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The Morning Grind / DayAhead |
New Jersey governor saying farewell
McGreevey stepping down amid scandal
By John Mercurio
CNN Political Unit
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VIDEO |
 CNN's Alina Cho on James McGreevey's surprise resignation.
 McGreevey: "I am a gay American."
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- It's a time, it seems, for Democrats to say goodbye. Five days after John Kerry conceded the presidential election to President Bush, New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey delivers his final address before he steps down November 15 under a cloud of shame-on-you scandal and what-could-have-been sorrow.
We don't need to bring you up to speed, of course, on McGreevey's story. It may be the only political drama this year -- other than Bush vs. Kerry and anything that included the name Schwarzenegger -- that penetrated mainstream America. And why not? It's not every day that a sitting governor -- wife and parents at his side -- announces his resignation on national TV after admitting he's gay.
In the 12 weeks since most folks checked in with him, McGreevey has moved quickly to restore some semblance of a political legacy. He said in August that he wanted to stick around until November 15, not to avoid a special election, but because he had things to do. Since then, he has moved to limit abuses in New Jersey's political fund raising, moved to limit the spread of AIDS among drug users and delayed a controversial new law that would speed up development.
McGreevey has said he expects to be remembered only "as the governor who resigned," and, despite the recent efforts, Trenton insiders say he would ultimately achieve just that.
"Despite last-ditch efforts to try to reclaim his place in history, I think that's too little, too late," Joseph Marbach, chairman of the political science department at Seton Hall University, told the Newark Star-Ledger newspaper in today's editions. "I think he'll be viewed as fair or mediocre. Harsher critics might even say poor. I think he'll become an answer to a trivia question at some point. As far as a lasting impact, I don't really see it."
State Senate President Richard Codey, a fellow Democrat, is to take over as acting governor and serve the remaining 14 months of his term.
Aides say McGreevey and his wife, Dina, will officially move out of Drumthwacket this week, but it's widely known that Dina McGreevey and their 2-year-old daughter, Jacqueline, have already vacated the 19-room, Greek Revival mansion in Princeton, moving to a red-brick, three-bedroom ranch in Springfield. The governor last week started moving into River Place, a trendy apartment complex in Rahway, near the town of Woodbridge where he cut his political teeth as mayor.
Aides say McGreevey is writing his own speech, which will be delivered at 1:30 p.m. ET to about 400 people at the State Museum auditorium in Trenton. Aides and friends will be joined by members of AARP, which has remained a steadfast supporter. The speech is expected to last about 15 minutes, slightly longer than his inaugural address, and just slightly shorter than his term in office.
Wow, an entire column on James McGreevey and not one mention of Golan Cipel.
