North Jersey Values: A Recap Of The NJ-11 Congressional Debate

MORRISTOWN, NJ — It's crunch time in New Jersey's 11th Congressional district, with just 26 days until the November general election. Candidates Jay Webber, a Republican, and Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, faced off in the second of three planned debates this week.

Missed the debates? Need to be brought up to speed on why this race is more important than it has been in the past? Patch has got you covered; here's what you need to know:

A Competitive Race

This is the first time in over two decades that the race for New Jersey's 11th district has been truly competitive. Retiring Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen has held the seat since 1995, and oftentimes faced no serious challengers. Before that, another Republican held the seat since the mid-1980s.

That could change this year, in the race between state Assemblyman Jay Webber (R) and Navy veteran and former federal prosecutor Mikie Sherrill (D). Sherrill currently has a slight polling edge over Webber, although pollsters have called that edge "statistically insignificant." The Cook Political Report, a bi-partisan group that looks at the competitiveness of races, says NJ-11 is a toss-up that leans slightly Democratic. In short, this is anyone's race to win.

This race is being closely watched by the national political scene because it's one of two New Jersey districts with the serious chance of flipping (the other being NJ-02). The Democratic party is hoping to see a lot of these flips nationwide to gain control of the House.

Sherrill and Webber will debate again on Thursday. Here is all of the information on that debate.

Still need to register? You have until Tuesday, Oct. 16. Here's how to register in each county (not sure if your town is in the 11th district? You can find a full list of towns at the bottom of this article):

• Morris County
• Sussex County
• Essex County
• Passaic County

Not sure where to vote? You can find your polling place here.

The Kavanaugh Confirmation

Sherrill and Webber disagreed right off the bat; the first question of the night was about the recent confirmation of Supreme Court Justine Brett Kavanaugh, whose confirmation hearings were embroiled in sexual misconduct allegations.

Webber said he found accuser Dr. Christine Blasey Ford to be sympathetic, but that her claims couldn't be corroborated while many of Kavanaugh's could. He said he would have voted to support Kavanaugh.

Sherrill said she found Ford to be credible, and said the week-long investigation wasn't nearly long enough to get to the bottom of the allegations. She would not have supported Kavanaugh.

Both agreed that the accusations should have been investigated before Kavanaugh's confirmation reached the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Tax Cuts

Many New Jersey lawmakers have rallied against Trump's tax overhaul; sitting NJ-11 Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen voted against the tax bill, which caps state and local tax (SALT) deductions to $10,000.

Sherrill said North Jersey voters got the shortest straw of any state in the nation; she said the average family pays $19,000 in property taxes but can now only deduct $10,000.

Webber, on the other hand, said that the average North Jersey family saw a $6,000 tax cut as a result of the law.

Rising Costs Of Healthcare

Healthcare is a key issue among the few undecided likely voters in the district, Monmouth University polling director Patrick Murray said, and the candidates offered different ideas on how to bring down the costs.

Webber proposed opening up insurance markets across state lines, focusing on preventative measures for chronic illnesses, and tort reform so doctors were less likely to face "jackpot lawsuits." He sharply decried Medicare for all, while saying he wants to retain coverage of preexisting conditions.

Sherrill also rejected Medicare for all, a popular rallying point for particularly liberal Democrats. Instead, she said the Affordable Care Act already tackles some issues, and proposed allowing those 55 and older to buy into Medicare, and allowing Medicare and Medicade to negotiate drug prices with manufacturers.

Student Debt

Student debt has become a major talking point on campaign trails in the past few years. The average New Jersey student graduates with $32,000 in debt, the sixth highest number on the nation.

Sherrill said students should be given more agency in negotiating their interest rates with banks, as can be typical with other types of loans. She also called for smarter spending on education: some people would be better served by two year degrees than by four year degrees, and too often, veterans are targeted by "predatory" for-profit colleges, Sherrill said.

Webber called for keeping tuition prices flat from year to year, and financing college differently. Instead of students taking out loans, he proposed student sell equity in their careers, and pay back banks as a percentage of their income. He also promoted 529 savings accounts, which are dedicated to school tuition payments (previously limited to colleges, they were recently opened to private grade school payments).

Neither support Gov. Phil Murphy's plan to offer free community college to certain New Jersey residents; Sherrill said she'd need to examine the proposal more closely.

