Posted on 06/06/2013 12:02:47 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Chris Christie has appointed New Jersey’s Attorney General Jeff Chiesa, a former federal prosecutor who worked for him as governor and as U.S. Attorney, as the interim senator replacing the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg.
“I said on Monday I was going to select the person I thought was going to be the best person to represent New Jersey between now and Oct. 13,” Christie told reporters. “During the last few days as I’ve gotten to deliberate on this decision, it became clear to me that Attorney General Chiesa would be the best person to represent the people of New Jersey in the United States Senate.”
Christie said Chiesa does not plan to run for the seat in the special election.
“I’m perfectly comfortable with that decision,” he said. Chiesa had not been among the names circulated in the early short-lists mentioned by Christie insiders.
Christie announced the selection at a news conference in Trenton, shortly before he was set to leave for a GOP donor retreat in Utah with Mitt Romney, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).
Christie’s pick came three days after Lautenberg passed away at age 89.
Christie had said he wanted to move speedily to fill the seat. But given the timing of the special election he set — the general election is Oct. 16, followed by an Aug. 13 primary is Aug. 13 — the appointment will be relatively short-lived.
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
“So much for the separation of Church and State.”
And I say: Good for him.
The man claims to be a “Conservative Republican”.
He’s also not running in the special.
I would have appointed someone who was gonna run, fat boy seemed intent on a seat warmer which is why we heard Kean Senior’s name bandied about.
Meaning we need a candidate. Fat boy’s old primary opponent Steve Lonegan is only Republican in so far. I remember not having a high opinion of him, he’s a conservative but was a flaky candidate. The filing deadline is the 10th I believe.
“...Fat boy’s old primary opponent Steve Lonegan ... but was a flaky candidate...”
Impy, I’m curious as to why you’re saying he was flaky?
I’ve heard his radio spot-ads on the local stations, and they were right on the money. He comes across to me as a plain-speaking, no-nonsense REAL conservative.
Not jumping on you, just not understanding where you’re coming from re Lonegan.
I just remember (not very well) his campaign against fat ass being lousy. If his only opponent ends up being some RINO D-bag I’ll back him but I have trouble seeing him win.
Billyboy do you remember the Lonegan campaign?
I like the idea.
But is he interested at all?
“...his campaign against fat ass being lousy...”
I don’t think “lousy” so much as the money just wasn’t there to compete.
Is he in the running?
I haven’t heard anything about Steve Forbes being interested in a blitzkrieg Senate run. He’d have to get 1,000 petition signatures in by Monday and have to campaign for an August primary and then an October general.
This October’s election will determine whether the Senate will have 45 Republicans or 46 Republicans until January 2015; the election that could help the GOP retake the Senate is in November 2014, when the NJ seat is up for a new 6-year term. So if Forbes truly wants to be a Senator, he’ll have a second bit at the apple in 18 months. Of course, he’s passed up these races time and time again, so I’m not very hopeful that he’ll run.
Bret Schundler
former mayor Jersey City, NJ
That man should have been Governor and then President.
Kneecapped by his own party who said a man who won a landslide in a heavily democrat majority minority city was too conservative for their country club a*ses.
Ones of the worst RINO atrocities in recent memory.
Basically Lonegan lucked into getting elected mayor of a tiny town a few thousand residents, and has attempted to run for higher office FOUR times now (state legislature, Congress, Governor twice), and not only lost but hasn't come remotely close to winning in ANY of those campaigns. In 2006, he was polling he in single digits the entire time and came in a distant fourth, but managed to peel away enough conservative votes from Bret Schnundler to ensure a RINO was nominated. The problem is Lonegan rubs people the wrong way with his scorched earth tactics, and voters react to him negatively. Running him for U.S. Senate would ensure the RAT wins, it's similar to those quixotic attempts to continually elect Sharron Angle, John Raese, Alan Keyes, etc.)
I also think Steve Forbes is yesterday's news and couldn't get elected to the U.S. Senate in NJ (though he'd have no problem having the funds to run a viable campaign), and I say this as someone who backed Forbes for President TWICE (in 1996 and 2000)
Bottom line, we need to recruit a better candidate to run in the special.
I also agree a seat warmer appointment is lame, I would have preferred Christie appoint a conservative who can actually run for and win the seat in his own right (which is a tall order in NJ, I would have gone with former Congressman Mike Ferguson). But at least we didn't get an appointment that would make us physically ill, like Whitman, Kean Sr., or... (puke) Geraldo Rivera, or a treasonous RAT appointee because "the people of NJ elected a Democrat for six years and I have to respect their wishes".
The seat warmer is apparently a practicing Catholic and says he's a conservative Republican and against amnesty. Time will tell if it's true. If I had to venture a guess, I'd say he's probably a Norm Coleman type Republican and will vote with us 70-80% of the time.
Let's see, now. Lautenberg dies on Monday, and on Tuesday, they are already issuing rules (from where?) that candidates for the special election have only six days to get 1,000 signatures on petitions (which, in reality, means much more than 1,000 in order to survive almost inevitable challenges).
Isn't that an unreasonable burden on any potential candidate, except maybe one who has a well-oiled political machine at his or her immediate disposal?
Fat boy set the election date. I would assume the filing deadline is a statutory number of days before hand.
Some RINO state Senator will probably get his blessing.
That was a seriously well-written breakdown, Billy. I have not heard it put like that before. Thank you.
I’d heard Lonegan’s radio ads, and he immediately appealed to me because I’m a scorched earth kind of mentality myself (hence, I could never get elected).
I’m like that on gun rights too. Will not give an inch, nor back down or back up any more on it.
Yes, Billy tells it.
I almost mentioned Sharron Angle but I didn’t want to diss the poor bastard. ;d
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