New Jersey‘s Democratic Governor Phil Murphy was received to a loud chorus of boos Saturday at a concert in his home state after where he was invited on stage by the band.
Murphy, 65, is term limited out of office in 2025 and has reportedly contacted donors about becoming a possible successor to President Joe Biden should he not run in 2024.
On stage in Monmouth Saturday night, the governor was invited on stage by Brian Kirk and The Jirks, a local band, at the Red Rock Tap & Grill in Red Bank, just two miles from his waterfront mansion.
Video showed Murphy getting raucous boos from the crowd despite getting a kind welcome from the band.
The singer eventually attempted to quiet those in attendance and call for civility.
New Jersey’s Democratic Governor Phil Murphy was received to a loud chorus of boos Saturday at a concert in his home state after where he was invited on stage by the band
‘Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, what did I tell you guys?’ Kirk said, wagging his finger at his fans.
‘Listen to me. Listen to me, he didn’t want to hear that. He’s a buddy of mine. This is not about politics. He’s a friend of mine. Don’t do that. Out of respect for my friend, don’t do that,’ Kirk continued.
Murphy has not responded to requests for comment on the matter, having last posted a photo with his wife Sunday afternoon on a run at the Jersey shore.
While Murphy was ostensibly on home turf, the area and Monmouth County as a whole is hostile territory for Democrats even in blue New Jersey.
The governor lost the county, which features huge swaths of the Jersey shore, by 18 points in his tight race against Republican Jack Ciattarelli in 2021.
The county is largely run by Republicans at the local and state levels, with Murphy losing by 12 points in his first run for governor in 2017 despite winning the state by 14.
Murphy is often derided by people from the shore areas of the state and conservatives in general over New Jersey’s lockdown policies during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In response to rising cases Murphy mandated masks for schools, which drew sharp criticisms from some.
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‘Listen to me. Listen to me, he didn’t want to hear that. He’s a buddy of mine. This is not about politics. He’s a friend of mine. Don’t do that. Out of respect for my friend, don’t do that,’ Kirk said
While Murphy was ostensibly on home turf, the area and Monmouth County as a whole is hostile territory for Democrats even in blue New Jersey
Murphy called anti-vaxxers heckling him during a speech about COVID-19 tenant relief on Wednesday the ‘ultimate knuckleheads’ in a 2021 speech.
‘Please get vaccinated, period. These folks back there have lost their mi–you’ve lost your minds!’ Murphy said near the beginning of his speech.
‘You are the ultimate knuckleheads and because of what you are saying and standing for, people are losing their life. People are losing their life, and you have to know that. Look in the mirror. Look in the mirror!’
Murphy, 65, a multimillionaire financier who spent 23 years at Goldman Sachs, was elected in 2017.
He was Barack Obama’s ambassador to Germany before becoming governor.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy called anti-vaxxers heckling him during a speech about COVID-19 tenant relief on Wednesday the ‘ultimate knuckleheads’
Asked in January, Murphy told NJ.com: ‘I’m not running. I’m not running. Jesus, lord, help me.’
When asked specifically if he would jump into the Democratic primary if Biden doesn’t, Murphy was less adamant.
‘Listen, based on everything I’m hearing, he’s running again,’ the governor said of Biden. ‘So it’s a theoretical question. I’m not being disrespectful to you, but I don’t think it’s gonna happen.’
Murphy is term limited in 2025. His opponent from 2021, Ciattarelli, immediately announced he would run again in an attempt to flip the state red for the first time since Chris Christie won a second term in 2013.
So far, the only Democrat to declare for the election is Steven Fulop, the mayor of Jersey City.
