Shulman's $215K 2nd Quarter

While I haven't received any official numbers to date, it seems Rabbi Dennis Shulman had a rather impressive second quarter of fundraising. The Express-Times ran this in a story on Saturday:

Of the approximately $565,000 Democrat Dennis Shulman's campaign has raised to date, $119,000 came from online donations, campaign manager Jeff Hauser said. Shulman is challenging U.S. Rep. Scott Garrett, R-Warren.

If that total amount holds, with total donations of $349,969 listed on their last filing, that means Shulman may have raised roughly $215,000 last quarter.

For some perspective, Paul Aronsohn raised $74,421.65 over the same time period in 2006. It also would mean that by the end of July, Shulman's campaign is within roughly $12,000 of what Aronsohn raised throughout the last campaign.

Once I have official numbers I'll post them.

DCCC Attacking Garrett on Oil

Update: You can listen to the ad here.

Seems when the DCCC decided to name Dennis Shulman as an emerging race, they meant top 13 in the nation. The DCCC is coming after Representative Scott Garrett in a new radio ad using a Bush Impersonator:

"Wanted to thank you for continuing to support the Big Oil Energy Agenda,” the impersonator says. “‘Preciate you voting to keep giving billions in tax breaks to the big oil companies. Sure, gasoline is over four bucks a gallon and the oil companies are making record profits, but what’s good for Big Oil is good for America, right? I guess that’s why they call us the Grand OIL Party. Heh, heh, heh.

The DCCC has also announced they will also be doing web videos and targeted e-mails in select Districts.

Fanning running in the Fifth

Ed Fanning of Dumont will be joining Representative Scott Garrett and Dennis Shulman on the ballot in November. Fanning will be running as a member of the Green Party. So far, he's had 88 people visit his website.

Shulman's Statement

Dennis Shulman won a decisive victory in tonight's Democratic Primary in New Jersey's 5th Congressional District and immediately promised to change the corrupt, special interest politics of Washington."

"We need to change the way we do business in Washington," said Shulman. "We need to get our country back on track -- lower health care costs, lower fuel costs, and fix the mortgage crisis that has put our economy on the verge of recession. Unfortunately, the special interests and their lobbyists are standing in the way."

"And Scott Garrett is part of the problem. He's taken hundreds of thousands of dollars from the banking and financial industries that are responsible for this country's mortgage crisis - and he has voted their interests every step of the way. He recently voted against legislation to help families hurt by the mortgage crisis meltdown - and that is simply unacceptable," said Shulman.

"I want to thank the people of New Jersey for their support and compliment our opponents on running spirited campaigns. I intend to wage a vigorous campaign challenging Garrett and the special interests - and I intend to win in November."

Shulman Wins

Dennis Shulman has won the primary to take on Representative Scott Garrett in the fall. As of this writing, Shulman is winning 60% of the vote.

I took the opportunity to check out the Shulman headquarters. I was very impressed with not only the local support, but the national interest in this race. There is a definite sense of family among his staff, among other things they sang Happy Birthday to a volunteer who put in something like a 14 hour day at that point.

I was able to speak with Shulman for a little bit about the race. The excellent sense of humor he has a reputation for is well earned. He is very genuine, which if enough people get to meet him should help against Garrett.

It should be very interesting to see how this race plays out. I'll post any official statements from Shulman, Camille Abate or Garrett should they become available.

Let the games begin. Yippee.

Record Endorses Shulman

The Record has endorsed Dennis Shulman as the Democrat to take on Representative Scott Garrett in the fall.

Abate Getting Nasty

Well, the earlier dust up over at Blue Jersey definitely pales in comparison to what has being going on for the last 24 hours. Camille Abate sent out a rather nasty mail piece attacking Dennis Shulman regarding his comments made regarding Iraq. In response, there has to be a record breaking number of comments regarding the Abate mailer I still have yet to receive.

While I'm concerned about how easy it will be to paint Shulman with the Federal investigation into the BCDO's top people (I could write the ads in my sleep); Abate's campaign over the last two weeks or so has planted some seeds of concern about the type of Representative she'd be.

First there was the talk on health care from the New Jersey Herald debate:

Shulman said he would encourage bipartisan discussion to establish such a program, but Abate said she would not "because there has been too much talk already," inciting applause from the audience.

I'm not sure why that comment sent chills down my spine, and nobody else has focused on it. The idea of replacing one ideologue with another is rather unappealing. Barry Goldwater understood that politics demands compromise, and it's one of Representative Scott Garrett's worst traits as a Representative that he is so unbelievably partisan.

Second, this whole mailer business. Why?

In a year where a record number of new voters are being brought in or returned to the process with the promise of a rejection of the politics of the past, this type of mailer should have been left on the shelf.

