Garrett and Lance...talk about a political odd couple.

You'd have to give Doherty the lead in organization over Estabrook at this point.

I'm not sure what ideological balance is achieved by having such a radical, out-of-touch right winger such as Garrett lead one's exploratory committee. (Well, I guess it makes sense with a fundamentalist like Doherty, who wants to write discrimination into the N.J. state constitution and thinks a woman's reproductive system is property of the state).

Almost on a weekly basis, Scott Garrett embarrasses the state of N.J. and his district. Recently, he and fellow pro-war Republican Chris Smith did something unconscionable: they voted against hate crimes legislation that would protect minorities from being targeted for violent crimes. Garrett even voted against relief for Hurricane Katrina victims when he voted against the Gulf Coast Housing Recovery Act of 2007. His consistent votes against middle-class favored initiatives, such as the minimum wage increase, has led him to be labeled one of the worst house members by Americans United for Change.

Yes, this is the same Garrett who received a 13 out of 100 environmental rating from the League of Conservation Voters, one of the worst ratings in the country. And this is the same Garrett who voted against the reauthorization of the Civil Rights Voting Act, an act which protects the basic rights of all voters, especially the disenfranchised.

And, yes, this is the same person who claimed that potentially lifesaving stem cell research is "the commercial trafficking in the sale of baby body parts."

If Doherty thinks highly enough to make Garrett his exploratory committee chair, then we can all but say that these two politicians are peas from the same pod, radical right wing fundamentalists who wish to push their anti-science, anti-minority, pro-war agenda onto the general populace. Thanks, but no thanks.

No matter who the GOP nominates they will lose. Anne Eastabrook, Al Leiter, Tom Kean Jr, Frank Lobiondo, Doherty...the fact remains that Frank Lautenberg is a very popular, well-seasoned, Democrat that is in tune with most NJ Voters. The GOP in this state is in such shambles because moderate republicans wont vote for a conservative and conservatives stay home on election day because they refuse to support the latest string of moderates. NJ is a blue state that has not sent a Republican to the Senate in decades, the trend will stay the same in 08.

Big Deal framed it best. No Republican is winning any Senate seat until and unless the NJGOP decides to stop killing off one another. Probably wishful thinking on my part. That being said, Doherty -- an Irish Catholic with a working class background -- is a giant step away from the WASP line of candidates the GOP establishment just seems to love.

Marty, the 5th District seems to like Garrett just fine. In an absolutely rotten GOP year, the Dems only came within 10 points. He's not going away, unless he gets taken out in a GOP primary. Slamming Garrett for not going along with the blank check given after Katrina, especially when the revelations about the multi-millions of fraud and waste were revealed, is not going to hurt him in any way. Nice try though.

If Michael Doherty continues to speak about Iraq from this wise perspective, he will be in very good company and will have wide appeal.

http://www.ajjan.com/2007/05/dohertys-declaratory-duty.html

George Ajjan
http://www.georgeajjan.com

Clearly MartinOne does not like Mike Doherty. Obviously Frank Lautenberg, to him, is the "better choice".

Let's see what could give Frank his high poll numbers.... if you believe them.

Lautenberg has obviosuly moved away from the traditional roots that he must have had when he was a child....when was that? Well, say back in the 30's, let's see how he has held on to those endearing values of the good old days.

It appears he hates the unborn, as he continues to support various forms of abortion, you know those who need to get rid of the child, vote, and the little ones don't, so that helps the poll numbers for sure...

 How about immigration, that fine generation he represents surely have to be real pleased that he freely offers social security to "transient" workers when they go back home to their homeland, wherever it might be.

 While we are looking at those seniors, I'll bet Frank is a real hit at the VFW or the American Legion. His views on the UN, and as a promotor of surrendering of our soveriegnty to that fine body surely helps his poll numbers.  All those soldiers that fought for our independence and defending us as a soveriegn nation surely don't rest easy in their graves with the thought of Frank Lautenberg at the helm.   Ah yes, I forgot, they don't vote just like the unborn!

 It's hard to say what makes him so popular.... unless maybe there is nothing to compare him to......

WAIT!!!! that's it! That is why MartinOne and other fine blue people, you know the ones who we used to call "reds" are getting upset. The electorate is going to wake up with a candidate like Mike Doherty.

We will see, but I expect the abuse to get even more pointed as the reality for the D's sets in. Remember, the nastier they get, the more potent Doherty is, to the D's, (RINO's included)  and that tells us all something.

"Frank Lautenberg is a very popular, well-seasoned, Democrat"

If by well-seasoned you mean he has dementia

"Doherty -- an Irish Catholic with a working class background "

I told you the dems are bigots, they always go to nationality, religion and social class. We support people based on their ideas...

At this point, I may stop looking into candidates and just support whoever MartinOne opposes because he's such a nut

The fact that the corrupt State Supreme Court even allowed Frank to enter the race in 2002 (in violation of the law) means to me the senile old man needs to go. I agree with "njdems are corrupt" when he said "I may ... support whoever MartinOne opposes because he's such a nut" I am glad Garrett voted against the 'hate crimes' bill because that bill will make it illegal to say anything against the homosexual lifestyle. If this so-called 'hate crimes' bill passes, just me saying that homosexuality is wrong could land me in jail. I find it very strange that we pass all these laws against smoking because it reduces life expectancy by 6 years, but the homosexual lifestyle reduces life expectancy by 25-30 years (NOT factoring in AIDs) and we are being forced to embrace it. I wish Michael Doherty the best of luck. It's about time NJ Republicans ran a true Republican instead of all these RINOs they have been putting on the ticket.

We support people based on their ideas...

That's a pisser! It also explains why when you look at the RNC national convention white folks make up 99 and 44/100 percent of the crowd.

That's not me going to race, that's me looking at the TV and calling it like it is.

And here's some of your young Republicans showing how much they don't pay attention to race.

http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2007/05/10/universi...

Mr Lautenberg who has not one , but to apartment units in the Carlise Luxury high rise in Cliffside Park. Is the granddad and poster boy boss of the Calabrese family. A legacy for over 40 years of cronyism and political intimidation. Its all to ironic with Paladino and co stealing taxpayers money and only getting probation while other good folks lives have been wiped out by the liberal anti American scurge of eminent domain. While South Bergen morphs into Hudson county all Lautenberg has to show for it is his name on a train station

When I say well seasoned I mean, credible, capable, battle-tested, and intelligent. Say what you will about FL he's still got it. Furthermore, his actions in the Senate have been good for NJ and for the USA. I ask you to name one vote he has cast that was out of step with NJ and the majority of voters in this country. I find it amusing that the GOP rallies behind the likes of Strom Thurmond, and Ted Stevens while simultaneously writing off Dems over 70 as some variation of "old coot". At least the elderly in our party don't seem to think that homosexuals are somehow less worthy of citizenship, think that the internet is a system of tubes, build bridges to nowhere, subsidize oil companies and Dick Cheney's buddies, continue to support wars that weaken the US military and position within the community of nations, or wanted to (hypocritically) guarantee segregation for future generations. FL is a good Senator, that despite his age gets things done for NJ and has help stop some of the disgraceful actions of Bush and Company. I hope Doherty runs. He'll lose and the NJ GOP will finally be put out to pasture with Christie Whitman, Doug Forrester, and Brett Schundler.

Martinone can u please take ur ugly picture down. Thanks

Martinone can u please take ur ugly picture down. Thanks

"That's a pisser! It also explains why when you look at the RNC national convention white folks make up 99 and 44/100 percent of the crowd."

When i see the DNC convention idiots make up 100/100 percent of the crowd.

Which of the above is worse? Here's an interesting anecdote. My wife is from Africa and has been here for roughly 7 years (yes, conservatives do actually marry people from other races). Her take on things is interesting in that she's a fairly clean slate in terms of partisan ideology. When the Dems were going about picking Corzine's successor in the US Senate, I kept her apprised of things, including the fact that NOT ONE black was seriously considered to ascend to Corzine's vacant throne. When Menendez was appointed, her reaction was one of disbelief. She's seen enough to know that black voters are the bedrock of the NJ Dem machine and that without their overwhelming support they would be almost as irrelevant as the Green Party. Yet not even ONE black was courted in earnest by Corzine. She mused that either there are no qualified blacks in NJ for the seat (which is patently insulting) or the Dems take their votes for granted, content to merely throw their most loyal constituemts scraps (i.e. high profile administration appointments) rather than extend to them a bridge to such a high office rife with genuine political clout. So next time you see a crowd of white guys in pinstripe suits and Panama hats standing aroung grumbling about high property taxes or illegal immigration, just remember this -- at least they wear their hardened hearts on their sleeves. The same cannot be said for team tokenism.

