Justin Murphy, a Navy veteran and former deputy mayor of Tabernacle, New Jersey, is betting that an unscripted debate moment can help Republicans break a 53-year losing streak in the state’s U.S. Senate races.
Murphy, a New Jersey attorney, is challenging Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J. During a recent debate, Murphy drew wide attention when he responded to a question on Iran war strategy by bluntly saying President Donald Trump should “finish it.”
“I don’t have a speechwriter. There’s no teleprompter — I shoot from the hip because I want people to see a very sincere, genuine and authentic Justin Murphy,” Murphy told Fox News Digital. “This came up. And I had no idea it would become as viral or explode as it has on social media. It’s what I felt. I meant what I said. I said what I meant. It wasn’t planned to try to spark the reaction that we got … through social media.”
If elected, Murphy would be the first Republican to represent New Jersey in the Senate since Clifford Case, who last won in 1972 — the year Giants Stadium broke ground, years before the Jets joined the Giants in New Jersey and before NJ Transit existed.
A Generational Argument
Murphy, 60, said he cannot recall a stretch of his life when Iran’s support for terrorism or violence against its own people was not in the news.
“I think we have a president now that is breaking from the past, and he’s no longer kicking the can down the road,” Murphy said. “I think that’s important that our young people know tomorrow that they will not have to worry about what the words ‘Strait of Hormuz’ mean when this is over.”
Murphy also framed his candidacy as a generational choice, noting he was in first grade in Collingdale, Pennsylvania, the last time New Jersey sent a Republican to the Senate.
“We had a good cordial debate with [Cory Booker] but he’s been a senator for 13 years — he’s been [in Washington] longer than Donald Trump,” Murphy said. “I don’t think he gets to blame Donald Trump for anything. He’s part of the branch of government that passes our country’s laws and writes our tax codes and passes our budgets. I’m wondering what he’s willing to take responsibility or blame for.”
“So what I tell people is that we need a new generation of Americans to serve in Washington, a new day in New Jersey politics, and our working and middle class New Jersey desperately need a voice in the U.S. Senate, and my campaign represents all three of those,” he added.
Gas Prices And Energy Policy
Murphy’s district includes parts of the Philadelphia metro area, where he said gas prices stood at $4.20 per gallon as of Wednesday — a figure critics have used against the current administration.
“If they’re upset at gasoline at $4.20 … you were paying over $5 a gallon with Joe Biden with a 9% interest rate, with a 20% cumulative inflation rate, with an open border, rising crime rates, declining wages, and an 8% percent interest rate that is a full point or two higher than it is now,” Murphy said.
He argued that voters worried about prices should instead look toward expanding domestic energy production and refining capacity to reduce reliance on global oil markets.
Murphy also criticized legislation introduced by Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., to dismantle the Department of Homeland Security, calling the proposal “madness and insanity” and not “the tomorrow that Americans want or can build together.”
Election Integrity
Murphy also addressed election security in New Jersey, where hundreds of noncitizens have reportedly been found on voter rolls in recent elections amid pushback from the Sherrill administration against federal scrutiny.
“Election integrity is extremely and critically important, not only to me and my campaign, but to the country. We’re designed as a representative government, a constitutional republic, and we need to know our elections are secure — We know we have contaminated rolls in New Jersey,” Murphy said.
He said he does not want an election system tilted toward Republicans, but one that is “fair, accurate and reflects the will of American voters.” He also described Trenton’s immigration enforcement posture as “utter insanity.”
For Murphy, the viral debate exchange is more than a campaign talking point — it’s a test of whether a blunt, unscripted message on national security can cut through voter anxiety over gas prices and give Republicans their first path to a New Jersey Senate seat in more than half a century.
Booker’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment on the exchange.
