Murphy on the line

From: POLITICO New Jersey Playbook - Thursday Feb 02,2023 11:55 am

Feb 02, 2023

Good Thursday morning!

Gov. Murphy won’t comment on a bill to end the “county line” in primaries that was just introduced by state Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Mercer), citing pending litigation in federal court that’s challenging its constitutionality.

“I won’t comment on the specifics of the bill. Listen, I don’t know that there’s news that I would make on that because I think we’ve done a good job as a state for taking a lot of steps that opened up democracy, and I’m proud of that,” Murphy said. “I think ‘the line’ is subject to litigation right now, so I think I’m going to leave it at that.”

There’s no question that Murphy has signed several bills that make it easier for people to vote. But this is about candidates’ access to voters, not voters’ access to the polls. The problem is when a ballot inherently favors party-backed candidates over others.

The Attorney General’s Office has stepped into that fight to represent the state, defending the line as an intervenor. I should mention here that Turner’s bill, which I briefly wrote about here yesterday, has been introduced in the Assembly repeatedly for years, mostly by Republicans. But this appears to be the first time a senator has proposed it.

Murphy’s in a tight spot on this issue. He draws a lot of support from progressives who abhor the line, which has been effectively wielded by party bosses over the decades to put their opponents (sometimes progressives) at a disadvantage — with some instances more brazen than others. But Murphy came up as a major donor to those dominant Democratic Party organizations.

All the same, let’s make one thing clear about the line. You’ll hear politicians say that it’s really not a big deal, that it doesn’t confer much if anything of an advantage. But don’t listen to them. Watch them. If they didn’t believe the line was a potent political weapon, they wouldn’t use it and fight over it so often.

DAYS SINCE MURPHY REFUSED TO SAY WHETHER HIS WIFE’S NON-PROFIT SHOULD DISCLOSE DONORS: 362

TIPS? FEEDBACK? HATE MAIL? Email me at mfriedman@politico.com.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Jersey Girl Justice will hopefully prevail in the end … Aloha.” — Eve Morawski, who attempted suicide by setting fire to the Maplewood house she grew up in after it was foreclosed by investors who acquired it by taking on her unpaid taxes and fees.

WHERE’S MURPHY? Delivering remarks at 11 a.m. at Essex County Newark Tech High School ribbon cutting. Appearing on "Ask Governor Murphy" at 7 p.m. on WNYC, WHYY and WBGO.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Hollie Gilroy, Aaron Keyak, Danny Reiter. Missed Wednesday: Rosa Farias

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WHAT TRENTON MADE

GARDEN STATE DEEP STATE — Unions say Chris Christie's labor legacy playing out in Rutgers University contract talks, by POLITICO’s Carly Sitrin: Gov. Phil Murphy has fashioned himself a loyal ally to organized labor. He’s negotiated multiple contracts with major public employee unions and been showered with their political support. But at Rutgers University, where faculty and staff have been without a contract for more than 200 days, the Democrat isn’t the one leading discussions with labor leaders. Murphy and Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway have left that, mainly, to members of former Gov. Chris Christie's administration. Christie, a Republican, once said a national teachers union deserved a “punch in the face.” Labor leaders are growing frustrated — and a strike is looming … The big Christie players at the table are David Cohen, formerly head of employee relations under Christie who now leads Rutgers’ Office of University Labor Relations, and John Hoffman, former acting state attorney general under Christie who is now Rutgers’ senior vice president and general counsel.

22.2 MASTROS — Treasury memo details how Murphy spent $200M in pandemic relief funds, by POLITICO’s Caroline Petrow-Cohen: Gov. Phil Murphy spent most of his allocation of federal pandemic relief money on public health infrastructure and various assistance programs in addition to his administration’s controversial purchase of eight SUVs at a cost more than half a million dollars, according to a state Treasury department memo. The memo, sent to the Joint Budget Oversight Committee in January, details the allocation of $200 million in Covid relief funds from the federal government, money that was included in the Fiscal Year 2022 budget passed last June. The budget required the administration to detail the spending to JBOC, a bipartisan group of state lawmakers from the Senate and Assembly that’s controlled by Democrats. The $200 million spent on 46 individual items and programs comes from the state’s $6.2 billion allocation from the American Rescue Plan. Under terms of a deal struck with state lawmakers, the Murphy administration was authorized to spend $200 million unilaterally on individual expenditures of up to $10 million. The rest must be approved by JBOC.

