PRESS RELEASE: Donald Norcross Claims He Voted To Protect Democracy And Livelihoods But His Record Suggests Something Different

Claire Gustafson, the GOP candidate in CD1, said in a press release today that Congressman Donald Norcross’ claim that his vote in favor of a $25 billion post office bill was to protect our democracy shameful. Her press release on the matter follows:

Claire Gustafson, Republican candidate for Congress in New Jersey’s First Congressional District, said today it was “shameful” for Congressman Donald Norcross to suggest he voted in favor of a $25 billion post office bill to “protect our democracy” and “livelihoods” of Americans.

On Saturday Donald Norcross took to social media to say, “Today, I voted to protect not only the US Postal Service but our democracy & the lives & livelihoods of millions of Americans.” He went on to add, “Trump & his Administration’s blatant attempts to undermine our democracy will not go unchecked.”

“I truly wish Donald Norcross would start being honest with the people of the First Congressional District and admit his vote on the $25 billion post office bill had nothing to do with the people he represents and everything to do with continuing to march in lockstep with Nancy Pelosi,” Claire Gustafson said. “The fact is, if Donald Norcross truly cared about protecting our democracy he would use the bully pulpit of his office to demand Governor Murphy allow folks to vote at polling places on voting machines on election day.”

“People are angry the option to vote at a polling place on a machine was taken away from them, Norcross knows it and I know it, the difference is I care and Donald doesn’t.” Gustafson added, “It was only a few months ago the Camden County Clerk mailed VBM applications to all voters in the county with ‘all future elections’ pre-checked. Norcross said nothing because he and his fellow cohorts in the political cartel that rules South Jersey don’t want people exercising their right to vote in the way they prefer. Republicans, on the other hand, called for an investigation.”

Gustafson continued, “Making the claim his vote was to protect the livelihood of anyone is nonsense. Donald Norcross has had years to deliver on the campaign promise he made in 2014 to ‘create thousands of jobs in our region.’ Instead the only thing he delivered was $550 million in tax breaks to his family and friends, all members of the political cartel that rules South Jersey.”

“Anyone who takes an objective look at the record of Donald Norcross knows his weekend vote had nothing to do with protecting democracy or livelihoods and everything to do with protecting the way of life for the political cartel that rules South Jersey. For Donald Norcross to suggest anything else is shameful,” Gustafson said.

ICYMI: Mayor Fanucci Running For Re-Election

Vineland Mayor Anthony Fanucci

If you missed it Vineland Mayor Anthony Fanucci announced on Saturday morning that he is running for re-election along with all five members of council.

We don’t know if anyone is going to file to challenge Fanucci, but if they do they will face an uphill battle. Fanucci has done a good job in his first term as mayor. The roads are better, Vineland opened a new police headquarters and there have been improvements to water and sewer.

In short, Fanucci promised improvements and he delivered.

“When I first ran for mayor, I promised we were not going to wait for the phone to ring, and we haven’t,” Fanucci said in his press release. “Together, we have vigorously engaged with the community to find solutions to issues which have been ignored in the past, while breaking-down barriers that made it difficult for Vineland to aggressively move forward.  We have developed regional partnerships and focused on ways to make ideas possible, rather than to find reasons to say they are not.”

Fanucci also said in his release, “I am proud to again run with my current Team Fanucci Council members: David Acosta, Dr. Elizabeth Arthur, Ron Franceschini, Paul Spinelli, and Albert Vargas. It is a pleasure to work with a council that is committed to a shared vision of how municipal operations can work better for everyone.  Under the strong leadership of City Council President Paul Spinelli, they have helped to make city government more responsive, efficient, open, and fair, while providing solid stewardship of taxpayer dollars.

In the coming weeks and months, the team and myself will be outlining our positions and vision for a second term in an open and constructive manner.  We look forward to presenting these plans in more detail.”

We’re looking forward to more good things from Team Fanucci over the next four years.

