| | | | |  | | By Matt Friedman | | Presented by |  | | | Good Wednesday morning! We all saw the Gaza protesters make their way into a party in Drumthwacket, making Gov. Phil Murphy “white hot mad.” Now, they’ve made their way onto a ballot. An organizing effort spearheaded by members of the Democratic Socialists of America largely escaped public notice as of the filing deadline Monday, when they filed an uncommitted slate of Democratic presidential delegate candidates in most of the state’s 20 delegate districts with the ballot slogan “Justice for Palestine, permanent ceasefire.” That means they’ll be competing with Joe Biden’s slate. It’s highly unlikely that they’ll win any of those seats. This is more like a highly visible protest on most Democratic primary ballots than an actual attempt to change the presidential nominee, one inspired by the Michigan primary results. “This campaign feels like a way for us in New Jersey to be able to really send a clear message that we are not going to continue to vote for people who refuse to represent us, number one, and number two, we are not OK with what's happening like we are horrified that our community members, their families overseas are being murdered,” Fatima Mughal, an organizer and one of the delegate candidates, told POLITICO’s Katherine Dailey. TIPS? FEEDBACK? Email me at mfriedman@politico.com QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Gonna be going in on Monday, put in an application for a firefighter. It will be good to help other people and, hopefully, nobody’s dog gets its head stuck in a wheel again."— Austin Delano, whose dog Daisy was saved from a tire rim by the Franklinville Fire Company. HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Reed Gusciora, Cathleen Lewis, Kara Walker Schafer, Dylan Hawkins WHERE’S MURPHY? — No public schedule for the governor, but the first lady will be at the first board meeting of the New Jersey Maternal and Infant Health Innovation Authority in Trenton at 10 a.m.
| | A message from Alibaba: U.S. companies sold $66 billion worth of goods through Alibaba in one year, supporting American jobs and wages. Phyto-C, a small business based in New Jersey, grew revenue 600% after launching on Alibaba. Now, the company is expanding locally. In New Jersey alone, U.S. sales on Alibaba added $1.3B to the state's GDP while supporting over 10 thousand full-time jobs. Learn more about Alibaba’s impact. | | | |  | WHAT TRENTON MADE | |
INFRASTRUCTURE WEEK— Murphy signs gas tax hike in drama-free trust fund renewal, by POLITICO’s Dustin Racioppi: New Jersey drivers will pay more for gas starting this summer after Gov. Phil Murphy signed a bill Tuesday replenishing the state's Transportation Trust Fund supporting bridge and road work. … Murphy and fellow Democrats neatly hashed out a deal to raise the gas tax by 10 cents a gallon over the next five years — or about 2 cents a year — to support about $2 billion in annual transportation work. However, the amount of the tax is based on how much gas is being sold, so busy driving seasons could lower the price at the pump while slower periods could cause it to go up. Murphy signed the bill to replenish the trust fund less than 12 hours after a cargo ship struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, causing it to collapse in a stark reminder of how critical bridges and roads are to everyday life and how fragile they can be.
—“Murphy says NJ Transit is 'largely fixed.' Here's what the numbers say on rider experience,” by The Record’s Colleen Wilson: “During a recent ‘Ask the Governor’ appearance, Gov. Phil Murphy sought to reassure a woman who asked, ‘Why is NJ Transit so bad and unreliable?’ … ‘I’m deflated to hear [her] experience, because the overall experience is dramatically better than it was six years ago,’ Murphy said during the December 2023 episode on WNYC. … By nearly every metric of publicly available data, NorthJersey.com found that NJ Transit’s four modes of transportation performed the same in 2023 as in 2017 or worse. NorthJersey.com used 2017 for comparison because it was the year before Murphy took office and former Gov. Chris Christie’s last year in office. Anthony Grieco, senior vice president of communications and customer experience at NJ Transit, argued 2018 should be the baseline to measure progress. ‘It was the first year the Murphy administration came into office, and Kevin Corbett was appointed president and CEO — this is when the administration inherited a decimated transit agency that was grossly underfunded throughout the entire eight years of the Christie administration,’ Grieco said, adding that "the data yields quite the contrary — the improvements have been rather dramatic.’” DUCK, DUCK, GROUSE! — NJ Gov. Phil Murphy praises wife's Senate run, says lame duck label makes him ‘laugh’, by POLITICO’s Daniel Han: New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Tuesday pushed back against characterizations that he is now a lame duck governor after his wife, first lady Tammy Murphy, abruptly suspended her campaign for Senate. In his first public comments since she left the race on Sunday, the term-limited governor said he's "sprinting through the tape." “When I see those headlines, I laugh,” Murphy told reporters at an unrelated press conference, referring to a POLITICO report that suggested he could have diminished influence in Trenton during his last 18 months in office. “If you looked at my schedule right now, you would literally laugh at that statement with me," Murphy added. "We've got a lot more road to cover. And I'm running around the state today, yesterday, tomorrow, you name it.” THEY CAN PUT THOSE RADIO ADS BACK ON THE AIR — “Tammy Murphy, out of Senate race, focuses on improving maternal health,” by NJ Spotlight’s Lilo H. Stainton: “Tammy Murphy frequently highlighted her work to improve New Jersey’s maternal health while running for U.S. Senate and, at times, was criticized for using her publicly funded platform on this issue to promote her political agenda. Now with her Senate campaign suspended, Murphy, wife of Gov. Phil Murphy, is “more committed than ever” to making New Jersey a safer place to give birth and raise children, her state office staff said Monday. … Tammy Murphy is expected to attend the Health Innovation Center’s first board meeting on Wednesday. Gov. Phil Murphy appointed a half-dozen public members to the board in December, including Rosalee Boyer, a social justice leader and wife of the Rev. Charles Boyer of Greater Mt. Zion AME Church in Trenton. Mt. Zion AME is also building a birthing center in a building it owns in Trenton, something the city currently lacks.”
