Phil Murphy
Philip Dunton Murphy (born August 16, 1957)[1][2] is an American politician, diplomat, and financier serving as the 56th governor of New Jersey. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected governor in 2017 and narrowly reelected in 2021. From 2009 to 2013, Murphy served as the U.S. ambassador to Germany under President Barack Obama.
For other people named Phil Murphy, see Phil Murphy (disambiguation).
Phil Murphy
4
Murphy had a 23-year career at Goldman Sachs, where he held several high-level positions and accumulated considerable wealth before retiring in 2006. He is involved in many civic organizations and philanthropic pursuits. He served as finance chairman for the Democratic National Committee in the mid-late 2000s under Howard Dean.[3][4] During his ambassadorial tenure, Murphy dealt with international fallout from the United States diplomatic cables leak.
While planning to run for governor of New Jersey, Murphy and his wife Tammy Murphy launched New Start New Jersey, a progressive organization. He defeated Republican, then-Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno, in the 2017 gubernatorial election with 56% of the vote.[5] In December 2019, Murphy became the chair of the Democratic Governors Association,[6] a position he held for a year.[7] He was reelected in an unexpectedly close race in 2021, defeating Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli with 51.2% of the vote. Murphy is the first Democratic governor of New Jersey to win a second term since Brendan Byrne did so in 1977.[8] In July 2022, Murphy became the first National Governors Association chair from New Jersey.
Finance career at Goldman Sachs (1982–2003)
Murphy began his career in finance with a summer associate internship at Goldman Sachs in 1982.[15][22] He was hired after graduating in 1983.[23] He rose in the ranks quickly, later attributing that success to his ability to make deals: "Two people may not like each other and can't work together. Their mutual dislike is their problem. I don't let it become mine. I'll be the man in the middle and the three of us can work out something everybody is happy with."[11]
From 1993 to 1997, Murphy headed the firm's Frankfurt office.[16][17] His business responsibilities were later expanded to encompass Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, as well as in the emerging post-Warsaw Pact economies of Central Europe.[20] In this role he engaged in a number of transactions with the German government's Treuhandanstalt agency, whose purpose was to conduct the privatization of formerly state-owned enterprises within the boundaries of no-longer-extant East Germany. Murphy was also active in the Atlantik-Brücke organization, including co-founding its International Advisor Council.[24]
From 1997 to 1999, Murphy served as the President of Goldman Sachs (Asia).[17] In that capacity, he was officed in Hong Kong.[25] During this time Goldman Sachs profited from its investment in Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings, a shoe manufacturer that became notorious for its harsh labor practices.[26] The $55 million investment was made the year before Murphy took the Asia post and it is unclear to what extent Murphy was aware of the firm's operational characteristics.[26] In 1998 Murphy told the Wall Street Journal that "We [at Goldman Sachs] are elite in the sense the Marine Corps is elite".[23]
In 1999, Murphy secured a spot on the firm's management committee.[15] There his colleagues included Hank Paulson and Gary Cohn, both of whom later served at highest levels of the federal government.[23] This coincided with the repeal of Glass–Steagall; the repeal allowed Murphy and his colleagues to make much greater use of leverage and profoundly changed how the company generated profits.[23]
In 2001, Murphy became global co-head of the firm's Investment Management Division.[15][27][23] This unit oversaw the investments of foundations, pensions, hedge funds, and wealthy personages, and by 2003 had amassed $373 billion in holdings.[23] Hedge funds, in particular, received large lines of credit from Murphy's unit.[23] Another company initiative that Murphy helped to undertake was the unit that did major business in the emerging markets within the EMEA region.[25]
In 2003, Murphy's day-to-day responsibilities at the firm ended, and he became a Senior Director of the firm.[23] He retired in 2006.[16][28] Murphy spent 23 years at Goldman Sachs in all.[16]
Early government and political career
Chair of the New Jersey Benefits Task Force
In May 2005,[29] Governor Richard Codey named Murphy to chair the New Jersey Benefits Task Force on public sector employee benefits in response to the New Jersey pension crisis, a particularly long-running instance of the state-level pensions crises taking place nationwide.[2][16][23]
The task force reported its findings in December 2005.[30] By this time Murphy was already considered to be retired from Goldman Sachs.[28] The report decried past state practices, saying that "gimmicks" had been constructed instead of genuine solutions.[28]
