cid wilson 
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Thu Apr 12, 2007 at 05:46:27 PM EDT
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I really didn't know what to expect when I walked into 50 Main Street, Hackensack today just before Noon. I was afraid there wouldn't be any friendly faces. Was this going to just be the Wildes Zisa team giving their concession speech before the election even happened? Before the Primary even? Would they feel bad faced with the folks who fought them and robbed them of the victory party they should have had since the BCDO 37th Convention?
Well, the Governor was going to be there, so there was probably going to be a lot of folks there. I had a rare free day to go. It was fate - I had to go because I actually could. So I put on my lucky yellow raincoat - the one I wore to my very first Howard Dean meetup - and the very last one I found for sale on Cape May during Hurricane Floyd.
Surprisingly, the room was half empty, but all the key players from each camp were present - and the full press. Star Ledger, Record, TV. This was historic. The Democratic Machine-backed candidates for State Senate and Assembly were actually withdrawing after the BCDO convention that elected them. The Bergen County Democratic Boss was admitting defeat before a single vote in the Primary had even been cast. The reason given was Party Unity. Uniting to run against the Republicans. (Who?) Making up, avoiding a rift, all that stuff. It was explained as a family fight that was being resolved. Governor Corzine and Congressman Rothman were apparently brokering peace between the Weinberg and Ferriero camps like we were in the Middle East. Governor Corzine explained how he made many phone calls to ease the tension between the camps. While Governor Corzine was remarking on the current "angst" in the Bergen Democratic Party, a whole stack of chairs fell over on the side of the room with a crash. The Governor did make a clear point of explaining how he is STILL against pay-to-play and dual office holding, and that he differs from Joe Ferriero on that important point. He mentioned that this race is also going to be a Clean Elections race.
The real moments of humor were of course Joe joking as usual. I don't know if anyone realizes just how FUNNY these BCDO things are. When we are all in the same room together, it is not all glaring and tight-lipped silence. We actually bust on each other. It is usually quite entertaining. Joe usually can be quite charming when he needs to be. And boy did he need to be today. But the best moments were actually provided by Michael Wildes and Ken Zisa. Ken mentioning that he was still out campaigning that morning when he got the phonecall. (Poor Ken - he was always the last to know.) Wildes at first seemed unusually humble and then managed to say that "we would've won" in his speech. That was funny in itself, but the uncontained laughter of a few folks on the left side of the room after he said it was just priceless.
During and after the speeches, everybody hugged, it was a feel good, photo-op moment to show our Governor we were all making the effort to get along nice like. (I secretly suspect that this was all a ruse so Michael Wildes could get the one most valuable photo-op that has eluded him all these years - he and Loretta in the same picture). I had the hardest time keeping a straight face during the speeches though, I kept seeing the Englewood Report's photoshop images in my head of Senator Coniglio and Ferriero and Wildes, Zisa and Wilson. I just could not get those images out of my head.
My take: We were in the middle of a big family fight and Governor Corzine had invited Senator Clinton to dinner. He would be horrified if we all started throwing dinner rolls at each other across the table with Presidential Candidate company there and all. It would be quite embarassing. I don't blame him for being concerned. Bergen County is a big necessary chunk of the NJ electorate to win over. But the thing is, the Weinberg camp would have won handily. Joe just couldn't stand to lose the Primary. It saved face for the BCDO organization - temporarily. But there is still the matter of Pay-To-Play though. I'd have to say that is still the biggest division between the Ferriero supporters and the Weinberg supporters.
This early concession could be due to Michael wanting to save up for his race against Rothman next year. Or maybe the Ferriero camp gave in so we would stop digging? Digging for answers? Digging into Ken Zisa's ELEC reports? Digging to locate Dennis Ourey's undisclosed bunker? Digging to see who gave what to whom or where the BCDO money really goes? I found it very interesting that several speeches mentioned the 39th and 40th districts and how we need to elect Dems in those districts. The money from those districts last year went to the Borgata - remember?
Like my favorite fortune cookie said - "Love all. Trust a few." Lots of love flowing at 50 Main Street in Hackensack today. Trust? well, that takes a little more time.
