The New Jersey Tea Party movement has evolved to the ultimate political action of grassroots citizen candidates running for office.

Barry Funt Tea Party Candidate for NJ Assembly District 27 www.funtforassembly.org

Probably the first of a trend in candidates nationwide, New Jersey has spawned over 40 first time like minded citizen candidates for the 2009 State Assembly elections.

The candidates have grouped  together as the Citizens for Assembly.

Barry Funt, speaking without a  teleprompter at The Morristown Tea Party School Choice event on September 30, 2009, said “No one is a professional politician in this group. We work for a living. Some are … semi-retired.

Barry is a newcomer to politics.  He attended the event for his own interest and was asked to speak after being recognized in the audience. He identifies himself with the Tea Party audience and sees himself as a citizen moved to becoming a candidate for office.

“I’ve never been involved with politics before. I am a Tea Party person just like you guys. I’ve been stirred to action like all you have. I am sure some of you before this tea party movement started – its the first time you ever got out of your chair, couch – I’m that person”

Tea Party activism is only a part of the New Jersey citizen movement. Barry points out, “through out this State people are standing up.” He finds people in communities are taking citizen action on issues of jobs, education and violence outside of the Tea Party movement.

“There are other citizens movements that are happening in urban centers. I go to Newark – Stop the Violence Rallies – there are people taken to the streets who are demanding a better life and to end the violence. … I think these are tea party people in a different name …”

The new grassroots citizen NJ Assembly candidates have adopted a citizen friendly agreement of 10 issues permeating the community movements. The agreement is called the Common Sense Pledge. Read the full story at Common Sense Pledge A Citizen Friendly Contract for NJ. The Citizens For Assembly plus other candidates have the needed seats to implement all of these once in office. All NJ Gubernatorial candidates need to take notice, the next Tea Party may be in the NJ Assembly.

Tea Party activism echoes past the 912 DC event with The Morristown Tea Party hosted movement program on School Choice.

9/29/09 School Choice Program

Offered as an informational discussion series topic on September 29, 2009, the program featured a video from John Stossel along with presentations from local school choice proponents. The program identified the failures in public schools, the school choice solution and the issue in the 2009 NJ Assembly elections.

The main principle behind school choice is about moving the control over education from government to parents through a variety of financial techniques such as vouchers and charter school alternatives.

School Failures Are Not A Local Issue

School choice activist Dan Haggerty points out that everyone needs to look beyond their own local school system for a measurement of school success such as in New Jersey. He argues American schools produce citizens unable to understand issues that impact society.

Dan alludes to the problem in 2008 elections. “You saw during the recent election where some of the people answered questions about politics, about local governance, about the world; they had no idea what the answers were. This is tragic. This effects our whole society.”

Newark Schools Highest Cost In World Producing Students Unprepared

In the State of New Jersey Dan looks at the Newark school system in this light and at the impact on the individual’s life success.

“The schools in Newark take in more money than any education system in the world. $28,000 per student to educate a student in Newark. And they don’t get educated. They get social promotion.”

Dan Haggerty School Choice Activist Expresses Dangers of Failed Schools

For those making it through the system, Dan describes the disastrous consequences.

“And these kids are put out after high school with a substandard education. They think they think they’ve been educated to operate in the real world.”

“The first encounter they have with a job interview; what a shock. They can barely write English, they can barely read English even though its their native language. They’re not going to either get that job or if they do get the job they are not going to function in it. So can you imagine why kids in this area develop a sense of rage about that?”

How to Make Changes To Move to School Choice?

Israel Teitelbaum, co-founded Parents for Free Choice in Education and activist in New Jersey education, provided a positive view of progress in school choice for New Jersey and how audience members can help.

