News: POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Jersey guy headlines today's Jan. 6 hearing

Monday, June 13, 2022

POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Jersey guy headlines today's Jan. 6 hearing

Jun 13, 2022

Presented by New Jerseyans for Affordable Rx

Good Monday morning!

I keep this newsletter very focused on New Jersey, so last week I didn't include anything about the hearing by the House committee investigating Jan. 6, compelling as it was.

Today's hearing is different. Bill Stepien, former President Donald Trump's 2020 campaign manager, is scheduled to testify this morning.

If you've been in the business of New Jersey politics for a while , you probably knew Stepien. You might know him even if you're new. New Jersey Senate Republicans' campaign arm currently pays his firm, National Public Affairs, for political consulting. And he's the guy largely considered responsible for former Ocean GOP Chair George Gilmore's pardon (When Stepien, reeling from Bridgegate eight years ago, had trouble finding work, the Gilmore-connected GOPAC put him on the payroll).

"Mr. Stepien, who rarely speaks in public, is appearing under subpoena, raising questions about how willing a witness he will be against Mr. Trump," The New York Times reports.

An interesting thing about Stepien is that, though he was a participant in the baseless allegations about election integrity after the vote, he's come out of this cleaner than he did in the much more low-stakes Bridgegate scandal. It's hard to say if that will continue after this. If his testimony reflects poorly on Trump, he'll be persona non-grata with much of the GOP. If he's uncooperative or pugnacious, he'll stay in good graces with the people he works for, but will be more publicly-associated with that time a former president refused to acknowledge a free and fair election. Tune in to find out, but the number of references to and pictures of Trump on Stepien's firm's website makes me think the latter is more likely.

DAYS SINCE MURPHY REFUSED TO SAY WHETHER HIS WIFE'S NON-PROFIT SHOULD DISCLOSE DONORS: 117

WHERE'S MURPHY? — In Newark for a 2 p.m. high rise "topping off ceremony". Then in Sandy Hook at 5:30 p.m. for The Jersey Shore Partnership Foundation's "Annual Summer Celebration."

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Sometimes it's better to be lucky than to be good. And we are so lucky. You pray for this stuff, and then it happened. So, the point is not to squander it. Don't go crazy. That's all I'm saying." — Former Senate President Steve Sweeney advocating for a big budget surplus

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

A message from New Jerseyans for Affordable Rx:

Costs in New Jersey are sky high – and that includes prescription drug costs. Every year, Big Pharma raises the price of life-saving medications. Fortunately, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) negotiate with drug companies to reduce Rx costs for patients. As this legislative session ends, let's remind our representatives to support patient advocates like PBMs and make all entities in the drug supply chain do their part to lower costs. https://www.affordablerxnj.com/.

WHAT TRENTON MADE

NEUWIRTH NEUWS — Superior Court Judge Douglas Hurd has made his last two substantial rulings on former DOH Assistant Commissioner Chris Neuwirth's whistleblower lawsuit on Friday afternoon. So let's catch up here. This past Friday's decision was a mixed bag for each party. The good for the Murphy administration: Hurd dismissed Helmy and and Attorney General Matt Platkin as defendants in the case, citing the statute of limitations. But Neuwirth will get something he wants. Hurd refused to quash part of Neuwirth's subpoena to get information from the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability as to who in the governor's office allegedly asked it to conduct a probe into Neuwirth — one he only found out about after filing the lawsuit. This lawsuit looks like it's going to continue to slowly drag on. But we might at least get some juicy information soon.

