An influential figure in New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's administration is accusing current New Jersey first lady Tammy Murphy of being unfit to serve as a senator after she failed to respond to another woman's sexual allegations responded to attacks.
Katie Brennan, executive director of New York City Storm Recovery/Resilience, Homes and Communities, says she reported being raped by an aide to Tammy's husband, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy.
Brennan had served in Murphy's administration as director of the State Housing and Mortgage Agency.
She seems completely dissatisfied with Murphy's reaction, or lack thereof.
“Tammy Murphy should not be a sitting senator for New Jersey,” Brennan told the New York Post. “I thought she was compassionate. She was not. She had the opportunity to take on a leadership role. She failed to take the lead. She didn't answer me.'
Katie Brennan says Tammy Murphy (pictured), the first lady of New Jersey, is unfit for a Senate seat after she failed to comment on sexual assault allegations in 2018
Katie Brennan claimed she reported being sexually abused by an associate of Tammy's husband, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy
Last month, Tammy Murphy ran for impeached Bob Menendez's U.S. Senate seat. Menendez has not announced plans to run for re-election following the allegations.
Tammy Murphy and Democratic Rep. Andy Kim have both announced plans to fight for the seat.
Tammy Murphy is known as the state's first lady and prolific fundraiser.
At the time of the alleged crime, Brennan had been volunteering for Phil Murphy's gubernatorial campaign and serving in his administration.
She claims that Tammy Murphy had several opportunities to respond to the allegations but failed to do so.
In 2020, Brennan agreed to a $1 million settlement with the state and Phil Murphy's campaign over their mishandling of her rape allegations against campaign staffer Albert Alvarez.
Criminal charges were never filed against Alvarez, but he was removed from his position in the Murphy administration.
Brennan expressed dissatisfaction with Tammy Murphy's response, or lack thereof, despite reaching a $1 million settlement with New Jersey and Gov. Phil Murphy's campaign
New Jersey lawmakers later conducted an independent review that concluded Murphy's team mishandled Brennan's allegation.
Brennan is now accusing Tammy Murphy of bringing people who “abandoned her” into the Senate race and claiming she has proven herself unfit for office.
“I don’t think it’s proven effective. “I know a lot of things that would disqualify her,” Brennan said.
Brennan emphasized that her criticism of Tammy Murphy is purely personal and has nothing to do with state politics, such as the current dispute between Governor Hochul and Murphy over a proposed $15 congestion fee for New York City.
Murphy has sued to block the toll, claiming it is unfair to New Jersey drivers.
Hochul believes the toll will help provide another source of revenue for the state while reducing rush hour traffic.
Brennan shared a 2018 email that she claims was sent to both Phil and Tammy Murphy in 2018 in which she wanted to discuss a sensitive matter related to the campaign.
Brennan claimed she was raped by campaign staffer Albert Alvarez. Criminal charges were never filed against Alvarez, but he was removed from his position in the Murphy administration
“I would like to introduce myself again. “As background, I have had the pleasure of volunteering for the campaign, serving on the Economic Working Group, chairing the Housing Transition Committee, and currently have the honor of serving as Chief of Staff at the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency,” Brennan wrote at the time.
“It is with hesitation that I come to you today to discuss something that happened during the election campaign. “If possible, I would like to meet with you in person on this sensitive matter,” she added.
Phil Murphy responded that he was familiar with the issue and assured her that his office was looking into the issue.
“We know you well. We add our respective teams to plan something. Stay tuned. We are in. If we are not quick enough, please do not hesitate to contact Tammy or me directly. “Thank you so much,” Murphy wrote, signing “Phil and Tammy M.”
Tammy was a key figure in her husband's administration, working on issues such as clean energy initiatives.
Tammy Murphy (left), pictured with her husband Phil, the governor, announced her candidacy after incumbent Sen. Robert Menendez and his wife Nadine were indicted on federal bribery charges
Tammy Murphy has defended her commitment to preventing a repeat of such situations in campaigns and the workplace.
She recognized Brennan's courage in speaking out and outlined systemic changes, including harassment, inclusion, diversity training and the creation of a handbook to ensure a positive and inclusive workplace.
“I believe in sexual assault survivors and I believe in Katie. As Phil and I have said, we are deeply sorry that this experience happened to her. As a victim of sexual assault myself, I believe Katie was extremely brave in speaking out,” said Tammy Murphy.
“With this in mind, we have vowed that a situation like this will never happen again in our campaigns or workplace. We made systemic changes in Phil's re-election campaign and have done the same in this campaign. These systemic changes include harassment, inclusion and diversity training, as well as a handbook to ensure employees understand what is expected of them to have a positive and inclusive workplace,” she added.
Tammy was a key figure in her husband's administration, working on issues such as clean energy initiatives.
Despite the personal nature of Brennan's attack, she announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate after incumbent Senator Robert Menendez was indicted on federal bribery charges.
Brennan is supporting Democratic Rep. Andy Kim for the Senate seat, while Republican Mendham County Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner is also running.