"The only thing new in the world is the history we don't know."

--President Harry Truman

BACKGROUND
About a week ago, I penned a couple of back-to-back diaries entitled: "2008's Grand Masters of GOP Dirty Tricks", and "A Preview Of GOP GE Tactics: Brutal Racism Ahead?" Please take a look at these if you haven't read them already, if for no other reason than the fact that they contain more than ample links to support everything I'm stating in this diary.

In those previous diaries, I reviewed how well-versed the folks running the 2008 GOP and 501(c)4-based neoconservative media strategies were at dirty tricks, general skullduggery and skirting the law (and sometimes breaking the law and then being jailed for their nefarious actions, too). However, what I've learned over the past few days is that there's actually a documented history of deep contempt over GOP campaign and election abuses, spanning many years, specifically between David Plouffe, Barack Obama's campaign manager, and the very folks running the show for the GOP this year.  It's quite a story...

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The de facto reality is, this cycle, the GOP is reverting to media and robo-calling campaigns produced and implemented by a group of folks with known connections to, among other things:

1.) convicted felons, jailed for implementing dirty campaign tactics, as well as,

2.) serial violators of basic FEC regulations.

A comment from a New Jersey blog on convicted GOP felon, Allen Raymond,  author of "How to Rig an Election: Confessions of a Republican Operative."

"As for his three months in a Pennsylvania prison, he wrote: 'After 10 full years inside the GOP, 90 days among honest criminals wasn't really any great ordeal.' "

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Cross-posted at Blue Jersey

Following up on a previous post, we've received word that Rush Holt will be reappointed to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. The appointment has not been finalized yet, and that may be why the New York Timesomitted it. Sorry for any confusion this may have caused.

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Cross-posted from Blue Jersey

With the announcements that neither Chris Christie or Mike Ferguson will challenge Senator Frank Lautenberg in 2008, the Republicans' chances to take that seat are very weak. This is not because Christie or Ferguson are better candidates than Senator Lautenberg -- they're not (especially Ferguson, who knows he cannot win statewide). Rather, these were the two candidates with the ability to raise the kind of money that is required for a competitive statewide contest.

Think about it: a total of $35 million went into the 2006 race between Senator Menendez and Tom Kean, Jr. Governor Corzine has spent tens of millions on his two statewide runs. The media markets are expensive and so is the field operation. Only certain people can raise this kind of money, and none of them are in this race.

Lautenberg has to be happy with this news. Just last month, Chuck Todd rated Lautenberg as the 10th most vulnerable incumbent Senator:

Despite Republicans' dismal track record over the past 30 years, they never completely punt on Senate races here. But there's a big difference between keeping a race technically "competitive" and actually winning.

Everyone thought Lautenberg would go into this race with an advantage, but who knew it'd be this big? The departures of Christie and Ferguson make his choice to seek re-election an even easier one. (Chuck Schumer basically confirmed that Lautenberg is running earlier this week.)

Still, others might find Lautenberg's good fortune to be somewhat disappointing: Reps. Rob Andrews, Frank Pallone, Rush Holt, Steve Rothman, and Bill Pascrell. It's not that they bear ill will toward their senior Senator, but they were hopeful he'd opt out of running again. They, like Menendez once did, have been building their warchests to best position themselves to move up to the Senate, and with Lautenberg's re-election, they will likely ride the bench until 2014.

But our ambitious representatives should look on the bright side: their loss can be the House Democrats' gain. If it becomes clear early on that their Republican challengers are merely nominal (as they were in 2006), the 'Use It or Lose It' campaign can be kicked into gear. In 2006, NJ candidates had less than three weeks to benefit from 'Use It or Lose It' -- this time they can have more than three months. This will bolster candidates in New Jersey's 7th, 5th, and 3rd districts. It will put Republicans on the defensive in a year they want to spend attacking Democratic freshman.

As with Republicans statewide, money is an extremely important qualification for Democratic candidates in these districts. In the 7th, Linda Stender lost by a point, so the DCCC and other national organizations will be back to help her. But for candidates in the 5th and 3rd where Democrats lost by 11 and 17 points, the DCCC will not be rushing to their aid. Early money from safe Democrats may be their best chance to succeed.

Luckily for them, Lautenberg is holding his seat down, and there should be plenty of money to go around. New Jersey's Congressional Democrats should remember that they'll have another 6 years to build their warchests, but only so much time to expand their caucus.

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Cross-posted from Blue Jersey

Immediately after Nancy Pelosi's swearing-in as Speaker of the House, Representative Rush Holt put the House of Representatives on record that the swearing-in of a Member of Congress does not prejudice the pending inquiry of a contested election in Florida's 13th district.

Holt: Madam Speaker: In light of the facts that partisan and non-partisan lawsuits are underway with regard to Florida's 13th Congressional District and that the votes of 18,000 voters were not recorded on the paperless electronic voting machines in an election decided by 369 votes, may I ask for the record whether a notice of contest has been filed with the Clerk on behalf of Christine Jenningspursuant to law, and what effect, if any, today's proceedings have on pending contests?

Speaker Pelosi: The Chair is advised by the Clerk that a notice of contest pursuant to the statute, section 382 of title 2, United States Code, has been filed with the Clerk. Under section 5 of article I of the Constitution and the statute, the House remains the judge of the elections of its Members. The seating of this Member-elect is entirely without prejudice to the contest over the final right to that seat that is pending under the statute and will be reviewed in the ordinary course in the Committee on House Administration.

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