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We have all seen the devastation along the Gulf Coast this week. There is no need for me to go into the reasons why we should help.
If you have an extra $5, $10, $25 or $100 you were considering contributing to Blue 7th PAC this year please go to the Red Cross website and give it there.
Just like we did last week, it looks like the Courier News noticed that Mike Ferguson was absent from the effort to save Fort Monmouth, as well:
David Rebovich, director of the Rider Institute for New Jersey Politics, predicted that Forrester will try to say Democrats have not been aggressive advocates of the state's needs in Washington and will argue that Corzine has little clout in the nation's capital."What the Republicans want to do is suggest that a GOP governor would have better access to the congressional leadership and the White House, and I do think Forrester will try and make some hay in that regard," Rebovich said.
But Rebovich said Republicans pushing Forrester's candidacy have to answer why the state's six GOP congressmen, some with considerable seniority, were not successful in saving Fort Monmouth from the Base Realignment and Closure panel. Three of the GOP congressmen -- Rodney Frelinghuysen, Jim Saxton and Chris Smith -- fought hard for the post.
No Ferguson in that list. Rep. Smith serves Monmouth County, but both Reps. Saxton and Frelinghuysen were working for the good of New Jersey. Rep. Relinghuysen has a district much farther north and farther away from Monmouth than Ferguson.
Where was Mike?
In an interesting twist, Congressman Ferguson is claiming credit for getting less money for his district that he had originally had earmarked. The Cranford Eagle wants to know how that happened.
A press release from the office of 7th District Rep. Michael Ferguson proudly announced that the bill includes $392,000 for new traffic lights at the intersections of Centennial and Lincoln avenues, and Walnut and Lincoln avenues in Cranford.But a look back into the archives shows that in March, Ferguson announced voting for the House version of the bill, which included $490,000 for the traffic lights in Cranford. Nearly a $100,000 difference.
One would think that between March and August, Congress trimmed some pork?
Wrong.
The bill grew by $2 billion between March and August. So while Cranford lost a bit of cash, someone else gained a lot. And, as so often happens, the taxpayers lose as well.
That's right. Rep. Ferguson's earmarks for Cranford got cut by almost 20 percent while the entire bill grew by $2 billion.
And who is going to make that up? Local taxpayers:
Fortunately, Engineering/Public Works Commissioner Scott Mease said the township has already budgeted money for the lights.
I guess they weren't counting on Rep. Ferguson to be very effective down in D.C.
Congressman Michael Ferguson was used as an example of the borken ethics investigation process in Congress in an Express Times article, 8/24/05 entitled Watchdogs lack bite, to benefit of both parties. Emphasis is added below.
U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson, a New Jersey Republican, in 2003 paid a $210,000 fine, the largest ever for a sitting member of Congress, to the Federal Election Commission. Ferguson, R-7th District., during his 2000 campaign had taken $525,000 from his parents, violating a statute limiting contributions from individuals to $1,000.The settlement allowed Ferguson to claim he had not deliberately broken the federal law. The matter prompted no reaction from the House ethics panel, and Ferguson was re-elected in 2004.
Why wasn't the largest ever FEC fine for a sitting member of Congress investigated by its own ethics committee?
Lawmakers consider a truce -- a bipartisan tendency to ignore possible or even outright violations -- preferable to an activist ethics committee that would expose wrongdoing and embarrass members of Congress from both parties, says Craig Holman, campaign finance lobbyist for Public Citizen, a nonprofit group in Washington, D.C.House Republicans this year replaced U.S. Rep. Joel Hefley, R-Colo., with U.S. Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., as chairman of the ethics panel. Hastings is seen as a GOP party loyalist more inclined to support Majority Leader Tom Delay, R-Texas, whereas Hefley pursued investigations against Delay.
Tom DeLay! Now it makes sense. Rep. Ferguson not only has the number one FEC fine ever, but also has the distinction of being the number one recipient of campaign contributions from Tom DeLay.
And Rep. Ferguson voted for ethics rules changes that would have protected Tom DeLay, then lied about it to his constituents.
Blanton and Ashton want to know where Mike Ferguson and Scott Garrett have been on the issue of closing Fort Monmouth.
