Christie declines to seek NJEA endorsement

By Matt Friedman | June 12th, 2009 - 3:31pm

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Christie declines to seek NJEA endorsement

New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) President Joyce Powell
Credit: NJEA.org

In keeping with his tough campaign rhetoric on public employees' unions, Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie has declined to seek the endorsement of the New Jersey Education Association's (NJEA) political action committee.

NJEA President Joyce Powell, whose group claims about 200,000 members, was offended by what she perceived as a snub by Christie. She announced today that he sent her a letter turning down an invitation to participate in the union’s screening process.

"It is unfortunate that Mr. Christie is unwilling to take the time to have an honest discussion about educational issues with the organization that represents the overwhelming majority of the state's educators. It is also unfortunate that the Republican standard-bearer has chosen to break his party's long-standing tradition of candid discussion and direct communication with NJEA,” said Powell.

Powell noted that the union endorsed Tom Kean, Sr., who is the Christie campaign’s honorary chairman, for governor in the 1980s, though it did not specify if it was for his 1981 campiagn or his 1985 race, in which he had the most lopsided victory in the history of New Jersey gubernatorial races.

The Christie campaign provided a copy of the letter. In it, Christie said he wanted to meet with union representatives to “engage in a frank dialogue about the future of our public education system,” but that “doing so under the specter of an endorsement is difficult... that is why I will not be seeking the endorsement of your organization.”

“Because I respect your members’ contributions to our public education system, I want to speak honestly and openly with you to ensure you know exactly where I stand and for what I believe,” he wrote.

Christie went on to outline some reforms he supports that the NJEA opposes, like school vouchers and merit pay.

CLICK HERE TO READ CHRISTIE'S LETTER TO THE NJEA

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1985 campaign?

Submitted by PC517 on June 12, 2009 - 2:42pm.

They supported Kean because he was a "shoe in" that year and won by a record margin. What a phony comment.

Good for Christie for standing up the biggest obstacle to real property tax reform in this State.
These so called " Union Leaders" are the biggest liberal activists in the country.
Many are corrupt and steal our tax dollars in places like Camden and Newark.

They should have thanked him for not prosecuting their leadership when he was Federal attorney.

If he was consistent with

Submitted by nj_politics_2008 on June 12, 2009 - 3:19pm.

If he was consistent with this viewpoint on all special interest groups trying to "offer an endorsement," I would say good for him. The problem is that he panders to certain groups that he wants endorsements from but runs away from others so the fake conservative neo-cons won't call him a RINO.

NJEA

Submitted by Double A on June 12, 2009 - 3:29pm.

New Jersey Extortion Association.

Good for Chris. His campaign keeps getting better every day.

What a boneheaded move.

Submitted by commonsensenj on June 12, 2009 - 4:37pm.

Does he honestly think he is going to win any support for making a politically-expedient calculation about an endorsement he wasn't going to get anyway?

He didn't turn anything away. All he did was take his ball and go home, rather than engage in a dialogue with teachers.

Which stupidly gives the organization fuel to more enthusiastically support his opponent than they otherwise would have; and gives rank and file teachers an easy-to-digest reason why they should heed the union's endorsement.

Why?

Submitted by chrisc23 on June 12, 2009 - 4:53pm.

The NJEA is partly to blame for the financial situation we are in now. I will say that our education in this State is better than most. However in comparison to other nations our entire education system is a disaster and I believe unions are part of the reason.

Unions protect bad employees. Bottom line. But I'm not anti union completely. I'm anti union for Police, Teachers and so on. Electricians union and others are fine.

Not a snub

Submitted by Captain Republican on June 12, 2009 - 5:36pm.

That was not a snub. It was a responsible thing to do. He wants an open dialog and does not want to be seen as pandering to a strong Union.

Schmart- very Schmart, Mr. Christie.

You have my vote on guts alone.

NJEA can't handle the truth

Submitted by Joe Sinagra on June 12, 2009 - 6:23pm.

In running for congress in 2006 I received correspondence from the NJEA signed by Joyce Powell.

She expressed that they would like to hear my views on education, in reading the content of the correspondence it was mentioned something to along the lines of “to be fair, we have already endorsed you’re opponent.”

What was the point of going out of my way? It wouldn't have accomplished anything as the NJEA already predetermined their choice before I even spoke.

Obviously I didn't get their endorsement.

I don't blame Christie because the NJEA does not like to hear the truth, unless it is in their favor.

Screw the NJEA

Submitted by Demsandonts on June 12, 2009 - 6:26pm.

Public education is in the mess it is today because the NJEA writes about 100% of all education related legislation! The NJEA is an arm of the Democratic Party and anyone who thinks otherwise is either delusional or stupid. When Christie wins he'll have a free reign in reforming education in a serious fashion without the conflict or baggae of the biggest collection of hacks in the history of collective bargaining. Vote Column "A" - All the way!

mistake

Submitted by SJBlue on June 12, 2009 - 7:22pm.

