Ita been one of the big questions hanging over New Jerseys newest Republican congressman as he settles into Washington: What kind of lawmaker will freshman Rep. Tom Kean Jr. be?
One whos fiercely loyal to GOP leaders, no matter the issue, after the party retook control of the U.S. House with a narrow majority? Or one who sometimes bucks the party and crosses the aisle to forge compromise while representing his purple district?
He just signaled his answer.
Kean, R-7th Dist., announced this past week he has joined the Houses Problem Solvers Caucus, a bipartisan group of lawmakers that aims to broker deals on major legislation in Congress. The coalition was founded by another Jersey lawmaker, Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist.
The best solutions are ones where Republicans and Democrats can find common ground and be sustainable, Kean told NJ Advance Media in a phone interview Friday. There are major issues of energy independence, not defaulting on the national debt, creating new innovation, and infrastructure that this Congress needs to address. And Republicans and Democrats should have a seat at the table, assuring all ideas are heard.
Political observers see it as a sign Kean, a former state Senate minority leader and the son of former Gov. Tom Kean, is trying to define himself as a moderate and distance himself from more polarizing members of his party two months after arriving in Congress to represent New Jerseys divided 7th Congressional District.
This follows a bruising campaign that focused partly on whether he embraces President Donald Trump and as he faces a likely tough re-election bid just around the corner that could become even tougher if he veers too right while his party grapples with its identity.
Critics, meanwhile, are leery of his bipartisan pledge. They say it comes after Kean ran a vague, under-the-radar campaign in which he gave relatively few interviews, made few public appearances aside from a debate, and often avoided discussing his views and a voting record that clashes with a wide swath of his district.
Kean won his seat in the House in Novembers midterm elections by defeating Democratic incumbent Tom Malinowski on his second try in a district that President Joe Biden won three years ago but redistricting made more red.
His victory helped Republicans gain control of the House, and GOP lawmakers will now likely feel pressure to vote with the party line because their majority is slim. The could include legislation that will chafe some of Keans constituents back home.
In a time of not only partisan bickering but in-party fighting, theres a rift between the right and moderate branches of the GOP, with Trump still holding influence and right-wing lawmakers such as Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene playing an outsized role.
Carl Golden, the former press secretary for Keans father, said joining the Problem Solvers Caucus is a chance for Kean to establish himself as the centrist he has been all his public life.
Malinowski and the Democrats campaign spent months trying to put a MAGA hat on him, Golden said. This is his way of saying the hat doesnt fit.
Where Kean stands on Trump became an issue in the district, which still leans Democratic yet now includes far more Trump supporters after redistricting. Keans campaign released a mailer quoting an editorial that said: No matter what Trump does, Kean has his back. He was also endorsed by several prominent Trump supporters, including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who stood by Kean as he entered the race and helped him raise money.
Observers say the way Kean depicts himself now is especially important because he is up for re-election in 2024, when Trump could also be on the ballot. National Democrats are already targeting the district, sensing Kean may be more vulnerable in a blue state during presidential election years.
Kean wants to insulate himself a bit and not get dragged into a debate over whether or not he shares Trumps views, Golden said.
Ross Baker, a political science professor at Rutgers University, said it appears Kean is aiming to be an inoffensive Republican and contrast himself to the Houses Freedom Caucus, the right-leaning group that Greene and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz belong to.
Clearly, joining the Problem Solvers Caucus is a little bit of political cover for him, Baker said. The Republican Party is a bad brand right now, particularly in Keans part of New Jersey.
The crazier the Freedom Caucus gets, the more fearful he becomes and he becomes more contaminated by their rants and extreme statements, Baker added. You dont even want to be in the same room as Majorie Taylor Green if youre Tom Kean Jr.
Kean is the third consecutive lawmaker from the district to join the Problem Solvers Caucus, after Malinowski and Republican Leonard Lance. Two other Jersey legislators are also part of the group: Reps. Donald Norcross, D-1st Dist., and Chris Smith, R-4th Dist.
Gottheimer, the groups co-chair, said the caucus helped enact common-sense legislation to help move America forward during the last session of Congress, including on infrastructure, gun safety, and voting.
I look forward to working across the aisle with all Jersey Problem Solvers Reps. Norcross, Kean, and Smith to stand up to China, restore SALT and lower taxes, and help make life more affordable for our families, he said.
Kean said Friday he often took bipartisan stances in the state Legislature and always found a way to be part of the governing coalition.
He noted he recently voted in Congress against including Republican amendments to an anti-inflation bill that would have removed exclusions for disasters and emergencies.
My focus when I was in the Legislature and now when Im in Congress is to always fight for whats in the best interest of the constituents I have been sent down to represent, Kean said. My responsibility is to make sure I fight for affordability, energy independence, to lower the tax burden, create more innovation, make sure the infrastructure works.
Among the bills Kean voted against in his time in the state Senate were ones to legalize medical marijuana, legalize same-sex marriage, ban plastic bags, allow Medicare coverage for family-planning services, and several gun-safety measures. He also voted to require police body cameras and diversity training for police officers, authorize gender changes on birth certificates, and prohibit transgender discrimination in schools.
State Sen. Jon Bramnick, R-Union, who served alongside him in the same district for years in the Legislature, said Kean is practical.
I never saw him to be an extremist, Bramnick added.
But Margaret Illis, co-founder of the advocacy group NJ7 Forward, said she is frustrated by Keans announcement, arguing he never denounced the events of Jan. 6, for example.
During the election, Kean did not respond to a request for comment about the national Republican Party calling the insurrection legitimate political discourse.
Now all of a sudden, hell be bipartisan? asked Illis, a Berkeley Heights resident. That doesnt change the fact he has been silent.
Former state Sen. Ray Lesniak, a Democrat, said hes surprised Kean joined the group because he hasnt taken a stand on many issues. He said he is considering running for Keans seat in next years election because of basically the lackadaisical campaign Kean ran last time.
I want to see how he will be a leader on important issues for New Jersey, Lesniak said. What he does with that will be significant.
John Macchione, a Tewksbury resident and a volunteer for Malinowskis campaign, said he was upset one of Keans first acts in D.C. was to support a Republican-sponsored effort to defund the Internal Revenue Service in response to President Joe Biden wanting to hire new IRS employees. Kean said unleashing new tax collectors on families is just a sneaky form of a tax hike.
Macchione argued the move doesnt align with Kean joining the Problem Solvers Caucus.
Here was a problem somebody put a solution to, Macchione said.
Marci Bandelli, co-founder of the advocacy group Westfield 2020, said she appreciates that Kean followed his predecessors into the Problem Solvers yet she is also skeptical.
Im a social worker, said Bandelli, who lives in Keans hometown of Westfield. I solve problems every day. I like that. But will he? Im not too sure. We dont know what were getting.
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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him at @johnsb01.
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N.J.s new congressman just signaled what kind of Republican he wants to be - NJ.com