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You are here: Home / Elections 2024 / Good News Open Thread: Andy Kim for Senate!

Good News Open Thread: Andy Kim for Senate!

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Good News Open Thread: Andy Kim for Senate!


Per the Washington Post, “In New Jersey, an insurgent upends a Democratic machine”:
[Gift link]:

… Kim, a third-term congressman from the state’s Philadelphia suburbs, had just thumped Tammy Murphy, the wife of the popular governor, Phil Murphy (D), by nearly 20 percentage points in her home county to collect the endorsement for the Senate nomination.

Kim both secured the Monmouth Democrat’s “line” — a top placement on the June 4 primary ballot — and jolted the state’s Democrats into realizing they had their first real battle for a statewide nomination in nearly 25 years…

Kim, 41, has turned the Senate race into something bigger than just a fight over who should replace the state’s senior senator, Bob Menendez (D), who faces a felony corruption trial later this year and is mulling running as an independent.

Now Kim is trying to fight against the system of these county party chiefs, both through running to defeat their handpicked candidate, Murphy, and by battling in court to try to outlaw the “line” system.

“It’s more of a movement to try to restore power back to the citizen, to the voters, to the people. And that appeals to a wide swath,” Kim said.

This is not one of the standard ideological battles of far-left progressives against mainstream liberals that have dominated the last decade of Democratic politics. Kim, a Rhodes scholar, served in the State Department and on the National Security Council under the Bush and Obama administrations. He jumped into politics in 2018, even though he was a long shot in a GOP district.

He eventually received large establishment backing and eked out a win by 1 percentage point. He has positioned himself more along the lines of other national security experts from that massive Democratic class of 2018, smart technocrats who don’t embrace the rage-against-the-machine ethos of the self-proclaimed “Squad” of far-left liberals…

One scorecard, ranking votes from 2021 when Democrats moved an aggressive agenda, gave Kim an 80 percent liberal rating, tying for seventh most liberal out of the state’s 10 Democrats in the House…

Much more, including details of ‘the line’, at the link.

… What makes this a bigger deal than just another primary in a fairly safe Democratic state is that it managed to bring to the fore an almost comical feature of New Jersey politics — something called “the line,” which allows county party chairs the ability to exercise an absurd power over the design of ballots to assist their chosen candidates. Machines have long half-lives. But it seems questionable whether the line will survive this race, whether it goes down in the current court fight or just can’t withstand the new scrutiny the race has brought to it. If it is done that will deal a pretty debilitating blow to the party machines in New Jersey…

I’m no expert on New Jersey politics. But the real factor here is that Kim was willing to risk everything at just the right moment. My recollection is that he announced his candidacy the day after the original Menendez indictment. (I guess we have to be clear that Menendez was indicted before and beat the rap. I mean, the original indictment this time, before the various superseding indictments.) The key I think is that Kim got in fast before the machine really realized that Menendez was toast. And because they didn’t yet realize that Menendez was done, they hadn’t had a chance yet to get behind and coalesce around a new person. That ended up being Murphy, the wife of the current governor.

This gave Kim a critical window of opportunity that he used almost perfectly.

Kim had enough of a national brand, in part based on the iconic photos of him literally sweeping up the glass and debris of January 6th, that he was able to build momentum and raise money. He also gained mightily from his willingness to say, more or less on day one, fuck this. This crook should not be senator. I’m going to challenge him.

Every other Democrat was still caught off guard and uncertain how to react, not withstanding the fact that Menendez has long been fairly notorious. Rightly or wrongly I think many people at least figured he’d keep his nose clean after he beat his previous high profile federal charges. Oh well.

Too soon to say it’s 100% over. Kim hasn’t been elected senator yet. But it certainly seems like one of those the fates favor the bold kind of moments.

 
New Jersey Democratic voter:

Bonus content / readership capture…

Reader Interactions

51Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    Glad the better candidate will be the nominee, but good on Murphy for dropping out. Too many politicians put their ego first.

  2. 2.

    SiubhanDuinne

    I like and admire Andy Kim tremendously, from all I’ve seen so far. Look forward to supporting his candidacy.

    @Baud: Agree about Murphy. That was a class move.

  5. 5.

    Miss Bianca

    @Baud: I second (or third) this emotion. It was the right thing to do, and it was classy of Kim to acknowledge and respect that.

    Kim seems pretty classy just in general. *And* he’s a Star Wars nerd. I love it.

  6. 6.

    hrprogressive

    If we had a Congress full of people like Andy Kim, and without any like Bob Menendez, this country might actually come close to living up to its aspirations.

    Fuck Menendez, and here’s hoping for Senator Kim ASAFP.

