Five staffers of Rep. Jeff Van Drew (D-NJ) announced their decision to resign from his office in light of his decision to join the Republican Party after declaring that he opposes impeachment.
In a letter sent Sunday, the staffers said Van Drew’s decision to defect from Democrats and join the GOP compelled them to resign from his office.
“Sadly, Congressman Van Drew’s decision to join the ranks of the Republican Party led by Donald Trump does not align with the values we brought to this job when we joined his office,” five Van Drew staffers — which include legislative director and deputy chief Javier Gamboa, deputy chief Edward Kaczmarski, deputy chief Justin O’Leary, communications director Mackenzie Lucas and legislative staff assistant Caroline Wood — wrote in the letter.
The officials also criticized Trump Republicans who “have sided with special interests over the needs of working people” and have “refused to grapple with how the President of the United States has jeopardized our national security for his own political advantage.”
The staffers concluded their letter by saying that they are “deeply saddened and disappointed” by Van Drew’s decision to defect from Democrats and that they can “no longer in good conscience continue our service in the Congressman’s employ.”
Hours after the officials announced their resignation, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) offered to hire them “until they land new jobs that align with their values” in a Sunday evening tweet.
It's right before the holidays and these staffers just quit their jobs to stand up for their Democratic values. We'll bring them and others who leave on with the @dccc until they land new jobs that align with their values. (1/2)https://t.co/MqWVsnAGcN
— Cheri Bustos (@CheriBustos) December 16, 2019
On Monday, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) urged voters to vote for Van Drew’s forthcoming Democratic challenger in a tweet. Van Drew had previously demonstrated in-state loyalty by endorsing Booker’s presidential run.
.@VanDrewForNJ has put his re-election prospects ahead of his duty at a time of crisis in our country. Let's bring courageous leadership back to NJ-02—please donate to support his eventual Democratic challenger: https://t.co/19u7MwGXg9
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) December 16, 2019
The letter comes two months after Van Drew became one of two Democrats who voted against the House’s resolution to officially authorize the impeachment proceedings.
Read the letter below:
