News: POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Race for governor moves a few inches

Thursday, September 23, 2021

POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Race for governor moves a few inches

Sep 23, 2021

Presented by A Healthy Future, LLC

Good Thursday morning!

A poll from the Monmouth University Polling Institute — one of the most prominent outfits in the country — shows Gov. Phil Murphy's lead against Jack Ciattarelli among registered voters shrinking slightly from 16 points to 13 points.

That doesn't match the polling memos Ciattarelli's campaign and its conservative ally, Club for Growth, have touted showing a low single-digit race.

Monmouth is the only pollster who has shared the actual poll — not a dressed up "memo" that's really a press release intended for public consumption.

Republican State Committee executive director Tom Szymanski denigrated Monmouth in a tweet summarizing some of its off-the-mark results. And yes, it's had some misfires — just like most pollsters, especially in 2020. But this was curious: "Got NJ Gubernatorial race wrong by 13 pts. in '17."

Huh? In its final two polls of the 2017 race, Monmouth showed Murphy leading Republican Kim Guadagno by 14 points. The result: Murphy won by 14 points. Caveat: That was using a likely voter model, and the current poll is still of registered voters. But even a Monmouth model using voters who have cast ballots in every general election since 2016 shows Murphy ahead by 9.

If Republicans want to show that the race is closer than the limited public polling indicates, they should share their actual polls so we can all read them. And as for the idea that the press doesn't want this race to be closer: When has it benefited the media to have a snoozer to report on?

WHERE'S MURPHY? — In Hillside for an 11 a.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "People who refuse to get vaccinated have never seen a family member die on Facetime." — Jim, son of former Lakewood Planning Board member John Franklin, who died of Covid, as quoted by Murphy

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Rep. Tom Malinowski, MSNJ's Marlene Kalayilparampil, bank exec Ryan Peene

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

A message from A Healthy Future, LLC:

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WHAT TRENTON MADE

NOVID — Murphy: No immediate plans to assess his administration's Covid-19 response, by POLITICO's Sam Sutton: More than 18 months into a pandemic that has killed more than 27,200 New Jersey residents, Gov. Phil Murphy still has no timeline for formally assessing his administration's response to Covid-19. "Not a lot to add," Murphy said during his regular press briefing on Wednesday. With viral spread rampant and hospitalizations still hovering north of 1,000, it's unlikely Murphy, a Democrat, will make any announcement in the final weeks of his reelection bid regarding an oft-promised post-mortem of his administration's performance. While polling suggests voters support Murphy's pandemic response, which included the imposition of strict stay-at-home orders that shut down the state's retail economy last year, serious questions linger over the administration's oversight of outbreaks at state-run veterans homes in Paramus and Menlo Park — among the deadliest in the country — as well as its failure last spring to stem viral spread in long-term care facilities.

A CAMPAIGN ABOUT NOTHING — "What do Phil Murphy and Jack Ciattarelli want to do if elected? Neither offers much detail," by The Record's Dustin Racioppi: "Murphy's ambitions for a second term in November are considerably muted compared to the liberal policies he laid out in his campaign to succeed Republican Chris Christie, and he has yet to detail what, exactly, he plans to do the next four years if he wins reelection. Murphy has largely achieved his first-term plans, but also has unfinished business in Trenton if he does score another term: A package of new gun laws; ethics reforms; a Schools Development Authority to reconstruct; legally ensuring the right to an abortion; expanding pre-kindergarten access; and expanding voter access, among them … Ciattarelli hasn't exactly gained attention for groundbreaking policy in this campaign. A Republican former assemblyman, Ciattarelli has largely stuck to the traditional party message of promising to cut taxes, reduce spending and run government more efficiently — core tenets of his platform in his losing bid in the 2017 primary."

WOODCLIFF LAKE IS OFFICIALLY A PARTY TOWN — EDA approves first tax break under new subsidy program, by POLITICO's Katherine Landergan: Gov. Phil Murphy on Wednesday announced the approval of the first award under one of New Jersey's new job creation incentive programs. "When we began working on reforming the state's tax incentive program four years ago, this was exactly the type of award we envisioned — a project that will bring good, high-paying jobs to New Jersey at a reasonable investment," Murphy said in a statement. The state's Economic Development Authority approved a tax credit award of $9.97 million over seven years for Party City Holdings Inc., the largest retailer of party goods in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The company plans to consolidate its Rockaway, N.J., and Elmsford, N.Y., sites into one national headquarters in Woodcliff Lake, where it will invest more than $32 million to lease a 208,911-square-foot office building.

FERC IT — PennEast won't acquire land in New Jersey 'for some time,' putting pipeline project on hold, by POLITICO's Ry Rivard: Developers of the PennEast natural gas pipeline are giving up on any immediate plans to build in New Jersey, declaring this week they will not acquire land in the state "for some time." The controversial 116-mile pipeline would have carried natural gas from Pennsylvania to an interconnection in New Jersey, but is now delayed for the foreseeable future. PennEast's announcement comes three months after it won a U.S. Supreme Court case against New Jersey that gave the company a major green light to build on state lands. But PennEast Pipeline Co. faced other hurdles, indicating how even a win at the nation's highest court wasn't enough to get the project over the finish line. … In a statement Wednesday, PennEast said its project remains "designed to meet the growing energy needs of the United States."

