George H.W. Bush

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Former Gov. Tom Kean at a GOP rally earlier this year with John McCain and Joe Lieberman

Former Gov. Tom Kean will not comment on whether he’s been asked about or vetted for a cabinet position in the Obama Administration. But don’t read anything into that.

“I don’t comment on those things. I can’t,” said Kean, a Republican whose name surfaced in media reports both as a potential pick for Secretary of Education and for Department of Homeland Security Secretary (which is likely to go to Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano).

Being vetted for a cabinet position is a tricky situation. If the administration has talked to you, you’re not supposed to comment on it, and it’s better to err on the side of caution and not say even if you have not been contacted about it.

“It’s an elaborate dance,” he said.

Two former Presidents will be in New Jersey today campaigning for their party nominee for United States Senator. George H.W. Bush attend a $500-per-person fundraiser for Republican Thomas Kean, Jr. in Bridgewater -- $5,000-per-person with a picture. Bill Clinton will attend a $1,000-per-person cocktail party and a $10,000 VIP reception for Democrat Bob Menendez at the Elizabeth home of State Senator Raymond Lesniak.

The death of Lloyd Bensten leaves George W. Bush as the only living Texan to never win electoral votes from New Jersey in a national campaign. Texans have traditionally run well in the Garden State: New Jersey voters have supported John Nance Garner (for Vice President in 1932 and 1936), Lyndon Johnson (for Vice President in 1960 and President in 1964), and George H.W. Bush (for Vice President in 1980 and 1984 and President in 1988), but not Bentsen, the Democratic nominee for Vice President in 1988, or Bush, who lost New Jersey in 2000 and 2004.