Movement conservative state Senator Michael Doherty (R-23) on Tuesday participated in a Zoom interview with InsiderNJ editor Max Pizarro, wherein the former Trump State Campaign Director assessed the Trump presidency, explained his lone opposition vote to the New Jersey Economic Recovery Act of 2020, expressed his opposition to continuing VBM elections, and considered the dueling GOP gubernatorial candidacies of Doug Steinhardt and Jack Ciattarelli.

“At some point we may have to accept that we may be inaugurating [President-elect Joe] Biden on Jan. 20th, but are we a nation of laws or you do whatever the heck you want,” Doherty said.

The senator lamented what he cited as a less than focused team around the president he strongly backed in 2016. “I don’t think he realized how deep the swamp was,” Doherty said of Trump. “He turned over hiring to the RNC and the swamp in many instances – not all, but many. …Ronald Reagan realized how important it was to staff the administration with people who support your policies. …Trump needed to do a better job there.”

In the interview, Doherty, a Trenton veteran of nearly two decades expressed his dismay over the condition of New Jersey politics generally, domination by the Democratic Party establishment and what he cited as a critical missed reform opportunity by former Republican Governor Chris Christie.