| | | | |  | | By Matt Friedman | | Presented by |  | | | Good Tuesday morning! Last week, we heard about all the great things happening in Camden thanks to political boss — I mean hero — George Norcross. These arguments were put forth as Judge Peter Warshaw decides whether to dismiss the corruption indictment against Norcross and his co-defendants.. “Take a look at Camden 20 years ago, there wasn’t even a grocery store in the City of Camden,” attorney Robert Levy said Wednesday. “Through redevelopment, through the conduct of these offenders and multiple other persons, the city has changed dramatically.” There are some grocery stores in Camden, and I’m not sure what the situation was 20 years ago, but there is no large chain supermarket. There were plans that never materialized, for one reason or another. Today, Gov. Phil Murphy and four former New Jersey governors head to Camden for a Cooper Health expansion groundbreaking ceremony, followed by a Kelly Ripa-hosted disco party to honor hospital staff. No doubt they’ll talk about strides Camden has made, like the declining crime rate. Meanwhile, this lead from NJ Spotlight News’ Lilo Stainton on this report is a cold reminder of reality : “Camden residents face the highest barriers in New Jersey to putting healthy food on their tables, state officials have calculated. Nearly eight in 10 pregnant women in Camden face maternal health risks — high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity or anemia — and close to one in four babies born there arrived prematurely, underweight, needed intensive care or died, according to data from the state Department of Health.” WHERE’S MURPHY? At Camden in 11 a.m. for the Cooper Health groundbreaking HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Terrence Dopp, Tim White, Amy Handlin, Maria Comella QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Now that I know what it is, I completely understand. But how do you fix it? I don’t know how to fix it.” — Aqua Blu Kitchen & Cocktails owner Cathy Varriale, after the Toms River restaurant faced public backlash for offering a “Proud Boys Burger” made with “white American cheese” TIPS? FEEDBACK? Email me at dracioppi@politico.com
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BLURRED LINES — Sherrill pushes back on Fulop's new, detailed ELEC complaint, by POLITICO’s Madison Fernandez: Fulop on Monday provided more detailed allegations to support his complaint, and asked ELEC to “determine the appropriate sum that must be deducted from the amount she is permitted to spend in this election.”… Fulop’s campaign points to a spot Sherrill’s campaign put out ahead of the November election, before she formally announced her gubernatorial run. The ad touted her background and achievements in Congress, but made no specific reference to her reelection bid in New Jersey's 11the congressional district. Fulop’s campaign provides data asserting that the majority of Sherrill’s digital and connected television buy was targeted to voters outside her district. Fulop’s campaign also included a holiday greeting mailer paid by Sherrill’s congressional campaign, and says that “sworn statements from nine different individuals located outside her congressional district who received the mailer will be provided upon request. … Sherrill’s campaign argued that these advertisements are not coordinated expenditures because they were not disseminated on or after Jan. 1, and were made prior to Sherrill applying to receive matching funds — qualifications for being a coordinated expenditure under ELEC regulations. It also noted they do not expressly advocate for her gubernatorial campaign.
