Bio-tech entrepreneur and Navy intelligence reservist John Crowley will not be a candidate for the GOP nomination to challenge Senator Robert Menendez next year, according to his friend and political adviser Bill Spadea speaking to Politickernj.
Crowley stepped down as CEO of the firm he founded, Amicus Theraputics, in April in order to focus on “public policy, civic service and philanthropic endeavors.” An “unnamed political adviser,” said at the time that Crowley was likely to compete for the 2012 U.S. Senate nomination.
Earlier today Amicus announced that Crowley would be returning as CEO in August after his reserve duty with Naval Intelligence.
Last weekend The Star Ledger’sAuditor reported that someone was anonymously circulating opposition research about Crowely in an attempt to thrwart his candidacy. Spadea told MMM that the Auditor piece had no impact on Crowley’s decision not to run, “if anything it was just the opposite.” Spadea said that a Senate run “was not possible given the weight of John’s commitments to his family, to bringing new drugs to market and to the military.”
At this early stage, the Republican contest to challenge Menendez is shaping up to be a race between State Senators Joe Kyrillos (Monmouth) and Mike Doherty (Warren).
Middletown—Senator Joe Kyrillos, co-prime sponsor of legislation establishing New Jersey’s landmark Environmental Infrastructure Trust (EIT), is pleased to announce that special financing for the cleanup of Middletown’s Shadow Lake has cleared the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee today:
“It has been a very long fight for the residents of this community,” said Kyrillos. “I am thrilled that the financing for this project is finally nearing approval. The Environmental Infrastructure Trust was established for just this purpose- to restore contaminated natural treasures and improve the environmental quality of our communities.”
If approved by the Legislature, the bill appropriates $2.7 million in low interest financing for the Township of Middletown to dredge the Shadow Lake in order to remove contaminated sediments at the bottom of the lake. The dredge spoils will be transported to a properly licensed facility off site.
“Thanks to the efforts of Senator Kyrillos the residents of the communities surrounding Shadow Lake can rest easier knowing that a project more than a decade in the making is nearing reality,” said Middletown Mayor Tony Fiore. “In addition to the Senator’s efforts in helping secure financing for this project, he has assisted the Township with the NJDEP to find a qualified site outside of Middletown for disposal of the dredge spoils.”
The legislation now heads to the full Senate for consideration.
From the getting way ahead of ourselves department, what impact would Joe Kyrillos’ election to the U.S. Senate next year have on the Monmouth County political landscape?
Kyrillos’ entry into the U.S. Senate field is probably an indication that bio-tech entrepreneur John Crowley will not be a candidate. As a former State GOP Chairman and Christie confidant, Kyrillos would not announce an exploratory committee if he had not already explored the level of support he would have with the GOP power and fundraising establishment. Should Kyrillos seek the nomination to challenge Senator Robert Menendez, he will probably get it.
If Kyrillos beats Menendez we will probably also have a new President on January 20, 2013. For Menendez to be beat in 2012, Obama’s showing in New Jersey will have to be weak and without coat tails.
Should that happen, the Monmouth County Republican Committee would elect a 13th district Senator who would serve until a special election in November of 2013. Assembly members Amy Handlin and Declan O’Scanlon would likely seek to move up into Kyrillos’ seat. If one of the Assembly members moves up, the committee would then be charged with filling an Assembly vacancy.
The field for the Assembly seat could be crowded, as there is a deep bench of GOP talent residing in the new 13th district.
Middletown is the largest town in the district and has a wealth of electable talent. Freeholder John Curley, Mayor Tony Fiore and former Mayor Gerry Scharfenberger would all be strong candidates. Scharfenberger would face giving up his job in the Christie administration. Curley, who will probably be Freeholder Director in 2012 with Rob Clifton moving to the Assembly in the 12th district, would have a tough choice between Freehold and Trenton.
If Curley sought and won the Assembly seat, it would set off a county wide race for his replacement on the Freeholder Board, assuming he is reelected next year.
Fair Haven Mayor Mike Halfacre, the only Mayor in history to lower property taxes four years in a row, would be a formidable candidate.
Marlboro, the second largest town in the district would probably be the source of Democratic candidates. Mayor Jon Hornick would have his shot to move up. He would be a strong Senate candidate against Handlin or O’Sanlon. Jeff Cantor could be a Democratic candidate for Assembly. The Marlboro GOP has yet to recover from the splits that contributed to Hornik defeating former Mayor Robert Kleinberg in 2007 or Cantor’s switch to the Democratic party in 2009. Cantor was a GOP candidate for Freeholder in 2007.
Hazlet Mayor Scott Aagre would deserve consideration should he have aspirations for higher office. Union Beach Councilman Charlie Cocuzza is popular and ambitious.
