April 7, 2011 (Kearny, NJ) Governor Chris Christie was interviewed by ABC Correspondent Diane Sawyer at the Lincoln Elementary School library in Kearny. The interview discussed teachers, tenure, and the government shutdown.

The interview aired Wednesday, April 6, 2011 on World News with Diane Sawyer and later that night on Nightline. Portions of the interview were featured across ABC News broadcasts and platforms including ABCNews.com, ABC News Radio, ABC NewsOne, and ABC News NOW.



Members of the New Jersey Education Association teachers union (NJEA) were scheduled to protest the Governor's visit to Kearny. Governor Christie in the course of the interview called the NJEA as political thugs who stood in the way of education reform last year thus causing teacher layoffs. NJEA President Barbara Keshishian said Christie is attempting to duck responsibility for sharply cutting state education funding by using NJEA as a scapegoat.

A video of the interview is available here:



A copy of NJEA President Barbara Keshishian's press release is available by clicking here.