LOUGY LOUGY — “NJ towns face affordable housing deadline this week after judge rejects second challenge,” by The Daily Record’s William Westhoven: “A judge in Mercer County has rejected a second attempt by more than two dozen New Jersey towns to pause implementation of the state's affordable housing mandate, leaving municipalities to face a deadline this week over how many units they need to build. With the ruling by state Superior Court Judge Robert Lougy, released on Monday, the state's 564 municipalities have until Friday to either accept housing obligation numbers released in October by the Department of Community Affairs or present alternative calculations, which must be consistent with a new state law passed last year. … On Jan. 2, Lougy rejected the towns' request to freeze the law while the litigation works its way through the courts. On Thursday, he turned aside a second bid.” SANCTUARY STATE — "Sweeney vows to repeal ‘sanctuary’ state if elected governor," by POLITICO’s Daniel Han: Former Senate President Steve Sweeney — a Democrat running for governor — vowed early Monday evening to repeal New Jersey’s “sanctuary” state status if elected governor, a reversal from his prior comments. “As Democrats, we need to get back to listening to regular people,” Sweeney said in a statement. “Illegal immigrants who commit crimes are not welcome in New Jersey, and as Governor, I will repeal New Jersey’s sanctuary state status.” While there is no universal legal definition for what constitutes a “sanctuary” state or city, it generally refers to when local law enforcement's cooperation with federal immigration officials is limited. A spokesperson for Sweeney’s campaign clarified in a text to POLITICO that Sweeney's remarks would mean repealing the state's Immigration Trust Directive, which former Attorney General Gurbir Grewal announced in 2018, when Sweeney was Senate president. PREDICTION: RANDY MASTRO WILL BE TRANSPARENCY CZAR — “Is transparency too expensive to be a priority in Trenton? Don't believe it,” by The Record’s Charles Stile: “[Senate President Nicholas Scutari] said he doesn’t believe [Acting Comptroller Kevin] Walsh has the 21 votes in the Senate to confirm him. And if Scutari posted his vote for confirmation, it might fail and Walsh would be forced to step down. So why the lack of votes? Scutari said there is concern that the comptroller’s office has spent an ‘extraordinary amount of money’ on investigations ‘without producing one criminal charge.’ Perhaps there is another reason impeding Walsh’s confirmation: Those investigations have produced some unflattering findings about the waste, fraud and mismanagement in towns and jurisdictions that are under the political control of party bosses across the state. Walsh's office has taken aim at Pennsauken's insurance brokerage contracts with the firm controlled by South Jersey power broker George Norcross; targeted improper awarding of jail contracts in Hudson County; and even called for a “corrective action” in Scutari’s political fief of Union County where high-level officials — and allies of Scutari — were boosting their pay with stipends and tuition reimbursements without enacting a salary ordinance. In other words, he’s made too many enemies. Scutari denied that it was the case … As for indictments? The office has made over 200 referrals to law enforcement agencies.” TURNS OUT CONGESTION PRICING CAUSES HEART DISEASE — “Congestion pricing results are mixed but some commutes improve,” by The New York Times’ Winnie Hu, Ana Ley and Nate Schweber: “Lesly Silva, a hospital technician from New Jersey, said that she didn’t like the idea of drivers having to pay New York City’s new congestion pricing toll. But on a recent morning, she saved enough time on her own commute by bus into Midtown Manhattan that she stopped for a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich. Since the start of the tolling plan, she is less concerned about being late. ‘I take my time getting to work,’ said Ms. Silva, 29. … But since the launch of the program … data and anecdotes suggest that commuters from places where there was some of the loudest opposition to congestion pricing — the boroughs and suburbs outside of Manhattan — have also seen relief from gridlock. … Travel times improved on highways and major roads in Manhattan during both the morning and evening rush hours. But they were slower in Brooklyn and on Staten Island in the morning and in Queens and the Bronx in the evening. Times also increased in some New Jersey counties, including Essex and Bergen, but improved in Nassau County on Long Island.”
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| | | PIPELINE — The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Friday reapproved a major gas pipeline expansion that was questioned by a federal court and that New Jersey said may derail its climate change goals. The decision allows the continued operation of Williams subsidiary Transco’s Regional Energy Access project, which added about 36 miles of new pipe in Pennsylvania, a new compressor station in New Jersey and upgrades other infrastructure to allow more gas to be moved to New Jersey from wells tapping into the Marcellus shale gas field. New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities commissioned a study that says the state does not need the gas. Transco has its own evidence that shows a need. FERC sided with the gas company. But last summer, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit sided with New Jersey officials and environmentalists that argued the expansion project would make the state’s climate change goals impossible to meet. In approving the project again, FERC said it “cannot characterize any project’s GHG emissions as significant or insignificant,” referring to greenhouse gases.
