Dump Mike Ferguson (NJ7)

Last week we noted that Mike Ferguson admitted he was not free to vote his conscience in the Republican led Congress, choosing his political bosses over his constituents. The following letter on the subject was published in the Home News Tribune on March 3, 2007:

Ferguson represents GOP, not constituents

In representative government, the republic depends upon the representatives actually representing their constituents.

Voting should be in the best interests of the voters. Were this not to be the case, voters must cast out the offending representative.

Rep. Michael Ferguson, R-7th Dist., has now admitted that he votes as he is told to, not as should to honor the best interests of his district. No "Profile in Courage" he. Ferguson does as he is told and has a moderate district firmly in the conservative camp, because he feels more of a responsibility to the GOP than to New Jersey.

I think it is time for careful observation, which should lead to sober decision-making in 2008.

Leonard H. Sigal
BELLE MEAD

Posted by admin at 02:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here is a description of Deb Huber's meeting with Mike Ferguson at last week's Open House:

Yes, I got my 5 minutes with Mike and Marcus.

I said my top issue is PEACE. I said we had long ago lost the hearts and minds of the people of Iraq. Thus, the war is lost. I complained that the $2B per week for war is bankrupting the country. I said China holds so much of our debt that we can't afford to criticize anything they do. I commented that it seemed that only impeachment would stop Bush from bombing Iran back to the stone age. I said I thought Mike had misrepresented his view of the surge; recent news reports in Hunterdon papers said he was not convinced the surge would work. In one story he said he had not yet seen the text of the anti-surge resolution, so he couldn't say how he would vote on it. After reading this, I heard Mike on the WBAI evening news, saying he supported the surge, and would vote against the anti-surge resolution.

So Mike replied that even Pelosi does not support impeachment. He said he had not given up hope for success in Iraq. He took offense at my accusation of misrepresentation of his views. He tried to say what an upstanding guy he is.

So I told him that last fall his campaign workers trashed the political signs on my property and put up a Ferguson sign.

He said he has no control over his campaign workers.

So much for my 5 minutes.

After we shook hands, I went to the rest room and washed my hands with soap. Then I joined the protest outside, where my blue peace flags greatly enhanced the visibility of the protest. The wind made it a great day for flags; lousy for signs.

Mike followed up by sending me a letter which includes the complete text of his pro-surge speech.

My favorites in this are that Ferguson took offense (!) that someone noted his flip-flopping on the surge, and that he has no control over his campaign workers. Ferguson doesn't have to have control over them but he does have to take responsibility for them, not something he is very good at.

Posted by admin at 07:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Congressional Quarterly noted that there were only 15 races nationally that were within five points this year, and the Linda Stender/Mike Ferguson squeaker in NJ7 is one of them. Their analysis decides to mention Emily's List support while completely ignoring Blue 7th PAC (and this blog, Dump Mike), Democracy for America (and the great NJ for Democracy and Hunterdon for Democracy), and the Netroots that combined to raise far more than $100,000 and provided the bulk of volunteers for the campaign.

It also notes the frustrating fact that Ferguson's support from the national Republican party organs (RNC, NRCC, Tom DeLay Inc., etc.) was far better than Stender's support from the national Democratic party organs (DNC, DCCC) to the tune of a million dollars. Some losing Democratic campaigns saw three or more million dollars kicked in by the DCCC, and just a piece of that would have gotten Stender another 1.5 percent of the vote.

We need to raise money early (contribute to Blue 7th here) and put pressure on the national Democratic party to get involved here in NJ7 early and often. Our -- and I mean all the grassroots groups and Linda's campaign -- efforts for the 2006 race proved that we are close to turning over this district. Now the national groups need to step up and get more involved.

Continue reading "Congressional Quarterly on NJ7" »

Posted by admin at 03:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As we've noted before, Rep. Mike Ferguson claimed a lot of successes in the 2006 campaign that were either very minor or not true at all. The most egregious of these was the claim that he had moved mercury out of Hillsborough which is still there today and isn't going anywhere.

Repeatedly newspapers covered this claim, simply transcribing Ferguson's claim without every fact checking it or bothering to note that the mercury was still there. It is this kind of reporting that allows a do-nothing Congressman and back bencher to spin the facts and confuse voters.

Linda Stender only lost the election by 3,200 votes, and it is easily possible that had the Courier News been more critical in its reporting that people would have known of Ferguson's slight record on helping the district (for instance, noting that the funding for the Green Brook Flood Control Project was less than 2 percent of what is needed) that 1601 people might have changed their votes. That is why we must be strident in contacting editors and reporters over the next two years when they simply repeat Ferguson's words instead of reporting the facts.

And it is not as if the Courier News didn't know about the problems with Ferguson's mercury claim. They only decided to talk about it, though, a month after the election in this opinion piece from today:

Hillsborough officials remain confident that the mercury supplies at the GSA Depot will be shipped out of town in the near future. But some obstacles remain, primarily the opposition of the governor of the state where the mercury is headed.

Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn has vowed to fight plans to consolidate the Defense National Stockpile Center's mercury supplies now housed in three facilities -- Hillsborough, Warren, Ohio, and New Haven, Ind. -- to a U.S. Army depot in his state. Guinn has raised fears about potential contamination of nearby Walker Lake.

We can understand Hillsborough officials being a little troubled by the prospect of Nevada blocking the mercury removal. Mayor Carl Suraci said recently that he doesn't believe that Walker Lake is threatened and that objections from Nevada are unfounded.

Suraci may well be right. But if the situation were reversed and Suraci's community was on the receiving end of the mercury, it's a good bet he wouldn't be quite so cavalier about a potential threat -- regardless of how "unfounded" it might be.

The mercury needs to be moved from Hillsborough. But that doesn't mean that anyone else -- including Nevada -- particularly wants it, even if it's someplace "safer" than Hillsborough. It's one thing for Suraci to express confidence that the plans will go through. But he shouldn't be such a critic of the objections from the other side of the country. A miss for Suraci.

For the record, these elected officials from Hillsborough crying foul about the Mercury are all Republicans and all backed Ferguson's claims during the election. Had this information been reported by the Courier News back in October we might very well have a woman representing us in Congress.

We can't let it happen again in 2008.

Posted by admin at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Dear Friend,

Well, Linda Stender came really close last night to pulling off a huge upset but in the end the gerrymandered district was just too much to overcome. I am sure everyone is disappointed at the results, but we should know that we made a huge difference. Mike Ferguson won in 2004 with 58 percent of the vote, and he didn't even get to 50 percent this time.