  7. 7.

    lowtechcyclist

    My WAG is that Tammy Murphy was expecting a coronation rather than a real contest, just plain wasn’t ready for the latter, and had the sense to drop out when she realized that’s what she was looking at.

  10. 10.

    Lyrebird

    @Baud: Glad the better candidate will be the nominee, but good on Murphy for dropping out. Too many politicians put their ego first.

    Ditto.  Massive respect for Tammy Murphy here, and massive excitement for the Kim campaign!

  12. 12.

    Lyrebird

    @lowtechcyclist: Who knows?  Maybe she’d been planning to run for years – not like Sen. Menendez’ corruption is some new thing, just him not skating.  Either way, NJ Dems show once again that they’re the anti-trump!

  14. 14.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    Who’s going to run for his house seat? Hopefully,  it will be someone good.

  15. 15.

    NotMax

    @🐾BillinGlendaleCA

    Oh jeez, had forgotten about that.

    Trivia part deux:

    Trenton as a location deemed not up to snuff, so the NJ governor’s mansion is not in the capital city but instead in Princeton.

  17. 17.

    trollhattan

    He’s a good egg, Rep Kim.

    [narrator: technically, Andy Kim is not an egg]

    Millennium Falcon as wedding gift has to be some kind of Peak Nerd. Hope he hid that box well, all these years.

  18. 18.

    Geminid

    @Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony: Kim flipped that seat in 2018, and I think the Democratic legislature shored it up some in the 2021 redistricting round. So a good Democratic candidate ought to be able to hold it.

    The Democratic House Class of 2018 was a very talented one, and it’s no surprise that it’s members are starting to challenge for higher office. Like Andy Kim, Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin is running for Senate, and Abigail Spanberger is favored to be Virginia’s next Governor. New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland was the first to move up when Joe Biden named her Interior Secretary in 2021.

  19. 19.

    rodwell

    New Jersey resident.  I have been donating to Rep Kim, since his first campaign.  I am not in his district, but my representative (Mikie Sherrill) did not need my donations and defeating MacArthur who authored the plan to get rid of Obamacare (ACA) was important.  After the Menendez’s indictment, only Kim had the courage to challenge him.  Only after Menendez weaknesses were apparent did Tammy Murphy entered the race.  Andy Kim represents the best of what we are in New Jersey.  I am glad there will not be a primary fight.  I can donate more the Ballon Juice fundraisers.

  20. 20.

    dmsilev

    Not going to lie, if I saw that Lego kit on a registry for a wedding that I was attending, I’d strongly consider buying it for the couple. Far more interesting than a china set or some honeymoon “experience”.

  22. 22.

    Shalimar

    @Baud: Eh.  Tammy Murphy pretty clearly did put her ego first or she never would have announced she was running.  And then she found out her ego was not going to win, which has to be a blow.  But you’re right, it’s a good thing she isn’t in denial about her chances.

  23. 23.

    Mousebumples

    @Baud: Too many politicians put their ego first.

    Is it less a blow to the ego to bow out now or to risk getting thumped, big time, in the primary?

    Not to say I’m not glad she decided to drop out, but there are so many political lenses in play.

    OT – unconfirmed Rep Gallagher (WI) scuttlebutt. Rumor has it he’s resigning/leaving Congress to try to get away from the MAGA wing, in hopes of reinventing himself politically after the Trump fever breaks. Also, allegedly his wife is Not Pleased with many Right-wing positions after Dobbs. (I remember seeing photos of {city} Right To Life groups with him at the Capitol when Roe was still the law of the land.)

    I still think he runs for an open Senate seat or governorship in the next decade, but we’ll see.

  24. 24.

    NotMax

    Open thread FYI.

    Four years ago, the United States entered the Covid-19 pandemic. Forbes published its 34th annual billionaire survey shortly after with data keyed to March 18, 2020. On that day, the United States had 614 billionaires who owned a combined wealth of $2.947 trillion.

    Four years later, on March 18, 2024, the country has 737 billionaires with a combined wealth of $5.529 trillion, an 87.6 percent increase of $2.58 trillion, according to Institute for Policy Studies calculations of Forbes Real Time Billionaire Data. (Thank you, Forbes !) Source

  25. 25.

    sab

    @dmsilev: Setting a test for that marriage from day one? Says everything about him that he kept his promise. The kids look gleeful about getting on with playing with it or constructing it or whatever you do with Lego projects.

    All the Asian American households I know go sockfeet inside. Legos could be a problem. Have you ever stepped on one those?

