“Kean, who declined an interview for this story, has not singled out Trump, nor did he sign onto a letter led by his Democratic colleagues in New York and New Jersey calling for a reinstatement of the Gateway funds.”
“One thought is Gateway could hurt Jersey’s Republican House members who are up for re-election this year — especially Rep. Tom Kean Jr. in the purple 7th District. One GOP insider noted the issue hurt gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli in his loss to Sherrill last year.”
“Trump’s Gateway strategy — if anyone can call it that with a straight face — is also putting the screws to the president’s fellow Republicans in New Jersey. Jack Ciattarelli, the Republican candidate for governor last year, had to contort himself to avoid outright criticizing the petty Trump when he first put the brakes on the project last October. Ciattarelli lost his bid for governor by 13 percentage points. U.S. Rep. Thomas H. Kean Jr., who represents the commuter-heavy 7th Congressional District […] refused to lay any blame on Trump.”
“New Jersey GOP Rep. Tom Kean’s district has thousands of commuters who are desperate to see the end of tunnel-related New Jersey transit delays. If the Gateway project is delayed further due to Trump’s ‘unhinged’ behavior—as Democratic Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey described it—it could sink Kean’s already tough odds in November. In January, Kean, who claims to support the tunnel, refused to sign on to a letter from New Jersey’s congressional delegation that urged Trump to release the funds Congress had appropriated for the project.”
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