State Budget - HeraldNews - Pou may pay for opposing Corzine

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Published in the Herald News, Sunday, July 9, 2006

Choosing sides may exact high cost
Pou's stance against Corzine draws support, ire

By PAUL BRUBAKER
HERALD NEWS

Assemblywoman Nellie Pou achieved great visibility during New Jersey's historic government shutdown that preceded the state's $30.62 billion budget adopted just after dawn on Saturday. But what remains to be seen is whether Pou can survive being the sole Democratic legislator from Passaic County to be on the losing side of the budgetary standoff with Gov. Jon S. Corzine.

Pou, D-Paterson, stood by Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts, D-Camden, on Monday when speculation grew that Democrats might force Roberts out of his post because of his opposition to the governor's proposed sales tax increase to help pay off the state's $4.5 billion deficit. The next day, Pou was by Roberts' side again -- literally and figuratively -- as he rejected a compromise Corzine supported to dedicate half of the sales tax increase's revenue toward property tax relief.

On Wednesday night, Pou worked the periphery of the televised Assembly Budget Committee meeting -- taking an occasional cue from the chairman, Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, D-Voorhees, another Roberts ally -- when a bill to deem state casino regulators as "essential workers" was considered and later quashed. Republicans later said the bill's passing could have led to the budgetary crisis being prolonged indefinitely.

Pou characterized her alignment with Roberts as part of her role as chair of the Appropriations Committee, a position Roberts gave her in January after she was re-elected to her fourth term.

"I don't believe that any member chairing any other committee would not have done their job any differently," Pou said.

Pou said she supported a sales tax increase only if all of the new funds were used for property tax relief.

But standing with Roberts was a move that ran counter to most of her legislative colleagues from North Jersey, went against the wishes of Passaic County's Democratic leadership, and was seen as a betrayal of a governor that had bailed her district's largest municipality out of a $30.8 million deficit only three months earlier.

Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, D-Union, a Budget Committee member, wrote off Pou's stance against the governor as benign and said that she would not face any political ramifications for having been so closely aligned with Roberts.

"There were people on both sides of the issues, reasonable people having different views," said Cryan. "I don't think Democrats should penalize Democrats."

Cryan, as chairman of the state Democratic Committee, faces the task of bringing Democrats together after a budgetary crisis that ensued while the party held the governor's office and the majority in both legislative houses.

Assemblyman Gary Schaer, D-Passaic, also on the Budget Committee, said Pou's support of sales tax revenue being dedicated to property tax relief was part of normal political discourse.

"I disagreed with Nellie's views," Schaer said. "But her viewpoints, and those of Speaker Roberts, were important elements of discussion. It forced people to compromise. As a result of their beliefs and their views, what we're coming out with is a budget that is that much better."

Meanwhile, Republicans in the State House didn't believe Pou would be able to easily shake off her record of the past few weeks.

"She had a significant role in bolstering up team Roberts," said Assemblyman Kevin O'Toole, R-Wayne. Sen. William Gormley, a stalwart Atlantic County Republican, didn't mince words in assessing Pou's legislative performance.

"She followed Joe Roberts down a stupid trail. She didn't stand up for her governor. She didn't stand up for her district," said Gormley. "She's useless."

While there may be partisan gain to be had for Republicans in declaring the political death of a Democratic leader, Democrats closer to home were also disappointed in Pou's failure to support Corzine -- especially after he approved the state grant in April that bailed Paterson out of its budget woes.

Passaic County Chairman John Currie said, in the weeks before the July 1 constitutional deadline for a state budget, that he had urged legislators to support the sales tax increase.

"It does somewhat puzzle me that someone would not want to support the governor, especially when he has been so good to the 35th District and in particular, the city of Paterson," he said.

Pou said that although she was appreciative of the state grant, she did not believe the governor approved the bailout specifically for her.

"It's not just for any one person," she said. "We began those discussions with the governor very early on in February, long before any of this. He did the right thing for all of the citizens of Paterson."

Officials in the governor's office declined to comment. Currie said that Pou's next bid for re-election was too far in the political future to forecast whether her alignment with Roberts would have any bearing.

Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo and Newark-based power broker Steve Adubato Sr. were more successful in influencing Assemblyman Wilfredo Caraballo, D-Newark, who also holds a leadership position as the Assembly's speaker pro tempore.

Early in the week, Caraballo had backed Roberts. By Thursday, he had broken rank from Roberts and supported Corzine.

Reach Paul Brubaker at 973-569-7155 or brubaker@northjersey.com.

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