NYC NOW - October 2, 2023: Evening Roundup

Episode Date: October 2, 2023

New York Governor Kathy Hochul is calling on the federal government to change the way it reimburses states for climate disasters. Plus, federal student loan borrowers will start making payments again this month after a three-year pause. And finally, WNYC’s David Furst talked with New Jersey reporter Nancy Solomon about a potential scramble for U.S. Senator Bob Menendez’s senate seat.

Welcome to NYC now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. I'm Jenae Pierre. After all the flooding in our area, New York Governor Kathy Hokel is calling on the federal government to change the way it reimburses states for climate disasters. Hokel says New York City isn't built to handle the kind of rainfall brought by tropical storm Ophelia and says so-called once-in-a-century storms are becoming. all too common. We got through the worst, but in my position, having issued nine weather-related

emergency declarations in the two years I've been governor, we have to be ready for this to happen again even in another week from now. So that is, that is the new world we're in. Hokel is also criticizing House Republicans for threatening to shut down the federal government, which she says would have slowed federal aid to New York after the storm. Federal student loan borrowers will need to start making payments again this month after a three-year pause due to the pandemic. This comes just over a year since President Biden rolled out his student loan forgiveness program, something the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately rejected.

Here's Senator Chuck Schumer speaking in favor of that plan last year. I've heard from student after student who wakes up at night in a cold sweat. How am I going to pay that $400 that's due this money? Borrowers should log in to studentaid.gov to check who their loan servicer is and find out their payment amounts. You can also search for income-driven repayment plans on the site. Stay close. We'll hop over to New Jersey after the break. Embattled New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez remains defiant under pressure to resign in the wake of the allegations against him. Menendez, who's up for re-election next year, faces federal bribery and corruption charges.

All of this sets up a potential scramble for his Senate seat and the prospect of fellow Democrats running against an indicted sitting senator, who also happens to have huge name recognition in the Garden State. For more, my colleague David First talked with WMYC's New Jersey reporter Nancy Solomon. What do we know about this race so far? First of all, Sederner Menendez has not been found guilty of anything, but these are very serious charges, and his seat is up for re-election next year. And so far, Representative Andy Kim of New Jersey's third congressional district has already said he's going to run in the primary. Can you tell us about him? Yeah, Andy Kim was elected in 2018. during a blue wave midterm. He represents the third congressional district, which covers all of

Burlington County and parts of Monmouth and Mercer, including Trenton. He worked at the Pentagon and was like a civilian military advisor before running for Congress. He's considered progressive. And he made his first splash nationally when in the wee hours of the night after the January 6th riot, he was photographed in a suit and tie picking up trash off the rotunda floor. And that went viral. And that's what he's best known for. What other candidates are you hearing about? I've read that First Lady Tammy Murphy might run. Yeah, her name is definitely being floated. You know, it would be very strange, I think, if Menendez were to resign. And that would mean that Governor Murphy would be the one to appoint his replacement. And if he were to appoint his wife,

I think that would be a little strange. But if she were to run in a primary, I think she'd have a pretty good shot. She's been raising money for what was thought to be a presidential run for her husband. So she would hit the ground running with tons of cash. She's been cutting ribbons and raising money for other candidates for the past five years all over the state. The fact that she's being talked about is a feather in her cap, you know, in terms of the work that she's done. at the governor's side, but it's also a sad statement, I think, about women in New Jersey politics. There's never been a woman elected to the Senate from New Jersey. And given that there may be

only two viable statewide candidates right now, Tammy Murphy and Mikey Sherrill, the congresswoman from the 11th district, to me, that says something about how shallow of a bench there is. And Mikey Sherrill has signaled she's not going to run. Are there any other candidates with the ability to jump quickly into a statewide race? I'd say all eyes are on Josh Gottheimer. He's the Bergen County Congressman, a moderate, a big, big fundraiser who has lots of campaign cash ready to go. He was expected to run for governor in 2025, but the Menendez indictment is really quickly shifting the calculations. And instead of a big fight between Gottheimer, Mikey Cheryl, and Steve Fullip, the mayor of Jersey City who's already declared for governor. I think instead we could see a Mikey

Cheryl Steve Phillips showdown for governor and Godheimer peeling off to vie for the Senate seat. A Gottheimer Andy Kim race would pit a progressive Andy Kim against the moderate. It's also a North versus South race. I think, you know, Kim is not part of the South Jersey machine. And so I think a statewide race for him is going to be a tough road. Well, Governor Phil Murphy, Senator Cory Booker, both say that Bob Menendez should resign. But if he refuses and if he does stay in the race, he is a tough candidate. Let's say he's running against a field of challengers. Even with the serious charges against him, isn't it possible that a plurality of his supporters turn out and he gets reelected or at least wins that primary?

I mean, I agree with the premise of your question. I mean, he has been very powerful, and he did win re-election in 2018 after his last federal indictment for bribery and corruption. But I think the outlook and the calculation right now, I mean, you know, things change. But right now, I'd say it's not looking good for him. And, you know, there was something very different happening in 2018 that's happening now. And that's that there was a Republican governor in New Jersey. and if Menendez had stepped down, Chris Christie would have been able to appoint a Republican to the Senate. So the Democrats fell in behind protecting Menendez, and then I think Democratic voters really held their noses and voted for him in 2018 for the same exact reasons.

People did not want to give Trump another Republican in the Senate at that time. So this is a very different situation coming up and much more serious charges now. I mean, you're talking about an intervention in foreign policy and arms sales for Egypt. This is just a very different situation this time around. Okay, what about Republicans running for the seat? How's that shaping up? New Jersey has been a reliably blue state as far as the Senate is concerned, but this has to be viewed as more of a vulnerable seat now.

And by the way, Republicans have won the governor's mansion as recently as Chris Christie. Yeah, I don't think the Republicans should be counted out by any means. But they face a problem that has nothing to do with the current situation with Menendez. That's the problem they face in every statewide election, which is that it takes a ultra-conservative to get elected in the primary, and that person is very disadvantaged in a statewide election with the general electorate. So this has been going on for a good number of years, and it's only gotten worse because the conservatives have become even more conservative. And that turns off moderate and swing voters

of which, that's the plurality in New Jersey, are the moderate swing voters. With the death of long-serving Senator Diane Feinstein, this is certainly a moment of change for Democrats in the Senate. A lot of people are going to be watching to see how things evolve in New Jersey. Yeah, I think that's true. And, you know, Senator Menendez is a ranking member. He's got a lot of seniority. With seniority comes power. Certainly, that was the case with Feinstein. So, you know, things change slowly in the Senate. And so I think this is a moment where we are going to see a shift in who are the leaders in the party in the Senate and how that plays out. That's WNYC's Nancy Solomon talking with my colleague David First. Thanks for listening to

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