Absent confirmation hearings, Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Judicary Committee are publicly weighing the early pros and cons of the two men Gov. Chris Christie nominated to the state Supreme Court, using dribbled out news to assess their fitness.
“It’s politics,” said state Sen. Christopher “Kip” Bateman, (R-16), Branchburg a member of the Senate Judiary Committee, when asked why Committee Chaiman state Sen. Nicholas Scutari, (D-22), Linden, won’t comply with the governor’s call for swift hearings.
“The Democrats are not in a hurry to see the governor leave his mark on the court,” Bateman added. “They are unhappy about the governor’s decision not to renominate Justice (John) Wallace. There are still hard feelings over that, so they’re not going to make it easy.”
Each passing day creates an opportunity for the unraveling of another plot line in the nominations of First Assistant Attorney General Philip Kwon and Chatham Mayor Bruce Harris, Christie’s fear when he called on the Senate to give his nominees timely hearings.
The Star Ledger reported Sunday that a business owned by Kwon’s mother paid $160,000 to settle a civil complaint over more than $2 million that was deposited into a bank account in increments of slightly less than $10,000. A pattern of deposits like that is known as structuring and is often used by criminals to launder money.
No charges were filed in the case, but Democrats say Christie’s nominees look vulnerable.
On the same week the NJ NAACP told reporters the organization won’t endorse Harris – who’s black – state Sen. Ray Lesniak, (D-20), Elizabeth, told PolitickerNJ.com he’s as concerned about Harris as Kwon – maybe even more about Harris.
“Senator Scutari’s statement is the absolute right response,” said Lesniak, referring to the Judiciary chairman’s decision to not have immediate hearings on the governor’s nominees.
“My understanding is that Bruce Harris has never set foot in a courtroom,” the veteran Democratic senator and Judiciary Committee member added. “If that’s the case, he better have one helluva depth of experience.
“I’m also concerned about the circumstances of his recusal on marriage equality,” Lesniak added. “What I’ve said is we have to thoroughly scrutinize these men. We can’t do that in a matter of weeks. We need to evaluate and in the end I hope we can confirm, but it can’t be a rush job.”
Bateman said the longer Harris and Kwon remain out there the greater the chances are they will get scuffed up in the press – which is what the Democrats want.
It’s hard to miss the political context of the Democrats’ decision to stall Kwon and Harris – but that decision comes on the heels of the governor’s own overt political decision to nominate them in the first place, said Monmouth University Political Scientist/Pollster Patrick Murray.
“Everything that’s come out of Trenton in the new year has been dripping with politics,” said Murray. “They were political picks as much as anything. When you consider Harris and the fact that he has neither courtroom nor prosecutorial experience, obviously this governor wanted this to happen quickly. Naturally, the Democrats are going to look at political angles.”
Gay, Harris surfaced at a press conference beside the GOP governor days after Democrats front-end-loaded marriage equality as public issue number one.
The GOP quietly cackled that Harris human-shielded the governor from any upswell of criticism that he might be anti-gay.
But what about Kwon? Why is he political?
“The governor knew him and he felt he had a good working relationship with him, which raises the question about whether that fact wasn’t more important than others,” said Murray. “So the Democrats will start raising those questions.”
For his part, Bateman insisted the governor made good choices in both cases.
“They are both eminently qualified,” said the Somerset senator. “The governor obviously knows Kwon very well. He’s extremely bright and both candidates bring diversity to a court that needs diversity. The criticism that Mr. Harris hasn’t had enough court experience may be a valid statement, but that’s what the vetting process is all about.”
Bateman criticized state Sen. Richard Codey, (D-27), Roseland, for issuing a statement voicing early worries about Harris.
As for Kwon’s mother’s civil complaint, “I’m going to ask him about that,” said Bateman. “In the meantime, I will give him the benefit of the doubt. But I encourage Chairman Scutari to hold hearings as soon as possible. It’s only fair. These people have lives and families. These are big appointments The governor has made his choice, and now it’s our job to give them a chance as soon as possible; we’re back in session, let’s go.”
It won’t happen now.
Scutari is out of the country until next week.
