In one sense, the timing couldn't be better for New Jersey to renew its efforts to lure a frustrated Amazon to reconsider Newark for its second headquarters.

After all, the New Jersey Legislature and the city of Newark already gift-wrapped $7 billion in tax breaks and other incentives last year. And Newark could also make a plausible claim that Amazon could draw from the same labor pool as New York City.

Gov. Phil Murphy, who could use a clear, definable political victory — a job-creating, brick-and-mortar success story that voters can associate with him — quickly tried to turn New York's loss into New Jersey's gain.

In announcing its decision Thursday to cancel its plans to building a sprawling campus in Long Island City, Amazon said it has no intention of searching for another headquarters "at this time." In the eyes of Murphy and other state officials, that's enough of an opening to keep New Jersey's foot in the door.

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"After learning of the decision to pull out of their chosen HQ2 location, I contacted Amazon and city of Newark stakeholders directly, continuing a constant dialogue that predates my time as governor," Murphy said in a statement. "New Jersey is open for business."

On another level, the timing couldn't be worse. Murphy and state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, are locking horns in a heated political battle over the future of corporate tax breaks, including the very kind of incentives that the state included in its pitch to Amazon last year.

The squabble should not have any bearing on a $5 billion incentive package that the Legislature swiftly enacted in January 2018 and that Chris Christie signed in one of his final acts as governor. Newark has authorized another $2 billion in incentives for Amazon.

But some pro-corporate and business interests fear that the battle, a proxy of a long-festering power struggle between Murphy and Sweeney, could end up creating an overarching impression of disorder and a sense that the state is increasingly hostile to corporate interests.

If Amazon does go shopping for another location, there will be plenty of cities and states offering tax incentives without all the political tumult that it left behind in New York and that may be lurking over the horizon in New Jersey. Some wonder if the political fighting might undermine Amazon's confidence in the long-term viability of the tax incentive program.

Murphy launched a lengthy broadside against the program last month. He made it the centerpiece of his first State of the State address, assailing the incentives doled out by the Economic Development Authority as "rigged to work for a favored few'' companies with political connections, and complaining that some of the $11 billion vanished down a "black hole" with no proof that the companies created new jobs, as required. He outlined plans that would significantly rein in the program, which is set to expire in June.

Many in Trenton viewed Murphy's criticism as a thinly veiled attack on Sweeney and his political patron, the South Jersey Democratic leader George E. Norcross III. Many of the companies that won lucrative tax breaks during the Christie era went to companies in Camden, the heart of the Norcross base.

Sweeney has aggressively pushed back, accusing Murphy of grossly exaggerating the problem and questioning the viability of a state comptroller's audit of the incentives, which was the source of the governor's withering attacks. Sweeney has called for Murphy to release the names of the companies that allegedly abused the program, which Murphy has refused to do.

“We need to know the facts before the administration continues its courtship of Amazon with $5 billion in tax breaks,'' Sweeney said in a statement that was released before Amazon's announcement. “We need an accurate analysis of the successes and weaknesses of the current programs so that we can make an informed decision about their renewal and any refinement or changes that may be needed."

Dan Bryan, Murphy's spokesman, dismissed suggestions that the fight over tax incentives could harm the state's future attempts to attract Amazon or other corporations.

"The governor has said since Day One that past practice of tax incentives should be the icing on the cake, not the cake itself,'' Bryan said, adding, "I think the governor has put forward a bold vision for economic growth that's what people will be looking at."

Thomas Bracken, president of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce and a supporter of corporate tax incentives, said the debate over the program's renewal should not hamper a renewed pitch to Amazon.

"All this can get done and all this can get reconciled,'' Bracken said. "There is a way to have one plus one equals three here if it's done right. And there is no reason not to pursue both of those."

Yet liberal activists groups — reliable Murphy allies — have long been opposed to handing Amazon tax breaks, claiming that they drain needed revenue for education and infrastructure. They also urged the state not to renew its pursuit of the online retailer.

"Given New Jersey's track record of overpaying for tax subsidies and failing to provide oversight, it's safe to say New Jersey dodged a bullet with Amazon's decision," said Sheila Reynertson, an analyst at New Jersey Policy Perspective, a liberal think tank.

Systemic problems linger

But other public relations concerns cloud the New Jersey sales pitch.

The state is also confronting long, systemic problems that have festered after decades of neglect. The state's transit network has been plagued by personnel shortages, frequent delays, an aging infrastructure and a lack of adequate funding.

Lawmakers are also locked in a debate about the high cost of living in the state, a topic that is likely to dominate the legislative elections this fall.

Republicans, for example, plan to paint Murphy as a too-eager-to-tax liberal whose policies are scaring away companies and who has done little to curtail rising property taxes, the highest in the nation. The GOP signaled Thursday that it will be a core theme in the fall campaign for the Assembly.

"New Jersey is not going to be an acceptable alternative unless we can roll out the welcome mat but also provide an affordable place for them to do business,'' Assemblyman Anthony Bucco, R-Morris, said, referring to Amazon.

Sweeney has launched a separate crusade to curb government spending, warning that the state's public employee pensions and health care benefits are bleeding the state dry.

His "Path to Progress" campaign also calls for consolidating school districts and municipal services. In short, it's a blueprint for political upheaval.

That kind of reckoning is hardly the stuff of a sunny sales pitch. But the flip side of that argument is that this kind of soul-searching actually might help the state lure companies. It would demonstrate that the state is finally determined to get its fiscal house in order.

Email: stile@northjersey.com