Overselling and underachieving are the hallmark of Garrett's time as our Representative (ex. AMT's still there; our tax dollar return has gone down). As I noted earlier, most voters know that no single Representative has the power to bring the troops home. Therefore, no Representative can be "trusted" to do the job, because "trusting" them to do the job implies a power they do not possess.

My hope is, should Abate win, her campaign will recognize that this sort of mailer won't inspire those undecided people to come to her side.

Dems Getting Heated

Over at Blue Jersey a brawl has broken out over the Democratic nomination here in the Fifth. Two posts by Juan Melli, Editor in Chief, questioning the honesty of the Camille Abate's campaign statements regarding Dennis Shulman's stance on Iraq have led to some testy conversations.

In the first, Melli simply calls the Abate campaign liars. In the other, he questions the Abate campaign manager's attempt to paint Shulman's stance on Iraq and Representative Scott Garrett as one in the same:

I believe our troops have endured far too much bloodshed in the name of a war that never should have been started and will fail no matter how long GeorgeBush, John McCain, Scott Garrett and Dennis Shulman try to keep them there.

With two weeks left to go, it's not surprising that things have gotten heated, but this is a bit of a stretch. Shulman's comment about making sure there was time to repair the damage done in Iraq was a little too politically cautious; but it's light years ahead of Garrett saying the war was justified after we found 12 mustard gas canisters.

Last I checked there were about 15 to 20 out of 435 who vote "end it now" on funding bills and such. Often times, they vote with the Republicans against timetables and things because it doesn't end the war fast enough in their mind. Someone should find out if Abate would join this crowd or not.

The bottom line is, and most voters know it, no single Representative has the power to bring the troops home now. What's important to find out, and probably would throw cold water on this thing, is how they would have voted on several of the bills over the last year.

If it turns out they both would have supported the various time lines, then there isn't an issue. However, if Abate would have voted with Garrett against these measures because they didn't do enough fast enough, then it would be Abate and not Shulman who would be keeping the troops there.

Debate Wrap-Up

The New Jersey Herald ran an article covering the debate they sponsored last night with The League of Women Voters.

Debate Tonight

The New Jersey Herald is one of the sponsors for the debate tonight between Camille Abate, Roger Bacon and Dennis Shulman. I can't make it, but if anybody takes a video I'd love to see it.

Challengers for the congressional seats representing Sussex County will face off tonight in a debate in Sussex County Community College's new Performing Arts Center.

The debate at 6:30 p.m. will showcase the Democratic candidates running for the Fifth and 11th congressional district seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Shulman's First Ad

Rabbi Dennis Shulman released his first ad today:

Missed One

Representative Frank Pallone, who deserves a tremendous amount of credit for kick starting the relisting of the Ringwood Superfund Site, endorsed Dennis Shulman in his quest for the Democratic nomination here in the Fifth.

Shulman On Blue Jersey Radio

Democratic hopeful Rabbi Dennis Shulman will be on Blue Jersey radio, tonight at 8:30. Now that they've moved the time, I might actually be able to listen to the show live.

Garrett Shmorgishborg

So much to read, this is a round-up of Representative Scott Garrett and other news from the web:

*A lot is being made of the polls released by Camille Abate, and particularly Dennis Shulman, each shows Garrett being unknown and unpopular in the District, causing CQ Politics to remove our District from the Safe Republican category.

*Blue Jersey's Scott in NJ took the time to compile a great chart tracking the money race. It's no different surprise Garrett holds a large lead in cash on hand.

1. Garrett: $457,521.36
2. Shulman: $245,549.80
3. Abate: $103,193.05

*Garrett railed against government spending over at The Hill Blog. He and his colleagues at the RSC hope to introduce an amendment to tie spending increases to growth in the GDP. This is one way to defund the Iraq war in a hurry.

*Garrett also used a bit of revisionist history in his Op-Ed calling for the end to the AMT. He neglected to mention a patch could have been passed much sooner than it was, however Garrett was one who led the charge to protect a loophole enjoyed by less than 60,000 people at the expense of the millions impacted by the AMT.

That's it for now...

Democrats, Garrett and Taxes

Over at Blue Jersey this week there was a conversation about whether or not a Democrat could take the Fifth. A number of ideas crossed people's minds, largely centered around Representative Scott Garrett's social voting record. One thing that was missing, both from the comments on the original post and the response from Dennis Shulman's campaign, was a huge issue here in the Fifth: Taxes.

Our District is one of the most heavily taxed in the nation, and anyone running against Garrett is going to have to talk about it to get people listening.

Let's be honest, every time a Democrat talks about raising taxes on the most wealthy Americans to fund a program, they're talking about our District. Garrett's opposition to government expansion rings true with a lot of people, because they know they'd end up paying for it and haven't been happy with the return on investment at a lot of levels.

According to the Census Bureau, 46.9% of the families in our District make over $100,000 a year. This compares with 22.6% of the nation as a whole. The more popping figure are families making over $200,000. The nation has 4.4% at that level, where our District has 14.8%.