Frequent readers of this blog know that for every dollar New Jersey sends to Washington in the form of taxes, we get only %0.57 back. New Jersey is last in that statistic. Closing Fort Monmouth will lower our return even further. This is a matter that should be of concern to every citizen in this state. Our money is going out to support things like $230 million dollar bridges in Alaska that will connect a community of 700 people to the mainland or to keep Alabama from slipping from the 19th into the 18th century, but what about New Jersey?Maybe part of the reason we do so poorly is that, while our Democratic representatives are working to get our fair share of the pie, our Republican representatives close their mouths, shut their eyes, and do nothing to help. Noticeably absent from all of the efforts of our representatives have been our six Republican representatives. If thousands of jobs leave the state it affects everyone, but they haven't lifted a finger or said a word. Where is Scott Garrett? Where is Mike Ferguson?
It's true. If you look on Mike Ferguson's official Congressional website there is not one mention of Fort Monmouth or the 5,000 jobs lost if it moves to Alabama.
If you look on Mike Ferguson's official campaign site there is not one mention of Fort Monmouth or the 5,000 jobs lost if it moves to Alabama.
If you search Google for "Mike Ferguson" BRAC you find no stories of his efforts to save Fort Monmouth.
If you search Google for Michael Ferguson BRAC there is one article, and it mentions that he simply attended a meeting with Senator Jon Corzine on the issue.
If you search Google News for ferguson BRAC there are two hits that have nothing to do with Rep. Ferguson.
Contact Mike Ferguson and ask him what he's done to protect New Jersey jobs and security by calling his office at 908-757-7835 or using his website contact form.
You can also make your feelings known by writing letters to the editor to local and regional papers: the Courier News at letters@c-n.com, the Home News Tribune at letters@thnt.com, the Star Ledger at eletters@starledger.com, or the New York Times at letters@nytimes.com.
Another option is to write on message boards on the Internet. You can pick them by county or by town and write what your Congressman is doing.
8/27/05 UPDATE: It looks like the Courier News noticed that Mike Ferguson was absent from the effort to save Fort Monmouth, as well:
David Rebovich, director of the Rider Institute for New Jersey Politics, predicted that Forrester will try to say Democrats have not been aggressive advocates of the state's needs in Washington and will argue that Corzine has little clout in the nation's capital."What the Republicans want to do is suggest that a GOP governor would have better access to the congressional leadership and the White House, and I do think Forrester will try and make some hay in that regard," Rebovich said.
But Rebovich said Republicans pushing Forrester's candidacy have to answer why the state's six GOP congressmen, some with considerable seniority, were not successful in saving Fort Monmouth from the Base Realignment and Closure panel. Three of the GOP congressmen -- Rodney Frelinghuysen, Jim Saxton and Chris Smith -- fought hard for the post.
No Ferguson in that list. Rep. Smith serves Monmouth County, but both Reps. Saxton and Frelinghuysen were working for the good of New Jersey. Rep. Relinghuysen has a district much farther north and farther away from Monmouth than Ferguson.
Where was Mike?
Mike Ferguson raised more than $300,000 between April 1 and June 30, 2005 and has more than $600,000 on hand. There's more coming in every day, including another $5,000 from Tom DeLay .
We need your help to level the playing field. We're holding a fundraiser on August 29, 2005 at 6:30 p.m. during the Somerset Patriots vs. the Long Island Ducks game at Bridgewater's Commerce Bank Ballpark. We're reserved the Executive Deck for the evening. Available online, Tickets are $100, and sponsorships are available at $500 (Host), $1000 (Patron) and $2500 Sponsor).
The Executive Deck is all ours, and you will get to meet Mayor Joe Tricarico who is exploring a run for Congress. The menu is pretty good, too! Hamburgers, chicken, pasta, tossed salad, rice, steamed potatoes, desert, soft drinks, coffee and cash bar beer!
You can buy tickets or pay for a sponsorship online , or download our flyer and mail in a check with the attached form.
Mike Ferguson is already at least $600,000 ahead of us. You can help us make up for that by contributing online today and/or attending our ballpark fundraiser.
Please RSVP to picnic@blue7th.com.
Monday August 29th, 6 P.M.. Tickets can be purchased on site or onlinehere . Contact picnic@blue7th.com orcall (908) 561-6387 for more information on this and future Blue 7th PAC events.
Welcome to all our visitors from Pandagon. We hope you'll wander around the site a little bit and check out the votes and positions of our least favorite member or Congress, Mike Ferguson (R-NJ7).
And, if you are amenable, a small contribution $25 or so to help our efforts would be surely appreciated!
Two years after Mike Ferguson was sent to Washington he was caught up in a mini-scandal with a young woman in a Georgetown bar. PoliticsNJ today has a picture and a summary of the story.
