Hello again, Daily Kos community.
Tim Alexander here once again, former law enforcement officer turned civil rights attorney running against turncoat former Democrat Jeff Van Drew. I first posted here ten days ago, and my family and I were blown away by your warm greetings, support, and grassroots contributions. From the bottom of my heart: thank you.
For those of you who missed my first blog post, I’m a former law enforcement officer, current civil rights attorney, and survivor of police brutality and gun violence. I’m taking on former-Democrat-turned-Trump-disciple Jeff Van Drew because he pledged his “undying loyalty” to the twice-impeached president, not the people of our district.
The past ten days have been an absolute whirlwind. From your heartwarming support to our growing social media presence, I’m deeply encouraged by the strong responses we’re getting throughout the district and country.
I also wanted to share this profile that Politico ran on my background and candidacy. Here’s a small snippet about my run-in with police brutality, an experience that has fundamentally changed who I am and motivated me to commit myself to public service:
According to Alexander, he had just dropped off his grandparents at their home in Newark and as he began to drive away in his burgundy Monte Carlo, a green Chevy Nova pulled up in front of him, blocking his path. Three men with guns got out. When Alexander threw his car into reverse, one of the men opened fire, narrowly missing him. A bullet pierced his driver's side door.
Alexander, who thought he was being carjacked — Newark would later gain the dubious distinction of being labeled the “car theft capital of the world“ — gave up the fight. He got out of his car and threw his wallet and keys onto the front seat.
“I said, ‘You know what, it’s in the car, have a nice day,” Alexander recalled saying as he began walking away.
“We are going to take you, too,” one of the men said, according to Alexander.
“I said, ‘Who do you think I am? You’ve got the wrong guy. I don’t have any money.’ They said, ‘We know exactly who you are.”
Alexander said that as he began walking toward his grandparents‘ house, one of the men approached and handcuffed him. That‘s when he realized the men were police officers and not carjackers.
Unlike Jeff Van Drew, I believe systemic racism exists in law enforcement and throughout our society – and that my “undying loyalty” is to the people of South Jersey, not Donald Trump.
If you agree, I would sincerely appreciate it if you could help us have a strong end of the quarter – which is at midnight tomorrow, March 31.
Whether it’s $27 or anything you can give, it would go a long way to flipping NJ-02 and showing that this will be a major battleground in keeping the House!
I’ll once again stick around in the comments if you have any questions.
Thanks again,
Tim