Lord Xenu, just tellin' it like it is.  

Doherty is scary b/c he as a young, well-spoken, working-class, West Point grad creates the greatest contrast with Frank Lautenberg.

I'd love for the candidate to be Anne Estabrook, but I think Doherty is in the driver's seat.

...he can: (1) focus on acheiving energy independence as both a means of defunding terrorism and recreating a greener America (which is up his alley as a patent attorney, which requires a level of scientific/engineering expertise, so you would expect him to speak articulately on these complex matters); (2) getting out of Iraq post haste (he has credibility as a military man and a record of opposing this action); and (3) making New Jersey the epicenter of the green technology revolution, thereby creating thousands of high-paying jobs. If he gets bogged down in other hot-button social issues, he will go the way of Schundler, et.al. When approached on these type of issues, he has to make it clear, with Reagan-like resolve, that acheiving energy independence is a life and death matter for all Americans precisely because it directly impacts so many other pressing problems -- the environment, terrorism, economic growth -- and that he doesn't have time to get sidetracked. I remember Dick Codey using the slogan "he's fighting for our lives" in a past campaign. Great stuff. Use it Mike. And make a deal with the right wing interest groups to take a low profile and let you actually WIN.

Lord Xenu, telling it like it is.

1)Then Congressman Bob Menendez was the third highest ranking Democrat in the United States House of Representatives.  He had 14 years of service in the House prior to being appointed.

2) (See # 1) He as and is supremely qualified

3) The NJ Democratic Party was headed by an African American woman, prior to Joe Cryan's tenure. She remains in Assembly leadership and has been rumored to be Corzines 1st choice for Lt. Gov in 09.

4)In 05 no African American activly sought the appointment. Of those who did activly seek it Menendez was most qualified.

5)In no short terms to NJ Dems take anyone's vote for granted, in 05 John Corzine had an entire staff department to reach out to African American voters. As Menendez did in 06.

6)Corzine has appointed several African Americans to posts in his cabinet.

7) These are only a few examples. I take offense to your supposition that the NJ Dems do not work hard for the vote of African American communites. Furthermore, you might consider asking yourself- Why don't more minorites support the GOP?

You made my argument for me; (1) You cited appointments to high profile party/staff offices, exactly as I had stated (BTW, the office of LtGov does not yet exist); (2) you had the stones to say that NO African-American in the entire state of New Jersey was interested in seeking Corzine's Senate seat? Give me a break. When accused of not hiring black coaches, for years the NFL/MLB/NBA /NCAA would employ that same tired excuse, "well, no qualified African-Amercian coaches actively sought out a head coaching position"; (3) finally, I never said that Dems don't work hard for the African-American vote. Their GOTV operations are magnificent in scope and detail. My point was, you don't reward the incredible loyalty that you've gotten over the years. Don't you think it would have sent a positive message by actively seeking to rectify one of the most shameful aspects of Senate history -- the paucity of blacks who have sat in that lofty assembly? You had your chance to do make such a powerful statement and you went with Boss Bob. As for Menendez's qualifications, I do not equate longevity in office with competence. By that logic, a shriveled up old cracker like Strom Thurmond should have been first in line to become President.    

Sad to say, but "most minorities" follow the carrot the Democrats dangle in front of them. Republicans believe in helping people get out of poverty, Democrats believe in more hand-outs. Unfortunately, "most minorities" like the fact that they can sit on their behinds and let government support them. BTW - Most blacks outside the inner cites are Republican, but they are generally quiet about it because if you go against the 'handout' mentality, they are called by their fellow blacks, "Uncle Toms." Just look at the grief and uproar Bill Cosby caused when he told blacks to take responsibility for their own actions!

Wayne Bryant did a lot to help Camden, just like Sharpe James did a lot to help Newark. Oh wait. they lined their own pockets... honestly, i think it is white Republicans that have done the most to help fight urban poverty. Bret Schundler, Rudy Giuliani and Jack Kemp have helped bring more poor black people out of poverty than any democrat I can think of. All democrats do is make empty promises.

 I was not, nor would I ever name "tokens". If you think Majority Leader, Chair of the Democratic Party, Secretary of State are token positions then I dont really know what to tell you.  Furthermore my argument regarding Menendez is "He was the third ranking Democrat in the House of Rep". He had expirience, leadership credentials, and is incredably intellegent.

