News: POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Polistina’s swearing-in drama

Thursday, August 26, 2021

POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Polistina’s swearing-in drama

Aug 26, 2021

Good Thursday morning!

Vince Polistina, the Republican Party's choice to replace state Sen. Chris Brown in New Jersey's 2nd Legislative District, was sworn into office this week.

Or was he?

That's the debate Senate Republicans and Democrats are having right now in Trenton. A bit of background: Polistina has wanted to take the oath of office since he was named as the replacement. But in late June, Senate President Steve Sweeney, who traditionally administers the oath, gaveled the chamber out of session until November.

Polistina is also in a competitive race with Assemblymember Vince Mazzeo (D-Atlantic) for a full Senate term, which doesn't give Sweeney much motivation to call his members back.

Now, fast-forward to this week: South Jersey radio host Harry Hurley reported that Polistina was sworn in by a retired judge. But the Senate Dems say that it's not legitimate, as the New Jersey Globe reported.

"It's not official unless he's sworn in at a Senate quorum," a Senate Majority official also told POLITICO on Wednesday.

Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean, Jr. and state Sen. Joe Pennacchio say the swearing-in session was legitimate. Even so, swearing him in via a Senate session would be easy to do, they say.

"We don't have to bring everyone back to Trenton for a swearing in," Pennacchio (R-Morris) said in a statement. The Senate can quorum remotely, and Polistina can take the oath anywhere, any time."

WHERE'S MURPHY? — Traveling out-of-state with First Lady Tammy Murphy for a National Governors Association conference in Denver. They will return to New Jersey Friday afternoon of Friday. Lt. Gov. Oliver will serve as acting governor.

A REMINDER — New Jersey Playbook will be on a brief hiatus next week. But we will still be reporting! Keep following our work here.

WHAT TRENTON MADE

COVID-19 — Covid hospitalizations in New Jersey surpass 1,000 for first time since May, by POLITICO's Sam Sutton: Hospitalizations for confirmed or suspected Covid-19 cases have surpassed 1,000 in New Jersey for the first time since the spring. The state Department of Health's dashboard reported 1,012 presumed or coronavirus-positive patients across 71 acute care hospitals as of Tuesday night, more than any other day since May 11. Almost 200 patients were in intensive care and 92 required ventilators. The state also reported 1,766 new cases and 21 deaths of individuals who had tested positive for Covid-19. The estimated death toll in New Jersey, which was once the global epicenter of the pandemic, now stands at 26,796, the highest per capita death toll in the U.S.

RACIAL JUSTICE — "N.J.'s top court acknowledges racism, bias in criminal justice system. Here's its plan to change it.," by NJ Advance Media's Amanda Hoover: "The state Supreme Court on Wednesday announced a new plan to combat racism and other inequities in the state's courts, part of an ongoing effort to make judicial proceedings more fair for all New Jerseyans. The court last July issued its Action Plan for Ensuring Equal Justice and highlighted nine changes to reduce disparities and obstacles in the criminal justice system. The move was spurred by the national racial reckoning following the death of George Floyd — the Supreme Court has acknowledged the disparities that remain in New Jersey, where more than half of those incarcerated are Black, but racial minorities make up a slim margin of judges."

THE MORE NJ POLICY DEBATES CHANGE, THE MORE THEY STAY THE SAME — "Local leaders cheer return of UEZ funding, but criticism persists," by the New Jersey Monitor's Nikita Biryukov: "Questions about whether the Urban Enterprise Zone program actually helps residents living in designated communities have circulated for years. The 38-year-old program allows businesses in certain economically disadvantaged areas to charge consumers a reduced sales tax rate of about 3.3%, while providing them with a series of other tax breaks meant to revitalize distressed communities. The state finalized a slate of reforms last week supporters say will revitalize a program that saw its funding slashed under Gov. Chris Christie. But critics, who for years have questioned whether the UEZ program helps residents or is merely an avenue for business tax cuts, insist it remains a poor use of state funds."

MARK YOUR CALENDARS — ELEC rejects Murphy campaign request to hold earlier debates, by POLITICO's Carly Sitrin: The New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission on Wednesday rejected Gov. Phil Murphy's campaign request to hold all three gubernatorial debates in one week. According to an ELEC statement, the governor's campaign sought to hold the debates "as early as possible" on Sept. 28, Sept. 30 and Oct. 5 "for the benefit of vote-by-mail voters" who may receive ballots as early as Sept. 18. The dates: ELEC has scheduled the gubernatorial candidates, Murphy and Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli, to debate each other are Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. in Newark at an event organized by NJ Performing Arts Center and at 8 p.m. and Oct. 12 in Glassboro sponsored by NJ PBS. The lieutenant gubernatorial candidates, Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver and former state Sen. Diane Allen, will debate Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. in Lawrenceville at an event arranged by The New Jersey Globe.

INTRODUCING OTTAWA PLAYBOOK : Join the growing community of Politicos — from lawmakers and leaders to pollsters, staffers, strategists and lobbyists — working to shape Canada's future. Every day, our reporting team pulls back the curtain to shed light on what's really driving the agenda on Parliament Hill, the true players who are shaping politics and policy across Canada, and the impact it all has on the world. Don't miss out on your daily look inside Canadian politics and power. Subscribe to Ottawa Playbook today.

BIDEN TIME

REFUGEES — "First group of Afghan refugees arrive in N.J.," by NJ Advance Media's Karin Price Mueller: "The first group of Afghan refugees has arrived at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey, the National Guard confirmed to NJ Advance Media. 'One bus came in overnight,' spokesman Capt. Christopher Bowyer-Meeder said. Citing security concerns, he did not say how many people arrived, how many more are expected or whether air transport has been or will be used."