SURE THEY WOULD'VE SAID THE SAME UNDER CHRISTIE — "New report warns despite surplus, N.J. has yet to confront its long term public pension, fiscal issues," by NJ Advance Media's Ted Sherman: "Despite the surging revenues and Wall Street's approval, with Moody's Investors Service earlier this summer upgrading New Jersey's credit outlook to 'positive' only a year after the rating agency saw dark clouds on the horizon, some warn that the state's fiscal house is still not in order.In a new report being released Wednesday, Garden State Initiative, a conservative New Jersey think tank focused on the state's economy, questioned the progress that has been made in addressing Trenton's long-term economic woes. "There still is a fundamental fiscal problem facing the state," said Thad Calabrese, an associate professor of Public and Nonprofit Financial Management New York University and one of the authors of the report. In particular, he said New Jersey needs to address 'once and for all the massive underfunding of its public employee pensions.'"

— "23 COVID outbreaks reported in N.J. schools, up from 6 last week"

— " Assemblyman Bergen makes his case for GOP leadership"

— "Bus driver shortage is a challenge, but N.J. not calling in National Guard, Murphy says"

— Golden: " Murphy v. Ciattarelli: A dramatic sea change unlikely"

— Testa: "COVID-19 prison release program may have cost innocent lives"

— " 'It brings us no joy.' Gov. Murphy defends mask mandate for toddlers amid criticism"

STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president's ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today.

BIDEN TIME

SALTED PORK — "SALT cap's temporary repeal is an option, Menendez says," by Bloomberg's Kaustuv Basu: "Democratic Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey said repealing the $10,000 cap on the federal deduction for state and local taxes for a few years could be a possibility as Congress wrestles with lawmakers' demands to scrap it. 'That's the beginning towards helping to create relief. That could be a possibility, but raising the cap doesn't solve anything,' Menendez said Tuesday. He said he expects agreement on SALT 'to get relief right to taxpayers who overwhelmingly are donors to the national good.'"

POLICE REFORM — Bipartisan police reform talks crumble, by POLITICO's Marianne LeVine and Nicholas Wu: The bipartisan police reform talks have officially collapsed. The end to the discussions comes after Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) spent months trying to reach an agreement with little progress. The negotiators had moved their self-imposed deadline for coming to a deal several times, but the differences between both sides ultimately proved too vast. Among the key sticking points was reforming qualified immunity, which shields police officers from civil liability for misdeeds. Negotiators hit a stalemate on that provision and ultimately decided to take it off the table and focus on a "slimmed down" version of the legislation. But even that proved too difficult. 'After months of exhausting every possible pathway to a bipartisan deal, it remains out of reach right now, even after working collaboratively with and securing the support of policing groups, Booker said Wednesday.

— "N.J. gets big money in aid for Ida — and Sandy — in House bill keeping government open"

— "4,600 N.J. businesses await specifics of Biden's vaccine mandate"

— "Gottheimer presses for House vote Monday on infrastructure bill"

LOCAL

THIS IS THE KIND OF S**T WHERE MOTHERF***ERS USE THE MAIL — "Jersey City mayor takes shot at school district spending in property tax bill letter," by The Jersey Journal's Joshua Rosario: "Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop slammed the Board of Education in a letter sent to residents with their tax bill that boasted about municipal tax cuts. Fulop, who is running for reelection in November, noted that his administration cut the municipal portion of the tax bill by nearly $1,000 to offset the $993 school district tax increase. He said he is proud to deliver a budget that will 'CUT TAXES,' in light of unprecedented circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic … Property tax bills consist of three portions — municipal taxes, county taxes and school taxes. 'We have worked hard to control the municipal portion of your taxes on the city level — the only portion our administration has direct control over,' the letter says. Fulop, who made it a point to note the school board is elected, failed to mention in the letter that the 30,000-student school district had to account for the continued loss of state aid when putting together an $814 million budget."

— "Jersey City BOE seeks to expand COVID-19 testing to vaccinated staff, students with parental consent"

— "Labor union SEIU 32BJ endorses Jersey City Mayor Fulop for re-election at City Hall"

THE FAMOUS PATERSON CHEESESTEAK — "'Would you eat this?' Paterson BOE wants to fix $5M lunch program after photos surface," by The Paterson Press' Joe Malinconico: "Stomach-turning photos of lunches served last week at Paterson International High School have prompted city Board of Education members to call for changes in the district's $5 million food services program. No one was denying the 'yuck' factor — or the authenticity — of the photos taken by a student and shared on a parent's social media accounts. 'Would you eat this? Would you serve this to your children? If the answer is 'no,' then why serve it to our children?' said Superintendent Eileen Shafer. 'Our students deserve a nutritious meal like every other child in this country. We will not tolerate this.' After the photos circulated on Twitter last Friday, district food services employees went to the school and confirmed that the lunches in question were improperly cooked and served."