Your argument is offensive and racist

and if you had carefully read my post you would see that I am well aware of when Lt. Gov in NJ exists. Just like the GOP, bash the source ignore the facts.

I'd like to know how the Doherty thread somehow became the racial and typical stereotype thread. I love the argument that Democrats are not racist but Republicans must be. I hear the cries of well they have a minority running for president while Republicans have the same old cast of white guys. While Republicans do not parade around their minorities like Democrats do, there are some that actually exist. Hell I can give you the best example right now: Condoleeza Rice, but you don't see Republicans parading her around and saying hey look we are diverse, we have an African American whose also a woman! Look it's a matter of availability, you say Republicans are the racist party, yet I'd like to see a list of young African American Republicans interested in running or holding a political office. Assuming that most of us are in our young twenties, we are the generation that can change that. Bob Menendez reaching out to African voters is a joke, Tom Kean Jr. did the same exact thing. I remember there was a story hidden in the back of papers of him going to many African American churches in areas like Newark to speak, while if Bob Menendez did that it was front page and center. Which leads back to the original argument.. You thinkk Lautenberg is a great representative for African Americans? Give me a break, the guy is rich, had laws broken so he could run in the first place, and doesn't even live in New Jersey. So while Doherty might not be Mr. Minority representative, at least he's young, energetic, enthusiastic, and best of all he's not loaded with money. (And trust me it won't help him that he's from the most rural part of New Jersey) Republicans never paraded around people like Strom unless you meant people in Alabama. Here's a real shocker, the president everyone hates, G.W. Bush has raised a lot of aid and awareness in Africa, including recognizing that the Darfur region is a serious issue and rightfully placing sanctions on Sudan. Maybe it's people like some of those on this board that cause this whole minority representation problem as well. You continue to push that Republicans are racist enough that I really wonder why some African Americans get discouraged to be Republicans or try running for office as a Republican. You'd be shocked to know that for all the young Republicans and Moderates that I talk to, every single one of them respects Barack Obama, more then Hillary. And it's not because he's African American, but because he shows qualities of a great uniter and leader and works with Republicans to get things done in the Senate instead of spewing party agenda's of hatred against all Republicans. So while I may not agree with alot of his stances and may not vote for him based on that, I know for sure I'd love to see him be the Democratic candidate for President.

I did not say that the Republican Party was racist. While I do believe that elements of the GOP are in deed WASPy and intollerant, my point was not to somehow indicate that all in the GOP are racist. I was simply stating that the Democratic Party has long been the champion for minorite issues. I was defending the NJDEMS against a charge that they parade around minorites as a tokens, when in fact qualified minorties have been in leadership posts within the party and supported for elected office. I noted that a post made in the isection charging that minorities enjoy sitting on their hands and look for handouts was a raciist comment.  My original point was this "Menendez was appointed to fill the vacated Senate seat because he was qualified, the argument that an African American was not even seriously considered is a red herring because no African American activly sought the appointment. Menedez was appointed because he was a senior member of the NJ Congressional delegation."

Just take a few hours out of your day and read JC Watt's book "the color of conservatism." SJ Blue can tout the legacy of Lautenberg until the cows come home and his record will still come up empty. Lautenberg has chipped away at every aspect of Traditional American Values one can find. As I already mentioned on my previous postings there is nothing in his nihilist anti American philosophy that is anything remotely American in it.

How many of you conservatives favor the repeal of the Fourteenth Amendment?

Can you choleric conservatives not see the utter pawns you are? Big business has always held the Republican party captive. The only problem is, it is difficult to get the non-wealthy to vote consistently against their own economic interests. Thus, the profit-mongers allied themselves with the religious zealots, et voila, instant electorate stupid enough to vote against its own interests in the name of religious fundamentalism. It is a shame to see people willingly turn themselves into such tools. While you all prate on and on that there actually exists a Zeroth Amendment to the Constitution that reads "Congress shall make no law repugnant to the Christian character of this nation," Tom DeLay, Bob Ney, Conrad Burns, Duke Cunningham, and the rest of the oh-so-pious Republican stalwarts laughed at their foolish enablers all the way to the bank. After all, it is a sweet set up. Just say "I hate gay people and zygotes should rule the earth and terrorists, terrorists, terrorists...wait, I forgot my point, oh hell, terrorists!" ad nauseum and you get instant power, cash, and heaven knows what else. It would be hilarious if it weren't so pathetic...but I'm laughing all the same.