This was a mistake. A big one. Public employees are feeling the threat of being fired like never before (not that that is a terrible thing), however it does mean that their members will be voting. The NJEA might have 200,000 members, but those members have fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, children, spouses and you can bet that none of those people want to see their loved ones loose their jobs. of course the NJEA cant deliver 200,000 votes for JSC, but they can surely pull 75,000. This was a rookie mistake, by a candidate that is objectively lacking in experience when it comes to running a state campaign. Rule number 1-engage the political class (corzine has made this mistake and it is costing him a bit).

Steak , steak, not a mistake

Submitted by PC517 on June 12, 2009 - 9:43pm.

Check the voting records, they probably vote 75% dem, he lost nothing.
Engage the rank and file in person, ignore the corrupt leadership.

They were not going to endorse him anyway, and maybe future candidates will do the same thing giving this group the lack of credibility that it deserves. Another group like the NAACP that claims to be non partisan, but openly works for democrats EVERYTIME!

This is the most unpopular union leadership in the Country, let the dems have them.

I will agree with that one.

Submitted by PadrePeon on June 13, 2009 - 6:23am.

For the average voter property taxes are the main concern. School taxes are the largest element of property taxes. But then when you look at the schools, they are in bad condition and poorly run by a bunch of non-customer service oriented entitlement types.

We are paying too much, and getting a very poor return on our investment. The NJEA is more of a problem than the CWA or any other state and muncipal unions. Here is where we can fight the battle that Corzine will lose.

The state rules that are overburdening our school districts have to be removed or relaxed. These rules have one goal -- flooding taxpayer $ into the coffers of the school beaurocrats, and the politicians that whore for them.

One way to hide your views

Submitted by floggerblog on June 13, 2009 - 6:32am.

Maybe Chris Christie doesn't want to talk to NJEA because then he'd have to suffer the scrutiny of his "education policies." Giving public funds to private and religious schools in the form of taxpayer-funded vouchers isn't something the voters really want to do, Chris.

Union Leaders...

Submitted by ImWithStupid on June 13, 2009 - 8:12am.

are different than rank and file members. The union leadeship are nothing more than leaches who suck off the tit of real teachers' paychecks. I bet rank and file teachers, if polled, go for Christie. They're not stupid sheep like their leadership thinks.

Great Move

Submitted by gorednj on June 13, 2009 - 8:50am.

It was an endorsement he would have never gotten so why go for it. And the NJEA distorts and said he did want to talk with them. That's a LIE--he wrote that he welcomes dialogue but does not seek the endorsement. It is the NJEA who is locked arm and arm with Corzine and the NJ Democratic Party. They seek more money NOT reform. That strategy has proven to be a loser for our taxpayers and most importantly our students. Corzine must go for anything to have a hope of changing in our fading state

NJEA cause High Homeowers Property taxes in NJ

Submitted by watchcamdencounty on June 13, 2009 - 9:31am.

Good job Christie. NJEA is the Cause of the High taxes in this state. This organization is where school and property taxes meet. You are on your way to the Governors Mansion. NJEA thinks they have so much power. Let the people know they are 50% of the reason our property taxes are so high.

hmmm

Submitted by evans on June 13, 2009 - 9:32am.

NJEA doesn't speak for all its members. NJEA sent out an email to all its members with a big headline that said "Christie Snubs NJEA Endorsement." Considering Chritie, according to this article, said he DOES want to "meet with NJEA reps" I PERSONALLY FEEL THE HEADLINE WAS MISLEADING but none the less 200,000 people and their spouses got that headline in their email. It seems Joyce Powell is hugging J Corzing in the news about once a week, so what does that tell you.

NJEA misleads us

Submitted by Flyer13 on June 13, 2009 - 10:52am.

The NJEA was wrong saying Mr. Christie "snubbed" them. I read the letter in this article and it never says that. He said he wanted to meet with them but felt uncomfortable doing so in an "endorsement" setting. Typical NJEA crap.

Kiss the ring mentality...

Submitted by njcuts on June 13, 2009 - 11:01am.

Joyce was out to do Jonny's dirty work.

Great Job Chris!

Submitted by Republican Cons... on June 13, 2009 - 12:54pm.

Now tell the Sierra Club to pound salt, the CWA to go suck an egg (even though you are probably a member), the Teamsters to get the truck out of NJ, and the AFL-CIO affiliates in hospitals to stick a needle in.

"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson

Boards

Submitted by aviator on June 13, 2009 - 4:52pm.

Nothing will change until the Boards of Education listen to the people and decide to fight the njea. It seems to me that the boards are afraid of this union. The njea, as a public employee union fails to realize that management holds the hammer and can bring it down during negotiations. It is the shame of the population that has let this union get powerful. There are plenty of good labor lawyers out there who would love to take the njea on - if the Boards would let them.

