The GOP governor's appearance in Democrat-controlled Essex County event seemingly bridges great party divide
N.J. Gov. Chris Christie and Joseph DiVincenzo Jr., Essex County Executive, are seen before the governor received his award as "Stellas della Contea di Essex" (Star of Essex) during the Italian Heritage Month Celebration held in Newark.NEWARK — Gov. Chris Christie came to the heartland of "Joe D." Democratic territory today to accept a lion’s head bust during a purported "cultural event" honoring the Republican governor — who’s part Sicilian and part Irish — during Italian-American Heritage Month.
As the GOP lion rode to the 14th floor of the LeRoy S. Smith Jr. Public Safety Building in Newark for the festivities, Christie — asked if his appearance was, in effect, an endorsement of Joseph DiVincenzo Jr.’s re-election — didn’t hesitate to show his affection for the man standing next to him.
"Listen, I love Joe D.," he said, "but Joe D. and I are not about politics. We’re about getting things down."
With those words, Christie, as he has done before, seemingly bridged the great party divide.
In another era, DiVincenzo might very well have been a political nemesis, flinging darts instead of laurels. But not this time. As singer Julian Hernandez sang the heartfelt lyrics of "My Prayer" in a packed, top-floor ballroom, Christie and DiVincenzo sat side-by-side in a scene that could have been lifted from a wedding album. And DiVincenzo’s not the only one who could be described as one of Christie’s unlikely political partners. Cory Booker, Newark’s mayor, has developed what some say is an equally cozy relationship.
Despite campaigning for Jon Corzine’s 2009 re-election, Booker stood side-by-side with Christie at the Robert Treat Academy the day after the election. He stood with Christie in July to support a 2.5 percent property tax cap. More recently, Booker, Christie and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a partnership on the Oprah Winfrey show to reform Newark schools.
"We’ve come to the point where if you work with someone across the aisle on an issue you agree with, you’re a turncoat,’’ Booker said this summer. "That’s toxic politics.’’
To John Weingart, associate director of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, the political nuptials are not all that surprising. "When the election is not front and center, members of opposite parties work together on all sorts of issues," Weingart said. "It has become a rarity in the U.S. Congress, but I think it’s still vibrant in state and local government."
Today, Christie described talk of his relationship with DiVincenzo as a "sad commentary" at a time when political "common ground" seems to be elusive.
As he studied his watch waiting for the governor to arrive, DiVincenzo repeated his mantra — that Essex County has New Jersey’s highest property taxes, highest unemployment and highest number of foreclosures — reasons enough to call for an end to arbitration in union contracts and other historically-Democratic sacred cows.
"People don’t understand," DiVincenzo said. "I’m going to fight for what needs to be done for the taxpayers."
That fight seemed to hit its stride on Monday, when DiVincenzo publicly sided with Christie’s "hard cap" of 2 percent on salary increases for public workers, in effect beating back a Democratic initiative without one. The alliance wasn’t universally well-received. "Nowadays, you don’t know who is a Democrat," state Sen. Richard Codey, D-Essex, said.
Today, when told of Christie’s appearance at the county executive’s event a week ahead of a contested election, Codey alluded to the county executive’s stance on Corzine’s 2009 re-election bid and on his own fight to retain his Senate leadership post. "Congrats to the gov," Codey said of the heritage honor, "but watch out, the last two governors, Corzine and myself, are still recovering from the hatchet that he (DiVincenzo) put in our backs."
Staff writer David Giambusso contributed to this story.