Good Thursday morning!Another court loss for former Sen. Bob Menendez. And his sentencing is next week.Prosecutors acknowledged they messed up when they included some information that was supposed to be redacted in evidence they gave to the jury on a laptop for deliberation. Prosecutors disclosed the effort themselves well after a jury convicted Menendez of every corruption count against him. And Menendez has sought a new trial.Judge Sidney Stein swatted the new trial request down, Ry Rivard reports. He noted the material, which he had blocked from consideration over the “Speech and Debate Clause,” was minimal.“That point bears repeating: it is extraordinarily unlikely that the jury was even aware of the minuscule amount of extra-record material on the laptop,” Stein wrote.Menendez’s sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 29. Prosecutors are asking for 15 years. Even Menendez’s attorneys, though vowing to appeal, aren’t trying to convince Stein to give him no prison time. They’re asking for just two years.The evidence flub provides some fodder for a Menendez appeal, but I still wonder if his best chance at freedom is in the Oval Office. Trump already commuted the sentence of Menendez’s friend and former co-defendant Sal Melgen during one of the last acts in his previous term in office, and expressed sympathy for Menendez following the previous corruption trial. And while Menendez isn’t popular with Republicans, Trump’s followers at least right now seem to accept and justify most if not all of what he does, so the blowback — even for pardoning a man convicted of such horrific corruption — would probably be limited. But I’m not spiting prosecutors and the FBI would be enough of a motivation for Trump to do it. Now, if some other reason else came along, I could see it. I won’t bother to speculate.
KOLLUR ME BADD – The new head of New Jersey Transit, Kris Kolluri, wants to resume negotiations with the train engineers union that could strike and upend the commute for tens of thousands of people across the region. A strike by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen could begin in late March after a 60-day cooling off period required by federal law.“You don’t need to wait 60 days, let’s do it tomorrow, let’s do it today, I’ll work all night,” Kolluri told reporters Wednesday following the formal release of the latest report on the labor dispute by a three-member board of mediators known as a presidential emergency board.The board’s report was largely a win for NJ Transit because the panel found the transit agency’s last offer to raise wages by 4 percent beginning in 2027 was the “most reasonable” compared to the union’s 14 percent demand. The union’s offer was, in the board’s view, “not only unwarranted and unreasonable, but also unaffordable.”MURPHY DENT — “How will NJ manage Trump? It’s a ‘two-face’ strategy for Murphy and Co.,” by The Record’s Charles Stile: “In less than 48 hours, Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration gave a glimpse of how it will maneuver amid the mayhem of The Sequel. Call it the two-face solution. On one hand, we have the ex-ambassador, Murphy, knocking on the door of the Donald Trump administration asking him to pump the brakes on New York’s congestion pricing program, which dings New Jersey drivers an extra $9 to enter midtown Manhattan. But on Tuesday, Attorney General Matthew Platkin was on the warpath, detailing his decision to join 17 other states, the District of Columbia and the city of San Francisco in suing to halt Trump’s executive order to end automatic citizenship for immigrant children born in the United States. … It’s clear that the Murphy administration is improvising a strategy on the fly as Trump, fueled by a toxic blend of grievance, vengeance and narcissism, begins to implement his long-promised agenda of disruption. Murphy and Platkin both boasted that they had been through this rodeo already, pushing back on Trump excesses in court and winning more often than losing, as they both said Tuesday. They believe that the battle scars from the first term have prepared them for the onslaught to come.”FINDING $2.9 BILLION WILL BE NO PROBLEM FOR THE KING OFFOLLOWTHROUGH—Gottheimer unveils tax policy plan, by POLITICO’s Madison Fernandez: Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer wants to cut spending in state government so much that even targeting soda machines is on the table. He released a tax plan Wednesday that addresses New Jersey’s looming fiscal gap while keeping to his pledge to lower taxes and grow the state’s economy. Gottheimer, who’s running in a crowded Democratic field to succeed term-limited Gov. Phil Murphy, has staked his campaign on lowering taxes and growing the local economy. The next governor will be dealing with a hefty budget deficit, posing a difficult task for Murphy’s successor next year. “I doubt you’re going to hear much of a plan from any of