That's right. Ferguson doesn't even have the support of half the voters in NJ7 anymore.

You should also be very proud of yourselves, and what we did together as Blue 7th over the past 20 months. We collected our energy, our money, our intelligence and our effort into one big pot and made a huge unexpected change in NJ7. It was an honor to help direct that effort.

I wanted to share with you some of the results we accomplished, so you can see what happens when we each contribute something instead of expecting someone else to do everything.

Blue 7th spent 20 months of consistent, honest and aggressive work in telling the voters who their Congressman was and how he voted when in DC. We used the Internet, mailings, personal contact, historical research, letters-to-the-editor, road signs, voter registration, street fairs, GOTV and freeway blogging to get the message out. We contributed $5000 to Linda Stender and we raised another $6000, including $3000 in less than 48 hours this week when she made an emergency appeal. We spent more than $5000 on direct mailings and signs and other means of educating voters.

We were sponsors in fundraisers that brought in more than $10,000 more. And our blog – Dump Mike – was cited along with the excellent Blue Jersey as the reason why Stender received the "Netroots Candidates" endorsement which raised another $50,000.

Not bad for a group of grassroots folks in a Republican Congressional district just trying to make a difference. And we did. Linda came within two points of defeating a three term Congressman in a hard district. The national Republicans had to send resources to NJ7 instead of taking them out, which helped Democrats win in other areas.

Our efforts also brought many new voters to the Democratic line, and that helped local tickets win. I can personally say that our efforts at GOTV likely put our fourth Council candidate over the top in North Plainfield and gave use a 100 percent Democratic borough. Other towns like Flemington, South Bound Brook and Roselle Park benefited from our efforts as well.

Together we proved that ordinary people working together, pooling their resources and contributing just a little bit can make a huge difference in a hard race.

You proved that.

In the coming weeks there will be conversations about the directions Blue 7th will take in the future as we assess the new political climate and the best way to achieve our goals.

But today is a day to reflect on what we accomplished together in the past 20 months, and to be proud of that effort.

Thank you,

Nathan Rudy
Chair, Blue 7th PAC
Council President, North Plainfield, NJ

Posted by admin at 12:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Well, I just cast my vote for Linda Stender and Bob Menendez and my local ticket. Maureen, Kendy and I went down to East End School in North Plainfield where voters from at least six of our voting districts cast their ballots.

So imagine my surprise when at 8:30 a.m. there was not a single parking space, and a few cars were parked illegally. "This is great," I said to Maureen. "Big turnout in North Plainfield is a great sign."

Maureen didn't see it this way. "I thought school wasn't in session." She's always been smarter than me, realizing that these were not voters but teachers taking up all the spaces.

It turns out that while school is not in session, the North Plainfield School System decided to hold teachers' meetings on election day. The teachers took up every single space and voters will be unable to find a spot until the meetings are over in the afternoon.

My worry is that, in a Democratic area of a Democratic town people will get frustrated trying to park and just go home. Or back to work if they were voting on their lunch hour.

So what did I do? I called the Stender campaign office at 908-322-1996 to report the irregularity to see if they could fix it. Hopefully they will.

It's very important that if you see any impediment to voting that you do the same thing. We need our folks to have access to the polls if we are going to win.

Here's a picture of Kendy and Maureen at the polls. Kendy is really making a happy face, though it looks like she is screaming. :-)

Posted by admin at 09:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Mike Ferguson, the three term Congressman from NJ7, appears to have little real support in the 7th district. He set up a bus tour for the weekend and advertised it to supporters, asking them to come to the "rallies" and show the incredible support he has. His Saturday "rallies" included a stop in Roselle Park with four supporters, three in Cranford and rolling right past the supporters – including kids standing in a six lane highway with Ferguson signs -- in Scotch Plains.

Remember -- Linda Stender needs to raise $12,000 to complete their expanded Get Out The Vote program for election day. Help out by contributing today!

Ferguson must have hoped that Sunday in mostly Republican Somerset County would be an improvement, but our friend Goldberry from Hillsborough shows that it was just as bad. Ferguson's "supporters" included two people, while there were at least 15 people supporting local Democrats and Linda Stender. Ferguson's bus stopped, but no one got off, and then it just kept going. Hillsborough is, by the way, a town with only one Democrat on the town Council so it should be Ferguson territory – except that he has no real support anywhere. Here are the pics:

Here are the two (2) Ferguson supporters waiting for the bus and a chance to see their Congressman. They were disappointed since he wouldn't even get off the bus.

Continue reading "Ferguson's Failure To Get Any Support" »

Posted by admin at 06:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

UPDATE 3:45 p.m.: Blue 7th PAC member have raised $1823.04 and the Stender campaign is getting closer to it's goal of $12000. If you haven't contributed, please consider doing so today.

UPDATE: As of 1:40 p.m. we've raised $1470.03 through Blue 7th PAC, and the campaign is halfway to it's goal of $12000. If you haven't contributed, please consider doing so today.

We just got an emergency request from Linda Stender's campaign office for more money. They're putting together a huge GOTV and voter contact push through election day, and have had so much success that they blew through their budget! This is GREAT news.

They need to raise at least $12,000 TODAY, so please contribute whatever you can online!

The more we raise, the more volunteers they can get in the field contacting Linda's supporters and getting them to the polls. Anything extra they raise will be used to buy more air time for the very effective radio and TV ads they've been running.

Your $25, $50, $100, $500 or $1000 could mean the difference between a victory or a loss on Tuesday! Please contribute whatever you can right now!

In 2000, Rush Holt won reelection by fewer than 500 votes. This election could be that close. Every dollar means more voter contact, more people on our side, and more people actually going to the polls and voting for Linda.

If everyone on this list gives $25 we will double what they need to get their voter contact and GOTV efforts done, so please be generous! Please contribute whatever you can right now!

PLEASE don't feel bad if you don't have the money to give, however. Many of us are unable to give at this time and that is OK. We all have different ways we can work to make a difference! Forward this request to your friends, family no matter where they live.

And, remember, volunteers are still wanted and needed. Call 908-322-1996.

Thank you so much for everything all of you have done this past two years of Blue 7th PAC. We are in the last few days of a two year project to turn the 7th District Blue after years of languishing in Red territory. I've been honored and privileged to work with all of you.

