The hopes of Middlesex and Monmouth County mayors, freeholders and legislators hoping to move to Washington in early 2015 as the newly elected representive of the 6th Congressional district were set back a bit this morning by a new FDU Public Mind Poll that shows Newark Mayor Cory Booker dominating the Democratic field to replace Senator Frank Lautenberg.
Congressman Frank Pallone has been considered Booker’s main competition for the 2014 Democratic U.S. Senate nomination among the media and political establishment. However, 12th District Congressman Rush Holt has almost twice the support among self identified Democrats than Pallone does, according the FDU survey.
FDU surveyed its respondents cable news viewing habits, polling the trustworthiness of CNN, FoxNews and MSNBC. Given Holt’s surprising showing, they should have surveyed how many of their respondents are Jeopardy fans. Holt is famous for being a five time Jeopardy winner and beating IBM’s supercomputer, “Watson,” on the TV trivia game show.
Booker leads the Democratic U.S. Senate field with 50% support. Pallone got only 4% and Holt 7%. 32% of the respondents are unsure and are probably Wheel of Fortune fans.
Frank Pallone aged 30 years
Unless Booker becomes incapacitated running into fire, shoveling snow, or leaping a tall building in a single bound, Pallone is likely to remain in the House of Representatives until he’s Launtenberg’s age.
Monmouth Democratic Chairman Vin Gopal, Marlboro Mayor Jon Hornik, former Edison Mayor Jun Choi and Carteret Mayor Dan Reiman best hopes for becoming a congressman is if Gerald Rivera manages to beat Booker next year in the general election and then Pallone beating Rivera in 2020. But that is not much of a hope, as FDU says Booker will beat Geraldo 52%-21%.
Congressman Rush Holt D-NJ12 told PolitickerNJ that he’s interested in becoming a U.S. Senator, but stopped short of announcing his 2014 candidacy for the 2014 Democratic nomination.
“There’s no point in being coy,” Holt said. “I’ve made no secret in previous years that I would consider the Senate at the right time. But an expression of interest should not be taken as a campaign announcement.”
Holt represented much of Monmouth County from 1999 through January of this year the congressional map resulting from the 2010 census took effect.
Would Allow Houses of Worship Same Status as Other Non-Profits in Seeking Federal Disaster Assistance
The House of Representatives voted today to put houses of worship—many of which were severely damaged by Superstorm Sandy but nonetheless continued to serve ravaged coastal communities—on an even playing field with other non-profit organizations seeking disaster assistance.
H.R. 592, the “Federal Disaster Assistance Nonprofit Fairness Act of 2013,” is co-authored by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ-04) and Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY-06), and co-sponsored by Peter King (R-NY-02), Eliot Engel (D-NY-16), Trent Franks (R-AZ-08), Michael Grimm (R-NY-11), Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ-02), Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY-04) and Bill Pascrell Jr.(D-NJ-09).
The legislation stipulates that the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, which funds the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) disaster relief program, is a general government program under which federal assistance following a natural disaster can be rendered using criteria that are neutral with regard to religion. Congress has previously enacted laws providing financial assistance to religious nonprofit institutions, including houses of worship, on terms equal to other eligible nonprofit organizations. The bill now moves to the Senate.
The bill had 10-2 support in the New Jersey delegation. Congressmen Rob Andrews and Rush Holt voted NO.
If passed by the Senate and signed into law by President Obama, the following Monmouth County churches that sustained over $100,000 each from Superstorm Sandy stand to received FEMA funds for rebuilding:
Christ the King (Our Lady of Mt Carmel), Long Branch
Christ the King (Holy Trinity Church, Long Branch)
Has high praise for Congressmen Chris Smith and Rush Holt.
Angry with Congressman Pallone and JCP&L
Middletown Mayor Tony Fiore has set up a charitable fund to assist residents of the storm battered bayshore sections of the township. The Middletown Disaster Relief Fund is accepting tax deductible donations to help residents of Leonardo, Belford, Port Monmouth and North Middletown.
Donations can be sent to:
Middletown Disaster Relief Fund
c/o Mayor’s Office
1 Kings Highway
Middletown, NJ 07748
Praise for Smith and Holt
“Congressman Chris Smith has been an absolute godsend, he’s the hero of the bayshore,” Fiore exclaimed during an interview on Friday. “The north side of the township is a disaster area. Smith was here for hours. He’s getting us added security and federal assistance. That part of town is not even in his district.”
