Me, Governor?

My Life in the Rough-and-Tumble World of New Jersey Politics

By Richard J. Codey

Rutgers University Press, Rivergate Books

And so, a new chapter in the life of Richard J. Codey, an undertaker's son born and bred in the Garden State, began on the night of August 12, 2004--he knew from that point his life would never be the same . . . and it hasn't been. His memoir is a breezy, humorous, perceptive, and candid chronicle of local and state government from a man who lived among political movers and shakers for more than three decades. Codey became governor of New Jersey, succeeding James McGreevey, who resigned following a homosexual affair--a shattering scandal and set of circumstances that were bizarre, even for the home state of the Sopranos. At once a political autobiography, filled with lively, incisive anecdotes that record how Codey restored respectability and set a record for good politics and good government in a state so often tarnished, this is also the story about a man and his family.

Dick Codey is a dedicated public servant, a state senator, and former governor who has done extraordinary things. Me, Governor? shows Governor Codey as a man of humility, humor, and honor. It is a book that will make you laugh and cry, and his story is one you haven't heard before. Bill Bradley, former U.S. Senator

Dick Codey may have been 'the accidental governor', but what he got done in his brief time in office was no accident. Instead of running
out the clock, he used his forceful, dynamic personality to drive change, most notably brokering an agreement for the New Meadowlands Stadium. This book is an insightful and entertaining look at his journey. Woody Johnson, Owner, New York Jets

Dick Codey has seen it all in politics—and then some. He knows how to tell a story and in Me, Governor? we get the full Codey: honest, down-toearth, and funny as hell. Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor of the City of New York

Richard J. Codey was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly in 1973 and the State Senate in 1981. He became Senate president in 2004 and served as governor from November 2004 to January 2006. He is married and has two sons. Codey wrote this memoir with the assistance of Stephen Seplow, a Pulitzer Prize finalist and former reporter and editor for the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Acknowledgments
1. "McGreevey's Gay, I'm the New Governor"
2. The Undertaker's Son: Death and Politics Go Together
3. The Give-and-Take of Politics
4. Mary Jo: Love at First Sight
5. Family
6. Sports in My Life
7. Politics Gets Very Dirty
8. My Crusade on Behalf of the Mentally Ill
9. State Senate President
10. Governor, Not Acting Governor
11. Keeping NFL Football in New Jersey
12. Bowing Out as Governor
13. The Past...and the Future?
Index

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