Bill Pascrell

Jose Sandoval of Passaic City 

PASSAIC - In a room just off Passaic Avenue with the ceiling fan spinning down on about 30 people in early summer, Jose Sandoval starts with the Lord’s Prayer, then goes into his attack plan for the Nov. 4th special election.

Although he’s never held elected office, Sandoval’s been through this drill before, having run unsuccessfully for the Assembly against Gary Schaer in 2005 and the U.S. Congress a year later against U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8). 

A 55-year old Republican real estate developer and family man who owns three huge properties in the scandal-ridden city’s upscale section, he looks like a sharply dressed man of the people as he stands in front of a colorful banner with one word bigger than the rest: "Sandoval."

It’s four months before the election to fill the unexpired term of convicted former Mayor Sammy Rivera, and Sandoval’s talking strategy. He’s talking about getting voters registered and getting the elderly and infirm to polling places. He speaks fast and eloquently in Spanish.

Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) today in Paterson 

PATERSON - It worked in 2006, and with time running out in which to prop up and target an upside-down President George W. Bush and his allies, senators Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez took a shot today in front of a Citgo gas station sign that read: Gas: $3.95, cash; $4.05, credit.

While station owner Fadi Sabbagh stood nearby with arms folded and the cars rumbled in and out on Chamberlain and Preakness, Lautenberg and Menendez laid siege to the Bush administration and their Republican helpmates over high gas prices.

"When you have two oil men in the White House, it’s not shocking to wonder where our energy policies are headed," said Menendez, who along with Lautenberg wants to reintroduce legislation that last week failed to reach the required 60 cloture votes (51-43) on the Senate floor.

The Consumer-First Energy Act of 2008 would roll back $17 billion in tax breaks to oil companies and green light the reinvestment of that money into renewable fuels and energy efficiency. It would also create a windfall-profits tax for the top five major oil-and-gas companies (25% on windfall profits), and make price-gouging for gasoline a federal crime.

U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8), right, with U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) today in Paterson. 

PATERSON - U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8) didn't hesitate today when asked whom he would like to see presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois choose as his running mate.

"Senator (Jim) Webb, from Virginia," Pascrell told PolitickerNJ.com at a press conference on gas prices in Paterson, which he attended with senators Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez and Paterson Mayor Jose "Joey" Torres.

"He'd be a great vice president, and you'd always know where he stands," Pascrell said of the freshman Virginia senator, and Vietnam veteran who once boxed Ollver North to earn a controversial loss when the two were in the Marine Corps.

U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) basks in victory on Election Night in Newark.

The trouncing Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) gave U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews (D-1) last week sends the South Jersey congressman to the back of the line among those Democratic members of the congressional delegation intent on succeeding the 84-year old senator.

It depends on the region where the question is asked, of course, but among those eyeballing Lautenberg’s seat, the names of U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6), U.S. Rush Holt (D-12), and U.S. Rep. Steve Rothman (D-9) surface more frequently than U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8), U.S. Rep. Donald Payne (D-10), and U.S. Rep. Albio Sires (D- 13).

As the Hillary Clinton crowd decompresses after their champion ranU.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8) up the white flag this week in her presidential bid, talk inevitably turned to vice-president.

And inevitably turned to Clinton.

"She has to be considered," said Clinton supporter U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8). "We can’t just dismiss 18 million voters because the pundits say she can’t do it."

One of a number of other congressmen this week who advised Clinton to pull the plug on her campaign based on the numbers that add up in favor of Sen. Barack Obama, Pascrell said Clinton told him and others she doesn’t intend to campaign for the job.

But she’s still Pascrell’s first choice, and the first choice of Pascrell’s congressional colleague, U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6).

Pallone to Andrews: Don't come backThe bad blood between U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews (D-1) and his congressional colleagues seeped around the edges of Election Day as U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6) today called "absurd" the public exhortations by Andrews’s allies for the congressman to return to his House seat.

A little over two months ago, Andrews abandoned his claim to the seat he held for 18 years to run for the U.S. Senate. On the campaign trail, Andrews repeatedly denied that his wife, Camille, was merely keeping the seat warm for him should he fail.

After his Election Night concession speech to U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), the congressman reiterated his commitment not to reclaim the seat that Camille Andrews won the same night, burying her primary opposition by a more sizable margin than her husband was simultaneously buried by Lautenberg.

But in a Courier-Post article today, Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts and Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney both urged Andrews not to give up his seat.

That left Pallone fuming over what he sees as the South Jersey Democratic Organization trying to create public traction for Andrews to make an "aw, shucks" reclamation of his House seat - and to once again fail to keep his word.

NEWARK - The warmup acts are underway here at the Gateway Hilton, with congressmen Steve Rothman, Bill Pascrell and Frank Pallone leading the chants of "six more years."

Stepping through the hoopla, State Party Chairman Joseph Cryan announces that it’s a blowout for U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), and the supporters sprinkled among the sizeable press corps unleash some whoops.

"We are going to be back with you with our winner and Gov. Corzine and Sen. Menendez in just a moment," shouts Cryan.

The Rev. Dr. James Kuykendall, Sen. Frank Lautenberg, the Rev. David Rios, and U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell pray on Monday. 

PATERSON - On the Monday before Election Day, Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) came to his native city to stand with a coalition of Latino and African-American ministers in a onetime gentleman’s club for the managers who operated the silk mills.

"When I was a kid, I used to walk on the street out there and wonder what was in that dark place," said Lautenberg, son of Jewish immigrants. "Then someone told me, ‘your kind is not welcome.’"

"Speak, Frank, speak," exhorted U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8), standing with the Rev. Dr. James Kuykendall, the Rev. David Rios and other ministers.

Democratic House Judiciary Committee members are not completely satisfied with the Department of Justice’s release of a list of 85 deferred prosecution agreements (dpas).

Two of the committee’s members -- Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Linda Sanchez (D-,Calif.) -- said that the information was incomplete and that they would consider legislation to set stricter guidelines on how corporate monitors are selected.

The brouhaha over dpas started right here in New Jersey, after it was revealed that U.S. Attorney Chris Christie awarded a lucrative federal monitoring contract to former Attorney General John Ashcroft, who used to be his boss. That contract was worth anywhere from $28 to $52 million.

U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, left, leads Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA.) on a tour of the Great Falls with Paterson Mayor Jose Torres.

PATERSON – Hamilton never ran against Washington but if he had he probably would have given him fair warning.

U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-8) doesn’t deny that competition is good in politics, but U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews’s (D-1) method of challenging an elder statesman was wrongheaded, in Pascrell’s opinion.

"I don’t think it was healthy," said the congressman, standing in Overlook Park above the Great Falls in Paterson on Saturday morning. "The way he waited until the end causes animosity."

Pascrell said Andrews gave his word not only to U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, but to the other Democratic members of the congressional delegation that he wouldn’t run.

They he ran anyway against Lautenberg.

"The animosity will be healed," said Pascrell. "This is one state. Anybody who wants to try to divide it between north and south should move to another state."

Pascrell said the fact that both of New Jersey’s senators are from the state’s northern region doesn’t diminish their ability to deliver for the entire state.

"I’m from North Jersey," said Pascrell, "and in the last budget, I did everything I could to help South Jersey hospitals."