Six democratic candidates fighting for the Governor of New Jersey talked directly with voters during the first debate on Sunday of the season, trying to stand out on the crowded pitch.
Candidates are representatives of the American. Miki Sherrill and Josh Gottheimer, mayor of Newark Ras Barak, mayor Jersey City Steven Fulop, former mayor of Montclair and president of the Education Association in New Jersey Sean Spiller and former president of the Senate of the New Jersey Steve Sweeney Senate, Steve Sweeney, Steve Sweeney Mostu, Structural strengthening Iron Workers Union. All six are currently seen as a path to victory.
When urgent problems such as immigration appeared on the Rider University stage, candidates encouraged voters to look at the records of their opponents – and their own. The mayors emphasized their knowledge about the influence of Trenton on municipalities, Sweeney showed the depth of his law, and Sherrill and Gottheimer pulled out of their term in DC
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Here are some of the key issues that the candidates discussed during the debate conducted by New Jersey Globe, New Jersey and Rider University.
The role of NJ in the federal enforcement of immigration
All candidates said that they protect undocumented immigrants, but Sweeney and Gottheimer accepted a more conservative tone.
Barak and Fulop expressed support for the Act on the trust of immigrants, which would codify and expand state policy that limits cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. They also condemned the Laken Riley law, a modern federal law, which requires the internal security department to detain undocumented immigrants accused of crimes related to theft.
But Gottheimer, who was the only democrat in New Jersey in Congress, who voted in favor of the Laken Riley Act, defended his voice, saying: “If you are a murderer, criminal, rapist … and you are undocumented, you should be here” He condemned the barrack. Gottheimer also said that he would exploit “full state force” to stop the immigration and correct tum of Trump “innocent undocumented people.”
Sweeney said that he was opposed to raids without searches, but if the undocumented person committed a crime, he must “leave” the country. In the statement last Monday, Sweeney said that he would repeal the “status of the state of the Sanctuary in New Jersey.”
Sherrill and Spiller emphasized the need for “humanity” and system immigration reform.
“We must make sure that people have a path to citizenship who are here who work hard, who pay taxes, give [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals] Recipients, TPS [Temporary Protected Status] Recipients, and we also need better borders’ safety – said Sherrill.
Various partisan approaches to the Supreme Court
New Jersey governor is entitled to appoint the Supreme Court judges. Traditionally, the state maintains the partisan balance of a seven -person court with only one seat.
Asked if they would follow tradition and appointed Republican Justice in the Supreme Court, when the Republican judge Anne Patterson retires in 2029, the candidates differed.
Barak and Fulop, the most progressive candidates, said that they would not designate Republicans.
Fulop argued that the Democrats have learned lessons, “many times” deciding to “play nicely”, and because the democrats exceed the Republicans in the state, “the bench should reflect this.”
“It’s no secret that New Jersey is seen as a purple state,” said Fulop. “If it becomes red, do you think the Republicans will say:” Well, it was historically in this way? “
Jack Ciattarelli, Republican Main Candidate, he said on Monday evening In response to a debate, which he would not also commit to guerrilla balance.
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Barak agreed with Fulop and added that the bench should be more diverse.
“We can’t get the same judges from the same circles of people all the time,” said Baraka.
Sherrill agreed that diversity is significant, although she argued for maintaining guerrilla balance in court because of the importance of building a “more polite” political environment.
Sweeney strongly defended the maintenance of guerrilla balance and said that he fought as the leader of the Senate against the efforts of former governor Chris Christi to pack courts with republicans.
“If we intend to pack courts, they have all the right,” said Sweeney. “We have the best system in the country and we must protect it.”
Spiller said that for him all meetings would be a conversation about beliefs and “not necessarily a letter that is on your name.”
“We should not make it political because of being political,” he said.
Sweeney breaks from the crowd to the referendum
New Jersey currently does not allow national initiatives and a referendum that allow citizens to collect signatures to obtain a vote or vote on the repeal of the existing law.
Most of the candidates said that they would support the permission for initiatives and referendum in New Jersey, but Sweeney certainly argued against them, saying that placing a policy to vote simply will bring more money in politics.
“We are all talking about how much we hate the amount of money in politics,” he said. “Do you realize how much money will be spent on initiatives where people from the working class do not have the same tools?”
He said that voters should vote for legislators who do not represent them.
While Spiller indicated that he would support initiatives and referendum, he also warned that politics could jump out with them.
Moving from Murphy
As a whole, the candidates were not afraid to distance themselves from the governor restricted by Phil Murphy, despite the fact that they come from the same party. When asked to assess the Murphy administration, the candidates’ answers ranged from R+ to C-.
Murphy accepted the greatest hit as candidates criticized NJ Transit – everyone gives the agency to F. But the candidates also praised him for the full financing of the state’s pension system.
Gottheimer said that while Murphy “has done a lot”, the state must focus on price accessibility.
“I really think that we have, as a state, make sure that we focus on a laser beam on lowering taxes for people,” he said.
