NJ Gov Candidates Trade Shots Over Gateway Tunnel As Trump Freezes Funding

A red-hot governor race in New Jersey now has another flashpoint for supporters of Mikie Sherrill and Jack Ciattarelli to argue about: the long-awaited Gateway Tunnel.

Last week, the Trump administration announced that it is freezing billions of dollars for a new train tunnel between New Jersey and New York City, linking it to a DEI probe and the ongoing federal government shutdown.

The Gateway Tunnel was greenlighted during the administration of former President Barack Obama. It hit a brick wall when President Donald Trump took office for his first term, but picked up steam again when Joe Biden entered the White House.

Construction on the new tunnel started on both sides of the Hudson River in November 2023 after years of stalled progress. It will serve NJ Transit and Amtrak trains.

The $16 billion cost is being split between the federal government and the project’s three partners: New York, New Jersey, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

>> Read More: Trump Administration Freezes Funds For Gateway Tunnel

Sherrill, a Democrat, and Ciattarelli, the Republican nominee, have each commented on the funding freeze for Gateway.

Sherrill has blasted the White House for “attacking” the Gateway Tunnel, which she has advocated for in the past.

“[Jack Ciattarelli] said there’s not a single issue where he disagrees with Trump, and he promised to never take them to court,” Sherrill wrote. “As governor, I will fight this tooth-and-nail and sue the Trump administration to finish this critical, job-creating infrastructure project to reduce congestion and improve quality of life in New Jersey.”

A spokesperson for the Ciattarelli campaign pushed back, criticizing Sherrill for “opposing a bipartisan plan to continue funding the government to play politics instead.”

“If Mikie Sherrill did her job as a congresswoman we wouldn’t be in this mess,” he recently told Patch.

“Sherrill hasn’t bothered to show up for work in the House more than 90 percent of the time this year – and now she’s opposing a bipartisan plan to continue funding the government to play politics instead,” he continued. “Make no mistake, Mikie Sherrill owns this shutdown and is responsible for any negative impacts on Gateway tunnel project and other New Jersey priorities.”

Here’s what else they’ve said about Gateway so far:

SHERRILL: ‘REFUSING TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE PROBLEM’

On Saturday, Sherrill and other elected officials held a press conference to discuss Gateway outside the Glen Ridge Train Station in Essex County.

According to Sherrill, the project will generate $42.8 billion in economic activity in the region and create nearly 100,000 jobs – which are now threatened by the funding freeze.

“When I first ran for Congress, I ran on getting the Gateway Tunnel Project funded — and we got it done,” Sherrill said. “Now, Trump is trying to turn the clock back on a critical project for New Jersey, rip away tens of thousands of jobs, and steal billions of dollars from our state.”

Sherrill accused Ciattarelli of being “scared of Trump” and “refusing to even acknowledge the problem.”

“If there were ever a time to rise above partisan politics and help, now would be it,” the congresswoman insisted. “Instead, he’s disappeared, refusing to call out this attack on our state and call on Trump to restore the funding.”

“This is the highest-trafficked rail in the entire nation,” Sherrill said during an interview with MSNBC. “This region is responsible for about 20 percent of the nation’s GDP, and this impacts the whole northeast rail system. The attack on it is not just an attack on New Jersey, and it’s not just an attack on New Yorkers, but really an attack on the economy of the United States.”

“Jack likes to boast about his relationship with the White House,” Sherrill said at last weekend’s appearance in Glen Ridge.

“Turns out it’s a one-way relationship: Jack delivering for Trump, never for New Jersey,” she alleged.

CIATTARELLI: ‘WE’LL GET THAT FUNDING’

Ciattarelli has maintained that he is “independent” of White House influence, although he has scored an endorsement from President Trump.

The former state assemblyman commented on the Gateway Tunnel during a governor candidate forum on Friday at Kean University. He noted that the project is managed by the Gateway Commission, which has said that it hopes to keep the tunnel “on scope, schedule and budget.”

“That project is not going to stop any time soon,” Ciattarelli said. “This is part of the government shutdown, in my opinion. I know the president says a lot of different things, but we’ll get that funding.”

When asked if he’d consider suing the Trump administration to get some of the funding back, Ciattarelli replied: “I don’t need to sue the White House to get things done.”

Ciattarelli also commented on the tunnel during an interview with Connecting America at a diner in Roselle Park on Friday.

“The shovels have not stopped moving just because of what’s going on in Washington D.C.,” he said. “We’ve seen shutdowns before. I don’t anticipate this going much longer and it’s a negotiation that’s taking place.”

“No one has talked about this issue to me,” Ciattarelli added. “Everywhere I go around the state of New Jersey, nobody has brought up Trump policies. Nobody’s brought up the shutdown.”

Ciattarelli said that NJ Transit is important to hundreds of thousands of people.

“A whole lot of time has to pass before the tunnel is completed, and I’m pretty confident it ultimately will be completed – as I’m confident this shutdown will come to an end,” he added.

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