Brian Lair on WNYC, we continue now with our debate recaps, this one from across the Hudson, from where the other one was, among the three Democrats running in the June 4th primary.

So that's coming right up in the New Jersey U.S. Senate race.

In case you've forgotten the incumbent, Robert Menendez, is not in the primary.

His focus is on his federal corruption trial where jury selection got started yesterday.

This debate aired last night here on WNYC and was moderated by our own

morning edition host and usual newscaster on this program, Michael Hill, and he joins us now to run

through some of the highlights and low lights of the evening, along with Mike Hayes, the WNYC and

Gothamist reporter covering equity and access to opportunity in New Jersey.

So hello, Michael and Mike, and thank goodness you each use different versions of your first name.

Hi, Brian.

Hey, Brian.

So I will admit that I did not watch or listen to this debate last night because I was doing that other

debate from across the river, but I am told, Michael, that you did a wonderful job and that the

crowd actually seemed to listen to you and you reminded them about no applauding individual

answers. They certainly did. We had a really respectful crowd, I thought, and I think it was some of the language that we

used, even pre-debate, kind of laid down the law in terms of applause.

So that we could really, and we said simply so that we could hear what the candidates have

to say without interruption.

I thought that was the best approach

to it rather than, you know, using the hammer to say, don't do this, don't do that, and just kind of a

carrot approach to it. So Mike Hayes, give us a quick idea of who the three candidates are, because I'm

sure we have listeners who are saying to themselves, wait, three candidates in the U.S. Senate

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