“Congratulations to legislators in New Jersey for not passing taxes that would have driven large numbers of high end taxpayers out of the state,” President Donald Trump tweeted. | AP Photo/Susan Walsh Trump praises New Jersey Democrats for ‘not passing taxes’

President Donald Trump on Monday tweeted praise for the decision of Democratic state lawmakers in New Jersey to block Gov. Phil Murphy’s proposed tax hikes on millionaires, adding a new dimension to an ongoing war between the state’s top Democrats.

“Congratulations to legislators in New Jersey for not passing taxes that would have driven large numbers of high end taxpayers out of the state,” Trump tweeted. “Many were planning to leave, & will now be staying. New York & others should start changing their thought process on taxes, fast!”


The comments come a day after Murphy signed a $38.7 billion state budget that funds many of his priorities, but does not include the tax increase he had sought on those earning between $1 million and $5 million annually. State Senate President Steve Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, both fellow Democrats, refused to increase taxes this year, publicly confronting Murphy on one of his top issues.

With the entire 80-member Democrat-controlled Assembly up for reelection this year, the president’s tweet is sure to be used against Democrats in moderate districts. It also gives Murphy fodder in his ongoing feud with Sweeney, who has opposed some key components of the governor’s agenda and rejects the notion that New Jersey residents want to enact progressive policies.

Murphy, his aides and his allies took to Twitter to chastise their fellow Democrats for not backing higher taxes, an issue Murphy has portrayed as “tax fairness.”

“We all know @realDonaldTrump is fighting for millionaires like himself,” Murphy tweeted 50 minutes after Trump. “I'm fighting for New Jersey's middle class and all those working to get there.”

Murphy’s chief of staff, George Helmy, tweeted the “tears of joy” emoji in reaction to the president. And Phil Swibinski, a spokesperson for the pro-Murphy “dark money” group New Direction New Jersey, invoked Murphy’s newest attack on the moderate Democrats who have blocked his agenda.

“[email protected] asking legislators ‘Whose side are you on?’ has never had more meaning than it does right now,” Swibinski tweeted. “When you're a Democrat being congratulated by Donald Trump, you're doing it wrong.”

But Sweeney, in a response to Trump, defended the budget.

".@realdonaldtrump, what you missed is our budget is both fiscally responsible and fair to working people, caring for those most in need – things you have failed to do. Budgets should not serve to punish the poor, the middle class, the rich or anyone." Sweeney tweeted.

In signing the budget on Sunday, just hours before the deadline to do so, Murphy painted his loss on the millionaire’s tax — a proposal that would have raised $536 million this fiscal year — as part of a broader fight for the soul of the Democratic Party in New Jersey.

"While progressive change is taking hold all across our country, Trenton largely remains a holdout," Murphy, joined by labor leaders and other allies, said in prepared remarks delivered at his offices in Trenton. "Have no doubt, change is coming to Trenton, and I invite all those willing to join us. But for those stuck in the failed ways of the past — we're moving forward.”

Ironically, Sweeney — an ally of South Jersey Democratic power broker George Norcross, a member of the president‘s Mar-a-Lago Club — has responded to Murphy’s criticism by comparing the governor to the president.

"This actually reminds me of Donald Trump in some ways," Sweeney said at a press conference Sunday after Murphy signed the budget. “He declares victory if he doesn't get his way. That's a little of what happened today.“