“Rush Holt has been great. Middletown is not part of his district anymore, yet he called and offered his help for which I am very grateful.”
Where’s Frank?
Fiore is not happy with Congressman Frank Pallone.
“I haven’t heard from him since August of 2011. Someone should tell him that his constituents on the bayshore are hurting. He’s off surveying a fishing pier in Middlesex County that no one fishes from and that is far from where anyone lives.” Fiore said that a “low level staffer” from Pallone’s office called his Mayor’s office. The mayor’s assistant called back and asked that the congressman call the mayor directly on his cell. Fiore said he hasn’t heard from him.
“JCPL was better after Irene”
“I’m tired of hearing about how this is the worst storm ever and how they’ve never encountered anything like this. Take the excuses back to Ohio,” a frustrated Fiore said of electric utility JCPL, a subsidiary of Ohio based First Energy Corp.
“PSE&G and Atantic City Electric are restoring power much faster than JCP&L is, I’m really tired of the excuses. They should have been better prepared.”
Fiore was highly critical of the utility during and after the August 2011 Hurricane Irene. His frustrations with them are worse this time.
“They are avoiding being held accountable, said the mayor ,”during Irene they gave me frequent updates and promises with which I could keep Middletown residents informed. Now they are informing directly with the public. There is no elected official holding them to account. My government affairs representative is doing as well as he can, but he and I can get the same information from the company’s web site.”
This election, like every Congressional election, will have nominees running around their districts and, in the case of Senatorial candidates, the state, spewing banalities and canards about what “they” have as a philosophy, what direction “they” will push for their country, what “they” will support and reject. As it has been for many years, it will all be nonsense.
There is only one issue in this year’s Congressional campaigns. There is only one issue in this year’s Senatorial campaign. Anything else is a myth. The only issue is whether in the next two years Congress will be run by Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi or by two people with very, very different ideas.
Frank Pallone and Rush Holt wouldn’t vote against Nancy Pelosi if their lives depended on it – perhaps because they fully believe their political lives are totally dependent on the good will of Nancy Pelosi. In the entire time each has represented us, they have shown not a hint of a backbone, moral, ethical, intellectual, or otherwise. These two do not represent their districts in New Jersey. They never have. They never will. They represent their party, and only their party. More precisely, they represent the will of Nancy Pelosi. What their constituents should be demanding is that their representatives represent New Jersey, not Pacific Heights, California. Can anyone honestly say they are just tickled pink with having this country run by Nancy Pelosi? She is as intellectually stiff and dead as her surgically created face. No one who exclaims that we need to pass the most significant domestic legislation in fifty years in order to see what it says as opposed to actually reading the darn think before deciding whether it is worth supporting, is worthy of leading this nation. But a vote for Pallone or Holt is a vote for Pelosi. There is no getting around that.
As for Menendez, aside from his well-documented corruption pushed aside by the fourth estate that used to protect America, he is every bit as important for the continuation of Harry Reid’s dominance in the Senate as Al Franken. If one were suddenly to awake from a long sleep, they might be inclined to laugh heartily at the great satirical impression by Al Franken of a clueless, directionless U.S. Senator – until being informed it is not an act. Harry Reid himself has done nothing in four years to turn this economy around. He has spent every day blaming the Republicans. The fact is, the Republican House has sent Mr. Reid 65 bills, each of which would aid this economy in some way, providing jobs, providing fiscal sanity, providing the means of stabilizing an economy that currently threatens the viability of the dollar as the international standard. He has buried every one. He has never passed a budget during Obama’s tenure. His Senate even unanimously rejected the only budget ever submitted by Barack Obama – without ever producing an alternative.
The nation simply cannot wait until 2014 to take the Senate out of the control of Harry Reid. New Jersey cannot wait until Lautenberg runs again (no, seriously, he’s still there) to have a Senator representing New Jersey, not Nevada.
There is only one issue in this campaign. The voters of New Jersey need to plow through the posturing and supercilious nonsense and recognize that their choice is not about the candidates they see on the ballot. Their choice is to have the power in the hands of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, or to elect candidates who will represent New Jersey, not Pacific Heights, California or Nevada.
Pallone and Payne, 17 others are tied for #1 most liberal members of congress
Republicans Smith and LoBiondo have higher liberal rankings than conservative rankings
National Journal has released its annual Congressional Voting Ratings and New Jersey has two congressman tied for the #1 most liberal member of congress based upon how they voted throughout 2011.