Keyport Mayor Robert McCleod, a former municipal judge who took one for the team to run against Frank Pallone in 2008 could decide that he is better suited to serve in the Assembly than to preside over the rough and tumble of Keyport politics.
Former Highlands Mayor and former Freeholder Anna Little could be a contender depending upon how her 2012 congressional ambitions work out.
If Little doesn’t run, her close ally, Atlantic Highlands Mayor Fred Rast could be a contender.
From the southern part of the new 13th, Oceanport Councilman Joe Irace has made a good name for himself as a strong advocate of Oceanport’s interests with Fort Monmouth and Monmouth Park. However, Irace’s advocacy for Oceanport has ruffled feathers with Republicans in the County, the Legislature and the Christie administration. He would need a strong grassroots organization to move up.
From the Monmouth GOP should have conventions department, if Freeholder Director Rob Clifton is elected to the Assembly this November, the Monmouth Republican Committee will be required to have a Title 19 convention to choose his replacement on the Freeholder Board in early 2012. Should Kyrillos go to Washington in early 2013, the Monmouth GOP could potentially have three Title 19 conventions in early 2013; one to elect Kyrillos’ replacement in the State Senate, one to choose a 13th district Assembly member assuming either Handlin or O’Scanlon moves up to the Senate and one to elect a Freeholder should Curley seek and win the vacant Assembly seat.
It will all be enough to turn Chairman Joe Oxley grey, assuming he is reelected Chairman next June.
State Senator Joe Kyrillos has set up an exploratory committee for a possible U.S. Senate run in 2012 against Robert Menendez or 2014 against Frank Lautenberg, an unnamed source told Politickernj.
An exploratory committee, or “testing the waters fund” may raise and spend over the $5,000 threshold that requires candidate reporting on polling, travel and other activities designed to gauge the level of support for a candidate for federal office, according to the Federal Election Commission.
Kyrillos has yet to respond to a message from MMM to comment on the Politickernj story.
A source with knowledge of Kyrillos’ plans confirmed that Monmouth County’s senior legislator will issue a statement announcing the exploratory committee today.
Democratic primary voters in the 13th legislative district saw the words “No Nomination Made” on the top of their ballots in the slot for State Senator yesterday. Former Hazlet Mayor Christopher Cullen was endorsed by the Monmouth County Democratic mini-convention in April but failed to file his petitions with the Secretary of State.
385 of the 2,099 Democratic voters in the district cast a write-in vote for Senator. Cullen is expected to be the candidate after all of those votes are manually counted. He will then face Senator Joe Kyrillos in the general election. Kyrillos received 2,103 votes in the Republican primary against 23 write-ins.
For the Assembly in the 13th, Republican incumbents Amy Handlin and Declan O’Scanlon were nominated with 2,073 and 1,998 votes, respectively. There were 15 write-in votes. Democrats nominated former Hazlet Mayor Kevin Lavan with 1,572 votes and former Middletown Committeeman Patrick Short with 1,551 votes. There were 23 write-ins.
Trenton— State Senator Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth) has introduced legislation, S-2881, aimed at providing all children in New Jersey with an effective teacher in their classrooms. “The School Children First Act” will reform teachers’ tenure and pay structure, and bringing these important protections in line with the state constitution’s mandate of a “thorough and efficient” system of public education. The legislation is modeled after Governor Christie’s teacher tenure and salary reform proposals.
“We cannot, as a state, tolerate a public education system in which some children have access to good teachers while others do not,” said Kyrillos. “We must make the system work better for kids by rewarding excellent teachers and removing those who are not effective in the classroom. In order to meet the state constitution’s requirement of a thorough and efficient system of public schools for all children, we must put their needs above all else in every facet of our educational system. That includes how tenure and compensation are earned.”
The legislation replaces traditional teacher tenure with protections that must be earned and maintained through annual evaluations that rely heavily on classroom observation, making it easier to identify and remove ineffective teachers from the classroom.
The pay structure of the teaching field will be reformed as well. Student achievement will play a role in determining salary awards under the bill, a change from the current system which compensates teachers based on seniority.
“The new system puts students first by protecting and rewarding teachers who are effective, aiding those who need to improve but still show promise and passion, and moving those who are persistently ineffective out of the classroom,” Kyrillos stated. “All the while, this legislation protects educators from arbitrary or politically motivated termination.”
Under the bill, tenure is earned after three annual evaluations of “effective” or “highly effective”. A teacher loses and must re-earn tenure after one rating of “ineffective” or two evaluations of “partially effective”.
