TRENTON, N.J. – Figuring out who’s funding the pro-Phil Murphy ‘New Direction New Jersey’ organization is difficult to say the least.
According to a new report from NorthJersey.com and the USA Today Network, the Service Employees International Union (32BJ SEIU) kicked in $150,000 back in June 2018.
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That’s on top of a previous Politico report that the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) gave $1 million to the group in April 2019 on top of the $2.5 million it donated in 2018.
Efforts to crack down on the group’s activities have been anything but easy. Recently-enacted legislation – signed by Murphy after a protracted battle with legislative leaders – was designed to force certain disclosures but none of the requirements were made retroactive. Whether the new law survives a court fight remains to be seen. Forces on the Left and the Right, too, cite First Amendment concerns for compelled campaign finance disclosures to groups like New Direction.
“Uncovering these donations can be a sort of scavenger hunt. Take the NJEA donation: The union fully funds a political organization called Garden State Forward, which then donates to New Direction New Jersey. This information is included in federal IRS filings, not New Jersey campaign finance records,” explained The Record‘s Ashley Balcerzak.
The group is using its warchest to spend big money on ads supportive of the Murphy agendaf
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