Joshua Sotomayor-Einstein
Hoboken NJ, To no one’s surprise, Jose Arango, the Hudson County Democrat Machine’s favorite pet Republican and nominal chairman of the Hudson County Republican Party, is still up to his old Republican-in-name-only ways. In Hoboken, home to a municipal GOP free of his negative influence, he recently recruited a Democrat to switch parties with the promise of the town GOP chairmanship. Rumor has it that this Democrat, who only a few years ago was on the executive board of the Hoboken Municipal Democrat Committee, sought the blessings of leftwing Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla as well as Union City Mayor / State Senator Brian Stack (one of biggest Machine Democrats in the county) before agreeing.
Arango, known to make (and break) promises to everyone and anyone who looks his way, does not have a problem with the fact that the Democrat he recruited, Joseph Branco, was not converted by a change of perspective or values, but made the party jump in a desperate attempt at making himself relevant in Hudson County. Sources say that Branco, with Arango’s knowledge, seeks to turn the Hoboken Municipal GOP into a fundraising appendage of the Bhalla political camp. That Arango, fossilized chairman of the county GOP for over a decade, failed to recruit an actual Republican is no surprise as his connections to actual Republicans is virtually non-existent. Appalling, but equally non-shocking, are his efforts to subvert Republican Party institutions to the desires of left-wing Democrats.
From his ongoing failure, since 2014, to get a Republican in the County Office of Superintendent of Elections (as required by law) to his 2008 accusation of bigotry against Peter Morgan, an attorney representing the NJ GOP (even though Morgan is himself a minority); Arango has never failed to do Democrats bidding. From his 2020 Facebook post attacking Republican Gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli to his 2019 endorsement of Democrat Sheriff candidate Schillari; he has consistently attempted hurt Republicans. From his 2019 mailer (paid for with County GOP funds) for the all Democrat Change for Children Board of Education slate backed by Democrat Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop to his constant failure to stand up to any tax raising, “social justice,” or “critical race theory” policies of the Democrats in Hudson County – the proof Arango works for the Democrats is endless.
Some of these things individually might be forgiven and might be excused by the notion that a county GOP chairman needs to pick their battles. But even with the affirmative action’s Arango has taken to help his Democrat masters aside, the remaining failures make a pattern of behavior that shows Jose Arango is not a Republican. Now this non-Republican, at the helm of the county GOP, has recruited another non-Republican to attempt to take over the Hoboken Republican Party. I’m shocked, oh wait, no one is, and no one is falling for it.