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.

Flux in the 14th

An interesting take from Politics NJ calculations and turmoil that followed the announcement yesterday that Sen. Peter Inverso is not seeking re-election. The upshot is that the Democrats could go for an older candidate from Hamilton — Gil Lugossy or Skip Cimino — though that seems an absurd approach when dealing with someone like Bill Baroni.

(S)ome Democrats insist Baroni is beatable in a toss-up district, pointing specifically to his strong connections with the upper echelons of a national Republican Party in trouble.

There is some thought that a Hamiltonian with experience in elected office and deep community roots — ideally going back to the Chambersburg migration from Trenton to Hamilton — a (former Sheriff) Gilbert Lugossy, for example, or a (former Assemblyman) Anthony Cimino — would provide exactly the kind of gravitas transfusion at the top of the ticket that could propel the Dems to victory in November.

Anything is possible, I guess. But Baroni has built deep connections not only to Hamilton, but to Democratic South Brunswick — the district’s second largest town. He has carried the township in both of his runs, making him the only Republican aside from Inverso to carry South Brunswick in about a decade. (Even retired Police Chief Michael Paquette couldn’t carry his home town, losing it to Greenstein by 40 votes and Baroni by about 60.) The chances of an old lion having real success in South Brunswick at the expense of Baroni appear slim, though I suspect that the overwhelmingly Democratic voters of Monroe and Plainsboro would be there for the taking (Monroe and Plainsboro were the only towns in the district to back Dan Bensen, Greenstein’s running mate).

And all the talk about Hamilton, though, ignores this fact: Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein lost Hamilton in 2003 by about 2,000 votes and in 2005 by about 700 votes, yet she’s still standing, primarily because she has a huge base in Monroe and Plainsboro.

As for tying Baroni to the national party — this is a real stretch. Yes, he is close to John McCain, but he also vocally endorsed the civil union legislation, is a proponent of clean elections law and ethics reform and has already won endorsement from CWA. Not exactly the profile of a Bush acolyte.

Plus — and this is key — no one knows how the botched tax reform effort will play out electorally. Will the Democrats’ failure to deliver on anything other than a tax credit cost them votes in high-tax towns like Hamilton and West Windsor? I wouldn’t bet against it.

The only thing we know for sure is that Sen. Inverso’s retirement has altered the dynamic in the district.

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Governor should keep the pressure on

The Record pats the governor on the back today in an editorial — and with good reason. The governor has held off on signing the 20 percent tax credit into law as a “way of pressuring reluctant lawmakers into following through on substantive change.”

Lawmakers, of course, have been rather timid in their commitment to reform — “particularly in regard to dual office holding.”

But Corzine should continue to pressure lawmakers to make the ban on dual office holding complete. No grandfathering. The governor has the bully pulpit, and he should use it to get the public’s attention.

Almost 80 percent of New Jersey voters agree with Corzine. In a recent poll, they said state lawmakers should not be allowed to have another government job of any kind, elected or otherwise.

The governor’s vision of real change in New Jersey also includes pension and health care benefit reforms for all elected and appointed officials, not just public employees. It includes more transparency in political campaign contributions at all levels of government. Corzine wants to end pay-to-play and eliminate “wheeling,” the practice that both Democrats and Republicans use to evade campaign contribution limits by moving money from one part of the state to the other in general elections.

This is a vision that threatens the very heart of the state’s political power structure. But it’s what true reform is all about.

Let’s hope his pressure works and we get more than the lukewarm reforms currently being served.

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Baroni’s statement

Sen. Peter Inverso has just made it official. He is stepping down. He also announced that he is endorsing Bill Baroni for his seat.

Public service is a privilege and an honor carrying with it the commitment to put the public interest before self-interest. I have always let that guide me in fulfilling my legislative responsibilities. I am immensely grateful that the people of my district have placed thier trust and confidence in me and permitted me to represent and serve them in the state Legislature for nearly 16 years. This was not an easy decision for me to make, The increasing demands of leading an outstanding community bank with public ownership into an exciting period of expansion and opportunity, and my desire to devote more time to my wonderful wife and growing family have converged and convinced me that, after nearly a quarter of a century of public service, this is the right decision for my family, my employer and me.

Here is the full statement from Assemblyman Bill Baroni:

I am saddened by Senator Peter Inverso’s retirement. I’ve known Pete Inverso since I was 3 years old, and he continues to serve as my mentor in politics. Senator Inverso leaves behind a legacy of honesty, ethics, good government, and independence. I am ready to continue Senator Inverso’s legacy.

So there you have it.

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Inverso out

Voters in South Brunswick, Cranbury, Jamesburg and Monroe will have a new face representing them in the state Senate this year. Sen. Peter Inverso, a Republican, is expected to announce today that he will not seek re-election to a sixth term, making him the 12th senator to announce his retirement.

Politics NJ is speculating that Assemblyman Bill Baroni, a Republican, will run in his stead, though the two-term Assemblyman just announced his reelection plans last week.

Assemblyman Bill Baroni is expected to seek the GOP nomination for State Senate. Senate Republicans say that Inverso will endorse Baroni for his seat.

On Saturday, Mercer County Democrats endorsed Seema Singh, the state Ratepayer Advocate, as their candidate for Senate. Baroni vs. Singh offers a contest between Baroni’s base in blue collar Hamilton and Singh’s appeal to a growing block of Asian American voters in the 14th district.

Ms. Singh, who lives in South Brunswick had been slated to be the state’s public advocate by former Gov. Jim McGreevey, but the McGreevey administration failed to reinstate the position.

As for Mr. Baroni, he told Gannett:

“I intend to carry on his legacy,” said Baroni.

We’ll see where this goes. More later.

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

E-mail me by clicking here

Email me at grassroots at comcast dot net.