Advice to the incumbent

David Rebovich, the Rider University profressor, offers his thoughts on Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign visit to New Jersey the other day.

While, for me, the visit was unimportant, he offers what I think is an important suggestion to the Menendez campaign, one that I think could allow the senator to grow some distance between himself and the challenger, state Sen. Tom Kean Jr The issues would seem to favor the incumbent — aside from New Jersey corruption — but he remain in a close race with a candidate with high name recognition.

Menendez himself needs to realize that he can help his own candidacy in the last few weeks of the campaign by focusing on his and his party’s positive messages. New Jerseyans have heard enough of the negatives already. As Senator Obama’s visit demonstrated, people here will respond to someone who talks about vision and about a purposeful platform.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick

Author: hankkalet

Hank Kalet is a poet and freelance journalist. He is the economic needs reporter for NJ Spotlight, teaches journalism at Rutgers University and writing at Middlesex County College and Brookdale Community College. He writes a semi-monthly column for the Progressive Populist. He is a lifelong fan of the New York Mets and New York Knicks, drinks too much coffee and attends as many Bruce Springsteen concerts as his meager finances will allow. He lives in South Brunswick with his wife Annie. View all posts by hankkalet