Essentially by making the contests all about them and tossing everyone else overboard. Mind you, Gov. Kean was not nearly as bad as Weld, but his political proteges were not the kind of people that were interested in furthering the Conservative movement. In fact, one of Kean's proteges was a Republican fella named Albio Sires. He tried to get him elected to Congress in Hudson County as long ago as 1986, but it was a colossal failure. Sires would later reemerge on the political scene a decade later... as a rodent. He rose to become the NJ Assembly Speaker, and is now in the House seat he lost 20 years ago. Ain't it just remarkable how much help our RINO leaders give to the rodents ?
Sires was a Republican? Wow. I didn’t know that.
New Jersey is a particularly sad case. In 1988, Bush carried all but Donald Payne and Bob Menendez’s congressional districts. Before that, Reagan carried it with 51% in 1980 even when Carter held him to narrow margins in much of the south. Even Ford held it against Carter. Now it’s really gone down the tubes. In an earlier era, Kean Jr. might have beaten Menendez, Frank Pallone and Rush Holt would have been vulnerable, and Mike Ferguson wouldn’t be.