the folks running about how to close that gap, because it’s not as ‘sexy’ as proposing all kinds of new programs to win an election,” his plan states. … Gottheimer suggests an efficiency review, similar to what other states have done, to save 5 percent of government spending, which he estimates to be $2.9 billion, enough to get him out of a $2 billion structural deficit.BLEE HAPPY — “Longtime AOC Director Glenn Grant to step down, assignment judge to take over,” by Law.com’s Colleen Murphy: “After 16 years at the helm of the New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts, Judge Glenn A. Grant is retiring this coming March and will be replaced by Atlantic and Cape May Vicinage Assignment Judge Michael Blee. Grant has served as a Superior Court judge for 25 years and as acting director of the administrative office of the courts since 2008. Blee has served as a Superior Court judge in Atlantic and Cape May counties since 2012, where he rose to assignment judge in 2022.”—David Wildstein: “In late 2021, the legislature passed a special pension bill that allowed Grant to defer his pension and remain in his post beyond age 70 while still receiving post-retirement health care benefits. But the approval of Grant’s judicial pension was quietly removed from the State House Commission’s agenda nine months ago, and he has been collecting just 25% of his salary. Grant was slated to receive a $152,328-a-year pension after retiring from a $203,113 annual salary in January. It’s unclear whether the pension delay is connected to a February controversy where Grant ordered municipal court judges to disregard a law passed unanimously by the legislature and signed by Gov. Phil Murphy.”THE 6TH SENSELESSNESS — “N.J. Republican running for governor takes aim at Trump’s Jan. 6 pardons,” by NJ Advance Media’s Brent Johnson: “State Sen. Jon Bramnick, R-Union, one of four Republicans running this year to succeed Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, sharply criticized Trump’s decision to pardon those who engaged in violence that day, even as he said he supported other parts of the president’s agenda. President Trump has taken many encouraging actions on infrastructure, energy, securing the border and making the federal government more efficient in the first days of his administration,” Bramnick said in a statement. ‘However, I do not support his pardon of the violent participants who attacked police in the actions of January 6th, 2021.’ Bramnick’s statement mentioned officers who had been beaten with wooden poles and a crutch and shot with stun guns during the insurrection, saying their assailants ‘should remain in jail.’”
NORCROSSING THE LINE — “How corrupt ballots enable corrupt politics,” by Yael Bromberg for New Jersey Globe: “More than simply tilting the playing field, New Jersey’s corrupt ballots are the very foundation of machine politics in New Jersey, although the groundbreaking litigations have blunted their force. They warp incentives, making candidates beholden to party bosses who control ballot placement, rather than to voters. For decades, South Jersey political boss George Norcross perfected the use of this system. A wealthy insurance executive and former chair of the Camden County Democratic Party, he is arguably the state’s most powerful unelected individual. By controlling endorsements and ballot placement, he hand-picks ‘elected’ officials at every level of government. What was already an open secret in Trenton is made clear for all in the Attorney General’s racketeering indictment: George Norcross’s grip over state and local politics is absolute. He controls political appointments, party operations, and public contracts. And for those who dare cross him? He retaliates by pulling government jobs, canceling contracts, and leveraging his allies in government to make their lives difficult. This is what happens when party bosses can rig the rules.”
THE HARDT OF THE DEAL — “Trump taps Steinhardt as next U.S. Attorney,” by New Jersey Globe’s David Wildstein: “President Donald Trump will name Douglas J. Steinhardt, a state senator and former Republican state chairman, as acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, the New Jersey Globe has confirmed. Steinhardt, 56, has served in the State Senate since 2022. He had been state party chairman during Trump’s 2020 re-election and briefly sought the Republican nomination for governor in 2021 as a staunchly pro-Trump candidate. Steinhardt is a partner at Florio Perrucci, a major New Jersey law firm; for many years, his law partner was former Democratic Gov. Jim Florio. Trump’s transition team had considered four other candidates: State Sen. Michael Testa, Jr. (R-Vineland), Assemblyman Jay Webber (R-Morris Plains), former Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott McBride, and Andrew Carey, a former Middlesex County Prosecutor and, since 2019, the counsel to the U.S. Attorney’s office.”
