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- This is One-On-One.

- I'm an equal American just like you are.

- The way we change Presidents in this country is by voting.

- A quartet is already a jawn, it’s just The New Jawn.

- January 6th was not some sort of violent, crazy outlier.

- I don't care how good you are or how good you think you are, there is always something to learn.

- I mean what other country sends comedians over to embedded military to make them feel better.

- People call me 'cause they feel nobody's paying attention.

_ It’s not all about memorizing and getting information, it’s what you do with that information.

- (slowly) Start talking right now.

- That's a good question, high five.

(upbeat music) - Hi, everyone.

Steve Adubato.

We kick off the program with the mayor of the great City of Newark, New Jersey, Ras Baraka, who's also a Democratic candidate for governor in New Jersey.

This is part of our series, New Jersey's Next Governor: Decision 2025.

Mr. Mayor, great to have you with us.

- Glad to be here.

Thank you.

- Now, you've been the mayor since 2014.

If you, in fact, became the governor and took office first day of 2026, describe the top two, three priorities of Governor Baraka's administration, please.

- I mean, obviously, one is the budget and tax policy.

Trying to make sure we have a fair tax policy, that we can figure out how to get the revenue that we need to run the government the way we need to run it, to figure out how to fund transportation systems and infrastructure in this state.

How to invest in the things that are necessary to bring business and develop business in the city, in the state that's already here.

That's number one.

Two, trying to really push forward a housing policy that works.

Beginning to be more present and aggressive around developing affordable housing around the State of New Jersey.

Sending housing navigators to particular communities and regions.

Trying to work with them to figure out how to build housing that fits local kind of expectations, but also fits state expectations to build the kind of affordable housing that we need and desire in this state.

- Mayor, let me try this.

People think all Democrats or Republicans think the same, which is absurd.

You were very critical of the governor signing, Governor Murphy, a Democrat, signing legislation that significantly changes the Open Public Records Act and how people will get access to information about government activities.

You said, quote, "You can't have democracy without transparency."

Talk about that, Mr. Mayor.

- Oh, right.

And so, look, I'm a mayor, the mayor of the largest city in the state.

And I understand the frustrations of people who have monetized OPRA, who have used it in a very negative way, who have taken advantage of the system.

But ultimately, we can't throw the baby out with the bath water.

It's important for us to maintain faith in government.

Right now, people's belief and faith in government is very low.

To gut OPRA just eroded that even more.

We eroded people's faith and trust in public servants.

And we have to have some transparency.

People have to have an eye into what it is that we're doing in city and state and local government.

We just have to give them the ability to do that.

Whether it's painful or not, that's a part of democracy.

- Mayor, let's talk about education.

The StarLedger/NJ.com.

And you read the editorial.

I'm sure you have strong thoughts about the editorial.

Talked about the education system in the public schools of Newark.

In the editorial, quoted, 80% of third graders can't pass a reading test on grade level.

At five schools, only one third grader passed the state reading exam.

It was highly critical of public education in the City of Newark.

Your response to that editorial, Mayor?

- Well, I think the editorial board has always been highly critical of the educational system and Newark public system in Newark.

They obviously leaned towards something else.

But ultimately, like, the schools have been doing incredibly well and better before COVID.

And they're not putting it in context when COVID hit and after COVID.

There's been incredible challenges, not just in Newark, but around the state, around the country.

And Newark has suffered greatly in that.

And I think there's a lot more work to be done by the school board, the superintendent, and folks.

And I think they're trying to do the best that they can.

We've entered that fight with helping them to get the third graders to read on grade level by instituting a citywide focus on literacy from the mayor's office.

Really trying to help boost that up, making sure that summer programs, that athletic programs, that anything the city offers has a literacy component attached to it.

So we've been working with families and mothers and pregnant mothers, all these things, to make sure kids are ready to start school prepared to learn.

And so we've, like, really put our shoulder and elbow into that, and we hopefully believe that it's gonna have some dividend at the end.

- Mayor, I'm sure you also saw the New York Times story that talked about crime in the City of Newark and on a long standing issue.

That the New York Times talked about the fact there's been an uptick in certain crimes, but that you, who were featured in that article, talked about the importance of reinstituting a curfew for young people.

