Iowa's Fringe Right Is Trying To Beat 2 GOP Incumbents Today
It’s primary day in New Jersey today— and Garden State residents had already cast nearly 337,000 votes by yesterday. 75% of those votes came from Democrats. The biggest race of the cycle, picking the Democratic and Republican candidates to replace Robert Menendez, (who claims to be running as an independent) is pretty much decided. Andy Kim will be the Democratic candidate and, although there are 3 other Republicans running (one of whom, Curtis Bashaw self-funded over $800,000 into the race), Christine Glassner will be the GOP candidate. This week Glassner, won endorsements from Marco Rubio and Vivek Ramaswamy, who joined Señor Trumpanzee, and a laughable cast of crackpot MAGA notables Roger Stone, Tommy Tuberville and Ben Carson on her team.
One race that isn’t predetermined that I’m following is for NJ-08, a deep blue district that includes parts of Hudson, Essex and Union counties. Cities in the district include part of Newark, almost all of Jersey City, and all of Hoboken, Elizabeth, Bayonne, Weehawken, Union City, North Bergen and West New York. Hoboken mayor Ravi Bhalla is challenging incumbent— and Machine backed— candidate Rob Menendez, son of Robert Menendez, currently on trial for corruption, bribery, etc. The father got the son the job in the first place and Democrats in the district are realizing that they made a mistake by going along with the corrupt nepotism in the first place.
The candidates are evenly matched financially, although Bhalla outraged Menendez by a bit. The corrupt crypto-superPAC has spent $215,063 trying to help Menendez, one of their congressional pawns. But the biggest independent expenditure in the race is coming from a just-invented superPAC, Bold America, funded by some of New Jersey’s old fashioned corrupt union bosses and tied to the Menendez family, that spent half a million dollars smearing Bhalla and another $70,000 bolstering Menendez.
Gov. Murphy and other Machine politicians like Hudson County Executive Craig Guy, Union City Mayor and State Sen. Brian Stack, West New York Mayor (and former congressman from this seat) Albio Sires and Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner are all actively backing Menendez. The Jersey Journal endorsed Bhalla, telling voters that they “correct the wrong that was done to them two years ago... [Menendez] didn’t earn his position in Congress, a position of authority and respect that is cheapened by the game of musical chairs Hudson Democrats orchestrated to waltz him in.”
In a report from The Hill yesterday, they noted that “The younger Menendez is not involved in the allegations facing his father, but the case has still caused significant electoral difficulties for him over allegations his detractors have made that nepotism is the reason he currently holds his seat.Bhalla has made those allegations a focal point of his campaign. ‘This is a gentleman who was handpicked by party bosses to be your next congressman,’ Bhalla said about Menendez in a debate they participated in last week. ‘Do you want somebody who was handpicked by party bosses, or do you want someone who’s been in the district, has earned accomplishments and who’s has worked for the people honestly through his career? That’s me.’… While the candidates do differ somewhat on certain policy issues, such as the war between Israel and Hamas [Menendez is an AIPAC whore] and health care, strategists said the race seems to hinge more on questions of ethics and qualifications to serve the district. ‘This is a referendum on Bob Menendez and to what extent his son is going to be held responsible for his alleged transgressions. Both the congressman and Bhalla have done what they can to establish their progressive bona fides and establish that record,’ but that’s not what will determine the outcome,” said local Democratic strategist.
There’s one more little noticed northern New Jersey election I’m watching— the sheriff’s race in Passaic County. Biden won the county 129,097 (57.5%) to 92,009 (41.0%) and both candidates are Democrats. One though, former Sheriff Jerry Speziale is a Republican running as a conservative Democrat. The seat is empty because the last sheriff, Richard Berdnik, fatally shot himself in the head this past January. Speziale (AKA: MAGA Jerry) decided he wants nothing to do with the Democratic Party and has his own line for county commissioners— Team Speziale: Sean Duffy, Serya Taskin and Pedro Liranzo. A sheriff make a lot more money and gets a lot more in benefits than most local jobs— including state legislators. It’s a big deal.
The other Democrat in the race, who has the Democratic Party behind him, is Thomas Adamo, a chief in the Sheriff’s Office. He’s been endorsed by Cory Booker, Phil Murphy and the 3 members of Congress that have part of Passaic County, Josh Gottheimer, Bill Pascrell Jr. and Mikie Sherrill – and also Cory Booker and Phil Murphy.
David Wildstein, a Republican, appears from his reporting to be in the bag, at least subtly, for Speziale, a former Alabama cop. Wildstein didn’t mention that, only that “With name recognition and a $500,000 warchest left over from 2010, Speziale was instantly a formidable candidate in a planned off-the-line candidate campaign; when U.S. District Court Judge Zahid Quraishi tossed the line in favor of office block ballots, the lesser-known Adamo lost his greatest asset.”
It’s also primary day in Iowa and the GOP’s fascist wing has challengers two conservative Republicans, Randy Feenstra and Mariannette Miller-Meeks. Feenstra is being opposed by extremist lunatic Kevin Virgil, who has been endorsed by Steve King, the Nazi former congressman who Feenstra ousted, plus Mar-a-Lago swamp creature Vivek Ramaswamy. Miller-Meeks’ opponent is another fringe nutcase, David Pautsch. By the way, Feenstra has spent over $3.2 million on the race while Virgil only managed to raise $87,258. And Pautsch raised even less, just $35,353. Miller-Meeks has already spent $1.3 million and her real worry is November when she will face Christina Bohannan again. Miller-Meeks and Bohannan each has $1.8 million in the bank.
UPDATE: Trump's Kiss Of Death
The party (money) wanted the dad. how bad does it want the son? voters will do what they are told.