South Jersey Democrats Have A Conundrum Coming Up Quickly

Will, Brigid and Amy

There's a red hot race for the Democratic nomination for New Jersey's 2nd congressional district, the one the South Jersey (Norcross) Machine and the DCCC screwed up when their repulsive Blue Dog pet-- Jeff Van Drew-- switched parties and (openly) became a Trump butt wipe. The same machine-- along with the DCCC-- has another candidate though... like anyone wants to trust them again-- Brigid Harrison. Everyone I know in south Jersey tells me that the progressive in the race, Will Cunningham, "can't win" and that the only chance to stop Harrison is to back Amy Kennedy. The problem with that strategy is that we'd wind up with Amy Kennedy in Congress. (That's always what's wrong with going along with lesser of two evils strategies.)

A south Jersey player who I know well but who doesn't want to be identified because he fears retribution from the Mob the Machine, sent an open letter to Amy Kennedy with a suggestion about how she could win the postponed primary, now scheduled for July 7th:


Open Letter To Amy Kennedy
-by Anonymous

Dear Amy,

You can win the Democratic nomination for the NJ-02 congressional seat, but first you have to defeat Brigid Harrison, the only other viable candidate in the race. And with the Norcross machine backing her, that won’t be easy.

You need to issue a statement embracing a popular position that will clearly distinguish you from Harrison. And there’s no better issue for that purpose than Medicare for All.

Dissatisfaction with the dysfunctional U.S. healthcare system was a factor in the 2018 wave election that gave Democrats control of the House. A 2018 Reuters-Ipsos poll found Medicare for All was supported by 70 percent of all voters, including 85 percent of Democrats and 52 percent of Republicans.

And now, with the Covid 19 pandemic devastating the economy-- and with millions of workers losing employer-provided health insurance along with their jobs-- support for Medicare for All is greater than ever.

As the Norcross candidate, Brigid Harrison can’t afford to support Medicare for All. George Norcross is not only Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Cooper; he’s also Executive Chairman of Conner, Strong & Buckelew, a huge insurance brokerage where employee benefits packages are a big part of the business. Thus the sale of private, for-profit health insurance provides much of his personal income.

As you know, the late Sen. Ted Kennedy sponsored earlier Medicare for All bills in the 109th and 110th Congresses, before the Democratic leadership took all single payer proposals off the table in 2009 in order to support the ACA. And even earlier, JFK proposed Medicare for seniors as only a first step toward universal coverage. So your embrace of Medicare for All could be seen as an embrace of a family tradition.

Supporting Medicare for All will help you win the July 7 primary. And your victory will be a major setback for the Norcross machine-- a very good thing for South Jersey!