Saturday, May 22, 2010

Too Thin Skinned for Prime Time

No, not the Star Ledger's Tom Moran. Being thin skinned put him in prime time for 15 minutes.

Mickey and Diane Gooch are too thin skinned for politics at the level they are buying into.

The Gooches recently found out about opposition research.

Frank Pallone sent an opposition researcher to Rumson Borough Hall in CD-12 to make Open Public Records Act (OPRA) requests for any and all records of police calls to the Gooch estate on the Navesink River.

This is true! I read it in Dan Jacobson's triCityNews. Dan read it in Diane Gooch's Two River Times! You read it on Art Gallagher's blog.

I'd link you to Dan's triCityNews piece, but he doesn't publish on the Internet.

I'd link you to the front page Two River Times story, and Mickey's "Beside the Point" column about it, but I don't want to spend the $22.95 to subscribe to their archives and then give you a link that would require you to spend $22.95 to read it. Here's a link to a TRT search page with the front page article on the top and the "Besides the Point" column listed just underneath. It's free.

According to Dan, Mickey wrote in his column:

Like Captain Renault in the movie Cassablanca, I am "shocked, shocked" that the Democratic sleaze machine working on Frank Pallone's behalf has pulled police reports on my family at our home...I conclude that Pallone feels threatened by Diane Gooch's campaign and that he wants to find some dirt on her or me or my children.

Mickey's conclusion is half right.

Pallone wants to find dirt on Diane, Mickey, their children, and anyone associated with them. Pallone has $4 million. He'll probably spend $100K digging into the Gooch's lives. He'll research Mickey's firm, and every business deal, corporation, LLC, land deal, oil deal, etc that Mickey was every involved in. The "Democratic sleaze machine" will be prepared to spin legitimate deals into nefarious schemes that threaten the universe. Remember what they did with Chris Christie's driving record and loan to an employee last year? Pallone figures that the Gooches are easier targets than the former U.S Attorney.

The Democratic sleaze machine will investigate every charity the Gooches support. They will investigate Diane's youth in Queens and Long Island. They will talk to her school classmates, friends and enemies. If Diane got drunk or high at her prom, cheated on a test in community college, or made out under the Coney Island board walk, Frank will know about it and be prepared to spin it terribly.

They will talk to every disgruntled former employee of Mickey's firm and every woman Mickey ever smiled at, looking to expose or manufacture a scandal.

But they are not affraid of Gooch and they won't use what they find....not unless Gooch is the GOP nominee challenging Pallone and if they have polling data suggesting they need to drag her, and her family, through the mud in order to win. Pallone is not threatened by Diane's campaign yet. Pallone is getting prepared for the possibility of the Gooch campaign getting traction. He must. With no record of public service to attack, the Gooch's businesses, backgrounds and personal lives will be fair game.

If Diane is the nominee and she polls within 10% of Pallone, the October airwaves will be filled with unflattering black and white photos of Mickey and Diane smiling accompanied by scary music. Mickey will be portrayed as a heartless robber barron who made billions on the collapse of the economy while regular people lost their jobs and homes and who decided to buy his wife a seat on Congress in order to get her out of his hair.

That is the way it is and that is the way it is likely to be. That Mickey and Diane are "shocked, shocked," and think it is front page news is both disappointing and alarming. Yes, Captain Renault was feigning shock in Cassablanca, as Mickey probably is now. I guess it has been so long since there was a competitive congressional campaign in the area that they don't remember the "twinkle, twinkle Kenneth Star" ads that Rush Holt ran in his race against Mike Pappas. That was nothing. Frank Pallone will do what ever he thinks he needs to to save his job.

That they were not adequately forewarned by the GOP leaders who recruited them into the race is not all that surprising. One of those GOP leaders told me this week, "all I care about is that Pallone spends all of his money."

Diane and Mickey have no idea what is going to hit them in October, should Diane be the nominee and wage a competitive race.

It is a shame. They seem like nice people.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Of course such a search was expected- and everything else you suggest is expected too- that's why the shock is fiegned-

It's good that you pointed that out (that the shock is fiegned) in your piece becuase anyone who hasn't seen the Movie Cassablanca may not get that nuance. (ie- Gooch is not really shocked at all- just pretending to be shocked)

The point is that Pallone isn't pulling Little's police records- Yet....

His actions are no greater indication of his campaign being "scared" than the numerous references in this blog to the Gooch campaign being "scared" of the Little campaign.

