The 1st District is represented by Robert Andrews, a Democrat first elected in 1990 who is known for his wide-ranging interest in policy as well as his ambition for statewide office. He grew up in Bellmawr, the son of a shipyard worker. At age 14, he got a job with the Suburban Newspaper Group, dreaming of covering basketball games and becoming a sportswriter. But his editor had other ideas. Assigned to cover city halls, police departments, and zoning boards, Andrews developed an interest in the machinations of government and politics. He excelled in college, became the first in his family to get a degree, and went on to law school. While still in his 20s, he was elected to the Camden County Board of Chosen Freeholders, with the help of then-Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Florio. When Florio left Congress to become governor in 1990, he postponed the special election for a successor until November and supported Andrews for the post. Andrews had other help. His Republican opponent switched positions on abortion rights and lied about his college attendance, helping Andrews to a 54%-43% victory. Read More
The 1st District is represented by Robert Andrews, a Democrat first elected in 1990 who is known for his wide-ranging interest in policy as well as his ambition for statewide office. He grew up in Bellmawr, the son of a shipyard worker. At age 14, he got a job with the Suburban Newspaper Group, dreaming of covering basketball games and becoming a sportswriter. But his editor had other ideas. Assigned to cover city halls, police departments, and zoning boards, Andrews developed an interest in the machinations of government and politics. He excelled in college, became the first in his family to get a degree, and went on to law school. While still in his 20s, he was elected to the Camden County Board of Chosen Freeholders, with the help of then-Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Florio. When Florio left Congress to become governor in 1990, he postponed the special election for a successor until November and supported Andrews for the post. Andrews had other help. His Republican opponent switched positions on abortion rights and lied about his college attendance, helping Andrews to a 54%-43% victory.
Andrews has a mostly moderate voting record, particularly on foreign policy, but he has been much more inclined to side with his party in recent years. When Democrats regained the majority in 2007, Andrews became chairman of the Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee. With full committee Chairman George Miller, D-Calif., he spearheaded House approval of the controversial labor-backed Employee Free Choice Act, which would make it easier for unions to organize by gathering the signatures of more than half of the employees in a bargaining unit. The legislation went nowhere in the Senate.
In 2008, Andrews lost an ambitious bid to unseat fellow Democrat Frank Lautenberg in the Senate primary, but he came back from that disappointment to have a productive two years in the House. As the chairman of the subcommittee, he had a role in drafting the landmark health care bill that was signed into law by President Obama in March 2010. It raised taxes on wealthy Americans to help pay for expanded coverage, which was a tough sell in Congress but something Andrews considered necessary for achieving “the right, equitable mix of policy and politics to get this done.” In the course of the months-long process, Andrews became a top health care adviser to then-Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who called on him repeatedly to explain intricate details to colleagues, douse fires and even twist arms in the hours before the final vote on House passage. Andrews was also at the center of a successful effort in the House to reverse a Supreme Court ruling that restricted workers’ ability to win pay discrimination lawsuits.
One year after the passage of Obama's health care law, Andrews remained one of its strongest defenders. He generated campaign fodder for Democrats when he confronted National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Pete Sessions, R-Texas. on the House floor over a claim that health insurance reform would cost 800,000 private sector jobs. “The health care law was signed into law almost a year ago. And I wonder if anyone on the majority side could tell us how many jobs the economy has lost in that year,” Andrews asked. When Sessions responded, “I don’t know the answer,” the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee sent out a blast mocking Sessions for not providing a number (Sessions argued that the impact of the health care law would likely be felt in 2014 when certain provisions of the plan were scheduled to kick in).
From his seat on the Armed Services Committee, Andrews was called on to carry water for the administration on its controversial plan to transfer suspected terrorists from the U.S. military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to facilities on U.S. soil. He was also one of the primary sponsors of legislation signed into law in May 2009 aimed at curbing an estimated $300 billion in cost overruns in major weapons programs in the Defense Department. He was a longtime ardent proponent of the use of force in Iraq. And in 2007, he opposed President George W. Bush’s troop “surge” in Iraq. But he backed Obama’s decision to send additional troops to Afghanistan.
Andrews has been re-elected by overwhelming margins and has continued to live with his family in Haddon Heights, commuting by train to Washington. After supporting Obama’s $787 billion economic recovery bill, Andrews in 2009 got out front in promoting federally backed projects that flowed from the legislation to South Jersey, including $116 million in transportation projects for the region. He also has remained active in a campaign to stop the Army Corps of Engineers from deepening the Delaware River, which Garden State officials believe will dump tons of dredged sludge into New Jersey. The plan, which would deepen a channel along a 103-mile stretch between Camden and Cape May, has support from elected officials in neighboring Pennsylvania. “It does not add jobs in any kind of creative way, it’s harmful to the environment, and it’s a waste of taxpayer money,” Andrews told the Gloucester County Times in September 2011.
But Andrews has been frustrated in his efforts to attain higher office. He ran for governor in 1997, but was defeated in the primary by then-state Sen. James McGreevey. When McGreevey announced his resignation as governor in 2004, Andrews was interested in running again but stood little chance after Democratic Sen. Jon Corzine announced his candidacy.
In the 2008 election season, he surprised and angered many local Democrats when he challenged Lautenberg in the primary. An Andrews ad called for change in “stale, tired, old politics,” an allusion to the 84-year-old Lautenberg’s age. Lautenberg shot back, calling Andrews “an enabler” for the Bush administration, especially on the Iraq war. Lautenberg benefited from a fundraising advantage, and won the primary, 59%-35%.
Andrews had said that if he lost the contest for Senate, he would not run again for the House. But political insiders questioned whether he in fact maneuvered to keep the seat warm in case things didn’t work out for him in the Senate race: Andrews’ wife, Camille, ran for the Democratic nomination for his House seat in the primary and secured it. Then, on Sept. 4, 2008, after Andrews lost the Senate primary, he said he would run for his former House seat after all. Camille Andrews bowed out, allowing the local Democratic committee to designate her husband as the new nominee. Although Andrews called the turnabout a simple change of heart, he in effect circumvented a prohibition on candidates running simultaneously for the Senate and the House. Republican challenger Dale Glading, a minister, accused Andrews of lying to his constituents. Still, he was handily elected, 72%-26%. Glading returned for a rematch in 2010, saying the political climate for Republicans had improved. But Andrews again won easily, 63%-35%.
In March 2011, New Jersey reporter Herb Jackson noted Andrews' rising influence in Washington. “Even his critics say Andrews has a sharp intellect and a knack for legislative details that makes him a strong debater on the floor,” Jackson wrote. However, in the same story, Jackson reported that many of Andrews' New Jersey colleagues still do not entirely trust him because of his challenge to Lautenberg.
Andrews also received some criticism for how he managed his campaign expenditures. A November 2011 Star-Ledger story detailed how Andrews spent some $9,000 of his congressional campaign funds on a donor’s wedding in Edinburgh, Scotland, which included a family stay in a five-star hotel. Andrews defended his actions but decided to repay the money to his campaign fund, which would then donate the proceeds to homeless veterans.