BETTER CALL SAL — “Following scandal, a N.J. town has a new mayor. She’s an ally of the old mayor,” by NJ Advance Media’s Riley Yates: “Clark Township has a new mayor — and she is a familiar face at town hall. On Tuesday night, the township council appointed Angel Albanese to replace longtime Mayor Sal Bonaccorso, who was forced from office this month after pleading guilty to public corruption charges. Albanese, the president of the council, was the senior-most member of the Union County suburb’s all-Republican board. … She is a decades-long ally of Bonaccorso and supported him throughout the controversies that roiled Clark in recent years. … On Jan. 10, Bonaccorso was forced to step down after admitting to using township resources to benefit his private landscaping business and to forging signatures on permit applications for work his company performed. … Bonaccorso’s guilty plea came just days after he was sworn in for a seventh term after easily winning reelection alongside a slate of candidates that included Albanese. Clark voters backed them despite the charges against Bonaccorso and a racism scandal in which he and police brass were caught on tape using racial slurs that included the n-word.”PATERSON — “Paterson’s 4 Black school board members protest being passed over for committee chairs,” by The Paterson Press’ Joe Malinconico: “The four African American members of the city Board of Education have withdrawn from their committee assignments over their displeasure with the new president’s choices for chairperson positions. Those board members — Valerie Freeman, Della McCall, Kenneth Simmons and Corey Teague — objected to the fact that not one of the Black commissioners was picked to lead any of the six main committees. “We talked about inclusion, but that’s not what I saw,” McCall said of the committee chairperson selections made last week by board President Eddie Gonzalez. Gonzalez accused his board colleagues of trying to ‘weaponize race,’ saying they were using ‘propaganda to push their agenda.’”THE NETFIX IS IN — “Greed over Netflix studio is behind county’s bid to take over private airport, owner says,” by New Jersey Monitor’s Dana DiFilippo: “The owner of a Monmouth County airport is accusing state and local officials of trying to seize his 746-acre property to cash in on a massive film production studio Netflix aims to develop a few miles away. Alan Antaki said he has fended off a series of would-be buyers since he bought the Monmouth Executive Airport in 2013, and he balked again when county officials first signaled their intention to pursue the Wall Township property through eminent domain in 2023.. … ‘It certainly is an interesting coincidence that all of a sudden, right after Netflix commits to spend a billion dollars in New Jersey, the commissioners have an interest in taking over this regional airport that they never had an interest in taking over before,’ said Matthew Dolan, Antaki’s attorney.”BLAME TIKTOK WHEN THEY ALL WRITE IN XI JINPING— “Voter registration drives will be held for Newark teens prior to school board election,” by TAPIntoNewark’s Nicole Zanechelli: “The school administration is gearing up for this year’s Board of Education election, in which 16-year-olds will be able to vote for the first time, by hosting district-wide ‘15-plus voter registration drives.’ ‘That’s why we’re calling it 15, because you can technically be 15 years old now but still be able to vote in this year’s school board election,’ said Board Co-Vice President Vereliz Santana at the Tuesday, Jan. 21 board meeting. Newark teenagers who will be 16 by April 15 will be eligible to vote in the annual school board election, according to district officials. April 15 is the date of the school board election.”NAKED LUNCH — “PETA holds ‘naked truth’ protest outside Downtown Jersey City’s Whole Foods,” by Hudson County Vie’s Daniel Ulloa: “PETA activists held a ‘naked truth’ protest outside of Downtown Jersey City’s Whole Foods over their meat labeling practices, with three people who were nearly nude laying in giant packages similar to the ones raw meat products are sold in this afternoon. Those activists were covered in fake blood and positioned themselves on giant meat trays that were wrapped in cellophane, complete with fake labels. ‘Whole Foods is betraying animals and people who care about them,’ PETA campaigner Wendy Fernandez declared.”
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KOLLUR ME BADD – The new head of New Jersey Transit, Kris Kolluri, wants to resume negotiations with the train engineers union that could strike and upend the commute for tens of thousands of people across the region. A strike by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen could begin in late March after a 60-day cooling off period required by federal law.“You don’t need to wait 60 days, let’s do it tomorrow, let’s do it today, I’ll work all night,” Kolluri told reporters Wednesday following the formal release of the latest report on the labor dispute by a three-member board of mediators known as a presidential emergency board.The board’s report was largely a win for NJ Transit because the panel found the transit agency’s last offer to raise wages by 4 percent beginning in 2027 was the “most reasonable” compared to the union’s 14 percent demand. The union’s offer was, in the board’s view, “not only unwarranted and unreasonable, but also unaffordable.”MURPHY DENT — “How will NJ manage Trump? It’s a ‘two-face’ strategy for Murphy and Co.,” by The Record’s Charles Stile: “In less than 48 hours, Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration gave a glimpse of how it will maneuver amid the mayhem of The Sequel. Call it the two-face solution. On one