Posted by admin at 09:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday we had some fun showing what a pathetic bus tour Mike Ferguson (R-NJ7) is having as he tries to rally support for his campaign. With fewer than a half dozen people showing up to his events, we had a good time posting pictures here and on other sites. The following pictures are not as much fun, as it shows the lack of thought in Ferguson's campaign towards kids.

When their rallies started fizzling yesterday, apparently the Ferguson campaign started sending people to scheduled locations ahead of the bus so that there would be no more bad pictures. At the Scotchwood Diner in Scotch Plains, NJ, a crowd of adults and children showed up to wave Ferguson for Congress signs at the passing cars on Route 22.. The diner is right next to Linda Stender's office, and they got the following pictures of kids on the edge of the six lane highway and one even in the road.

The owner of the diner actually had to come out and tell them to move back to a safe position, because the parents and other adults didn't have the sense to do it themselves. Interestingly, Ferguson's bus just drove by and didn't stop at the Scotchwood at all. Here are the pics:

You can see a few adults and a lot of kids here in the sidewalk just past the on-ramp to Route 22 from an overpass. The kids are the closest to the highway, while the adults are hanging back a little.

Continue reading "Ferguson Skips Diner, Supporter's Kids In the Road" »

Posted by admin at 08:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

UPDATE: Ferguson's visit to Cranford was the same -- few people other than the staffers.  And we've got the Cranford pics!

Last week in NJ7 there was a debate between incumbent Mike Ferguson (R) and Assemblywoman Linda Stender (D), and the crowd was manifestly pro-Stender by the end of the debate. Ferguson's people tried to play this off as Stender's campaign "coaching" the crowd, but the fact was that it was an open room and Stender got her supporters out. Mike didn't, and we suggested at the time that it was because he didn't have that many serious supporters to come out and back him.

Now we have more evidence. Earlier today we got ahold of Ferguson's weekend schedule for his "bus tour" and sent it out to our list and put it on Dump Mike, Daily Kos and Blue Jersey. We asked folks to go out to these "rallies" and get us photographic evidence of the incredible support Ferguson enjoys in the district.

Blue 7th member Steve J. went to what was billed as a "Rally in Roselle Park" at 11 a.m. this morning and got some great pics. They are after the jump, but essentially they show that all of four Ferguson supporters were waiting to greet his bus, and about a dozen staff from the campaign rolled off the bus. The paid employees of the campaign far outnumbers the grassroots supporters for Ferguson. Anyway, here are the pics, which you can click to see the larger images in all their glory.

Here is the crowd of four supporters waiting for Mike Ferguson's bus to arrive. Steve J. wrote, "I had a hard time hiding in the huge crowd."

Continue reading "Three Terms, Four Supporters. Pathetic." »

Posted by admin at 01:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After six years of hiding and jiving, Mike Ferguson is finally sending out a public schedule of where he's going to be.  AND YOU CAN BE THERE TOO!

We have his bus schedule for through election day, and it is extensive since he is afraid he might lose his seat.  But you can show him -- just like in this video from the debate! -- that the voters are just not with him.

PLEASE GET PICTURES OF THE RALLIES.  Especially the ones with sparse attendance.  Send them to nathanrudy@gmail.com and we'll post the best ones.  Cell phone pictures are fine.  Video of his talks is good, too, especially when he is lying. 

The full schedule is after the jump. When we can find them, we've provided links to Google Maps.  Sometimes the maps aren't perfectly accurate and you'll have to drive up and down the street to find the "rally".

Continue reading "Where's Mike? We Know This Weekend!" »

Posted by admin at 09:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Michael J. Fox endorsed Linda Stender yesterday, and called her a visionary for her long-time support of all forms of stem cell research. According to Fox he sought out Stender, not the other way around, for her strong efforts on behalf of finding cures.

Michael J. Fox endorsed the candidacy of District 7 Congressional candidate Linda Stender, D-Fanwood, citing her full support for research on both adult and embryonic stem cells.

"She's made it central to her campaign; she's very outspoken and very clear and wholehearted in her support," Fox said. "She's a real visionary, and we really are happy to have her on our side."

Stender thanked him and said she admires him as "an American hero."

"You, in the face of personal adversity and challenging circumstances, have been fighting for the greater good, and for offering hope for a cure, and for moving us forward," she told Fox in the conference call.

Fox, who runs The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, does not always endorse Democrats -- he endorsed Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., in 2004 -- but he approached Stender because of her record and was not paid for his endorsement in any way, he said.

"What I was looking for was races where it was real clear-cut, where you had a pro-embryonic-stem-cell candidate, and in the case of Linda, you couldn't get a better definition of one," Fox said.

Continue reading "Michael J. Fox Calls Linda Stender A "Visionary"" »

Posted by admin at 06:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, I got verification from a friend at DCCC that they sent at least two mailings into NJ7. Chris Clizza of the Washington Post confirms it at well.

The first I have not seen but is commonly known as the "diaper" mailing, which I would like to see.

The second is called "Titanic," and you can download it in PDF because my graphics software won't allow me to convert it to a graphic file.

The front is the sinking Titanic superliner, and has the words, "Would you re-hire the captain of the Titanic?" The back is an unflattering pic of Ferguson with some of the lowlights of his past few years in the House.

Posted by admin at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following clip is just one half of Mike Ferguson's opening statement from Sunday's debate. Every example of his "accomplishments" was intended to inflate or exaggerate his support for the district.

It's really kind of sad.

Call 908-322-1996 to assist Linda Stender, or contribute some needed GOTV money online.

Posted by admin at 06:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I don't know what this means, or how much in the way of resources they're sending to us, but Daily Kos reports that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is actually coming into NJ7 at the end of an election. They must think there's something winnable here, 'cause they don't send anything anywhere they don't think they can win.

Update II: The full list of late-breaking races in which the DCCC will air ads, send direct mail, and/or help out in other ways:
     WA-05 KY-02 NV-03
     PA-04 IL-10 NE-03
     FL-16 NY-26 NJ-07
     MN-01 NV-02 KY-03
     NY-25 NH-02 KS-02
     CA-11

You can help out to, by contributing a little scratch or calling the Stender for Congress campaign at 908-322-1996 to volunteer for one or more of the next 8 days until the election is over.

Posted by admin at 08:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Someone says they heard Mike Ferguson after the event saying, "The Stender campaign had the audience coaxed."