WAYNE WORLD — "N.J. school district pays bus drivers more than in NYC, but still can't fill jobs," by NJ Advance Media's Rob Jennings: "A school district in Passaic County is altering bus routes and warning of other complications as it seeks to hire at least a dozen drivers. The plight of the K-12 Wayne district is the latest example in a nationwide shortage of school bus drivers exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. Superintendent Wayne Toback said, in addition to some unfilled vacancies from the summer, another five bus drivers have either resigned or indicated they will be leaving within the next few weeks. 'We haven't been able to hire this summer. We haven't been able to hire in the fall. There's zero candidates,' Toback said on Tuesday."

PROJECTION, THY NAME IS BILL SPADEA — "Robbinsville mayor blasts radio host over 'coward' barb about COVID-19 shutdown," by The Trentonian's Isaac Avilucea: "Republican Mayor Dave Fried slugged back at Bill Spadea in an interview Wednesday after he said the conservative radio host twice called him a 'coward' on air during morning-drive shows on New Jersey 101.5. Spadea apparently thought little of the mayor's decision to cancel last week's Community Day Festival as officials grapple with multiple coronavirus outbreaks in the township … Fried had his staff reach out to the station with an offer to debate Spadea after the host attacked him. The mayor said Spadea doubled down on the 'coward' barb Wednesday morning, leaving him miffed at the host for omitting critical facts about the process … The Trentonian reached out to Spadea and representatives at NJ 101.5 for comment on the 'coward' controversy."

CANDIDATE RECRUITMENT SUCCESS STORY — "GOP sheriff candidate in Bergen indicted, will be arraigned next month," by New Jersey Globe's David Wildstein: "The Republican candidate for Bergen County Sheriff will be arraigned on October 7 on corruption and official misconduct charges. Robert Kugler was suspended from his post as Saddle Brook police chief in March after the New Jersey Attorney General charged him with ordering police officers to provide escorts for a local funeral home he owns. The Bergen County Prosecutor immediately took control of the Saddle Brook Police Department. Kugler was indicted on September 13, the attorney general's office told the New Jersey Globe. He is scheduled to be arraigned just 26 days before he faces the voters in his bid to unseat incumbent Anthony Cureton. The indictment alleges that Kugler violated local ordinances by ordering police officers working their regular shifts to escort funeral processions to cemeteries inside and outside the borough without reimbursing the municipality for the cost. Since Kugler was charged by summons, he presently has no conditions to his release, according to Peter Aseltine, a spokesman for the attorney general's office. But that could change after Kugler appears before Superior Court Judge Ernest Caposela in two weeks."

— " Robinson takes the Somerset fight to Ciattarelli's backyard"

— "[Hamilton] reports 5 more cases of Legionnaires' disease, 1 death"

— " On-duty [Sea Girt] cop crashes into house, trailer"

— "Cyclists will ride 60 miles to N.J.'s capital to urge $65M purchase of rail line for bike trail"

JOIN TODAY FOR A WOMEN RULE CONVERSATION ON ENDING SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE MILITARY: Sexual assault in the military has been an issue for years, and political leaders are taking steps to address it. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) proposed bipartisan legislation to overhaul military sexual assault policies, but still face opposition. Join Women Rule for a virtual interview featuring Sens. Ernst and Gillibrand, who will discuss their legislative push and what it will take to end sexual assault and sexual harassment in the military. REGISTER HERE.

EVERYTHING ELSE

OMI OH MY! — "Local YouTuber charged by FBI in one of the largest cable TV piracy cases ever," by The Philadelphia Inquirer's Jeremy Roebuck: "With the business acumen of a Wharton grad and what authorities describe as the recklessness of a common thief, local YouTuber Bill Omar Carrasquillo went, in the span of just three years, from slinging drugs on a North Philadelphia street corner to running a multimillion-dollar streaming TV empire. He documented every step of that journey in videos posted online, advertising his subscription service and flaunting his newfound wealth in slickly produced footage of high-end sports cars and diamond-encrusted bling set to hip-hop beats. But all that came crashing down this week as federal authorities accused Carrasquillo — better known to the nearly 800,000 who subscribe to his YouTube channel as 'Omi in a Hellcat' — of heading one of the most brazen and successful digital piracy schemes of the last decade. And, as is only fitting for an internet celebrity who has made a career out of sharing his life online, his arrest early Tuesday at his Swedesboro home was livestreamed on social media."

— "Ethics violations dismissed against NJ attorney who 'Facebook friended' opponent for info"

R.I.P. — "N.J. actor Willie Garson from 'Sex and the City' dead at 57"

A message from A Healthy Future, LLC:

If Congressman Tom Malinowski and Congress cut Medicare to pay for the $3.5 trillion spending plan, the government could refuse to cover life-saving medicines and prevent breakthrough therapies for diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's, or diabetes. What about a vaccine for the next pandemic? This is a prescription for disaster. We can't let the government play doctor. We can't give government bureaucrats the authority to deny access to needed prescription medicines and ration care as a way of "saving money" to fund their multi-trillion-dollar wish list. Sign the petition and make sure Congressman Malinowski hears your voice today.