CAUGHT IN THE CADDLE STAMPEDE — "Former state Sen. Ray Lesniak loves being the center of attention. Just not this kind ," by The Record's Dustin Racioppi, Ashley Balcerzak and Charles Stile: "As Lesniak sampled his insalata del radicchio, a monsignor he has known for decades stopped by and informed Lesniak he was retiring. A third person to 'bow and kiss the ring,' as Lesniak joked, was Steven Weiner, the son of Lesniak's former law partner, declaring that Lesniak — who published an autobiography in April — was his favorite author. Lesniak turned to his dining partners. 'If you haven't figured it out yet,' he said, 'I love being the center of attention.' And yet Lesniak, who is 76, now finds himself receiving an abundance of attention that he didn't court — about a topic he doesn't relish. In late January, Sean Caddle, Lesniak's two-time campaign manager, admitted in federal court to hiring hitmen to kill Caddle's former friend and associate, Michael Galdieri, in his Jersey City apartment in 2014. The explosive news sent the state's political establishment into a frenzy, especially after Caddle's attorney acknowledged that the 44-year-old political operative was cooperating with federal authorities in an 'important' investigation…"

"While no evidence links Lesniak to the investigation , that hasn't stopped speculation among politicians, operatives and others in Trenton. The former senator credits Caddle for rescuing his political career a decade ago. Caddle — who helped introduce the use of new, loosely regulated fundraising vehicles into New Jersey's local elections — also became Lesniak's go-to operative for other political fights, including Lesniak's years-long quest to wrest control of the Elizabeth school board through his political allies. Federal investigators were interested in Caddle's work with big-money super PACs and so-called "dark money" groups whose donors' identities are kept secret."

THE ONLY NEAR CERTAINTY IS THAT THEY'LL QUIETLY TRY TO BOOST SOMEONE'S RETIREMENT BENEFITS — "With N.J. budget deadline near, will Dems make good on vow for historic tax relief?" by NJ Advance Media's Derek Hall: "The Garden State is experiencing a surge in tax revenue unlike any in modern history, with collections coming in more than $13 billion higher than the pre-pandemic peak in 2019. State Treasury officials told lawmakers in May that the state will likely collect a staggering $51.4 billion by the end of June. But the New Jersey taxpayers fueling that surge in revenue have heard very little from the Democratic lawmakers who control both houses of the state Legislature. Within minutes of the historic revenue update, state Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex, issued a statement calling for 'the largest tax relief program in state history.' That was nearly five weeks ago. A top legislative source on Friday said Coughlin's tax break request is still on the table, though 'what form it takes' and the 'ultimate price tag' are uncertain. Gov. Phil Murphy and state Senate Budget Chairman Paul Sarlo, D-Bergen, on the other hand, are calling for the largest surplus in history to prepare the state for rough times ahead. It is still unclear if and how state leaders will accomplish both of those goals."

VOTER WHO WRITES IN OBSCENE FAKE CANDIDATE NAMES AFRAID HE'LL BE FOUND OUT — "Abysmal early voting turnout prompts privacy concerns," by New Jersey Monitor's Nikita Biryukov : "Abysmal early voting turnout in Tuesday's primaries has election officials and voting advocates concerned about voters' privacy. Only 20,230 voters cast early in-person votes during the state's three-day primary early voting period this year. While election officials are still counting votes, they have tallied more than 665,000 total ballots cast so far (the state has roughly 6.4 million registered New Jersey voters). In many of New Jersey's 21 counties, only several hundred voters cast their ballots in person before Election Day. In Salem County, just 97 voters cast early in-person votes. Low turnout could lead to problems with the secrecy of voters' ballots, said Jesse Burns, the executive director of the League of Women Voters of New Jersey. 'If you have a handful of votes in that district and somebody cross-references something like VAN, they might know who voted for what,' she said."

—"Friendly Fire: The progressive backlash in California, birth of NJ's Moderate Party and race for governor in 2025 "

—"Woman wins fight for $3K in unemployment benefits more than two years after applying"

CARTOON BREAK — "Machine politics goes to court," by Drew Sheneman

DON'T MISS THE 2022 GREAT LAKES ECONOMIC FORUM: POLITICO is excited to be the exclusive media partner again at the Council of the Great Lakes Region's bi-national Great Lakes Economic Forum with co-hosts Gov. JB Pritzker and Mayor Lori Lightfoot. This premier, intimate networking event, taking place June 26-28 in Chicago, brings together international, national and regional leaders from business, government, academia and the nonprofit sector each year. "Powering Forward" is this year's theme, setting the stage to connect key decision-makers with thought leaders and agents of change to identify and advance solutions that will strengthen the region's competitiveness and sustainability in today's competitive climate of trade, innovation, investment, labor mobility and environmental performance. Register today.