As you know in the case of Pallone hiring PI's to do research- the Gooch camp uses that to elevate their candidate to competitive with Pallone- just as the Little campaign uses any defensive action by Gooch to elevate their candidate.

It's about fundraising- and or votes (but mostly fundraising)- and it works-

Pallone raises about 200k a year in and around Rumson/Middletown- Thats a potential 400k swing to Gooch

Gooch may be fiegning shock- but some pretty serious Pallone contributors are genuinely shocked.

It is also a two way street- I'm sure Pallone has a few skeletons in his closet- there are plenty of rumours, just no one before now has spent 100k looking for them.

Anonymous said...

You are dead on Art. IMO, Gooch is in this to make Pallone spend money. If he is going to spend money he is going to drag their family through the mud. Unfortunate, yes but unexpected, no.

Art Nails D.6 Overview! said...

Art, you are so right-on in this analysis, it's scary!..you have totally NAILED how Frank, his daddy, the union slugs, the out-of-state lobbyists, and rich libs who make up his army of seat-keepers, operate, it is NO joke.. and,also correct: unless they felt even a tad challenged over the years, he doesn't pump out all his barrels,unless in a corner, or up against a wall of perceived threat..he usually pumps out some lib, "caring" drivel, usually at our expense in his "reports", does some knock- and- drag on Election day in his best areas, blankets the district with the 23 yr. old,"green wave" posters, and back to DC he goes, basically, smartly,never mentioning an opponent's name...as I have posted here earlier, these do seem like nice enough folks, who earned a really comfortable life, who may just be bored, or are skimming the surface of "public service",(which just ain't the same as charity work, believe me),and honestly believe their money can and will "insulate" them from a cornered animal, and that they'll prevail, because they so far, have done so.. again, being a lifelong county resident and activist, I still do fear for the rest of our qualified candidates down-ballot, in 2/3 of our county's towns..this race will easily turn into a personal attack on both Gooches, one in which Frank and Co. distorts, mocks, shames, and otherwise decimates a family, because he can, he has, he will!.. "absolute power corrupts absolutely" is so: hey,he's only 58, he's never worked for a living, and he would be a lousy ambassador to anywhere, for "No-bama", those slots are filling up fast,with clowns who are continually screwing up, and leaving that DC regime!..so, yes, absolutely,Frank-Unleashed, will not be good for Diane, because when it starts, she will be unprepared in many ways, to fight back properly.. Anna is experienced and feisty, street-smart enough, to put up a more credible and realistic battle to try and wrest this seat from a quiet, but insidious,lethal, bully!

Unknown said...

Tarring Ms. Gooch's spouse is an issue not new to the Tea Parties. Not that we were tarring him ourselves but the fact we know where Pallone is going with this.
Wall St. legislation is currently on the fore in congress and the headlines. BHO and his radical minions are demonizing Wall St. publicly. Is not this the perfect setting for Pallone to launch his own demonization of a Wall Street honcho? Can you just imagine the commercials? Combine this with Ms. Gooch's mediocre public speaking ability, lack of passion and lack of grassroots support, Pallone is a shoo in. Ms. Anna Little on the other hand would best Frankie boy in a head to head debate (if he is masculine enought to do so) because of her public speaking ability, knowledge and the fact Pallone will have to defend the indefensible. If we are serious about dethroning king Frankie, Little must be the candidate. Then, there is the 3rd party angle of a conservative Tea Party candidate if Ms. Gooch's candidacy advances.....

Anonymous said...

Seems like Mark is determined to be on the losing side either way-

The issue in November will be Jobs and Immigration and The economy. Wall Street Reform will be 6 months done and in the bag and ancient history. Obama and Pallone will be flat footed trying to blame the lack of job growth on Wall Street since they will have been at the helm by November for two years.


Gooch has experience in creating jobs in the private sector- Little has experience in immigration.

I think jobs will be the bigger issue

Unknown said...

I just love these squirrels using an Anonymous monicker. No sir, open your eyes please. Have you seen this from dickmorris.com?

The bill authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury - a political appointee - to seize any financial company (bank or nonbank) simply because, in his opinion, it is too big to fail and in danger of insolvency. This power can be used for political retribution, pressure for campaign funding, or any other abuse bureaucratic whim or partisan politics can conceive. It is a power Fidel Castro or Hugo Chavez would love to have!

