RAHWAY - It was about money. It was about church. And, yes, it was about gas prices, the Iran war and health care too - for both the public and one of the candidates.

The first and only CD-7 debate Sunday night between Tom Kean Jr. and Rebecca Bennett began with the congressman throwing a proverbial punch in his opening statement.

He said Bennett no longer attends church because some of the congregants are Republicans.

She ignored the crack.

Kean eventually said it again.
This time, Bennett responded, saying her family are active members of her church community and that to suggest otherwise was "insulting."

This race - as all know - is the most competitive in New Jersey. And it's getting nasty.

In a debate sponsored by the NJ Globe and Rider University, Bennett tried to make the point that Kean was a politician beholden to big money. She accused him of trading millions of dollars worth of stocks while in Congress.

He denied doing so, saying he never traded "individual stocks."

Bennett shot back that his signature was on the relevant form and that's key.

This was a win for Bennett, but she soon had a pretty big slip-up.

TV commercials on Kean's behalf say Bennett is a "millionaire," a clear attempt to puncture the typical suburban mom image she cultivates. For instance, she drives a 2010 Honda.

Asked her net worth, she dodged - saying it was in line with average families in a wealthy district covering at least parts of Hunterdon, Morris, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren counties.

Pressed to give an actual number - was it a million dollars? - she declined.

"She won't be clear with people," Kean said.

For the record, Kean estimated his net worth at $10 million. The Kean family - one of the most iconic in New Jersey - traces its roots to the Livingstons. William Livingston was the state's first governor.

Hard to grasp why Bennett did not give a rough number. Obviously, this is something Team Tom will continue to use.

As to more genuine issues, there was clear disagreement over gas prices and the war.'

"What this war is doing is making us less safe and less secure," Bennett said, also noting the rapid rise in gas prices since last February.

Kean disagreed. He said Iran can not have a nuclear weapon and that he sees the war "getting positive results."

He blamed Joe Biden and the "Green New Deal" for the rise in energy costs, drawing laughs from the audience.

Kean had supporters too. As always, the crowd was not supposed to cheer or boo. And as always, they cheered and booed anyway.

Bennett repeatedly cited Kean's support for the so-called Big Beautiful Bill, saying that (among other things) it cut taxes on the rich and raised health care costs.

Kean, not surprisingly, stressed the positive things the bill did - like raising the SALT, or state and local tax deduction cap, to $40,000. It had been $10,000.

Both points are true. A lot was in the bill. Some good, some bad.

Kean was infamously absent from Congress for about four months earlier this year, eventually saying he was suffering from depression.
He was asked if he had been fully transparent about his illness.

The congressman said yes, adding, "Nobody can plan a medical emergency."

In what likely surprised many observers, Kean's absence was not raised again.

Broadly speaking, Kean positioned himself as the type of experienced leader the district needs, saying Bennett would just vote in line with her party.

Bennett said change is needed and that the public is tired of a congressman who far too often supports Donald Trump.

At one point, Kean made news. He said he does not support a proposed ICE detention center in Roxbury. Before tonight, he had been silent on the matter.

This is a big deal in Roxbury, where the Republican council has joined the state in suing the feds to stop it.

An issue, unfortunately, not raised was Kean's penchant for not interacting with the press and general public. So far in this campaign, reporters were banned from a Kean rally and police were summoned when a reporter tried to cover a Kean event with House Speaker Mike Johnson.

That pattern reportedly continued.

When the debate ended, Kean did not speak to the press. Bennett did.