Party boss, hospital & insurance exec, and now activist: George Norcross goes all in on ed reform

Posted on June 20, 2011 by Jane Roh

Chris Christie, Christopher Cern, and George Norcross: Perfect together?
And turns South Jersey politics on its ear in the process.

In an email last Friday to his colleagues at Conner Strong & Buckelew and Cooper University Hospital, of which I’ve obtained a copy, George Norcross explained his decision to jump into the highly emotional public schools reform debate.

By now, you may have seen the multi-million dollar smear campaign and guerilla tactics funded by the New Jersey teachers union. They’ve attacked Governor Christie, State Senator Sweeney, me and many other champions of real education reform. Since my name has appeared frequently, as has the company’s, I want to give everyone some context.

Let’s be clear: the union isn’t fighting for taxpayers, nor for quality education at a reasonable cost. The unions are hell bent on protecting their coveted status quo. They want guaranteed job security and benefits for free. You know that model won’t work.

You could say the unions have made this personal. And, as a proud public school parent, it is personal. For too long, New Jersey has had a broken system — poor performing schools, higher taxes and an unprepared workforce. As a longtime champion of Cooper Hospital, I’ve seen the harm caused by a bad system. Strong, vibrant communities can only be built on a foundation of high-quality schools.

For decades, the New Jersey teachers unions have been a bully on the playground, knocking anyone over who got in their way. Today, there are too many people to knock over – largely because good ideas have a way of surviving. There’s a long and growing list of people bringing meaningful change and best practices to public education. My name is on it, along with many respected leaders from every corner of New Jersey.

Please know that despite the rhetoric from the unions, the outcome of this debate has no real bearing on our business, one way or another. We are, and will always be, secure, stable and successful.

I hope you respect my decision to stand and fight for this important issue. I, personally, invite you to call me directly with any specific questions.

Norcross has not been this public a political figure since he stepped down as Camden County Democratic Committee chairman in 1994. He’s been on the receiving end of some unflattering press in the time since, which resulted in a combative relationship with reporters.

By his own admission, retreating from public view over the past 17 years allowed the Norcross mythology to perpetuate. His name pops up everywhere, from municipal council meetings to county freeholder board hearings.

In Democratic-controlled Camden County, paranoia about Norcross is particularly intense. I’ve been on the phone with Republicans who’ve asked me if the Courier-Post phone lines have been tapped by the Norcross machine. Republicans also whisper about police departments being in Norcross’s pocket, resulting in the always-sage advice not to drive drunk lest one of those cops is tailing you.

While the Norcross mythology has largely been a unifying force among scattered Republican organizations in South Jersey, it also has proved a destructive one. Unhappy with its permanent minority status and weirdly fixated on his wife’s job at Cooper Hospital, disgruntled CCGOPers launched an incredibly nasty, below-board campaign that forced Rick DeMichele to resign as chairman earlier this year.

Stuff like that not only scares away prospective candidates, it also diminishes the party’s credibility. Anybody who thought for a second Norcross was remotely aware DeMichele’s wife was an attorney for Cooper is just not living in reality.

Norcross has been hinting for weeks he’s going all in on the schools reform debate. This email appears to confirm that he will continue to be public on this, whispering campaigns about what’s in it for him be damned. (I’m waiting to hear from him.)

The Christie-Norcross-Joe D alliance has been confusing for South Jersey Republicans to watch. See this overwrought post at conservative blog Save Jersey and the 5thLD Republican candidates’ strategy of courting public workers in their campaign against Democrats Donald Norcross, Gilbert “Whip” Wilson and Angel Fuentes.

“We in Camden County have long been aware of the pervasive patronage that exists between the South Jersey Democrat Machine and their political benefactor, George Norcross III,” said GOP Senate Assembly candidate Wil Levins, when I asked him to comment on the NJEA ad attacking Norcross.

“Whether or not individuals support unions, the undeniable defense of rights, specified here with collective bargaining rights, must be upheld. Any mechanism of government that denies individuals their rights, both personal and economic, must be confronted.”

And on the countywide police and fire consolidation plan backed by Camden County Democrats and Gov. Chris Christie: “(The) plan has all the trappings of a public sleight-of-hand, policemen’s union busting, consolidating political power and another taxpayer bail-out of Camden City.

“I am proud of our county’s police chiefs for standing up against the Freeholder Board’s attempt to hastily force a poorly designed and ineffective countywide police service plan on the people of Camden County.”

That sound like a Christie Republican to you?

Bottom line, purity tests are for Nazis (like the one a union leader compared Christie to the other day, *cough*). During an impromptu press conference with reporters, Norcross called Christie’s Medicaid waiver proposal “draconian.” Does that mean they can’t agree on anything else?

Per colleague Michael Diamond, the private sector lost 153,700 jobs over the last decade while local governments gained nearly 77,000 jobs. That’s contributed to the property tax crush on Garden Staters, which has led to bipartisan agreement that consolidation (read: personnel reduction) is the solution.

Only no town or county ever wants to go first. So we have the Christie-Sweeney-Norcross plan to create a countywide police and fire service in Camden County, aka allowing municipalities to break existing contracts with employees and start fresh.

There’s one potentially hot legislative race that I won’t identify just yet in which both candidates are deeply plugged into taxpayer dollars. The strategy in both camps: paint the other guy as the bigger pig.

That is an absurd situation to be in, and it’s the norm throughout the state. For taxpayers to feel actual, quantifiable relief, the system as it currently exists needs to see a dramatic makeover. And that means both parties will eat some of their own.

A few more questions:

1. The NJEA already has gone after Norcross in a TV ad campaign. Do they try to go after Conner Strong and Cooper as well? And do they actually endorse the Republicans running against Donald Norcross’s slate?

2. How does this affect the younger Norcross? The 5th LD is safe as houses for Dems, but the risk here is it reinforces impressions he is not his own man. Notice that Donald was not in attendance during George’s recent public appearances, including two in Camden.

3. Where on earth do public employees go now? At Rutgers-Eagleton’s Morning After panel June 8, outgoing Assemblywoman Joan Quigley, D-Hudson, said the unions have been threatening to throw their support behind Republicans. Republicans are generally outmanned, outfunded and outstrategized in Camden and Gloucester counties. Support from public employee unions could change that.

4. Talking to Ds and Rs behind the scenes it’s clear rank-and-file workers could have gotten a much better deal had their leadership shown more flexibility. Under Christie, the unions see themselves in an existential fight, but must they take modest wage-earning members with them? Liberal Democrats are increasingly publicly furious with the leadership.

I Tweeted this before so I may as well say it here: If Marie Corfield, the Democratic Assembly candidate in LD16, were the face of the NJEA, public educators would be in a much better place right now. You have to wonder how much of the bleeding workers will soon see could have been staunched under different leadership.

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