No, Mike.  This is what happens when an event is open to the public and anyone can come.  It's not like when you controlled access to tickets to see the President last year, or any of your other events where you hide behind supporters.

And nobody can coax that spontaneous laugh (see video here) when you said you were independent.  This is actually how people feel.  And you are in trouble.

The whole closing statement from Linda will be up soon.

Posted by admin at 09:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Check out Ferguson getting laughed at in this clip, and compare the reaction of the audience to Ferguson's close and Stender's close to see who won the debate.

Posted by admin at 09:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following letter was published in the October 27, 2006 Courier News.

Ferguson bad for New Jersey

In the past six years, 87 percent of Rep. Mike Ferguson's voting record has been to take your rights away. Rights that our brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, aunts and uncles have shed blood or gave their life to uphold.

He does not go after projects that keep us safe. He does not take on projects that keep our elderly in their homes. He refused to help reform health care. He refuses to see advancements in medical sciences.

In short, Mike Ferguson is in Washington to improve his resume. He is not interested in your agenda. He is only interested in his own.

The ACLU, the Human Rights Campaign and New York Times all agree, and so do I. Mike Ferguson is not right for serving in office. Unseat Mike Ferguson.

RUSSELL ROGERS
Manville

Posted by admin at 01:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following letter was published in the October 27, 2006 Courier News.

Stender is correct choice for Congress

I'm amazed when I see the ads on TV in which residents of Bound Brook have been scripted in their praise of Congressman Ferguson's actions during Hurricane Floyd.

To set the record straight, Congressman Ferguson was not our congressman when Hurricane Floyd devastated Manville and Bound Brook. Our congressman was Bob Franks, and he, together with Freeholder Coyle and then-Gov. Whitman, visited the flooded areas and did what was necessary to get us the aid needed to help in the recovery. Congressman Ferguson did, however, deliver the check that Sen. Torricelli and Congressmen Franks and Frelinghuysen had secured for us during those terrible times.

To exploit that disaster is unconscionable. We in Manville have applied for many grants through the congressman and his staff -- we did not receive any. It seems we are too far south in the Seventh District to matter. Perhaps if more had been accomplished during Congressman Ferguson's term of office, he would not have to reach into Congressman Franks' record to claim fame for himself.

Congressman Ferguson's campaign against Democratic candidate Linda Stender has been a tough one -- full of accusations. What the congressman has forgotten is that you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time.

It's time to get some honest representation for all the people of the Seventh Congressional District. For this reason, I am casting my vote for Linda Stender, who is an independent thinker and is not going to rubber-stamp her vote as Congressman Ferguson does for whatever the president wants or what benefits his special-interest companies that pour thousands of dollars into his campaign.

The congressman is on the wrong side of the issues, from stem-cell research to sending our troops overseas without proper gear and with faulty equipment. His ad calls Linda Stender a spender, and yet, with his votes in Congress, he has created the largest deficit in the history of our nation. Who is the real spender?

Assemblywoman Stender is a good and caring person. A person who is on the right side of the issues, whether it is about stem-cell research, the war in Iraq, Social Security, prescription drugs for seniors, and the list goes on. The only special interest Linda will have when she is elected is her constituents in the Seventh District.

It is time for a change in our federal government's thinking, so join me in sending Linda Stender to Congress to be part of that change.

Vote for Linda Stender on Nov. 7. We deserve honest government, and it's about time we get it. Thank you.

ANGELO CORRADINO
Mayor, Manville

Posted by admin at 01:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Last week a letter to the editor ran from a 14 year old girl named Lindsey Rosenthal from Belle Mead. Lindsey has juvenile diabetes, and tried to talk with Mike Ferguson about supporting embryonic stem cell research to find a cure. Ferguson's staff would not let her, saying that "we cannot even discuss this issue with him because it is against 'pro life.'"

That's right. He refused to talk with a 14 year old girl about finding a cure for her lifelong disease. Well, Lindsey recorded a radio ad for Linda Stender, and you can listen to it right now.

After you listen, remember that Ferguson is the same man who told Tricia Riccio that her paralyzed son would never walk again and refused to discuss embryonic stem cell research with her as well. This race is about a lot of things, but one of the biggest is that Mike Ferguson wants to prevent Lindsey Rosenthal and Carl Riccio from receiving cures to their ailments because of a theory. When we vote him out, we bring these two young people hope and maybe a cure.

And after you get sufficiently steamed about this, be sure to donate as much as you can to Linda Stender so she can run this ad on the radio as many times as possible between now and election day. She needs your help today, tomorrow and next week.

If you don't have the money to give -- and many of us don't -- please call Linda's office at 908-322-1996 and sign up to volunteer for an afternoon. They're paying $125 if you work the weekend before election day and on election day itself, and there's plenty work for volunteers before that!

And be sure to contribute if you can. $5 means a lot when a thousand people give it. We've got 1450 people on our mailing list, and all of you at Dump Mike. Just a little from everyone is that many more times the ad from Lindsey can run.

Posted by admin at 01:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

The Newark Star Ledger today endorsed Assemblywoman Linda Stender in NJ7, dumping Mike Ferguson from their list.

Two years ago, we determined that incumbent Republican Mike Ferguson deserved re-election over a Democratic challenger who simply wasn't ready for Washington. That is not the case this time, with Democratic Assemblywoman Linda Stender providing a worthy alternative.

Posted by admin at 02:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I got a report from a Blue 7th member that the Ferguson for Congress signs in Warren Township were taken down last night and strewn around the grass and road. Our signs, Linda Stender's signs and others were left alone.

Frankly, that is not very cool. If we want the other side to respect our signs and leave them up then we have to do the same to theirs. If you are tempted to do something to the opposition's signs please do not do it.

Leaving aside the respect issue, this also ruins our counter-sign strategy of putting our message signs next to their signs, tying Ferguson to the Iraq War, privatizing Social Security and opposition to stem cell research. Taking down his signs sort of messes up that strategy.

If I had my way the only signs that go up would be on private property with the owner's permission, but as long as public rights of way are fair game then we should all respect each other's signs.

Posted by admin at 02:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Three articles popped up re: the 7th Congressional Race today.

• The New York Times endorsed Linda Stender : "Mr. Ferguson, who is regarded as a backbencher in the House, has in the past opposed some of the administration's efforts to backtrack on environmental protection, but he has shifted recently to a more compliant position. To his credit, he continues to support gun controls.