BIDEN TIME

MURPHY'S LEAVING ON A MIDNIGHT TRAIN TO GEORGIA. NEVERMIND, NJ TRANSIT CANCELED IT — "New Jersey aims to lure Georgia firms by warning of 'dangerous' anti-abortion policies ," by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Greg Bluestein and J. Scot Trubey: "New Jersey's governor recently made an extraordinary appeal to seven companies with deep roots in Georgia to relocate their businesses to protect female employees from the 'dangerous potential new reality' that the U.S. Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade. The letters from New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, cited his state's 2022 law that codifies the right to abortion and warned executives that reversing the landmark 1973 ruling in Roe v. Wade 'threatens the safety and quality of life' for women in Georgia and other states that seek to restrict access to the procedure … Versions of the letter were sent to seven unnamed companies in Georgia … In all, Murphy's office sent letters to more than 50 companies in states with anti-abortion laws, including Florida, Missouri, Ohio and Texas …. Gov. Brian Kemp's office was not aware of the New Jersey outreach until contacted by the AJC. In a lengthy statement that cited three companies that recently moved global or U.S. headquarters to Georgia from New Jersey, Kemp's office touted the state's pro-business climate and 'surging' international trade numbers. 'We're happy to engage in this comparison of Georgia's No. 1 business environment vs. New Jersey's,' Kemp spokeswoman Katie Byrd said."

NJ STILL IN IT, BOOSTING PROSPECT OF CONTEST BETWEEN ZACHARY TAYLOR-HAM AND JAMES K. PORK ROLL — "DNC: New York and Nebraska Democrats won't go early in 2024 primaries," by The Washington Post's Michael Sherer : "The Democratic National Committee on Saturday said it rejected applications from the state parties of New York and Nebraska to help kick off the 2024 presidential nominating process, leaving 16 other states and one territory in the running for the coveted spots. The announcement, by the co-chairs of the party's Rules and Bylaws Committee in a letter to members, is the first winnowing in a process established this year that aims to shake up the Democratic nominating contest order … The states and territory still under consideration are Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas and Washington state."

—Senators strike bipartisan gun safety agreement

—" N.J. Republicans rejected pro-Trump candidates, and it's good news for GOP chances at Biden midterm"

—Hugin: " New Jersey voters can use 2022 to hold Democrats accountable"

—Steinberg: "A tale of two family Republican legacies: Liz Cheney and Tom Kean, Jr."

—"Menendez 'proud' of the campaign his son ran"

A message from New Jerseyans for Affordable Rx:

LOCAL

BROKEN REED — "Ex-Trenton top cop Coley claims mayor fired her for not doing favors for councilman ," by The Trentonian's Isaac Avilucea: "Sheilah Coley issued officers a stand-down order during her time as Trenton Police director, but she's standing up to alleged rampant corruption and favoritism in Mayor Reed Gusciora's administration. The ex-police official claims in a whistleblower lawsuit filed this week that she endured racist and sexist discrimination while on the job for two years. And she claims she was wrongfully terminated because she refused to cave to pressure from Gusciora to restore White cops to positions from which they were removed for clear-cut violations of state laws and department regulations. Coley also says that she was leaned on to squash internal affairs investigations into two cops caught lying in applications about their residency statuses … The IA probe, which also focused on another cop who owned the building where the applicants claimed they were living, was eventually dropped after Coley was shown the door, according to the suit. Gusciora allegedly made the demands of his police director as a 'laundry list of favors' to South Ward Councilman George Muschal, a close ally who voted with the mayor '40 percent of the time,' the suit said. Coley is the third former cabinet member to sue the city over claims of untenable work conditions under Gusciora."

