In the tight 22nd Congressional District race between U.S. Rep. Ron Klein and Republican challenger Allen West, the National Education Association is looking to be the difference-maker for the incumbent.
The NEA has zeroed in on the South Florida district as one of just 10 targeted House districts in the country, said Karen M. White, the union's national political director.
"It's a competitive election where we can have an impact," White said from NEA's headquarters in Washington, D.C.
An Oct. 17-19 a Sunshine State News Poll showed West leading Klein 47-44 in a mud-spattered rematch of their 2008 showdown. Klein's attacks this fall have been particularly controversial as he accused his Republican opponent of stiffing the IRS and hanging out with biker "thugs."
The NEA is taking a somewhat higher road, praising Klein as "a great advocate for teachers and kids." Specifically, White applauded Klein's vote for the "Education Jobs Fund" bill that provided emergency funding in August to avert school-worker layoffs and programs cuts.
Republican critics called the jobs fund measure a transparent ploy to gin up more Democratic campaign contributions via union dues.
So far, White says the NEA has spent $175,000 on a series of "five or six" mailers in support of Klein. Additional funds have funneled through party channels from the NEA's state affiliate, the 142,000-member Florida Education Association.
Acknowledging that 2010 is a "difficult year" for Democrats, White said the NEA is aiming a "massive" get-out-the-vote effort that involves calling and texting members. Some 5,100 NEA members reside in CD 22.
White said West "has really taken on the mantra of the tea party." She said West's call for budget cuts and abolition of the U.S. Department of Education would jeopardize programs ranging from Head Start to direct college loans.
The West campaign dismissed the NEA's gambit and its allegations.
"They are making stuff up as they go along," said West campaign manager Josh Grodin. "Colonel West was a high school teacher in Deerfield Beach. He knows that education is the great equalizer."
But, Grodin added, "Government bureaucrats and unions are hurting education, not helping."
Grodin noted that while Florida teachers scrape by on $35,000 to $40,000 a year, Department of Education administrators and NEA officials are making $100,000 and up."
For all the education and union money flowing through D.C., West, a retired Army lieutenant colonel who holds two master's degrees, points out that the nation's public schools are lagging further behind the academic performance of other countries.
"Allen West wants to put the money back into the classroom," Grodin said. "Most teachers would not be happy that their union dues are going into politics."
The NEA is the nation's fifth-biggest campaign contributor this election season, with the lion's share of its money and resources going to Democratic candidates and causes. No Republicans in Florida are receiving NEA support.
Though CD 22 is one of only 10 U.S. House races getting "independent" input at the national level, White said local union members have organized on behalf of Democrats in five other congressional contests around Florida: Reps. Allen Boyd (CD 2), Alan Grayson (CD 8) and Suzanne Kosmas (CD 24), and party hopefuls Lori Edwards (CD 12) and Joe Garcia (CD 25).
--
Contact Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 801-5341.