Although some could argue cost of living adjustments would be factored in, anybody who deals with the AMT knows that won't save our District from a higher bill. While Garrett has failed to deliver relief from the AMT, and actually voted against patching it at least once, it doesn't change the fact roughly 20% of the District are on the verge of having to pay it.

It is a primary issue for many voters in the District, and although completely ineffective in actually getting anything done to fix the AMT, people like what Garrett has to say about abolishing the AMT.

What also hurts Dems in our District is what happens with the State regarding property taxes. According to the Star Ledger, 17 of the top 50 towns in average property tax burden fall within the Fifth District. Camille Abate addresses the fact unfunded mandates and such raise people's property taxes when Federal dollars don't come through, but it's the last point on her issues page.

Garrett's philosophy of ending many Federal programs and returning "control" to the State is probably where Dems can make their greatest inroads. Not only has our return on the Federal tax dollar not improved with Garrett, but his voting record and statements are such that he wants more of the property tax burden to fall on our District's shoulders.

That's all well and good for a guy who has been accused of using a farm subsidy to lower his own property taxes. Since, supposedly, he's not paying his fair share now, it won't affect his bottom line if his neighbors have to pay more.

I guess my point in all of this is that Garrett's greatest strength, his verbal stand on taxes, needs to be turned into his greatest weakness. Things like his votes for deficit popping budgets; votes against small business tax cuts for owners in our District when they're among the highest taxed in the nation; and his votes against funding that will have to be replaced with property tax dollars are really how to make people rethink their support for him.

Garrett talks a good line on taxes, and any Dem that wants to take him down is going to have to show that Garrett is just that: Talk. Once a candidate establishes that, and people are listening, the rest of Garrett's record can be discussed.

Filing Day Fun

Well, those hoping Representative Scott Garrett might face a challenge in the Republican primary have been disappointed. Garrett will be running unopposed in June. However, there were a lot of interesting occurrences:

On the Congressional level, previously announced candidates Camille Abate and Dennis Shulman were joined by Roger Bacon of Phillipsburg. This permitted Wally Edge to make a joke.

Bergen

On a more local level, the Real Bergen Democrats are mounting a challenge to Joe Ferriero's BCDO. Here's how The Record explained the situation:

Freeholder incumbents David Ganz, Bernadette McPherson and Vernon Walton, backed by Ferriero, will face a challenge from former Hasbrouck Heights Councilwoman Carol Skiba, Tenafly Councilwoman Carol Hoernlein and newcomer Aishaah Rasul.

In the county clerk race, former Westwood Councilwoman Gail Frasco of the Real Bergen Democrats will go up against Diane Testa, Fairview's borough attorney and administrator. Republican incumbent Kathleen Donovan does not have a primary challenger.

[snip]

"This is not a reflection on the [BCDO's] county candidates, since this is being done purely for political purposes to get as many county committee seats in the 37th District," said Bill Maer, a spokesman for the BCDO.

No, I'm fairly certain it's a reflection on the BCDO and how it's run, and by extension how the county is run.

Carol Hoernlein, for one, has been fighting the fight against Papa Joe for a long time. I highlighted a blog post by her last year, and good government types on the Democratic side of the aisle should be happy to have her on the ballot.

I write about the ills of pay to play, probably not enough, and anyone who signed up for the Democratic primary to vote for either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton should think about voting in the June primary. When I was on the trail in 2006, I would often say the corruption people were furious about down in Washington was going on right here, but with Papa Joe playing the role of Tom DeLay.

Should the Real Democrats fail at knocking out Freeholders Bernadette "EnCap" McPherson or David Ganz, the Republicans will have their own slate going in November. However, it won't be decided with out a primary of their own. Once again, The Record:

Republicans are not immune to a primary contest as two freeholder candidates aligned with U.S. Senate candidate Murray Sabrin, including his wife, will face off against a slate endorsed by the Bergen County Republican Organization.

Florence Sabrin and Paul Mladjenovic will vie for the two seats against Christopher Calabrese and Jeffrey Heller.

It should be interesting to see how this all plays out. The Record has a complete list of people filing to run in the June primary in Bergen.

Sussex

Both candidates for Freeholder, current Republican Freeholder Phillip Crabb and Democrat Donna Griff will be running unopposed in June.

When I find info regarding Passaic and Warren counties, I'll post it.

Shulman for Lautenberg

As promised, here's what I got from Dennis Shulman's campaign.

Dennis Shulman's Statement of Support for Senator Frank LautenbergDemarest, NJ –

"Senator Frank Lautenberg is a strong leader who understands the challenges facing New Jersey – be it our endangered economy, the war in Iraq, or our environment – and is helping lead the charge in Congress against the failed policies of Bush and Cheney.

