Amy Mallett

Part of a 12th district Democratic ticket with Assemblyman Michael Panter, Amy Mallet takes a stop on the campaign trail in Manalapan.

Assemblyman Michael Panter's campaign today said Declan O'Scanlon is not in a position to render a serious judgement about the record of the two-term Monmouth County Democrat.

O'Scanlon, a Republican councilman from Little Silver who is challenging Panter, issued another war whoop over the weekend about Panter's inability to implement real ethics reform because of the assemblyman's close ties to Speaker Joe Roberts.

"It's absolutely preposterous," responded Dan Reilly, Panter's campaign manager.

Republicans in the 12th district said they tried to get Democratic Assemblyman Michael Panter and his running mate Amy Mallett to sit down in the studios of News 12 New Jersey for a debate Tuesday. 

It's not going to happen.

"We have a scheduling conflict," confirmed Democratic campaign spokesperson Tali Israeli.

Republicans Declan O'Scanlon and Caroline Casagrande wanted some nose-to-nose time with Panter and Mallett on air following a scheduled taping of Karcher v. Beck.

After facing criticism for not being aggressive enough against Democrats, Republicans have coalesced around a new cause.

Although Republicans offered no comment on Sunday or Monday after The Star Ledger broke the story about Gov. Corzine’s $15,000 gift to ex-girlfriend Carla Katz’s brother-in-law Rocco Riccio, the GOP has now seized on this latest scandal to erupt over Gov. Corzine’s relationship with Katz in what appears to be a coordinated effort to turn it into a campaign issue.