“Teachers who are performing well or who clearly will perform well with additional mentoring and guidance have nothing to fear from this type of reform,” said Kyrillos. “However, the new system improves on current practice by stopping the excuses for educators who are clearly incapable in the classroom or have burned out.”
Finally, the bill as drafted prioritizes students’ needs by ensuring that a school’s most effective educators are retained if staffing reductions are made. “I’ll take a great third year teacher over an ineffective veteran of the system any day of the week,” said the Senator. “When staffing decisions are made, our children should have access to the best teachers whether they’ve spent two or twenty years in the classroom.”
Kyrillos said he hopes that the debate over his bill will be based on its merits rather than fear. “Change is always difficult in government, but I hope that those who disagree with this bill do so based on fact rather than fear mongering,” he said. “A system that makes it too difficult and costly to remove teachers who are failing, that unnecessarily creates winners and losers among our state’s school children because of red tape and bureaucracy, is neither thorough nor efficient.”
Hosts Discussion on ‘Parent Trigger’ Legislation Embraced in Chicago, California
Trenton— Senator Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth/Middlesex) today joined with the Heartland Institute to host a discussion with legislators and business, civic, and education leaders regarding proposed legislation that would give parents in failing school districts the authority to affect immediate change. The Parent Empowerment and Choice Act (S-2569), dubbed ‘the parent trigger’, would force certain organizational and administrative reforms in a school through community petition.
“Today in New Jersey, parents and students in failing school districts have two choices: move or to pay for a private education,” said Senator Kyrillos. “That is unacceptable to me, and it should be unacceptable to every taxpayer that foots the bill for a system that is too often unresponsive and slow to change. If enacted into law, my bill would give parents in these districts- some of the poorest and most dangerous in New Jersey- the ability to build a better tomorrow for their children by forcing immediate improvements to a school that is failing to educate its students.”
Kyrillos’s bill allows parents in a failing school, as determined by student test scores, to force the following changes through majority petition:
Reorganization as a charter school
Replacement of administrators and/or staff
Establishment of a tuition voucher system for any public or private school in New Jersey
The requested change would be required to take effect 180 days following certification of the petition.
Kyrillos noted that troubled districts in Illinois and California are embracing similar proposals. “Parents in one of California’s worst school districts, Compton, are already using the parent trigger to affect change, and Mayor-elect Rahm Emmanuel has voiced initial support for this reform in Chicago,” he said. “This is not an ideological issue. This is about rejecting the notion that children in failing schools should be denied a quality education because of administrative hurdles, legal obstacles, and an educational establishment that is resistant to change.”
Seantor Joe Kyrillos issued the following statement this morning:
“Nearly ten years after the unspeakable attack on America on 9/11 justice is done.”
“Monmouth County paid a disproportionate price that day, losing 147 of its residents who never came back home.”
“I speak for all New Jerseyans and Americans in acknowledging the relief and sense of justice felt by the victim’s families as well as the pride we all feel in the heroic efforts of America’s armed forces and national security professionals stationed here and abroad.”
“Today all the world sees the determination and perseverance of America and its citizens to protect and secure our great nation.”
Now that the Monmouth Democrats don’t have a candidate officially running for Senate in the 13th district, maybe they should take a page from the Burlington County Democrats and get a celebrity to run. In case you missed it, former Olympian and former music video star Carl Lewis is running for Senate as a Democrat in the 8th legislative district.
As much as I would like to see Tea Party Democrat Mark Falzon muck up the works by waging a write in campaign for the 13th Democratic Senate nod, the district has numerous celebrity residents that would make terrible candidates but be great for blog traffic.
Bruce Springsteen has recently become a policy wonk. The anti-poverty activist has estates in Rumson and Colts Neck. If he’s registered to vote in Rumson he can run in the 13th. If Bruce is registered to vote in Colts Neck, we’ll know who the third vote is for Democratic Township Committee candidate, our friend Rick Ambrosia, is in November.
Film maker Kevin Smith hails from Highlands.
Drummer and real estate developer Max Weinberg was a trustee of the Monmouth Conservation Foundation before subdividing his Middletown estate.
Is there no liberal hypocrite willing to challenge Kyrillos?
The Democrats gave Senator Joe Kyrillos, who turned 51 yesterday, a nice birthday gift.
The party’s nominee for the 13th district senate seat, former Hazlet Mayor Chris Cullen, did not file his nominating petitions according to Politickernj.
The Democrats will now have to spend money a primary where they have no opposition in order to ask voters to write in Cullen.
Maybe Tea Party Democrat Mark Falzon will wage a write in campaign for the nomination. Falzon filed to run against Congressman Frank Pallone in the primary last year only to have his petitions successfully challenged by the Democratic organization.