Now a duped choleric conservative will come and spew some garbage about how wrong I am, and how Democrats and progressives only care to raise taxes, which are symbolically as immoral as sodomy. You hate taxes, but wouldn't dare give up the many programs they fund. That's why you inadvertantly favor tax cuts for the rich that you can tout as though they are benefitting the poor. I think 29 October 1929 shows that trickle-down economics is not the best policy.

Doherty has posed an interesting position on military action that BOTH parties should think about.

"Terror", the term of the day, has been used in different forms for different "police actions." What was the excuse that we used when we went into Korea (Truman-D), Bay of Pigs (Kennedy-D), Vietnam (Johnson-D), Bosnia (Clinton-D)?

 In fact Wikipedia notes the Korean Conflict was a "conflict" to eliminate the need for Congress to "Declare War". This was not Republicans doing this.

This problem is a bipartisan problem, and if you do the count on both parties, nobody's hands are clean.

PennQuaker08, this race is not going to be about the old topics that divide, this is about the possiblity of correcting a failed warlike policy of our country to be reflective of the peaceful values that the people of the United States actually have. The Constitution constrains Congress if we make them. Doherty said he would not vote to commit troops without a declaration of war.  I like that idea.

PennQuack and Co quoting the constitution now that is funny. It is indeed amazing how liberals read things that are NOT there in the constitution while ignoring and infringing those things that are written in plain english that are there. The ultimate in liberal anti American hypocracy can be found in the father of Bush haters Mr George Soros who now owns most of Halliburton. Please MOVE ON . Org move on right out of America. Ps the concept of Progressive socialism is no where to be found in the founding documents

News flash -- big business has ALWAYS held EVERYONE captive in this nation's history. As they say, money talks. Consider that Dems controlled the south for decades and were in bed with the mill owners who basically worked poor folks to death. Big business is, by definition, apolitical. It goes where its interests are best served. Frankly, I expected a less simplistic analysis from someone who properly uses the word "choleric". Two points to consider, though. First, the current Governor of NJ was managing partner at Goldman Sachs -- in other words, he manned the helm of the flagship of capitalist excess and used his buccaneer's booty to finance his political ambitions. Corzine (FYI, he's really RICH) spread a truckload of greenbacks around the Garden State to lay the groundwork for his campaign. Is buying the nomination not a form of manipulation equivalent in its repugnance to using ideology to enslave unwitting pawns? Second, Do you think the creation of the modern welfare state was not designed to hook the poor on government smack? Just remember, LBJ, patron saint of this brave new world, was caught on tape referring to welfare mothers as "brood sows". This is so patently offensive that it is difficult to even repeat this racist tripe. In critiquing the welfare state during his campaign for re-election, former Gov. Jim Florio stated that it "condemed families to generational poverty and dependency". Moreover, no less than Bill Clinton recently hailed the GOP inspired welfare reform bill he signed as one of the chief accomplishments of his presidency.  The welfare state is the public sector equivalent of what you assert "big business" has done to those maleable religious types.  Its time for Americans to put away the Kool-Aid and realize that politics on both sides of the aisle is the art of manipulation and require better of its elected representatives. 

I love hearing pennquaker go on and on about how Doherty is white...I thought Lautenberg was too?  "Thus, the profit-mongers allied themselves with the religious zealots" 

I love this, typical anti-religion anti-business liberal spew, they denounce God and everyone who believes in a God and they denounce American companies that employ our people and make the very computer he's typing on. Hypocrite.

Enough of the Tom DeLay, Conrad Burns, Mark Foley comments. People who live in glass houses. One can say the same thing about Democrats...William Jefferson, Sharpe James, Wayne Bryant, any member of the AC council, Ted Kennedy, Patrick Kennedy, Barney Frank, Gerry Studds. I can name more but what is the point? No party can claim the moral highground here, so quit while you are ahead.

whoops..double post..

Way to continue the Democrat tradition of linking some of the national party(most of whom are no longer in office) with state Republicans. The big business holding Republican voters captive? This is a new era, and last time I checked in this state it's not the Republicans with money.

