Interview with Matt Rooney of SaveJersey.com

All politics is local–and many of the best political blogs are, too. For that reason, I’m beginning a series of posts in which I’m interviewing some of my favorite local bloggers.

To get us started, I present my friend from college, Matt Rooney, who is the proprietor of SaveJersey.com, a site recently named one of the best state political blogs by The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza. (Follow Save Jersey on Twitter!) Writers, grassroots activists, bloggers, politicos, New Jerseyans, Republicans and anyone thinking about starting a blog all have something to gain from understanding Rooney’s own work and the work that needs to be done in the state. Without further adieu …

Why did you decide to launch a blog?

I guess it all started when I was an undergraduate student in Washington, D.C. I definitely got bit by the political bug down there so, when the time arrived to move back to New Jersey and attend law school, I really missed the rush associated with “fighting the good fight” out there in the political trenches.

Of course, the major problem with law school is finding free time to do anything fun. After stumbling upon a blog called “Red Jersey” and getting acquainted with its writers, I figured out that blogging might be a great way to stay involved in politics AND still be able to get my law class reading done.

My broader aim was to create a dynamic and inclusive online forum for New Jersey Republicans. It’s hard to understate the difficulty of fighting union and machine cash in two of the top five American media markets. Democrats, particularly in places like New Jersey, enjoy considerable institutional advantages.

That’s where the Internet comes in. The Internet is the conservative movement’s best chance to rescue this country. Blogs, Facebook pages, Twitter, and all of these other extremely effective social networking tools have three things in common: they’re cheap, high impact and easy to operate. That’s why the Internet is egalitarian; it’s the great equalizer in our war against big government. All the Moveon.org money in the world can’t silence a well-written and marketed blog. I’m simply exploiting that model and applying it to fit my state’s needs, as are hundreds of other state-based conservative bloggers across the county.

For those who are thinking about starting a new, local blog, can you share a little insight about the success of SaveJersey.com? How has it grown? What’s the best decision you’ve made along the way?

A lot goes into a successful blog. You have to think about your theme, what you want to accomplish, and who exactly you’re trying to reach with your blogging. I think Save Jersey is particularly successful for three major reasons.

First and foremost, we provide continuous and well-written commentary on topics our readers find engaging. Our blogging team, half of whom are anonymous because of their associations in state politics, add an insider’s knowledge and perspective that Save Jerseyans can’t find anywhere else. Content quality and quantity are key in this business. We just do it as good or better as any other political blog in the state. Secondly, as I’ve already alluded to, Save Jersey filled a void in New Jersey politics. Before we came along, there really wasn’t an online forum for New Jersey conservatives. NJ Republicans were looking for a place to hang their hat online and communicate their ideas. We simply gave them an open, inviting and well-produced place to do it. Thirdly, I spend long hours developing relationships with our local and statewide political leaders. In turn, everyone from state senators down to the grassroots activists turn here to be informed and, reciprocally, to share information. It’s a symbiotic relationship crucial to Save Jersey’s early successes.

Has SaveJersey.com proven to be an effective grassroots tool?

Save Jersey is evolving into the “meet-up” place for New Jersey conservatives. Our most important grassroots function is the collection and disbursement of information. You can divide it up into two categories: policy information and political information. On the policy front, we inform our reads of what’s going on out there and what Save Jersey thinks about it. It’s kind of like providing a “morning briefing” to thousands of NJ Republicans. When it comes to political information, we do a lot to inform our audience about conservative events, groups, and candidates in New Jersey. This is one area where our site will be taking some further strides in the near future.

What’s the biggest challenge in operating SaveJersey.com?

Finding blog-worthy material is never really a problem since New Jersey needs plenty of “saving” from rampant criminal and institutional corruption. Something wacky is happening daily. New Jersey is also only one of two U.S. states (the other being Virginia) to hold odd-year statewide elections. That keeps everyone pretty busy up here since we’re always in the midst of an election cycle.

There really isn’t anything about the blog that’s “difficult” per se. I guess the biggest challenge is dealing with all of the factions, “rebel alliances” and ideological camps comprising our state party. I haven’t figured out the best way to handle this to date, but I’m comforted by the fact that our national party can’t seem to figure it out, either. Republicans think for themselves; it makes unity more difficult, but intellectual independence is also what separates us from the liberals. Another lesser but uniquely Jersey challenge is the North-South divide.The two ends of our state developed very differently due to the strong influences of Philadelphia and New York respectively. Being a South Jerseyan, it took me a little longer to wrap my hands around the ins and outs of North Jersey politics.

