BILL SPADEA

Fair Haven Mayor Mike Halfacre has expressed some interest in running for Congress next year against Democrat Rush Holt.

Fair Haven Mayor Michael Halfacre is considering a bid for Congress against Democrat Rush Holt in 2010 and spent some time on last week's Chamber of Commerce trip to Washington making some early fundraising connections.  Holt is a heavy favorite to win a seventh term, but in a hypothetical situation where President Barack Obama's approval ratings during his midterm election were in decline, New Jersey 12 is the type of district that could be on the bubble of competitiveness.

Holt, 60, was elected to Congress in 1998 in a 51%-48% upset victory that took advantage of incumbent Michael Pappas' weaknesses.  He defied pundits two years later by holding the seat against former U.S. Rep. Dick Zimmer, winning by just 651 votes.  Boosted by some adjustments to his district after the 2000 Census, Holt won 61% against former N.J. Secretary of State DeForest "Buster" Soaries in 2002, 59% against GOP activist Bill Spadea in 2004, 65% against former Helmetta Councilman Joseph Sinagra in 2006, and 62% against Holmdel Deputy Mayor Alan Bateman in 2008.

Assemblyman Michael Doherty (R-Washington Twp.)

The telephone war between Assemblyman Michael Doherty (D-Washington Twp.) and Assemblywoman Marcia Karrow (R-Raritan Twp.) went into high gear today, with the Karrow forces securing an endorsement from Hunterdon County Freeholder Ron Sworen and Doherty going outside the box to land the backing of Republican activist Bill Spadea, president of the grassroots GOP outfit, Building the New Majority. 

A veteran of the Marine Corps, Spadea proudly endorsed Doherty for the vacant senate seat in the 23rd Legislative District. 

“Mike is a great role model for the residents of New Jersey,” said Spadea. “A West Point graduate and military veteran, Mike and his wife, Linda, have passed on their patriotism and love of country to their three sons, all of whom are now serving on active duty in the military. 2009 is a critical year in New Jersey. We have a great opportunity to defeat Jon Corzine and a new Republican governor will need strong, articulate, free market advocates like Mike Doherty in the state senate to rein in government and restore fiscal responsibility to Trenton. He has my whole-hearted support.”

There's still no indication whether biotech executive John Crowley is going to run for governor, but political confidante Bill Spadea said that the buzz surrounding several Republican candidates is healthy.

“When you think about how this state has been so dominated by the Democrats for so many years, and how the economic situation continues to worsen under the Democratic watch, it is no surprise to me that people are very energized about the Republican Party,” Spadea said.  “It tells me the voters are energized for change and the Republican Party is shaping up to be that vehicle for change.” 

Republican operative Mark Duffy took his name out of the running for Republican State Chairman today.

“I prefer to work on the frontlines of the campaign, and I have no desire for an elected position in the party,” said Duffy, 34, who managed former Rep. Dick Zimmer’s U.S. Senate run against incumbent Frank Lautenberg (D-Cliffside Park). 

Duffy’s name surfaced as a potential successor to current chair Tom Wilson, who may not seek another two year term.  But he said he hadn’t been told of the speculation. 

“It was news to me,” he said.

State Sen. Joe Pennacchio’s (R-Montville) call for Republican State Chairman Tom Wilson to resign will not likely be answered in the affirmative, but whether Wilson will serve another two-year term is uncertain.

After Wilson’s term expires in June, tradition dictates that the Republican gubernatorial nominee gets to pick the next chairman. That choice will be ratified by the 42-member Republican State Committee, which will likely accede to the nominee’s pick.

“We have a tradition in the Republican Party that the successful gubernatorial nominee is the one who gets to decide who his or her state chair will be,” said Wilson, who said he did not want to respond to Pennacchio’s press release. “I expect that not to be any different. If there’s a nominee who wants to ask me if I’m interested in staying, that will be a discussion between that nominee and I.”

