| | | | |  | | By Daniel Han | | Presented by |  | | | Good Monday morning! Heard this one before? A New Jersey governor being floated as a vice presidential pick. No, I’m not talking about former GOP Gov. Chris Christie circa 2016. I’m talking about incumbent Gov. Phil Murphy. OK, perhaps the analogy is a bit apples and oranges. Christie was in the final vetting stages in 2016 to be former President Trump’s vice presidential pick while the Murphy for veep chatter is premature. But there is certainly chatter of it among Murphy allies. As President Joe Biden announced Sunday he is withdrawing from the presidential race, people close to the governor floated the possibility of Murphy being the Democratic veep nominee. Murphy is said to not be interested in the POTUS nomination, according to one person close to the governor. But Murphy allies told POLITICO that his state and national political experience could throw him into the running for the second highest position in the executive branch. “I think there's a world of key Democrats who are very interested in seeing the governor strongly considered to help round out the Democratic ticket now that the president has decided to not continue along with his election,” one person close to the governor told POLITICO. “We’ll see how that shapes up in the next number of days and weeks.” Murphy would face what could be a crowded field of Democrats interested in the veep nomination. And Murphy may not even be New Jersey’s favorite son to get the vice president nomination. New Jersey Democratic State Committee Chair LeRoy Jones in a statement yesterday explicitly mentioned Sen. Cory Booker as a potential vice presidential nominee, although he said there were also “many incredible candidates” for the number two position. This all comes as Vice President Kamala Harris is so far the only major Democrat seeking the presidential nomination and has raked in endorsements from party leaders, including from Murphy. Members of New Jersey’s Democratic congressional delegation — who are superdelegates to the Democratic convention — like Reps. Andy Kim, Frank Pallone, Josh Gottheimer, Mikie Sherrill, Rob Menendez, Bonnie Watson Coleman and Bill Pascrell also announced support for Harris on Sunday. TIPS? FEEDBACK? Email me at Dhan@politico.com. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Kivvit’s Adam Steinberger, Volunteer of America’s Alexis Degan, State Department’s Marelyn Rivera, former Rep. Mike Ferguson and former Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano. WHERE’S MURPHY? — In Trenton to sign the Louisa Carman Medical Debt Relief Act at 1 p.m. | | | | A message from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: To make New Jersey a healthier, more equitable place to live, we must end structural racism. The most effective way to change unfair systems and harmful policies is for affected communities to build power through collective action. When communities act together to voice their needs and hopes, they can hold decisionmakers accountable and drive change. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has a plan to harness community power to increase access to health. Explore the roadmap. | | | |  | MENENDEZ CORRUPTION TRIAL | | THE TOUCHABLES — “U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez was untouchable, until he wasn’t. N.J. politicians are on notice,” by NJ Advance Media’s S.P. Sullivan: “When U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez narrowly avoided a corruption conviction in 2017, in a case that claimed he repeatedly used his power to help a wealthy donor, he did not offer any apology. If anything, he was mad. 'To those who were digging my political grave so that they could jump into my seat,' Menendez said, with a stony demeanor that would have landed just as well at Wrestlemania as it did in Jersey politics. 'I know who you are and I won’t forget you.' The message was loud and clear. Major players, including Gov. Phil Murphy and junior U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, stayed behind him, even as the case revealed behavior that got Menendez reprimanded by the Senate for ethics violations.” — Punchbowl News: “What Bob Menendez’s exit would mean for tax and banking” — MSNBC: “Will the Supreme Court justices save Sen. Bob Menendez after his corruption verdict?” — Cartoon break: “This Menendez thing is bad for our image”
| | | | Live briefings, policy trackers, and procedural, industry, and people intelligence from POLITICO Pro Analysis gives you the insights you need to focus your policy strategy this election cycle. Secure your seat. | | | | | | | WHAT TRENTON MADE | | POWER RANGERS — Newark power plant will test NJ's environmental justice law, by POLITICO’s Ry Rivard: New Jersey’s landmark environmental justice law is facing a major test: a new power plant Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration is on track to approve in Newark over the objection of the city’s mayor and many of Murphy’s environmental allies. The plant is being approved despite the 2020 law aimed at discouraging new pollution in “overburdened” communities, a term that, like “environmental justice,” refers to the disproportionately heavy toll industrial facilities have on communities of color and low-income. The administration is trying to ease the blow of the decision by arguing it will impose “strict” conditions on the operations of the plant thanks to the law. But critics worry those conditions could be lifted in a new administration and the plant will be fully operational. — OP-ED: “N.J. rents are out of control. Here’s how Trenton can stop the price gouging”
