Stuff in the ‘Political Spending and Influence’ Category
New Direction Spent $13.2 Million Boosting Gov. Murphy, with $10.5 Million from the Taxpayer-Funded NJEA
Posted On05/20/2021 byPolitico’s Matt Friedman reported in his New Jersey Playbook that NJEA-funded Super PAC New Direction New Jersey(NDNJ) has spent nearly $13.2 million over the past three years to boost Gov. Murphy. Friedman points out that the $13.2 million is almost as much as the $15.6 million the governor would be permitted to spend if he…Read More
New Direction Is Now Essentially an NJEA Super PAC with Gov. Murphy as Spokesman
Posted On04/08/2021 bySunlight admits that this is not new news, but because it was released on Christmas Eve-eve, we missed it. But we found the InsiderNJ press release that reveals that Super PAC New Direction New Jersey (NDNJ) is now almost entirely funded by the NJEA. That’s right, from late 2019 to late 2020, the NJEA pumped $6,000,000…Read More
Kudos to the Record’s Charlie Stile: Borrowing $4.3 Billion to Make a $6.4 Billion Pension Payment is POBs All Over Again.
Posted On02/25/2021 byThe Record’s Charlie Stile is one of the very few people in NJ who recognize that Gov. Murphy is effectively reprising the disastrous 1997 Pension Obligation Bonds (POBs) of Gov. Whitman. The $2.75 billion in POBs will ultimately cost NJ more than $10 billion. That’s the reason the legislature subsequently banned POBs. Per Stile: “Yet, Murphy’s rescue…Read More
Gov. Murphy’s Budget: The Special Interests Win, NJ Loses
Posted On02/24/2021 byGov. Murphy is out with his FY2022 budget. Four facts stand out: Murphy is increasing spending to $44.8 billion, a 10% increase over last year. Murphy is devoting over 14% of this budget – $6.4 billion – to shore up NJ’s worst-in-the-nation public pension system. While making the full payment may seem like the right…Read More
Oscar James: Newark Superintendent Roger Leon is the Union’s “Puppet” and Is Hurting Newark’s Kids
Posted On01/15/2021 byYesterday, Sunlight blogged about Newark’s student absenteeism scandal and asked where Superintendent Roger Leon stood on the matter. Today, Newark’s Oscar James blogged an answer on Newark Neighborhood View. James excoriated Newark Superintendent Roger Leon for his abandonment of Newark’s kids by kowtowing to the Newark Teachers Union (NTU) and its president John Abeigon. Sunlight…Read More
The NJEA and Its Network of Allies Move to Squash Standardized Testing for 2021
Posted On12/16/2020 bySunlight had to take note of a new campaign the NJEA is pushing on its members because it once again reveals the NJEA’s vast network of allies at work. On its website, the NJEA is urging its members to sign a petition to “suspend high-stakes student testing” in the spring. As detailed in Sunlight’s report…Read More
2020 in Review: The NJEA Backed Gov. Murphy and Gov. Murphy Delivered for the NJEA
Posted On12/14/2020 byAs we head into the end of the year, now would seem to be a good time for reviews of 2020, and the NJEA Political Action Committee (PAC) has provided a helpful reminder of how Governor Murphy pretty much gave the NJEA everything it wanted in 2020. In announcing its early endorsement of Murphy’s re-election,…Read More
Excellent California Policy Center Piece on the Problems with Government Unions Could Have Been Written About New Jersey
Posted On12/03/2020 byNote: Bolded print added by Sunlight Policy Center for particular relevance to New Jersey. Why We Fight Government Unions By Edward Ring of California Policy Center November 24, 2020 The California Policy Center, established in 2013, exists to expose and undermine the destructive power of government unions. Most Californians still don’t understand the threat these unions…Read More
NJEA VP Sean Spiller Eyes the Governor’s Office: Will Special Interests Actually Run NJ?
Posted On11/23/2020 byJust as Sunlight speculated in its report “Councilman Spiller, Mayor Spiller, Governor Spiller?,” NJEA Vice President and Montclair Mayor Sean Spiller appears to have his eyes on the governor’s office. The NJEA trained Spiller to run for office and declared its hope that one of its members becomes governor some day. That day may be coming…Read More
Gov. Murphy’s COVID Bonds: More Money Now to Benefit His Public Union Pals Costs Future NJ Citizens Hundreds of Millions More
Posted On11/20/2020 byThe ever-vigilant BuryPensions blog has provided valuable information on NJ’s COVID bonds – the $4.5 billion that Gov. Murphy is borrowing to plug budget gaps and allow for a record $4.7 billion payment into NJ’s broken and unreformed public pension system. The sad truth is that Murphy is doing the bidding of his public union pals,…Read More