2021 Action: Ciattarelli Rolls Out Endorsements In Singh’s Backyard

Jack Ciattarelli

Republicans are starting to pick sides in the 2021 gubernatorial primary and the field hasn’t even been set. As for me, I will remain solidly on the fence until the field is set.

There are two announced candidates, former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli and former beauty pageant winner Hirsh Singh. Other potential candidates are Assembly Minority Leader Jon Bramnick, NJGOP Chairman and former Lopatcong Mayor Doug Steinhardt and retired landscaper/washed-up out-of-work actor/keyboard warrior Joe Rudy Rullo.

Ciattarelli, Singh and Rullo all ran four years ago when former Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno won the primary. I was a Ciattarelli supporter in that primary and am still impressed at the amount of mileage Guadagno got out of showing up at all the county party rubber chicken dinners before the primary season kicked off.

Ciattarelli obviously decided he isn’t letting that happen to him again because the guy has been everywhere, fundraisers, happy hours, county party breakfasts.

Singh, the other announced candidate, didn’t learn the same lesson. While he’s been seen at a few rallies he mostly stuck with social media and filing lawsuits, though he did recently turn up at the Camden County GOP fourth quarter meeting and holiday party. Maybe his strategy is changing.

But, back to Ciattarelli. The guy has been busy! On December 1 he rolled out a list of “Nearly 90 Republican leaders” across Somerset County who have endorsed his candidacy for Governor. Admittedly, I ignored it because Somerset is Ciattarelli’s home county.

Then, on December 4 I received a Jack4NJ email with the subject “Introduce Myself.” It was from Mike Friedman who served as the lone Republican on Voorhees Township Committee from 2011-2019. Admittedly, I ignored that too, because I already know Mike and didn’t feel the need to be introduced. I probably should have read the email because Friedman informed readers he has “…stepped up to serve as the Camden County Coordinator for the 2021 Jack Ciattarelli for Governor campaign.” That’s a pretty solid endorsement out of Camden County.

Yesterday and the day before, Jack Ciattarelli got my attention! His campaign walked into Hirsh Singh’s Atlantic County backyard and scored some big endorsements. Ciattarelli’s first stop was in western Atlantic County where he scored key endorsements in Hammonton. I know some of the folks in Hammonton, they were very supportive of former Assemblyman Sam Fiocchi in his 2018 bid for Congress. Experience has taught me the Hammonton folks will work hard for who they endorse.

Scoring the Hammonton endorsements wasn’t enough. Ciattarelli then headed east the next day and rolled out endorsements from the “Republican Club of Atlantic City, as well Atlantic City Councilman Jesse Kurtz.”

Atlantic is Singh’s home county and he allowed the only other announced candidate in the race to walk into his county and score big endorsements. Perhaps he should have learned form Jack and made sure to protect his home turf first, just like Ciattarelli did in Somerset.

The field is still taking shape but it looks like 2021 could get exciting, so stay tuned. And, eventually I will learn how to spell Ciattarelli without going to his campaign website to copy and paste it.

Update: New Jersey Globe reports Bramnick will not run for Governor.

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.

NJGOP Woman Of The Year

Former Lt Gov Kim Guadagno

With the buildup to what could have been an exciting meeting in Haddon Township last night I completely forgot the NJGOP was honoring former Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno as the "Woman of the Year." Fortunately, the state GOP takes The Bob & Steve Show seriously and they’ve added us to their media list.

Here is NJGOP Chairman Doug Steinhardt’s statement on the event:

NJGOP Chairman Statement On Successful Woman of the Year Reception

Trenton, NJ - Last night the NJGOP hosted a fundraiser in Red Bank that honored former Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno as the "Woman of the Year". Chairman Doug Steinhardt made the following statement about the event:

"I'm encouraged by the more than 250 attendees who turned out last night at our NJGOP fundraiser honoring Kim Guadagno as the 'Woman of the Year.' I appreciate the many supporters who picked a hot August night to invest in our commitment to restore common sense and fiscal accountability to NJ government. With our new team, we are building tremendous momentum in New Jersey and are on track to vote out corrupt Senator Bob Menendez and stop Nancy Pelosi from taking over our Congressional delegation."

Despite the fact she served under former Governor Chris Christie, Guadagno was able to build a lot of good will in South Jersey.

Rather than drone on about how she built that good will, I’ll let a November 2, 2015 article from NJ.com with the headline “Little love for the gov outside Christie’s Camden police visit” do the talking:

"Chris Christie does not get a free pass in Camden," said state Assembly candidate Keith Walker. "The man has no loyalty."

The latter sentiment is something county Republicans could certainly attest to.

"The governor goes to Ocean, Burlington or Atlantic counties and those Republican chairmen are notified; he comes to Camden or Gloucester -- the heart of (George) Norcross country -- our chairman learns from the newspaper and the governor stands with our opponents. It's unacceptable, and will no longer be tolerated," said Steve Kush, campaign manager for the Camden County GOP's election efforts.

"Four visits to the county to support a Democratic party boss and his machine politicians is too many," Kush continued, adding that Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno does not draw the same ire from Camden County Republicans.

"We love her. She's supportive of all Republican candidates," Kush said.

Good choice Chairman and congratulations Kim!