As chair, Murphy recommended the sale of publicly owned assets. For the most part that did not happen, but some of his other suggestions, such as raising the age of retirement and recalculating how pensions related to salary earned, were taken.[19] Labor unions opposed the recommendations, with leader Carla Katz saying, "We will fight vigorously and loudly against any cuts to our pensions or health benefits proposed by the task force."[23] The New York Times wrote that "no matter what happens, the report's legacy may well be that it tried to tackle the issues head-on."[28]
Post-ambassadorship
Murphy was mentioned as a potential candidate in the 2013 New Jersey gubernatorial election, but did not run.[16][44] Instead, upon returning to the U.S. after his ambassadorship, he rejoined Murphy Endeavors LLC (a business management consultancy firm with offices in Red Bank, New Jersey, at which he was the principal).[42] He started the firm in 2009 after leaving the DNC position, but it was soon put on hold due to his ambassadorial nomination.[22] He also gave speeches about his experiences in Germany, especially in connection with the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.[42]
In 2014, Murphy created New Start New Jersey, a nonprofit progressive policy think tank that held a number of events around New Jersey.[45] His wife was co-founder, chair, and secretary.[46] The organization said it would neither endorse nor fund political candidates, as it was barred from doing so,[10][47] but it raised Murphy's political visibility. Its events included an appearance by singer Jon Bon Jovi.[47] One of its goals was to help displaced workers back into the work force.[15] (Making reference to visibility, in 2016 hacked Podesta emails revealed that Murphy was already seriously considering running for governor when the organization was founded, telling Podesta that his ambitions were "very serious but not yet committed" and that the new entity would improve his name recognition.[48])
After Murphy announced his candidacy for governor, New Start New Jersey continued, albeit without Murphy on its board.[49]
In September 2015, Murphy launched the progressive organization New Way for New Jersey, which held a number of town halls, including some by telephone on Sunday evenings, and encouraged Democrats to sign petitions critical of incumbent Governor Chris Christie.[50] Unlike New Start New Jersey, New Way for New Jersey was an explicitly political organization.[49]
On March 2, 2016, New Way for New Jersey launched a petition that criticized Christie for neglecting his duties as governor due to his travel and support of Donald Trump's presidential campaign. The group implored Christie to "do your job or quit".[51]
After Murphy announced his candidacy for governor, New Way for New Jersey folded.[49]
In May 2016 Murphy announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination in the 2017 New Jersey gubernatorial election.[49][52] He became the race's first announced candidate.[49][52] He said of his rationale, "I am running for governor because New Jersey desperately needs adult leadership that puts our people first."[53]
Announcing so early was unusual.[49] Comparisons with unpopular former governor Jon Corzine, another wealthy former Goldman Sachs executive, were a challenge Murphy had to meet.[16][54][49][55] Murphy also began the campaign with little name recognition.[54] He initially planned to lend $10 million to the campaign but to also aggressively fund-raise.[52] He said he would accept no so-called dark money and that "I'm holding our campaign to a higher standard."[56]
Murphy was the first declared Democratic candidate for governor, although several other candidates were expected to run. Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, Assemblyman John Wisniewski of Sayreville, State Senator Raymond Lesniak, and State Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney of Gloucester County were often mentioned in news media along with other candidates.[57][58][59] Fulop and Sweeney were geographic rivals, and in terms of state party organizational support, Max Pizarro of the New York Observer characterized Murphy as "everyone's number two choice. If Fulop or Sweeney stumbles, Murphy could rocket from zero to 100 overnight."[59]
On September 28, 2016, Fulop announced he would not run for governor and endorsed Murphy.[58] On October 6, Sweeney announced he too would not run, citing apparent party support for Murphy, whom he endorsed.[60] The move came as Murphy was corralling dozens of endorsements, including all of those from North Jersey county party committees and the most populous Central Jersey county committees.[61]
As a result of these withdrawals Murphy became the clear front-runner for the nomination,[60] but Wisniewski and Lesniak, the two best-known remaining potential candidates, both said they still intended to run.[62]
