Politics & Government
Failed Supreme Court Nominee Named To Port Authority Post
Gov. Christie's nominee for the state's highest court, Philip Kwon, would have become the state's first Asian-American justice. Instead he will take on the job of deputy general counsel for the Port Authority, report says.
A first assistant state attorney general, whose nomination to the state Supreme Court was narrowly rejected earlier this year by the Senate Judiciary Committee, will become the Port Authority’s new deputy general counsel, replacing former New Jersey Attorney General Paula Dow in the post, NJ.com reported Thursday.
Philip Kwon, 47, will take on the job previously held by Dow, who was hired after her own failed nomination to the state Superior Court, according to the report, which also said she left the position, for which she earned a $215,000 salary, after being appointed as a Burlington County judge.
Kwon would have been New Jersey’s first Asian-American Supreme Court justice, but the Judiciary Committee denied Gov. Chris Christie’s pick for the state’s highest court by a vote of 7-6.
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In April, state Sen. Kevin O’Toole (R-40) and Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan were among politicians and community leaders, including several from Fort Lee, who of New Jersey’s Korean community over the Judiciary Committee’s rejection of Kwon.
Some of those gathered in Hackensack in April expressed “disappointment,” while others said they were “outraged” with the way Kwon was treated at his confirmation hearings.
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O’Toole said Kwon, who was ostensibly rejected in part because of concerns about his family’s finances—though criminal charges were never filed—and the Korean community were “singled out” for political reasons because they haven’t traditionally been involved in the political process, but that that is changing.
After Kwon’s nomination, a grassroots group in his support, gathering thousands of signatures on a petition and presenting it to state Senators. The Korean community remained hopeful until about a week before Kwon’s confirmation hearings, with indications pointing to his being confirmed, members of the group said.
State Assemblyman and chairman of the Transportation, Public Works and Independent Authorities Committee John Wisniewski (D-19) said Christie orchestrated the Port Authority hiring of Kwon as a consolation, NJ.com reported.
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