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Fri Apr 06, 2007 at 06:08:06 PM EDT
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Cross-posted here to give Blue Jerseyians the opportunity to compete in our first-ever contest!
 "Who's on first, what's on second?"
- Abbott and Costello
"What am I doing here? What are you doing here?"
- Ferriero and Coniglio
We've had a hard time keeping a straight face as Party Boss Joe Ferriero and his fumbling threesome (Zisa, Wildes and Wilson) trip on their clown shoes while trying to walk like Karl Rove. Only a few weeks into the campaign and already we have seen some howlers. So, to keep it entertaining, The Englewood Report is having a contest.
We have divided Ferrierocrat antics into three scorable categories. The first person to reach 10 points in each antic category will be awarded a CD of the classic Abbott and Costello routine, "Who's on First".
We supply you with some examples and points to get you started.
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Wed Apr 04, 2007 at 11:18:59 PM EDT
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Cross-Posted from ShapTalk.com:
In March 2003, at the invitation of then-Councilman Michael Wildes (D-Englewood), Senator Hillary Clinton attended and spoke at a free reception that was open to the public at the Radisson Hotel in Englewood. Councilman Wildes also organized a private reception before the event that netted approximately $50,000 for the Senator from New York. Given the contentious Bergen County primary between State Senator Loretta Weinberg and Mayor Wildes and their respective Assembly slates in the 37th District, will Senator Clinton repay the previous support of Mr. Wildes with a public boost to Wildes and his team during the Primary campaign?
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Thu Feb 01, 2007 at 02:29:08 AM EST
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I don't even know where to begin. I think I've erased about ten different sentences before getting started. The Democratic Committee of Bergen County overwhelmingly voted NO to Dear Leader Joey Joe's effort to amend the By-Laws of the County Organization. In the end Joe Ferriero walked through the doors of Hackensack Middle School smiling dejectedly. Why was he smiling? I don't know, he's a megalomaniac. I think even Boss Joe could not possibly believe that this had actually happened. I could not believe this had happened. Boss Ferriero summoned his legions in full force and failed to have his way. The "small man with small feet" (he was described as such; he is small, I don't know about his feet, but she seemed to trust her sources)was clearly not at the top of his game tonight. Remember, this is the first time in my life that I have ever attended a County Committee Reunion. I still don't know if it was a Convention or a Meeting. Someone with more knowledge on the subject should comment on the signficance of that. Anyways, all the characters were there. Charles "Ken" Zisa, Michael Wildes and Cid Wilson were there. Petitions were being signed. Wildes threw everyone a curveball by having TWO petitions. One for Senate candidacy and the other for Assembly. Michael even approached me and commented on my posts on bluejersey, so now I'm really full of myself and the Maker isn't even flowing. What follows is some of the literature that Committee members were treated to before they voted and a play by play account of my impressions as I learn more and more about what it is that we call democracy in Bergen County.
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Wed Jan 24, 2007 at 11:14:50 PM EST
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Can someone please comment on the following lines from the Dear Leader:
I am no history expert on the County of Bergen, but I would wager this particular paragraph begins with an outright lie.
Bergen County is the only County in the State that selects party candidates in district caucuses. This process goes back to the time when Bergen County had five Legislative Districts within its borders. Redistricting has created a situation where this is no longer the case, with several districts having little representation within Bergen County. .
One more note.
The candidates selected to represent our Party receive the endorsement of our Party and the privilege of appearing in our column. It is our responsibility as a party to ensure that all candidates best represent the ideals of our organization. .
Why don't we substitute "our" with "my" and see if there are any changes?
A theme in all my posts will be Latinos and Englewoodians in positions of power. In the aforementioned BCDO letter, I must note Corresponding Secretary Laureana Organ, State Commitee-men Daniel Ortega and Omar Rodriguez as well as our former Councilman-at-Large (and new Planning Board member) Rev. Vernon Walton.
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Wed Jan 24, 2007 at 03:34:39 AM EST
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(Shaping up to be an important primary. - promoted by Xpatriated Texan)
I will assume that for most readers of bluejersey very little need (needs to) be said about Ken Zisa. What follows is a basic introduction to Englewood Mayor Michael Wildes and Cid D. Wilson of Leonia.
