Teachers need to ask the NJEA: Why don’t you want me to hear directly from Jack Ciattarelli?

Jack Ciattarelli won’t appear before the NJEA’s screening committee when it convenes Tuesday, Save Jerseyans. It’s the NJEA’s fault, of course, and their position on this one would seem silly to causal observers and voters. 

Back in April, Ciattarelli skipped the screening because NJEA refused to broadcast his online screening interview to its membership. The NJEA unsurprisingly left this detail out of its press releases.

Now it’s time for the general election, and the NJEA is once again refusing to let its members participate in the screening process. We obtained the latest email exchange between Team Ciattarelli and the NJEA front office.

“Is it your position that the NJEA will not so much as acknowledge the Candidate’s request for a public and transparent process for all of your members to observe?” Ciattatelli campaign manager Eric Arpet wrote in a June 11th email to Al Beaver, the NJEA’s government affairs point man.

“We will take that as Mr. Ciattarelli’s decision not to participate,” Beaver responded in a summary reply email.

There was never any chance of Jack Ciattarelli getting the NJEA’s support. The union’s super pac is already funding a Murphy-related organization that’s pumping out pro-Murphy Adminstration propaganda. Millions of NJEA dollars have been invested. The idea that Ciattarelli could get a fair hearing from a union’s leadership that’s already helping bankroll is opponent is laughable.

What’s significant is how unwilling the NJEA is to let their membership even hear from the Republican nominee.

What are they so afraid of?

The NJEA’s failure goes deeper than the public policy topics du jour. New Jersey teachers have been poorly represented because their union’s leadership is consistently more interested in playing power politics than focusing on improving the lives and careers of members. Remember: almost without exception, it’s been NJEA-backed candidates who’ve done the most harm to the pension system. A Republican candidate might just say so in an open forum, and that’s a risk the NJEA is apparently less-than-eager to take.

It’s time for Garden State teachers to ponder their union’s paternalistic, disrespectful refusal to expose them to different viewpoints. You’re being managed, guys. The time has arrived to speak up or, if you’re not willing to go that far, at least be willing rebel in quiet in the voting booth this November. You owe it to your state, your kids, and yes, yourselves

Matt Rooney
About Matt Rooney 8403 Articles
MATT ROONEY is SaveJersey.com's founder and editor-in-chief, a practicing New Jersey attorney, and the host of 'The Matt Rooney Show' on 1210 WPHT every Sunday evening from 7-10PM EST.