Andrews re-negs on promise, seeks return to US House

yawn (1.33 / 6)

after reading this post, i see that Dale Glading isn't the only one whining.

activist for hire.

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by: Jay Lassiter @ Wed Sep 03, 2008 at 17:10:57 PM CDT

i dont know how you guys defend Andrews actions (4.00 / 1)

The guy convinced everyone he wasn't running again and now some of his colleagues  have no intention of welcoming him back. Aside from Pascrell, Pallone won't be happy either.

Your comment bewilders me that you think this post is whining. Rob Andrews might be an effective congressman but he may be one of the most dishonest politicians in all of New Jersey, and that is quite a feat to accomplish.

I 2nd Scott in making sure that Andrews is again worked against in any primary he tries again. This kind of dishonesty is what is wrong with New Jersey politics.

The best part is that Senator Lautenberg predicted that this was exactly what is going to happen after he lost.  

Pro-Monmouth  

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by: vingopal @ Wed Sep 03, 2008 at 17:46:16 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

If Dale Glading is a whiner... (0.00 / 0)

...then Sarah Palin is qualified for the Vice Presidency.

Dale isn't whining and dismissing his statement as such does a disservice to the Democratic Party and common decency.

Dale Glading is right. Rob Andrews told New Jersey - and the people of the First District - he would not seek reelection to the U.S. House. If the PoliticsNJ report is believed, Rob lied. Calling him a liar isn't wrong and it's certainly not whining.

It's just the unfortunate reality.

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by: JasonCNJ @ Wed Sep 03, 2008 at 22:09:00 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Wake up Jay! Your principles are calling! (4.00 / 1)

While I am not shocked in the least that Andrews is reclaiming his House seat, I really wonder if a day will come when Jay stops drinking the Rob Andrews Kool-Aid.  What is it going to take for him to realize that he and the rest of the Norcross machine are just bad for democracy.

Mind you, I think that it is just as well that Andrews reclaims the seat.  With significantly more seniority and no less scruples (or more for that matter) than anyone else who Norcross would have given the seat to, it will wind up being a net positive for the people of the 1st District.

But that doesn't mean that this is a good thing.  It is just the least bad of all possible bad options.  And someone who claims to be a progressive should be standing up against the machine politics in their midst instead of standing up for them.

That said, I saw Frank Lautenberg speak tonight.  It was the first time that I saw him speak in a very long time.  It was quite scary.  It made me think that Holt, Pallone, Pascrell, and Rothman should have joined Andrews in taking him on.

The only thing scarier than listening to Lautenberg talk was watching Sarah Palin tonight and realizing how strong a candidate and bad a Vice-President/President she might be.

If the Democrats in NJ think that the November elections are going to be a cakewalk, I think that we might all be in for a rude awakening.  Kerry only beat Bush by 7 points in 2004 and McCain and Palin are undoubtedly going to be viewed much more positively than Bush and Palin.

If Zimmer is effective at presenting himself as a moderate and can get/give coattails from/to the top of the ticket in places where they are strong/weak respectively, I think that they might shock a lot of people.

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by: rachael'sdad @ Wed Sep 03, 2008 at 23:24:46 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

He lied to you and the voters, Jay (4.00 / 1)

I have no clue how you can defend this.  

Rob stated that he was categorically not going to run for his House seat, that the US Senate was the only place he was going to be.

He ran a campaign partially based on his integrity and honesty, and was lying to you the whole time.

No matter what you think of him personally, this is a sleazy, dishonest thing to do.

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by: huntsu @ Thu Sep 04, 2008 at 08:17:32 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

Rob "Barracuda" Andrews Bites Again.... (4.00 / 1)

Obviously, this is 100% legal.

Look, if the Norcross machine is so well oiled that they can get away with this; then the people of the 1st will likely re-elect Rob in great numbers.

Perhaps a day will come in NJ politics when a move like this would get you nothing  but revulsion.....but that day is not today.

So, yes, I would still rather have Andrews in than the right wing Republican....but if New Jersey Republicans ever get their shit together and start running real reform candidates who are socially progressive; they will start winning.  Not likely, eh?  They have their own machines.

It's up to reform minded progressives throughout our state to offer viable statewide alternatives to entrenched machine Democrats.  

Andrews, along with every machine Democrat,  needs to be primaried over and over until the Norcross/Ferierro/Adubato/Etc machines are derailed.  They already have enough money to live on for the rest of their days.

NJ can't afford the costs of legalized entrenched pay to play corruption.

We need people in office who's first loyalty is not to a boss, but to the PEOPLE they're supposed to represent.

We need people in office who's first loyalty is not to a "contributor", but to the PEOPLE they're supposed to represent.

We need people in office who are more afraid of earning the wrath of voters than they are of offending a boss.  

Andrews loves the power and he knows he can get away with this, so, hey.....what else could be expected.  I would have been really surprised if he had kept his word.

Meanwhile, tomorrow we'll be fed all manner of bullshit about what a sacrifice he'll be making and how he could have made much more money in the private sector...and how he owes it the the people to break his sacred word for their sake.

Again, it's bullshit.  He likes the power...that's even more corrupting than money.

Let's hope that the shame of this will, at least inspire Rob to propose/enact/co-sponsor/vote for some truly progressive legislation and that he'll avoid earmarking too many millions of dollars for projects that will make Norcross and his associates/cronies richer than they already are.

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by: Nick Lento @ Wed Sep 03, 2008 at 17:38:17 PM CDT

I would never vote for Andrews (4.00 / 1)

for anything.  In a close election I would simply sit it out.

He lied repeatedly and shamelessly to the media, to the Democratic Party, to the voters.  

He's given up any chance at a statewide office in my book.

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by: huntsu @ Thu Sep 04, 2008 at 08:20:03 AM CDT