Nestled in the city's tony Georgetown section, the Rhino Bar and Pumphouse is, to judge from some of its clientele, the kind of college hangout that even a generally undiscriminating undergrad might take a pass on. And yet there is apparently something of an allure to this dive bar with a funny name. It is, for instance, the very place where in 2003 Michael Ferguson, a New Jersey congressman and father of four, felt plenty at home sidling up to a 21-year-old Georgetown co-ed and offering her his congressional pin as an inducement to join him for a drink. At least that's what the object of his advance claimed; Ferguson denied it. But he never denied being in the Pumphouse.
Of course, we have the whole story.
Please follow this link to directions for today's picnic at Deer Path Park in Readington, NJ.
In 2001, Congressman Mike Ferguson received a contribution of $1000 from Jack Abramoff. Mr. Abramoff has since been at the center of a storm of corruption allegations, resulting in his recent indictment in a casino boat scandal that includes mob hits and illegal payments.
Two other Republican members of Congress from New Jersey also received a thousand dollars from Mr. Abramoff: Reps. Frank LoBiondo and Jim Saxton. Each has decided to give the money back rather than be tainted with potentially dirty campaign contributions.
But not Congressman Ferguson. He's going to keep the cash.
Two other New Jersey politicians and the New Jersey Republican State Committee also received contributions from Abramoff since 2000.Republican Rep. Mike Ferguson is not going to give back the $1,000 he received in 2001, according to his spokeswoman Abby Bird.
Rep. Ferguson is no stranger to campaign finance scandals. He himself is the recipient of the largest fine in Federal Election Commission history for using illegal campaign contributions.
Rep. Ferguson is also the largest recipient of campaign cash from Congressman Tom DeLay, a "close friend" of Abramoff's. Rep. DeLay's leadership PAC, known as ARM PAC, was recently caught by the FEC for illegally using $203,000 in "soft dollars" for administrative costs.
Rep. Ferguson has also stated that he has no intention of giving back that money, either.
You can call on Congressman Ferguson to return the $1000 contribution from Jack Abramoff by contacting his office at 908-757-7835 or using his website contact form.
You can also make your feelings known by writing letters to the editor to local and regional papers: the Courier News at letters@c-n.com, the Home News Tribune at letters@thnt.com, the Star Ledger at eletters@starledger.com, or the New York Times at letters@nytimes.com.
Another option is to write on message boards on the Internet. You can pick them by county or by town and write what your Congressman is doing.
Today at the Somerset County 4H Fair Senator Jon Corzine will be at the Somerset County Democrats tent (near the food tent) at 5:15 p.m. (August 18, 2005) and be walking the fair until a little after 6 p.m. Everyone is invited to come out and meet our next Governor -- and be sure to wear your Dump Mike pins!
Speaking of Dump Mike pins, a commenter on the Dump Mike site named Kathy tells me that she saw someone on 20/20 being interviewed at a museum. That is very cool! If you were wearing your pin and got interviewed by 20/20 please drop me a line.
Last, as you know we have two fundraisers coming up. The picnic is $15 and the ballpark event is $100 (with sponsorships at $500, $1000 and $2500). Please puchase tickets online or RSVP if you are coming to these events to picnic@blue7th.com . There are only 100 tickets available to the ballpark event and you get food, fun and friendship -- plus a ballgame!
How does Mike Ferguson get enough money to fun for Congress? Send an e-mail invitation to your lobbyist buddies for a quick game of golf:
[Roll Call, 8/8/2005] The early August inbox of one male GOP lobbyist reads like a Saturday afternoon network TV lineup. There's the invitation to the 12th Annual Burns Classic on Sept. 10 in Montana to benefit Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.). And one for the 4th Annual Pence Open Golf Outing in Indiana for Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.). Another offers lobbyists and other donors a chance to play a round at Trump National Golf Club in New Jersey to benefit Mike Ferguson (R-N.J.), followed by a day at the 87th PGA Championship in Springfield, N.J. All the events come with price tags of $1,000 or more per individual.Between charity events, fundraisers for Members or PACs, the networking opportunities golf provides are tremendous. Given that 18 holes of golf can take more than four hours to play, snagging a spot in a well-connected foursome can offer some quality face time.
How many constituents from New Jersey's 7th Congressional District get a chance to go 18 holes with Congressman Ferguson?
UPDATE: Turns out this is not the first time this year Congressman Ferguson has charged a couple grand for personal face time. Last time, though, folks weren't sure when to show up.
