It was reported today that Dawn Zimmer has hired Hoboken resident Dan Bryan, 25, as her “confidential aide” for $35,000. She has taken some flack for this from folks asking why she didn’t advertise the position and ask for resumes.
Surprisingly, none of the flack is coming from the former campaign manager for rival candidate Beth Mason. In fact, Jake Stuvier made a comment today on the daily newspaper’s blog stating that Dan is an asset. He also called the failed Mason for mayor campaign the ‘epitome of dysfunction,’ then clarified later.
Stuvier (pictured with Mason) wrote:
“As somebody who for all intents and purposes had Mr. Bryan as a report during my management of the Mason campaign earlier this year, please allow me to clarify a few things:
“1)Dan is one of the smartest, most capable, most reliable and most personable people I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. Our campaign was the epitome of dysfunction and yet Dan shined bright as the person who held what little of an actual functional operation we had together and kept things moving. He takes on any and every task you send his way, regardless of whether it suits his skill set, and without fail rises to the occasion and surpasses expectations each and every time — and always, without drama, without complaint. There were maybe two, maybe three people I could call on during the Mason campaign who consistently rose about the tail-chasing that was always going on and applied themselves in the most useful manner possible, and Dan was at the top of that list.
“2) When our campaign ended and we endorsed Dawn, Dan zipped over to Zimmer hq without question and immediately clicked with everyone there. That relationship continued to build, and it is as appropriate as the day is long that he become part of the Zimmer administration. There are few people around who prove themselves as consistently capable of understanding exactly what needs to be done and then immediately doing it as efficiently as possible, all while being a pleasure to work with in the process. $35K is an absolute bargain for someone of this calibur, especially given that he has a corporate background that he walked away from to do more service to the community, and is not just some kid off the street.
“All of Hoboken is lucky that Dan wandered into Mason hq one fine day, and the fact that Mayor Zimmer recognized his value and applied it in such a useful manner for the good of the public is a reflection on her good judgement. Let me buy you all a round — this is a great coup for all of us.”
Stuvier later commented to say he had taken some heat for calling his campaign the ‘epitome of dysfunction.’ (Surprise surprise!) Yet he clarified that as the campaign manager, he takes responsibility for some of that, and wasn’t trying to criticize others in the campaign. What do you think about Zimmer’s aide and about Stuvier’s comments? Comment below!
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