Time For The Torricelli Option in NJ?
Robert Menendez, who took over Jon Corzine's vacant Seante seat when he was elected governor, is in a political firestorm. It seems some allegations regarding corruption and now extortion. From the NJ Star Ledger, courtesy of Hugh Hewitt; the key paragraphs are below:
With the Democratic establishment standing firmly behind him, U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez yesterday denied any involvement in the alleged shakedown of a Union City psychiatrist seven years ago.
Menendez, in a brief interview, said he did not know that his closest political adviser, Donald Scarinci, invoked his name in pressuring the psychiatrist to hire a Menendez acquaintance in 1999.
In a secretly recorded telephone call, Scarinci tells the psychiatrist, Oscar Sandoval, Menendez "would consider it a favor." On the same tape, Scarinci said the hire would offer Sandoval "protection" after the psychiatrist complained of trouble renewing his lucrative county contracts. ...
... Democrats accused the Kean campaign of engineering the tape's release, a claim flatly denied by Kean spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker. Yesterday, Sandoval backed the denial. He said he was approached for information about Menendez by Chris Lyon, an operative working for a Kean campaign consultant, but refused to speak with him.
The psychiatrist said he is speaking out about Menendez only now because he has been working on the lawsuit and transcribing audiotapes. ...
... Democratic Party chairman Joe Cryan said the tempest has made Democrats, who've won every U.S. Senate race in New Jersey since 1972, more resolved.
"The party understands we're not going to win this campaign by virtue of our previous successes," he said.
According to the latest polls, Tom Kean, Jr. leads Robert Menendez 44%-38%. This burdgeoning scandal is only going to add woes to his campaign, and the DNC in Jersey is going to need more than resolve to save Menendez's short Senate career. They're going to need a miracle. Of course there is always the Torricelli Option where tyhe Democrats removed Robert Torricelli from the ballot thirty-six days outside of the general election and replaced him with Frank Lautenberg. The replacement was challenged by the Jersey RNC, and the state supreme court upheld the switch despite the fact the law specifically states that no such switch could occur 51 days or later in the campaign.
If things continue to heat up for Robert Menendez, and it looks like it's about to, then I expect the DNC to either pull him (we're only 39 days away right now; Monday marks 36 days out of the election which is the bar set by the NJSC that last time around), or keep him in the race, and go after Sandoval like they're doing now. They're pulling out the stops to make Sandoval the bad guy--a liar trying to smear a US Senator. The Democrats always pull this sort of game when one of theirs gets his hand caught in the cookie jar. As it stands right now, Senator Menendez has some explaining to do, and we'd prefer it be done in front of a judge.
Either way you cut this, dear readers, Menendez is in trouble, and things are looking better for Tom Kean. Let's give him a helping hand, and dig up some contributions. A little goes a long way, and this could be a key seat the GOP might pick up this year.
Sabrina McKinney
Robert Menendez, who took over Jon Corzine's vacant Seante seat when he was elected governor, is in a political firestorm. It seems some allegations regarding corruption and now extortion. From the NJ Star Ledger, courtesy of Hugh Hewitt; the key paragraphs are below:
With the Democratic establishment standing firmly behind him, U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez yesterday denied any involvement in the alleged shakedown of a Union City psychiatrist seven years ago.
Menendez, in a brief interview, said he did not know that his closest political adviser, Donald Scarinci, invoked his name in pressuring the psychiatrist to hire a Menendez acquaintance in 1999.
In a secretly recorded telephone call, Scarinci tells the psychiatrist, Oscar Sandoval, Menendez "would consider it a favor." On the same tape, Scarinci said the hire would offer Sandoval "protection" after the psychiatrist complained of trouble renewing his lucrative county contracts. ...
... Democrats accused the Kean campaign of engineering the tape's release, a claim flatly denied by Kean spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker. Yesterday, Sandoval backed the denial. He said he was approached for information about Menendez by Chris Lyon, an operative working for a Kean campaign consultant, but refused to speak with him.
The psychiatrist said he is speaking out about Menendez only now because he has been working on the lawsuit and transcribing audiotapes. ...
... Democratic Party chairman Joe Cryan said the tempest has made Democrats, who've won every U.S. Senate race in New Jersey since 1972, more resolved.
"The party understands we're not going to win this campaign by virtue of our previous successes," he said.
According to the latest polls, Tom Kean, Jr. leads Robert Menendez 44%-38%. This burdgeoning scandal is only going to add woes to his campaign, and the DNC in Jersey is going to need more than resolve to save Menendez's short Senate career. They're going to need a miracle. Of course there is always the Torricelli Option where tyhe Democrats removed Robert Torricelli from the ballot thirty-six days outside of the general election and replaced him with Frank Lautenberg. The replacement was challenged by the Jersey RNC, and the state supreme court upheld the switch despite the fact the law specifically states that no such switch could occur 51 days or later in the campaign.
If things continue to heat up for Robert Menendez, and it looks like it's about to, then I expect the DNC to either pull him (we're only 39 days away right now; Monday marks 36 days out of the election which is the bar set by the NJSC that last time around), or keep him in the race, and go after Sandoval like they're doing now. They're pulling out the stops to make Sandoval the bad guy--a liar trying to smear a US Senator. The Democrats always pull this sort of game when one of theirs gets his hand caught in the cookie jar. As it stands right now, Senator Menendez has some explaining to do, and we'd prefer it be done in front of a judge.
Either way you cut this, dear readers, Menendez is in trouble, and things are looking better for Tom Kean. Let's give him a helping hand, and dig up some contributions. A little goes a long way, and this could be a key seat the GOP might pick up this year.
Sabrina McKinney
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 3:00 PM
1 Comments:
I was able to access The Asylum a little while ago. I think it's a democrat conspiracy to keep me away from the election! They, the dems, know I'm fairly accurate in my predictions! The situation in NJ is confusing. You explained it very well. Ty. Rawriter
Post a Comment
<< Home