However, multiple Republican sources say that Wilson has never intended to seek another term as state chairman. In fact, there was talk of him stepping down before the primary, although he said today that he will serve until at least June.

Wilson, for his part, said that his decision in June will depend on “who that nominee is and what kind of vision they have going forward.”

"I will defer completely to the nominee, and if that person wants someone different that’s what they’re entitled to. If they want me to stick around for some period of time, we’ll have a discussion about that.”

John Crowley entertains the New Jersey GOP on the Mississippi River at the Republican National Convention this summer.

Biotech businessman John Crowley of Princeton hasn’t yet made a decision about whether he will run for governor, but his chief political confidante makes it clear that Crowley will make a decision as his own man and not based on party politics. 

“I will say that any decision John makes has nothing to do with Chris Christie,” said Bill Spadea, president of Building a New Majority, a grassroots GOP organization Spadea started with Crowley earlier this year. 

The core of the Republican establishment in New Jersey wants Christie, the retiring U.S. Attorney, to go against Gov. Jon Corzine in 2009.

Building the New Majority Gains Momentum Down the Stretch Grassroots Organization Focusing on Municipal and County Races across New Jersey

When biotech executive John Crowley was thinking about running for Senate, it was Bill Spadea who notified party leaders and started laying the groundwork for a campaign.

And when Crowley decided that he couldn’t run for Senate, it was again Spadea who notified party leaders and started disassembling the groundwork for a campaign.

Now, Crowley is starting up the Building a New Majority PAC in a joint brain-trust with Spadea, who’s the group’s president.

“We’re lacking as a party a couple things. One, we’re lacking an organized process of identifying candidates and supporting those candidates. It’s got to be ground up instead of top down. The Republican Party has taken the approach for years that if we just have somebody strong at the top, you can pull all these local seats up,” said Spadea. “So we almost have to take a page out of the Democratic book, which is start at the school board, city council, mayor’s office, and build it up. That’s what we do.”

Sen. Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth), campaigning last year with Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande and Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon.: Politicker file photo 

MINNEAPOLIS - Identifying in her hockey mom, small town mayor’s story the features of a universal American life, and exhilarated by her willingness to put her head down and charge after their rivals, members of New Jersey’s GOP delegation praised the acceptance speech delivered tonight by Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, their vice presidential nominee.

"I know my constituents will be able to identify with her, a working mother whose family depends on two incomes," said state Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Union).

Since he first declared his hope two or three weeks ago that Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) would choose Palin as his running mate as a way of reaching base conservative voters, women, and blue collar America, Kean has consistently emphasized as a strength Palin’s distance from the ambitious political culture of Washington, D.C.

"This was someone who was picked because of her competence as governor, as opposed to her going out and seeking the office," the senator added.

John Crowley is interviewed on the Mississippi river boat by NJN's Jim Hooker.: Politicker photo

MINNEAPOLIS - It started like a scene in a movie where guests receive a mysterious invitation from a powerful benefactor. On the bus trip out to the Mississippi River, a lot of Republicans were wondering, "Who is John Crowley?"

There was another less flashy, more intimate New Jersey political meeting going on simultaneously in another corner of the sprawling Minnesota town where Republicans had converged for their national convention, but for the moment this boat covered with red, white and blue bunting was a captivating focal point for the New Jersey GOP procession answering their invitations to see Crowley.

Crowley. Princeton businessman. Owner of a biotech company engaged in finding a cure for a disease Crowley’s children have fought since birth. Millionaire. Navy intelligence officer. Presumptive GOP political star.

Republicans knew the lineaments of the story; still, everyone was speaking the name without knowing the why beyond the boat trip and the vague possibility that Crowley would challenge Gov. Jon Corzine for governor next year.

Coming off the bus, former Gov. Thomas Kean led the way down the gangplank as the jug band started in on a tune and a paranoid Jersey guy told the governor, "As long as you’re here, I know I’m not too far from home."