Talk about the curfew that you propose and its connection to crime as it relates to younger people in the city.

And let me also say that the mayor is the former principal of one of the most significant public high schools in the state, excuse me, in the City of Newark at Central High School.

He understands young people and the challenges of young people better than most.

Please, Mayor.

- Well, violent crime in Newark is down, actually.

Homicide is down.

60-year low.

We're lower even now than we were last year, so- - [Steve] What crime is up?

Is it car theft?

- That's a good thing.

Yeah.

I mean, not car theft.

Theft from auto, petty theft.

You know, there's been some robbery that's been up, But ultimately what they were saying is crime amongst youth is increasing.

Young people that are engaged in crime or becoming victims of crime.

So it's not just them doing crime, it's actually them being victimized by crime in those hours of the night where we believe that they should probably be in a structured environment or at home.

And so that's why a curfew is important.

And it's being led by Office of Violence Prevention and not really the police department.

The police is partnering with them to make sure to, you know, that we provide services to these young people that we catch on the street.

Some people we get on the street now are not even from Newark.

They're from other surrounding cities.

And they get a free ride home.

But we are putting a lot of emphasis on, you know, the late hours in the morning, the late hours in the evening to make sure kids are not on the street.

Whether they're engaged in something they have no business being engaged in, or prevent them from being a victim, at the same time, we just take them home.

We don't find the parent.

We don't jail the parent.

We don't do anything.

Unless, obviously, there's a crime being committed, or we find that there's something going on in the household that needs further investigation.

Other than that, these kids are just getting free rides home.

- There’s a whole bunch of people who believe, Mr. Mayor, as they're watching right now, that there's a direct correlation between the migrant crisis in the nation, the president, President Biden, as we speak, late in June, an executive order on the issue of immigration.

A lot of people believe there's a direct correlation between the migrant crisis and the increase in crime, particularly in areas where migrants wind up.

A, that's what a lot of people believe, respond to that.

And B, how is it playing out in Newark?

- Well it's just not true.

Migrants are probably more likely to be a victim of crime than they are, particularly in Newark, than they are actually committing crime.

A lot of these robberies that have been going on, we have a uptick in robberies because this is a cash business.

These folks are not supposed to be working.

They're working in places that are paying them cash, and they become victims of crime.

I think when migrants commit crime, it's politicized.

The media runs with it.

They take it, and they just outsize.

- But it's real, Mr. Mayor.

- It's real, but the amount of incidents that take place in proportion to what else is going on is completely insignificant, right?

So I mean, the amount of robberies and other things that are taking in the city, the violence in the city is happening without migrants.

Obviously, if migrants are doing some, it'll add a little bit to that, but the proportion of that that's happening is being overstated, is what I'm saying.

- If you were governor, what would you do differently, if anything at all, as it relates to state policy to protect people who believe they're more at risk because of the immigration crisis?

- Well, how do you protect people that believe that that's their perception?

And so what you have to do is fight against these perceptions that make people believe these things.

Some of it is racist.

Some of it is just misinformation that they have.

- Go back to the racist part, Mayor.

Which part is racist in your view?

- When people believe in their mind that migrants automatically commit crimes simply because they are migrants.

Or simply because they are, you know, immigrants from another country.

They've come here, and they commit crime.

And that is fostered and pushed by outlets and individuals who benefit from that.

- Has former President Trump contributed to that in your view?

- Of course.

Not just Trump.

And I think he is a distraction, but there are many people who believe that that are not Trump, who push this narrative.

But ultimately, Steve, it's not true.

And so we have to push back against that.

And what we need to do is get federal policy instituted that allows for serious immigration reform, that gives them a clear pathway to citizenship, that talks about giving people the opportunity to work.

You're talking about cities that have to take thousands of people into their borders that cannot get a job, that cannot get a state or county subsidy, that cannot get any of these things that are basically there.

But you're still responsible for finding them the opportunity for food, clothing, and shelter, which puts an undue burden on these municipalities to do that.

The state has to work aggressively with the federal government to find opportunities for migrants.

- President Biden on the issue of immigration, you say, good job, fair job, poor job?

What?

- Well, I think it's unfair to put it on Biden by himself.

I think Biden has been pushing an agenda to help deal with the migrant issue and the border.

