Last year, Phil Murphy’s campaign for governor benefited from a simple truth—he was not Chris Christie, the Republican governor whose approval rating had sunk to historic lows.

But as the Democrat faces yet another scandal involving high-paid and politically connected staff—this time hiring a Democratic operative accused of rape for a $140,000-per-year state post—he’s channeling lessons learned from his Republican predecessor, according to a column by The Record’s Charles Stile.

Murphy is under fire after reports surfaced that Al Alvarez was given a job as chief of staff at the New Jersey Schools Development Authority even after campaign volunteer Katie Brennan alleged he raped her in April 2017.

Murphy’s strategy in the face of the scandal includes echoing Christie’s claim he couldn’t be expected to keep tabs on all hires in the state’s massive workforce, Stiles points out. This even though Brennan reached out to the governor and his wife with no success on June 1. That was four months before Alvarez resigned his post.

And just as Christie hired a law firm to conduct a much-discredited investigation of the Bridgegate lane closures on the George Washington Bridge that were traced back by federal prosecutors to his administration and doomed his presidential ambitions, Murphy has also said he’ll commission an independent investigation into how Alvarez was hired for a top state post despite Brennan informing the Murphy transition team, and the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, of what allegedly happened. The prosecutors office declined to press criminal charges.

Now that the scandal has become public, the state Attorney Generals Office has said the investigation will be reopened and the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office will no longer be involved. County Prosecutor Esther Suarez has said she now realizes that she knows both Alvarez and Brennan.

In his column, Stile noted the governor’s “see-no-evil, hear-no-evil posture,” on Brennan’s allegations.

Murphy claims that after Brennan wrote him, he didn’t meet with his former volunteer on the advice of advisers, Stile writes. Now that the scandal has hit the papers, Murphy says he’s “crushed” that he didn’t respond differently.

It’s widely thought that Murphy has been polishing his progressive credentials with an eye toward an office higher than the governorship. But, as Stile points out, the Alvarez scandal and his response to Brennan’s requests for aid “threatens to peel away the very progressive image that he has worked so assiduously and spent millions to develop.”

Quote of the Day: “She should be questioned. [Brennan] reported immediately and the fact that the prosecutor’s office didn’t do anything and then deflect and say there’s a conflict of interest—it’s dubious at best.” — Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz, on Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez and her office’s decision not to pursue criminal charges against politically connected alleged rapist Al Alverez.

Stile: As Phil Murphy faces hiring scandals, he turns to Chris Christie’s Bridgegate playbook

Democrat Phil Murphy campaigned as the bright, progressive alternative to the scandal-marred administration of his predecessor, Gov. Chris Christie.

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NJ Legislature plans investigation into Murphy’s handling of sexual assault allegations

New Jersey lawmakers say they plan to investigate how Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration responded to allegations that a top staffer sexually assaulted another high-ranking aide while both worked on Murphy’s campaign last year, suggesting that Murphy’s inner circle mishandled the case.

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Murphy in Germany, where staffer sex assault controversy follows him

Within two hours of landing in the city where he once served as U.S. ambassador, Gov. Phil Murphy on Tuesday peppered a small audience here with handshakes, hugs and a welcome speech that included some lines in German.

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Frequent question for Murphy on Day One abroad: Are you running for higher office?

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Moran: On rape scandal, Team Murphy cannot investigate itself

Gov. Phil Murphy concedes, at least, that he and his people terribly mishandled the complaint from Katie Brennan, a young woman who charges that a senior official in the administration who stepped down on Oct. 2 tried to rape her during the campaign. That admission is a start.

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Assemblyman says Verniero firm should lose state work

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Anger in Trenton Over Way Alleged Sexual Assault Was Handled

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In Hudson County, a prosecutor under fire

Three years ago, Esther Suarez was sworn in as Hudson County’s first woman prosecutor in front of a throng of cheering supporters, including one state lawmaker who warned Suarez “does not play.”

