🔴Booker called Trump’s military action in Iran a ‘colossally stupid decision’
🔴Murphy urged Trump to finish the fight and said the U.S. is in a ‘quagmire’
🔴 The candidates also clashed over the economy and political rhetoric
Democratic incumbent Cory Booker and Republican challenger Justin Murphy clashed over Donald Trump, Iran and the economy in their only scheduled debate at Rider University on Thursday night.
The most heated exchange centered on U.S. military action in Iran. Booker called Trump’s actions “one of the most colossally stupid things the president has ever done” and said there currently appears to be no way out. Murphy disagreed, saying the U.S. is not in a “quagmire” in Iran. If Trump asked for his advice, Murphy said he would tell the president to finish it.
“The IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) in Iran has done nothing but export terror, murder, rape, oppression, and assassination to the region and to the world. And it’s time it stops. Four decades is enough. The Iranian people have suffered enough. And I would say, ‘Mr. President, put your cowboy hat on and get out there and kick some ass and get this done and done right,’” Murphy said.
Booker rejected that approach, calling it “the kind of yahoo cowboy foreign policy that has mired us in Middle East war after Middle East war with false bravado.”
“Leaders say we’re just going to go in there and kick ass,” Booker said. “We need sound people that use military force as a last resort, who know the power of diplomacy.”
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Competing pictures of Trump’s economy
Murphy defended the economy under Trump, pointing to lower gas prices than during the Biden administration and record median household income. He also cited a secure border, falling crime and fentanyl deaths, a manufacturing resurgence, record stock market highs and record-low poverty and child poverty rates as examples of an improving economy under Trump.
Booker countered with a variation of the familiar question about whether voters are better off now than when an incumbent took office.
“Your energy costs are up over 20%. Our gas costs are up well over a dollar. We are seeing in our country right now, all over our state and the rest of our nation, costs skyrocketing,” Booker said. “This is not about left or right anymore. It’s about right or wrong. We need to bring our country back together. There’s too much division. The lines that divide us are nowhere near as strong as the ties that bind us.”
Murphy said he trusts Trump’s judgment but would not be a “rubber stamp” for his Cabinet appointments. Asked whether there was anyone in the current Cabinet he would not have voted to confirm, Murphy acknowledged that he did not know enough about the members to fully answer the question.
Common ground
The candidates did find some common ground, including protecting children from the effects of technology, transparency surrounding the Epstein files and toning down political rhetoric.
Murphy said he was OK with Booker being passionate, but warned that his approach can be divisive.
“We need to change the decorum in the dialogue and tone it down and be more professional, collegial, and courageous. That’s what I would like to see,” Murphy said.
Booker agreed on the need to tone things down but turned the discussion back to Trump, questioning how Murphy could support a president whom Booker accused of “leading with his vile, cruel rhetoric” in social media posts and comments, particularly those targeting women.
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Significant or historical events in New Jersey for October (chronological order)
Here are some of the historical or significant events that impacted New Jersey or happened in the Garden State during the month of October. Some new events have been added for 2026. Is there an event missing? Let us know with an email to dan.alexander@townsquaremedia.com.
Gallery Credit: Dan Alexander