New Jersey environmental opponents are weighing their legal options.– Ry Rivard — “Who is running for NJ governor in 2025? Pinelands meet provides peek at GOP short list" —“Matt Moench will Seek DiMaio’s Assembly seat in 23rd District” —Snowflack: “Spiller doubles back to take a jab at Chris Christie” —“Could hundreds more buses cram into the Lincoln Tunnel at rush hour? How AI might help”
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WOMENDEZ — “Federal bribery trial for Nadine Arslanian Menendez, ex-NJ senator's wife, postponed,” by The Record’s Kristie Cattafi and Katie Sobko: “Ex-Sen. Bob Menendez's wife's bribery and corruption trial was postponed again and will begin in March after a physician treating her for breast cancer wrote a letter seeking another postponement to the U.S. District Court in the Southern District Court of New York. Nadine Arslanian Menendez faces bribery and corruption charges similar to those of which her husband and three New Jersey businessmen were found guilty in July.’
INFRASTRUCTURE WEAK — “Could Trump executive order hold up money for NJ Transit projects, Gateway tunnel?” by The Record’s Colleen Wilson: “One of President Donald Trump’s day-one executive orders has already caused chaos and confusion — and could jeopardize billions of dollars in New Jersey transportation projects … But the order also more broadly says ‘all agencies shall immediately pause the disbursement of funds’ appropriated through two other acts, the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — a far more sweeping, and potentially illegal, action, some experts say. … In New Jersey, these laws authorized spending on the purchase of new zero-emission buses at NJ Transit and badly needed railcars to replace the old ones that are frequently breaking down. The laws are also partly funding the largest infrastructure project in the country, the $16 billion program to build a new two-track rail tunnel under the Hudson River for Amtrak and NJ Transit riders. Trump's executive order is pretty close to an impoundment order, which is illegal under the Impoundment Control Act, said Andrew Rudalevige, a government professor at Bowdoin College. … Steve Sigmund, a spokesman for the Gateway Development Commission, which is building the new rail tunnel beneath the Hudson, said it doesn't anticipate any delays to that mega project.” —“As ICE threats grow, NJ works to aid immigrants” —“Paterson mayor says ICE visited two locations on Saturday, prompting panic and fear” —“ICE Agents 'Conducted Operations' In Asbury Park, Neptune Township” —Opinion: “Her cousin isn’t a criminal. ICE agents still stormed his workplace and took him away” —“Rep. Sherrill calls for tweak to federal poverty line to reflect states’ varying costs” —“Kim breaks with most fellow Senate Dems to support Noem for DHS secretary”
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TRENTON, WHERE NOT EVEN THE WATER WORKS — Damning new report on Trenton water helps prompt reckoning for troubled system, by POLITICO’s Ry Rivard: A damning new report released Monday about mismanagement of the water department in New Jersey’s capital is prompting a new push for the city of Trenton to cede control of one of the state’s largest water systems. For decades there have been warnings about Trenton Water Works, which supplies water to nearly a quarter million people in the city and suburbs. A list of violations over the past two decades runs more than 130 pages and two years ago state officials moved to tighten oversight on the heels of a water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi. The new report shows the depth of the problems, prompting even Trenton’s mayor to accept a change is needed that gives up some control. Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration and a top Assembly lawmaker have been involved in discussions about creating a regional utility that gives the suburbs more control over the water system.
HOOP SCREAMS — “A once disgraced coach is making $160K at a N.J. school. But is it just to win games?” by NJ Advance Media’s Keith Sargeant: “Mike Rice stepped to the microphone and soaked in a hearty ovation. This was a new start for the once embattled coach. He had just been approved as the Linden High School boys basketball coach, the next chapter in a career that began with such promise but was derailed by an infamous abuse scandal more than a decade ago. ‘I have tremendous excitement taking over a program with such tradition,’ Rice told the school board in his booming voice last May after it approved his $9,503 coaching stipend … Rice, 55, would serve as facilitator of athletic academic assistance/community resources, earning a one-year contract in June worth $150,000. While Rice’s $9,503 coaching stipend was announced in May, this marks the first time the $150,000 salary has been reported. The newly created position has raised eyebrows — and troubling questions — among some education experts. Is this taxpayer-funded job about academic assistance or a way to funnel more money to a top-flight coach? Is it about helping kids get into college from a school where 58.8% of students are economically disadvantaged or helping a traditional Group 4 power return to the stratosphere of the state’s best programs? … A video of Rice screaming profanities and homophobic slurs and hurling basketballs at his players went viral, igniting a firestorm and a national conversation about coaching abuses. He was fired in April 2013.”