Get rid of Home Rule

Submitted by Debbie Robinson on June 13, 2009 - 10:31pm.

States are generally governed either by "Home Rule" giving municipalities autonomy or "Dillon's Rule" which gives states more power.

New Jersey, governed by Home Rule, has 566 municipalities, each with a separate administration and government. The causes of home rule are rooted in history and are entrenched because each municipal government would have to cede some control in order to change.

The League of Municipalities web page describing Home Rule portrays attempts to weaken it in negative terms:

We have recently seen support grow for an epidemic of initiatives designed to weaken local democracy. These include bills promoting home-based businesses, airports, quarries and mines. Legislation has been introduced which would strip local elected officials in certain towns of the ability to make government decisions, and another bill would permit non-residents to vote in local elections.

Therefore, the public policy pendulum may be swinging away from "Creative Home Rule" and toward "Destructive Constraints" on local self-government. We are aware of the trend and we are fighting it.
On the other hand, as the late State Senator Alan Karcher writes in his book, New Jersey's Municipal Madness, "The system is complex, counterproductive, wasteful of land resources and more -- and virtually fossilized" (206).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Property Taxes
In polls New Jerseyans often list property taxes among their biggest concerns. New Jersey has the highest per capita property taxes in the nation; second highest as a percentage of income. However, the State itself does not receive nor does it levy the local property taxes. Each of New Jersey's 566 municipalities must determine and collect its own property taxes. (When local and state taxes are combined, New Jersey's burden ranks 14th in the country for 2005.)

The three main fiscal components of residential property taxes in New Jersey are school district budgets, municipal budgets, and county government expenses. Property taxes are levied based on market value of real property, called an "ad valorem" tax. Each municipality figures its total need amount (after state aid and other sources of income,) then divides it by the total assessed value of its property to determine the tax rate. The value of each property is then multiplied by this rate to establish the amount of tax due by each property owner.

When a statewide income tax was instituted in 1976, a property tax rebate was included in the package. Rebate programs have changed scope and value over the years but have come to be expected by many homeowners as an offset to rising property taxes. New Jersey's current property tax rebate program is the FAIR (Fair And Immediate Relief) Program, which combined the Homestead rebate and the SAVER rebate programs in 2004.

Besides the high cost, concerns about property taxes include:

Reliance on property taxes are viewed as a reason for increasing sprawl, as towns try to increase the ratables in their tax base through development. Commercial and industrial development are viewed as more desirable than residential, particularly low-density housing; residential development adds people who require services which the school district and municipality must finance.

Property taxes are seen as a regressive tax, as opposed to income taxes which are progressive.

Property valuations are perceived as inconsistent within and between municipalities. Values are often not kept current, causing further disparity between property tax bills.

Rebates feel gimmicky to many, are of insufficient value to provide real relief, and do not solve the problems with the system.

From what I understand this

Submitted by RussOCNJ on June 13, 2009 - 10:43pm.

From what I understand this announcement is complety phony. I heard Christie was negitiating for this endoresement months ago. When he didn't get it he was suddenly for school vouchers. Lonegan was for the vouchers for a long time like he wrote in his 2007 book. Christie took the idea when it was convenient so there is no guarantee he will actually do what needs to done to implement the program.

SJBlue - what you are suggesting is that politicians buy their vote by agreeing to take money from other people and give it to them. Jean-Francois Revel believed that in a democracy, people could vote themselves so many benefits that the nation-state would collapse in debt. That is exactly what people like you and the NJEA have done to NJ. It does not appear that any of you intend to stop until you completly destroy NJ and nobody will be able to make a living. The entire State is now "handicapped" because of the high taxes. Children born in NJ now have less of a chance that those in many other states. You define this as a handicap that needs to fixed by government. How do you intend to correct this "handicap?"

collective bargaining. vouchers by NJEA

Submitted by evans on June 14, 2009 - 12:22am.

Joyce Powell said at the 2008 NJEA convention the NJEA wou;d suport vouchers if agreed upon through collective bargaining. I only think she said that because Cynthia Nixon, the keynote speaker spoke of support for that idea. She, Ms. Nixon, also said "redisistribution of wealth is not socialism." Hmm

There is no collective

Submitted by RussOCNJ on June 14, 2009 - 10:27am.

There is no collective bargaining for the NJEA. Collective bargaining is where workers negotiate with those that pay their salary. In the case of the NJEA they negotiate with politicians that they can vote out office. Then the politicians force the taxpayers to accept the agreement. If any taxpayer will not accept this forced agreement then the politicians will eventually will send people with guns to take their property of the taxpayer who did not agree. Now I am paying a PhD kindergarten teacher in Ocean City $107K due to this type of "bargaining."

