Schumer electrifies delegates

'I love teachers' (and they love him!)

April 9, 2005

Alan Lubin's mother-in-law has got U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer pegged: New York's senior senator indeed comes from "good stock."

NYSUT's executive vice president told delegates how a young Schumer asked for his mother-in-law's vote at a train station when running for Assembly some 30 years ago - and then showed up after his election to thank her.

Schumer - the Lubin family vote now safely in his pocket - energized the RA Friday with an electrifying speech exalting the teaching profession; excoriating the Bush administration for nominating extremist judges and harming Social Security; and exhorting delegates to join him in fighting for the funding that public schools and colleges need.

"I love teachers!" Schumer boomed to a standing ovation.

But, before he got rolling, Schumer first saluted outgoing President Thomas Y. Hobart Jr.'s three decades of leadership.

"Do you ever find someone so nice and so effective rolled into one human being as Tom?" Schumer asked, as the jam-packed room nodded as one.

In his 15-minute address, the senator - a self-described "homeboy" of Lubin's from Brooklyn - said he needed NYSUT's continued support as he fought for billions of dollars in federal education aid for New York.

Schumer drew his biggest cheers when he lambasted Bush's "goofy" plan to dismantle and partly privatize Social Security, which he called one of the most successful government programs ever designed.

But, Schumer said, he and other Democrats would not let NYSUT members down. "We won't let them touch your Social Security," he vowed.

And, a battle royale may not even be necessary. "The more George Bush goes around the country explaining his plan, the more unpopular it is," he said.

Schumer's final promise - after winning more education funding, stopping the appointments of right-wing ideologues to the bench and saving Social Security - also sparked a sustained ovation. "The love affair between me and teachers will always continue," he said.