Samuel Alito

An unofficial legislative committee will meet in two weeks to figure out the future of the state’s Fair and Clean Elections program, the status of which is in serious jeopardy.

The bill renewing the program, which was tested as a pilot project in 2005 and 2007, was pulled from consideration in June after both the programs’ backers and detractors raised concerns about the new legislation.

Last month it was dealt an even more serious setback, when the U.S. Supreme Court, in Davis v. Federal Election Commission, struck down the federal Millionaire’s Amendment, which allows out-funded candidates more leeway with campaign contribution limits. At the request of Assembly Democrats, the non-partisan Office of Legislative Services (OLS) wrote an opinion stating that the Clean Elections program’s “rescue funds” – meant to give a boost to candidates facing attacks from an outside group or a well-funded opponent who opted out of the program – would likely be ruled unconstitutional under the Supreme Court precedent.

New Jersey has not had a serious favorite son presidential candidate since Woodrow Wilson won in 1912, but that could change in the future: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, a West Caldwell resident, may want to seek a future Republican presidential nomination. That’s according to New York Post gossip columnist Cindy Adams, who says “that's what friends who don't want their names mentioned are telling other friends who are telling me the man wants.”

This week's Steve Some Self-Promotion Award goes to Steve Some.  The GOP lobbyist somehow convinced a leading state newspaper to run an announcement of his reappointment to the 21-member U.S. Commission for the Preservaton of America's Heritage Abroad.  Some told the newspaper that he has been "working with Lithuania and raised over $50,000 privately to build a new memorial at the Uzupis Jewish cemetery in Vilnius" and that Associate Justice Samuel Alito will swear him in on June 6.

Tom Kean's U.S. Senate campaign took a shot at the Democratic incumbent for voting against the confirmation of Samuel Alito as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court: "Today, Bob Menendez sent his message loud and clear -- partisanship is more important than the people of New Jersey. Instead of fighting for Judge Alito, he chose to embrace the political bitterness that is dividing America." But on the same day, Kean voted against the confirmation of Zulima Farber as Attorney General of New Jersey.

By Joseph E. Farren

I can hear my father now; "Joe, when the crowd goes left, you go right." This was a constant refrain directed toward me throughout childhood, clearly designed – and successfully so – to instill a sense of independence in an impressionable young boy. Too bad for the Democratic Party he's isn’t around today to give that same advice to any one of their young, aspiring leaders.

As someone who has spent some time in and around politics, I'm surprised that more Democrats haven’t viewed Sam Alito as a risk worth taking. Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I arrive at this position with not only bias, but possibly a lack of proper credentialing. I’m a Republican. I’m from New Jersey. And my mother’s maiden name is Sammartino. But in my view, none of this changes the fact that politics is a game of addition, and the political symbol that is now Sam Alito may just represent some risk-taking Democrat’s modern-day abacus.

The Democratic Party’s near-unanimous opposition to Judge Alito’s nomination is obviously rooted in “base� appeasement. The base of the Democratic Party – much like its Republican counterpart – is ideologically uncompromising and therefore intensely opposed to Judge Alito’s ascent to the Supreme Court. So, as the common (and safe) political thinking goes, any Democrat who wishes to rise above his or her current office best not clash with the base.

But Sam Alito is now far more than just the embodiment of a handful of legal decisions that few Americans pay attention to anyway. Sam Alito is now a political symbol. He’s the over-achieving, yet unassuming son of immigrant educators who was raised in middle class New Jersey, attended public school, graduated from Ivy League institutions, married, had children of his own, and then rose to the pinnacle of his profession. Sam Alito’s life – minus his exceptional intellectual ability – is the life of many Americans. His familial upbringing and the value system that defined it is one with which millions of his fellow citizens can readily identify.

If we look at recent political history, we find several examples of calculated political risk-taking that rewarded politicians who took the road less traveled. Bill Clinton, admittedly the most capable politician in at least the last 40 years, had Sister Soulja and welfare reform. George W. Bush, not exactly a political slouch himself, successfully parted ways with the Republican base on immigration and entitlement expansion. And in my opinion, Judge Sam Alito represents a worthwhile risk for an aspiring Democrat who wants and needs to move toward national electability.

Disagreeing with some of Judge Alito’s decisions yet embracing his life story, character, and rare intellectual ability are not politically exclusive (as is voting for the Iraq war but opposing its financing). Quite the contrary, these deft political maneuvers have the potential to add support and profile when everyone else is saying the same old things to the same old people. 2008, much like 1992 and 2004, will likely be a year when Democrats hungrily search for a committed standard-bearer who has the versatility to peel away votes in what has become known as red-state America.

In the next few days I’ll be watching and listening closely, and as a good and loyal Republican will be hoping that no one takes my advice.

Mr. Farren, a former Republican Senate staff member in Trenton, is now a public relations professional in Washington, DC.

Hamilton Township's Democratic Mayor, Glen Gilmore, is urging Senator Robert Menendez to vote yes on the confirmation of Samuel Alito as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Alito grew up in Hamilton, which makes Gilmore's current position politically expedient -- though this endorsement, which will not likely sway Menendez, could someday hurt the ambitious Gilmore in a statewide Democratic primary.

A new Progress for America TV ad advocating the confirmation of Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court features an endorsement from a prominent Democrat: Robert DelTufo, a former Attorney General under Governor James Florio and an ex-United States Attorney. DelTufo was an advisor and fundraiser for Jon Corzine's campaign for Governor and for Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign. "He does not have a partisan bone in his body nor an ideological bent," Del Tufo says. "He would certainly be a credit to this country."