Candidates Ask Each Other

Webber and Sherrill were each invited to ask the other one question. Webber asked Sherrill if she would be voting for Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), whose corruption trial recently ended in a hung jury. She said she would, calling him a "fighter for New Jersey" while decrying challenger Bob Hugin, a Republican, as someone who earned money on the backs of cancer patients. She also said Menendez should pay back the money at the center of the scandal.

Sherrill asked Webber about his vote against banning conversion therapy in New Jersey. (Conversion therapy is a discredited practice which seeks to end or change same-sex attraction, typically in young people.) Webber said that he did not believe it was the government's place to get involved in communications between a therapist and their patient. When asked directly by a moderator, he declined to speak out against the practice.

The Gateway Tunnel

One of the most important infrastructure projects facing the country, the Gateway Tunnel connecting New Jersey and Manhattan has struggled to find enough funding. Webber said he'd be able to negotiate with Trump, as members of the same party, to get the job done. Sherrill countered by pointing out that Frelinghuysen, Chair of the House Appropriations Committee and a fellow Republican, couldn't even secure funding. She called for a change of leadership.

Both agreed that the commute can be brutal. Webber said his wife commuted while pregnant, something Sherrill sympathized with as she also made the NJ to NYC commute pregnant.

What are North Jersey values?

Both have accused the other of having values outside of North Jersey— Webber has said Sherrill has "San Fransisco values," while Sherrill has said Webber has "Arkansas values." But what exactly are "North Jersey" values?

Webber said North Jersey values are: fiscal conservatism, enforcing the laws, fair deals for kids here illegally through no fault of their own, rejecting senators like Bob Menendez, and not supporting Nancy Pelosi.

Sherrill described North Jersey values as: growing the economy for everyone, investing in the future, lowering taxes, investing in infrastructure, and growing jobs for the future so North Jersey kids can say in the area.

The Trump Tweet

Webber welcomed the endorsement, saying, "If the leader of the free world wants to get involved with my campaign, I welcome it."

Sherrill said if Trump was excited about New Jersey's 11th district, she hoped he would fund infrastructure, healthcare, and work hard to move things forward.

What They Agreed Upon

Despite spending most of the night disagreeing, there were several points where the candidates generally agreed with each other:

Keeping social security solvent: Neither would raise the retirement age as a tool to keep Social Security solvent.

Carbon taxes: They also both declined to support a carbon tax as a tool for curbing climate change, and said wind power was a tool that should be explored further.

Abolish ICE: A growing rallying cry from the left, neither candidate supports the "Abolish ICE" movement. This has been a particularly contentious argument between the candidates, with Webber doubling down on his claims that Sherrill supports the movement, something Sherrill vehemently denied by referencing a Star Ledger editorial that accused Webber of lying.

China as a threat: When asked which foreign nation posed the greatest threat to America, both mentioned cyberattacks from China. The candidates also mentioned Middle Eastern countries and Russia as other nations to monitor; Webber called out North Korea as well.

Russia: The candidates agreed that good relations are better than bad, but given that Russia has acted like an enemy, it must be treated as such.

Regulating Facebook: Although disinformation across social media platforms like Facebook has become a major problem, neither candidate wants to see the websites regulated by the government. Both called for transparency on the part of the websites.

Watch For Yourself

Read the recap but still want more? You can watch the full debate right here, courtesy of NJTV.

Here are the towns in New Jersey's 11th congressional district:

Morris County: Boonton Town, Boonton Township, Butler, Chatham Borough, Chatham Township, Denville, East Hanover, Florham Park, Hanover, Harding, Jefferson, Kinnelon, Lincoln Park, Madison, Mendham Borough, Mendham Township, Montville, Morris Plains, Morris Township, Morristown Town, Mountain Lakes, Parsippany-Troy Hills, Pequannock, Randolph, Riverdale, Rockaway Borough, Rockaway Township and Victory Gardens

Essex County: Bloomfield (split with 10th), Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Fairfield, Livingston, Montclair (split with 10th), North Caldwell, Nutley, Roseland, Verona, West Caldwell, West Orange (split with 10th)

Passaic County: Bloomingdale, Little Falls, North Haledon, Pompton Lakes, Totowa, Wanaque, Wayne and Woodland Park

Sussex County: Byram, Hopatcong, Ogdensburg, Sparta and Stanhope

Image via YouTube screenshot