The O’Toole Chronicles: 40 Years

I recently hit a milestone in my life and, frankly, I am grateful and humbled by hitting this milestone— 40 years in politics and public service.

I happened to turn 60 years of age when I also celebrated my 40-year anniversary in politics and public service, and it got me thinking about the road that I have taken. I never ever thought that I would spend four decades in this profession – modern-day Romans fighting in the Coliseum – but here I am.

I decided early in my life that I wanted a role in the public service space to really have influence and make a difference. The draw of politics and my love of serving the public has kept me here. The pressing question is why? The answer is simple — early on, I wanted to change the world. Go big or go home and I hit the political circuit hard and lit it up. Think of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

With some nostalgia, I look back at my life and absolutely marvel at how fortunate I am. I was able to serve for 22 years in the State Legislature and 7 years as a local official, including as Mayor of my hometown. I also served a dozen years as County Chair to a county party organization and served a stint as the Chair of the Chairs. I am lucky to have extended my public service with my tenure as a Commissioner and Chair on the Board of Commissioners for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. In my eighth-grade yearbook, it was noted that I dreamed about playing shortstop for the New York Yankees. Well needless to say, that never happened, but I can look back and modestly say that I did okay politically.

As far as those 40 years of politics & public service are concerned, they may or may not be something to be admired. But to me, I am so comfortable being in the public eye, and I absolutely love doing this work.

As I have written before, my first year in organized politics was 1984 as I interned for a 22-year congressman, Joe Minish. I was twenty years old and was one of a handful of interns at the time. In the face of a wicked court-ordered redistricting, the Congressman who started his career under President John F. Kennedy lost to Assemblyman Dean Gallo. I remember election night clearly and painfully, standing in the ballroom of the Town and Campus in West Orange as the seismic loss took place. I felt the unavoidable and unexpected hurt and learned early about the painful sting of losing. I did not like it. That was the last race that I felt the bitterness of a loss.

I followed up the following year in 1985 volunteering for John V. Kelly and helping him win back his State Assembly seat in District 30. We won with help from Governor Tom Kean and his landslide victory over Essex County Executive Peter Shapiro. The John Kelly and Marion Crecco team also beat Steve Adubato Jr. and Buddy Fortunato. I found out early that winning felt much better than losing, but you would learn lifelong lessons from both. In those formative years, I was taught a few lessons:

• Get to know the district immediately, read everything possible about each township, the critical issues, and political players.
• Do gritty opposition research and learn that no job is beneath you. Fetching coffee, cleaning up the bathrooms, and running errands are all expected without complaint.
• There is an art to putting up and tearing down signs- watch it once and get it done.
• Get there early and stay late and do not ask for anything, just take the orders and do everything requested.
• Be relentless and never complain or offer an opinion unless asked.
• Understand that all valuable networking start in these early years and you need to work hard to cultivate lifetime relationships.

Those years were followed by six years as legislative aide in Trenton, during which I saw a lot and said little. I drove a van weekly to ferry a number of elected officials around, researched bills, did political work and learned about the operations of state government. I watched some legislative giants work in a bi-partisan manner—Joe Doria, Alan Karcher, Chuck Hardwick, Bobby Franks, Jack Collins, Tom Foy, Joe Kyrillos, John Watson, Stephanie Bush, Michael Adubato, and James Zangari, to name a few. Don’t we miss those days?

In the middle of this learning period of life, I decided to make the jump into elected office. In 1989, at the age of twenty-four, I decided I was ready for the show. I gathered petitions and walked the town repeatedly. Between volunteering as a local firefighter, serving on the Zoning Board and Rent Control Board, coaching little league, and serving as the church volunteer, I thought that I had the pulse of the town. I knocked on each door twice, had dozens of house parties, led a team phone banking, and canvassed the town like a person possessed. As fortune would have it, I came in first in a field of five well financed candidates and won nine of the ten voting districts. With the same work habits and same team, I won reelection in 1993.

Lessons learned at the local level:

• If you let them, other elected officials will take advantage of your inexperience and youth.
• There is an expectation from the public that you can manage all problems.
• Everything you do or say is on record.
• Develop relationships with county, state and federal officials as they can help with major problems.
• Stay in touch with the community and attend every local event possible.
• Understand that you will make mistakes, own up to them and move on.
• People will sometimes be jealous of you and will wait for the “gotcha” moment.
• Be humble and grateful.
• Continue developing your network and making friends.
• Understand that you now have a voting record, and you will need to defend yourself on critical votes in a future campaign.