What’s new at SaveJersey.com and what can readers look forward to in the near future?

I have more ideas than free time, Katie! Lately we’ve been devoting most of our collective energy to coverage and analysis of the gubernatorial primary campaign. We have some great interviews up with Chris Christie, Steve Lonegan, Tom Kean, Jr., and plenty of other NJ notables. Definitely worth checking out.

We do, however, have some very big plans for the general election season that I can’t talk about just yet. In the meantime, your readers should definitely check out firecorzine.com and also stopjoncorzine.com once it’s launched this summer. More generally speaking, Save Jersey will be doing more interviews and investigative pieces as 2009 progresses. Some new interactive features are in the works, and a live Save Jersey event may even be on the horizon.

Republicans nationwide are eying New Jersey in hopes of a gubernatorial gain this fall. What can we expect to see unfold in the coming months?

The road to a national Republican resurgence runs right down the New Jersey Turnpike, Katie.

At the moment, there’s two overarching storylines going on in our state election. First, we have to get through an increasingly ugly June GOP primary. Mayor Steve Lonegan (R-Bogota) is determined to do whatever it takes to prevent front runner Chris Christie from walking away with the nomination. Steve is a conservative with some great ideas, but I’ve been increasingly critical of the personal attacks and underhanded tactics his campaign has used to defame Mr. Christie. I’m all for a candid debate. Breaking Reagan’s “11th commandment” and slandering other Republicans is another thing altogether. Expect this primary to get uglier before its over on June 2nd.

Then the general election begins. Chris Christie is likely to emerge as the GOP’s nominee in June since most major polls show him maintaining an impressive 20-point lead over Mayor Lonegan. Shortly thereafter, you can expect Governor Jon Corzine to unload with the full force of his personal fortune. He spent approximately $60 million last time around. With a closer contest anticipated (and adjustments for inflation), New Jersey’s political industry is in store for a major stimulus injection, courtesy of Governor Corzine!

Ultimately, this election is likely to be very close. A variety of factors, including high unemployment, high taxes and gross liberal mismanagement of our state finances, have left Governor Corzine extremely vulnerable heading into the fall. His latest re-elect number was in the low 30s. The real problem for Republicans remains money. Governor Corzine can literally buy 2-5pts right off the bat. Making matters worse, most of South Jersey and a few Northern counties are under the thumb of very powerful Democrat machines. The GOP just doesn’t have the manpower or resources to compete operative-to-operative. To win, Republicans must tap into the deep and growing discontent among the silent majority of state taxpayers.

The will for real change is there, Katie. It remains to be seen whether NJ Republicans can do what national Republicans haven’t been able to accomplish: the coherent, passionate, and inspirational articulation of conservative ideals to the voting public.

If conservatives want to help “save Jersey,” how can they get involved?

There’s so much to be done between now and November. Make no mistake about it: New Jerseyans are ready for a revolution. At the same time, as we already discussed, our state is still under the thumb of powerful Democrat machines and special interest groups. Governor Corzine’s ability to spend millions from his own personal fortune only makes the climb steeper for taxpayers fighting for change.

What we need is national support for the cause of limited, honest and affordable government in New Jersey. If you live near NJ or have the time, I encourage you to com’on over, have a slice of quality Jersey-style pizza (our treat) and help get out the vote on the ground. If you have friends or family in New Jersey, please make sure to send them to Save Jersey! We’ll take over from there. Monetary donations are welcome, too. The frequency and expense associate with New Jersey elections is incredible. We spend more on state legislative races than most state parties raise for congressional campaigns. Change isn’t cheap!

Conservatives also need to force national Republican leadership groups, notably the Republicans Governors Association (RGA), to pay attention to northeastern elections. States like New Jersey are very winnable contrary to popular opinion among the punditry. President Bush only lost New Jersey by a few points back in 2004. Substantive and generous support from the national party could be the difference in the battle to come.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Related posts:

1. Spare $9 to Save Jersey in ‘09
2. Interview with Phil Valentine
3. Follow Friday: 16 People You Can Learn From

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

This entry was posted on Monday, April 13th, 2009 at 10:56 am and is filed under New and Old Media, Politics and Capitol Hill. The entry is tagged under bon jovi, bruce springsteen, interview, local blogs, save jersey, turnpike. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.