    My pitbull, who had a traumatic early life, chews up her milkbones into hard kibble and keeps them around the house for when she is hungry, because she doesn’t trust she always will be fed. We laugh at her but we understand her foible, but it hurts like hell to walk anywhere in socks or barefoot in our house. Those chewed up kibbles have sharp edges. Same for Legos.

  27. 27.

    NotMax

    A bit of a surprise victory for the populist left in Senegal.

    Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the opposition coalition’s populist candidate in Senegal’s presidential election held on Sunday, is set to win after his closest rival conceded.

    Amadou Ba, a 62-year-old former finance minister and immediate past prime minister in Sall’s cabinet who ran as the ruling party coalition’s choice, conceded defeat to Faye on Monday and congratulated him.
    [snip]
    Faye had only 10 days to campaign ahead of the March 24 election. […] he had been jailed by the Sall administration since last April but received the Constitutional Council’s approval to be a contender in the elections. Both men campaigned together after being released from prison. Source

  28. 28.

    Geminid

    @Manyakitty: There may be dual purposes here. Gallagher jumps clear of House Republican trainwreck, and banks money between now and 2028 when he’ll run for Ron Johnson’s Senate seat. Reports were that Gallagher was ready to run for Senate if Johnson hadn’t gone for a third term in 2022.

  29. 29.

    dmsilev

    @sab:

    The kids look gleeful about getting on with playing with it or constructing it or whatever you do with Lego projects.

    For a kit like that, you’re constructing it following the book. Which can be an adventure; it’s probably a couple thousand pieces and would take several hours of work. Just like building a model airplane or whatever from a regular kit, only with Legos rather than purpose-shaped plastic pieces.

    I’ve done a couple kits that size (real-world spacecraft, the Saturn V moon rocket and the Space Shuttle) and they definitely take a while. Good fun for kids and adults though.

  31. 31.

    Mousebumples

    @Manyakitty: I thought he left to take a job with Palantir

    Could be. But I don’t think it’s a direct because X, I’m doing Y.

    I’ve always gotten the impression that Gallagher is a very astute political figure. He’s young, educated (even if I disagree with many of his policy positions, he didn’t vote to impeach Mayorkas), and has options.

    With how gerrymandered his Wisconsin seat is (hopefully that won’t be true for much longer), he could have stayed for a few years longer without too much battle, thanks to incumbency. (though I have faith in Wikler, that feels like a bridge too far)

  32. 32.

    Mousebumples

    @Geminid: Reports were that Gallagher was ready to run for Senate if Johnson hadn’t gone for a third term in 2022.

    Agreed. Not sure that I trust RoJo not to run for another term, though…

  33. 33.

    NotMax

    Then: “What a great idea!
    Now: “What a lousy idea!”
    ;)

    The BBC has “no plans” to use AI again to promote Doctor Who after receiving complaints from viewers.

    The BBC’s marketing teams used the tech “as part of a small trial” to help draft some text for two promotional emails and mobile notifications, according to its complaints website, which was intended to highlight Doctor Who programming on the BBC.
    [snip]
    The BBC didn’t say how many complaints it received but they are likely to be quite few in number.

    The decision to stop promoting via generative AI represents a u-turn from the BBC, who said at the time of announcement that “generative AI offers a great opportunity to speed up making the extra assets to get more experiments live for more content that we are trying to promote.” At the time, the BBC didn’t mention that this would be the only time it uses the technology for Doctor Who promotion. Source

  34. 34.

    Another Scott

    Kim is a good egg, indeed. He should make a fine senator.

    Meanwhile, … TheBaltimoreBanner.com:

    The Maryland Supreme Court on Monday ruled against an apartment company co-owned by former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner in a lawsuit that five former tenants in Baltimore and Baltimore County brought against the business, alleging that it engaged in a scheme that involved charging illegal and excessive late fees.

    In the opinion, Chief Justice Matthew J. Fader wrote for the court that rent means “the fixed, periodic payments a tenant is obligated to pay for use or occupancy of the leased premise” and rejected an argument from Westminster Management LLC that the term “encompasses whatever a written lease says it encompasses.” That’s along with holding that landlords cannot allocate monthly payments to other charges and then claim that tenants are behind on their rent.

    The justices also ruled that landlords cannot charge tenants who are overdue on their rent any penalties except for a late fee that can be up to 5% of the monthly amount. Westminster Management had a practice of assessing “agent fees.”

    “It’s an important victory not just for Westminster’s tenants but for tenants all across the state,” said Andy Freeman, a partner at Brown, Goldstein & Levy in Baltimore, who represents the former tenants and argued the case before the Maryland Supreme Court. “Rent means rent. That’s what most of us think rent means.”

    (Emphasis added.)

    Good, good.

