Sanders does not endorse N.J. lawmaker who backed him, is now running for governor

[Donkees]

Democratic gubernatorial candidate John Wisniewski, an Assemblyman from Middlesex County, did not get an endorsement from the candidate he supported in the 2016 presidential campaign.

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vermont, announced Friday that he won’t be endorsing any candidate in New Jersey’s race for governor despite the fact that Wisniewski served as the chairman of Sanders' presidential campaign efforts in the state.

As an added blow to Wisniewski, Sanders’ son, Levi Sanders, endorsed Wisniewski’s competitor and early front-runner for the Democratic nomination, Phil Murphy, earlier on Friday.

“I want to thank John Wisniewski for the strong support he gave me during the Democratic presidential primary,” Sen. Sanders said in a statement. “He played a great role in that race, and I am confident he would make an excellent governor for New Jersey.

“As everyone knows, the primary in New Jersey is hotly contested and there are those who supported me in 2016 who are supporting John and others who are supporting his opponent,” he continued. “For that reason alone, I have not endorsed in the New Jersey governor’s race.”

The announcement may be seen as a disappointment to Wisniewski, who has fashioned himself as Sanders-inspired insurgent ready to buck the party establishment, which has swiftly closed ranks behind Phillip Murphy, a former U.S. ambassador to Germany and an ex-Goldman Sachs executive.

“We don’t see it as not endorsing,” Wisniewski’s campaign manager, Robert Becker, said in response to Sanders’ announcement. He pointed to Sanders’ assertion about Wisniewski that “I am confident he would make an excellent governor.”

Sanders’ son Levi announced earlier Friday this he was endorsing Murphy, whose campaign he said he has been following through cousins who live in New Jersey.

“With New Jersey's governor's race being the first test for Democrats in the Trump presidency, we have to plant the flag that our values won't be compromised,” he said in a statement.

“Phil's values align with so much of what we fought for in 2016,” he continued, referring to his father’s bid for the presidency. “A livable minimum wage of $15 an hour, respect for workers, an affordable college education, equal pay for equal work, reforming our broken criminal justice system, and an economy that creates a vibrant and diverse middle class and which works for Main Street, not Wall Street.”

Wisniewski is not alone in trying to position himself as an outsider in the race to replace Gov. Chris Christie. Veteran state Sen. Raymond Lesniak, D-Union, has also vowed to run an unconventional campaign highlighting his record of promoting progressive causes.

Other Democratic candidates for governor include former U.S. Treasury Secretary Jim Johnson, who says he recently qualified for matching funds; Bill Brennan, a Wayne resident who sued Christie over his alleged knowledge of illegal closures at the George Washington Bridge in 2013; Mark Zinna, a Tenafly councilman; banker Titus Pierce; and Monica Brinson, a pharmaceutical sales
representative.

http://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2017/01/27/sanders-does-not-endorse-nj-lawmaker-who-backed-him-and-now-running-governor/97139060/

[Donkees]

1. Sanders stays out of New Jersey race, but ex-aide dives in

By - Associated Press - Friday, January 27, 2017

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders is staying out of the New Jersey Democratic primary for governor, but his former campaign manager has endorsed Assemblyman John Wisniewski.

Sanders, of Vermont, said Friday that Wisniewski would make “an excellent governor,” but declined to back any candidate. Sanders’ former campaign manager Jeff Weaver, though, says Wisniewski will “advance our struggle.”
Wisniewski ran Sanders’ Democratic presidential campaign in New Jersey. Sanders was defeated in New Jersey, and nationally, by Hillary Clinton.

Sanders’ announcement comes shortly after his son Levi said he was backing Democrat Phil Murphy for governor.
Murphy is in strong position, thanks to personal loans to his campaign of about $10 million. He also has the support of many in the party establishment, as well as unions.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jan/27/bernie-sanders-declines-to-endorse-in-new-jersey/

[Donkees]

2. "Sanders, in his statement, did not explicitly rule out making an endorsement in the future."

???

Excerpt:

Sanders, in his statement, did not explicitly rule out making an endorsement in the future.

Later Friday, Jeff Weaver, the campaign manager for Sanders' presidential bid, endorsed Wisniewski in an email sent to the assemblyman's supporters. In the endorsement, Weaver said Wisniewski "has never been afraid to challenge the establishment."

Wisniewski was the only major Democratic elected official in the state to back Sanders.

Sander’s announcement comes just hours after Murphy, a wealthy former Goldman Sachs executive who backed Hillary Clinton for president, announced the support of Levi Sanders, the senator’s son. The Murphy campaign says the younger Sanders will campaign for him in February.


The younger Sanders was virtually unknown in politics until his father ran for president. According to a report, he’s a social security and benefits specialist at a Massachusetts law firm.

http://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2017/01/bernie-sanders-not-endorsing-109114