THREE EXTRAORDINARILY TINY DISTRICTS COULD BECOME ONE RIDICULOUSLY SMALL DISTRICT — "Atlantic Highlands, Highlands, Sea Bright schools might merge, boost NJ regionalization," by The Asbury Park Press' Jerry Carino: "In January, Gov. Phil Murphy signed a bill into law that dangles incentives for some smaller school districts to merge. Three waterfront municipalities in Monmouth County are taking a long look at it. Officials from Atlantic Highlands, Highlands and Sea Bright are considering such a consolidation after a study produced by Kean University examined their school districts and strongly recommended it. If this moves forward — signs are trending that way — it will be among the very first applications of the law and could form a template for other New Jersey towns. 'The experts did a phenomenal job of studying the question at hand and giving us the most updated view of the possibilities of regionalization,' said Tara Beams, superintendent of the Tri-District that oversees the current Atlantic Highlands and Highlands elementary school districts and Henry Hudson High School district. 'The recommendations in terms of tax savings and efficiencies make a lot of sense, but now we have to do the work of figuring out how to actually apply those recommendations.'"

DEGISE WILL ACCEPT RULING ALLOWING PEOPLE TO DO A THING, AS LONG AS THEY DON'T DO THAT THING — " ACLU gets restraining order to limit protests outside Hudson County exec's home dismissed," by Hudson County View's John Heinis: "The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey got a restraining order to limit protest outside Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise's home dismissed [Friday], about a year-and-a-half after the order was granted. Hudson County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Jablonski, now the assignment judge, ruled in December 2020 that only allowable picketing and protesting outside of DeGise's home, which were in response to the county's previous contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), under very specific circumstances … Jablonski wrote … that the demonstrations were peaceful and that no one was ever threatened or in danger due from protesters … In a phone interview, DeGise said that while he was disappointed in the decision, he can accept it as long as there aren't protesters in front of his house again. '… The only thing I ever wanted out of this was to stay off my block at midnight and they haven't since the injunction. So as long as they stay off, I don't care. I think they've moved on to somebody else and something else and as long as they're not on New York Avenue, I don't give a s***,' he explained."

—" NJ shore pop-up party 'organizer' chickens out after mayors get tough"

—"Middlesex County Revolutionary War site eyed for America's 250th birthday "

—"After lopsided results, voters to get another say in Newark's South Ward runoff"

—"It's ex-cop v ex-cop in Newark's East Ward city council runoff election Tuesday"

—" Newark runoff Tuesday pits platinum rapper vs. activist lawyer for West Ward council seat"

—"Video shows Holmdel School Board president's minor crash with student "

—"Ambrosino will step down as Camden GOP chairman, backs Ian Smith campaign manager as successor"

—"Tuckerton firefighters burn mayor and council over decision to suspend its fire department"

—" Former Paterson police sergeant seeks acquittal — or a new trial in corruption case"

—"Hoboken man who won lawsuit to obtain Nixle subscriber emails says city abused the system "

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.

EVERYTHING ELSE

—"Can a bagel brunch in Pompton Lakes bridge Jewish-Muslim divide? This NJ group is trying"

—"New Jersey seeking to evict decades-old sportsmen's club from Sunset Beach on the Delaware Bay"

—" NJ offshore wind means 9,500 jobs by 2045, advocates predict"

—"N.J. legal weed to launch at 3 more stores Wednesday"

A message from New Jerseyans for Affordable Rx:

We can all agree that costs in New Jersey are already sky high – and that includes prescription drug costs. Year after year, big drug companies raise the price of life-saving medications to increase their profits. Patients deserve better. As this legislative session comes to an end, let's remind our elected officials in Trenton to hold Big Pharma accountable and make all entities in the drug supply chain find real solutions to increase access to affordable prescription drugs without impacting services. That means supporting patient advocates like Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) that negotiate with Big Pharma to reduce Rx costs and put money back in the pockets of New Jersey families. It's time to stand up to special interests, cut unnecessary red tape, and let these advocates do what they do best - save patients money. https://www.affordablerxnj.com/.