Phil Murphy becomes governor of New Jersey, plans new direction for state

Phil Murphy was sworn in as the 56th governor of New Jersey on Tuesday, taking control from Chris Christie and pledging to steer the state in a new, liberal direction after eight years under the Republican's leadership.

In a ceremony at the Patriots Theater in the Trenton War Memorial, Murphy, a Democrat, took the oath of office using the Bible from President John F. Kennedy's inauguration, a family relic on loan from the presidential library.

Murphy offered an optimistic vision for New Jersey, frequently mentioning the Kennedy family legacy and reiterating his campaign pledge to create a "stronger and fairer" economy focused on the poor and middle class and to return New Jersey to the vanguard of innovation.

"Seventy days ago you chose to take our state in a new direction. And today, full of optimism and hope for a better future, we begin that journey together," Murphy said.

"It is for all of these good and hopeful people — and the millions more like them — that I take my oath today, an oath to not only uphold our constitution, but to follow through on delivering the promise of a better life and a better future," he said.

The 60-year-old former ambassador and Goldman Sachs executive takes office with a progressive agenda he has said will rival or exceed the liberal social norms and polices set in Democratic strongholds like California and New York.

And New Jersey becomes the eighth state in the country with full Democratic control to help shepherd his policy vision through the State House, including a $15 hourly minimum wage, stricter gun laws and the legalization of recreational marijuana.

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But Murphy does not have a blank check with his legislative colleagues.

The two Democratic leaders, Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Senate President Stephen Sweeney, have suggested that after five failed attempts to pass a so-called millionaire's tax under Christie, an attempt under Murphy should not be rushed now that President Donald Trump has signed sweeping changes to the federal tax code.

And many other Democrats have voiced concerns about the wisdom, and motive, of pursuing marijuana legalization at a time when the state is dealing with a deadly opioid crisis.

Murphy began charting the new course Tuesday afternoon by signing his first executive order, an equal-pay directive prohibiting state agencies from asking job applicants for their wage history. The intent, he said, is to move toward gender pay equity, and he expects lawmakers to send him a broader version he can sign into law.

"Here and now we begin the process of bulldozing the roadblocks that have kept women from being paid fairly, that have kept many women of color from fulfilling their dreams of entering the middle class and that have allowed our wage gap to persist," Murphy said during a news conference in his outer office, which overflowed with union members, supporters and lawmakers.

Murphy campaigned heavily on a promise to create a "stronger and fairer" economy and state. He defined such an economy as one with better jobs and higher wages, and in a state that "funds its public schools and delivers on the promise of property tax relief," makes college more affordable and creates training programs for an "innovation-driven economy."

And he said New Jersey will become a stronger and fairer state that "ensures the wealthiest among us pay their fair share in taxes," embraces criminal justice reform, "accepts the reality of climate change" and welcomes and protects hardworking immigrant families.

"We will be bold, but we will be responsible and realistic. And in doing so we will send a loud and clear message that our days of muddling through from crisis to crisis are over — that we will charge forward with bold ideas and with a recognition that, while we can’t change everything overnight, we also can’t create a stronger tomorrow unless we start making smart investments today," Murphy said.

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Murphy acknowledged that he takes office facing a mountain of challenges, but he did not detail them. They include a growing public employee pension crisis, nation-leading property tax rates and no secure funding in place to help pay for the much-needed Gateway rail tunnel beneath the Hudson River.

And while many Democrats expressed relief in having a new governor whose ideology aligns with their own, Republicans worried about the path ahead.

Doug Steinhardt, the chairman of the state Republican Party, issued a statement saying that he fears his family "will be forced to find opportunities for a better life in another state" if New Jersey becomes much less affordable than it already is. And as the minority party in the Legislature, he said, "our ability to check Phil Murphy's radically liberal agenda from inside the system is on life support."

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"Now more than ever, New Jersey's citizens must be vigilant. They must keep close watch on the Murphy administration, and hold it accountable. New Jersey’s taxpayers cannot afford to be the personal piggy bank for his liberal policies,” Steinhardt said.

Murphy has not only vowed to turn New Jersey to the left from Christie but to do so in a manner opposite that of his predecessor, who built a national reputation on a plainspoken style and "telling it like it is."

Murphy, by contrast, is known as a consensus builder who defaults to a large smile. But Murphy did applaud Christie for his nearly two decades of public service — first as U.S. attorney for New Jersey, then as governor — and praised his work on the state's opioid crisis.

"There is much in your body of work from which to choose, but, in particular, your work to save lives from the epidemic of opioid addiction is a legacy worth applauding and continuing, and I intend to do so," Murphy said.

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But Murphy mostly spent his 35-minute speech promising to change course from Christie. And Murphy promised to be a frequent and vocal opponent to President Donald Trump.

"We must also immediately resist Washington’s all-out assault on New Jersey," Murphy said. "This is not as much a battle between Democrats and Republicans, but a battle between right and wrong — between standing up for the people of New Jersey or standing for failed Washington politics."

Murphy takes office with former Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver as his lieutenant governor. She will be the second to hold that position since it was created in 2005. Oliver was the first African-American female Assembly speaker; now she will be the first African-American lieutenant governor.

Oliver said she recognized the "wondrous irony" of inauguration day coming the day after the Martin Luther King Jr. national holiday.

"It has taken from our independence in 1776 until this moment for New Jersey to have a woman of color serving in a statewide elected office," Oliver said.

Murphy has followed through on a commitment he made during his election night victory speech to assemble a Cabinet that reflects the diversity of the state.

And in his speech he highlighted having named the first Sikh-American attorney general in the nation, the first Muslim-American Cabinet official in state history, the first Latina to lead the Department of Banking and Insurance and the first African-American — and minority — to lead the New Jersey National Guard.

Murphy and Oliver planned to celebrate the inauguration Tuesday with a four-hour ceremony at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.