LAWMAKERS TO BREWERIES: LIQUOR BEFORE BEER— “Why lawmakers take another swing at changing NJ’s liquor license laws,” by NJ Spotlight News’ Michael Pappano: “Spurred by Gov. Phil Murphy’s pledge to support reform, lawmakers are working on changing the state’s liquor licensing laws that have remained largely unchanged since the years just following Prohibition. The current laws make obtaining a liquor license difficult and allow for a finite number of retail consumption licenses, the kind that a bar or restaurant needs to legally sell beer, wine and spirits. Each municipality can only issue one of these licenses for every 3,000 residents. The state allows for these licenses to be sold privately, so as demand for a license is high, the price is high … Sen. Troy Singleton (D-Burlington) and Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Bergen) are sponsoring legislation to allow inactive licenses to be transferred between municipalities — something currently not allowed by law.

ONE ADDICTION AT A TIME. PLEASE — Senate committee schedules 'discussion only' hearing on casino smoking bill, by POLITICO’s Daniel Han: The Senate Health, Human Services & Senior Citizens Committee has scheduled a hearing on the bill, NJ S264 (22R) for Feb. 13. The meeting will be for “discussion only,” meaning the measure will not be voted on. “This hearing will give those engaged in the issue and impacted by the legislation the opportunity to express their views and share relevant information on the proposed casino smoking ban,” Sen. Joe Vitale (D-Middlesex), the committee chair … The legislation was first introduced in 2006 after passage of the Smoke-Free Air Act, which effectively banned indoor smoking in most New Jersey businesses. Casinos, however, were given an exemption.

—“NJ is urged to expand child tax credit”

—“Lawmaker wants to create a state ‘learning loss czar’”

—“Bill to expand restraining orders could clog courts, critics warn”

—Education groups release recommendations to ease teacher shortage while public awaits task force report

—“Michael Griffin gearing up for Senate run in LD-31 with Cunningham retirement expected”

—“N.J. will spend another $38M on lead abatement, Murphy says. Here’s where it will go”

—“Murphy ‘open-minded’ to new laws on police in N.J. after death of Tyre Nichols”

BIDEN TIME

A JERSEY VET— Feds probing Santos’ role in service dog charity scheme, by POLITICO’s Jaqueline Sweet: FBI agents are investigating Rep. George Santos’ role in an alleged GoFundMe scheme involving a disabled U.S. Navy veteran’s dying service dog. Two agents contacted former service member Richard Osthoff Wednesday on behalf of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York, he told POLITICO. Osthoff gave the agents 2016 text messages with Santos, who he says used his plight to raise $3,000 for life-saving surgery for the pit bull mix, Sapphire — then ghosted with the funds, as first reported by Patch. “I’m glad to get the ball rolling with the big-wigs,” Osthoff said in an interview Wednesday. “I was worried that what happened to me was too long ago to be prosecuted.”

—“NJ property tax deduction would be restored in bipartisan bill backed by Sherrill”

—“Gloucester County Jan. 6 rioter, dubbed ‘FashNSlash’ online, sentenced to prison for deflating police car tires”

—“Rep. Andy Kim speaks about the newly formed Congressional Dads Caucus”

—“New bill targets investment scams preying on seniors, people with disabilities”

—“After whale deaths, Rep. Chris Smith joins chorus of calls for offshore wind moratorium”

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LOCAL

N.J.’S FORECLOSURE LAWS — “She lost her childhood home over taxes. Then it erupted in flames,” by The New York Times’ Tracey Tully: “To neighbors, the Dec. 7 fire that burst from second-floor windows and licked at the eaves of Ms. Morawski’s former home was a spectacularly sad end to an epic real estate battle that had played out publicly on social media and in state and federal court … Well known and well liked, Ms. Morawski was a fixture in Maplewood … Privately, she was consumed by a cascade of debt and drawn-out legal battles that had pushed her to the emotional and financial brink … A cancer diagnosis in 2021 complicated everything. By the time she lost the house, Ms. Morawski, 60, had accumulated more than $100,000 in unpaid taxes and fees, a burden that was further exacerbated by a state law heavily weighted toward real estate speculators. New Jersey is one of just a dozen states that permit investors to make huge profits on the debt of struggling homeowners, ultimately allowing them to foreclose on the property and keep all the profit.”

PATERSON HIRES OLD EL PASO GIRL TO CONSULT ON GUN VIOLENCE SOLUTIONS — “Can Paterson ever stem its bloody tide of shootings and murder?” by The Record’s Christopher Maag: “ Among politicians, the argument over how to stop America’s cycle of gun violence remains contentious and undecided. Many conservatives argue the solution is to hire more cops, and make life harder for criminals … Many liberals argue the answer lies in bringing education, jobs and trauma therapy to the small number of young men of all races responsible for the vast majority of violent crime … Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh tries to split the difference. When he talks of ending gun violence, he begins by listing the many grants, social services and job programs his administration has brought to the city’s most desperate neighborhoods. Then he describes his efforts to hire more cops .. The mayor also is skeptical of programs like the Paterson Healing Collective. ‘I’m encouraged by the fact that they have community events and do outreach,’ Sayegh said of Chowdhury’s group. ‘But I just want to see the data. Can you point to a reduction [in shootings]? And is it because we did the outreach to these shooting victims and prevented the next shooting?’ … This political fight — cops versus community programs — never ends .. The answer is not more cops. Nor is it more social programs. The answer is both.”