D.C. lobbyists Wayne Valis and Matt Keelen of Valis Associates sent over an invite to a "golf outing" in honor of Rep. Mike Ferguson (R-N.J.), who's being honored for some reason. It's at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club and will cost only $1,000 for an individual and $2,000 for a PAC.Tee time is 9 a.m. Monday, April 19, the e-mail and the invitation say. But Monday is the 18th, or, alternatively, Tuesday is the 19th. Well, just send a check and they'll doubtless clarify.
Thanks to reader PM for the tip.
Come enjoy camaraderie, volleyball, games, and the park itself with a playground, fishing pond, ball fields, fitness and walking trails, etc. Saturday August 20 th , 4 P.M. until dark. etc. We'll be bringing the picnic basics, but are also asking people to bring hot dogs, hamburgers, buns, chips, salad, soda or anything else they like. 23rd District Assembly Candidate Janice Kovach will attend!
Please RSVP to picnic@blue7th.com. Saturday August 20th, 4 P.M. until dark. Tickets can be purchased on site or online here . Contact picnic@blue7th.com or call (908) 561-6387 for more information on this and future Blue 7th PAC events.
Mike Ferguson is no stranger to big Federal Election Commission fines, being the recipient of the largest FEC fine in history for illegally using half a million dollars of his parent's money to 2000. He was fined a record $210,000 by the federal government.
Rep. Ferguson is also the number one recipient of money from Tom DeLay's leadership political action committee known as ARM PAC. Including another $5,000 received on June 30, 2005 the Ferguson campaign accounts have taken in $46,500 from Tom DeLay.
Now we find out that ARM PAC is itself in a bit of hot water from the FEC, illegally using $203,000 in "soft dollars" for administrative costs.
A political action committee run by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, broke election law by paying expenses from the wrong account, an audit by the Federal Election Commission has found.By doing so, Americans for a Republican Majority, or ARMPAC, effectively increased the amount of money it could spend on congressional campaigns in 2002.
It should have paid $203,000 in administrative expenses for 2001-02 with money designated for federal campaigns, known as hard money, rather than with other, soft-money funds that it actually tapped, according to the audit.
According to FEC records Rep. Ferguson received from ARM PAC four contributions totalling $18,500 between May 9, 2001 and April 26, 2002. These contributions were all made in the 2002 election cycle.
Want to have a chance to speak one-on-one with Mike Ferguson this weekend? All it'll take is $2,000 and some golf tips.
As the world's top players compete at the Baltusrol Golf Club for the PGA Championship in Springfield, donors paying $2,000 each will tee off at nearby Trump National Golf Course with a local congressman, Mike Ferguson, then get a day to see the pros.Ferguson, 35, a Republican whose district includes both courses, plans to spend much of Aug. 12 near Baltusrol's signature over-the-water, 200-yard, par-3 fourth hole.
"The sports world will be focused on our district," he says. So will a lot of Washington lobbyists and executives: About a dozen contributors will join him at the fourth hole. [snip]
Campaign-finance watchdogs say the events are paid for with funds raised from companies that have issues before Congress and give executives and lobbyists access to lawmakers that's not available to ordinary voters.
"This system makes it an unfair playing field for citizens," says Alex Knott, political editor of the nonpartisan, Washington-based Center for Public Integrity. "They are going to remember before they vote the fun time they had at their weekend extravaganza," he said of the lawmakers. "They may not remember one scrap of constituent mail."
Mike Ferguson raised more than $300,000 between April 1 and June 30, 2005 and has more than $600,000 on hand. There's more coming in every day, including another $5,000 from Tom DeLay.
We need your help to level the playing field. We're holding a fundraiser on August 29, 2005 at 6:30 p.m. during the Somerset Patriots vs. the Long Island Ducks game at Bridgewater's Commerce Bank Ballpark. We're reserved the Executive Deck for the evening. Tickets are $100, and sponsorships are available at $500 (Host), $1000 (Patron) and $2500 (Sponsor).
You can buy tickets or pay for a sponsorship online, or download our flyer and mail in a check with the attached form.
Mike Ferguson is already at least $600,000 ahead of us. You can help us make up for that by contributing online today and/or attending our ballpark fundraiser.
Mike Ferguson has received more than $40,000 directly from Tom DeLay or his PAC. That makes Congressman Ferguson the number one congressional recipient of money from Tom DeLay. If you look at money associated with Tom DeLay, including former employees and fundraisers organized by DeLay, that total reaches beyond $184,000.
