Gerald Cardinale

Democrats on both sides of the political war between State Senator Loretta Weinberg and Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joseph Ferriero seemed surprised today by the District 37 Democratic legislators attack on Democrat-controlled "shadow governments" just four weeks before the general election.

Longtime rivals: State Sen. Loretta Weinberg and Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joe FerrieroFour weeks before Election Day, the intra-party battle between State Sen. Loretta Weinberg and Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joseph Ferriero heated up today after three Democratic state legislators held a press conference to allege abuses by Democrat-controlled “shadow governments” – local authorities that they say have little or no oversight from Trenton.

The main target of the legislators was the Passaic Valley Sewerage Authority, where Ferriero serves as Chief Counsel. She says that the PVSA has spent over $3.2 million on government relations consultants and $12 million on legal fees since 2001 – with about $4.5 million going to Ferriero’s law firm.

There was an awkward moment at the Dumont Street Festival today.

Democratic Assembly candidate Carl Manna was walking along Madison Avenue with a couple supporters when he ran into his opponents, State Sen. Gerald Cardinale and Assemblywoman Charlotte Vandervalk, surrounded by an entourage of four youth wearing red campaign shirts.

“Sen. Cardinale! Welcome to Dumont,” said Manna, reaching out to shake the incumbents’ hands.

“Glad to see you’re out working,” responded Cardinale.

In an off-year election that generates ho hum enthusiasm even amongst politically aware adults, the idea of youngsters caring about legislative races seems far-fetched.

The common wisdom is that young people are, by and large, politically apathetic. If it’s hard to get a good youth turnout for a presidential election, then the chances of getting them out for state legislative races are virtually non-existent. But while many young people are too busy sending text messages to pick a candidate, campaigns also depend on young, true-believer volunteers and staffers to get out the vote.

Matt Mowers is one of those true-believers. The 18-year-old Rutgers freshman is the political director for Gerald Cardinale’s re-election campaign in the 39th district.

HOLD ME ACCOUNTABLE: "I don’t think he’s in any real trouble...they’re just pesky things," says former Gov. Brendan Byrne on Jon Corzine's emailsIn his 1974 inaugural speech, Brendan T. Byrne borrowed a line from New Jersey’s most famous former governor: Woodrow Wilson. “If you think too much about being reelected, it is very difficult to be worth reelecting,” it read.

The next year, Byrne took that wisdom to heart, pushing through a wildly unpopular new state income tax. So unpopular, in fact, that it cost Democrats seventeen Assembly seats in the mid-term elections, made Byrne consider not running for reelection, and led to eight other Democrats challenging him in the gubernatorial primary in 1977.

Thirty-two years later, Gov. Jon S. Corzine used that same Woodrow Wilson line in his inaugural address. But for all the criticism Corzine has faced lately, it’s nothing compared to the backlash Byrne saw in the 70’s, said the former Governor.

The New Jersey State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, the world’s largest law enforcement officers’ organization, has announced their endorsement of District 39 State Senator Gerry Cardinale in his bid for re-election this November.  In offering their endorsement of Cardinale, the FOP cited his long record of support for police officers.

The District 39 Republicans’ first television advertisement has raised the ire of their Democratic opponents.

The ad, which is currently airing, insinuates that Democratic state Senate candidate Joe Ariyan received three appointed public jobs after donating thousands of dollars to Democratic candidates. Ariyan is Bergen County’s Public Advocate for Land Use, a public defender in Hillside and commissioner of the Northwest Bergen County Utilities Authority.

“Joe Ariyan gave tens of thousands of dollars in political contributions then got 3 taxpayer paid jobs,” said the ad. “Pay to play contributions?”

State Sen. Gerald Cardinale’s move to hold up the nomination of Matthew Boxer as New Jersey’s State Comptroller might be considered a good political move by Republicans interesting in keeping Gov. Jon Corzine’s ties to his former girlfriend in the news, but his colleagues in the Senate minority aren’t rushing to help him out.

Cardinale’s idea is to tie up the nomination of Boxer for the newly created office until Corzine appoints an independent prosecutor to look into the matter of Rocco Riccio, a brother-in-law of Corzine’s ex-girlfriend/paramour/companion Carla Katz, who he gave $15,000 after pressuring him out of his accounting job at the Turnpike Authority. Boxer was reportedly present at a meeting in which Riccio was asked to leave his job.

State Sen. Gerald Cardinale wants the Senate Judiciary Committee to hold up on the confirmation of Matthew Boxer as State Comptroller until a Special Prosecutor is named to review Rocco Riccio's acceptance of a $15,000 cash gift from Gov. Jon Corzine.  Riccio is the brother-in-law of Corzine's ex-girlfriend, CWA President Carla Katz. 

State Sen. Joseph Coniglio is the target of a federal corruption investigationThe Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards will revisit a complaint filed against State Sen. Joe Coniglio that they had previously dismissed.

Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan had filed a complaint to the committee earlier this year, accusing Coniglio of helping Hackensack University Medical Center, which had recently hired him as a plumbing consultant, lobby for state aid. The complaint was dismissed after Coniglio said he did not make any requests for the grants and merely voted on them.