SALEM COPS — “N.J. cop should be charged after video shows him repeatedly punching 14-year-old, lawyer says,” by NJ Advance Media’s Matt Gray: “An attorney for a South Jersey family has released a video allegedly showing a police officer punching a 14-year-old after kicking down the door of his house. The Salem City police officer entered the residence without a warrant on Oct. 22 after attempting to question the teen about a fight, then repeatedly punched the boy and threw him to the floor, according to attorney Durann Neil Jr. Neil identified the 14-year-old and posted the video of the incident on social media … The teen’s family and attorney are calling for the officer to be charged with a crime.

—“Bergen County denies accusations of inmate abuse, but suspends two officers”

SANDWORMS ARE DYING AND NOBODY HAS PROVEN THE DUNE WORK ISN’T CAUSING IT —— “Beach town in sand dunes battle sues New Jersey for $21M,” by The AP’s Wayne Parry: “A beach town that is defying New Jersey’s order not to shore up its eroding sand dunes is suing the state for $21 million. That’s how much North Wildwood says it spent over the past decade on trucking sand in as part of an ultimately futile effort to hold back the waves. North Wildwood is being sued by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection for defying a state order not to make emergency repairs to the dunes following several storms last fall.”

CAMDEN TRASH PILES RISING — “Strike could disrupt trash collection in Camden, Haddonfield, and Winslow Township,” by The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Kevin Riordan: More than 100 truck drivers and other unionized workers at the Waste Management company’s facility in Camden went on strike early Wednesday, potentially affecting residential and commercial trash pickups in the city as well as in Haddonfield and Winslow Township in suburban Camden County. In a statement, Waste Management said it is ‘disappointed’ that members of Teamsters Local 115 in Philadelphia have ‘chosen to strike rather than to continue’ negotiations on a new contract.t trash collection in Camden, Haddonfield, and Winslow Township.”

THE GREAT BONGHOLEO — “The guy in the purple bong suit,” by InsiderNJ’s Fred Snowflack: “MADISON – The guy in the purple bong suit brought along a guitar and entertained – if that’s the right term – the council with song. Then there was a masked man in a wheelchair. That was Edward ‘Lefty’ Grimes, the CEO of Sativa Cross, a non-profit that advocates for cannabis patients. And just for the record, the guitarist gave his name as Bongholeo. Legalized marijuana continues to be eventful for local governing bodies … Lefty Grimes, the masked man, excoriated the council for discriminating against disabled veterans by “banning” medicine. ‘God is watching,’ he said.”

—“State extends public comment period for Toms River Superfund settlement”

—“Decades-old sexual abuse accusations at after-school program alleged in lawsuit”

—“Decades-old sexual abuse accusations at [East Orange] after-school program alleged in lawsuit”

EVERYTHING ELSE

YOU GOT OVERSERVED — “Is school responsible for South Jersey school employee's 'severely inebriated' behavior at party?” by The Daily Journal’s Joseph P. Smith: “A Rancocas Valley Regional High employee disciplined for ‘inappropriate’ behavior at an end-of-year staff party claims that too much alcohol left him with no memory of what, if anything, allegedly upset a co-worker. Moorestown resident Wilfred Kirkaldy is offering the no-memory defense in a lawsuit he has filed in state court against the high school. He also claims the school administration denied him an opportunity to effectively defend himself in an ensuing employee grievance hearing … Kirkaldy’s account is that ‘he was overserved with alcohol and/or drugged,’ leaving him ‘severely inebriated.’”

‘I THINK YOU SHOULD LEAVE’ WAS PROPHETIC — “Tesla driver says his steering wheel fell off while driving on N.J. highway,” by NJ Advance Media’s Karin Price Mueller: “A Tesla owner says he’s no longer comfortable driving his new car after the steering wheel fell off while driving on a New Jersey highway. The driver, Twitter user Prerak (@preneh24), posted about the experience, which he called ‘horrific,’ on Twitter. The driver said in a Tweet on Jan. 29 that he ‘was driving on highway and all the sudden steering wheel fall off, was lucky enough there was no car behind’ and he was able to pull onto the side of the road.”

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