Frank Pallone, NJ-6, Long Branch, after being ranked the 70th most liberal member of congress in 2009, the 33rd most liberal in 2010, surged to the top of the list to earn a number 1 ranking in 2011.
Donald Payne of Newark, NJ-10, shares the #1 liberal ranking with Pallone and 17 other members throughout the country. Payne’s liberal ranking was 46 in 2009 and 113 in 2010.
Rush Holt, NJ-12 joins Pallone and Payne among the top 50 liberals, coming in at #43, a drop from his 14th place showing in 2010. Holt was #1 in 2009.
The most conservative member of New Jersey’s delegation? That would be Scott Garrett, NJ-5, which is really no surprise. What is surprising is that Garrett, who is often portrayed in the New Jersey media as a right wing fringe lunatic and the most conservative member of congress, is in the middle of the pack, ranked # 143 on the conservative scale.
NJ-3 freshman Jon Runyan’s #181 conservative ranking makes him the #2 conservative in the New Jersey delegation.
Leonard Lance, NJ-7 is ranked #191 on the conservative list. Rodney Frelinghuysen, NJ-11 is #206.
Republicans Chris Smith, NJ-4, and Frank LoBiondo, NJ-2, have higher liberal rankings than conservative rankings. Smith is #195 on the liberal list and #235 on the conservative list. LoBiondo is #205 on the liberal list and #225 on the conservative list.
In the Senate, Frank Lautenberg is #14 on the liberal list. Bob Menendez is #31 on the liberal list.
John Farmer, the tie breaking member of the congressional redistricting commission, chose the Republicans’ map because, in his view, it created the possibility of two more minority districts than they Democratic map did, according to a report by Mark Magyar at NJSpotlight.
The new 9th district’s population is 53.1% minority. Leaders of the minority community were pleased with the map, counting on it becoming a minority represented district once Bill Pascrell, who turns 75 this month, retires. But Steve Rothman, 59, challenging Pascrell in the Democratic primary makes eventual minority representation less likely, which could lead to a minority challenger entering the 9th district Democratic primary. That’s the point of Magyar’s piece.
The addition of all of Trenton and Plainfield in Rush Holt’s district, presumably makes the 12th the other potential minority district.
The NJGOP should identify and agressively recruit high quality minority candidates to run in these districts. A Hispanic in 9 and an African American in 12. Then the GOP should raise the money to make those campaigns competive.
The GOP should recruit and fund an Asian American to challenge Frank Pallone in the 6th, while they are at it, unless Diane Gooch decides to run.
If running competively in the 9th, 12th and 6th is considered a pipedream, than it is also a pipedream that Joe Kyrillos can beat Robert Menendez for U.S. Senate or that the GOP presidential nominee can win New Jersey.
If the NJ GOP uses the same old playbook it will get the same old result.
Middletown remains divided between two congressional districts under the new map.
South of Route 35 is in the 4th district, represented by Republican Chris Smith. North of Route 35 remains part of Frank Pallone’s 6th district. Under the old map, the portion of Middletown south of Route 35 was in Democratic Congressman Rush Holt’s district.
At our first look at the map, we incorrectly concluded that Middletown had been combined entirely into the 6th.
Our apologies to Larry Cirignamo.
With this correct information, it would seem that district 6th remains safe for Frank Pallone.
Give it a minute to download. It’s a large file.
A few local observations:
Republican Chris Smith will represent most of Monmouth County in the 4th district.
Democrat Rush Holt, 12th district, will no longer represent any of Monmouth County.
Democrat Frank Pallone’s 6thdistrict includes all of coastal Monmouth and Marlboro. Middletown and Marlboro appear to be entirely in Pallone’s district. Under the old map it was split between Pallone and Holt.
At first glance, the new 6th district looks to be more competive than the last. Holt took all or part of Plainfield, a strongly Democratic town where Pallone dominated in 2010 by a huge margin. Middletown is a large Republican strong hold. Marlboro usually votes Republican except on the municipal level where they have voted in the “LaHornicca” Democrats.
The House of Representatives voted today to put houses of worship—many of which were severely damaged by Superstorm Sandy but nonetheless continued to serve ravaged coastal communities—on an even playing field with other non-profit organizations seeking disaster assistance.