After the unexpected result of the 2016 United States presidential election, Murphy noted that the fortunes of the state Democratic Party had improved in the election, saying, "As with so many, I am disappointed by the [presidential] results from Tuesday. But I refuse to be discouraged. And I won't be dissuaded from working to make New Jersey a fairer, more just place for all of us."[63] Murphy subsequently drew criticism from the New Jersey Lieutenant Governor and Republican candidate for governor, Kim Guadagno, for seeming to draw a comparison between the Trump campaign and the early years of the Nazi rise to power in Germany.[64][65]
On November 15, Wisniewski, who gained visibility as a leader of the Fort Lee lane closure scandal investigations, announced his run for governor.[66] In his message he implicitly criticized Murphy, saying "I'm not a Wall Street executive. I haven't made hundreds of millions of dollars by outsourcing jobs. I've learned the value of public service..."[67]
In January 2017 Murphy was endorsed by New Jersey's two U.S. senators, Bob Menendez and Cory Booker.[68] He also had the endorsements of all 21 county party organizations.[69] In statewide races, these designations offer favorable ballot position, which some voters pick by default, and are often central to success.[69][70]
By February 2017 Murphy was leading by a solid margin in a Quinnipiac Poll both for the Democratic nomination and in a putative general election matchup against Guadagno.[71] Another poll was less certain, showing most voters undecided.[72]
Two debates with his main Democratic rivals, including former U.S. Treasury official Jim Johnson along with Wiesiewski and Lesniak, were held within a short span of time in May; during the second Murphy found himself under sustained attack by his rivals, but defended himself by staking out very progressive positions.[73] Politico wrote, "Underdogs Jim Johnson, Ray Lesniak and John Wisniewski savaged the front-runner, Phil Murphy, accusing him during the 90-minute televised contest of buying off party bosses and being disingenuous on environmental issues."[74] Subsequent campaigning by those three continued to emphasize that Murphy was "buying" the election.[75] Nonetheless, polls continued to show Murphy with a sizable lead over all rivals.[76][77]
With $19 million raised, of which $15 million was his own money, Murphy continued to spend the most of all the candidates; his spending was more than twice that of all the other Democratic and Republican candidates for governor combined.[74] He also donated $1.5 million to the various county party organizations as well as to some candidates for local offices.[69] Murphy captured the endorsement of the first major national figure to inject himself into the race, former Vice President Joe Biden.[78] Additionally, he was endorsed by former Vice President Al Gore, which helped solidify Murphy's environmentalist credentials after some attacks on his role as a financier investing in fracking operations.[79] He also had the fundraising support of wealthy entertainment figures Jon Bon Jovi and Whoopi Goldberg.[80] Most, though not all, of the key labor unions in the state, also supported Murphy.[69] Nevertheless, there was still a sense of apathy about the election on the part of the state's voters; as the New York Times stated shortly before the primary vote, "a majority of voters still say they 'don't know' who to vote for and are not doing much to find out."[70]
Murphy won the June 6 primary decisively, with 48% of the vote. Johnson and Wisniewski finished second and third with 22% apiece, Lesniak got 5%, and scattered others less.[81][82]
Murphy faced Guadagno, the Republican nominee, in the November general election.[82] In that campaign Guadagno ran as a moderate, attempting to avoid association with both Christie, who held a record-low approval rating for a governor, and Donald Trump.[83] Instead she sought to focus on Murphy's Goldman Sachs background.[83]
On July 26, Murphy announced Assemblywoman and Speaker Emerita Sheila Oliver as his running mate.[84]
Murphy won the general election with approximately 56% of the vote, an overall percentage similar to the previous winning non-incumbent Democrat, Jim McGreevey, for said office (2001; 56.4%), almost completely wiping out the unusually large gains made by his predecessor, Chris Christie, in 2013 (60.3% of the vote - only the normally Democratic counties of Essex and Hudson voted for Christie's opponent, Barbara Buono; by contrast, Murphy won normally Democratic municipalities by margins more similar to Jon Corzine's in 2005, and pull roughly 50/50 Somerset County into the Democratic column for the first time since 1989.
Murphy campaigned on the following policy proposals:
In 2015, Murphy received an honorary degree from Hamilton College.[137] In 2019, he received an honorary degree from Rutgers University.[138]