Insider NJ Key Pieces of the Week
From the halls of the Statehouse to the streets of Irvington, from Morris County down to South Jersey, take a look at a few key pieces from Insider NJ over the course of the past week:
Senate Presidency Stories from the (Ongoing) Era of Steve Sweeney
The first casualty of the 2017 pre-primary season lay crumpled in the consciousness of a political establishment trying to figure out its next move. This was the fall of 2016 and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop had just dropped out of the race to blandly endorse Phil Murphy, the former ambassador to Germany. The statewide campaign of Senate President Steve Sweeney (D-3) of South Jersey was still alive…
Two rivals for leadership in the Democratic Party, one on the throne now and another at the edge of it, denounced as racist a mail piece issued by the General Majority PAC, which is affiliated with South Jersey Democratic Power Broker George Norcross III, who raises money for the group…
Bar Stool Observations from the 2019 Election Cycle (So Far)
Some nuggety observations from the trail as we try to piece together some of the plot lines in this slowly-coming-together and blandly intriguing (more about overkill and broad, Jackson Pollock splatters of emotions than small engine mechanics) cycle…
Inside the LD8 Divide: Peters Versus LaPlaca and the Anatomy of a Political War
They ran into each other at an InsiderNJ mixer in Atlantic City, where Republican Assemblyman Ryan Peters told Democrat Gina LaPlaca, “good luck,” referring to her 2018 attempt to land a freeholder seat. In reply, she supposedly told the legislator that if she didn’t make it countywide, she’d take a district-wide run at him…
Who’s Up and Up’s Down: Week of the Trenton Disaster
See who’s up and who’s down over the past week in Jersey politics…
Political Implications in the Aftermath of Senator Bucco’s Death
For good – or for bad – politics never stops. No matter what happens, the system moves on – even when there is a death. So it is that Morris County Republicans now have a dilemma of sorts regarding how to replace the just-deceased Anthony R. Bucco in the state Senate…
When Senator Bucco was in Trenton, so were His Constituents
There was never anything flashy about Tony Bucco. I recall when Bucco ran for the state Assembly for the first time in 1995, he told voters that, “When I’m in Trenton, you’re in Trenton.”…
The 2019 Battle for Irvington’s South Ward: Beasley V. Shabazz
Mostly relegated to a moribund 2019 general election year afterthought, Essex County nevertheless offers Irvington, specifically the city’s south ward, as contested turf this year, where the scion of a county party icon hopes to secure the balance of time remaining on her seat against a U.S. Marine Corps veteran….
Team Irvington Fields Candidates as Beasley Prepares to Face Shabazz
The deaths of three elected officials in Irvington require a special November 5th election in the Essex County city adjacent to Newark….
The Coming Family Feud in Hudson County
As became clear from a fundraiser held for County Executive Tom DeGise last week, there is a serious split on the bubble between older Democrats and younger in Hudson County…
Hudson County Confidential: Seen and Heard at Liberty House
Anyone who thinks royalty is dead in America hasn’t been to a Hudson County Democratic Organization (HCDO) shindig. Hudson County is better stocked with political princes and princesses than most places, including a number of royal families – among which is County Executive Tom DeGise…
Campaign Zone Flashpoint: Ranking the (TOP!) Leg. Races Sept. 21st
Earlier this month InsiderNJ released our competitive rankings of all the legislative districts in the Nov. 5th arena. The list basically stays the same, but events on the ground over the course of the last couple of days compel us to readjust the top, most competitive elections in the state…
Somerset Sheriff’s Candidates Gnaw at Each Other’s Weaknesses
They clashed a handful of blocks north of the train yards, where the freights clank all night, these two lawmen looking to lead the Somerset County Sheriff’s office in the wake of Republican Sheriff Frank Provenzano’s pending retirement…
‘My Huckleberry Friend’: Senate Pals Take to the Open Water
Algae bloom closed Lake Hopatcong to swimming for most of the summer, depriving residents of recreation and local businesses of their usual seasonal trade. The move by the Democratic-run state of New Jersey also caused some friction with the region’s Republican lawmakers, most notably state Sen. Joe Pennacchio of the 26th District…
Where are they Now? The Campaign Team of the 2011 LD20 Dem Incumbents
Named the best legislative race of the last 20 years by InsiderNJ, in an all-out war, then-Assemblyman (and future Senator) Joe Cryan demonstrated superior organization in his hometown of Union Twp. while Senator Ray Lesniak – hobbled by double knee replacement surgery – kept the challengers bogged down in court…
LD26 Flashpoint: Webber’s Issues-Centered Shot at Political Rebirth
A Republican official in Morris County observed Tuesday night that the Grand Old Party is practically “extinct” in New Jersey. That’s an exaggeration, but the point is well-taken. Democrats control all levers of power in New Jersey and are now encroaching upon the Republicans’ traditional suburban terrain…
At-Large Trenton Councilman Blakeley: ‘A Body Politic Infected with the Disease of Divisiveness’
“I think our body politic is infected with the disease of divisiveness, and you see it exhibited by the person occupying the White House,” Blakeley said. “But it has existed and spread. In this environment, I felt it was important to be very public in my statements on this…
Yes, the Phrase “Jew ‘em Down” IS Antisemitic
I grew up with grandparents and parents whose memories I bless every day. My grandparents, Eastern European Jewish immigrants, spoke fluent Yiddish, as did my father. I miss the rich use of that language. But there was one Yiddish word I came to detest…
Welcome to Atlantic City, Speaker Pelosi
In March, 2004, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, asked to explain his vote in favor of an $87 billion appropriation to support wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, replied: “I actually voted in favor of the $87 billion before I voted against it.”…
Congressional Candidate Razzoli: Dems ‘Hijacked by Socialists’
Old Bridge Councilman Mark Razzoli has had enough and he encourages like-minded Democrats to examine their consciences going forward. The Ward 4 Councilman and former Chairman of the Democratic Organization said “the party left me” and accused Governor Phil Murphy of advancing a “radical socialist agenda” rather than upholding his constitutional oath of office…
LD21 Flashpoint: Brindle ‘Disappointed’ by Bramnick AND Kean
To those observers from the outside, the town looks like the area’s most obvious manifestation of a corporate stronghold impervious to the rest of the world; a fragile little Norman Rockwell postcard of pavers, oak, concrete, and burglar alarms, and yet, even here – maybe even especially here – town residents want to make sure no one believes they’ve walled themselves off from reality…
Mortimer Fires Back at Brindle: Dems have Moved too Far to the Left, Says GOP Chair (with Video)
“The Democratic Party at the national level seems to have gone very far to the left,” Mortimer told InsiderNJ downtown at the Westfield Fall Festival…
Insider NJ’s 2019 Insider 100: Millennials Publication
This list is less a power list proper, with names arranged from one to 100 according to a strict observance of power, bureaucratic or otherwise. Rather, it is a conveyance of gathering strength; a harbinger of worlds to come. Some of the names here have also been around for years, but mostly they signify a collection of energy whose best days are ahead…
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