Joe Kyrillos: Christie's Pay to Play Connection

by: vincent solomeno

Wed Feb 11, 2009 at 05:23:14 PM EST

Senator Joe Kyrillos, 2008 New Jersey Chairman of Mitt Romney for President.

Republican Chris Christie's selection of State Senator Joe Kyrillos (R-Monmouth) as his campaign chairman proves that the newly minted candidate remembers his friends.  However, it may also undermine the one time lawman's reputation as a corruption buster unswayed by pay to play politics and influence peddling.

The two are longtime friends.  In 1997, Kyrillos presided over Christie's swearing-in as Morris County Freeholder.  A former Republican State Chair, he was a key player in the behind the scenes maneuvering in the run up to Christie's candidacy.  As a veteran legislator and card carrying member of Middletown's Navesink Country Club, he embodies the moderate GOP establishment that rallied to Christie's side following last week's announcement that he would seek the gubernatorial nomination.  More than that, Joe Kyrillos has been one of Christie's biggest boosters over the course of the last decade.  He sung his praises to fellow Republicans and the media, and as a party leader he used Christie family campaign contributions to lay the foundation for the present campaign.

Even Christie has alluded to the fact there were some who questioned his qualifications when President George W. Bush named him U.S. Attorney in 2001.  Joe Kyrillos was instrumental in quashing that speculation.

The then Chairman of the New Jersey Republican State Committee (NJRSC) told The New York Times, "There's a lot of good feeling for Chris at the White House ... He's worked very hard for the president and has been recommended by virtually all the key leaders from state government and political circles.''

By working hard, Kyrillos may have been referring to the hundreds of thousands of dollars Christie raised for Bush/Cheney 2000.  Or he could also have meant the $5,200 he and his wife had contributed to Acting Governor Donald DiFrancesco, who recommended his name to the White House.

Christie won the support of Kyrillos, DiFriancesco, and most importantly, the White House, but as a failed Assembly candidate and one term Freeholder who waged legal war on members of his own party, there were still lingering feelings among some activists who felt he had jumped the line without waiting his turn.  

Upon assuming office, with his friend Joe as Chairman in Trenton, he set out to rectify that.  According to reports filed with the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC), prior to 2002 the Christie family contributed $800 to New Jersey Republicans.  During the period Kyrillos was Chairman (2001-2004), they contributed a staggering $144,000. The money went toward Republican legislative and municipal campaigns throughout the state.  While the U.S. Attorney railed against the practice of pay to play at press conferences, he generated good will by engaging in it himself as he had prior to his appointment, this time quietly, behind the scenes.

No one questions the success Chris Christie enjoyed as a federal prosecutor.  He contributed a great deal to cleaning up the culture of corruption in New Jersey.  However, as he begins his campaign for Governor he may be tempted to lean too heavily on the convictions he's won and the reputation he's been given by media outlets who have all but ignored these backdoor contributions.  In doing so, he neglects to recall that it was pay to play that got him a shot at the limelight in the first place.  If he forgets, his old friend Joe Kyrillos should remind him of that. Even if he doesn't, the sight of this ultimate insider as Chairman of Christie for New Jersey should remind us all.

New Jersey G.O.P. and Legal Elite Differ on U.S. Attorney

Corporate Lawyer in New Jersey Is Chosen as Federal Prosecutor

Chris Christie's money trail

Christie family 2001 pre-appointment contributions

Christie family 2002-2004 contributions