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John Adler

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John Adler
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Candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey, 3rd district
Member of the New Jersey Senate
from the 6th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
1992
Personal details
Born (1959-08-23) August 23, 1959 (age 65)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
SpouseShelley Levitan Adler
ResidenceCherry Hill, New Jersey
Alma materHarvard College,
Harvard Law School
ProfessionAttorney
Websitehttp://www.adlerforcongress.com

John Herbert Adler (born August 23, 1959) is a candidate for the United States Congress and an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey State Senate since 1992, where he represents the 6th Legislative District. Adler was Democratic Conference Chair from 2002-03 and Assistant Minority Leader from 1994-2001.[1]

Adler was one of the first elected officials in New Jersey to endorse Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination in a state where the party establishment supported Hillary Clinton.

Senator Adler currently serves on the Judiciary Committee (as Chair) and the Environment Committee. Prior to his election to the Senate, Adler served on the Cherry Hill Township Council from 1988-1989. He has served on the New Jersey Israel Commission since 1995, and on the New Jersey Intergovernmental Relations Commission from 1994-2002.[1]

On July 28, 2006, Senator Adler was appointed Co-Chairman of the Joint Legislative Committee on Public School Funding Reform along with Assemblyman Herb Conaway.

On October 7, 2003, along with Rep. Bill Pascrell of New Jersey's 8th Congressional District, Sen. Adler formally endorsed Senator John Kerry for President and became the Co-Chairman of John Kerry's campaign in the Garden State. Shortly afterwards on December 19, 2003, Governor of New Jersey Jim McGreevey and most of the New Jersey Democratic Party came out in support of Former Governor of Vermont Howard Dean for President. Because of this endorsement for Kerry, and Kerry's decisive win in the Democratic Primary, Senator Adler was rumored as the frontrunner for U.S. Attorney for New Jersey if the Senator from Massachusetts had won the 2004 presidential election.

Adler received a A.B. from Harvard College in Government, and was award a J.D. from Harvard Law School.[1] He was born in Philadelphia, and currently resides in Cherry Hill Township.[2]

Congressional Run

On September 20, 2007, Senator Adler announced that he planned to challenge incumbent Rep. Jim Saxton in New Jersey's 3rd congressional district.[3] On November 9, 2007, Saxton announced that he would not seek reelection in 2008, citing prostate cancer, leaving the seat open in the upcoming congressional elections.[4] Senator Adler has been endorsed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and its Chairman Rep. Chris Van Hollen in late November. John Adler, who ran uncontested through the primaries, will now run against Republican Medford Mayor Chris Myers. Adler is a formidable candidate, despite the outsider disadvantage he faces; the only large municipality in his State Senate district that is also in the 3rd Congressional District is his home town of Cherry Hill.[5] There is fear among Democrats in the district that there is an "anti-Obama feeling" that may harm Adler's chances against Myers in the general election.[6]

Adler has shown himself to be a formidable candidate, having ten times as much cash on hand as of June 30, 2008, with $1.4 million in cash on hand, compared to Myers' $155,000.[7]

Controversies

  • In 2004 and 2006, Adler supported a needle exchange program in the state of New Jersey that would allow drug addicts to exchange their used needles for new ones to "slow the spread of AIDS." [8]
  • In 2007, Adler proposed a bill in the legislature that would cease requiring New Jersey schools to teach about Veterans Day and Memorial Day in the classrooms. Many veterans found this bill "wrong" and insulting, drawing criticism from groups such as the New Jersey American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars. Adler noted that he believed district's should include the material on these holidays in their curriculum, but that this should not be part of a state mandate, noting that "I don't think the state should be in the business of telling districts to do every single thing".[9]
  • In July of 2008, Adler has been drawing criticism for a YouTube ad in which he praises liberal bloggers as "the new citizen soldiers" in terms of activism and spreading information. The comment has drawn criticism by his opponent, Chris Myers, who found the comment insulting to National Guard members (who are often referred to as "the citizen soldiers.")[10]

District 6

Each of the forty districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the New Jersey Senate and two members in the New Jersey General Assembly. The other representatives from the 6th Legislative District for the 2008-2009 legislative session are:

References

  1. ^ a b c Senator Adler's legislative web page, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed February 24, 2008.
  2. ^ Senator John H. Adler, Project Vote Smart. Accessed September 21, 2007.
  3. ^ Hester Jr., Tom (Associated Press). "State Sen. Adler to challenge Saxton for Congress", Newsday, September 20, 2007. Accessed September 21, 2007.
  4. ^ Hernandez, Raymond. "Citing Health, Lawmaker Announces Plan to Retire", The New York Times, November 10, 2007. Accessed December 1, 2007. "Representative Jim Saxton of New Jersey, a Republican who has served in Congress since 1984, said Friday that he would not seek re-election next year because he has prostate cancer."
  5. ^ Burton, Cynthia. "Campaign funds are key in S. Jersey congressional race", The Philadelphia Inquirer, July 22, 2008. Accessed August 6, 2008.
  6. ^ Pizzaro, max. "Adler positions himself as middle class champion", PolitickerNJ.com. Accessed [{August 6]], 2008.
  7. ^ Smith, Bridget. "Adler has big edge over Myers in raising campaign funds", Courier-Post, August 3, 2008. Accessed August 6, 2008.
  8. ^ [1].
  9. ^ Hester Jr., Tom via Associated Press. "N.J. veterans angry over education bill", The Boston Globe, January 12, 2007. Accessed July 24, 2008.
  10. ^ Larsen, Erik. "'New citizen soldiers' comment is criticized", The Asbury Park Press, July 23, 2008. Accessed July 24, 2008.
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