Booker rival who ‘shoots from the hip’ hopes viral debate moment can break GOP’s Senate drought

Republican Senate candidate Justin Murphy hopes his blunt, unscripted debate exchange with New Jersey Senator Cory Booker will draw attention to his campaign and help end the state’s long Republican Senate drought. Murphy said his response that Donald Trump should forcefully “finish” the Iran conflict reflected his genuine view, rather than a planned attempt to go viral.

Murphy, a Navy veteran and former deputy mayor, is challenging Booker, who has served in the Senate for 13 years. New Jersey last elected a Republican senator in 1972. Murphy argued that voters want a new generation of representation and said the conflict strengthens the case for long-term national and energy security; he cited local petrol prices of $4.20 a gallon and called for more domestic production and refining capacity.