NJ Rep. Blasts Gov. Phil Murphy for Costa Rica Getaway as Coronavirus Cases Climb in Garden State

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) is facing criticism for taking a tropical holiday vacation in Costa Rica, a country that the State Department is cautioning Americans to “reconsider” traveling to because of coronavirus cases. At the same time, New Jersey has one of the highest case rates per population in the country.

Murphy and his family left for Costa Rica on December 22 and are due back Thursday, while Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver has temporarily assumed governing duties, according to the New Jersey Advance. Murphy’s vacation comes while the State Department pins Costa Rica’s travel advisory at level three, which calls for Americans to reconsider traveling to the locale because of coronavirus.

On December 20, Murphy was asked whether it was an appropriate time to travel as cases climbed.

“We’re going to spend some time together as a family,” the governor said, according to the New Jersey Advance. “Please God, we need that.”

The lame-duck governor, who won his reelection bid in November, serves as the vice-chair of the National Governors Association. During a virtual National Governors Association meeting with President Joe Biden on Monday, Murphy called in from Costa Rica.

Biden asked Murphy, “And Vice-Chair Murphy across the river, all’s well in New Jersey I assume gov?”

“Amen, Mr. President,” Murphy responded, prompting Biden to smirk.

Murphy’s Costa Rica vacation marks the third time he has left his state for a personal getaway in the past five months, according to the New Jersey Advance. In August, the governor and his family traveled abroad to his multimillion-dollar 23-room villa in Italy’s Umbria region, Breitbart News previously reported.

In November, Murphy and his family took a three-day trip to Orlando around Thanksgiving, according to the New Jersey Advance.

Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ), who switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican in December 2020, slammed the governor for taking another vacation in a statement to Fox News:

“Governor Murphy defying orders, even his own, is nothing new,” the congressman said. “He has left the state of New Jersey on personal trips multiple times during the pandemic, yet continuously imposes mask mandates, vaccine mandates, and virtual school is now back on the table.”

“If Governor Murphy can travel out of the country when the State Department urges the American people to stay put, Americans should be afforded the same discretion regarding their personal health choices just like our leaders,” he continued. “It is fitting that President Biden escapes his responsibilities by traveling to a Delaware beach house after saying responses to COVID-19 should be left to the states, and then Governor Murphy runs off to a Costa Rican beach.”

While Murphy has been away, his state has seen one of the highest coronavirus case levels in the country as the omicron variant spreads throughout the United States.

New Jersey has averaged 1,135.3 cases per 100,000 people over the previous seven-day period, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers, reported on December 28. On Wednesday alone, New Jersey announced 20,483 new confirmed cases, per the state’s health department.