Governor Chris Christie released the first ad of his fledgling presidential campaign today. The thirty second spot is aimed at New Hampshire primary voters and will air on Boston, MA and Manchester, NH television and cable outlets, according to a report on NJ.com. Christie’s campaign will spend $500,000 to distribute the ad over the next four weeks, according to the report.
Monmouth County restaurateur Leo Cervantes, the owner of Chilango’s in Highlands and LaPlaya in Keansburg was surprised to find himself featured in the ad.
Cervantes appears 5 seconds into the ad and is the first face featured after Christie’s. He had no idea he was in the ad when contacted by MoreMonmouthMusings.
“I endorsed Christie for his reelection as governor,” Cervantes said, “I did a commercial for him and was part of his Hispanic outreach, but I have not heard from his presidential campaign. Should I sue them?” he asked jokingly.
Cervantes said he has not made a decision on who to support for president in 2016. “I was just talking to my daughter about this. I know the candidates are Bush, Hillary, Trump and some others, but I really haven’t focused on it yet.”
“For too long, we Republicans have been content to lose the black vote because we found that we could win elections without it. But when we gave up on trying to win the support of African-Americans, we lost our moral legitimacy as the party of Lincoln. As the party of equal opportunity for all.” -former Texas Governor Rick Perry
Former Texas Governor Rick Perry, a candidate for the 2016 Republican Presidential nomination, addressed the National Press Club last week in Washington.
His remarks as prepared for delivery and a video of his remarks followed by a Q & A are posted below:
A new Monmouth University Poll, taken after Governor Chris Christie’s presidential announcement and released this morning, indicates that a strong majority of New Jerseyans believe that Christie has abandoned his commitment to govern the state and that he would be a bad president.
57% say Christie should resign now that he has officially entered the presidential race. 71% say Christie cannot run for president and govern effectively at the same time….”walk and chew gum”… as Christie refers to his plan.
Just 27% of New Jerseyans say Christie would make a good president. More than two-thirds (69%) say he would not. A few months ago, Christie was asked on national TV about similar poll results. He responded that survey participants told pollsters he would not make a good president because “a lot of those people…want me to stay.” Monmouth followed up with the participants in our poll and found that just 5% of those who said he would not make a good president say they gave that response because they would rather have Christie stay in New Jersey. Fully 89% of this group, though, confirmed that their answer meant they really think he would make a bad president.
“I’m not sure how the governor defines ‘a lot,’ but any common sense usage of the term would have to be significantly greater than five percent,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute.
TRENTON — In his announcement Tuesday that he’s seeking the Republican nomination for president, Gov. Chris Christie didn’t make any mention of faith in God or religion — something presidential historians and GOP campaign managers say reveals much about his 2016 campaign strategy. Unlike other conservative 2016 candidates, such as U.S. Sen Ted Cruz of Texas… Read the rest of this entry »
When Leo Cervantes is confronted by a difficult circumstance, he looks for the opportunity it presents.
When the waters of Superstorm Sandy receded from Highlands, Cervantes and his staff at Chilango’s recovered the non-spoiled inventory from their destroyed Bay Avenue restaurant and invited the entire town to a free dinner that they prepared and served at Henry Hudson Regional High School which was serving as a shelter for hundreds of residents displaced by the storm.
When Donald Trump disparaged Mexicans during his presidential candidacy announcement last week, Leo, who immigrated from Neza, a tough town outside of Mexico City in 1989 and became a naturalized United States citizen in 2008, shook off the insult and created an opportunity.
Sunday, July 5th is Cinco de Donald at Leo’s two Monmouth County Mexican restaurants, Chilango’s in Highlands and the newly opened LaPlaya in Keansburg.
If you missed it live, you can watch Governor Chris Christie’s announcement that he is a candidate for President of the United States here courtesy of NJTV and YouTube.
TRENTON — At 9:30 p.m. on the eve of his Republican presidential campaign kickoff, Gov. Chris Christie announced a change to state firearm policy on an issue that has been riling gun rights activists. The governor also signaled support for loosening New Jersey’s strict gun control laws. Reacting to the June 3 death of 39-year-old Berlin… Read the rest of this entry »
TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie will deliver a speech aimed at reintroducing himself to the American people when he launches his campaign for president on Tuesday, according to a campaign organizer with knowledge of his kickoff event. The governor, who will ditch a teleprompter and be guided by notes, will use the speech to portray himself… Read the rest of this entry »
Democratic and Republican candidates for President of the United States will have to reimburse Middletown taxpayers for police overtime if they want the Township’s finest to control traffic and provide security for their fundraisers, according to Township Committeeman Tony Fiore.
The Township was left with an overtime bill of about $14,000 in 2008 when Barack Obama held a fundraiser at Jon Bon Jovi’s Navesink home, according to Fiore. That won’t happen again. “The Township Committee will not approve the expense.”
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, is coming to Bon Jovi’s house today for a $1000 per head soiree, according to Star Ledger columnist Mark Di Ionno.
In 2008, the township requested reimbursement from the rocker, but didn’t have a prayer to collect. Today, Fiore says the Police Department will not be present for the event unless Bon Jovi agrees upfront to cover the costs.
Today, Jon Bon Jovi is hosting a $1,000-a-plate fundraiser for Hillary Clinton in his French Chateau overlooking the Navesink River. It’s a mile from Jyll Jakes’ neighborhood in Sea Bright, where every other house remains boarded up. “It’s a still mess down here. I think people have forgotten how bad it is,” said Jakes, who credits… Read the rest of this entry »
