Rick Shaftan

After facing criticism for not being aggressive enough against Democrats, Republicans have coalesced around a new cause.

Although Republicans offered no comment on Sunday or Monday after The Star Ledger broke the story about Gov. Corzine’s $15,000 gift to ex-girlfriend Carla Katz’s brother-in-law Rocco Riccio, the GOP has now seized on this latest scandal to erupt over Gov. Corzine’s relationship with Katz in what appears to be a coordinated effort to turn it into a campaign issue.

In the latest twist involving Corzine’s monetary relationship with Katz, the governor gave Riccio $15,000 after he was forced to resign from a job at the Turnpike Authority, following rumors that he had looked into the tax record of Corzine’s political enemies. Corzine also promised to help find Riccio work in the private sector.

 

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There was an interesting e-mail exchange between Republican State Chairman Tom Wilson and conservative strategist Rick Shaftan:

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The majority of New Jersey voters say that they would not be upset if the state legalized gay marriage, according to a Zogby Poll commissioned by Garden State Equality, a gay advocacy group.

63% of those polled said that they would have no problem if “public officials in New Jersey come to the conclusion that civil unions for gay couples have not worked to provide equality under the law” and granted gay couples the right to marry.

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Chatter about a conservative primary challenge to Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen is nothing new. In late 2001, attorney Paul Castronovo, who had been Morris County Coordinator for Bret Schundler's gubernatorial campaign, publicly explored a race, but eventually backed down. So far, the only Frelinghuysen opponent to get any real attention was in 2000, when Michael Moore held a news conference in Morris County to announce that he was running a Ficus plant as a write-candidate in the GOP primary.

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District 36 may not be such a long shot for Republicans, according to one GOP campaign consultant.

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The PoliticsNJ.com Power List of the 100 Most Powerful People in New Jersey Politics will be released on Thursday.  This year, our readers get to pick the person who gets the final slot -- #100 --  from our last ten candidates.  Vote Tuesday and Wednesday to decide who gets on the Power List -- and who doesn't!

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It’s not all gloom and doom for Bergen County Republicans. Out of the election day carnage came what could be prove to be a bright spot for GOP morale.

His name is Mike Guarino, a former Bergen County health commissioner and constant thorn in the side of local politicians.

While there’s no question his candidacy is a long shot -- a Hail Mary even -- he will at least provide some kind of challenge to Democratic State Senator Paul Sarlo.

“I’m 78 years old and running for office,” said Guarino. “I must need to have my head examined.”

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Former Assembly Speaker Albio Sires is headed to Congress: he is unopposed in a November special election for the remaining two months of Bob Menendez's term, and can take his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives as soon as the state certifies the results of that contest. To stay on for another two years, Sires must first beat Republican John Guarini -- a race he is the overwhelming favorite to win.

Sires will go to Congress twenty years after his first try, when he was the Republican nominee against incumbent Frank Guarini. (For trivia enthusiasts, Sires' campaign manager was Rick Shaftan.)

Sires won a landslide victory in an especially bitter campaign against Perth Amboy Mayor/Assemblyman Joseph Vas, capturing 74% of the vote districtwide. He won 80% in Hudson County. The results were substantially different from a poll the Vas campaign leaked last week showing him within two points of winning -- a move that could damage Vas' future credibility.

Democratic insiders say that Sires is unlikely to make peace with Vas anytime soon, and there is a chance that Sires supporters will seek some retribution next year, when Vas seeks Democratic party support for re-election to the State Assembly. Perth Amboy Councilman David Sylagi, who actively backed Sires, could emerge as a legislative candidate.

Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, the Democratic State Chairman, says that Vas has 'lot of fence mending to do within the party."

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