  "Over all, however, we consider Ms. Stender, a member of the New Jersey Assembly since 2002, as someone who would better stand up to the Bush administration for the district's best interests. She wins our endorsement."

• The Courier News ran a puff piece on Mike Ferguson, including outright lies the reporter didn't bother to fact check: "I have been a very strong proponent of a clean environment," he said. "I've opposed drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve. That's something that our Republican leadership and the president have been very strongly trying to encourage. I've opposed it every step of the way." Every step of the way except the four times he voted for drilling in ANWR . Letters to the editor are appropriate!
• The Courier News ran a nice piece on Linda Stender, as well, including this line from a 911 mother: Diane Horning of Scotch Plains lost her 26-year-old son, Matthew, when the first tower of the World Trade Center tower collapsed on Sept. 11, 2001. She believes his remains ended up in the Fresh Kills landfill in Staten Island, New York.

  Horning, with no money to hire an attorney to pursue the return of her son's remains, was approached by Stender with a plan to require the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to give Horning's family the chance to bury her son, Horning said.

  Their efforts were unsuccessful in New York, but thanks to Stender, a New Jersey law calls for a more dignified resolution to the cleanup -- which Horning calls "a scoop-and-dump operation."

  "When she sees an injustice, she works tirelessly to fix it," Horning said. "She's not confrontational. She can work with opposing entities in a reasonable way, in a measured way, without being confrontational, and looks for a solution that works for everyone. I don't see any hidden agendas with her. I really don't. I see her as one of the few people who really wants to be a public servant."

• Newsweek's Jonathan Alter wrote on the 7th District race: Neither candidate can afford broadcast TV time, but Ferguson, a 36-year-old Roman Catholic conservative with family money, will likely have twice as much cash on hand. Snail mail, the medium of choice in House races, gives him a chance to depict himself as a moderate, surrounded by children. Instead of defending his consistently pro-Bush voting record in Congress, he hammers Stender for her record in Trenton.

That's it for today! Be sure to donate to Linda Stender to help her beat Mike Ferguson this year!

Posted by admin at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wanna know why we haven't cured these diseases? Republicans like Mike Ferguson and Tom Kean Jr. block medical research needed to find the cures.

Posted by admin at 11:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The majority of Mike Ferguson's (R-NJ7) campaign to date has been to say, "Stender is a Spender, Stender is a Spender, Stender is a Spender" over and over and over again. His campaign manager, who we assume is actually Dr. Seuss, appears to instruct his candidate to run away from President Bush, never talk about embryonic stem cell research and for goodness sake avoid the hell out of talking about abortion, contraceptives and women's rights.

After a long night of hard work and consideration, Campaign Manager Seuss has come up with yet another way to distract the public from Ferguson's right wing record. And we have a photo!

So here's the contest -- come up with a Dr. Seuss rhyme for Ferguson to chant in the last two weeks of the election. Winner gets a Dump Mike Ferguson t-shirt!

[Contest is being run by Blue 7th PAC on Dump Mike, Daily Kos, MyDD and Blue Jersey.]

Posted by admin at 11:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following letter was published in the Home News Tribune on October 20, 2006:

Ferguson's ethics make Stender the one

Congressman Mike Ferguson has ethical issues many people may not be aware of. In 2003, the FEC found Ferguson guilty of illegally using $525,000 in 2000 during his first congressional run from the 7th district (after losing to Frank Pallone in the 6th), from a trust fund set up by his parents. The FEC fined Ferguson one of the largest fines ever for an individual, $210,000.

Without this significant unfair boost in a close race rated as toss-up, it is conceivable he may never have won. By the time the ruling was rendered in 2003, Ferguson was ensconced as Congressman for three years. Activities during the Republican primary earlier that same year involving Ferguson's illegal collusion with a 527 group prompted his challenger, Tom Kean Jr., to sue the 527 group, and Kean won, resulting in an FEC fine of $5,500 rendered in 2005.

This activity was something Ferguson was familiar with, having sued Maryann Connelly for the very same thing and losing. Therefore, Ferguson won both the 2000 primary and general election with illegal assistance, or as some may charge, by cheating.

Disgraced former majority leader Tom DeLay gave more campaign contributions to Ferguson than any other sitting member of Congress, $54,000 since 1998. Why would DeLay give so much money to a relatively new congressman with faint legislative achievement? Ferguson in turn gave $27,000 in campaign contributions to Texas congressional candidates in 2004, much more than any other state including New Jersey ($1,000). Why was he so interested in Texas candidates in DeLay's home state?

Ferguson is enmeshed in the network of corrupt and unethical congressmen and lobbyists from Jack Abramoff, Bob Ney, Duke Cunningham, Tom DeLay, Mark Foley, Bob Sherwood and many others not commonly known, having received contributions from all of them and returning only a small amount, even from PACs such as DeLay's which was already cited for illegal activity. In an April 3, 2003, Washington Post article, a young woman named Michelle Mezoe stated that a married and inebriated Ferguson crudely asked her go somewhere for a drink with him and gave her his Congressional pin in an attempt to impress her. She refused to return it until he apologized for his behavior, and his staffers had to call the police to resolve the matter. Soon after, Ferguson's family moved to live with him in a D.C. suburb, Bethesda, MD, the family's primary residence since. In fact, Ferguson has barely lived in our district at all, raised in Ridgewood and residing briefly in both Red Bank and Warren to run for Congress.

There has been no report of scandal surrounding Linda Stender. Linda Stender is far superior on the issue of ethics, and her integrity, dedication and intelligence make her a far superior choice for Congress.

Sherry Truss
CLARK

Posted by admin at 07:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Michael J. Fox did this ad for Claire McCaskill of Missouri regarding stem cell research and how her opponent -- Jim Talent -- is trying to block Americans like him from being cured of their maladies. Fox is suffering from Parkinson's disease, one of many conditions such as leukemia, spinal cord injuries, organ failure and diabetes which could be eradicated if not for politicians like Talent -- and Mike Ferguson.

As you watch this ad, swap "LInda Stender" for "Claire McCaskill," "Mike Ferguson" for "Jim Talent," and "New Jersey" for "Missouri."

Posted by admin at 07:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A month ago Linda Stender challenged Mike Ferguson to four debates, one in each county of the district.  Ferguson had successfully ducked these debates, but now has agreed to one debate.

Be sure to come and watch Linda whoop Ferguson's butt!