Get The Hell Out From Behind Your Keyboards!

Since the primary ended I see many Republicans complaining on social media. On one county party Facebook page I saw a guy wrote in response to an event the local GOP had, “Can I go to the poll…to vote in November. What are you doing about it. Don’t all answer at once.”

Of course, no one ever saw the commenter at a party event, not phone banks, not door knocking, nothing – not even any of the organization’s free events. Yet this person had the nerve to ask what the organization is doing about it.

If that isn’t bad enough there are still people complaining and whining and crying about the party bosses and the results of the GOP Senate primary. Many of these people are rarely, if ever, seen at party events or volunteering for even their municipal candidates. But they have plenty to complain about.

Let’s first address the “party bosses” crap. If you don’t like the way your county party is being run then get up off your ass and do something about it. The first step is to become a committee person. Get the signatures, get on the ballot and win the election for committee person during the primary. You better recruit others who think like you to do the same. It is the committee people who elect the county chairs. Committee people are the frontlines in protecting our representative form of government. Committee people are representatives of their respective political parties.

Until such a time comes as you get your crap together and become a committee person while getting others elected with you – work with what you have. Volunteer and help get Republican voters to vote! I get it, you wanted a different Senate candidate. It didn’t happen. Get over it. I wasn’t a Hirsh Singh supporter but if he won I would be supporting him now. Why? Because all the candidates in the GOP primary are better than Cory Booker. Stop being butt hurt and get to work!

If that’s not good enough then consider this: In 2018 Bob and I both preferred former Assemblyman Sam Fiocchi in the Republican CD2 primary, I even worked for Fiocchi. Did Bob and I whine about losing the primary? No! We supported the winner of that primary, Seth Grossman. Grossman was the guest on our first radio show and many other shows during the general election campaign. We did the right thing!

Now, let’s address moronic questions like, “Can I go to the poll…to vote in November. What are you doing about it. Don’t all answer at once.”

Yes, you can go to the poll in November, but you have to vote by provisional ballot. Republicans didn’t make it that way, Governor Phil Murphy did. Maybe if certain Republicans weren’t so busy not voting for Kim Guadagno things would be different today.

What is being done about it is the state party and the national party have joined the re-election campaign of President Donald Trump in suing to top Governor Phil Murphy from sending over 6 million vote-by-mail ballots out for the general election.

I don’t know if they will win their lawsuit, but if we are smart, as a party, we will work under the assumption the suit will not be won. We will get to work figuring out how to get our voters to vote. It doesn’t matter how they vote, so long as they vote.

So rather than asking stupid questions, why don’t you get up from behind your keyboard and do something?

We have three congressional districts in South Jersey. I guarantee every one of our Republican candidates, Claire Gustafson (CD1). Congressman Jeff Van Drew (CD2) and David Richter (CD3) will be running phone banks and likely literature drops too.

Get out from behind your keyboards and volunteer at their phone banks.

The county parties will be running phone banks. Join them.

Every county has freeholder candidates. Volunteer to help your freeholder candidates. If your town has a race volunteer to help your municipal candidates.

Trust me, sitting behind your keyboards and posting things is not going to help win this election for anyone. Stupid questions and accusations that the Republican party, or Republican candidates, aren’t doing anything helps no one.

Never Trumper Republicans who don’t vote hurt the entire GOP column. Whining about the Senate primary hurts the entire column. Not voting for a candidate because you disagree on a single issue hurts the entire column.

This election is too important to let your hurt feelings ruin the entire ticket. The thing to remember is any candidate in the Republican column is better than every candidate in the Democratic column. Vote the column, by mail, dropping your ballot in a box or by provisional ballot, but vote the column.

As for me, I’ll find the time to walk my neighborhood because that’s what committee people are supposed to do. I’ll help my mayoral candidate. I’ll do some phone banking even though I hate it.

All I ask is that you get up off your ass and do something. Maybe I’ll see you at a phone bank.