James E. McGreevey

PoliticsNJ.com readers, in a highly unscientific survey that asks if Jon Corzine would rather be Governor of New Jersey or the U.S. Ambassador to Italy, say by a 2-1 margin that the Hold Me Accountable man would rather be in Rome than Trenton.  Even Corzine's friends suggest that he's not loving life as Governor.  Between problems with the Legislature, issues within his administration and personal life, and serious injuries suffered in a automobile accicdent last spring, it's not surprising that Corzine isn't having fun.

After Jon Stevens Corzine took the oath of office as the Governor of New Jersey on January 17, 2006, he told the people of New Jersey: "Hold me accountable."

He's not the first Governor to make such a bold claim in an Inaugural Address. Four years earlier, James E. McGreevey promised to "change the way we do business in Trenton."

In a way, McGreevey did, indeed, change the way Trenton did business.

But what about Corzine, as he heads into the mid-term legislative elections -- and stands two years away from his own re-election campaign?  Is he being held accountable?

If Democrats are successful in bucking the trend of mid-term elections going against the party that controls the governorship, as they were four years ago, it might be a signal of just how blue a state New Jersey has become -- or evidence that Larry Bartals' 2001 redistricting map was, as the GOP claims, truly one-sided.

What makes this interesting is that Democrats bucked the tradition and picked up three Assembly seats in 2003 even though Democratic Governor James E. McGreevey was largely unpopular -- a September 24 Quinnipiac University poll showed McGreevey's approvals upside down, 35%-52%.  The only Republican challenger to win was Bill Baroni, who was the only candidate not to run a campaign that focused on McGreevey's record.

Former Governor James E. McGreevey begins his studies today at the Episcopal Church's General Theological Seminary today.  McGreevey converted to the Episcopal faith earlier this year.

Legend has it that many State Senators view themselves as gubernatorial material, but historically incumbent New Jersey legislators are often unsuccessful in their campaigns for Governor. Over the last fifty years, only four incumbent legislators -- State Senators Malcolm Forbes (1957), Wayne Dumont (1965), Raymond Bateman (1977) and James E. McGreevey (1997) -- have won gubernatorial primaries, and all four have lost their general elections. The last time someone went directly from the Legislature to Governor was in 1928, when Morgan Larson, a Republican State Senator from Middlesex County, won. No incumbent member of the New Jersey State Assembly has ever been elected Governor.

When he ran for Governor in 2001, James E. McGreevey promised to change the way business is done in Trenton -- a message that tested well in surveys conducted by his pollster, Joel Benenson. Now Benenson is working for presidential candidate Barack Obama, who said in his opening statement at last night's Democratic debate: "We are not going to do anything about our education system unless we change how business is done in Washington."

Several PoliticsNJ.com readers sent us this Codey/Seinfeld comparison:

"Kevin, I don't have any time. McGreevey's gay; I'm going to begovernor; I'll call you later." -- Richard Codey, on his brieftelephone conversation with his son on August 12, 2004. (Star-Ledger, 2007)

And...

"Jerry, it's Frank Costanza, Mr. Steinbrenner is here, George is dead, call me back!" -- (Seinfeld, The Caddy, 1992)

Father-priest: Why do you want to accept the Latvian Orthodox faith?

George: *ahem* In this age of uncertainty and confusion, a man begins to ask himself certain questions. How can one even begin to put into words something so um…

The Star-Ledger is reporting that former Gov. James E. McGreevey has converted to the Episcopal faith and has begun a process to become an Episcopal Priest. 

Star-Ledger: "McGreevey, who often described himself as a devout Catholic while in public office, was officially received into the Episcopal religion on Sunday, at St. Bartholomew's Church in Manhattan, and is now part of the church's 'discernment' phase that usually precedes any seminary work, said the Rev. Kevin Bean, vicar at St. Bartholomew."