In recalling the attack on the U.S. Capitol a year ago Rep. Mikie Sherrill remembered “a great deep anger that people who had sworn the same oath to the constitution that I have sworn would try to undermine our constitution” while being proud she was able “to go back to that chamber that night to certify the elections.” The Congresswoman offered that the bipartisan Jan. 6 House Select Committee is doing critical work that continues to bring to light some very important facts about actions in the days leading up to the attack and afterwards. “It is so important that we continue to get to the bottom of what happened,” she said. “I do think we are moving towards what we need to do to understand what happened on that day…how it was planned, how it was executed, who was responsible, so that it never happens again.” North-JerseyNews.com
President Joe Biden will call on the nation to recommit itself to a peaceful Democracy, a year after a mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol to stop Congress from ratifying his election defeat. In a speech to be delivered at the Capitol marking the anniversary of the attack, the President will offer a striking portrait of the fragility of the two-century-old American system that will include “At this moment we must decide what kind of nation we are going to be. Are we going to be a nation that accepts political violence as a norm? Are we going to be a nation where we allow partisan election officials to overturn the legally expressed will of the people? Are we going to be a nation that lives not by the light of the truth but in the shadow of lies? We cannot allow ourselves to be that kind of nation.” The New York Times
New Jersey’s new homeland security chief says the biggest concern about political violence is a widening campaign of online recruitment and cyberattacks by extremist groups. Ahead of congressional midterm elections that could include key contests in New Jersey this fall, acting director of the state Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness Laurie Doran said there’s no “indication whatsoever of any credible threats” of political violence. But extremist propaganda and recruitment efforts continue to rise online in an effort to stir anti-government sentiment. The Daily Record
As the number of those hospitalized continues to climb in New Jersey, state health officials believe the peak will be hit late in the second week of January. New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said the highest number of cases is projected for Jan. 14 but allowed that the number could be reached sooner. The total as of Jan. 5 was 5,564—the highest since May 2, 2020. “(The date) could move up a little bit because we’re exceeding what the model shows,” Persichilli stated at a press briefing Jan. 3. “We’re looking at the peak between 6,000 and it could be as high as 9,000 hospitalizations. Hopefully the trajectory goes up as fast (and) comes down as fast as it goes up.” North-JerseyNews.com
Members of the National Guard will be deployed to Sussex County long-term care facilities amid a recent surge in COVID-infected residents and staff, according to the Sussex County Board of County Commissioners. The news comes as the former Andover Subacute II facility reported a large outbreak, marking the highest numbers among the state’s nursing and care facilities. “The staff at these facilities have been particularly hard hit by the latest COVID variant,” said Anthony Fasano, commissioner deputy director, referring to the highly transmissible omicron variant. “We believed it was prudent to get them the help they needed before there was a crisis.” New Jersey Herald
A coalition of six education groups want state, not local, officials to continue to decide if students are to wear masks in schools. The coalition, called the Leadership for Educational Excellence, includes the New Jersey Education Association, the state Association of School Administrators, the state Association of School Business Officials, the state PTA, the state Principals and Supervisors Association and the state School Boards Association. In a letter to Gov. Phil Murphy as well as State Senate and Assembly leaders, the groups argued allowing New Jersey’s nearly 600 school districts to make their own mask rules would lead to divisive local fights over how to best battle COVID-19. NJ.com
Two school districts and a high school in Sussex County have joined the growing list of New Jersey schools switching to remote instruction as COVID-19 cases continue to surge following the Winter break. The Sparta Township School District and Lenape Valley Regional High School will be remote through Friday, Jan. 14, and plan to return following the scheduled day off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. All Hopatcong schools will be closed Thursday and Friday possibly going back to in-person learning to start next week. Both Sparta and Hopatcong attributed the moves to a lack of available faculty due to COVID illness or possible exposure resulting in quarantine. New Jersey Herald