| | | | A message from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation:   | | | | | BIDEN TIME | | JOE-VER — Why Biden finally quit, by POLITICO’s Eli Stokols, Jonathan Lemire, Elena Schneider and Sarah Ferris: For 23 days, President Joe Biden insisted on pushing forward with his reelection bid in the face of calls from Democratic lawmakers and donors for him to step aside. And then, almost on a dime, things changed. Early Saturday, Biden told senior aides it was “full steam ahead” for the campaign. But by later that evening, he had changed his mind following a long discussion with his two closest aides. Steve Ricchetti, who’s been with Biden since his days in the Senate, drove to see the president at his house on the Delaware shore on Friday. Mike Donilon arrived on Saturday. The two men, both of whom had been by Biden’s side during key decisions about whether to seek the presidency in 2016 and 2020, sat at a distance from the president, still testing positive for Covid, and presented damning new information in a meeting that would hasten the end of Biden’s political career. — NJ’s congressional Democrats begin to line up for Harris, by POLITICO’s Ry Rivard: Democrats in New Jersey’s congressional delegation are praising President Joe Biden’s legacy and decision to step down, and several members are publicly lining up to support Vice President Kamala Harris’ bid to become the party’s new nominee after Biden endorsed her. — Stile: “Biden is out. Now, NJ Democrats roll the dice like Atlantic City gamblers” — NJ Globe: “Ras Baraka backs Kamala Harris for president” — NJ Spotlight: “NJ GOP chair at RNC: Party is ‘incredibly unified’” — “LaMonica McIver may have been unbeatable,” by the Globe’s Joey Fox: “In theory, the special Democratic primary for New Jersey’s 10th congressional district should have been a competitive race. It featured 11 candidates, several of whom held local office and had loyal voter bases; it was held in the middle of summer, when turnout would be low and unpredictable; and it took place in a year of unprecedented upheaval, where the sacred cows of New Jersey politics were dismantled one by one. But the end result wasn’t close, or surprising, at all: Newark City Council President LaMonica McIver won in a rout, getting 47% of the vote while her ten opponents squabbled over the remainder. McIver is now overwhelmingly likely to become the deep-blue district’s next congresswoman after the September special general election, succeeding the late Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-Newark), who died in April. How did she do it? By winning over critical party leaders early on — giving her access to organizational support far outside of her Newark base — and, with their substantial help, outworking her opponents both in fundraising and on the ground, closing off their paths to victory. Based on detailed results from the district, McIver may have simply been unbeatable.” — Gretchen Carlson and Julie Roginsky: “Nondisclosure agreements let bad behavior go unchecked. That's why Trump loves them.” — Op-ed: “The 2024 campaign is a wake-up call: Abortion rights are on the ballot in N.J.”
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UNION CITY — “Union City Mayor Brian Stack received death threats in wake of gonzo journalist’s videos, city says,” by the Jersey Journal’s Mark Koosau: "Union City Mayor Brian Stack has received deaths threats in the wake of an online gonzo journalist’s continued accusations of corruption in his administration, a city attorney told The Jersey Journal. Corporation counsel Donald Scarinci said the ‘continued harassment’ of Stack culminated in the arrest of Leonard Filipowski, known by his YouTube channel name ‘Leroy Truth,’ at a board of commissioners meeting Tuesday when Filipowski refused to remain behind the podium while speaking. Filipowski, who was charged by police with disorderly conduct, said he was exercising his First Amendment rights and is now planning to sue Stack and the city. He told The Jersey Journal Friday that the mayor ‘has weaponized and criminalized the justice system against me.’ The latest episode marks an escalation in tensions between Filipowski and Stack ever since the gonzo journalist began making videos about the city since last December.” — NJ Advance Media: “Man who forced N.J. towns to provide affordable housing is still fighting 49 years later” — Jersey Journal: “Frustrated by city ‘dragging their feet,’ legislators behind Hoboken e-bike law hit the streets” — Jersey Journal: “Food delivery apps, restaurants prepare for mandated new pricing options in Jersey City” | | | | A message from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: For New Jersey to be a place where everyone can achieve their healthiest life possible, we must acknowledge structural racism as a barrier to health equity and address it.
The most effective way to change unfair systems and harmful policies is for affected communities and people to build power through collective action. When communities act together to voice their needs and hopes for the future, they can hold decisionmakers accountable, drive change, and make health accessible for all.
A Policy Agenda for a Healthier, More Equitable New Jersey is a report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that outlines how community power can become the engine that drives the changes needed to overcome inequity. Working together, communities can ensure equitable access to housing, support healthy births and maternal health, and improve public health infrastructure. See the plan. | | | | | EVERYTHING ELSE | |
CROWDSTRIKE — “Major NJ hospital system back to normal operations after CrowdStrike software meltdown,” by NorthJersey.com’s Scott Fallon: “One of New Jersey's largest hospital systems was back online late Friday, a day after a global software snafu caused some of its computer systems to crash canceling elective surgeries and other procedures. The 12 hospitals and other facilities of RWJBarnabas Health had returned to 'normal operations' by 9 p.m. Friday, said Robert Cavanaugh, a spokesman.”
— Philadelphia Inquirer: “The global tech outage stranded a New Jersey Boy Scout troop in St. Croix. It was a scramble to get them home.” — NJ Advance Media: “N.J. county’s emergency dispatch system affected by technology outage” — The Record: “Wastewater tests show COVID-19 reached 'high' level in some states. See where NJ stands” | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