You know, it's been super politicized, and folks cannot seem to get together in DC to figure this out.

And there's enough blame to go around for everybody.

- Finally, are you concerned about President Biden being 86, if elected on the back end of a second term, about his mental acuity and his ability to do the job?

Any real concerns?

- Well, I have questions about people's mental acuity that's 46, nevermind 80 something.

I believe Biden is strong enough.

He's mentally aware and alert.

He can do the job, he has been doing the job, and he's gonna be the president of the United States.

- Mr. Mayor, let's talk about the Lionsgate project.

We had Tim Sullivan, the head of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, talking about the Lionsgate situation, a Lionsgate project in Newark.

He said, quote, "We were Hollywood before there was a Hollywood," according to Tim Sullivan of the EDA, Economic Development Authority.

What's the Lionsgate Newark Project?

And why is it significant, Mayor?

- It's significant for so many reasons.

One, it took the oldest and largest housing project in the City of Newark, demolished it, and is gonna turn it into seven studios to create thousands of jobs in that community and supplemental jobs that go with that.

Long-term permanent jobs as well.

It puts a highlight on the city as it relates to film and the industry itself.

It's right in the area that needs redevelopment.

About five minutes from the airport.

It's gonna redevelop an entire part of the community.

It's gonna be a regional hub, you know, at the same time.

And we're also building housing and other kinds of there as well.

So it's gonna be a complete rejuvenation and overhaul of a neighborhood that is desperately in need of that and in a region that will have an incredible boost because of it.

- Mr. Mayor, we thank you, and we look forward to more conversations about important issues that matter to the people in New Jersey with you.

Thank you, Mayor.

- Thank you, man.

It's always a pleasure.

- Absolutely.

Same here.

Stay with us, we'll be right back.

- [Narrator] To watch more One on One with Steve Adubato find us online and follow us on Social media.

- We're now joined by Jack Ciattarelli, former state assemblyman, Republican candidate for Governor of New Jersey, part of our series looking at 2025.

So Jack, good to have you with us, number one.

- Good to be back with you.

- You got it.

Just I asked Mayor Baraka this question on the first half.

Governor Ciattarelli, first day of office, January 2026, first couple items are?

- Oh, on day one, executive order number one, we don't let any town in New Jersey be a sanctuary city and we're not gonna be a sanctuary state.

I nominate an attorney general who's gonna support both police and parents.

We get our state workers back to work.

Too many are still working from home.

It's why you can't get people on the phone.

I call for the resignation of all those that sit on the state board of education that has made a number of changes to the public school curriculum that a lot of parents find offensive.

And I scrap Phil Murphy's ill-conceived and irrational energy plan.

That's day one.

- Hold on, go back.

That's a lot on day one, Jack, but go back.

What's the problem with being a sanctuary state or sanctuary cities?

- I think it encourages illegal immigration, Steve, and with a porous border, we can't afford to be a sanctuary, have sanctuary cities or be a sanctuary state.

We should not be encouraging illegal immigration.

We're all border states right now based on what's happening on the border.

- What's your concern about the clean energy initiative of the energy initiative of the governor?

- I'm never gonna tell people what car they have to buy.

I'm never gonna tell them how to heat their homes.

The markets will do that, and I do believe those windmills off our Jersey shore are bad economic policy, bad energy policy, and bad environmental policy.

We need to transition to the future, but we need a rational transition.

And I also don't know how we achieve energy independence by giving away a billion dollars in tax credits of our money to foreign companies to put windmills off our Jersey shore.

- But Jack, that's what you wouldn't do.

The question is, what would, should the Ciattarelli policy be to deal with the fact that climate change is real and we have to make real changes in energy policy?

- And I do believe climate change is real and accelerated by human activity.

But I wanna make first, New Jerseyans feel good about what we're doing right here at home.

More than 40% of our electricity comes from nuclear power, zero carbon emissions.

More than 10% of our electricity comes from solar, zero carbon emissions.

We need more solar, and we need to put the emphasis behind micro nuclear.

That's the wave of the future until some of these other technologies like carbon capture and hydrogen cell technologies catch up.

- Let's talk urban policy.

A graphic will come up called urban matters.

The urban agenda, if you will, for a Governor Ciattarelli looks like what?