    I hope Biden’s folks and the FTC are watching and paying attention. Junk fees on credit cards are horrible. Junk fees on rent can cost people their homes and their lives.

    Grr…,
    Scott.

  35. 35.

    Geminid

    @Mousebumples: My hope is that Ron Johnson will be sharing a federal prison cell with Bob Menendez in 2028. Maybe George Santos and Sam Bankman-Fried will be in a cell down the hall.

  36. 36.

    JAFD

    Three things I’d say here:  First, Rep. Kim took a big chance announcing for the Senate race when he did.  “Fortune favors the brave”, said my Latin teacher waybackwhen, or as Napoleon said earlier, “How do I select my generals – I pick the lucky ones”.  His future lies ahead …

    Second, ‘machine politics’;  For important jobs like running the government, you want some process to find competent people and get them into the crucial jobs.  In New Jersey, with no statewide media and only three statewide elected offices (two US Senators, and the Governor), how are you going to do this ?

    Third, some of you may be interested in this interview with Newark mayor Ras Baraka

    https://www.politico.com/news/2024/03/25/ras-baraka-new-jersey-trenton-00147376

    I’ve met Mayor Baraka a couple of times, was favorably impressed.  He’s likely to be running against Jersey City mayor Steven Fulop in the gubernatorial primary next year.

    Meself, have found out I’ll be celebrating May Day / Beltaine / Law Day by showing up for jury duty.

    Hope all of you jackals who are feeling under the weather get lots better, very soon !

  37. 37.

    Gvg

    @Shalimar: I don’t know, to me it seemed like the party chose her as a weak token because they really weren’t expecting to have to fill that seat. They assumed Mendez would hold on, and had not recruited anyone to take his place. So when they needed to, they floundered around and talked a spouse into doing it. That means they aren’t reading the electorate well which means it’s a good time for the machine to get challenged.

    I don’t recall details but it seems to me the New Jersey establishment has mad other mistakes this decade about where the electorate is….but maybe I am remembering New York?

  40. 40.

    Manyakitty

    @Mousebumples: I wonder if he’s getting worried about his role in some of the fake elector schemes. He sure seems like he’s up to his eyeballs in it.

  43. 43.

    RevRick

    @NotMax: The slogan was the winner of the local Chamber of Commerce contest in 1910, when Trenton was a manufacturing center, John Roebling and Sons, known for producing the wire rope used building the Brooklyn, George Washington, and Golden Gate suspension bridges. Roebling senior designed the Brooklyn Bridge.

  44. 44.

    RevRick

    @dmsilev: Not going to lie. I would have loved to be the officiant of his wedding if I knew he the Millennium Falcon kit on his registry. His capacity to play is an admirable quality.

  45. 45.

    NotMax

    @RevRick

    Early Roebling bridge not too far from you.

    The two suspension cables are made of wrought iron strands, spun on site under the direction of John Roebling in 1847.

    Each 8 1/2-inch diameter suspension cable carries 2,150 wires bunched into seven strands. Laboratory tests in 1983 concluded that the cable was still “viable;” some of the wires even exceeded Roebling’s original specifications.

    The cable strands are held in place by wrapping wire, which was replaced in 1985, after almost 140 years of use. Roebling’s cast iron “pier saddles” still sit astride the cables as they cross original stone piers. Source

  46. 46.

    JerseyBeard

    I am very upset about this!

    Because he’s my rep and I hate losing him. 😊 Can’t wait for him to be my Senator. I’ll be volunteering for the campaign.

  49. 49.

    Mai Naem mobile

    I really like Andy Kim. I donated to his congressional campaign when he first ran so I get the auto emails from his campaign.  Cannot wait to see him in the Senate. Also it would be nice to see another Asian in the Senate . There have not been enough Asians in the Senate.

  50. 50.

    Chris T.

    @NotMax: [per Forbes]

    Four years later, on March 18, 2024, the country has 737 billionaires with a combined wealth of $5.529 trillion, an 87.6 percent increase of $2.58 trillion, according to Institute for Policy Studies calculations of Forbes Real Time Billionaire Data.

    That’s an average (mean, not median) of about $7.5B per billionaire. Trump’s previous need—$0.5B of that—is not tiny, but certainly affordable to any of them: about 6.7% of their net worth. That’s like if your net worth is $100k, you’d have to spend $6700: noticeable, but not impossible…

  51. 51.

    sab

    @Another Scott: My mom, who died ten years ago next week, used “good egg” as her ultimate compliment. It took my husband seven or eight years to earn the opprobrium.

    ETA And when he got it he acted like he had won a Nobel prize for something. Judgment from good people can be effective for motivating other good people.

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