Writing political missives anonymously has a rich history – think Federalist Papers – but every political hack is not Alexander Hamilton. That’s the problem.

For the second time in the last few weeks, an anonymous letter attacking Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce has been sent to Republican insiders in LD-26. DeCroce is one of three candidates running for two Assembly nominations in the June Republican primary. The others are fellow incumbent Jay Webber and newcomer Christian Barranco. DeCroce filed nominating petitions jointly with Webber, although they are not the best of friends.

Like the previous one, this letter says DeCroce is not fit to serve and brings up innuendos and accusations that, given the anonymous nature of the correspondence, won’t be explored here.

What may be more interesting in the long run is why?

Just why does DeCroce merit such over-the-top attacks?

Who does it help? Webber? Barranco? Probably not. If anything, the attacks make DeCroce a sympathetic figure.

The feeling here is that there has to be a very, very good reason to hide behind anonymity in a public debate – like if your life is truly in danger.

That’s unlikely the case here, so it’s puzzling why the writer, or writers, lack the guts to state their feelings publicly.

Before we proceed, we can’t overlook some humorous errors in the latest letter. State Sen. Joseph Pennacchio is mentioned, but at one point his name is misspelled. There also is a reference to Webber’s “2017” congressional campaign. That was actually 2018.  House campaigns are in even years; Hamilton probably knew that.

Laura Ali, the chair of the Morris Republican Committee, is not amused.

“A second cowardly letter got mailed to County Committee members today in LD26 with no signature and a fraudulent return address,” the Morris GOP says on its Facebook page. It adds that like the last letter, this one will be forwarded to the state Attorney General’s Office, because “There are issues with ELEC and mail fraud.”

And if you know who sent it, the Morris GOP committee wants to hear from you.

Said Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-26):

“Another anonymous letter attacking my legislative colleague BettyLou DeCroce mysteriously appeared in the mailboxes of Republican County Committee Members today. Any and all discourse that comes without signature or attribution loses all credibility. BettyLou is a fierce advocate for our constituents, a tireless legislator and a strong Republican leader. I condemn this anonymous political attack in the strongest possible way and it has no place in our political discourse.”