OPINION: The Republican Long Game Pays Dividends. The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to allow the Texas Heartbeat Act to go forward was a generation-long effort to ensure Republicans maintain power no matter whether they were the majority party in Washington and the U.S. The GOP in the last 20 years has prioritized winning state house elections and appointing federal judges to life-long positions in an attempt to further their agenda. It is all legal, above board, and done right in front of our eyes. While expressing outrage over a just-before-midnight ruling without any arguments in front of the full court, Democrats only have themselves to blame. North-JerseyNews.com
More than 20 Republican state attorneys general are threatening to sue the Biden Administration over its COVID-19 mandate that large employers require their employees to either be vaccinated against the coronavirus or undergo weekly testing. “There are many less intrusive means to combat the spread of COVID-19 other than requiring vaccinations or COVID-19 testing,” said a total of 24 AGs in a letter to President Joe Biden. “The risks of COVID-19 spread also vary widely depending on the nature of the business in question, many of which can have their employees, for example, work remotely.” On Sept. 9, President Biden instructed the Department of Labor to issue a temporary emergency rule under the Occupational Safety and Health Act to mandate that employers either put in place a vaccine requirement, mandate weekly COVID-19 testing or fire employees who refuse to get vaccinated. New Jersey Monitor
A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted unanimously on Sept. 17 in favor of a booster dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for people 65 and older and for individuals at high risk for severe disease, with the shot given at least six months after their initial vaccination. The vote came after the independent committee voted 16-2 against advising the agency to approve boosters for anyone 16 and older after hours of debate. Members’ concerns centered on the amount and quality of data available to weigh the booster’s long-term effectiveness and its safety in young people. PoliticoNJ
Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine has been shown to be safe and highly effective in children aged 5 to 11 years. The company announced plans on Sept. 20 to apply to the Food and Drug Administration by the end of the month for authorization to use the vaccine in these children. If the regulatory review goes as smoothly as it did for older children and adults, millions of elementary school students could be inoculated before Halloween. Trial results for children younger than 5 years old are not expected till the fourth quarter of this year at the earliest. The New York Times
Thank you for relying on North-JerseyNews.com to provide you the stories from Washington and Trenton that affect us. Please consider supporting North-JerseyNews.com with a voluntary donation.
The popularity of COVID-19 vaccine and mask mandates continues to grow as a majority of Americans support the initiatives recently announced by President Joe Biden, according to a recent Monmouth University Poll. Currently, 63% support state-based face mask and social distancing guidelines for these measures in their state, which is up from 52% in July. The poll finds that 66% of Americans support requiring the face masks mandate enacted in New Jersey by Gov. Phil Murphy for students, teachers, and staff. Vaccine mandates were just above 50% in varying industries, including healthcare and office settings, but at 46% at indoor dining or entertainment venues. North-JerseyNews.com
Robbinsville High School will shift to remote learning this week after COVID-19 cases at the school kept on rising—the first high school to do so for a full week this year because of COVID-19. The school, which has 62% of its students eligible to be vaccinated, will conduct contact tracing as well as a deep cleaning of the school. Activities like sports and clubs have been canceled for the week. News12 New Jersey
The Mendham Township Middle School went virtual after a COVID-19 outbreak traced to a party where several hundred people were reportedly largely unmasked indoors. The event was a Bar Mitzvah held on Sept. 11 hosted by former governor’s Chris Christie brother, Todd. Mendham Middle School was virtual on Sept. 17 but was expected to resume in-person instruction Sept. 20. New Jersey Globe
The Biden Administration will send New Jersey $20.4 million next month to strengthen the state’s fight against the coronavirus pandemic, including training “strike teams” to assist long-term care facilities and bolster the public health workforce to guard against future disease outbreaks. More than half of the funds, $11.8 million, will be dedicated to training the strike teams to help staff up nursing homes facing a surge of COVID-19 cases, tasked with working to prevent and contain outbreaks and assist in vaccination efforts. The remaining $8.6 million will be shared among the state and local health departments to address broader public health concerns the pandemic made worse. NJ.com
The Senate parliamentarian ruled Democrats’ plan to provide a pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrants living couldn’t be included in their $3.5 trillion budget proposal expanding the safety net and responding to climate change. The parliamentarian found that the plan to legalize a group including young immigrants, farmworkers, essential workers and those living in the U.S. on humanitarian grounds didn’t comply with the chamber’s rules. To qualify for inclusion in legislation advanced through the budget reconciliation process, any change must have a significant impact on the federal budget that is more than incidental to the policy change being sought. The Wall Street Journal
Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. celebrated the passage of President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better agenda through the House Ways and Means Committee, calling it a “historic plan to rebuild and reinvigorate America.” The federal lawmaker noted the legislation would have an impact on tax fairness in the U.S., and that it would fill a generations-long gap since a piece of congressional action leveled the playing field within the country by “making the rich pay their fair share….A successful nation in the 21st Century makes a down payment on its future. Our legislation will make that deposit with gigantic investments in healthcare, infrastructure, family support, and environmental protections to fight climate change.” North-JerseyNews.com
Democrats face decisions over how to pursue universal healthcare as the $3.5 trillion reconciliation budget will almost certainly have to be trimmed back. Members of the party are debating whether to prioritize insurance coverage for 4.4 million working poor people in the 12 states, mostly in the South, with Republican or divided leadership that have refused to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act or ensure that older Americans have dental, hearing and vision coverage. The New York Times
Passaic County officials are weighing whether to close the county jail, a 64-year-old facility that sits in the heart of downtown Paterson. A committee will recommend if the county should build a new jail or “regionalize” by ferrying Passaic’s 700 or so inmates to another jail somewhere in North Jersey, along with shipments of money to cover the cost of housing them. The Record
Secaucus has reopened its COVID-19 vaccine distribution site at the recreation center, shifting operations from Town Hall. Local officials said the change in venue was a result of scheduling conflicts with the municipal court as well as increase in residents seeking vaccines. Hudson Reporter
In another Democrat dominated district, both parties offer candidates that reflect the diversity of the 32nd Legislative District. State Sen. Nicholas Sacco will attempt to be re-elected for an eighth time, this time being challenged by Juan Barbadillo. Sacco’s Assembly running mates, incumbents Angelica Jimenez and Pedro Mejia, are looking to be toppled by Tamara Claudio, a North Jersey nurse, and West New York resident Marisela Rodriguez, former Motor Vehicle Commission director. North-JerseyNews.com
The latest finance plan for a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River makes it clear that the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) will cover the state’s contribution to the project. NJTA will be responsible for New Jersey’s share of the Gateway project, now estimated to be $1.6 billion. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the state of New York will be responsible for $2.2 and $2.3 billion of the project, respectively. NJ Spotlight News
And finally…Clifton has the rudest drivers in New Jersey according to a website that helps consumers compare rates for auto and home insurance. The Record
Comments 1