News : POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Investigators looked at Caddle payments to top Dem aide

Friday, March 11, 2022

POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Investigators looked at Caddle payments to top Dem aide

Mar 11, 2022

Presented by American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation

Good Friday morning!

Union County Democrats thought the state investigation into the spending by super PACs and non-profits linked to Sean Caddle, and any contracts that may have been linked to them, wrapped up in the spring of 2020.

It turns out the state was still looking into it at least until pretty recently. Not only that, but state investigators were examining a top Union County Democratic operative: Tony Teixeira, who has since become chief of staff to Senate President Nick Scutari.

I obtained a document from the investigation dated Sept. 28, 2021. It demands Caddle explain $46,000 in payments his firm, Arkady, allegedly made to Teixeira and his late wife, Marlenes.

So it seems pretty clear from this that the state investigation is or was a serious matter. At the time of the alleged payments, Teixeira was chief of staff to then-state Sen. Ray Lesniak (D-Union) and, towards the end of the payments, became Elizabeth Democratic chair. So yes, state authorities were looking into payments to the Democratic leader of New Jersey's fourth largest city who has since become the chief o staff to the Senate president.

I consider this a big deal. But the question I have is whether this state investigation was stopped by the federal proceedings. Caddle, after all, signed his guilty plea just a month after this subpoena and is cooperating in an undisclosed federal investigation. Hopefully we'll learn more soon.

Read the details here.

DAYS SINCE MURPHY REFUSED TO SAY WHETHER HIS WIFE'S NON-PROFIT SHOULD DISCLOSE DONORS: 25

WHERE'S MURPHY? In Egg Harbor Township for an 11:30 a.m. opioid roundtable

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "A savage, a thug, a liar and a piece of crap." — Gov. Phil Murphy on Russian President Vladimir Putin after expounding on the leadership of the former American president who's the namesake of James Monroe Elementary School, where he held an event on school funding

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Assembly Majority Leader Lou Greenwald, former Rep. Andrew McGuire, NJHMFA's Danielle Esser. Saturday for Passaic County Commissioner John Bartlett, Gloucester County Commissioner Jim Jefferson, Lumberton Administration Jay Springer, internet guy Scott Shields. Sunday for former Justice John Wallace Jr., Murphy political director Michael DeLamater, Chemistry Council's Council's Ed Waters, consultant Pablo Fonseca, Orsted's Davon McCurry,

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

A message from American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation:

No worker should have to choose between their health and a paycheck, but that's exactly what a loophole in state law forces Atlantic City casino employees to do every day. It's past time to eliminate the casino smoking loophole by passing S264/A2151, bipartisan bills supported by legislators across the state and which Gov. Murphy says he'll sign. Learn why thousands of casino employees are speaking out on this life and death matter.

WHAT TRENTON MADE

UNEMPLOYMEN — Labor commissioner defends department's handling of unemployment claims, by POLITICO's Katherine Landergan: The state's top labor official on Thursday defended the Murphy administration's handling of the unemployment claims crisis during the pandemic as lawmakers scorched his department for not doing enough to help out-of-work New Jerseyans. Department of Labor Commissioner Robert Asaro-Angelo testified before the Senate Labor Committee in Trenton for more than three hours during a hearing that was sometimes heated. "I am begging you to do something different," Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex), a committee member, told the commissioner. "I know that you have this preconceived notion already embedded in your head that you say is steeped in facts, but we are all getting an entirely different picture."

—"DePhillips to propose articles of impeachment against Asaro-Angelo"

—" Mega-sites, mobile units needed to help with N.J. unemployment claims, lawmakers say"

MURPHYWOOD — " NJ approves $13 million in tax credits for film and TV productions in Bergen, Morris," by The Record's Daniel Munoz: "New Jersey officials approved more than $13.2 million in subsidies Wednesday for film and TV projects in the Garden State, including a spy drama filmed in East Rutherford, a sci-fi movie in Boonton and a reality show in Newark. Gov. Phil Murphy revived the incentive program in the summer of 2018, after the program was put on hiatus for several years. Since then, New Jersey has awarded nearly $264 million to production companies to lure them into the state. The program compensates film, television and media productions by providing credits to offset companies' business and income tax bills."

