New Jersey GOP lawmakers demand Sherrill release Naval Academy records as questions swirl
The three New Jersey Republicans in the U.S. House are pubically urging Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the state’s Democratic nominee for governor, to authorize for the immediate release of her military records connected to a major cheating scandal that rocked the U.S. Naval Academy in 1994.
Reps. Christopher Smith, Jeff Van Drew, and Tom Kean, Jr., the three Republican members of New Jersey’s 12-member House delegation, on Monday said it was “imperative” that Sherrill reveal her records at the Naval Academy.
The combustible ballot box battle in New Jersey, one of only two races for governor in the country this year, was rocked last week after a report revealed that the United States Naval Academy blocked Sherrill from taking part in her graduation amid the cheating scandal.
“The only way that level of transparency can be achieved is for all of Representative Sherrill’s academic, disciplinary, and investigatory records to be made public – something only Representative Sherrill can authorize,” the three lawmakers argued.
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They added, “If those sealed disciplinary records match Representative Sherrill’s current explanation, we are unsure why she would refuse to release the records and put this matter to rest.”
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Republican gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli and his campaign have repeatedly called on Sherrill, who was never accused of cheating in the scandal and went on to pilot helicopters during her military career after graduating from the Naval Academy, to release her military records to explain why she was blocked from attending her graduation ceremony.
“What we learned today is that she was part of it in some way, shape or form. Come clean, release the records. Tell us what’s in your disciplinary records. I think the people of New Jersey deserve that,” Ciattarelli said Thursday night in an interview on Fox News’ “Hannity.”
But a second report revealed that the National Personnel Records Center, which is a branch of the National Archives and Records Administration, errantly released Sherrill’s improperly redacted military personnel files, which included private information including her social security number, to a Ciattarelli ally.
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The news spurred calls by top Democrats across the country for an investigation.
“To have a guy I’m running against, it will stop at nothing, it will stop at nothing, who will illegally obtain records. It’s just beyond the pale,” Sherrill, who served as a federal prosecutor before winning election to Congress, charged Thursday night on the campaign trail in Plainfield, New Jersey.
The National Archives, in a letter last week, apologized to Sherrill, saying the improper release was due to a government worker’s error over a legal records request.
The two candidates face off next week in the second and final debate in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy.
Ciattarelli, who is making his third straight run for governor, came close to upsetting Murphy four years ago. Ciattarelli is a former state lawmaker and a certified public accountant who started a medical publishing company before getting into politics.
After her career in the Navy, Sherrill served as a federal prosecutor before winning election to Congress in 2018.
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