DICK ZIMMER

Republicans yesterday held their fire on the Democratic Party while Hurricane Gustav bore down on the Gulf Coast. But now, with damage from the Hurricane apparently less than feared, Republican State Chairman Tom Wilson and Senate candidate Dick Zimmer let loose on incumbent Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg.

Introducing Zimmer to speak at the delegation breakfast this morning, Wilson took a shot at Lautenberg on rumors that he spends most of his time in Manhattan rather than his Cliffside Park condo.

“For 25 years, Frank Lautenberg has left his apartment in Manhattan and gone to Washington to represent New Jersey. And in those 25 years, he’s got three things to show for it: a train station with no parking, no smoking on airplanes and a 21-year-old drinking age. Two of those things happened when Ronald Reagan was president,” he said. “And since then, Frank Lautenberg has just been along for a ride.”

U.S. Senate candidate Dick Zimmer walked into the convention hall today and found something unusual: delegates were sitting relatively quietly.

“I’ve been to a lot of conventions, but this one is unlike any of the others. For one thing, we don’t know what’s going to happen day to day, and we’ve gotten a reality check,” said Zimmer. “There’s a world of politics, and there’s a world of real Americans who all of us are thinking of first right now.”

It was also the first time Zimmer encountered such a subdued mood the many conventions he’s attended. His first was in 1968 when Zimmer, then a law student who managed to get on the floor, watched as Richard Nixon, Nelson Rockefeller and Ronald Reagan jostled for the nomination. During that convention, some lesser-known candidates put their names in as well – including New Jersey Sen. Clifford P. Case.

“Here is something Wally Edge might know,” said Zimmer. “You know who made the nominating speech for Case? It was C. Douglas Dillon, who was in Kennedy’s cabinet.”

U.S. Senate candidate Dick Zimmer, left, with GOP power player Bill Palatucci: Politicker photo 

MINNEAPOLIS - Now U.S. Senate candidate Dick Zimmer takes the stage. Understated as usual, the Republican picks former Gov. Tom Kean out of the crowd, and happily notes the presence of U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-Hamilton).

Then he celebrates the national ticket of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

"They’re two reformers, two mavericks, who are really going to change the country," Zimmer said.

State Sen. Joe Pennacchio gave up his delegate slot to stay in New Jersey for Labor Day weekend
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. While New Jersey Republicans gather for their convention, one person who’s staying home is state Sen. Joe Pennacchio, who was supposed to be a delegate.

Speaking to PolitickerNJ two weeks ago, Pennacchio (R-Montville) said he wouldn’t be attending for a number of reasons. For one, he decided after his U.S. Senate primary campaign to spend more time with his family. He also wants to spend more time focusing on his legislative career and his dental practice. But there’s something else too.

“To be honest with you, I didn’t want to party with the party leaders. The leaders everyone was talking about in my campaign,” said Pennacchio, whose delegate spot has been replaced by former Morris County Freeholder John Inglesino. “I have an indifference towards them as much as they have an indifference towards me.”

Lawrenceville, NJ - In response to Senator John McCain's choice of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, U.S. Senate candidate Dick Zimmer released the following statement commending McCain's decision:

Republican Senate candidate Dick Zimmer and 7th District House candidate Leonard Lance, both social moderates, praised Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin for her fiscal conservatism.

Zimmer saluted her pork busting credentials in a statement.

"I think she is an excellent choice. As an effective reform governor, she brings important executive experience to the ticket. A strong fiscal conservative, she stood up against wasteful pork-barrel politics when she killed Alaska's infamous 'Bridge to Nowhere' that was promoted by Senator Ted Stevens and supported by Senator Frank Lautenberg,” he said. “Senator McCain made a brilliant decision by asking her to join the GOP ticket. I am very excited to be running with both of them in New Jersey."

DENVER – As unlikely as it sounds, the former Mayor of Denver has raised a campaign issue in the New Jersey U.S. Senate race.

After praising Sen. Frank Lautenberg’s (D-Cliffside Park) help in securing funding to build the Denver International Airport in the 1990s in a speech to the New Jersey delegation yesterday morning, former Mayor Wellington Webb joked that a wing of the facility should be named after him.

That brought a harsh response yesterday from former U.S. Rep. Dick Zimmer, who called him “Colorado’s third Senator.” Zimmer has made his anti-pork credentials central to his Senate candidacy against Lautenberg.

United States Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-Cliffside Park) will have to take a loss on the $1.65 million he loaned himself for his primary against U.S. Rep. Ron Andrews (D-Haddon Heights), according to an advisory opinion from the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

A Lautenberg lawyer last month wrote to request the opinion to see if the Supreme Court’s ruling that the “millionaire’s amendment” to the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) was unconstitutional could also be applied to a provision of the act that bans candidates from paying off more than $250,000 in personal loans with campaign contributions made after the election.

In a memorandum dated Monday, four lawyers from the FEC replied that the provisions regarding repayment of personal loans were not struck down by the Supreme Court’s decision in Davis v. Federal Election Commission.

Democrat Frank Lautenberg has a 50%-32% lead over Republican Dick Zimmer in the race for U.S. Senate, according to a Zogby International poll released today.  A Quinnipiac University released on August 12 has Lautenberg leading 48%-41%. 

The poll was conducted for Garden State Equality, a civil rights organization that advocates marriage equality and other gay rights issues.

The New Jersey state police union has endorsed incumbent U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg for re-election over Republican rival Dick Zimmer.

State Policemen Benevolent Association (PBA) President Anthony F. Wieners wrote a letter to Lautenberg saying that he won their endorsement because of his support for law enforcement grants and “ensuring that officers are protected in their collective bargaining and due process rights.”

The union claims 33,000 members statewide.