(TRENTON) — Assembly Speaker Sheila Y. Oliver (D-Essex/Passaic) released the following additional statement Tuesday on Gov. Chris Christie’s comments regarding her and the Opportunity Scholarship Act today in Paterson:
“Upon learning more about what the governor said about me today, I want to make clear that I am appalled.
“I have never, nor will I ever, reference the Governor’s ethnicity, or make a veiled reference to the color of his skin, yet that’s exactly what Gov. Christie did today when discussing me, as if it was the 19th century.
“Governor — if you have a problem with me, call me by name.
“Do not reference my ethnicity to try to score cheap headlines and salacious YouTube videos.
“I will not stand for it.
“If the governor thinks the failure of this proposal to advance has anything to do with race, then he is even more misinformed than usual.
“The governor initially threw out expensive and ill-conceived ideas that were unworkable and did nothing to help children in our public schools. Gov. Christie needs to spend more time devising sound policy and less time playing racial polarization.”