TRENTON, NJ – A few years ago, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy came under fire for spending tens of thousands of dollars of taxpayer money on attending concerts and events at MetLife Stadium. This week, we found out why and who was going to those concerts with the governor.
At first, nobody could figure out how one man could spend so much of the public’s money on Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen, and soccer matches.
Now, we know who his concert buddies were. Today, the governor shared a photo of himself at a Boss concert at Met-Life with Tim Walz, the Minnesota governor chosen as Kamala Harris’ vice presidential running mate in 2024. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Beto O’rourke were also in attendance.
It was a true night out for some of America’s most notorious champagne socialists, and like good champagne socialists, the public paid the bill.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy had come under scrutiny for using a taxpayer-financed expense account to cover nearly $12,000 in expenses at MetLife Stadium, which included almost $1,000 for a Taylor Swift concert in 2018. This revelation has prompted the governor to request that the Democratic State Committee reimburse the state for these purchases.
The expenses, first reported by Politico, were incurred at various events in 2018 and 2019, including not only the Swift concert but also sporting events and a music festival hosted by a New York City radio station. Records show that these costs, encompassing snacks and beverages, were covered by the governor’s $95,000 annual expense account.
Jennifer Sciortino, a spokesperson for Murphy, explained that the Democratic State Committee was initially expected to cover these costs.
However, when the committee did not settle the bills, the state had to step in. “Once it was clear that there were outstanding bills that had not been paid, the state stepped up to meet this responsibility,” Sciortino said. She noted that the charges occurred during a period of staff transition for the state party and that a different leadership team was in place at the time. The governor’s office is now seeking reimbursement from the committee, in line with their longstanding practice.
Phil Swibinski, the spokesperson for the Democratic Party, stated that the committee’s current leadership was unaware of the invoices that were paid by the state. He assured that party officials are investigating the matter. “The state party regularly pays for the cost of food and beverage service at non-governmental events that the governor hosts, including at MetLife Stadium, and all of those payments are disclosed to ELEC according to state law,” Swibinski added.
