By Matt Rooney | The Save Jersey Blog
Days after 60,000 country fans descended on Atlantic City’s beaches for an open air concert, Save Jerseyans, a smaller but no less enthusiastic crowd of 150+ gathered Saturday night on the historic Steel Pier to celebrate Young Republicanism and, it’s hoped, a new lease on life for the struggling Boardwalk Empire under the leadership of Republican Mayor Don Guardian.
We had a ton of fun, too, which is always critically important! How can you not have fun with a full bar, perched over the lapping waves of the Atlantic, within full view of the fully-lit casinos skyline? And for what it’s worse, you can’t convince other young people that you’re the best party out there if your actual parties stink. Can you?
Mayor Guardian, a consummate and gracious host, served as the event’s primary sponsor; the annual ‘Summer Bash’ itself was the culmination of a weekend-long Young Republican National Federation (YRNF) meeting at the Resorts Casino Hotel attended by officers, representatives and members from nearly half of the states. New Jersey Young Republican Chairman Mike Thulen organized the weekend’s activities and, from what I can tell, no one is heading home without their wedding rings, index fingers or life savings. Win, win, win!
Attendees ate up the amenities and challenged the house, sure, but they were equally eager to pick Guardian’s brain after the openly-gay GOP’er won a stunning upset in A.C. last fall despite the resort city’s 10-to-1 Democrat voter registration composition. The GOP needs all the help it can get after two consecutive bad presidential cycles!
Talking to Guardian, I enjoyed his comfortably casual tone, quirky sense of humor and ability to find a story to fit any conversation. He’s got a personality as big as the Boardwalk that birthed Monopoly. This Philly.com profile from last week will clue you in to what I discovered first hand.
Moving forward, the Mayor’s post-election challenges in his new job remain no less difficult than the act of actually winning the job, specifically, finding a way to spur his town’s sluggish economy at a time when taxes are going up, casinos are closing and some lawmakers are openly weighing allowing other New Jersey municipalities to host gambling. (Note: a new FDU poll out Monday found a majority of state residents opposed to the latter idea).
All that’s clear after Saturday night is that the Mayor has earned some new fans across the fruited plains. Truth be told, he’s just as content to have some new repeat tourists for Atlantic City.
