First Lady says she doesn’t buy Hugin as a ‘different kind of Republican’

Before she was the Democratic First Lady of New Jersey, Tammy Murphy was a Republican.

Having grown up in Virginia, the first lady spent much of her life in the welcoming arms of the GOP. She kept her party alignment even after she married now-Gov. Phil Murphy in the early 1990;s. She gave thousands of dollars to Republicans, including President George W. Bush and State Sen. Joe Kyrillos, who ran against U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez in 2012.

But, many of her views were different to the party’s then and now, particularly on social issues like abortion. Tammy Murphy is, and was, pro-choice. She was also in favor of gun control laws and environmental protections.

She did eventually flip to join her husband’s party a few years after the turn of the century, but she was, for a considerable amount of time, an independent Republican.

Now, Republicans are fielding a U.S. Senate candidate who says he backs policies similar to many of those supported by the first lady.

Bob Hugin says he’s pro-choice and opposes offshore drilling. He also has said — on the trail and on the airwaves — that he backs equal pay for women and protections for LGBT peoples.

Tammy Murphy doesn’t believe him.

“No, I don’t,” she said when asked if she thought Hugin’s stance on those issues was genuine. “That’s all I have to say to you. I literally don’t buy it.”