How do you explain Lautenberg vs. Anyone but Estabrook What's he got 2 million? And that was months ago, who knows how much it is now?! Doherty sure as hell doesn't have millions of dollars. Corzine is freakin loaded as well, and you can bet the Republican challenger for 09 won't have nearly the same amount of money (Assuming Forrester has hopefully disappeared).

You want to go national? How about Hillary being number 6 on the list of people who recieved contributions from defense companies in 2006. Funny, she is the ONLY mainstream presidential candidate on that list of 20. Nobody is the working class party at a high national level anymore, and in this state it's pretty obvious to see who's the rich party.

You just gotta love the spin, Republicans are labeled as selling out to the big money, yet its the other way around!

Estabrook is doomed then, because like a typical centrist Republican she is just a little less of the real thing, all left or all right could take it away.... but moderates have failed over and over.

So, if the left is exposed as the elite super rich, could the working class finally wake up and go for the blue collar option, which in a Doherty - Lautenberg race would be Doherty????

If so, Doherty could be very dangerous. It seems Estabrook will just be a waste of resources, and will have little to offer as an option over Lautenberg in the general. I fear she just has no experience to run on.

There's no need for me to say anything, as the Republicans, in their usual way, will put anything they want into anybody's mouth. Did I say anything about Doherty's race? I think not...that was somebody else. But what does it matter to a choleric conservative? They are so blinded by their ignorance that they just let flail. It really is tiresome to argue with neo-fascists who think that anybody who thinks that the world is more than 6000 years old is a 'communist' or an 'atheist.' For your information, I happen to be a practicing Jew. I go to synogogue every week and pray for the well-being of my family and my friends and for the world in general. I guess not being a Christian is the same thing as being an atheist to the Jesus freaks out there, but I would certainly choose not believing over drinking the Kool Aid like you people who fall for the Republican party drivel. And for the record, I am also very much opposed to William Jefferson, Sharpe James, et al. holding their offices. Certainly I would not hold the Republicans to any different ethical standard than the Democrat. Jon Corzine, on the other hand, is not a good example of the effect of money. He is free to spend his fortune however he sees fit. In fact, this means that he is actually /less/ likely to fall prey to the interests of big business or shady lobbyists, as he is under no fiscal pressure to do so. I love the way the oc brings up Barney Frank and Gerry Studds. Just because somebody is gay does not make them immoral or incapable of holding office. Barney Frank is a graduate of Harvard and Harvard Law, and I'm quite sure that he could debate you under a table, so you may as well ignorantly bash him from afar. Conservatives like you are dragging this country down, and this is why we are falling behind to Japan and India. If you people focused on the importance of science and math education instead of blacking the word 'condom' out of sex ed textbooks and straining to remember all of the Ten Commandments a la Lynn Westmoreland, then perhaps we wouldn't be descending so quickly toward obsolescence on the world stage. If the conservatives want a fascist in power, then that is their right to believe in it. But why make the rest of the country suffer because of their proclivities? By the way, the bastardization of people's names simply reinforces the puerile or caveman image of conservative neanderthals. Call me whatever you wish, but know that it is only going to make me laugh rather than send me crying into a corner. I prefer to use, like, actual arguments to back my points.

I NEVER said a thing about Gerry Studds and Barney Frank being gay. I happen to think Barney Frank may be one of the smartest Members of Congress although I disagree with his politics. My inclusion of them had to do with their ethical lapses in the past. If you knew your history, you would have known that Barney Frank's employee, whom he found through a personal advertisement, conducted a brothel out of Franks' apartment. The employee claimed Frank was fully aware of what was going on in his apartment, which Frank denied. The House officially reprimanded Frank but found no evidence of his involvement. Seems a little odd that something like that could go on in one's home without him even suspecting. As for Gerry Studds, he was caught in the 1983 congressional page sex scandal, which also involved another Member, Dan Crane (R-IL). Studds and Crane were censured for engaging in sexual acts with congressional pages (Mark Foley did not engage in sexual acts, yet he is cited by you as unethical - which his acts certainly were). Crane was involved with a female page, Studds with a 17 year old male page. While the 17 year old was of legal age of consent, Studds traveled across international borders with the page and engaged in sex acts which violated the law. When Studds was censured by his peers, he turned his back on the House members in attendance when the censure was read in defiance.