| | | | New Year. New Washington. New Playbook. With intensified congressional coverage and even faster delivery of policy scoops, POLITICO’s reimagined Playbook Newsletter ensures you’re always ahead of the conversation. Sign up today. | | | | | SOUTH O RAGE — “Protesters spray antisemitic graffiti outside N.J. synagogue, officials say,” by NJ Advance Media’s Jeff Goldman: “Protesters sprayed antisemitic graffiti on the sidewalk outside a synagogue in South Orange on Sunday morning, officials said. The protesters, described as pro-Palestinian, were at the Oheb Shalom on Scotland Road because two members of the Israel Defense Force were making a presentation, according to Rabbi Abigail Treu. … Protesters wrote ‘terrorists this way’ and also shouted “baby killers” to passing drivers, according to Treu and South Orange Mayor Shena Collum.” ROADSIDE — “N.J. Turnpike widening leaves Lawnside with questions about Underground Railroad museum,” by The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Kevin Riordan: “Widening the New Jersey Turnpike between Exits 1 and 4 will upgrade a section of the highway largely unchanged since it opened on Nov. 5, 1951. But the $2 billion project, slated to begin next year, also will bring southbound traffic 12 feet closer to the Peter Mott House, a museum that’s a centerpiece in the historically Black borough of Lawnside in Camden County. The Mott House, once home to a free Black abolitionist and Underground Railroad conductor, is about 120 feet from the existing turnpike. The added lane ‘is also going to be closer to people’s homes,’ said Linda Shockley, president of the Lawnside Historical Society.” —“Will proposed Caspian Point development in Atlantic City materialize this time?” —“Atlantic County prosecutor establishes unit dedicated to helping offenders avoid jail” —“Fulop to deliver final Jersey City State of the City address Jan. 30” —“Scramble starts to fill Paterson's vacant 6th Ward council seat” —“[Hoboken] PATH station is closing for nearly a month. Here’s what you need to know” — “Cape May went uncredited in ‘A Complete Unknown,’ and locals are annoyed” | | EVERYTHING ELSE | |
DEI ANOTHER DAY — “Baraka smacks pusillanimous Rutgers officials for caving to Trump,” by New Jersey Globe’s David Wildstein: “Following President Donald Trump’s executive order terminating diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, Rutgers University Center for Minority Serving Institutions canceled an upcoming webinar on apprenticeship programs – and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka says that’s unacceptable. ‘We can’t allow this,’ said Baraka, a candidate for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. ‘Rutgers, and any other schools preemptively pulling DEI programming, is an utter failure of courage in the face of political foolishness. We know better.’ Baraka said that diversity, equity and inclusion ‘are not just buzzwords.’” “They are proven strategies that make our workplaces more productive, our students more learned, and our economy stronger and more stable,” he said.”
NJ DEMS HOPE TO RECRUIT HER FOR OFFICE — “North Jersey woman turns 110 years old. Her son, 82, says she's a 'miracle',” by The Record’s Philip DeVencentis: “Caroline McKenna once wielded enormous influence. Big casinos used to curry favor with her, comping her rooms and showering her with tote bags, water bottles and other freebies. She was also quite protective when it came to her secret recipe for Sunday sauce. The township resident, who turned 110 years old this month, never took a back seat to anyone.” — "80 years after Auschwitz liberation, a survivor's powerful plea: 'We cannot forget'" —“Man steals $7,000 African grey parrot from North Jersey exotic pet store”
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