hand, we have the ex-ambassador, Murphy, knocking on the door of the Donald Trump administration asking him to pump the brakes on New York’s congestion pricing program, which dings New Jersey drivers an extra $9 to enter midtown Manhattan. But on Tuesday, Attorney General Matthew Platkin was on the warpath, detailing his decision to join 17 other states, the District of Columbia and the city of San Francisco in suing to halt Trump’s executive order to end automatic citizenship for immigrant children born in the United States. … It’s clear that the Murphy administration is improvising a strategy on the fly as Trump, fueled by a toxic blend of grievance, vengeance and narcissism, begins to implement his long-promised agenda of disruption. Murphy and Platkin both boasted that they had been through this rodeo already, pushing back on Trump excesses in court and winning more often than losing, as they both said Tuesday. They believe that the battle scars from the first term have prepared them for the onslaught to come.”FINDING $2.9 BILLION WILL BE NO PROBLEM FOR THE KING OFFOLLOWTHROUGH—Gottheimer unveils tax policy plan, by POLITICO’s Madison Fernandez: Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer wants to cut spending in state government so much that even targeting soda machines is on the table. He released a tax plan Wednesday that addresses New Jersey’s looming fiscal gap while keeping to his pledge to lower taxes and grow the state’s economy. Gottheimer, who’s running in a crowded Democratic field to succeed term-limited Gov. Phil Murphy, has staked his campaign on lowering taxes and growing the local economy. The next governor will be dealing with a hefty budget deficit, posing a difficult task for Murphy’s successor next year. “I doubt you’re going to hear much of a plan from any of the folks running about how to close that gap, because it’s not as ‘sexy’ as proposing all kinds of new programs to win an election,” his plan states. … Gottheimer suggests an efficiency review, similar to what other states have done, to save 5 percent of government spending, which he estimates to be $2.9 billion, enough to get him out of a $2 billion structural deficit.BLEE HAPPY — “Longtime AOC Director Glenn Grant to step down, assignment judge to take over,” by Law.com’s Colleen Murphy: “After 16 years at the helm of the New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts, Judge Glenn A. Grant is retiring this coming March and will be replaced by Atlantic and Cape May Vicinage Assignment Judge Michael Blee. Grant has served as a Superior Court judge for 25 years and as acting director of the administrative office of the courts since 2008. Blee has served as a Superior Court judge in Atlantic and Cape May counties since 2012, where he rose to assignment judge in 2022.”—David Wildstein: “In late 2021, the legislature passed a special pension bill that allowed Grant to defer his pension and remain in his post beyond age 70 while still receiving post-retirement health care benefits. But the approval of Grant’s judicial pension was quietly removed from the State House Commission’s agenda nine months ago, and he has been collecting just 25% of his salary. Grant was slated to receive a $152,328-a-year pension after retiring from a $203,113 annual salary in January. It’s unclear whether the pension delay is connected to a February controversy where Grant ordered municipal court judges to disregard a law passed unanimously by the legislature and signed by Gov. Phil Murphy.”THE 6TH SENSELESSNESS — “N.J. Republican running for governor takes aim at Trump’s Jan. 6 pardons,” by NJ Advance Media’s Brent Johnson: “State Sen. Jon Bramnick, R-Union, one of four Republicans running this year to succeed Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, sharply criticized Trump’s decision to pardon those who engaged in violence that day, even as he said he supported other parts of the president’s agenda. President Trump has taken many encouraging actions on infrastructure, energy, securing the border and making the federal government more efficient in the first days of his administration,” Bramnick said in a statement. ‘However, I do not support his pardon of the violent participants who attacked police in the actions of January 6th, 2021.’ Bramnick’s statement mentioned officers who had been beaten with wooden poles and a crutch and shot with stun guns during the insurrection, saying their assailants ‘should remain in jail.’”
NORCROSSING THE LINE — “How corrupt ballots enable corrupt politics,” by Yael Bromberg for New Jersey Globe: “More than simply tilting the playing field, New Jersey’s corrupt ballots are the very foundation of machine politics in New Jersey, although the groundbreaking litigations have blunted their force. They warp incentives, making candidates beholden to party bosses who control ballot placement, rather than to voters. For decades, South Jersey political boss George Norcross perfected the use of this system. A wealthy insurance executive and former chair of the Camden County Democratic Party, he is arguably the state’s most powerful unelected individual. By controlling endorsements and ballot placement, he hand-picks ‘elected’ officials at every level of government. What was already an open secret in Trenton is made clear for all in the Attorney General’s racketeering indictment: George Norcross’s grip over state and local politics is absolute. He controls political appointments, party operations, and public contracts. And for those who dare cross him? He retaliates by pulling government jobs, canceling contracts, and leveraging his allies in government to make their lives difficult. This is what happens when party bosses can rig the rules.”