MURPHY SUPPORTS EXPANSION OF CHARCUTERIE BOARDS — "NJ denies charter expansions. Is it a sign of growing NJEA, or local schools opposition?" by The Record'sMary Ann Koruth : "Acting Secretary of the Department of Education Angelica Allen-McMillan notified the charter schools, including Achiever's College Prep, that their requests to expand were denied during the state's five-year renewal process for charters. Achiever's wanted to add grades 10, 11, and 12. In total, the state denied nine out of 17 expansion requests by charter schools in New Jersey, according to the New Jersey Public Charter Schools Association. The state also denied a request to expand and add high school grades to the 900-student K-8 Community Charter School of Paterson. The state gave the school a Tier-2 or middle performance rating. Allen-McMillan's letter said she had 'significant concerns' about students' proficiency in mathematics and the progress of elementary students into middle school. But, five of the denials were issued to top-performing schools awarded Tier 1 ratings by the state. The state had no grounds for these denials, which will displace hundreds of students who now have to find new schools, said officials at the Public Charter Schools Association … Since 2016, the NJEA has asked Gov. Phil Murphy and the Department of Education to freeze any charter school growth in the state until changes are made in a 1997 law that allows charters to operate in the state. The governor's office has sole authority to approve or revoke contracts for all New Jersey's charter schools. The NJEA is one of Murphy's largest campaign donors."

INCARCERATION — "NJ had one of largest prison population drops in the U.S., study finds," by Gothamist's Karen Yi: "New Jersey's prison population fell by one-third last year, making it among the leaders of decarceration efforts during the pandemic, according to a new report by the Vera Institute of Justice. The study by the national nonprofit criminal justice reform group looked at the number of incarcerated people at the end of 2019 through 2021, finding an overall 16% decline in population, nationally. But while states like New Jersey and New York continued to decrease their inmate counts throughout the pandemic (33% and 29%, respectively), other states added to their numbers after an initial drop."

MASKDATE — Murphy announces end of mask mandate for state buildings, by POLITICO's Daniel Han : One of New Jersey's last remaining mask mandates is going away. Gov. Phil Murphy announced on Twitter Thursday that beginning Monday, masks will no longer be required inside state executive branch buildings. Most masking requirements around the state now come mostly via federal rules. People must wear face coverings on trains, buses and airplanes. School buses are exempt from that rule. People in health care facilities are also required to wear masks.

BECAUSE THE RENOVATION MADE THE USABLE STATEHOUSE LOBBY SMALLER — New Jersey lobbyists spent $93.7M in 2021, by POLITICO's Katherine Landergan: New Jersey lobbyists spent about $93.7 million in 2021, a drop of more than $13 million from 2020, according to annual reports filed with the state Election Law Enforcement Commission. The 2021 total is preliminary and will likely be higher, according to ELEC. The agency said that even at the current level, the figure is significant, and is the third-highest spending year on record. Jeff Brindle, ELEC's executive director, said spending in 2020 was unusually high because of the pandemic, which prompted an increase in regulations. The New Jersey Education Association and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey both reported higher spending in 2020 because of pandemic-related policies. Horizon, the state's largest health insurer, also increased spending through another entity, Move Health Care Forward NJ Inc., to lobby for legislation to restructure itself.

— "N.J. lawsuit says district choice could help desegregate schools. Would it work?"

—"Murphy's rebate plan: Who gets how much"

—" NJ to send monitors into troubled nursing home that stacked bodies in makeshift morgue"

—"In Democratic bastion, liberal rhetoric is out. 'Affordability' is in"

—"Super PAC connected to Norcross will host fundraiser with Scutari"

— New Jersey school districts to get nearly $10B in state aid this year

—Mulshine: "Phil Murphy's new budget can't cure New Jersey's SALT addiction "

—"Pass, enact the Liberty State Park Protection Act | Opinion"

— Durr wants to provide New Jerseyans with $500 gas tax rebate

—"Ex-inmates can get up to $8K for each year they didn't get special ed classes in N.J. prisons, court says "

—"Assembly bill would let students skip one day of school for civic engagement"

SUBSCRIBE TO NATIONAL SECURITY DAILY : Keep up with the latest critical developments from Ukraine and across Europe in our daily newsletter, National Security Daily. The Russian invasion of Ukraine could disrupt the established world order and result in a refugee crisis, increased cyberattacks, rising energy costs and additional disruption to global supply chains. Go inside the top national security and foreign-policymaking shops for insight on the global threats faced by the U.S. and its allies and what actions world leaders are taking to address them. Subscribe today.

