Herbert Klein

Confessions of a Republican Operative: How to Rig an Election, written by Allen Raymond, to be released by Simon and Schuster on January 8, will take some shots at New Jersey political figures.  Raymond started out in politics as the campaign manager for Bill Martini's successful 1994 bid to unseat Democratic Congressman Herbert Klein, and then served as Martini's Chief of Staff.  (Martini is now a Federal Judge; Sharpe James' trial has been assigned to him.)  Raymond was also, briefly, the Executive Director of the New Jersey Republican State Committee, and worked for Dick Zimmer's campaign for Congress.

When then-Essex County Executive James Treffinger was indicted in 2002, there were allegations that his U.S. Senate campaign made dirty tricks calls on Super Bowl Sunday seeking support for Diane Allen, his primary rival.  Raymond was the consultant referred to in the Treffinger indictment, sources told PolitickerNJ.com.

A key fundraiser for possible presidential candidate/ex-Virginia Governor Mark Warner was in New Jersey -- now an early primary state -- last week to raise money for Forward Together, Warner's PAC. Among the attendees at the event -- organized by Kerry '04 New Jersey Co-Chairman John Graham, lobbyist Michael Kempner and Democratic National Committeeman Alfred DeCotiis and featuring former Virginia Lt. Governor Donald Beyer), were Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes, former Congressman Herbert Klein, and Kerry '05 fundraiser Zenon Christodolou. Warner will be in New Jersey on June 20 to raise money for Speaker Joe Roberts and the Assembly Democrats, and for his own PAC at Kempner's firm, MWW.