There's blood in the water, Save Jerseyans. Corzine knows it's finally time to sink or swim, so the incumbent is in the process of affecting major changes to his campaign infrastructure. Don't believe reports to the contrary -- Maggie "Hoops" Moran will assume a diminished strategic role as a cadre of new advisers are added to the governor's retinue:
"Trailing by as much as 14 points in some polls, the governor has hired Democratic strategist Bill Maer, who has served as a senior political adviser to several major Democrats, and has asked Jamie Fox, a veteran Democratic operative, to take a more active role. Both are regarded as hard-edged backroom fighters accustomed to tough campaigns. While the inner circle of the campaign staff remains intact, more staff changes are on the way, according to several top Democrats familiar with the plans. We're adding strength to a team that I believe is already strong,"Corzine said in a brief interview today after an event in West Windsor."The goal is not to diminish, it is to enhance."....
"The addition of Maer is intended in part to help bandage long-festering disagreements between Corzine and senior party leaders around the state. Maer, a protégé of top Democratic strategist Harold Hodes who has worked with Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex),declined to comment. Also taking a more active role will be Patti McGuire, a veteran of Hudson County political battles who now works at Princeton Public Affairs Group and has been volunteering her time to help Corzine. McGuire, who was a deputy chief of staff for Corzine's first three years as governor, said today she will stay at the lobbying firm but bean unpaid adviser to the re-election campaign, "helping out across the entire state."
Pay special attention to the addition of Patti McGuire. Jon Corzine's numbers with Republicans and unaffiliated voters are still in the toilet. His biggest concern right now is maximizing Democrat turnout. Since even an official visit from Obama failed to get the base excited about four more years of Corzine, the campaign is convinced that a large urban turnout is Corzine's only hope to win. With the Hudson political machine in shambles following last month's corruption sting, it's not surprising to see the Corzine folks hiring a Hudson County operative to pick up the slack.