N.J. lawmakers vote to override Christie's veto for 1st time
TRENTON, N.J. -- New Jersey lawmakers voted Thursday to override Gov. Chris Christie's veto for the first time since he became chief executive in 2010 -- after more than 50 prior attempts.
The state Senate voted 27-12, with three Republicans joining all the Democrats, on a bill that requires prospective gun-buyers to notify law enforcement if they seek to expunge mental health records. The measure passed unanimously in both houses of the Legislature earlier this year.
The Assembly must still vote on the override for it to take effect. Democratic Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto said in a statement that he will talk to the bill's sponsors before scheduling a vote.
Christie had instead thrown his support behind a bill from Minority Leader Tom Kean Jr. that calls for notifying law enforcement when anyone seeks to expunge a mental health record, not just gun-buyers.
Democratic Senate President Steve Sweeney called that bill a "smokescreen."
"It wasn't political. It was a very simple bill," Sweeney said after the vote. "I just think you had to look yourself in the mirror."
A message seeking comment from Christie's office was not immediately returned.
Anyone with a record of involuntary confinement for mental health treatment is prevented from buying a gun in New Jersey, but people can petition to have those records erased. Lawmakers say the change was requested by court and law enforcement officials to provide judges deciding whether to expunge a record with the latest information on a particular applicant, including any pending charges.
This is the latest fight between Christie, a Republican candidate for president, and the Democrats who set the agenda in the Legislature.
Democrats say the governor's position has more to do with the early balloting states of Iowa and New Hampshire, where gun control is less popular than in New Jersey.
Christie countered recently that it was Sweeney and the Democrats who were playing politics.
"The issue of mental health and its impact on violent, sometimes deadly behavior in our society is too important an issue to play politics with," he said.
Democrats had failed to override Christie's veto more than 50 times because Republicans would not defy him.
They came close during a test vote on the mental health legislation and hoped they could persuade the Republicans who previously supported it.
An override would be a blow for Christie, who has touted his flawless record on vetoes while campaigning.
"My vote today to have prospective gun owners notify police if they are seeking expungement of their mental health record speaks for itself," Sen. Joseph Kyrillos, one of the Republicans to vote for the override, posted on Facebook. "Don't read any politics into it, just the right thing to do as I see it."
Republican Sen. Kip Bateman, a co-sponsor of the bill who abstained from participating in the test vote, said he didn't take pleasure in overriding Christie but urged his colleagues while speaking on the Senate floor to do so.
GOP Sen. Christopher Connors also voted for the override and said the issue was simple, not about Christie's presidential aspirations or Sweeney's possible 2017 gubernatorial ambitions.