BHO won't publicize the jobs situation. The administration and their cohorts in the press will twist and contort job statistics to prove otherwise and deflect attention with some new quarter to demonize. It's the phony Wall St reforms, the health care deception and God knows what else they come up with that we should be sticking in their eye, as well as their nonchalance and outright deceit about actual job creation.
Jobs is just a part of that. But you knew that.

Anonymous said...

Gooch has experience in creating jobs in the private sector- Little has experience in immigration.

Enough with this nonsense already, seriously. Diane has nothing to do with "creating jobs" anywhere. The TRT was what, 20 years old when her husband bought it? The jobs were already there. There is no evidence whatsoever that she ever had any hand in the first business or her husband's credit default swap swindle. She's a socialite at best.

Gooch has experience doing absolutely nothing.

I can not wait to see the faces of the Gooch zombies on this site on June 9th.

Frank Pallone's opposition research on the Gooch's: $150,000

Diane Gooch's social media budget: $100,000

Anna Little winning the 6th District by a 2 to 1 margin...

Priceless.

Belford Boy said...

Two points,
1. I do not know Mickey Gooch but NOBODY makes thta much money on wall street being a nice guy.

2. The people in the Bayshore could care less about how many Jobs Mickey Gooch made for people with MBA's they want to know how many jobs the made for Joe Working Man.

Belford Boy said...

PS.
Nobody in the Bayshore reads the Two Rivers Times

Anonymous said...

"PS. Nobody in the Bayshore reads the Two Rivers Times"

Yup.

"2. The people in the Bayshore could care less about how many Jobs Mickey Gooch made for people with MBA's they want to know how many jobs the made for Joe Working Man."

Double-yup.

And that doesn't just go for the Bayshore. Most of Monmouth County feels the same way and a good portion of Middlesex as well.

Once the name Anna Little is household, which it will be this week, there will be nobody left to vote for Diane.

Anonymous said...

Belford Boy demonstrating her lack of Conservative credentials- Claims to support free enterprise and entrepreneurialism- and yet tears down a person who is a legal immigrant who has no college degree himself and yet with the help of his wife Diane Gooch helped create 1700 jobs for regular folks- Sons and daughters of fireman and police officers and graduates of schools like Monmouth University(btw in CD6)- not MBA's.

And she should know her disctrict- Agreed that the TRT does not have much readership in the Bayshore- but it does have a few thousand readers in Red Bank, Middletown Navesink, Locust and Long Branch. All happen to be in CD6- It's not just the Bayshore.

Also- won't Belford Boy want the support of the Gooches (who raised 400k for Christie) in the General election if she wins the Primary?

Anonymous said...

not really, sounds to me like Belford Boy wants the strongest candidate to take on Pallone and make a difference for all us working slobs, in DC, for a change.. Frankie stopped being a local-yokel, sometime around 1990..Diane was never really a local-yokel, "middle class upbringing" in NY doesn't count today.. Anna is and will remain a local- yokel, because she gets it and so do her followers, which seem to be a hardworking, interesting mix of all types, coming together, to really make a change normal people "can believe in"!..was good to see the AP depressed give some coverage to the TEA endorsed cong. candidates today, and we need to recall that simply means Taxed Enough Already..who can't get on board with that sentiment, and do something different and interesting this go-round, folks?!

Anonymous said...

"Also- won't Belford Boy want the support of the Gooches (who raised 400k for Christie) in the General election if she wins the Primary?

Not if they're going to give money to Pallone again also.

That is exactly what Diane should be doing...raising money for Anna Little. That's what she does best.

This really odd candidacy of hers is either, a) pure, unadulterated narcissism on her part or, more likely, b) a sham from the get-go cooked up by Mickey and Frank.

A billion buys a lot of influence.

Just sayin'.

the joke's on us, again said...

it is odd, come to think of it: here's a nice lady living a life most only dream/read of, and,now, WHY the hell go and do this??.. for all these years,decent, but usually unknown and/or broke R's,have slapped their names on the line to be the loyal opposition, while the dopey libs in 6 just let Frank cruise in, no matter how much he cost them, or what damaging assaults on our freedoms he continually perpetrated on us!.. here, in 2010, we have Mickey, with all that dough,for years,going to Frank,and assuming with a go-ahead with the agenda mentality-push as well, now almost having just some financial fun with him, at our expense as taxpayers,pushing the little lady into where she absolutely does not, and cannot, and will not, belong!.. so inexplicably weird, the ways of the rich and famous, no?..

Anonymous said...

wait until Pallone's Loveman comes out of the closet, I don't think Pallone will be attacking the Gooch's