| | | | Access New York bill updates and Congressional activity in areas that matter to you, and use our exclusive insights to see what’s on the Albany agenda. Learn more. | | | | | BUDGET — “Murphy budget spends $2B more than N.J. will take in, and that’s a big problem, analysts warn,” by NJ Advance Media’s Susan K. Livio: “State budget analysts on Monday predicted ‘stagnating’ and ‘feeble’ revenues collections for the new fiscal year and warned that New Jersey’s robust surplus will be nearly depleted if spending continues at the current pace by 2027. This was the first time the nonpartisan analysts at the state Office of Legislative Services, along with state Treasury officials, addressed members of the New Jersey Legislature since Gov. Phil Murphy unveiled a proposed $55.9 billion state budget in February for the fiscal year that begins July 1.” EDUCATION — “NJ community colleges consider raising tuition, cuts as state financial support withers,” by The Asbury Park Press’ Amanda Oglesby: “New Jersey's 18 community colleges say they will likely raise tuition, increase class sizes and trim programs and services as they face a large reduction in state financial support. Collectively, the colleges will see a roughly $20 million cut in state aid this year, a decrease in funding of about 12%, according to the New Jersey Council of County Colleges. The 230,000 students enrolled in community colleges are likely to feel the impacts, said Aaron Fichtner, president of the Council of County Colleges. … The state cuts come ‘at a time when we believe we need to move forward as a state and make investments in our future, (but) we're now moving backwards,’ [Council of County Colleges President Aron Fitchner] said.” — “Murphy to headline AI delegation to Silicon Valley and Hollywood” —“Fulop rebukes ‘corruption tax,’ hospital monopolies, in N.J. health & human services plan” —“NJ steers $3.7M toward studies of offshore wind's environmental impacts” —“'No consequence' for juvenile offenders, say NJ mayors calling for stricter punishment” —Sidamon-Eristoff: “N.J.’s price tag for infrastructure: $10 Billion. Do We Get Our Money’s Worth?” —“It’s the end of the line for the line | Opinion”
| | | | A message from Alibaba:   | | | | | BIDEN TIME | |
THAT’S JUST THE WAY IT IS. THINGS’LL NEVER BE THE SAME — “The Democratic Party will benefit from change,” by Tom Malinowski for New Jersey Globe: “Andy Kim’s victory in the U.S. Senate primary shows just how thoroughly New Jersey’s Democratic Party was transformed by the coalition that flipped five of our Republican congressional seats between 2016 and 2018. The center of gravity in the Party has shifted to rank and file Democrats who volunteer and donate for idealistic reasons, away from the Party organizations in Democratic stronghold counties that have jealously guarded their power to decide who governs the state. The power brokers who endorsed Tammy Murphy’s campaign failed to appreciate the magnitude of this change. Their future and the Party’s success in winning elections depends on embracing it.”
THE SHAH WAS STILL IN POWER THE LAST TIME NJ ELECTED A REPUBLICAN U.S. SENATOR — “The Bashaw of Zdan,” by InsiderNJ’s Fred Snowflack: “On Tuesday, [Alex] Zdan and [Curtis] Bashaw made their pitch for unity outside a local diner. In endorsing Bashaw, Zdan referenced Murphy’s departure and said unity beckons for Republicans. ‘We can end this primary very quickly, unite behind our nominee and make Curtis Bashaw the next senator from New Jersey,’ Zdan said. Zdan, who called Bashaw a decent and good man, said they bonded at the recent Republican convention in Somerset County when at the end of a long, intense evening they shared a pizza.” —Stile: “How far will the fallout from the end of Tammy Murphy's Senate campaign reach?” —WaPo: “The unexpected upside to New Jersey’s shocking political scandal” —Justices appear skeptical of call to restrict abortion pill —“New Jersey’s Sue Altman, breaking with progressive allies, expresses support for Israel”
| | A message from Alibaba: New Jersey businesses such as Phyto-C are among the thousands of American brands with access to over one billion global consumers on Alibaba’s online marketplace — generating $66 billion in sales in 2022.
