battle that would be the GOP primary campaign in NJ-3, Ocean County Boss George Gilmore could cut everyone off at the knees if he supports the Burlington County Boss backed candidate, Chris Myers.
At the BurlcoGOP coup er county committee meeting hastily called at the behest of Boss Glenn Paulsen, who was seeking to regain his power by having puppet and next door neighbor Bill Layton serve as chairman, he showed his cards about where he'd be placing his money...
Burlington County Republican boss Glenn Paulsen said Saturday that he is supporting Christopher Myers
With Diane Allen out of the race thanks to the civil war that she was having with Paulsen, it looks like Myers will be the clear choice coming out of Burlington County. Camden County will accept whatever candidate the bosses tell them. So now Gilmore has to decide if he wants to stand up for his county or bow to the pressure of State Chair Tom Wilson and the Burlco Boss because Myers wants to go play there too...
Myers, who lives in Burlington County and is the presumptive favorite to get that county party's nod for a congressional bid, has sent his resume to Ocean County GOP Chairman George Gilmore and will participate in a candidate screening process this weekend.
I won't hold my breath for the Ocean county candidates going through the Burlco screening process because Paulsen has already decided for everyone, but Gilmore seems to have an open mind...
"I've said from the beginning that if the three county organizations can get behind one county candidate, that would be great," said Gilmore.
So what will Gilmore do? Will he support one of his own, creating what many say will be a bitter primary battle or will he strike a deal allowing Burlington to be the Parent to Ocean's child status once again? Besides, what's the point of letting the voters decide when you can have 2 bosses agree for everyone that will be represented by their choice? You gotta love Jersey.
Lacy decided it would be foolish to challenge Layton, so received his assurance that he would hire an independent firm to review the organization's finances, including the questionable tax status of party headquarters, a building owned in part by Paulsen and treasurer Charles Lambiase.
Second, she challenged the integrity of State Senator Elect Phil Haines after he undercut her efforts by backing off the plan to change leadership which she says he helped to start...
"Unfortunately," Lacy told Haines, "I don't have much hope for Republicans winning the Statehouse anytime soon with such a lack of fortitude in the senator-elect."
Our State Chairman who is here today told me that he thinks we really do want to be sheep and don't really want to be involved.
So the GOP State Chairman thinks people want to be sheep? That's not a leader I want to follow, baaa. She had a parting shot for those who say the party has come together because no one will be publicly complaining anymore...
But remember, silence is not the same as unity.
This provides a great backdrop for some serious fireworks between the Ocean and Burlington County Bosses as the GOP looks to field a candidate to run against John Adler in NJ-3.
The Burlington County Republicans have a new chairman, sort of. Old Party Boss Glenn Paulsen's next door neighbor, Bill Layton has prevailed in the power struggle and tried to bring the party together giving us this gem in his acceptance speech...
Friends," Layton told the crowd of 300 in the Wyndham Hotel in Mount Laurel, "families fight. They fight all the time. But they leave their house unified, and they go and fight with the neighbors.
That's exactly how my family works. First, we fight. Then we make up leaving the house unified to kick the crap out of our next door neighbors. They know to watch out for my Aunt. I think the new chairman is stretching the fighting family analogy a wee bit far.
So she wants to represent NJ-3 in Congress. She wants to take Jim Saxton's place. She wants millions of dollars for the pleasure. And she's even willing to splinter the Burlington and Ocean County GOP committees in the process.
But she DOESN'T want to go to work. And that's her empty chair to prove it. That's from this morning by the way. (For those of you keeping score that makes two of the last three ethics panel hearings where Diane Allen was NOT in the house.)
Glenn Paulsen has been busy trying to retain his Boss status in the Burlington County Republican Party and that fight is now front and center with the race for the 3rd Congressional District GOP Primary heating up. Today, he tries to tear down the perceived GOP frontrunner while puffing up his own choice giving us this beautiful spin...
On State Senator Diane Allen:
"I'm going to look objectively [at] who's the best candidate to win the primary and the general election, and I think there are some liabilities there that she's going to have to overcome," he added. "Her difficulty is that she's pro-choice, pro-same-sex marriage and anti-death penalty. Those are not issues that the national party has supported."
On Freeholder Aubrey Fenton:
Paulsen touted one possible Burlington County candidate, county Freeholder Aubrey Fenton as a possible contender. He said that Fenton, an African-American, would have "J.C. Watts-like appeal," though it is unclear if he is interested in running.
"I'm very seriously considering it," Allen told The Associated Press on Sunday. "I'm certainly inclined to do it."
Allen says she was contacted by State and National Republican Party members, which I'm sure won't make bosses George Gilmore and Glenn Paulsen very happy. Allen talked about what the bottom line will be for her decision on whether or not to make a run...
Allen plans to meet with the National Republican Congressional Committee in Washington this week to discuss financing for the campaign, which could cost $2 million or more. Before she jumps in with both feet, however, the veteran legislator said campaign financing issues must be settled.
"It's a big lift," she said of her probable congressional campaign. "It's going to require millions of dollars. I have to be sure that's obtainable."