Save the date --  DEBATE BETWEEN LINDA AND MIKE, October 29th at 2 at Raritan Valley Community College.  It's the only debate Ferguson has agreed to.  Please come and support Linda

Posted by admin at 07:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

And, just to note, this is the best commercial in the history of commercials 'cause of the incredibly hot chick in the last frame.  Amazingly, she married me!

Posted by admin at 08:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Linda Stender was interviewed on WNYC radio (NPR) today and really kicked butt. You can click to listen to the mp3 or right click to download.

Posted by admin at 06:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Mike Ferguson's campaign set up a photo-op to promote his alleged support for flooding victims in New Jersey's 7th district, but it appears that the advance team needs to do a better job of picking their stooges.

Over the past year the 7th has had quite a few floods from the Raritan to the Delaware Rivers, and the damage has been amazing. In 1999, the Raritan river overtopped during Hurricane Floyd and devastated the communities of Bound Brook and Manville and seriously damaged others such as South Bound Brook, North Plainfield and Greenbrook. Ferguson has tried to portray himself as a hero for these communities, but in fact has done little to get federal help to ameliorate the problem.

And, unfortunately for him, Evelyn York of Woodbridge was selected to be his photo partner. Why unfortunately? Because she has his number:

Ferguson, who is running against Democratic state Assemblywoman Linda Stender, appeared with Woodbridge Republican mayoral candidate Chris Struben.

"He's coming out here to get a vote," said Evelyn York, who met with Ferguson outside her flood-prone home on Vesper Avenue. "He was at a meeting in January, and what has he done since then? Now it's three weeks before an election, and he's going to knock on doors?"

Ouch!

York lives in Middlesex County which has flooding problems. Ferguson has also tried to portray himself as a hero for bringing $5 million for the Green Brook Flood Control program. He's run TV ads and sent mailings into the area touting his success.

Yet $5 million for the 35 year old Green Brook Flood Control Project is just a drop in the bucket. The Army Corps of Engineers estimate that the project will cost $430 million to complete in today's dollars, meaning that at Ferguson's current success rate he would have to serve in office for 86 years to get full funding to complete the protection for these communities.

Photo ops are nice, but when it comes to really making a difference on flooding in the 7th district Evelyn York has Mike Ferguson's number.

Wrong choices. Wrong Congressman.

Posted by admin at 07:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here are some pictures of signs for and against Mike Ferguson -- right next to each other -- in Manville. The strategy is to place our message signs right next to his campaign signs to make the connection even clearer.

    

Posted by admin at 08:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Constituent Dynamics released polls for a bunch of Congressional races around the country. Among these races is NJ7 between incumbent Mike Ferguson (R-NJ7) and Linda Stender (D-NJ), which is a virtual tie at 49/46 respectively among likely voters.

With the margin of error of 3.1 percent that is a tie.

Constituent Dynamics does their polling via robocalls that people respond to via push buttons and that method is not too common. Still, with a sample of 1022 likely voters from October 8-10 it's gotta be close.

Reasons this poll may be more accurate today than the internal Stender poll that had the race at 47/40:

• This poll was taken after the Mark Foley revelations, whereas the internal was mostly before the revelations;
• The internal Stender poll also had less than half the sample, and a margin of error higher than five percent according to reports;
• No disparaging either the Stender or their pollsters, but this is an independent poll.

There's some interesting and unexpected numbers -- beyond the two point spread -- in here if you go through them.

• In perhaps the best news, Stender is leading with likely voting independents, carrying 47 percent to Ferguson's 45 percent;
• In perhaps the worst news, Ferguson is leading with likely voting women, carrying 49 percent to Stender's 46 percent;
• Democrats like Stender better than Republicans like Ferguson. She gets 83 percent of the Dems and Ferguson gets just 78 percent from the GOP.
• Stender also does better with Republicans than Ferguson does with Demcorats. She gets 17 percent of the GOP vote while Ferguson gets 14 percent of the Democratic vote.
• Stender crushes Ferguson among people aged 45 to 64 (52%/43%), but does poorly for voters 44 and under (41%/51%), 65 to 74 (43%/57%) and 74 an above (46%/53%);
• Bush has a 40 percent approval, 50 percent disapproval.

I think the place where Stender needs to improve most is with women under 44. Choice and the Iraq should be a big mover in this population, and that can make the difference.

What do you think?

Posted by admin at 08:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

You could say that Mike Ferguson doesn't know his district given his positions on embryonic stem cell research, abortion, contraception, the Iraq War, President Bush, Tom DeLay, etc. etc. etc. And you'd be right.

But at the very least he should know which towns are in the district and which aren't.

Yes, campaign signs can clutter an intersection, but we think it's important to tell people there is an election upcoming and who is running in it. Many people who are apathetic about politics need that reminder. And as we have noted previously, campaign signs are a hallmark of democracy and free elections.

Then again, it would be nice if those putting up signs knew something about geography. There are signs along Route 10 in Parsippany urging a vote for Rep. Michael Ferguson, R-Warren Township. No one living in Morris County can vote for Ferguson, whose district covers Somerset, Hunterdon and Union counties.

Last week his campaign staffer -- from Texas! -- was stealing Linda Stender's signs and this week they're putting them up in the wrong towns. What a joke.

Posted by admin at 09:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

In a sign of desperation, Mike Ferguson has staffers running around stealing campaign signs from Linda Stender.

The interesting part is that the staffer doing the dirty deed is driving a car from Texas. Could he be a Tom DeLay staffer out of work?

The funny part is that he did it right outside the Stender campaign office -- and the campaign got video!

Says Ed Oatman, Stender campaign mananger: "This guy is definitely not the sharpest tool in the shed. He stole our lawn signs in broad daylight right outside our campaign headquarters all while being videotaped. Like Ferguson, his staffer lacked an exit strategy."

Posted by admin at 09:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A powerful video from Max Cleland, a great American.

Posted by admin at 04:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last week we reported that Mike Ferguson received $2,000
from disgraced Congressman Mark Foley (R-FL). On Monday, Inside Edge reported that is was $1,000.

Turns out we were both wrong, because Mark Foley -- who was sending sexually explicit e-mails and instant messages to teenage boys -- donated $3,000 to Mike Ferguson, including $1,000 in 1998 when Ferguson was running against Frank Pallone (D-NJ).

