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The Star-Ledger
Standing 'O' Greets
Corzine as he hosts
a town hall meeting
BY JOSH MARGOLIN,
nj.com from the Web, August 10, 2007
For the first time since he was
nearly killed in a highway crash four months ago, Gov. Jon Corzine hosted a town
hall meeting last night, fielding questions on topics ranging from the state's
tax levels to health care costs to same-sex marriage.
After receiving a standing ovation and even the compliment (twice) that he is
"far more handsome in person," Corzine alternately paced and stood in front of
an overflow crowd at the new South Orange Performing Arts Center, where he
worked with a cordless microphone and no notes.
"I really am thrilled with the turnout," Corzine said, adding: "I really
promise you I won't sing."
The governor said he was "touched by the warm feelings, the encouragement" he
received from around the state after his April 12 crash on the Garden State
Parkway. "Now back to being governor," he said.
More than any other type of interaction with residents, the town hall
question-and-answer setting is by far Corzine's favorite. He held his last
such event, in Burlington County, the day before the crash.
Corzine has vowed to go county by county to market his impending "asset
monetization" plan to raise cash from the state's toll roads and other assets.
But that plan was not among the topics on the minds of the questioners in South
Orange last night.
From state budget cuts to growing local school taxes, the main theme was the
cost of living -- summarized by one woman, who said she was a Maryland native,
and asked Corzine: "Could you explain why the property taxes are so high
in the state of New Jersey?"
"Got a couple of weeks?" Corzine quipped in response.
"First of all, we are a state that demands high-quality services," he said.
"The state has invested back in its people in a better way than others."
Noting that a ballot question to study a merger between South Orange and
Maplewood was defeated last November, Corzine said "we need to make more
efficient decisions to allow us to reduce the costs. ... I'm with the
consolidators and the efficiency-makers."
Corzine also reminded the crowd a handful of times that he believes legislation
he recently signed aimed at reducing property taxes will prove far more
effective than critics would have voters believe". We did a very good
job," Corzine said.
One thing he said is vexing him is the difficulty of revamping the formula that
guides how Trenton allocates money for public schools around the state.
"This the most complicated thing I've ever worked on," said Corzine, who in his
previous career headed Goldman Sachs, the largest investment bank in the world.
One audience member was upset that the governor did not give a direct answer
when she asked why he vetoed a $1 million grant for the Minority Student
Achievement Network in Montclair. "I'm appalled at the way the governor
totally blew off the issue of integrated public education in New Jersey," said
Mary Beth Rosenthal of Montclair.
The evening's most serious moment came about midway through when Corzine was
asked what he would do to stem New Jersey's tide of violence, which this week
made national headlines with a triple execution-style homicide in nearby Newark.
"That's the one that, in all fairness, keeps me awake at night," Corzine said.
"We have the same problem in Paterson, Trenton, Camden. It's a state
problem."
The governor said he wants to see the flow of guns and drugs cut off. And
he said he will make sure his administration is working with officials at all
levels to keep people safe, improving crime-prevention programs and those that
help ex- convicts prepare properly for re-entering society after their prison
sentences are over.
"The loss of our humanity that comes from the kind of violence we saw and the
intimidation it potentially brings to our community is just unacceptable,"
Corzine said.
(Emphasis Added)
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