Sneaky Dems Plant Phony Tea Party Candidate in NJ Congressional Race

Who is this man?

Be very suspicious when alleged "Tea Party" candidates mysteriously enter races this year and begin attacking Republican candidates. Chances are they're usually Democrat plants, and this sure look to be the case in South Jersey. Expect this to start happening across the country as desperate Democrats try to cling to power.

The 3rd Congressional District contest took a strange turn last week when an obscure, third-party candidate entered the fray.

Peter DeStefano, the independent Tea Party candidate this fall, didn't announce himself as a candidate. Rather, his name surfaced for the first time as a viable candidate in an internal poll commissioned by Rep. John Adler and released to several blogs.

But no organized Tea Party group had ever heard of DeStefano, who described himself to the Politicker NJ blog as a former Reagan Republican turned independent. Several activists sought and failed to secure face-to-face meetings with him.

After multiple attempts to reach him last week, DeStefano called the Courier-Post on Thursday.

"I've been going to diners and Wawa telling people I'm running for Congress," he explained.

"I've been doing things on social media. You can find me on Facebook." DeStefano's Facebook page appeared to have been created earlier that morning. DeStefano agreed to meet with a Courier-Post photographer last Thursday and with both a reporter and photographer the following morning. He canceled both appointments at the last minute, citing scheduling conflicts.

William Haney, president of the Burlington County Tea Party, said he heard from DeStefano for the first time when the latter asked to attend a vetting session last Wednesday for Jon Runyan, the former Eagle and Adler's Republican opponent. The Burlington organization had supported Runyan's primary opponent, Justin Murphy, and planned closed-door question-and-answer screenings for both Runyan and Adler.

But Haney became alarmed at DeStefano's attacks on Runyan during the session, actions that violated the group's decorum rules and elicited protests from members. In addition, Democratic Mount Laurel council candidate William Brown managed to get in and joined the verbal challenges to Runyan.

"Several members questioned (DeStefano's) authenticity or his allegiance to the Tea Party," Haney said the following day. "I asked him to stick around, said "I'd like to talk to you.' Immediately after the meeting he disappeared."

By Friday, Haney said the Burlington County Tea Party was ready to denounce DeStefano as a fraud candidate designed to split the conservative vote.

"I think the guy is a plant," he said.

Indeed, folks researching the guy find, well, nothing on this mystery man.

"I did try to do a little bit of research on him. There was really nothing to be found," added Jeffries, referring to speculation DeStefano is a bogus candidate. "The thought has crossed my mind. I can't prove it, but that rumor is out there."

Like a typical Democrat, it appears DeStefano is skilled at lying through his teeth.

DeStefano said he had been politically active before his name appeared in stories on Adler's poll. The Politicker blog quoted DeStefano as saying he tried to participate in the July 7 debate between Adler and Runyan on "The Michael Smerconish Show."

But after checking communications logs, Smerconish producer John MacDonald said, "We never heard from Peter DeStefano and we never communicated with him."

During last Thursday's Courier-Post telephone interview, DeStefano, a Mount Laurel resident, said he owned and ran High Street Art & Framing in Mount Holly. His age was unavailable.

The township confirmed the shop was registered to DeStefano. Visits to the store Friday turned up a locked door and storefront bare of campaign or political signs.

Seems the Democrat Adler conveniently used this guy so he'd come off looking better in an internal poll. How clever.

Adler's commissioned poll, conducted in June by Democratic pollster Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, showed the Cherry Hill Democrat with a double-digit lead over Runyan, with DeStefano pulling away 12 percent of the vote. Just 3 percent of respondents were undecided, a result polling experts say is impossible five months before an election.

Russ Conger of the Libertarian Party and Lawrence J. Donahue of the Your Country Again Party are also on the 3rd District ballot this fall. It was not clear if they had been included in Adler's poll.

Adler's campaign would not release the complete poll to the Courier-Post, nor did the campaign respond to numerous attempts for information over the course of the week about the poll and why it was released.

"This poll is not reportable in terms of the numbers," said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute. "Really the issue is why they released it."

there also seems to be concrete evidence of Democrat chicanery at work here.

DeStefano collected 237 signatures for his candidate petition. Asked if he had campaign staff or volunteers, he said his son is helping him.

Republicans said it was troubling that longtime allies and donors to Adler had signed DeStefano's petition. They include Marshall Spevak, who has worked for the Camden County Democratic Committee, pollster Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, Adler's 2008 congressional campaign, and Adler's state Senate office. He works on the campaign of Chris Coons, a Democrat running for the U.S. Senate in Delaware.

Of course none of this sneaky business will make national news. Why report on Democrat dirty tricks when you can have a sustained orgasm over a spelling error by Sarah Palin?

This mystery man's page at Project Vote Smart seems rather barren. Contrast it with Runyan's page.

Instapundit links. Thanks!

Thanks also to Michelle Malkin, who's got reaction from the Runyan camp.

Hot Air also links. Thanks!