Progressive candidates running for the United States Senate criticized Governor Phil Murphy over his decision to send 85 New Jersey National Guard troops to Washinton, D.C., where President Donald J. Trump earlier this week waved a Bible after law enforcement authorities gas pelleted a peacefully demonstrating crowd outside the White House.

Murphy today said the Garden State guard are on monument watch in the nation’s capital.

Washington Monument and Lincoln and Jefferson memorials.

“It’s not open-ended; it’s a short term deployment and we’ve already initiated conversations about when that ends,” Murphy said.

But they shouldn’t be there at all, according to Larry Hamm, a Democrat running in the July 7th Democratic primary; and Madelyn Hoffman, a Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate.

Both are running against U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ).

“Seeing that the governors of New York and Virginia have refused to send their National Guard troops to Washington, DC I am saddened to see that my state has decided to do so,” said Hamm. “The mayor or Washington DC did not request the troops. I ask the governor to reconsider his decision and bring the National Guard troops back home to New Jersey.”

From a strongly condemnatory Hoffman:

“Many New Jersey residents are appalled at Governor Murphy’s decision to send NJ National Guard troops to Washington, D.C. in response to Donald Trump’s request to do so. While Governor Murphy may think that he sent the troops to D.C. only to protect federal buildings and monuments, once the troops are in D.C., they are out of his control. After a crowd of peaceful protesters in D.C. was dispersed to allow the president and others to walk to a nearby church for a photo op, and after the president issued a call for states to ‘dominate’ the protesters.this is a very dangerous move on the part of Governor Murphy. NJ should not play any part in the president’s strategy of turning the military or the National Guard against civilians, especially when those civilians are exercising their first amendment rights of freedom of speech and the right to peaceably assemble.

“This is not a time to escalate tensions,” she added, “but a time to listen, learn and make important changes to the way justice is carried out in this country.”