We Call It The Silly Season For A Reason

BettyLou DeCroce

When we launched the Bob & Steve Show nearly three years ago Bob and I decided we were going to focus on South Jersey politics, but something happened that I simply cannot ignore.

Way up north in LD26 (Essex, Morris, Passaic) a Democrat has decided to, unsolicited I suspect, offer his endorsement in the Republican primary election for state Assembly.

Yesterday, our friends over at New Jersey Globe reported that:

Former Gov. Richard Codey, a Democrat, says he wants Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce to win the Republican primary for State Assembly in the next-door 26th district.

I’m not going to insult anyone’s intelligence and try to pretend that BettyLou DeCroce is the most conservative member of the state Assembly – she’s not. But one has to wonder why Richard Codey, a former Governor and sitting state Senator, who happens to be a Democrat, would make an endorsement in a competitive Republican primary in a district he doesn’t represent.

There are four candidates in the LD26 Primary, most of the votes come out of Morris where Assemblyman Jay Webber and Christian Barranco have the line, the first time Morris has awarded a line. DeCroce is running off the line as is Morris County Commissioner Tom Mastrangelo.

I don’t live in LD26 and will not offer an endorsement of any candidate, though, admittedly, there is no way in hell I would ever encourage anyone to vote for Mastrangelo. I would rather stab myself in the eye with a rusty needle! I’m fairly certain the feeling is mutual. We have a history and I have a framed court dismissal thanks to the Commissioner.

As to the others in the race I honestly have no preference because, like I said, I don’t live there. But I do have to wonder what motivation Codey would have to endorse DeCroce.

Codey is not stupid, to the contrary the guy is borderline genius, at least politically. He had to know his endorsement of DeCroce does not help her. Codey even went the extra mile and said, “I hope I don’t lose her votes.” Codey knows that is the least helpful statement he could make!

My guess is Codey is looking for what he views as an easier matchup for the Democrats in November by getting rid of the one candidate in the race viewed as a moderate, DeCroce.

Melissa Brown Blaeuer and Pamela Fadden are the only Democrats on the LD26 primary election ballot and appear to be extremely left. According to their website they are “bringing the Blue Wave to 2021 with bold solutions and a people-first agenda.” Fadden is President of the Hawthorne Teachers’ Association and a consultant to the NJEA in Morris County.

I’m pretty sure Codey would love to see an NJEA aligned candidate win in LD26. And I’m fairly certain Codey thinks getting rid of DeCroce could help make that happen.

Welcome to the silly season!

Gubernatorial Primary Action: Ciattarelli Campaign Smacks Singh In New Web Ad

Hirsh Singh during the talent portion of the beauty pageant he won

I wasn’t planning on starting my week writing about my favorite former beauty pageant winner, Hirsh Singh, but Jack Ciattarelli’s campaign has left me with no choice because the campaign is out with a new web ad that calls out Singh for praising former President Barack Obama’s Cairo Speech.

Singh got smacked with his own words!

Personally, I like the new Ciattarelli campaign ad because I have been sharing a screenshot of Singh’s social media post about Obama’s Cairo speech for over two years, since Singh’s party establishment backed campaign for Congress.

What I have never shared, because I didn’t have it in my Singh file, is Singh on video praising Obama’s Cairo speech saying, “I did on Facebook write that Obama’s Cairo speech was great and I said it was a very beautiful speech.”

Not only did Singh write that Obama’s Cairo speech was beautiful, he said it, on camera. Yet, only a week ago Singh was sharing a social media post from his retired landscaper out-of-work actor chief internet troll Joe Rullo calling a mailer that included Singh’s praise of the Obama speech lies.

I guess Rullo was passed out on the casting couch the day Singh gave the interview praising the Obama Cairo speech. Maybe he was mowing the Singh family lawn.

While Singh was playing the role of “Obama Apologist,” that’s what the ad accurately calls him, according to NPR reaction to Obama’s Cairo speech was mixed:

A Hamas spokesman dismissed Obama's remarks as "soft diplomacy" meant "to brighten the image of the United States," while a spokesman for the Palestinian Authority hailed it as "the beginning of a new American policy."

An Israeli government spokesman said he heard no major surprises, but a spokesman for the West Bank Settler's Council said the speech was "out of touch with reality ... the Muslim world is at war with the Western world."

It appears that Singh’s reaction to Obama’s Cairo speech was very much in line with the reaction of Hamas.

I bet Donald Trump is proud of Hirsh Singh today!

And, here’s the ad for your viewing pleasure:

Episode 149

If you missed the 149th episode of the Bob & Steve Show live on Crusin’ 92.1 FM you can listen to it or download it here. This week Attorney/Republican State Committeeman from Salem County Michael Mulligan filled in for Bob. For those who prefer to listen live and live outside our broadcast area you can listen on TuneIn or at wvlt.com Saturday mornings from 8:00-10:00.

As always, you can listen to any of our past shows on the Radio Shows page.