“One way to begin is to point ourselves to the new media. We can all reach out through email, Facebook, Twitter, blogosphere, talk radio. We can get the message out to the world and our friends will pass it on and on and on and it goes at lightening speed today …”

Israel Teitelbaum Outlines Individuals and Political Candidates Actions

Israel points to the opportunity for school choice in the 2009 New Jersey elections. Over 40 NJ Assembly candidates have joined together on bringing school choice to New Jersey. He introduced Barry Funt, the main organizer of the candidates, who later gave an unscheduled talk on the effort. [See related article "NJ Citizens For Assembly Unite To Take Back NJ With Common Sense Pledge"]

Stupid In America

The meeting featured John Stossel’s landmark 20/20 television documentation “Stupid in America”. The documentary opens the hidden issues of parents losing control over education and the damage government run education causes for young lives. It shows how teacher union leadership opposes choices for parents.

John Stossel 20/20 Stupid In America Presentation

The Morristown Tea Party event was recorded on video to include the full length of the presenters’ talks and the audience questions.

The Morristown Tea Party Complete School Choice Event Videos

Forty one citizens from various walks of life are placing their careers, businesses and lives on hold to run for the NJ State Assembly.  Calling themselves Citizens For Assembly, they joined together on the steps of the NJ State House in Trenton on September 30, 2009 to announce their combined intentions.

Citizen Candidates for NJ 2009 State Assembly at Trenton State House: www.citizensforassembly.com

Every Day People Stepping Up to Fill a Voting Choice Gap

Reminiscent of the 1994 Contract with America that swept Democrats from power in DC, the nature of the candidates reveals a marked difference.

Barry Funt, a candidate for District 27, echos the sentiments of why these candidates are running , “I decided to run for one simple reason, I did not think there was anyone in my district who represents me”.

Some like Mitchell Dobies have stopped running their businesses. Mitchell, who made his decision only three weeks back, said to dedicate himself to this as a citizen his wife has to assume the role of running his business.  Mitchell is only now organizing a web site and other campaign communication activities. In the mean time his business web site The Aqua Short is how you will reach him.

Most districts have Citizens for Assembly candidates further along. Stepfanie Velez-Gentry, a small business owner and working mother of two, choose to bring her first hand grass roots work with community organizations like the Girl Scouts to the process and thinking in Trenton. Stepfanie is running in District 5.

Growing Citizen Activism To Correct Failures of NJ Government

Barry recognizes the disconnect regular citizens are expressing about their elected officials. “We can see this at Tea Parties, health care town hall meetings and other gatherings all across New Jersey as citizen activism enters the mainstream”. Barry in his address enumerated several recent citizen activism events within NJ.  “In Newark hundreds of citizens have peacefully taken to the streets to try to put and end to urban violence.”   “In Secaucus, Hoboken [and] Ridgefield citizens have gathered at city hall to protest the latest wave of political corruption.”  “In Camden, Elizabeth, Newark and Trenton and in too many other cities with failing schools parents have gathered demanding choice in education.”

Barry Funt Outlines Motives for Citizen Candidates and Common Sense Pledge

The Common Sense Pledge for A New New Jersey

The candidates  pledged an allegiance to the Common Sense Pledge that includes popular reform themes such as true property tax reform, school choice and citizen oversight of the NJ Government. These themes represent the sentiments of the grass roots movements dominating town halls and citizen rallies this year. Werner Graf, running for District 15, describes the team commitment to the pledge designed to take New Jersey Government back for New Jersey citizens. “These folks … are your neighbors and together with you they are the new New Jersey.” “Sick of corruption, intolerant of waste, and committed to building something better in New Jersey for our children.” [See related story: Common Sense Pledge A Citizen Friendly Contract for NJ]

Werner Graf Introduces The NJ Citizens For Assembly Movement

Meeting the NJ Citizens for Assembly Candidates

You can read the candidate biographies yourself, available at  Citizens for Assembly web site, and judge how they represent their About Us page statement  “… not about career politicians or more of the same empty rhetoric — it’s about electing legislators who will truly represent regular Citizens.”

Barry Funt Introduces the Citizens for Assembly Candidates