NYC NOW - November 17, 2023: Midday News

Episode Date: November 17, 2023

Another move is underway to remove Representative George Santos from Congress even after he's said he will not seek re-election next year and we hear from some of his constituents. New Yorkers can get a free smoke alarm from the city fire department and the American Red Cross under a new program. Finally, Tammy Murphy, the wife of New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, is running for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Bob Menendez. Despite having never run for office, Murphy is expected to have an advantage from the relationships that both she and the governor have in New Jersey’s Democratic Party. WNYC’s Sean Carlson sits with Nancy Solomon to learn more.

Welcome to NYC now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Friday, November 17th. Here's the midday news from Michael Hill. Another move is underway to remove Representative George Santos from Congress, even after he said he will not seek re-election next year. But in his district, he still has some support. Nathan Azazian says he's met Santos, things highly,

of him and doesn't consider the lawmakers' spotty record with the truth to be more troublesome than any other politicians. Everybody doing it. You think everybody they tell the truth in the beginning? So what? He made mistake. Everybody allowed to make mistake in life. But longtime resident, Rick O'Connell says Santos can't leave soon enough.

It's a joke to say he's going to not run again because that means he has another year in office when it's clear that he's been doing things that he shouldn't be in office for doing. O'Connell says he's skeptical that the House would remove to expel Santos under the new Republican House speaker. New Yorkers can get a free smoke alarm from the City Fire Department and the American Red Cross under a new program. You can sign up at the American Red Cross website and look for the Sound the Alarm program. Newsday recently reported that fires have killed 100 people from Jim. January to August this year. That's more than in any other state. 71 of those were New York City residents. The Red Cross says having a working smoke alarm can cut the risk of death by half. In our earlier report on New York City's budget cuts, we misstated the timeline for the rollout of composting services in the Bronx and Staten Island.

We'd like to clarify that these services will be available in October 2024. 64. 63 with sunshine now, partly sunny today. and 67 in gusty, and then tomorrow 50-50 chance of morning rain, clearing up, and temperatures dropping to the upper 40s. It's WNYC. I'm Sean Carlson for WNYC. Tammy Murphy, the wife of New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, is running for the U.S. Senate seat, currently held by Bob Menendez. Now, Menendez has been indicted on federal charges that accuse him of bribery, corruption, and working as an agent of the Egyptian government. Tammy Murphy has never run for office, but is expected to get a big leg up from the relationships that both she and the governor have in New Jersey's Democratic Party.

So we're joined now by W&I's Nancy Salomon to tell us more about all of it. Hello, Nancy. Hello, Sean. Tell us a little more about Tammy Murphy. She's never run for office, but she has been a lot more involved in her husband's administration than most first ladies, right? Yeah, that's right. So she's 58. The couple's four kids are all grown.

She worked for Goldman Sachs early in her career, and that's how the couple met. She worked during the Murphy administration on maternal health, particularly with a concern for the high rates of fatalities among women of color when they're giving birth. And she worked on a climate change curriculum in the schools. She worked on interior design of the new Terminal A at Newark Liberty Airport. But more than anything, she is a predict. fundraiser, both for her husband and for other Democrats all over the state. Do we know what her chances of success are?

Extremely good, I would say. Especially if she wins the Democratic primary, a Republican hasn't been elected to represent New Jersey in the Senate in 50 years. And I think it's fair to say that she has a huge advantage in the Democratic primary. Yeah, tell us more about that. Well, New Jersey's primary election system allows each county. party organization to endorse candidates. In all but two counties, that means the endorsed candidates are all grouped together on what's called the county line or the party line or just simply the line.

Voters see all the familiar names grouped together. This year, it'll be topped presumably by the president of the United States. And usually people just vote down the line. Now, how do we know she'll get the party endorsements? Isn't it each county party organization that chooses? Yes, but the Murphys have given money to the county party organizations because they're big Democratic fundraisers and donors. The governor is the head of the party and the most powerful person in the state, so that has some sway. The Murphys have built relationships and shown up to events for the past six years, and that really matters. You know, and we've already seen a few party chairs already have begun.

to announce their endorsements for her, including, and this really is astounding, Sean, including Hudson County Menendez's home turf. Oh, yeah. Wow. So, you know, and I spoke with Patrick Marie, a director of the Monmouth University poll, who was also like really an astute political observer. And this is what he had to say about the county chairs lining up their endorsements. And unfortunately, that makes it very difficult for any other candidate to have a shot at this. Okay, record stop here, Nancy. There is another elected official who is running. Andy Kim, a congressman who was elected during that blue wave election in 2018. He's fairly well known among state Democrats and a proven fundraiser. So isn't he someone who can legitimately challenge Murphy? He's a legitimate challenger for sure. And he's already getting the support of progressive activists, many of whom have been fighting the machine endorsement process because it's seen as a real problem in New Jersey. for outsiders and reform candidates to win primaries. It's starting to look like this is going to be

the key opposition to a Tammy Murphy cakewalk is whether Democratic activists can pull enough votes away from her based on their opposition to the party endorsement process. And also, there are complaints that her candidacy is training on an incumbent accused of corruption, that they're trading, you know, corruption for nepotism. So that, line is getting a lot of attention. So far, the activists, many of whom were involved in the Blue Wave election of 2018, have signed a letter opposing Tammy's candidacy. But there's still a lot of support for her. I was surprised when I spoke this week with Harry Hurley, who's a conservative talk radio host in Atlantic City. He thinks voters value likeability more than policy, and a lot of

people like Tammy more than Phil. This is what he told me. Governor Murphy is an incredible incredibly good man and likable man, and he's going to be an absolute force in terms of – I'm not saying the proxy he's on the ballot, but it'll be absolutely a power couple on steroids times infinity. Powerful words, a power couple on steroids times infinity? Sounds kind of unstoppable? Maybe. You know, I should say, though, that the two things can be true at the same time. The system can be unfurable. fair and can tilt the scales in favor of the connected and the rich. And Tammy Murphy is a smart, capable woman who will appeal to a lot of New Jersey voters. You know, so, but I will say one thing, Menendez has come out of the gate swinging and activists are really mad.

And the last time that happened, three longtime Republican congressmen went down. So this really could shape up to be one of the most exciting primary fights that we've had in quite a long time. Hey, something to look forward to. WNYC's Nancy Talman. Thanks so much. Thanks, Sean. Thanks for listening. This is NYC now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives. And subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

We'll be back this evening.