Winners and Losers of 2013, Part Two
Losers:
Congressman Frank J. Pallone, Jr. Since losing the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate to Cory Booker in a special primary, New Jersey’s longest serving Democratic Member of Congress has gone off the rails with bizarre rants is defense of ObamaCare. As the healthcare plan proves to be increasingly unworkable and unpopular, Pallone’s credibility will tank.
Pallone’s once formidable campaign war chest of roughly $4 million is down to $1.2 million after the special primary, as of the September 30th FEC reports. That $1.2 million is not as high as it might seem, as the congressman historically burns through about $1 million per year in “campaign” expenses during years when he doesn’t have to face the voters. Given that his seat is considered “safe,” he’ll have a tough time competing for campaign dollars with candidates who are in districts considered “competitive.”
There is a talk of an Asian-American from Middlesex County who is willing to spend $1 million of his own money to unseat Pallone. It will take a guy like that to exploit Pallone’s obvious vulnerability.
Tom Kean Jr. Kean overplayed the best hand dealt to New Jersey Republicans since Jim Florio’s toilet paper tax, Chris Christie’s overwhelming popularity, and lost. He picked a fight with Senate President Steve Sweeney and thought he knew better than Christie’s strategists how the Republican legislative campaign should be waged. His only winning option was to defeat Sweeney’s reelection bid and pick up at least another two state Senate seats. He failed on all counts, not winning even one Senate seat.
The three Senate seats Christie’s team wanted to target were lost by Republicans by a combined 5,375 votes, while Kean spent precious resources trying to win in three South Jersey districts, including Sweeney’s, that he ended up losing by a combined 22,522 votes.
Kean survived Christie’s attempt to replace him as Senate Minority Leader, but looked like the weak “trust fund baby” that Sweeney calls him when his father, the former Governor, complained in the press for two weeks about how Christie treated his son.
Now Kean Jr is Sweeney’s bitch and Kean doesn’t like it. Sweeney cut the Republican’s funding for staffing and distributed those reduced funds the way he wanted, not the way Kean wanted. Kean is whining to the press that Sweeney’s actions are “a threat to democracy.”
Sweeney is not likely to let up on Kean. Why should he? Some anonymous Republicans are saying Christie should intervene. That would make Kean look even weaker and more ridiculous than he does now.
New Jersey voters and taxpayers don’t care about Republican Senators’ funding for staffing or the internal politics of the Senate. They care about their property taxes and jobs. Kean appears out of touch and petty to be whining to the press about Sweeney’s tactics as if they are a catastrophic event.
Check back tomorrow for more losers, including Vin Gopal and the Bayshore Tea Party Group.
More from my site
Lautenberg ailing…..what if he retires early?
Scudiery Endorsing Booker For U.S. Senate, Bashes Pallone
Lautenberg will not seek another term
FDU Public Mind Poll is bad news for Frank Pallone and the politicos who want to replace him
Does Pallone have the fortitude to run for U.S. Senate?
What if Menendez resigns?
More Monmouth Musings Endorses Frank Pallone
Booker won’t run for President in 2016
What if Menendez resigns or is expelled from the Senate?
Gopal: Essex County is the model he wants for Monmouth County
I’m not sure who this “Asian-American from Middlesex County who is willing to spend $1 million of his own money to unseat Pallone” is, but I suspect another scheme by Country Club RINOs to keep Constitutionally-Certified and Tea Party-Approved candidate for Congress Anna Little from taking her rightful place alongside Dave Larsen and Steve Lonegan as NJ’s freshmen Representatives in Congress.
Whoever he is, Anna Little will kick his butt like she did Diane Gooch in 2010.
The delusional BSTPG syncophants are back. Anna Little has had her shot, TWICE.
The last thing people want to hear going into 2014 are these useless drone idiots from there who have never won a general election.
As to the Asian-American, willing to put up his own money, there is one possibility I know of; a 747 pilot. Can’t remember his name right now, but I would support him anyday.
Signed,
Silence Dogood, Redux
HaHAHAHA that’s funny no one will beat Frank Pallone.
If you are looking for a decent candidate, rather than getting someone who nobody has ever heard of, why not a member of a local municipal govt, a Freeholder or state legislature all of whom would at least have some kind of track record to run on.
Picking a candidate whose main qualification is that they are rich and can finance their won campaign has not proven very appealing to voters in the past
typo above should read:
“own” campaign
@Bob English said: “Picking a candidate whose main qualification is that they are rich and can finance their won campaign has not proven very appealing to voters in the past”
The Monmouth County RINOs tried that when they put up Diane Gooch to oppose Anna Little. It got them nothing but a severe butt-kicking courtesy of Anna’s Army and the Bayshore Tea Party Group.
Anna little had her shot, keep fracturing the party with these underfunded extreme candidates and we will keep losing general elections!
@ Bayshore Bulldog….One thing Mrs. Little had going for her is that she had already been elected to political office (and had served time as a Freeholder) and was somewhat known (for better or worse.) My free unwanted unasked for advice in 2014, would be for the BSTPG candidates to try to win some elections at the local municipal levels first rather than thinking you are going to be able to knock off Freeholder, Congressional or State Legislature incumbents with political unknowns that have zero track records of any accomplishments while serving in elected office.
This is an interesting article for several reasons, some of which were touched upon by other posts.
First of all, Tom Kean may not have won any seats however at least he did not try to play it safe. Christie, contrary to popular folklore regarding this last election had no coat-tails (hopefully the national pundits took note of that fact).
Secondly, as for Pallone, he will end up being his own worst enemy because he ill-advisedly hitched his wagon to that loser ACA (affectionately known as Obama-care). This abortion will be his millstone.
As for finding candidates, let’s not be too “cute” like the Republican establishment in DC is being. Now is the time (contrary to popular opinion within the Beltway and Trenton) to be bold and to paint a platform in bold colors, not highlighting only what we are against however what the solutions are.
This will be especially true in taking on Obama-care head-on. Be true, be relevant and be bold, anything else will be construed as weakness and will take the party down accordingly. Let’s see if integrity and guts takes root or if it will be some more of the “moderate” pablum that will attract no new voters but only alienate those who remain and end in another “Moderate” defeat.
For what its worth!
I don’t remember it as a severe butt kicking of Diane Gooch. She only won by 84 votes.
So, if that’s the kind of revisionist history you want to spout, you MUST be seriously deluded. Anna Little is “road kill” already, damaged from past escapades
@ Bob English. Valiant try but the BSTPG is all about Babs Gonzalez and her visions of grandeur. They want to grab the brass ring right away instead of working in the trenches, up the ladder. Several have told them that and they still don’t learn
Signed,
Silence Dogood, Redux