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Black Democratic bishop backs Christie

TRENTON - Gov. Christie on Monday netted the endorsement of one of the state's most prominent black Democrats, Bishop Reginald T. Jackson, solely because of the governor's position on school-choice policies.

TRENTON - Gov. Christie on Monday netted the endorsement of one of the state's most prominent black Democrats, Bishop Reginald T. Jackson, solely because of the governor's position on school-choice policies.

The executive director of the Black Ministers Council of New Jersey, Jackson in 2009 endorsed Christie's opponent, Democrat Jon S. Corzine, but has crossed the aisle to support Republican governors in the past.

Flanked by Christie and six other black clergy members at a news conference Monday at the Statehouse, Jackson said he chose the Republican governor over Democratic challenger State Sen. Barbara Buono (D., Middlesex) because of Christie's support for allowing students in failing districts to attend school elsewhere.

The key school-choice measure pushed by Christie, the Opportunity Scholarship Act, has languished in the Legislature, and Buono has opposed it. When Christie budgeted a limited $2 million version that would have allowed 200 low-income students to attend private schools or out-of-district public schools, Democrats who control the Legislature cut the money out during budget negotiations.

"A quality education is a civil right, and it is sad for me to see my party, which embraced the civil rights movement, now in New Jersey blocking [low-income] and minority children from escaping the slavery of failing schools," Jackson said.

Buono "does not recognize the basic unfairness of making low-income parents wait without a choice for their children," Jackson said.

In an interview, Buono said she supported charter schools. "I don't support giving public funding to fund private and parochial schools," she said.

Buono's campaign released a statement Monday from two African American clergy members who have endorsed the Democrat, saying Christie has left urban areas suffering.

"Gov. Christie has done almost nothing to revitalize our cities, leaving nearly 400,000 people looking for jobs, our schools in desperate need of repairs, and little action to reduce gun violence," said the Revs. Kenneth Saunders of Piscataway and Ronald Owens of Metuchen. "It seems clear that he is only now reaching out to the African American and Hispanic communities because it is an election year."

But Christie on Monday said, "The Democratic Party takes inner-city votes for granted."

Democrats' "failure to move forward" on the Opportunity Scholarship Act "is a perfect example of that," he said.

Jackson has said he is a lifelong Democrat who opposed Christie's vetoes of a minimum-wage increase and higher taxes on top earners. But he crossed the aisle to endorse Republican Govs. Christie Whitman and Thomas H. Kean.

Steve Baker, a spokesman for the New Jersey Education Association, said the union opposed the voucher system because "there is no evidence that vouchers are effective."

"If you can't defend your program on its merits, you might as well attack its opponents," Baker said of Christie's remarks.

Buono also took aim at Christie on Monday for again not answering a question, posed at the Jackson news conference, about the U.S. Supreme Court decision two weeks ago striking down key parts of the Voting Rights Act. The ruling has been panned by civil rights advocates as a setback for the movement. Christie has twice said he hasn't read the opinion.

"That's just outrageous," Buono said. "This is one of the most destructive, disenfranchising decisions we've seen from the Supreme Court in decades, and he has no comment?"

Jackson said after the news conference that he was "very disappointed" in the Supreme Court's decision. He said he had not discussed the issue with Christie.

"That's one of the things we need to talk about," he said.

The endorsement is a major addition to a roster of African Americans and Democrats who have signed on to support the Republican governor. Christie's main campaign strategy has been to pick off traditional Democratic constituencies in this overwhelmingly Democratic state, and almost all of his public campaign events to date have been to highlight such endorsements.

So far, he has amassed Democratic mayors, Democratic power brokers, trade unions, Latino leaders and African American clergy.