- Oh, economic development.

Revitalization and renaissance like we've seen in small urban centers.

Where I now live, Somerville, we've seen this.

10 years ago, Somerville was totally dependent on state emergency municipal aid to balance their budget.

Today they're not dependent on any aid and they have $5 million dollars surplus.

Why?

Because we've gone up with affordable housing, high density housing in the right kind of way.

We have a New Jersey transit bus line on Main Street.

We have New Jersey transit train station in town, and it works.

And we support Main Street with all that new foot traffic.

We've gotta replicate that model in our larger urban centers and I'll make that happen as Governor.

- Jack, you mentioned NJ Transit.

Can't talk about New Jersey Transit without talking about the fiscal crisis going on there.

The governor has a plan to help fund it.

What's yours?

- I oppose that- - 'Cause if not, it's going under.

It's not my opinion, go ahead.

- I opposed the corporate transfer fee.

It's just increasing the business tax in New Jersey.

We're already an outlier.

We need to be regionally competitive.

- Hold on Jack, Jack, time out.

Let's make sure if everybody knows the governor's proposed that businesses that earn over $10 million a year pay a percent, a couple percentage more in taxes and that would help fund New Jersey Transit, which is seriously in the red.

You don't like that because?

- Because it's not the way to make New Jersey regionally competitive by overtaxing our businesses.

Pennsylvania's business tax is heading toward 5%.

We're heading in the opposite direction.

Exxon Mobil just moved outta Hunterdon County.

In the 1970s, New Jersey was home to more Fortune 500 companies than any other state in the country, not the case today.

We have a dedicated revenue stream.

It's called the New Jersey State Budget.

How has it Phil Murphy increased the annual pension payment from $3 billion, Chris Christie's last, to $7 billion, a full payment without a dedicated revenue stream?

Because he made it a priority in the state budget, a state budget that now by the way is $56 billion, $20 billion more than Chris Christie's last.

We have a dedicated revenue stream.

It's called the New Jersey State Budget.

Let's just set the right priorities, and get the right leadership at NJ Transit.

- Let's talk about state funding to public schools.

The state school, I'm not gonna get into the weeds here, but there's a state school funding formula, if you will.

- We need a new one.

- That looks like what?

- Simply this, every school district gets X for every English speaking student, gets Y for every English language learner.

The state takes over the cost of special education, and we make sure that every school district's cost per pupil is within a reasonable range.

It's no accident that the districts that get the greatest amount of money have a cost per pupil that's off the charts and in many cases, a substandard outcome.

Newark alone, over $1 billion in taxpayer dollars from across the state, and four out of five kids are not on grade level in reading, writing, and math.

We need to fix that.

- Yeah, but that doesn't, but we had, but hold on, you're not debating Mayor Baraka and that's not our approach.

It's policy oriented, individual conversation, individual people.

But the mayor argued, look, our kids face challenges that other kids don't face.

That's not an excuse.

Many people would argue that's the reality, particularly during COVID.

It was worse for those kids.

You say?

- Steve, this is exactly the argument that hasn't been heard by the State Supreme Court that I will make sure they do hear.

You're never gonna justify to me why some districts have a cost per pupil of $35,000 per and others have a cost per pupil of $16,000 per, and it's no accident that those that have the $35,000 per are the ones that get the greatest amount of state aid.

No transparency, no accountability, and lesser standards.

I'm not gonna leave any kid behind.

I'm not gonna leave any community behind.

But I'm telling you, there's gonna be transparency and there's going to be accountability.

- Okay, so we'll keep talking issues, but can we clarify this?

Important issue, Supreme Court has, a couple years ago they decided on Roe v. Wade, they overturned it.

What is your view of what the state policy should be?

It was codified, if you will, the right to a legal abortion in the state of New Jersey.

Would you in any way attempt to change that?

- My position hasn't changed on this issue, Steve.

I've got a very strong Libertarian streak and us Libertarians do not like big government involved in deeply personal decisions.

I believe this is a deeply personal decision between a woman, her partner, her medical professionals, and her God if she so believes.

And so I've always respected a woman's right to choose.

- Okay, so, this is an issue, and it's about our democracy.

So it's interesting.

