Stack pledges full support for Corzine

UNION CITY - No stranger to political theater, renegade state Sen./Mayor Brian P. Stack played the unlikely role of Hamlet this summer as he projected indecision about who to support in the race between Gov. Jon Corzine and GOP challenger Chris Christie.

Tonight, Stack formally backs the governor - in his own way. He says the right things, but is brief in his assessment of Corzine while mostly - and heavily - promoting himself and his battle-tested organization.

"There's someone here who needs our support and we're going to work extremely hard for him. When I went to this gentleman as your senator or mayor, whatever town it was for, he was always there for us and now he's in a political fight and we need to be there for him," Stacks yells. "He doesn't put his interests first, he puts the people's interests first."

Targeted as part of a corruption probe that never resulted in charges while Christie was U.S. Attorney, Stack played footsy with Christie just long enough to create some insider buzz before U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-Hoboken) sat him down and told him bluntly it's time to back the Democratic governor.

So here he is this evening, backing him - in a jam-packed production at Scheutzen Park almost worthy of Apollo Creed's build-up in Rocky IV.

It's not a build-up for Corzine, however, who's less than six weeks removed from his political denouement, but a build-up for Stack. 

Although there are some Corzine/Weinberg signs tacked to the walls and the governor is on the schedule to formally accept Stack's endorsement, this Union City First event hardly radiates a Corzine-centric universe in a district where as a 2007 state senate candidate running against the powerful Hudson County Democratic Organization (HCDO), Stack crushed his opponent, 18,213 to 5,582 votes.

The silhouettes of U.S. Rep. Albio Sires (D-West New York) and state Sen. Majority Leader Steve Sweeney (D-West Deptford) stand at the front of the room in expectation, and right now there's a sustained bass note gong of dramatic music out of the speakers that shakes the floor.

Mist rises above the crowd of over 700 people, over the ballons that are the centerpiece of each of the 60 packed tables, and over the eyes of Brian P. Stack gazing down from posters plastered everywhere in the enormous room, positioned just slightly higher than the governor's campaign posters. 

"Ladies and gentlemen," shouts the announcer, "Your mayor and state senator - the Honorable Brian P. Staaaaaaaaaack!!!

Syncronized mounted lights move to the pound of drums as Queen screams, "We will, we will rock you," and there's Stack now walking through the round, blue-tableclothed tables over the rolled out red carpet, marching toward the stage that appears to have been modeled after a West Wing backdrop with everything intact except the Presidential seal. 

Corzine is with Stack, working the velvet rope line.

Bags attached to the ceiling open above the men and spill red, white and blue ballons into his path. Two big and one huge projection screens juxtapose shots of the American Flag, fireworks and the Union City skyline.

This is a building block Democratic Party machine at work in the 33rd District's base town of Union City, official population 62,0000 and over 80% Latino, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 15,485 to 1,554, where tablefuls of cheering supporters contain recognizable faces from the city payroll.

No major newsflash given the mayor's political affiliation (the real news would have been if Stack backed a Republican) the governor summoning Stack's endorsement in a tight-race election gives Corzine the chance to demonstrate what Democrats need to propel him to victory: the full-force participation of urban machines like this one.

"To win, you start in Union City and win in Hudson County," Corzine tells the crowd. "You can't have a future if you don't have a vision for the future and Brian P. Stack has a vision for the future. Obama got 13,000 votes out of Union City. This guy Corzine doesn't have to get quite 13,000," but support would be appreciated.

Corzine knows the value of Stack right now.

While various alliances contribute to the HCDO, the organization's strength is questionable after corruption charges landed on many of its operatives this summer. Menendez's absorption into national politics means North Bergen Mayor/state Senator Nicholas Sacco is generally regarded as the organization's northern county leader, while Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy, chairman of the HCDO, controls the southern portion of the county.

Then there's the Stack machine, bankable once it's mobilized -but a wildcard this summer as the mayor/state senator led first Christie and then Corzine on a tour of Union City on National Night Out.

Tonight, it's just Corzine of the two statewide candidates - yet as before, the imagery, and the overwhelming adulation, belong to Stack, the local political animal, for whom Corzine versus Corzine is not as immediate as the political wars he wages here. 

In that vein, Corzine speaks only after Stack showcases Sweeney, whom Stack backs in Sweeney's challenge to Senate President Richard Codey (D-Roseland). Sweeney's presence is a gauntlet drop in the same venue where just last week, Sacco endorsed Codey.

Sweeney's presence indicates Stack's abiding attentiveness to the stagecraft of local politics, where his choice of Sweeney pits him against Sacco. If Sweeney beats Codey, Stack figures he beats Sacco, and strengthens his Hudson hand in a troubled landscape. 

"Don't ever let your mayor down," Sires shouts to the applauding crowd, while never mentioning the governor standing on the same stage.

"I've been here for nine years, and I hope to be here for another 25," Stack shouts to returning cheers. "My name is not mayor or senator, it's Brian, and it will always be Brian. It will always be Brian!"

The crowd chants, "Brian, Brian, Brian."