But apparently Ferguson's staff doesn't bother to check FEC records and just decided to rely on Dump Mike for his info, and he has donated $2,000 to the Tri-County Red Cross and missed the other $1,000.

We've maintained all along at Dump Mike that the issue is not that Mike Ferguson is necessarily a corrupt politician, but that he is willing to look the other way when it means cash for his own campaigns.

In just about every instance of Republican corruption over the past few years, you can find Mike Ferguson's hand out for cash from the malfeasant. Jack Abramoff, Tom Delay, Tony Rudy, Adam Kidan, Randy "Duke" Cunningham, Bob Ney, Jim Ellis, Mark Vallente, Cary and Ryan Katz, the Kontogiannis family, Hewlett Packard and Akin-Gump, Roy Blunt, Ed Buckham, and many, many others who have been convicted of corruption or are indicted or under investigation.

Then there is the record fine Ferguson received from the FEC for illegally spending $500,000 of his parent's money to win his seat for the first time in 2000, and the secondary complaint aginst him for illegally colluding with third party right wing groups.

No one of these -- except maybe the FEC issues -- points to Congressman Ferguson as a corrupt individual. But the fact that every single corrupt Republican in Washinton DC who gets caught has given money to Mike Ferguson has to give voters pause. He can't be so blind to miss every single one of these corrupt individuals, or if he i that blind he is incredibly incompentent and maybe dumb.

But the fact is that each of these corrupt individuals -- murderers, sellers of votes, bribers, campaign finance violaters, what have you -- found in Mike Ferguson a willing partner to take their money and support their goals. Congressman Ferguson is always willing to look the other way when it comes to campaign cash from Republcan colleagues an lobbyists, no matter how corrupt.

That's not what we need in Washington DC. We need honest elected officials who care more about their constituents than campaign cash and their parties.

'Nuff said.

Posted by admin at 08:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

OK, this falls into the area of silly polls that really don't mean a lot, but Linda Stender is kicking Mike Ferguson's Butt in the Facebook Election Pulse, with 58.97 percent of the NJ7 friends to Ferguson's 40.12 percent. Libertarian Darren Young has 0.91 percent of the friends.

You can get a Facebook account and become a friend of Linda's, too!

Posted by admin at 03:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following letter was published in the Thursday, September 21, 2006 Cranford Chronicle.

Stender is the right choice for Congress

To The Chronicle:

One should agree with John Cantilli and Andrew Bucko about their negative views of our present Congressman. A common-sense change for the better is surely Linda Stender.

Linda Stender is running for Congress in this upcoming election. Linda is the former mayor of Fanwood, and she is currently serving her third term in the State Assembly.

She believes in bringing the troops home from Iraq safely within a year and focusing the government's policy on real homeland security. Linda wants to enact a bold energy policy to make us energy-independent and wants to put an end to the billions of dollars in tax breaks given to the big oil companies. She strongly supports stem cell research, a woman's right to choose, and allowing the federal government to negotiate with drug companies for low cost prescription drugs for senior citizens.

Linda Stender deserves our vote if we want a person who is not out of step and is not a rubber stamp for the Bush Administration's failed policies. She is the one who we should support on Tuesday, Nov. 7 for a seat in Congress.

MADELINE SPITZ
Cranford

Posted by admin at 09:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

There's been a bit of silliness over at the Tom Kean Jr. campaign this past week. Xpatriated Texan of Blue Jersey discovered that a Kean Jr. attack on Senator Bob Menendez was patently untrue by unearthing a Jersey Journal article from 1996. Turns out that Menendez did get ethics committee approval for renting his property to a non-profit group he championed in Congress. Turns out that Menendez even rented it to them at less than market rate, costing him money.

The Kean Jr. folks were not happy about the truth coming out. To combat the evidence they started posting comments on Blue Jersey under made up names pretending to be former Democrats and liberals. Juan Melli -- the founder of Blue Jersey -- caught them by matching the IP address of the commenters to the IP address of Kean Jr. press secreatary Jill Hazelbaker's e-mail account.

That's been a front page newspaper, TV and radio story for a few days. Ooops.

But Hazelbaker wasn't done making mistakes. She also tried to paint Ellen Weintraub -- the ethics officer named in the Jersey Journal article as the one who cleared the rental -- as a partisan nut whose word could not be trusted. Unfortunately, Herb Jackson of the Bergen Record learned that in Weintraub's new job as a Federal Election Commissioner she had backed Kean Jr. in his complaint against Mike Ferguson based on cheating in the 2000 primary election for NJ7's Congressional seat.

For campaign finance geeks who want to read the FEC docs on that dispute (MUR 5024 and 5024R), here's a rundown:

• Weintraub and two other commissioners take Kean's side in 2003.
• Three other FEC commissioners take the opposite position a month later, creating a deadlock that means Kean loses.
• Kean sues, and U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia denies the FEC's motion to dismiss the suit. Among the reasons cited are a recent Supreme Court ruling uphold the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform.
• The court gives the FEC 60 days to take another look at the case, and commission lawyers recommend a finding there was a violation. The Council for Responsible Government, which paid for the borchures, is fined $5,500 and must disclose where it got its money. It turns out it was the group US Term Limits.

And so, Mike Ferguson's own corruption and campaign cheating comes up once again thanks to the incompetence of the Kean Jr. press secretary. So sad.

Posted by admin at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This is just silly, but it's also funny. Check out Blue Jersey for more information.

Posted by admin at 04:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the past week we have seen two powerful politicians knows for getting things done plead guilty and prepare to go to jail. One is local Democratic boss John Lynch of Middlesex County who plead guilty to corruption charges for taking money as a consultant in return for taking action as a State Senator. The other is Republican Congressman Bob Ney (OH), who also plead guilty to corruption charges for taking money as a consultant in return for taking action as a United States Congressman.

Both men chose to betray their constituents and their parties by misusing their power, and both were always ready to spread money around to keep their positions and garner favor with other politicians.

So what does that have to do with New Jersey's 7th Congressional District? A lot, because how Lynch and Ney spread their cash around says a lot about the two people who are running for this seat.

We all know that politicians at every level need to raise money to run their campaigns, and the higher you go the more you need. Every candidate knows and loathes the phone calls, fundraiser and face time it takes to raise that money. Some candidates don't care where the money comes from, and are happy to take it even if it means giving up their independence and consorting with people who are of questionable ethics.

Or corrupt to the point of going to federal prison for years at a time.