Since Tom DeLay is under an ethical cloud, many people (including the Blue 7th PAC), have questioned the ethics of accepting the money.
In response to questions in both public and private, Rep. Ferguson has maintained that he ses no ethical issue. He is not, he said, beholden to anyone who contributes to his campaigns. Instead, he says, these people are buying into his philosophy.
If Mr. Ferguson believes that contributors to campaigns are buying into the candidate's philosophy, then he must agree that when he makes contributions to another person's campaign he is buying into their philosophy.
On June 30, 2005 Congressman Michael Ferguson's leadership political action committee, MIKE PAC, contributed $1,000 to Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum's campaign. As such, Rep. Ferguson is asserting that he is buying into Sen. Santorum's philosophy.
That would include this gem that Rep. Ferguson has yet to disavow:
Senator Santorum has recently been in the news for reaffirming what he wrote on the website Catholic Online in 2002 regarding the priest abuse scandal:Priests, like all of us, are affected by culture. When the culture is sick, every element in it becomes infected. While it is no excuse for this scandal, it is no surprise that Boston, a seat of academic, political and cultural liberalism in America, lies at the center of the storm.Through a spokesman, Senator Santorum recently repeated this claim that "cultural liberalism" is to blame for the church sex scandal.
Senator Santorum also suggests that Americans do not have a Consitutionally gauranteed right to privacy that has been repeatedly upheld by the Supreme Court. In fact, Senator Santorum suggests he would like to eliminate that right.
this right to privacy that doesn't exist in my opinion in the United States Constitution [snip] The right to privacy is a right that was created in a law that set forth a (ban on) rights to limit individual passions. And I don't agree with that. So I would make the argument that with President, or Senator or Congressman or whoever Santorum, I would put it back to where it is, the democratic process.
Please call Rep. Ferguson's office at 908-757-7835 and ask his staffers if the Congressman stands by Senator Santorum's comments. You can also write to Rep. Ferguson on his website e-mail form.
Another avenue is to send letters to the editor talking about the divisive and insulting comments made by Senator Santorum. Local and regional newspapers are as follows: the Courier News at letters@c-n.com, the Home News Tribune at letters@thnt.com, the Star Ledger at eletters@starledger.com, or the New York Times at letters@nytimes.com.
In the weeks after Mike Ferguson voted against allowing federal dollars to be spent for embryonic stem cell research on May 25, 2005, the Congressman's leadership PAC accepted $15,000 from companies engaged in embryonic stem cell research.
You could call that a principled stand, except that Congressman Ferguson called embryonic stem cell research "unethical" the "destruction of human life."
Congressman Ferguson also considers abortion unethical, immoral and the destruction of a human life, but would not taken contributions from abortion providers.
If his stand on embryonic stem cells was really that principled, he would refuse to accept money from companies engaged in such research.
Or maybe he is just playing to his pro-life base.
A funny exchange happened in a House Energy and Commerce Commitee meeting back on July 19th that I thought I'd share.
DEAL: Thank you.Mr. Ferguson?
FERGUSON: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Dr. Zerhouni, I apologize. I've been in and out, as I know a number of other members have been, so I may missed this. You have addressed...
DEAL: No, we've all been here.
FERGUSON: Yes?
DEAL: We've all been here.
FERGUSON: You, Mr. Chairman, I know have been here.
I talked a little bit about -- you've referred to the 27 fingers, you need the palm.
It's obviously not a big deal, but it is indicative of the character of Congressman Ferguson. The fact that he repeatedly left a hearing is small potatoes, because he may have had important business.
But the response to the Chair, Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA), by Rep. Ferguson shows an almost petulance. He tried to pass off his absence as being the norm, and Rep. Deal informed him that he was the only one who was coming and going from the committee meeting.
Ferguson then ignores that point and tries to ingratiate himself to the chair, recognizing that he was there the whole time but still ignoring the fact that he was the only one to come and go. He simply ignored the rebuke and tried to spin the situation to his favor.
It is similar behavior to one evening a few years ago in a Georgetown bar ...
This is Congressman Mike Ferguson's response to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's decision to support federal funding for embryonic stem cell research:
FERGUSON: I'm Mike Ferguson from New Jersey. I serve as the vice chairman of the Health Subcommittee on the Energy and Commerce Committee. We have jurisdiction over NIH among other health care entities.And I have a lot of biotech and health care research that goes on in my district and in our state. And I can tell you that all of the biotech folks that I've met with and spoken with in our district, they seem to be using their own private money, their investments in research other than embryonic stem cell research.