To speak of Wildes I must talk about Englewood's historical mayoral election this past November. I keep using the word historical a lot. But this is just the nature of the monumentally epic District 37. To his credit, I can say that Michael Wildes is not shy about his ambitions. He has his eyes on the New Jersey Legislature. These are all merely stepping stones to his march (I guess) to Washington. Just take a look at the following website:
Michael Wildes for Congress
I guess one must respect Michael for fantasizing to be more than just the Mayor of Englewood. After all, he is no longer 'boy wonder' and must be painfully conscious of the looming and dreaded 'has been' status. He has goals and a vision for his future. We must all have goals and a vision for our future. For further reading I will include some memorable bits that Englewoodians enjoyed during the Wildes v. Stern matchup.
To be fair, I must include a link to Dr. Stern's website.
Bob Stern for Mayor
For those of you looking for a multimedia experience, try the following links:
Meet the Real Michael Wildes
Inside the Mind of Michael Wildes
and one more...
Vote Against Scare Tactics
As far as Mr. Wilson is concerned, I will have to confess that as a Latin American Democrat, I do not know what to make of Mr. Wilson and his decision to add his name to that of Kenny and Michael. I will provide some links with basic biographical information on Mr. Wilson. I do not know anything about his politics. But I will say that he has a most impressive resume. And were his name not attached to that of Zisa and Wildes, I would have to be very impressed by a Dominican-American Latin American success story. But the fact that he has lent his name to complete the Ferriero-crat Triumvirate tears me to pieces.
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Wed Jan 24, 2007 at 02:19:13 AM EST
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I've not been around bluejersey for a few days. Blogging, it seems, is a full time job. District 37 may very well be the single most important primary in the history of primaries. I will not argue about this. I find Star Wars boring and overrated, but I am a Lord of the Rings fan and you get the idea...this is what we have here in our own little corner of N-E-W Jerz. I'm just waiting for the evil empire to make a move...this will be a quick little post on what seems to be team Ferriero-crat's ticket: Kenny Zisa, Michael Wildes, Cid Wilson. What, in the name of all that is good and pure, are they thinking?
I've included a short clip from Politifax's take on District 37. And I promise in a later post to break down the Englewood Democratic Club's first meeting of 2007. I'm working backwards here. And then I will work my way to my impressions of what will forever be known as 'The Rally.' Just bear with me.
Politifax
A Weekly Electronic Newsletter on Politics in NEW JERSEY
Volume X, # 30 January 24, 2007 DISTRICT 37. It's all but certain that Joe Ferriero
will put up a ticket to challenge Loretta Weinberg, Gordon
Johnson, and Valerie Huttle. (The Record reports
that the challengers will be Ken Zisa, Englewood Mayor
Michael Wildes, and Bergen Community College
trustee Cid Wilson.) The Ferriero forces are pushing
amendment to the party by laws that would require
legislative candidates to get the approval of the entire
County Committee rather than just those members in
the relevant district. The Weinberg team held a large
preemptive rally that attracted labor leaders (including
Charlie Wowkanech, environmental organizations, and
women's rights groups). But the Senator's forces are
smiling even more over the fact that an investigator
from the Attorney General's office is on the verge of
identifying the forger who submitted letters of resignation
for County Committee members who supported
Weinberg back in 2005 when she and Zisa were battling
to succeed Byron Baer.
.
I think most readers are familiar with the Zisas, or at least just about every resident in the City of Hackensack. So I'm going to have to break this down, mostly for myself, but hopefully some of you may find this informative, one candidate at a time.
To repeat, I am a relatively new to local politics in New Jersey. If you would have asked me two years ago to name my legislators, let alone my representatives to the Englewood Council, I would have been absolutely clueless. What a difference a couple years makes. What a difference a year makes. I confess that I know nothing about Ken Zisa. I know a little bit about Michael Wildes considering he is my mayor after all. I think I may have voted for him the first time he ran for mayor UNOPPOSED and then supported the wonderfully Independent Dr. Bob Stern during the last mayoral election against Wildes. And I definitely knew absolutely nothing about Cid Wilson. So I did a quick superficial bit of googling and came up with some basic biographical information.
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