The only problem with Kim’s new ad is it’s a huge lie

Kim Guadagno lost the moral high ground.

I’m not saying she necessarily had the moral high ground over Phil Murphy to begin with, but there’s no questioning she’s about 450 rungs below him now.

Did you see, hear, or witness the ad she released hours after her debate with Phil Murphy? It’s shameful. Now, to date, it has yet to appear on TV, but it is, as of this writing, still available on her website and on YouTube.

The beginning of the ad details the case of an illegal immigrant who was out on bail after raping a child. While out on bail, he shot four Newark kids, killing three. Disgusting, obviously. Heinous, to be sure.

At around the eight second mark of the ad, the voiceover intones, “When asked about deporting criminal illegals, Phil Murphy said ...”

And now comes Murphy, speaking at a Rutgers-Eagleton event, saying, “My bias is going to be having their back.”

Well. That’s quite a statement, huh? Murphy saying he’ll have “the back” of illegal immigrants who commit murder.

Only problem: Guadagno took Murphy’s words out of context. Like, really out of context. It would be like Roger Ebert reviewing “Glitter” or something and saying, “If you have the taste of a moron, it was a great movie” and then the movie ad execs running a commercial with Ebert saying “It was a great movie.”

So this is what Murphy actually said at the event. He was asked about what so-called “sanctuary cities” should do when arresting an illegal immigrant. State guidelines say the federal government should be contacted at the point of arrest; many towns don’t do that until the point of conviction.

Murphy’s answer? That he wasn’t sure. But then he continued, discussing immigrants in general: “The field has been so tilted against DREAMers, against newly arrived immigrant brothers and sisters, my bias is going to be having their back.”

Welp, that’s a little bit different than saying he’d “have the back” of child raping murderers, don’tcha think?

Now I will grant you this: The idea of sanctuary cities — and sanctuary states, as Murphy would like New Jersey to be — is problematic, to say the least. It’s hard for me to argue that the feds should be notified of an illegal immigrant at the point of arrest. Makes sense. I see the logic.

And if Guadagno wants to fight that battle, and make it a cornerstone of her platform as we near the end of this not-so-blistering campaign, so be it. It’s probably a good gambit.

But to release an ad that’s an outright lie? Not only is it shameful, but it’s pathetic.

Is Phil Murphy too dangerous for New Jersey, as the ad from Kim Guadagno would have you believe? Maybe, but certainly not for the reason laid out in the ad.