It’s Been A Really Bad Week for Kim Guadagno – Even For Her…

NJ-Gov Candidate’s Missteps Earn a Flurry of Bad Coverage 

New Jersey Republican Kim Guadagno’s campaign has been struggling for months, but this week has been particularly terrible, even by her standards. In just a few days, Guadagno managed to embarrass herself on three separate occasions for three completely different issues.
Guadagno came under fire for refusing to condemn a Republican House Rep. who posed in front of a Confederate flag:
NJTV: Guadagno stumbles in response to assemblyman’s Confederate flag photo

The post drew criticism from Space’s opponents and others who thought it insensitive, at least given the controversy over the symbol that recently manifested itself in violence in Charlottesville, Virginia. But in her response to a question about it, Guadagno essentially punted.

The Record: GOP assemblyman sparks Confederate flag controversy but makes no apologies

Parker Space, a Sussex County assemblyman, has made no apologies for the photograph, and the state’s top two Republicans, Gov. Chris Christie and Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, have refused to explicitly admonish him.

Perhaps even worse, her running mate Carlos Rendo is battling a lawsuit that alleges he discriminated against an Orthodox Jewish organization as mayor of Wood Cliff Lake. Reports say Rendo worked to keep the organization from expanding and turning the town into “little Jerusalem”:
Politico: Lawsuit: Guadagno running mate said group wanted to turn town into ‘little Jerusalem’

Carlos Rendo, the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor and mayor of Woodcliff Lake, allegedly said an Orthodox Jewish organization wanted to turn his town into a “little Jerusalem” and helped block the group’s attempts to build a new worship center, according to a lawsuit.

Politico: Murphy attacks Guadagno for refusing to ‘criticize racist and anti-semitic speech’

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Phil Murphy on Wednesday accused his Republican opponent, Kim Guadagno, of displaying a “disturbing trend” in responding to controversies over race and anti-semitism.

But even when it came to policy, Guadagno blew it. She has made lowering property taxes a central pillar of her campaign, yet was caught falsely claiming this week that the property tax cap would expire at the end of this year:
Associated Press: Candidate says property tax cap expires, but that’s not so

The Republican candidate for governor who counts cutting property taxes as a central campaign promise incorrectly said Tuesday that a 2 percent cap on those levies expires this year.
Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno said at a property tax relief news conference in a suburban Trenton senior center that the 2010 cap expires in December along with a 2 percent limit on what police officers and firefighters can get in contract disputes.
In fact, only the limit on police and fire contract disputes will end this year.

Meanwhile, another poll came out this morning showing Gov. Chris Christie, Guadagno’s closest political ally, sitting with a lowly 16% approval rating in the state.
New Jersey is fed up with the leadership of the Christie-Guadagno administration and Kim Guadagno’s sloppy campaign has only reinforced their frustration.

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