There is serious discussion in the local papers that the NJ Dems are planning a switcheroo ala Toricelli. They will replace Menendez with Codey.

Why don't they just have Bill Clinton move there and run him? They can do that, right? We can't replace Delay who moved to a different state, but they can just pop in someone else. Heck how about they just have him there long enough to win, he resigns, and then the governor can appoint someone else? Why not do that everywhere? Every two years Bill could rent an apartment in a key state, get a key seat, and then resign.

Uncharacteristically, the New Jersey Republicans are hammering away at Menendez like they really believe they can win this. There's a 1-minute radio ad running in the Philadelphia Market, and in the first 40 seconds they say "BOB MENENDEZ - UNDER FEDERAL CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION" four times. It's a beautiful thing.

The Rutgers-Eagleton poll has it a dead heat, which I find amazing given the information which has been coming out about Menendez in recent weeks.

When is the statutory deadline for replacing someone on the ballot in NJ?

"Statutory deadlines" in New Jersey no longer apply to any Democratic candidates. The Torricelli/Lautenberg shift in 2002 shows that. We are now just waiting for the party to ditch Menendez for someone else. Soon the Democratic line will read "Actual candidate to be named at a later date."

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this sure looks a lot like a "culture of corruption." Funny we hear about as much on that these days as we see James Webb's mis-steps printed on the front page of the Washington Post. As for the coming switcheroo, I think I now understand how the New Jersey election law works. Essentially it says "The Democrats are entitled to replace their candidate any time before the election if polling date indicates the existing Democrat might lose." That's all you need to know except for the additional rider that states "Does not apply to Republicans."

Ken