LINDEN - Hakeem Jeffries, the top Democrat in the House, dropped into CD-7 Friday evening to give a boost to Rebecca Bennett.

The Minority Leader spoke of the coming Nov. 3 election as "judgement day."

A seasoned politician, Jeffries knew his surroundings. The venue was the Greater Mt. Moriah Baptist Church.

And the larger setting - the city of Linden-  was appropriate as well. Only a part of the city is in CD-7, but of significance to the Bennett campaign, this is a strong Democratic area.

Jeffries is moving around a lot these days. He said he will be in Pennsylvania over the weekend and in New England early next week.

His goal is easy to see. If Dems win control of the House, he would be in line to be Speaker.

Bennett, in fact, said she would support him as Speaker if she wins the seat. That has political significance. Jeffries, at times, has been on the outs with the more left wing members of his caucus.So, his ascension to Speaker is not guaranteed.

Both Jeffries and Bennett condemned the war in Iran, tariffs and how prices for gas and food have risen.

Of course, they didn't need to convince anyone. The 100 or so people assembled in the church pews were certainly supportive. These events are about generating enthusiasm in the community.

The only public poll in this race, which was commissioned by InsiderNJ., gave Bennett a lead of about five points over Tom Kean Jr.

Which is obviously why Team Kean has launched a series of TV attack ads.

One called Bennett a "millionaire," mocking her claim to be an average suburban mom with two kids.

Recently, things have gotten nastier. A new ad calls Bennett a "greedy, liberal millionaire." That, presumably, is worse than just being a normal millionaire.

The irony here is that Rep. Kean is a millionaire many times over. He estimated his net worth as $10 million at a recent debate.

Bennett was asked after Friday's program if she planned to answer Kean's ads. She responded:

"What we are seeing from him is that he is lying about my background, because he has no record to stand on for himself. So, we are going to push back on the lies and misinformation he is putting out."

She also said such ads are what people hate about politics.

"We should be focused on how to actually make people's lives better," she said, adding that, "The people of this district deserve better."

To that end, Bennett said Kean should talk more about his platform.

Jeffries in his remarks to the audience referred to Kean's nearly four month absence from Congress earlier this year, calling it "disrespectful" to the people he serves.

Later, the Minority Leader was asked if he has any relationship with Kean in Congress.

Jeffries does not, saying:

"He's not been an active member of Congress."