Lynch was known as the undisputed leader of the Democrats in Middlesex County. If you wanted a job, a run for office, or anything else you had to go to Lynch at some point. Linda Stender is a three term Assemblywoman representing part of Middlesex County in NJ's 22nd legislative district. Even though she was serving in Lynch's territory Linda Stender never took a penny from him for her campaigns.

Ney was a powerbroker in the house, in charge of the Committee on Administration that passes our offices on the Hill, and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee which doles out money for things like highways. Mike Ferguson (NJ7) is a Republican Congressman who likes having a good office (and the $750,000 payroll which we'll talk about in the coming days) and brags on bringing highway funds back to New Jersey.

Ferguson has accepted $7,500 in the past three years from Ney, and has so far refused to say whether he will return the money or if he intends to keep it.

Stender didn't take the money. Ferguson did.

If this were a one-time issue for Ferguson this could be understood. But this isn't the only questionable money Ferguson has. There's also the $54,000 from indicted and resigned Congressman Tom DeLay, $3,000 from convicted briber and lobbyist Tony Rudy, $132,000 from programs run by indicted fundraiser and lobbyist Jim Ellis, $1,000 from convicted Rep. Randy Cunningham bribers Mr. and Mrs. Kontogiannis, etc., etc., etc.

And, who can forget that Ferguson was found guilty of illegally using $500,000 to win the seat for the first time in 2000, and for illegally colluding with an outside group that spent money to help him defeat Tom Kean, jr. in the 2000 primary election.

If we want good government and honest representation, the answer has to be Stender for Congress.

Posted by admin at 07:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The following letter was published in the September 13 2006 Independent Press, Mike Ferugson's hometown paper.

Ferguson Campaign mailings are a turnoff

To the editor:

We have recently been the unhappy, incredulous and increasingly disgusted recipients of nearly daily mailings from the campaign of Mike Ferguson, the incumbent candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey's 7th Congressional District.

Each oversized full-color postcard repeats a stunningly stupid alliterative slogan attacking his opponent, Linda Stender. You guessed it, she's a "spender."

So here, in supposed contrast, is Ferguson, flinging a lavish string of slurs devoid of content and contemptuous of constituents' ability to recognize puerile name-calling when it lands in their mailboxes day after day after day.

Ferguson's normal mailings, if memory serves, feature the government spending he boasts of delivering to his district. Not that he appears conscious of the irony.

We have met Linda Stender. She is a genuine, rational, experienced public servant - a welcome alternative to our current embarrassing representative. Please take the time to inform yourself and compare the candidates. Linda Stender has our vote.

Paul and Laura Dillon
Summit

Posted by admin at 02:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This is Linda Stender's new television advertisement. It's pretty tough, and should remind all the independent pro-choice voters in the district why a vote for Mike Ferguson is a vote against freedom.

Why, Mike? Why?

Posted by admin at 08:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following letter was published in the Cranford Chronicle on Thursday, September 7 2006.

Congressman's policies hurt voters To The Chronicle:

Mike Ferguson has been flooding the airwaves and mailboxes trying to paint his opponent a spender. But who is the big spender? Maybe Mike should look at himself.

While in Congress, Mike supported policies that turned a budget surplus into a record budget deficit, borrowing from our kids and stealing their financial future. He voted for the energy plan that gave big benefits to the oil companies and none to us. You can thank Mike each time you fill up at the pump.

He even helped push though the Medicare prescription drug plan that has been a disaster. Instead of helping seniors with their prescription costs, it confused seniors and forced them to buy into plans that ultimately cost them more just as the drug companies wanted.

Mike is trying to run away from his own record and distort his opponent's. He took campaign money from his corrupt friend Tom DeLay and has since refused to give it back. He even spent your tax dollars to send out literature that amounts to campaign mailers.

Who is Mike Ferguson really representing? It certainly is not us. On Election Day, let's tell Mike that we want someone who represents us, not big-money special interests.

ANDREW BUCKO
Cranford

Posted by admin at 09:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Linda Stender's latest campaign piece [see it in PDF, or in PNG after the jump] hit mailboxes today, again slamming Mike Ferguson (R-NJ7) for opposing promising new avenues of medical research.

This is the first time they have used the new theme, "Why Mike? Why?" in a literature piece, and it comes on the same day they launched a website by the same name. It looks like this is going to be the new theme for the campaign.

It works on a couple of levels. The first is plaintive, asking, "Why do you vote/behave/think like that, Mike? Why?" The second is, "Why should I vote for Mike if he doesn't represent my values? Why?"

The positive hit for Stender:

Linda Stender supports stem cell research to give our families hope. As a member of the state Legislature, Linda has been a leader in funding research efforts in New Jersey.

As a member of Congress, Linda will support stem cell research to unlock cures for illnesses that harm our loved ones.

Tuesday, November 7th Vote Stender for Congress

The negative on Ferguson:

But Congressman Mike Ferguson VOTES AGAINST HOPE

Ferguson opposes embryonic stem cell research that could unlock cures for cancer, Alzheimer's and diabetes.

Ferguson marches lock-step wit President Bush and other ideologues that put their narrow views before science -- and before hope.

Why Mike? Why?
For more information, visit www.whymikewhy.com

This is probably her best lit piece I've seen, and the Why Mike? Why? theme might work if it is used properly.

Continue reading "Stender Mailer: Mike Ferguson Opposes Embryonic Stem Cell Research" »

Posted by admin at 08:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following letter was published in the August 29, 2006 Home News Tribune and August 28 Courier News.

Is Mike Ferguson that clueless?

My mail came with new evidence of how clever Rep. Mike Ferguson, R-7th District, was to notice that his opponent Linda Stender's last name rhymes with "spender." If the hypocrisy weren't so blatant, it would be worth a good laugh. Stender has balanced budgets all her career, while Ferguson has helped usher in the largest deficits is our history, turning the 1990's surpluses into record-setting red ink.

I also wonder when I'll get some mail from Ferguson telling me his positions on the difficult issues facing us as a nation. He has grossly abused his privilege in sending postage-free mail to try to convince us that his name is really Congressman Fix-all-the-Potholes, but not one word on how to end the Iraq catastrophe, stop the oil companies from gouging us, or address the grave environmental problems that we in Central Jersey experience only too closely. Has he even thought about these things? I get the impression from his mailings that he doesn't even know about them.

Michael Pratt
SKILLMAN

Posted by admin at 07:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)