In 1991, upon seeing the seasoned Assembly Members operate in Trenton, and after only 18 months as a local official, I thought it was my time to make the leap. I planned on screening for an open Assembly Seat. I learned very quickly that I knew nothing about this level of politics. I also came to learn that the nomination was baked before I entered the room, as the County Chair and local freeholder buttoned up the “nomination” process weeks before the actual committee vote. By the time the program was about to begin, it became obvious to me that the vote was long done. I couldn’t fathom that the political process looked so opaque.  I gathered up my scattered resumes and slinked out the backdoor at Pal’s Cabin and I swore never to get caught off guard again. Stepping on a stingray pain perhaps best captures that moment. And like the throbbing pain left by our cartilaginous fish, that intense pain burned me for a period. But I survived and we moved along.

In 1994, while still serving as a local elected official (1989-1996), I volunteered to serve as the campaign manager for a long-shot County Executive. After a brutal, and I mean brutal, election we managed to win by 2,500 votes. In 1998, we won the improbable reelection. One year as Chief of Staff and several years as a top advisor taught me a few lessons:

• If you are the decision maker, do not expect to make friends.
• Some vendors will say or do anything to gain access.
• Political power can be fleeting and do not misuse it.
• Do not put close friends or family in trusted positions, it is unfair to all concerned.
• Do not stay too long in one place.
• The bureaucracy will wear you down and outlast you—unless you find a way to collaborate with it.
• When high stakes are involved and there are big winners and sore losers, assume that someone will audio or video tape you in a critical meeting so they can compromise or leverage you and don’t be surprised when the FBI knocks on your door.
• Trust no one who will make money or political benefit from your decision.
• Continue to the never-ending networking and work hard to just help people without seeking something in return. Be a long-term prospector.

In 1995, I won a race for an open Assembly Seat (after winning a hotly contested county committee race) and served in the Majority for 5 years. I also spent 10 months in the Senate Majority in 2001 before returning to the Assembly in 2002. I won an open Senate Seat in 2007 (after a brutal and costly primary). We hear from a lot of johnny come latelys about the power and prejudice of a line, let me remind all that Brian Stack and I first successfully took on the powerful political organizations and won in 2007. Stack and I both formed our own lines and took on the party bosses and we both won. I know it is now en vogue to denounce party lines and organizations but many of us have benefited from the lines and many of us took on the lines without complaint. Side note- it is highly hypercritical of those office holders who begged and auditioned for organizational support to now denounce them as a political pariah.  Moving forward, I served in the Senate from 2008 until I retired in 2017.

Lessons learned during my 22 years in the Legislature:

• Select great staff and delegate and trust them. If they are not the right fit, move along quickly.
• Make friends with your colleagues on both sides of the aisle and treat staff well.
• Find a few hallmark bills to define you and work them from start to finish.
• Never stop campaigning and never stop raising a lot of money.
• Give money to local office holders (my former Senator in 40 would grudgingly give 250 dollars to a local mayor and complain and I would write a check for 5K and ask if they needed more). Rest assured, when it comes time to run in a competitive primary or general, most of the recipients will remember and be supportive
• Push out as much hard and social media as possible and do not stop.
• Figure an escape plan as this life is not forever.
• Be relentless and check on the details.
• Never discuss government work or actions when seeking campaign dollars.
• Network, and network some more, and help people without looking for a favor.

Moving right along, since July 2, 2017, I have had the astonishing privilege of serving as a Commissioner and Chair of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Because this column is too long and because I am still working (and learning), and I will save for another date the lessons learned at the greatest bi- state agency in this country.

In closing, I feel compelled to leave a few lessons for those of you who are on this track:

• Pursue your love in life and do not settle.
• Find that special purpose in life and do not let it get away.
• Keep close a few trusted friends who knew you when and can give it to you straight.
• Commit to working hard and perform fulfilling charity.
• Be ethical and joyous.
• Allow yourself to make a living outside of politics and do not be dependent on politics to pay your bills.
• Spend real time with your family and do not tell me whether quality vs quantity is real.
• Appreciate life each day and strive to do wonderful things each day.
• Enjoy your current job and do not covet what others have.
• Be nice and do not hurt others in your way.
• Eliminate toxicity in your life as soon as possible.
• If someone tries to harm you or your family, take it seriously and respond appropriately.
• Network and make friends.

Let me close with this. I have much to be grateful for and I am. I wanted to write this piece because it is important for me to acknowledge who I am and how I got here.

If I can say, my life has been a grand one, and I am hoping to climb a few more mountains before I decide to turn off the lights.

Stay tuned!