THE HARDT OF THE DEAL — “Trump taps Steinhardt as next U.S. Attorney,” by New Jersey Globe’s David Wildstein: “President Donald Trump will name Douglas J. Steinhardt, a state senator and former Republican state chairman, as acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, the New Jersey Globe has confirmed. Steinhardt, 56, has served in the State Senate since 2022. He had been state party chairman during Trump’s 2020 re-election and briefly sought the Republican nomination for governor in 2021 as a staunchly pro-Trump candidate. Steinhardt is a partner at Florio Perrucci, a major New Jersey law firm; for many years, his law partner was former Democratic Gov. Jim Florio. Trump’s transition team had considered four other candidates: State Sen. Michael Testa, Jr. (R-Vineland), Assemblyman Jay Webber (R-Morris Plains), former Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott McBride, and Andrew Carey, a former Middlesex County Prosecutor and, since 2019, the counsel to the U.S. Attorney’s office.”
BETTER CALL SAL — “Following scandal, a N.J. town has a new mayor. She’s an ally of the old mayor,” by NJ Advance Media’s Riley Yates: “Clark Township has a new mayor — and she is a familiar face at town hall. On Tuesday night, the township council appointed Angel Albanese to replace longtime Mayor Sal Bonaccorso, who was forced from office this month after pleading guilty to public corruption charges. Albanese, the president of the council, was the senior-most member of the Union County suburb’s all-Republican board. … She is a decades-long ally of Bonaccorso and supported him throughout the controversies that roiled Clark in recent years. … On Jan. 10, Bonaccorso was forced to step down after admitting to using township resources to benefit his private landscaping business and to forging signatures on permit applications for work his company performed. … Bonaccorso’s guilty plea came just days after he was sworn in for a seventh term after easily winning reelection alongside a slate of candidates that included Albanese. Clark voters backed them despite the charges against Bonaccorso and a racism scandal in which he and police brass were caught on tape using racial slurs that included the n-word.”PATERSON — “Paterson’s 4 Black school board members protest being passed over for committee chairs,” by The Paterson Press’ Joe Malinconico: “The four African American members of the city Board of Education have withdrawn from their committee assignments over their displeasure with the new president’s choices for chairperson positions. Those board members — Valerie Freeman, Della McCall, Kenneth Simmons and Corey Teague — objected to the fact that not one of the Black commissioners was picked to lead any of the six main committees. “We talked about inclusion, but that’s not what I saw,” McCall said of the committee chairperson selections made last week by board President Eddie Gonzalez. Gonzalez accused his board colleagues of trying to ‘weaponize race,’ saying they were using ‘propaganda to push their agenda.’”THE NETFIX IS IN — “Greed over Netflix studio is behind county’s bid to take over private airport, owner says,” by New Jersey Monitor’s Dana DiFilippo: “The owner of a Monmouth County airport is accusing state and local officials of trying to seize his 746-acre property to cash in on a massive film production studio Netflix aims to develop a few miles away. Alan Antaki said he has fended off a series of would-be buyers since he bought the Monmouth Executive Airport in 2013, and he balked again when county officials first signaled their intention to pursue the Wall Township property through eminent domain in 2023.. … ‘It certainly is an interesting coincidence that all of a sudden, right after Netflix commits to spend a billion dollars in New Jersey, the commissioners have an interest in taking over this regional airport that they never had an interest in taking over before,’ said Matthew Dolan, Antaki’s attorney.”BLAME TIKTOK WHEN THEY ALL WRITE IN XI JINPING— “Voter registration drives will be held for Newark teens prior to school board election,” by TAPIntoNewark’s Nicole Zanechelli: “The school administration is gearing up for this year’s Board of Education election, in which 16-year-olds will be able to vote for the first time, by hosting district-wide ‘15-plus voter registration drives.’ ‘That’s why we’re calling it 15, because you can technically be 15 years old now but still be able to vote in this year’s school board election,’ said Board Co-Vice President Vereliz Santana at the Tuesday, Jan. 21 board meeting. Newark teenagers who will be 16 by April 15 will be eligible to vote in the annual school board election, according to district officials. April 15 is the date of the school board election.”NAKED LUNCH — “PETA holds ‘naked truth’ protest outside Downtown Jersey City’s Whole Foods,” by Hudson County Vie’s Daniel Ulloa: “PETA activists held a ‘naked truth’ protest outside of Downtown Jersey City’s Whole Foods over their meat labeling practices, with three people who were nearly nude laying in giant packages similar to the ones raw meat products are sold in this afternoon. Those activists were covered in fake blood and positioned themselves on giant meat trays that were wrapped in cellophane, complete with fake labels. ‘Whole Foods is betraying animals and people who care about them,’ PETA campaigner Wendy Fernandez declared.”
