Phil Murphy calls for Democrats to return all Weinstein cash

TRENTON » The Democratic candidate in New Jersey’s governor’s race on Tuesday called on Democrats around the country to return any money they’ve received from disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein in the face of attacks from his Republican opponent.

Phil Murphy said he has not received any contributions from Weinstein.

“There is no place in Democratic politics for this type of behavior and attitude towards women,” he said in a statement.

Murphy’s comment comes after Republican opponent Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno called on him to speak out against Weinstein, who has been accused of sexual harassment. The latest avalanche of allegations poured out Tuesday, including onthe-record reports that detailed claims of sexual abuse.

Murphy is a former Obama administration ambassador to Germany and is former finance chair of the Democratic National Committee.

Weinstein and his family have given more than $1.4 million in political donations since 1992, virtually all of it to Democratic lawmakers, candidates and their allies, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. Some of that money went to the DNC while Murphy served as finance chair.

The DNC said last week that it plans to donate the money Weinstein himself donated to the party during the 2016 campaign to groups that work to elect women to office. Other Democratic lawmakers who have received money from him have also announced they’re donating money to charities supporting women.

The Democratic Governors Association, which is funding TV ads to help Murphy in New Jersey, said it hasn’t gotten any donations from Weinstein, according to spokesman Jared Leopold.

Weinstein’s contributions are tiny compared with those who donate tens of millions of dollars during a two-year election cycle, easily leaving him out of the top 100 funders, the center’s figures show. But he’s been a fixture among Democratic supporters and close to party luminaries for decades.