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Scandal or Mistake, Murpy Hiring Questions Incredibly Damaging

If Gov. Phil Murphy wants to limit the political fallout from his administration’s handling of warnings from a campaign volunteer that she had been sexually assaulted by a man the administration hired, Murphy should encourage the Legislature’s investigation, political analysts said.

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NJ Transit is in crisis. So why is it paying $250K to an elite public relations firm?

After Superstorm Sandy tore up the coastline, the state hired a public relations company to help get tourists back to the Jersey Shore.

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A New Jersey lawmaker is pushing ahead with a plan to reform how municipal courts operate so that they don’t impose outlandish fines and fees.

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At Burlington County diner, Joe Biden rallies support for Democratic House candidate Andy Kim

Joe Biden surprised customers at the Golden Dawn Diner in Edgewater Park, N.J., on Monday afternoon as he campaigned for Andy Kim, the Democratic nominee for U.S. House in the state’s Third District.

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The law changing how people vote by mail has proven confusing for county clerks, voters — and even the former lieutenant governor.

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Newark still has a shot at winning Amazon headquarters, experts say

The oddsmakers are betting against Newark in the final round of the 20-city contest to win Amazon’s new, second headquarters. But business experts and Newark boosters who have liked the city’s chances since the beginning believe Brick City still has a shot at taking home the Amazon prize.

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New Initiative Would Smooth Road For Plug-in Vehicles

After years of inaction, the state has come up with a comprehensive plan to promote the use of plug-in electric vehicles in New Jersey, a step viewed as critical to dealing with climate change.

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Hugin has now spent $24M of his own money to beat Menendez in N.J. Senate race

This is why Republican Senate candidate Bob Hugin has been able to blanket the airwaves with ads attacking U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, making their race much closer than expected.

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Is NJ’s Senate race too close for comfort? Democrats spending $3 million to help Menendez

The Senate Democrats’ top super PAC said Tuesday that it will spend $3 million on an ad tying Republican Senate candidate Bob Hugin to President Donald Trump, a sign that two-term Sen. Bob Menendez needs help from his party in the campaign’s final three weeks.

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Deadly gang next door: MS-13 brings violence, drugs to your NJ suburb

“Reaper” explained how to kill by shooting or choking a victim. He detailed how deep to dig a hole to dispose of a body.

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How much will the state’s nuclear subsidy cost you?

Your electric bill is about to go up so Public Service Enterprise Group can keep its South Jersey nuclear plants open.

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Judge Russo faces hearing on charges he asked alleged rape victim if she kept legs closed

Ocean County Superior Court Judge John F. Russo, barred from hearing cases since 2017, after being accused of throwing a file at his law clerk, will have his day in court on charges he behaved badly on the bench….

Asbury Park Press Read more

NJ Election: 6th District pits Pallone against perennial candidate Pezzullo

One has been in Congress 30 years, the other is the perennial candidate.

Asbury Park Press Read more

Michael Bloomberg, a newly minted Democrat, in Hackensack stumping for Josh Gottheimer

Arlene Romoff was another face in the crowd at the Stony Hill Inn on Monday night when the Democratic Party’s newest leading light, Michael Bloomberg, delivered a pep talk to Bergen County’s rank-and-file politicos.

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These websites allegedly charged hundreds for free immigration forms

For more than five years, immigrants seeking help submitting citizenship and green card applications paid between $120 and $300 to a company that implied it was affiliated with the federal government, according to a Federal Trade Commission complaint.

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Paterson schools’ new health coverage under fire from employees

Hundreds of employees and family members have run into problems with the Paterson school district’s new self-insurance program for medical benefits, according to the president of the teachers’ union.

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Caruso: Tax reform facts N.J. Democrats won’t talk about

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Editorial: Hold hearings on Murphy’s hiring practices

Gov. Phil Murphy doesn’t know how a former aide could have been hired by his administration after being accused of sexually assaulting a campaign volunteer last year. He has ordered an independent investigation to find out.

Asbury Park Press Read more