Conservative Republicans have not fared well in races for Governor or U.S. Senate in New Jersey: the last conservative to win statewide was Albert W. Hawkes, who was elected to the United States Senate in 1942. A Montclair businessman, the 64-year-old Hawkes was serving as the President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce when party leaders encouraged him to run against freshman Democratic Senator William Smathers; he just narrowly beat Gill Rob Wilson, a Trenton Minister and state Aviation Director, in the Republican primary, but easily ousted Smathers in the general election. After Governor Alfred Driscoll viewed Hawkes as too conservative and withdrew party support for his re-election bid in 1948. Hawkes declined to run (the seat went to State Treasurer Robert Hendrickson, a former Senate President and gubernatorial candidate) and returned to New Jersey to run his linoleum manufacturing business. He backed Ohio Senator Robert Taft for the 1952 Republican presidential nomination when the rest of the New Jersey GOP establishment (led by Christine Todd Whitman's father, Webster Todd) backed General Dwight Eisenhower.
Michael Doherty. a West Point graduate and one of the state's most conservative legislators, will take his seat in the State Senate today. A ... >
Everybody needs to start a new job with a list of priorities and Chris Christie is no exception. There might be a thousand things that need to get ... >
Political discourse in America contains much in the way of intellect or intellectual honesty. One considers the Federalist Papers with wistful awe: ... >
As pundits and party leaders look to next year’s Congressional elections in NJ, it appears that freshman Democrat John Adler is the most vulnerable ... >
When will NJ Republicans start acting like Republicans rather than Democrats. Time to stand up for your principles, assuming they have any left. >
As in any transition, speculation is rampant as to whom Governor-elect Chris Christie will appoint as Chief of Staff, State Treasurer, and Attorney ... >
Now that the dust has finally settled after the grueling campaign for governor, there are a number of lessons that we can draw from this ... >
When he was growing up, Chris Christie's folks must have taught him that when he went to a new playground, he should pick a fight with the ... >
“My work is done here. Winfrey has finally succumbed,” announced Novick at a press conference, pumping his fist in ‘win’ style. ... >
New Jersey voters repudiated Governor Jon Corzine's policies of the past four years on November 3rd. Republican Chris Christie and Independent ... >