Big mistake by Christie

Submitted by Heynow on June 14, 2009 - 8:55pm.

He can't win state wide without the NJEA. This will be a close election and he is missing a golden opportunity by not exploiting public employee unions "unhappiness" with Corzine. The CWA and all the other unions are ticked off at Corzine but they have no where to go.
Big mistake Chris....almost as big as your waist size! (sorry, i couldn't resist....i know it's mean, but gosh he's gotta drop a few lbs. did he eat all the people he prosecuted??? how'd he get that big???)

Bu Bye Russ

Submitted by the oc on June 15, 2009 - 7:16am.

Time to go. Be a man and stand behind your words.

the oc - be the teenager

Submitted by RussOCNJ on June 15, 2009 - 8:17am.

the oc - be the teenager that you are and post your real name.

Christie's paid bloggers prove the point

Submitted by commonsensenj on June 15, 2009 - 8:39am.

He doesn't even get what a knee-jerk blunder he made. Maybe this kind of nonsense plays in a Republican primary, but memo to Chris: you managed to beat back the fringe. It's over.

He gave a very large organization a reason to be enthusiastic for Corzine.

He also gave rank and file members a very digestible (to continue heynow's theme) reason why he slapped them all in the face.

Teachers were not going to be this mobilized-- either at the rank and file or the organizational level-- until Christie gave them every reason to be.

My teacher friends have been asking me for months who they ought to vote for this fall. They didn't ask this weekend. They all had heard about the snub.

Dummy. In what's going to prove to be a "who has the better judgment; kind of a close contest, this kind of screw-up could go a long way towards tipping the scale.

oooooooo

Submitted by the oc on June 15, 2009 - 10:31am.

oooooooo - good one Russ. You have not given your full name. My name is Russ by the way. I am the coolest guy on the planet. Please move already.

I will be here another

Submitted by RussOCNJ on June 15, 2009 - 12:58pm.

I will be here another couple years ... and I can still post here after that anyway. I am Russ in Ocean City who sued the City and the Mayor is the Democrat who has a law firm with the Atlantic County Republican Chairman, Keith Davis:

http://www.njfog.org/docs/11.26.08%20Ocean%20City%20agrees%20to%20provide%20public%20with%20copies%20of%20electronic%20documents.pdf

I guess I am now considered a "Steve Lonegan Republican."

"post your real name." I

Submitted by CliffordCase on June 15, 2009 - 1:33pm.

"post your real name."

I counted at least fifteen posters on this comment thread alone who do not give their names. Is there a problem with that? What is the reason to know someone's real name? Do you plan to stalk them like you do Christie? Do you plan to call them up on the phone like you have with others (i.e. "Alan Marcus")?

Quite frankly, it's people like you who are the reason I wouldn't give my real name. If you're crazy enough to call Alan Marcus to find out if he is me, you'd be crazy enough to do anything. And the last thing I need is some kool-aid drinking rightwing lunatic calling me on the phone or showing up at my door to confront me about my comments.

There are good reasons why the overwhelming majority of people who comment on this website do not use real names. You ought to respect that and quit acting like a horse's ass.

"You have not given your

Submitted by CliffordCase on June 15, 2009 - 1:41pm.

"You have not given your full name."

"I am Russ in Ocean City"

So your last name is "Ocean City"?

"I will be here another

Submitted by CliffordCase on June 15, 2009 - 1:46pm.

"I will be here another couple years"

If you're going to be here that long I'll definitely vote for Corzine so he can raise your taxes, while you're still around, and spend the money on educating my kids who go to state-funded schools.

The reason is that the

Submitted by RussOCNJ on June 15, 2009 - 1:58pm.

The reason is that the posters on here challange the credentials of others, including myself. They also offer a number of statements which are not backed up by facts and when they are challeneged they never back up their statements with anything. This is the whole basis for political endorsements that candidates seem to want. There are no rules for posting on here. However, when people look at the posts that challenge the credentials of others but won't provide their own credentials or even their name it says something about their opinions.

It seems to me most people would are too embarassed to give their real names because their posts are ridiculous. It shows what some of the political people are like and it is a good indication as to why NJ has been destroyed over the past 50 years.

"The reason is that the

Submitted by CliffordCase on June 15, 2009 - 2:19pm.

"The reason is that the posters on here challange the credentials of others, including myself."

I've never challenged anyone's credentials.

Only their sanity.

Congrats Russ

Submitted by the oc on June 16, 2009 - 7:46am.

Congrats Russ - on being part of the problem. You sued your town because of their "onerous copying fees"? Are you serious? Talk about tort reform. What's next? Are you going to sue the town because the vendor is charging $2 for a bottle of water instead of $1.50? Two years is too long for a person who was so adamant about leaving. You are all talk and no substance. You are a joke and a hypocrite. Are you going to sue me now too? Loser.