— "NJ welcomes Afghan refugees, but you won't hear Murphy call it a 'sanctuary state' ," by The Record's Charlie Stile: "You won't hear Gov. Phil Murphy pledging to make New Jersey a sanctuary state for undocumented immigrants and desperate Central American refugees this campaign cycle. But when it comes to refugees fleeing Afghanistan? Murphy is welcoming them with open arms. In a letter to President Joe Biden on Sunday, the governor said New Jersey 'stands ready to welcome our Afghan allies.' For some Democrats, Murphy's sanctuary state remark of the 2017 campaign was a bridge too far from New Jersey's center-left tradition, especially in South Jersey and the bedroom communities that tend to hew to a more centrist, socially conservative history. Some within the state Democratic Party argued that his progressive tone may have sacred off some middle-of-the-road voters."

SALT CAP — "U.S. House paves way to increase property tax breaks after delay spurred by N.J. Democrat," by NJ Advance Media's Jonathan D. Salant: "The U.S. House on Tuesday cleared the way to begin drafting a $3.5 trillion spending bill that is expected to ease the Republican tax law 's $10,000 cap on deducting state and local taxes — something that's gotten lot of attention in high-property tax New Jersey. ... The bill also would allow Congress to increase the deduction for state and local taxes. The current cap disproportionately affects New Jersey and other high-tax states, most of which send billions of dollars more to Washington than they receive in services. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive research group, said 80% of the 1.9 million New Jerseyans who would benefit from removing the cap had an average income of $216,000 or less, even though 72% of the benefits would go to the richest 5%."

MALINOWSKI — "Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski puts his personal assets in a blind trust after violating federal stock disclosure laws," by Business Insider's Dave Levinthal: "Rep. Tom Malinowski — beset by ethics questions involving his personal finances — is ceding most control over his seven-figure stock fortune. The New Jersey Democrat has created and shifted financial assets into a blind trust after Insider earlier this year revealed he violated the federal STOCK Act by not disclosing dozens of financial transactions, including a flurry of stock purchases and sales during the initial days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The blind trust, which Malinowski detailed in a 25-page document filed August 17 with congressional officials, is operated by an independent trustee."

LOCAL

NEWARK — "City Council President Mildred Crump resigns, Her son is sworn-in to at-large seat," by TapInto Newark's Tom Wiedmann and Mark J. Bonamo: "Newark's first African American councilwoman, Mildred Crump, resigned on Tuesday from her position as council president, bringing an end to her historic role in public service. In a letter from Crump read into the record by City Clerk Kenneth Louis during a special meeting, Crump said she resigned because she was 'unable to effectively perform' her duties as a councilwoman. Although the letter didn't specify as to why Crump, who is 82-years-old, could no longer fulfill her role, she had been absent for multiple council meetings in recent months due to health complications. Crump's resignation was first reported by the New Jersey Globe."

— "No special election in November planned for Newark council president's seat that was filled by her son," by NJ Advance Media's Rebecca Panico: "State statute says if a vacancy occurs on a municipal body before Sept. 1, then a special election must be held 'at the next general or regular municipal election, whichever occurs first.' That would mean November and not May 2022, when Newark holds its municipal elections and the mayor and all council seats go up for a vote. Yet, Louis — the city clerk — said that won't happen. 'The problem here is a question of timing,' Louis said, noting that petitions also have to be collected by potential candidates. 'The county clerk has a deadline when he has to have his ballots printed and we don't have the time to run the full process for a municipal election.'"

JERSEY CITY — "Jersey City mayor submits 6,000 petition signatures for releection," by The Jersey Journal's Ron Zeitlinger: "Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop, seeking his third term in office, filed more than 6,000 signed petitions with the City Clerk's Office Wednesday. With the deadline to submit petitions Aug. 30, a campaign spokesman said Fulop is expected to file even more signatures to before the deadline. The mayor is being challenged by educator and activist Lewis Spears in the Nov. 2 election, in which all nine City Council seats are also up for grabs. Spears said he also submitted his nominating petitions Wednesday."

— Editorial: " Liberty State Park is our tour de force. Who has the courage to defend it?"

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EVERYTHING ELSE

DO YOU HAVE THE ANTIBODIES? — "Worse COVID symptoms lead to more antibodies, Rutgers study says," by The Record's Lindy Washburn: "A study that has followed hundreds of Rutgers health care workers and other staff since the beginning of the COVID pandemic has provided new insights into who develops the strongest immune responses to COVID-19 and how common it is to be infected without symptoms or to develop long-lasting symptoms. Researchers found that health care workers, especially nurses, were more likely to become infected during the first six months of the pandemic. They more often developed severe symptoms and produced longer lasting antibodies to fight the disease. Symptoms such as brain fog, loss of taste and smell, and shortness of breath lasted at least a month for a third of the participants who became sick — and at least four months for 10% of them. But 15% of infected study participants had no symptoms."

MASKING — "N.J. district backpedals on mask policy that would have gone against Murphy's orders," by NJ Advance Media's Rebecca Panico: "The school board in Gov. Phil Murphy's hometown voted on an amended mask policy Tuesday night after apparently nixing a portion that became out-of-compliance with the governor's executive orders. The Middletown school board originally proposed a resolution last week that would allow the district to accept an individual or parental 'testimonial letter' as evidence that wearing a mask inhibits the individual's health. A note from a health care provider could also be accepted."

— The Record: " NJ Chamber makes COVID vaccine mandatory. Is your private employer next?"

— The Record: "Dueling petitions in Wayne gain signatures for and against masks in schools"

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