Murphy mum on rank-and-file backing in budget fight

Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday twice declined to give any indication of the support he might have from legislators opposing the budget being pushed by Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and State Senate President Steven Sweeney.

“Opposing or enemies are not words I would use at all. In my discussions with legislators, and not in leadership I assume you mean, my number one job is to make sure they understand with crystal clear precision where I stand,” Murphy said at a press conference Monday. “I’ve not made any calls or sent any messages out basically trying to twist somebody’s arm.”

Murphy’s answer came in response to a question on whether he’d be willing to name his allies in the legislature. He gave a similar answer to a later question on whether he’d disclose the number of commitments he’d received from both legislative chambers.

The non-answer comes as legislative leadership is pushing its version of the contested budget through the legislature, with the goal of a vote before both chambers on Thursday. Murphy announced on Monday that he would veto that budget should it reach his desk, though he demurred on whether he would employ a full veto or a line-item veto.

But such a move a little over a week before the June 30 budget deadline could seat the blame for the shutdown at the first-term governor’s feet. For him, it’d be ideal if the budget failed to reach his desk in the first place.

It’s possible, said Matt Hale, a professor of political science at Seton Hall, that Murphy’s silence here could be an attempt to shield legislative allies while sticking to his policy of moving cautiously.

“Sweeney doesn’t take well to people crossing him, so I would imagine that before anybody does that, they’re going to make sure that the deal is okay,” Hale said, referring to legislators outing their opposition to the legislative leader. “My sense for him to not answer it is that he’s by nature cautious and doesn’t want to overstep until he’s sure.”

Still, there’s another less-rosy explanation to Murphy’s answers.

“That’s one theory. The other he’s full of shit and he’s got nobody,” Hale said.