New Jersey’s top conservative radio personality is lending a hand to a Republican running for governor in 2021 who isn’t named Jack Ciattarelli.
Next Thursday (March 25th), NJ 101.5’s Bill Spadea is set to emcee a fundraiser at Trump National in Colts Neck for Philip Rizzo, pastor of City Baptist Church in Hudson County and leader of the ARISE NJ organization dedicated to cultivating conservatives for local school board races. Rizzo is one of six GOP challengers this year alongside Brian Levine, Hirsh Singh, David Winkler, and Joe Rullo, but thus far only Ciattarelli has successfully won any of the county “lines” which more-often-than-not prove crucial to winning New Jersey Republican primaries. Rizzo and his fellow Ciattarelli challengers are considered (very) long-shots for the Republican nomination.
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Bill is undeterred. On Wednesday, both men promoted the upcoming event on Twitter:
Looking forward to a great event with other 'normals'!
— Bill Spadea (@BillSpadea) March 17, 2021
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Rizzo’s main guest is Kim Klacik, a 2020 black Republican House candidate who made some national news last year with a viral video titled “Black Lives Don’t Matter To Democrats.”
Bill (who some previously speculated might run himself against Phil Murphy) stopped just short of endorsing the pastor during a February segment on Spadea’s morning program. The host later penned a post in which he asked “can Pastor Phil Rizzo be the guy who helps lead the way to normalcy?”
“He’s a thoughtful family man who has put his money where his mouth is and echoes many of my sentiments about reopening the state without restrictions,” Bill wrote. “The question is whether NJ voters are ready for something different. How quickly will the current GOP establishment attack him as a ‘radical’ simply because he supported President Trump and has the title ‘pastor’?”
The gubernatorial main event isn’t Bill’s only foray into GOP internal politics this cycle; he’s been a vocal advocate for Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso (R-13) who is trying to hold on at this Thursday’s county party convention against a challenger backed by Monmouth Chairman Shaun Golden.
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