New Jersey’s conservative education commissioner Bret Schundler asked to be fired rather than resigning so that he could collect unemployment benefits.
Schundler who rose to fame among conservatives during his tenure as the mayor of Jersey City was earning $141,000 in his job of running New Jersey’s education system which isn’t exactly a paltry salary even in a high cost state like New Jersey.
From the New York Times
“That same evening, the governor’s chief of staff, Richard H. Bagger, called Mr. Schundler to ask for his resignation, Mr. Schundler said in an interview.
“Mr. Schundler said he told Mr. Bagger that he was willing to resign. ‘I said I know that I serve at the will of the governor, so if he would like me to leave I would leave,’ he said.
“But on Friday morning, Mr. Schundler said, he asked Mr. Bagger if he could instead be fired, citing his need for the unemployment benefits.”
I would have thought Schundler with his experience, connections and conservative credentials would have desired to spare New Jersey taxpayers any additional burden by leaving his post after the state lost out on a $400 million Department of Education grant. Instead he has chosen to feed off the taxpayers for who knows how long which doesn’t seem to wash with his conservative beliefs. At this rate I wouldn’t be surprised to see him apply for food stamps as well.
If Schundler is this hard up for money then he shouldn’t have been in charge of a multi-million dollar budget to begin with.
Don Irvine is the chairman of both Accuracy in Media and Accuracy in Academia.
If you would like to comment on this article, e-mail mal.kline@academia.org.
