By Chief Political Correspondent Michael Aron
NJ Today
On a rainy morning in a restaurant in Newark’s Ironbound section, Barbara Buono picked up some Latino support today.
“I am very pleased this morning to be able to stand before you and announce the enthusiastic endorsement of state Sen. Barbara Buono to serve as the next governor of New Jersey. It was an easy call for us,” said Latino Action Network President Frank Argote-Freyre.
The Latino Action Network, a 4-year-old statewide umbrella group, calls Buono a champion for the middle class, and Christie wrong-headed on many issues.
“So he’s talked a good game about shared sacrifice, but really in the end he never met a millionaire he didn’t want to embrace,” Argote-Freyre said.
The litany of Christie’s sins here included cuts to family care, to low-income schools, to Hispanic research and social service programs, his position on school vouchers and in-state tuition for the children of the undocumented.
Buono threw in Christie’s veto of the minimum wage hike, his middle-of-the-road approach on gun control and she portrayed herself as one of them.
“I may not be a Latina by blood, but I am a Latina in my heart,” Buono said.
Christie was endorsed in late February by the Latino Leadership Alliance, an older organization.
Four years ago he got 28 percent of the Latino vote compared to 69 percent for Jon Corzine.
Buono hopes to repeat that in part by hammering away on immigration reform.
“Rather than working hand in hand with federal representatives to have a comprehensive, meaningful immigration reform, this governor has referred to undocumented residents as criminals,” Buono said.
We asked Buono about the increasing media attention on her fund-raising that reports she may be the first candidate ever to not qualify for full public matching funds.
“I have no concerns. I can tell you this. I never thought I’d raise as much money as this governor and he didn’t raise as much as the one before him. He was outspent three to one. And I don’t think that having the most money is going to win the election. I think having enough to be competitive — and we will. And I think that soon you won’t be asking that question any more,” Buono said.
So both camps have their Latino boosters. The Buono camp thinks theirs will ultimately make more noise and persuade more voters than the Christie camp.