Phyto-C grew revenue 600% after launching on Alibaba. “Partnering with Alibaba was an important business strategy for our family-owned business,” said Dr. Eddie Omar, CEO of Phyto-C. “They opened the door to the world’s largest and fastest growing skincare market.” Now, the company is expanding production in Hawthorne and hiring more employees.
The result: American brands selling on Alibaba benefits communities across the U.S. In New Jersey, sales on Alibaba added $1.3B to the state GDP and supported over 10 thousand full-time jobs in one year.
Explore Alibaba’s local impact. | | | | | LOCAL | |
INSTEAD OF ZUCK THEY'VE GOT INZELBUCH — “Lakewood Schools seek $104 million state loan to help balance 2024-2025 budget,” by The Asbury Park Press’ Joe Strupp: “School district officials want a $104 million state loan to help balance a proposed $309 million budget for next year, a move that would push the district’s state loan debt close to $280 million. Lakewood Business Administrator Kevin Campbell released the proposed 2024-2025 spending plan last week, which includes a request for a $104.1 million state loan. ‘Our extraordinary aid was reduced from last year,’ Campbell said as he presented the budget plan. ‘The tuition is a significant issue, our out-of-district charges. Another driver is the non-public student transportation.’ The loan is the largest ever for the cash-strapped district, which has been borrowing state funds since 2014.”
UNACCEPTABLE: GOING AGAINST THE CHAIR. ACCEPTABLE: USING RACIAL SLURS, PAYING TOWN MONEY TO COVER IT UP AND BEING CHARGED WITH CORRUPTION — “Union GOP chairman tosses Scotch Plains Republicans from line, backs Clark mayor for re-election,” by New Jersey Globe’s David Wildstein: “While a federal judge mulls whether organization lines in New Jersey should be abolished, Union County GOP Chairman Glenn Mortimer has denied party support to thirteen incumbent county committee members in Scotch Plains, where the municipal chairman is supporting another candidate for county chairman. At the same time, Mortimer has awarded the line to controversial Clark Mayor Sal Bonaccorso, who has been charged with official corruption and faces a possible five-year prison sentence. … The New Jersey Attorney General’s office alleges Bonaccorso used township property and employees to run his landscaping business and filed forged permit applications in about two dozen towns to remove underground oil storage tanks.” — “Seaside Heights motel demolished for townhouses; about half of all motels may go away" —“Toms River police cuts: If council won't rescind them, voters get to decide” —“In N.J.’s biggest district, performance is a key election issue” —“Paterson will become a city without a movie theater when the Fabian 8 closes”
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MONOPILEY — “Offshore wind ports took a hit when developer pulled out. Why N.J. is still hopeful,” by NJ Advance Media’s Steven Rodas: “Crews at the port in Paulsboro — where two buildings could be seen behind the mayor and another two are planned — are set up to build, weld and paint massive monopiles that support skyscraper-sized offshore wind towers and blades. The state announced a $250 million investment in that port in 2020 with plans for it to be fully operational in 2023. A second — even more mammoth Salem County assembly port — where the turbines could be built before being shipped by barges to their locations offshore, was supposed to start operations this April. New Jersey will miss both deadlines. … New Jersey officials say delays in fully launching both wind facilities are largely due to a decision last fall by the world’s largest wind developer, Ørsted, to call off two massive wind projects. One of those developments was slated to use the New Jersey ports and inject them with both money and purpose. … Despite obstacle after obstacle over the past 20 years, state officials remain optimistic. Recently, two new developers joined a third in getting state approval to build offshore wind farms. And Gov. Phil Murphy moved up the timeline to bring on even more projects.”
WINELAND — “Former Vineland mayor charged with DWI after crash outside City Hall,” by The Press of Atlantic City’s John O’Connor: “A former city mayor was arrested Monday after he allegedly crashed his vehicle through a fence outside City Hall, police said. Robert Romano, 71, was charged with driving while intoxicated and reckless driving. Police responded to City Hall at 10:37 a.m. in reference to an individual striking a fence in the parking lot. Officers located Romano outside of the car and took him into custody, police said. … Romano, also a former Vineland police officer, served as the city's mayor from 2008 to 2013 before being defeated by Ruben Bermudez.” —“Study: Low pay a driving factor in N.J.’s primary care shortage” —“A cargo ship hit and collapsed a Baltimore bridge. How safe are North Jersey bridges?” —“Saint Peter’s University names first Hispanic to lead school”
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