Cresitello polishes his image

Morristown Mayor Donald Cresitello acknowledges he's basically doomed to lose his long shot Democratic Senate primary race against Rep. Rob Andrews and incumbent Sen. Frank Lautenberg.

But the race might be a win for his political reputation.

Cresitello was already known to many New Jerseyans before he entered the race, and not because he unsuccessfully challenged Lautenberg in the Senate primary way back in 1982.  Rather, it was his status as the state's most outspoken critic of its immigration policies and for his controversial attempt to deputize local police to enforce federal immigration laws.

Cresitello's fight against illegal immigration, and a rally he hosted in Morristown that saw one violent outburst, earned him the reputation of a blowhard among the state's political establishment, both Democrats and Republicans.  His stance even put him at odds with U.S. Attorney Chris Christie, who's seen as the Republicans' likely choice for Governor next year.

Although Cresitello's stance on illegal immigration won't endear him to the liberal voters who turn out for primaries, his debate appearances may have polished his statewide political reputation.

"You don't survive 30 years in politics with one issue.  And I've been there for 30 years," said Cresitello, who's been mayor since 2006 and also served in that position between 1978 and 1981.  He's been in Morristown government since 1978.

On the only televised debate between the three Democratic candidates, Andrews and Lautenberg feuded over who supported the Iraq invasion and whether Andrews broke a promise to Lautenberg by running against him.  Cresitello, for his part, implored the two contenders to move on to other issues.

Moreover, while Andrews and Lautenberg squabbled over the Iraq War, which they both initially supported, Cresitello was the only candidate who opposed the war even in the run up to the invasion (although as a Morristown councilman and not a sitting Congressman or Senate candidate, he was far more insulated from political repercussions).

Those who have heard of Cresitello before might have been surprised to hear him say that the greatest crisis the country faces is not illegal immigration but energy costs.

"I thought he came off fairly well," said Monmouth University pollster Patrick Murray, who sat in the studio audience at the NJN debate.  "Before, all we heard about was the287(g) issue, wanting to deputize the Morristown police, illegal immigration. But he's really set himself up as someone who's paid attention to a wide variety of issues."

It's a far cry from April, when PolitickerNJ.com showed a video of Cresitello naming the three dominant groups in Iraq as the Sunnis, the Shia and the Basques (a group native to northern Spain).

But according to Murray, that could be just a typical misstatement, and didn't look so bad taking into consideration Gov. Corzine's recent misidentification of Princeton Township Mayor Phyllis Marchand as Phyillis Schlafly.

Cresitello points that his attempt to deputize Morristown police - legal under Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act -- was actually voted into law by both Lautenberg and Andrews in 1996.  He's pointed that out in debates, but has been frustrated that the press hasn't noted it.

Cresitello said that he's privy to private polling information that shows him running second place in Andrews's home turf of south Jersey, and could do better than almost anyone expects him to do.  He's spent about $40,000 on the race altogether, and hopes to pull 15% of the vote.

"What do I hope to gain?" he asked. "If my percentages are high enough, where I want them to be, there will be other opportunities available in the future. I don't want to discuss that today, but I may discuss it tomorrow night."