When I was deciding whether to seek public office, I sought role models who had served their communities admirably before seeking federal office. Senator Frank Lautenberg's legacy of service to New Jersey as both a private citizen and as a Senator served as an inspiration to me, and I am grateful that he is running for re-election and will be honored to run alongside him this fall."

Dr. Dennis Shulman has gained international recognition for his 30 years of work as a psychologist, educator, and author. An ordained rabbi for five years and blind since childhood, he has lived in New Jersey's Fifth District for more than 25 years with his wife, Dr. Pamela Tropper, an obstetrician. They have two adult daughters.

Additional background on Dr. Dennis Shulman and his challenge to Scott Garrett:

DCCC Targeting Garrett: http://www.dccc.org/page/content/races_northeast"

General Clark Ready to Do Battle for Shulman," Roll Call, http://www.rollcall.com/issues/53_98/atr/22241-1.html

"Political History in the Works," Northern Valley Suburbanite, http://www.nvsuburbanite.com/NC/0/87.html "

'Time to take a stand,' and Friends Join In," Worcester Telegram,
http://www.telegram.com/article/20071204/COLUMN01/712040605/1010/NEWS02

###

Lautenberg, Andrews, Shulman, Abate

With Representative Rob Andrews announcement he was planning on taking on Senator Frank Lautenberg in the Democratic Primary, and a Democratic civil war likely to ensue, one has to wonder what impact it could have on the Dems fighting to take on Representative Scott Garrett.

Back in November, when State Senator Loretta Weinberg and "Papa" Joe Ferriero were ratcheting up their war over pay-to-play, both Camille Abate and Dennis Shulman sought to distance themselves from the conflict. From PolitickerNJ:

"I'm not coming down on either side," said Shulman during a conference call with reporters. "...As a psychologist who works with families and as a rabbi, I have a lot of experience trying to repair splits in families and people, and I'm hoping that this election will be an opportunity to repair some of the split not only between Democrats and Republicans but within the county as well as within the party."

[snip]

"I know that Joe is the head of the Bergen county organization, and I know Loretta is a respected member of the party," said Abate. "I'm sure that they all have on good faith a situation where they believe in different things, which happens between decent people sometimes.. I don't really have a stance on that. My focus has really been to beat Scott Garrett."

As someone who doesn't see a lot of grey as to whether pay to play is wrong, to be honest, I was grossly disappointed in both answers. However, the pundits all agreed it was smart politics because both were courting the BCDO nomination and so little of Weinberg's district falls within the Fifth.

Now that Shulman won the BCDO line, and the endorsement of Representative Steve Rothman, it gets a bit more complicated. Rothman has threatened to go toe to toe with Papa Joe if he backs Andrews. So who does Shulman go with? Abate, with the machine already working against her, could go either way. If I hear from the campaigns, I'll post it here.

An open endorsement of Andrews seems unlikely but, as one commenter on Politicker noted, State Senator Paul Sarlo's endorsement means the BCDO machine will quietly be hoping Andrews wins.

On a side note, if Rothman has the power to mount a good government drive for the BCDO, why he's waiting I don't understand.

News & Such

I haven't been able to blog much, but that doesn't mean there isn't news to report. So here's a round up of stuff going on around the Fifth:

*The Daily Record gives Representative Scott Garrett a "nudge" about his vote against the Economic Stimulus package:

Unfortunately, that urgency was lost on Rep. Scott Garrett, R-Wantage. Garrett, whose district includes Sussex and Warren counties, was one of 34 House members and the only one from New Jersey, to vote against the stimulus package. Such a stance is not new for Garrett, who seems to believe that the federal government should do nothing at all.

*The NJ Herald covered the fact that potential Democratic challenger Dennis Shulman outraised Garrett last quarter. They highlighted his use of the Giants as a metaphor for his own potential for success; which Hillary Clinton used the other night on 60 Minutes. Shulman was the first to use it, but it seems John Bresnahan's nightmare is coming to fruition.

*Eric Boehlert over at Media Matters writes about how Rush Limbaugh is trying to tear apart the Republican Party. He notes Garrett and others rushed to Limbaugh's defense last year during the "phony soldiers" controversy.

*The folks over at Inside Bergen profiled new Executive Director of the BCRO, Matt Mowers.

*Phillip Crabb was selected to replace Assemblyman Gary Chiusano on the Sussex County Board of Freeholders.

*The Record profiled Steve Lonegan's work against Corzine's toll plan, and spoke of his aspirations for Governor.

Here's a random thought: If Shulman were to win this year and Lonegan next year, those of us in the Fifth would likely be the first constituency in the nation to be represented by two legally blind individuals. It's an unlikely scenario, but interesting thought none the less.

Shulman on ePluribus Radio

Rabbi Dennis Shulman will be on ePluribus Radio today at 4PM. You can either listen live or to a podcast here.