Congressman Accuses Middletown Schoolteacher Of Antisemitism

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — A teacher in the Middletown school district, who is also a Councilman in Toms River, has been accused by a U.S. Congressman of using an antisemitic campaign mailer back in May.

The teacher is Dan Rodrick, 45, who works as a science teacher at Thorne Middle School.

Rodrick lives in Toms River and this will be his fourth year as an elected councilman in that town. In 2019, Rodrick ran for mayor of Toms River and lost.

Rodrick was first elected to the Toms River Council as a Democrat in 2017, but in recent years switched to the Republican Party; he ran for mayor as a Republican.

On July 20, South Jersey Congressman Andy Kim, a Democrat, sent a public letter criticizing Rodrick and his running mate, Justin Lamb, for a flyer they sent out in late May in the heat of the Republican primary.

The letter was distributed to a number of Jewish leaders in the Toms River community and shared on social media. The letter was sent to Patch, and the congressman's office confirmed he wrote it. You can read Congressman Kim's entire letter here: https://pdfhost.io/v/XhDxvhK3W...

"Our community, like communities throughout the country, has seen an unfortunate and disturbing rise in anti-Semitic language and behavior," wrote Kim. "We have a responsibility to condemn this when we see it. It is why I strongly condemn the campaign tactics of stoking fear and hate by Daniel Rodrick and Justin Lamb earlier this summer."

Here is a photo of the flyer in question, which Rodrick confirmed he sent out trying to lure voters away from David Ciccozzi, also a Republican (there is a major rift in the Republican Party in Toms River and in Ocean County):

Rodrick says this is a political attack

Kim's district director, Ben Giovine, said Kim wrote the letter after several members of the Toms River Jewish community contacted him about it.

"They approached the congressman about their concerns," Giovine said. "It was just in line for us to come out against this language and rhetoric."

But Rodrick said Kim's letter is a purely political attack.

"This is a gross mischaracterization of me," he told Patch on Monday. "Maybe if Andy Kim came to Toms River he would see what we are fighting is the kind of explosive growth and improper mixing of commercial and residential zoning that we've seen in Lakewood. That's what the residents of Toms River are concerned about. It has nothing to do with religion."

The men pictured on the flyer are Ciccozzi and Baruch "Booky" Kaluszyner, a member of the Jewish Community Council, which is a political lobbying organization that backs candidates and makes political donations.

Rodrick said he chose to feature Kaluszyner because he has repeatedly lobbied for zoning changes to allow houses of worship to open in Toms River. Kaluszyner is dressed in religious garb including a shtreimel, the fur hat worn by some Hasidic Jewish men.

"Mr. Kaluszyner has publicly described himself as a lobbyist and heads a political organization. He is a public figure, advocating for further zoning reductions," said Rodrick. "We cannot control the way someone dresses or the clothes they wear. To me, this is not about religion. It's about development and overdevelopment. Nobody wants 50 cars going down a residential street in Toms River where children play."

Kaluszyner previously told the Toms River Patch he didn't know where the Rodrick team got the photo of him and that:

"It's basically saying 'look at their friends, keep the Jews out, they're friends with these councilmen,' " Kaluszyner said. "I'm just the poster boy."

The congressman's letter was sent to Rodrick's employer, the Middletown Board of Education, and Middletown superintendent Mary Ellen Walker. Rodrick said he has not been contacted by the district about the flyer or the letter.

Rodrick has taught in the Middletown public school system for the past twenty years.

"I'm a little speechless," continued Rodrick. "Political speech is protected in this country; I have Jewish supporters in Toms River. This is an organized effort to make me look bad. I look at this as political intimidation by a congressman; Kim is doing the bidding of Toms River Democrats who think they have a chance this November. They are now trying to hurt my career and intimidate me."

In June, Rodrick won the Toms River Republican primary in his ward by nearly 60 percent, and said he is "pretty confident" he will be re-elected this November.

Rodrick has been accused of antisemitism before

Rodrick has been accused of antisemitic rhetoric in the past, including being censured by the rest of the Toms River Council in June 2019 over campaign literature during the mayoral primary that implied Toms River Mayor Maurice "Mo" Hill, also a Republican, was cozy with the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community.

"They've tried to smear me like this before," said Rodrick on Monday. "The good people of Toms River are adamantly opposed to having commercial developments in their neighborhoods and we would be just as opposed if a secular businesses or non-profit, such as a Moose Lodge, wanted to open in a residential neighborhood. Take any street in Middletown and ask the residents there if they would like to have 50 more cars going down it day in and day out."

Kim was elected in 2018's "Blue Wave" to represent New Jersey's Third Congressional District, which includes Toms River.

However, he did not win a majority of the votes in Toms River, a New Jersey Republican stronghold.

Kim was the first Democrat to win the 3rd District since the 2011 redistricting, when New Jersey lost a congressional seat. Prior to Kim, the 3rd District was represented by Republicans.

"I take exception to Congressman Andy Kim's baseless admonition," Rodrick's running mate Lamb previously told the Toms River Patch. "Mr. Kim is nothing more than an ultra-liberal Democrat who only won the 3rd District due to liberal controlled gerrymandering. He only answers to Nancy Pelosi, who in turn supports the vile anti-Semitic bigotry of people like Congresswoman Ilhan Omar."

Kim himself was accused of using antisemitic mailers by his opponent David Richter, a Republican businessman, in their extremely close 2020 election battle.

"So you would think he'd be more careful about making such baseless allegations," said Rodrick. "And Andy Kim supports the $90 billion Iran deal that would advance their nuclear program, all while Iran has a stated policy to wipe Israel off the map. So it's actually his policies that are anti-Israel and antisemitic."

Read the Toms River version of this story: Toms River Councilman's Mailers Antisemitic, Congressman Says (July 27)

With reporting by Karen Wall at the Toms River Patch.