Learn your history before you start calling people anti-gay, anti-Semitic or any other anti. I never mentioned either of their sexual preferences because I don't care. It is their abuse of their office, the special treatment and the double standards which you now support these individuals but condemn Republicans whose actions did not compare to these individuals, that I find offensive. As I said, people who live in glass houses.

PennQuaker actually said, "Jon Corzine, on the other hand, is not a good example of the effect of money. He is free to spend his fortune however he sees fit. In fact, this means that he is actually /less/ likely to fall prey to the interests of big business or shady lobbyists, as he is under no fiscal pressure to do so."  So what you're saying is that it doesn't matter how Corzine made his $$$?  This is unfathomable and wholly amoral.  If he made his $$$ as an arms dealer would it not be tainted with the blood of innocents? If he made his fortune by exploiting third world child labor, would you applaud Mr. Corzine for engaging in savvy business practices?  Do you have any idea what kind of corporate clients Corzine catered to at GS?  Do you really want to live in a nation where the only people who can run for office are Steve Forbes, George Soros and Warren Buffett?  What about campaign finance reform and a level playing field?  Dick Codey should by all rights have succeeded McGreevey.  Codey's only problem was that he faced a tsunami of ill-gotten gain that cleared the field for Lord Jon.  People like Corzine think democracy is for sale to the highest bidder.  They fail to realize that the currency of freedom is not measured in dollars and cents, but by the blood shed by patriots.

Yet again with people stereotyping Republicans! How many freakin times is it going to take for me to say that there really isn't a ton of Republicans who don't believe in evolution, or that the world isn't more than 6000 years old. What the hell does science have to do with your original argument on Republicans being the rich party anyway? You don't use facts to back up your point, you completely go off in another direction and you never defend your original point. Sure you didn't mention Doherty, but by mentioning your stereotype that Republicans as the "rich party" you leave yourself up to FACTUAL arguments that in this period of time that is definately no longer the case. A great example was Corzine and Lautenberg. So Corzine is free to spend his vast fortune to make an election a money race. While I'm not taking Forrester out of the blame as well, don't you think that's why Forrester could have been the "Best" challenger? The Fact that he had the money to compete with Corzine had to play a part in that election. I'd love to see Corzine participate in clean elections and not use any of his money. Haven't we established that big money players are a bad fit for state politics? Corzine has millions and what happened? He got in trouble for possibly forking money over to his ex-girlfriend and big union boss Carla. National parties? Heck both parties are wrong for the constant search for big money and the only people to blame for that is the people who do not focus on the individual running while basing elections on TV commercials and typical party stereotypes that the media constantly feeds them.

Penn, you are absolutely ridiculous when you bring religion into your argument. Are you serious? Not every Republican is a "Jesus Freak", heck I'm someone who considers themselves somewhat conservative and I'm not a Christian. How does that explain conservatives liking Leiberman so much? Wouldn't they dislike him because according to your argument, conservatives hate jews and only like Christians. Give me a break. There are plenty of Jewish conservatives out there. Religion has nothing to do with party ideology, I didn't see anyone stating Liberals hate God and Christians anywhere, so why do you state your opinion?

And I'm sure every single Republican must black out the word "condom" out of sex ed textbooks and strain to remember the Ten Commandments. Congratulation Penn, in my view, your the complete definition of a racist in political terms. You stereotype and you claim to use facts while this is all just spewing from your opinions. Actual arguments? Or just your hatred arguments against conservatives?

There are plenty of thoughtful, young, energetic conservatives who can also be socially liberal and acceptable. Nowhere does it state that a conservative has to believe in creationism, must believe in sex-ed education that doesn't include the word condom(since when did that become a party thing anyway?), definately believes that church and state are the same thing, and follows the principle that any woman who has an abortion is satan herself. Oh yeah I forgot that not every conservative is appalled by civil unions and stem cell research.(Some call them Moderates)

It is the principles of conservatism that will win out in the future, not the social ideals of a changing generation. It is about fiscal integrity and management, security in our nation, limiting pork barrel politics, defending the bill of rights and the constituiton, and reducing big government control.

Great point Xenu. The Republicans shouldn't be forced to look for the biggest money player to challenge Corzine in 09', rather it should be about who the most qualified candidate is. If that was the case then the 05 election would have been Richard Codey vs. Maybe someone other than Forrester. The same needs to be said for the 08' Senate Race where hopefully Doherty or another qualified candidate will win the nomination instead of big money like Estabrook.