NJEA Endorses Bob Menendez for U.S. Senate

Union, NJ – As schools around New Jersey prepare to open for the new year, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez was surrounded today by dozens of teachers and educational support professionals to proudly accept the endorsement of the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), the state’s largest teachers union.  The announcement was made at Jefferson Elementary in the Vauxhall section of Union.

“As the product of New Jersey’s public schools, I understand firsthand why it’s so important for every child to have a chance at a first-rate education and a high-quality teacher in the classroom. A good, quality public education is the backbone of a thriving community and a booming economy.  New Jersey has among the best public school systems in the country, and I will never stop fighting to expand early education, to make sure our public schools are state-of-the-art and that our educators have the resources they need to ensure each student is given the keys to unlock their full potential,” said Sen. Menendez.  “The stakes in this election couldn’t be higher, and I am grateful to have New Jersey’s teachers and educational support professionals in my corner.  The last thing New Jersey needs in Washington is a morally-bankrupt CEO like Bob Hugin rubber stamping the Donald Trump-Betsy DeVos agenda that threatens to unravel our public education system.”

NJEA works to achieve excellence in public education and represents thousands of New Jersey public school and community college employees, including teachers, counselors, nurses, custodians, bus drivers, secretaries, substitutes and cafeteria staff.

“The decisions that get made in Washington, D.C. affect the work that we do every day.  With strong, supportive elected officials on our side, we can make our great public schools even better and provide our students with the world-class education they deserve.  Senator Menendez is the advocate that our members and students need,” said NJEA President Marie Blistan.

Aside from donating hundreds of thousands to elect Donald Trump, serving as his finance chair and a Trump delegate to the Republican National Committee, Bob Hugin was a top donor to Chris Christie, who once described New Jersey public schools as “failure factories,” students as “drug mules” and said the national teachers union “deserves a punch in the face.”

Bob Menendez is a product of New Jersey’s public schools and has a strong record of fighting for teachers, public education, and the right of workers to unionize.  He opposes Trump’s far-right Supreme Court nominees and recently spoke out against the Janus Supreme Court decision that undermined unions.  Menendez has always fought for paid family, sick, and medical leave.

The Senator voted against Trump’s Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who promotes the privatization of schools and neglects much-needed public school funding, and opposes Secretary DeVos’ plan to arm teachers with guns.  He is fighting against Secretary DeVos’ rollbacks of LGBTQ protections, and cosponsored the Student Non-Discrimination Act to explicitly prohibit public schools from discriminating against any student on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity.

Bob Menendez supports the America’s College Promise Act, which would make two years of community college free for all students, and has secured $700 million in federal funding for school safety and school-based mental health services.  He also backed the Every Student Succeeds Act, which lets local communities control their own education system, while ensuring, through federal law, that students receive a high-quality education.

Also joining the Senator and NJEA members and leaders at today’s announcement were State Senators Nicholas Scutari and Joe Cryan and Assemblyman Jamel Holley.