N.J. Democrats retool leadership in restive meeting

The majority Democrats in the New Jersey Legislature picked their leadership teams Thursday, promising to get tough with Republican Gov. Christie.

But first, some Democrats in the Assembly reportedly got tougher with their own leader, Speaker Sheila Oliver, who at times has been seen as too accommodating of the governor's agenda.

Oliver received full support in the caucus after Assemblyman John McKeon (D., Essex) led a faction of lawmakers in requesting that she not post bills that do not have the support of at least 41 of the chamber's 48 Democrats, according to a legislative source.

McKeon could not be reached for comment. Oliver declined to comment.

And, amid more intrigue, Senate Democrats replaced one outspoken Christie critic with another as majority leader, with Barbara Buono, of Middlesex County, making way for Loretta Weinberg, of Bergen County, now chairwoman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee.

Many legislative Democrats were disgruntled after Oliver, of Essex County, and Senate President Stephen Sweeney, of Gloucester County, relied on minority GOP support to push through an overhaul of public-worker benefits in June against the wishes of two-thirds of the Democratic legislators.

In the end, in caucuses Thursday, Democrats unanimously backed Oliver and Sweeney for new two-year terms.

The drama in the Senate caucus revolved around Buono, seen as a potential intra-party rival to Sweeney in a future gubernatorial run against Christie.

Buono sent out a letter just before the meeting saying she would not seek reelection because she had learned she would have to share the position with Weinberg, otherwise an ally.

Buono, the first woman to hold the majority leader position, has clashed with Sweeney on a range of issues. She opposed the health and pension legislation, and raised questions about his support for Christie-backed bills easing environmental regulations to make the state more business-friendly.

"The most important thing to me is that the people I represent know that I will stand up for what I believe in . . . even if it means standing up to my own party, and this is a position that does not allow for that," Buono said in an interview.

Lisa Mizrahi-Kaado, president of the Women's Political Caucus of New Jersey, said her organization supported Buono and Weinberg and she objected that they are being pitted against each other.

Calling it "a vagina shell game," Mizrahi-Kaado said Buono was being replaced by another woman so the legislature couldn't be accused of sexism.

During a news conference, Sweeney declined to get into the specifics of why Buono was not picked to be majority leader, noting only that Weinberg received unanimous support from the Senate Democrats.

Joe Cryan of Union County, who had been angling for Oliver's post but who failed to win the votes, was also out as Assembly majority leader.

Democrats voted for Assembly Budget Chairman Louis Greenwald of Camden County to take his place. Assemblyman Vincent Prieto of Hudson County was picked to chair the budget panel.

During a separate news conference, Christie said that although Weinberg and he had had their "back and forths," it hadn't been personal.

"I think she's got a lot of spunk and I think that's admirable in a public official," the governor said.

He professed great respect for Greenwald.

On Thursday, Oliver and other top legislators spoke of their intention to stand up to Christie on key issues.

"We are not going to continue to allow the disrespect this governor has directed to our respective bodies," Oliver said. "That is over."