May 8, 2008 - 10:21pm
Rothman, the Obama bodyman
By Wally EdgeBarack Obama made an appearance on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives today, and was escorted by Rep. Steve Rothman – a very public demonstration of Rothman’s clout with the leading presidential candidate. Rothman, a Bergen County Democrat, won a power struggle for control of Obama’s New Jersey campaign earlier this year, and played a key role in holding the endorsement of the Bergen County Democratic Organization for Frank Lautenberg last month.
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May 15, 2008
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Read the expanded Wake Up Call, our summary of today’s news media coverage.
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Good for Him
Secretary of what? I know he's shooting for something!
Rothman is ... a goner.
Wait until boss Ferriero will get a wind of this. After all, who is in control in Bergen County. Not Rothman!
Rothman
Rothman's clout is so strong that Obama still got blown out in NJ, including in Bergen County.
Rothman
I don't think that he wants a cabinet post, I think he wants a Senate seat. He probably wouldnt be considered for a high ranking cabinet post anyway.
Rothman rolled the dice and won.
While NJ Democrats were forming a "conga" line behind the polarizing Hillary, Rothman stepped back and made the right political assessment.
It wasn't too long ago that Rothman was being booed by NJ Democrats at the state convention for endorsing Obama.
What a difference a year makes!
Instead of listening to political boobs like Corzine or insiders like DeCotiis, et al, Rothman made the right choice.
If Democrats in NJ didn't buy into the "hype" Hillary couldn't lose, the state might have picked a winner.
What this proved is that Rothman has a political sensibility. Four years ago he endorsed Lieberman, so I guess this great choice cancels out that bad one!
As for Bergen County, Ferriero screwed up and that was entirely of his own doing. Rothman doesn't want to fight with Ferrieo, no matter how much the Wildes crowd would love to see it occur.
If Ferriero really had a problem with Rothman, he could have endorsed Wildes and he didn't. That tells me more what he thinks of Wildes versus his opinion of Rothman.
Vote Column - All the way!