BIDEN TIME

AND IRAN, IRAN'S SO FAR AWAY — Iran nuclear talks close to collapse over Russian demands, by POLITICO's Stephanie Liechtenstein and Nahal Toosi: The Iran nuclear talks are on the precipice of collapse over last-minute Russian demands for sanctions protection, according to two diplomats. Negotiations have reached an impasse over the Russian requests, diplomats said, imperiling the revival of a 2015 landmark deal under which Iran limited its nuclear ambitions in exchange for sanctions relief. Russia is requesting that any return to the agreement include guarantees that any future Russian business with Iran be exempt from EU and U.S. sanctions — a late curveball from Moscow in response to the crippling penalties the country is facing over its invasion of Ukraine.

A message from American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation:

LOCAL

THAT'S WHY YOU NEED KEVIN COSTNER AS MAYOR — "'No one is helping Manville': Mayor blames 'overdevelopment' for devastating floods," by MyCentralJersey's Mike Deak: "Manville Mayor Richard Onderko is mad and he's not going to take it anymore. The mayor started his crusade against what he called 'overdevelopment' in Somerset County by visiting the Somerville Borough Council on Monday to tell its members that construction in the county has led to catastrophic flooding in his hometown, at the confluence of the Raritan and Millstone rivers. 'I am not happy when I see my citizens suffer,' he said, adding he will bring his message to all of Somerset County's 21 municipalities. Though Onderko said he is a believer in climate change, he argued that stormwater from construction in the county ends up on the streets of Manville and exacerbates flooding. 'Where is all that stormwater going to go?' he said. 'It's going to Manville.'"

JERSEY CITY — "Jersey City Council approves $25K raise for its members with some objectors," by The Jersey Journal's Jake Maher : "The Jersey City Council voted to give its members a 29% raise at its Wednesday meeting, raising the salary for a councilmember from $60,000 to $85,000. The council president will make $90,000 in the new pay scale. Councilmembers James Solomon, Frank Gilmore, and Amy DeGise voted against the legislation. All other members voted in favor of it. Gilmore spoke out against the ordinance, citing his experience working for the Jersey City Department of Public Works and Recreation Department as evidence that council members should prioritize raises for others before themselves."

A POSITION SO IMPORTANT THAT IT WAS VACANT FOR OVER SIX YEARS — "Hoboken Mayor Bhalla taps former Police Chief Ferrante as new public safety director," by Hudson County View's John Heinis: "Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla has tapped former Police Chief Kenneth Ferrante as their new public safety director, set to assume his new role next week … Bhalla and Ferrante both came out in favor of a plan for a public safety headquarters at 1501 Adams St., the site of the Poggi Press building, earlier this week. The city council voted 5-4 to approve the potential use of eminent domain last night, with Council members Mike DeFusco, Tiffanie Fisher, Ruben Ramos, and Jen Giattino voting no. A $44 million bond related to the project, which requires six affirmative votes, was carried until the next meeting. Ferrante, also a former Hoboken Office of Emergency Management coordinator, retired as police chief in July after 28 years of service. The public safety director position has been vacant since Jon Tooke retired at the end of 2015 … at an annual salary of $155,000."

BEEN SPENDING MOST OUR TIME WORKING IN A HOARDER'S PARADISE — "Trenton clerk's office a 'hoarder's paradise' as more meetings cancelled ," by The Trentonian's Isaac Avilucea: "As Trenton inches closer toward elections, city leaders, government transparency advocates and residents said officials must find an immediate replacement for the clerk as Trenton falls further behind on municipal business. Now that clerk consultant Anthony Conti told city officials to take this job and shove it, a search begins anew for Conlon's fill-in … Legislators hoped former Trenton clerk Conti would come aboard and straighten out other business in the clerk's office, including issuing overdue business licenses and catching up on hundreds of public records requests that haven't been fulfilled for more than six months. Mayor Reed Gusciora took a hatchet to that idea last week, when he fired off a missive to the New Jersey Attorney General accusing political foe Conti of having a conflict. Also chairman of the Mercer County Board of Elections, Conti has a voice in redistricting Trenton's ward map. He didn't buy the alleged conflict and said Thursday that no one from the state determined Gusciora's claim had any validity before he dashed out the door, feeling unfairly assailed by the alleged meritless gripe … A DCA official who visited the clerk's office feared that Conlon had the place bugged with extra cameras, Conti said. And Muschal said the office was in disarray, calling it a 'hoarder's paradise.'"

