The Auditor: Christie, education leader go from friendly to foes again

Just 13 months ago, Gov. Chris Christie and Randi Weingarten, national president of the American Federation of Teachers, were all smiles, appearing together on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

The one-time foes praised each other for the bipartisan compromise that led to a landmark Newark teachers’ contract — the first in the state and one of the first in the nation to base teacher pay on classroom performance, including student progress.

“Every time we had a problem at the table, it was about what is going to work for the kids of Newark,” Weingarten said of the merit pay deal. The governor even invoked his “boulevard of compromise” line.

But those good vibes are gone.

On Monday, Weingarten will travel to Newark to lead a march and rally in protest of what a coalition of advocacy groups called “Christie’s failed leadership on education in Newark.”

“I think it’s fair to say there are areas of agreement and disagreement,” AFT spokesman Marcus Mrowka told The Auditor, pointing to the fair funding formula, local control and school closings. “Those three things the governor does have some control over.”

The day after Christie cruised to re-election, Weingarten chastised him for choosing to “publicly demean and vilify” a teacher with whom he had an argument on the campaign trail in Somers Point.

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