And I asked them, "Why are you investing in placenta stem cells and cord blood and adult stem cells? Why aren't you doing embryonic stem cell research?" They say, "We have shareholders to answer to. We can't justify to them."
These are folks that are not necessarily encumbered by the ethical dilemmas that some of us grapple with all the time. These are folks who answer to shareholders. And they say, "We can't possibly justify to our shareholders to invest their money in science which is so unpromising when there are other such promising alternatives like cord blood, like adult stem cells, like placental cells."
I can tell you, like everyone of you, I'm an adult male standing here today. Before I was an adult, I was a young man. And I was a teenager before that. I was a child before that. Before that I was a toddler. Before that I was an infant. Before that I was a fetus. And sometime before that I was a human embryo, just like every person in this room, just like every person in this country, just like every person around the world. We were all once human embryos.
And one fact which is inescapable, and which Senator Frist himself even acknowledged in his statement, that a human embryo is human life. It may look different than I look today, it may look different than your child, it may look different from a newborn or from a fetus, but there's no way to escape the fact that a human embryo is human life.
And to do embryonic stem cell research you must destroy human life.
When Americans understand that fact, they do not support using their taxpayer money to fund research which destroys human life.
Mr. Ferguson should ask himself why he is taking more than $100,000 from companies engaged in embryonic stem cell research for his campaigns.
Or you can ask him. call Rep. Ferguson's office at 908-757-7835 and ask his staffers if the Congressman will return the embryonic stem cell researcher's money or if he will begin supporting embryonic stem cell research. You can also write to Rep. Ferguson on his website e-mail form. Send whatever answer you get to dumpmike@gmail.com.
Another avenue is to send letters to the editor. Local and regional newspapers are as follows: the Courier News at letters@c-n.com, the Home News Tribune at letters@thnt.com, the Star Ledger at eletters@starledger.com, or the New York Times at letters@nytimes.com.
Blue 7th PAC -- parent organization of the Dump Mike Ferguson Project -- is holding a barbeque picnic fund raiser on August 6th at the Watchung Reservation in Mountainside. The gathering will be at the Oak Grove picnic area at the loop above Surprise Lake. Admission is $15 for adults with free for kids under age 18. Come enjoy camaraderie, volleyball, games, and the park itself with a playground, hiking trails, etc.
We'll be bringing the picnic basics, but are also asking people to bring hot dogs, hamburgers, buns, chips, salad, soda or anything else they like. If you would like beer, you have to bring it. Please RSVP to picnic@blue7th.com.
Saturday August 6th, 4 P.M. until dark. Tickets can be purchased on site or online here . Contact picnic@blue7th.com or call (908) 561-6387 for more information on this and future Blue 7th PAC events.
A lot of people think that New Jersey's 7th District is hard to win, but Ohio's 2nd District is even worse. It's been decades since a Democrat even came close there.
But we here in NJ7 can take heart becasue Paul Hackett is making a race of it. The Republican Congressman who was representing OH2 was appointed a trade representative by President Bush, and so there will be a special election on Tuesday, August 2 to fill the seat.
Hackett is an attorney, a former Councilman in a town of less than 10,000 people and a Marine Reservist who volunteered to fight in Iraq even though he disagreed with the war. He was quoted recently saying, "I don't like the S.O.B. in the White House, but I would die for him."
Amazingly, the polls are saying that he is running close, and his opponent -- State Senator Jean Schmidt -- is making mistake after mistake. She is tied to Tom DeLay just like Mike Ferguson, and is tied to state corruption in Ohio. Today she was caught lying about it on the television just like we caught Mike Ferguson last week.
The Republican National Campaign Committee is sending almost a half million dollars into this district to protect Schmidt and attack Hackett, a half million they will not be able to spend in districts we can compete in. So even if Hackett doesn't win he has made a difference, and has set himself up to run again in 2006.
If you want to support Paul Hackett, you can donate through Act Blue or volunteer to make phone calls from right here in NJ.
OH2 is proof that a district that goes for Bush is still in competition. Bush won OH2 with more than 65 percent of the vote, and just a little over 50 percent here.
Paul Hackett's campaign is proof that we can make NJ-7 competetive. Now we just have to do the hard work!
Don't forget that we have our first fundraising picnic next Saturday, and it costs just $15 a head. You can buy tickets online, or call 908-561-6387 to find out how to get tickets.
