This past Tuesday evening, former Senator Joseph Lieberman warmly endorsed incumbent Rep. Josh Gottheimer on behalf of the No Labels Caucus, an organization co-chaired by Sen. Lieberman and founded to to combat partisan dysfunction in politics. The endorsement event, attended by over 60 people, was held at the Bergenfield home of Tobah and Shea Farkas.
The evening was organized by Bergenfield Councilwoman Ora Kornbluth, who is also executive director at Yeshivat He’Atid. Kornbluth introduced Rep. Gottheimer with an endorsement of her own, lauding his accomplishments in Congress over the past two years. She noted that he had recently helped Yeshivat He’Atid secure a significant security grant.
Rep. Gottheimer spoke about the challenges facing the country today. “We have to start by listening to one another and remembering above all that we are Americans,” he said. “We have to remember that we are Americans first, before our party affiliations.”
He discussed briefly his involvement as co-chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus in Congress and working on a bipartisan basis on “how to get things done” for the country. He lamented the fact that there have been many bipartisan achievements in infrastructure, the opioid crisis, taxes, and much more but they are often not covered by the media.
He introduced Lieberman warmly and noted that he had first met the former Senator as a 16-year-old intern and has learned so much from him over the years, especially in standing up to one’s own party when required.
Sen. Lieberman began his remarks humorously by stating that, “Josh is the best!” and thanked Rabbi Menachem Genack of Englewood’s Congregation Shomrei Emunah for being the first person to introduce him to Rep. Gottheimer.
“I love Josh Gottheimer… He is very bright, very hard-working…while a lot of people say they work across party lines, Josh has actually done it. He follows his conscience and is a remarkable star,” exclaimed Sen. Lieberman. He also described the history of the No Labels Caucus which began in 2010.
As part of his speech and before running a short Q&A session, Lieberman formally endorsed the candidacy of Rep. Gottheimer in the upcoming Nov. 6 election. “Josh has run a very competitive campaign and he deserves re-election..but we can’t take it for granted,” he said. “Make sure he is returned to Congress by going out and voting and nudging your neighbors to come out and vote.”
By Moshe Kinderlehrer
