IN VERY LONG LINE AT INVESCO FIELD--Even though his union members split between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, National Education Association President Reg Weaver was for Obama all along “in his heart,” he said today.

At a private reception in his honor put on by the Congressional Black Caucus, the retiring NEA president told us that he made up his mind early on that he would support his fellow Chicagoan, Obama.

But for the sake of NEA unity, he kept quiet until the primary was over.

“I had my organization to think about,” said Weaver, 68, who leaves office Sept. 1. “They were right down the line” split between the two Democrats.

Unlike the American Federation of Teachers, which jumped out early for Clinton, the NEA waited until there was a winner of the protracted Democratic primary before endorsing. Because the NEA waited, it was easier to unite its members behind Obama.

Weaver is predicting an Obama victory over Sen. John McCain: “The cat’s going to win.”

--Michele McNeil and David J. Hoff