Christie and DiVincenzo cherish friendship, as Essex Exec maintains political support for Corzine

NEWARK – A soundtrack of Chris Christie’s favorite Jersey songster wailing on a mouth harp flooded the room as Essex County politicians and staffers filled the first floor of the Essex County Hall of Records, but Phil Alagia clarified that there was a reason why he didn’t select Springsteen’s magnum opus.

 “We were going to play ‘Born to Run’ but we realized that would not be a good song for him (Christie) today,” said County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo’s chief of staff and hard-nosed Democratic Party operative.

With a light touch, Alagia made sure people understood that DiVincenzo and company’s celebration of Christie’s seven-year service as U.S. Attorney should not be misconstrued as a statement of support for Christie should the Republican decide to run for governor and rebrand a battered statewide party.

“I’m 100 percent with Corzine,” he said.

Ditto DiVincenzo, the County Executive explained when it was his turn to herald Christie, who went 130 and 0 in pursuing corruption cases against public officials. Theirs is a special relationship, he admitted – indeed, a friendship - and not just because the man affectionately termed “Joe D” and Christie are both Newark natives.

“Home is where you grew up, where your mom and dad are, that most special and warm place,” admitted Christie, who lived on South Orange and 14th Street before his family moved to Livingston following the 1967 riots.

For the North Ward-raised DiVincenzo and Christie it really goes back to when the latter – two years into his service as U.S. Attorney – wrote a 2003 letter on behalf of DiVincenzo, who as freeholder director was running for higher office in the wake of Christie’s toppling of corrupt County Exec. Jim Treffinger.

DiVincenzo’s rivals tried to link him to Treffinger.

“I said to my people ‘we can’t let it stand,’” Christie recalled of his decision to clarify that DiVincenzo was not part of the fallen exec’s circle. “My people asked me, ‘What are you doing? This has never been done before.’ I told them, ‘I’m doing justice.’ I wrote the letter and signed it, proudly.”

He found DiVincenzo among the audience, seated in the front row.

“Joe,” Christie said, “every single day you make me proud I wrote that letter.” He went on to praise DiVincenzo’s “honesty, integrity, and toughness.”

“I never had to worry or wonder when I stood next to this man,” he added. “He is truly the type of soul we want in public office.”

Having been showered with gifts – watches, caps, plaques, badges - from Alagia, County Sheriff Armando Fontoura, local law enforcement and others, an emotional but even-voiced Christie told DiVincenzo, “There’s no greater display of friendship than what you’re doing for me today. I will never, ever forget it, Joe.”

With all the love in the big room, it seemed earlier in the ceremony like a prime time moment for DiVincenzo to shockingly but perhaps inevitably declare his political support for Christie.

No way, said the Democrat.

Kiddingly advising Christie in his own remarks and with questions of the lawman’s political ambition - unspoken but heavy in the media crowd, Fontoura had told the former U.S. Attorney that given the economic climate it was probably better for Christie to “consider staying in the public sector until the private sector makes a comeback.”

Now DiVincenzo jokingly chastised Fontoura.

“Are you forcing him to run?” the County Executive wanted to know. “I hope not. You’d have to turn Republican.”

“I don’t want him to run against me,” the sheriff shot back.

When the laughter died down, DiVincenzo talked about Christie.   

After winning that 2003 election, he felt nervous about occupying the same office as his disgraced predecessor, whose remnants, to the newly elected executive, haunted the whole floor.

 “I reached out to Chris Christie and told him I don’t want to be on the fourth floor,” DiVincenzo recalled. “I told him I want to be on the fifth floor.”

But Christie worked with the downtrodden county executive’s office, presenting lectures on the role of public service and ethics in government.

“He played a very important role, and he will always be a friend of Joe D.,” said DiVincenzo. “Anytime I called on him, Chris was there for me. My inspector general and his staff worked very closely with Chris Christie and the FBI. I’m not saying we’re perfect. Essex County is a huge county and we have a large budget. But this county and the State of New Jersey are in very good shape because of what Chris has accomplished. He has done an outstanding job.”

After the event, DiVincenzo made sure to play up the $3 million he’s getting from the State Green Acres program to help develop a county park next to the main office, and other key support from Corzine.

“Corzine’s my good friend – my good friend in government,” he said. “Then I have my other friend – Chris Christie, who’s done a good job as U.S. Attorney.”

The governor’s office offered no comment on the ceremony, which was emceed by state Sen. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex), DiVincenzo’s deputy chief of staff.

They know Christie’s from Essex - originally. But “he’s been out of Essex for 30 years,” one Democrat groaned at the suggestion that should he run, Christie could potentially build political organization on top of a genuine Essex boy made good storyline – and not win Essex but gnaw into Democratic Party bedrock.

Democrats here feel very confident.

In the Nov. 4th election in Essex County, President-elect Barack Obama won 240,685 votes to Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) 74,122 votes – a differential of 166,563 – compared to a differential of around 90,000 in Hudson, for example.

Corzine’s not Obama, of course, party operatives acknowledge, but little GOP infrastructure coupled with the governor’s seemingly constant presence in Essex make Corzine a walkover favorite here, DiVincenzo allies explained in the face of chattering, off the record criticism from party members who felt the county executive and his allies crossed the line in gushing over Christie on the eve of what even DiVincenzo admits could be a hard Election year.

“People are nervous and upset, they’re worried about losing their jobs,” DiVincenzo said. “Come November, we don’t know where we’re going to be at that particular time. We have to take Chris Christie very seriously. He’ll be a tough candidate, and he’s good on his feet.”

But overall in Newark and the environs, they think Corzine will win, despite all the good feelings, and despite today’s foreshadowing that Christie could run with the accompaniment of that old Springsteen ballad, “My Hometown.”