OLMO. OLMO. OLMO MO MO MO MO! — 'After some back and forth, Paramus hires new borough administrator," by The Record's Stephanie Noda: "Hector Olmo is the borough's new administrator following a month-long search that caused tensions between the mayor and council members. Olmo was approved by unanimous vote by the Council on Tuesday night with a salary of $135,000. The Republican-majority Council had hoped to hire Olmo, the administrator in Wallington and a Republican councilman in Cresskill, in February. 'This is as it should have been,' said Councilman Chris DiPiazza … Mayor Richard LaBarbiera, however, said at the time there hadn't been a proper candidate search and the pick, he believed, had been negotiated outside Borough Hall."

WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROTONDO — "Palisades Park Democrats decline to back mayor for re-election,' by New Jersey Globe's David Wildstein : "The Palisades Park Democratic County Committee will not support the re-election of Mayor Christopher J. Chung and instead voted to support Paul Kim, a councilman, as their mayoral candidate. Chung told the New Jersey Globe that he would run off the line in the June 7 Democratic primary after losing the county committee vote 11-3. 'I am still running for re-election,' Chung said … Chung ran off the line for mayor in 2018 and ousted four-term incumbent James Rotundo by eight votes, 48.7% to 47.3%, in the Democratic primary. He became the first Korean-American mayor of the Bergen County municipality, where an estimated 65% of the population is Korean-American. Rotondo is still the Democratic municipal chairman in Palisades Park and a majority of the Democratic county committee seats are still occupied by white residents. He backed Kim for mayor."

—"Paterson won't release body cam footage from police encounter with man who went missing"

—"Back from Poland, [Point Pleasant Beach] mayor now wants to focus on helping Ukrainians from home"

—" Councilwoman intends to sue [Roselle], says administrator, CFO violated her civil rights"

—" Mahwah town council withdraws Route 17 retail cannabis store proposal"

—"Jersey City BOE staring down $68.5 million state aid cut: 'It's very disappointing'"

—"Cherry Hill JCC gets second bomb threat in two days"

DON'T MISS POLITICO'S INAUGURAL HEALTH CARE SUMMIT ON 3/31: Join POLITICO for a discussion with health care providers, policymakers, federal regulators, patient representatives, and industry leaders to better understand the latest policy and industry solutions in place as we enter year three of the pandemic. Panelists will discuss the latest proposals to overcome long-standing health care challenges in the U.S., such as expanding access to care, affordability, and prescription drug prices. REGISTER HERE.

EVERYTHING ELSE

CHAIM SCHEINBUM — "Advocates were berated, bullied when they tried to investigate alleged nursing home abuse, says lawsuit," by NJ Advance Media's Susan K. Livio and Ted Sherman: "A legal advocacy group investigating the suspected mistreatment of disabled residents at a North Jersey nursing home has sued the owners, claiming they have repeatedly used verbal intimidation tactics to deny access to the facility. Disability Rights New Jersey, a nonprofit created under federal law to represent the legal interests of people with mental and developmental disabilities, filed a lawsuit against Woodland Behavioral and Nursing Center at Andover on Tuesday that demanded a judge order unfettered access to residents, their living quarters and their records. A court hearing is scheduled for Friday. On numerous occasions since Feb. 18, Woodland's owners and administrators have yelled at investigators, followed them closely and interrupted their conversations with residents, according to the lawsuit. One of the owners, Chaim 'Mutty' Scheinbaum 'demanded that the Disability Rights NJ team remain confined to his office and threatened to call the police if they left' on one occasion last month,' according to the lawsuit."

—" Why is this N.J. nursing home ranked so poorly? Look at the troubling numbers"

— "Bombs, bandits and a frozen border: NJ native recounts harrowing escape from Ukraine"

—"Rutgers part-time faculty looks to join full-time professors union"

—" A 'ticking time bomb': Gas, groceries, cars all pricier as inflation takes toll on NJ"

—"Batman's Batman: Why N.J.'s Michael Uslan is the father of the superhero film craze"

—"Rutgers to make masks optional for some spaces on all campuses"

A message from American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation:

No worker in New Jersey should have to choose between their health and a paycheck, but that's exactly what a loophole in state law forces Atlantic City casino employees to do every day. It's past time to eliminate the casino smoking loophole by passing S264/A2151, bipartisan bills supported by legislators across the state and which Gov. Murphy says he'll sign. New Jersey should not allow any worker to be subjected to known carcinogens. Atlantic City casinos have been setting revenue records and operating with the fewest employees in years. Now is the time to protect casino employees. Just like restaurants adapted and thrived 16 years ago, casinos will do the same—and going smokefree can be a win-win, as several Pennsylvania casinos have voluntarily gotten rid of smoking and are setting revenue records. Learn why thousands of casino employees are speaking out on this life and death matter.