Gov. Phil Murphy will deliver his annual State of the State address Jan. 11 to an empty audience for the second straight year as a highly transmissible new variant of the coronavirus continues to surge across New Jersey. The speech will be pre-recorded at the War Memorial in Trenton and will air at 5 p.m. next Tuesday, streaming on the governor’s official Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pages and broadcast by News12 New Jersey and NJ Spotlight News on NJ PBS. NJ.com
Almost two years after the pandemic first jolted New Jersey’s public schools, the first statewide data on the extent of the damage is starting to be made public. A presentation by the New Jersey Department of Education showed anywhere from a third to half of students fell short of grade-level expectations for the Fall — and the numbers were even starker in some racial and income groups. The biggest difficulties were seen in younger grades, and especially in math. Local districts’ own assessments showed only 64% of all students at expected grade-level proficiency in language arts, and that percentage fell below 50% among Black, Hispanic, and low-income groups. NJ Spotlight News
Assemblyman Christopher DePhillips (R-40) criticized new guidance that requires K-12 students and staff in high-COVID areas to be vaccinated to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities from the New Jersey Department of Health. “Taking away school sports and extracurricular activities from children who are COVID negative and have already sacrificed so much these past two years is harmful, irresponsible and completely misguided,” DePhillips said. New Jersey Globe
A bill requiring domestic violence training for certain judges and personnel had been passed by the Assembly. Sponsored by Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz (R-21), the bill (A1964/S384) requires assistant county prosecutors, municipal and Superior Court judges, and judicial personnel involved with domestic violence complaints, to participate in training on the dynamics of domestic violence, the impact on children, danger assessments, batterer intervention, survivor services, and risk factors and lethality. Judges would also focus on restraining order issues. “In order to save lives and protect survivors, it is so important to equip our judicial system and officers with the tools to appropriately respond to domestic violence cases,” Munoz said. North-JerseyNews.com
Democrats who control the state Legislature are expected to cast the first votes Jan. 6 to protect abortion rights in New Jersey. The reworked Reproductive Freedom Act in New Jersey will not go as far as first introduced, including not mandating insurance coverage for the procedure and include undocumented women, but would codify the right to an abortion in New Jersey as established under a 1982 State Supreme Court decision. NJ.com
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority has largely improved its oversight of companies that receive billions of dollars in state tax breaks since the state Comptroller’s Office identified deficiencies three years ago, a new comptroller’s report found. The report found the agency has made progress in verifying that businesses retain or hire the employees they promised to when applying for incentives but it should do more to ensure businesses don’t get tax credits they haven’t earned. The authority also hasn’t done enough to recover the improper awards of tax credits and payments totaling more than $200 million identified in the 2019 audit. New Jersey Monitor
State Sen. Tom Kean Jr.’s congressional campaign received a major boost when he became one of the first candidates endorsed by the House GOP leaders’ super political action committee. The Congressional Leadership Fund backing—which spent $2.5 million on behalf of Kean in 2020—will bring with it direct financial support for Kean, helping to offset Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski’s current financial advantage. Through Sept. 30, Malinowski had $2.1 million in the bank to Kean’s $648,007. NJ.com
The Paterson City Council is considering a measure that would give residents the authority to vote on school budgets. The public would gain the power to vote on school district budgets if the council adopts a proposed resolution switching the timing from Board of Education elections to April from November. That change would take place as soon as this year if the council approves the measure before Jan. 24. The Record
Trustee Gerald Lyons was elected as the new president of the Jersey City Board of Education Jan. 4 and his first major task appears to be dealing with a board fractured by the decision of who will lead the district until a new superintendent is hired. A special meeting will be held on Jan. 10 to discuss the candidates for the interim superintendent position as board members disagreed on the public nomination of Deputy Superintendent Norma Fernandez without discussing the issue in closed session. The Jersey Journal
And finally…State Police responded to 262 crashes and 125 calls for motorist aid between 4 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. due to icy road conditions Jan. 5 as North Jersey prepares for an overnight snow storm of up to 4 inches for the morning commute Jan. 7. NJ.com