President Trump, the leader of your party nationally, candidate for president as we speak, first day, I'm gonna pardon the folks involved in January 6th, many call it an insurrection, hard to debate that it was not.

Do you believe it's the right thing to grant pardons to those folks?

- If those people have broken the law, and I do believe people broke the law on that day, they should be prosecuted a full extent of law and in my opinion, not be pardoned.

- Got it.

You said, I'll get off the Trump thing in a second, but I need to clarify something.

I've asked you this a couple times, Jack, I'm not sure what year it was, but whether it was '16 or '20, you called Donald Trump- - It was 2016, Steve.

- You call him a charlatan, and you said he's not fit to be president, 2016.

What has changed significantly in your view regarding former President Trump?

- I was very disappointed in President Trump back then when he made some derogatory comments about a Mexican American judge.

But at the same time, after his presidency, policies have worked.

I think it's very interesting now that Joe Biden has invoked his policies, Donald Trump's on Chinese tariffs.

That's something he condemned Donald Trump for.

He's now putting place limitations on asylum seekers.

He condemned Donald Trump for that.

So Donald Trump's policies were working and I just think he's a much better choice than Joe Biden, Steve.

- What is the greatest concern you have about the Biden presidency and a future potential Biden presidency and its impact?

I know I don't like to ask three part questions, on New Jersey?

- Well, lemme say this, nationwide, people see every day what's going on on the border.

I think that's wrong.

People see what's going on on our college campuses.

They see what's going on in the community with lawlessness in terms of break-ins and car thefts.

They see the price of groceries.

I do think they also see a president, as I do, that's beyond his years in terms of meeting the demands of the job.

And very importantly, a vice president that's unqualified for the position.

For all those reasons, I believe Donald Trump will win the presidency in November.

- All right, lemme try this issue.

The Open Public Records Act, OPRA, the Open Public Records Act.

I don't wanna go into the great details of this, but if you were a governor, would you have done what Governor Murphy did, which was to sign significant, the OPRA, the changes to the Open Public Records Act, the law?

- As long as that bill had the support of the County Clerks Association and to the best of my knowledge, it had the support of all 21 County Clerks who are the ones that deal with OPRA requests, and those are Democrats, Republicans, male and female, Black and white and Brown.

As far as I know, it was supported by all 21.

Yes, I would support the bill.

I've always felt that we need to deal with commercial requests.

I've never liked the idea of people coming in, dropping off OPRA requests, getting all that information and selling for a profit.

Nor have I ever liked the idea of you applying for a dog license.

And then next thing you know, you're being pounded with commercial interest trying to get you to buy dog products.

That wasn't the intent of the original law.

My understanding is this reform fixes that.

- You would've, okay, you wouldn't have done anything differently than what Governor Murphy did?

- I would've looked more deeply at some of the aspects of the bill that might've troubled me and then had done a conditional veto, but the best of my knowledge that bill had the support of all 21 county clerks.

- Last question, Jack, I got 40 seconds left.

How confident are you that this is gonna be an issue-oriented, honest, when I say honest, I mean a meaningful campaign without name calling and nastiness and all kinds of other stuff that people are sick of?

- I don't concern myself, Steve, with what the other guys do.

I know what I'm gonna do and I'm gonna talk about the issues that matter to New Jerseyans and that's taxes, safe communities, public education, and the like.

Economic development for our major urban centers.

I'm a policy guy and I will speak to the issues that matter.

- Jack Ciattarelli is the Republican candidate for governor.

We're talking to a whole range of folks who are running for governor as part of our Decision 2025 program and who will be New Jersey's next Governor.

Jack, thank you so much.

Wish you and your family all the best.

- Thank you, Steve.

- You got it, I'm Steve Adubato, thank you so much for watching.

We'll see you next time.

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato is a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Celebrating 30 years in public broadcasting.

Funding has been provided by Hackensack Meridian Health.

New Jersey Institute of Technology.

Veolia, New Brunswick Development Corporation.

The Fidelco Group.

New Jersey Children’s Foundation.

The Turrell Fund, a foundation serving children.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey.

And by these public spirited organizations, individuals and associations committed to informing New Jersey citizens about the important issues facing the Garden State.

And by Employers Association of New Jersey.

Promotional support provided by ROI-NJ.

And by Insider NJ.

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