OPINION: ‘Legitimate Political Discourse’ Defines the GOP. The constant attack on fair democratic elections in the U.S. by Donald Trump and his supporters is simply un-American. The defending of the actions of the domestic terrorists who attacked the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 must end. “Legitimate political discourse” is a defining statement for Republicans, much like “Defund the Police” became for Democrats. Every Republican must answer for it and forcefully denounce it. If not, you know they are an extremist who not only does not deserve your vote but both Dems and Republicans must work to defeat. North-JerseyNews.com
President Joe Biden offered that the decisions by some state governors last week to begin lifting indoor mask mandates were “probably premature,” but acknowledged that it was a “tough call” in response to American frustration with pandemic restrictions. President Biden hoped that rising rates of childhood vaccination, as well as the potential authorization of vaccines for even younger children, could allow schools to end their own mask mandates. “Every day that goes by, children are more protected,” he said, adding that “the more protection they have, probably you’re going to see less and less requirement to have the masks.” The New York Times
Gov. Phil Murphy said during a national television interview the state’s figures from the latest wave of the pandemic are improving in “a dramatically good direction” as New Jersey on Feb. 13 reported another seven confirmed COVID-19 deaths and 948 confirmed cases. It’s the first time since mid-November that fewer than 1,000 daily PCR tests were reported. “(The) rate of transmission, positivity rate, hospitalizations, cases, (and) in school transmissions (are) all going in a dramatically good direction,” Murphy said. “This variant has spiked straight up, and it’s now coming straight down.” NJ.com
A state appellate court panel denied the New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association a restraining order halting enforcement of Gov. Phil Murphy’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. “We conclude that the Governor was fully empowered under the Disaster Control Act to enter Executive Order 283 (and) we find the executive order was authorized by the Emergency Health Act,” wrote New Jersey Superior Court Judge Clarkson S. Fisher for the unanimous three-judge panel in a 34-page ruling. “We are satisfied that the individual rights asserted by appellants are of minimal weight when compared to the greater good that Executive Order 283 seeks to foster and establish…recognizing that ‘urgent public health needs of the community can outweigh the rights of an individual to refuse vaccination’.” North-JerseyNews.com
A COVID-19 vaccine for young children will be delayed by at least two months as Pfizer gathers more information on a three-dose regimen. “Given that the study is advancing at a rapid pace, the companies will wait for the three-dose data as Pfizer and BioNTech continue to believe it may provide a higher level of protection in this age group,” the companies said in a statement Feb. 11. “The companies expect to have three-dose protection data available in early April.” New Jersey Monitor
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security warned that truck convoys opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other restrictions may be in the works in the United States. Protesters withdrew their vehicles from a key U.S.-Canadian border but reconvened nearby—with reinforcements—that were still choking off access from the Canadian side, snarling traffic and commerce going into a second week. News12 New Jersey
Vice President Kamala Harris praised state and local officials on Feb. 11 for their success in quickly replacing Newark’s lead water pipes at no cost to residents, touting the city as a model as federal infrastructure money becomes available for similar projects around the country. “Here in Newark the work that has been done is a function of the collaboration between community leaders, elected leaders, and public health leaders,” said Vice President Harris. “And it’s a role model for what we can do around the country when we maximize that cooperation.” NJ.com
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) wants the party to focus on increasing government revenue in order to move forward on Democrats’ efforts addressing childcare, healthcare and climate control that have been stalled for recent weeks. Manchin has pointed to raising the corporate tax rate to 25% from 21%, raising the top capital-gains rate to 28% from 23.8% and increasing taxes on private-equity managers’ carried-interest income. “Why can’t we just get a good solid tax plan that works?” asked Manchin. “That’s the first thing to do.” The Wall Street Journal
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority board approved the creation of the Main Street Lenders Grant at its February meeting. Funded with $15 million from the Main Street Recovery Program, the pilot program will offer lending grants of up to $1 million to be used by eligible microbusiness lenders to create new or supplement existing microbusiness loan products. Each approved entity must lend and disburse at least 40% of Main Street Lenders Grant funding to businesses and nonprofits in Opportunity Zone-eligible census tracts. ROI-NJ.com
A bill scheduled for a vote Feb. 14 in the State Senate would establish a task force to review school funding in New Jersey, including the impact of a 2018 law that is reallocating school aid in a return to the long-ignored state-aid blueprint. The funding formula was approved in 2008 but only followed for one year before being abandoned when money was tight during the Great Recession. A School Funding Formula Evaluation Task Force would reevaluate whether the 2008 law needs to be updated—from special education to geographic adjustments to the extra weight applied for low-income or limited-English students. NJ1015.com
A bill directing energy tax receipts back to municipalities for the purpose of property tax relief deserves more consideration, according to a pair of GOP Assemblymen. Despite unanimously clearing the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee in January, the bill was yet to be looked at by the Assembly, according to Assemblymen Jay Webber (R-26) and John DiMaio (R-23), who are sponsors of the bill. “The Senate took the first step in getting this bill across the finish line and I urge the Democrat majority to post it for consideration in the Assembly. It needs to be prioritized, because New Jersey has had the unenviable distinction of having the nation’s highest property taxes year after year,” said Webber, who first authored the legislation with then-Assemblyman and current State Sen. Troy Singleton (D-7) in 2012. North-JerseyNews.com
Climate activists are accusing NJ Transit of going back on a plan to build a non-gas powered plant in Kearny to provide rail systems like the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail with emergency electricity in case of power outages. Gov. Phil Murphy has ordered NJ Transit to start coming up with a renewable energy-based plan, but Food and Water Watch organizer Sam DiFalco said the updated request for proposal that NJ Transit put out for the project “leaves the door wide open” for the power plant to be fossil-fueled. The Jersey Journal
Ricardo Rojas has announced that he is suspending his campaign for the Democratic nomination to run for the 8th Congressional District of New Jersey. Rojas had planned on running as a progressive candidate in a race where Robert Menendez Jr., the son of U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, is considered the favorite to replace the retiring Rep. Albio Sires. Rojas took aim at the establishment in announcing his withdrawal, stating that the “political aristocracy in New Jersey will fall eventually.” Hudson Reporter
U.S. Sen. Cory Booker says he isn’t interested in considering a run for Governor of New Jersey in 2025 and said he will seek re-election to the United States Senate in 2026. “I’m focused on the job I have and I’m focused on running for re-election. Gosh, it seems so far from now because I just got re-elected,” Booker said. New Jersey Globe
Academy Bus will pay $20.5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by New Jersey accusing the private company of underreporting missed bus trips and by over-billing New Jersey Transit for hours and miles driven in what authorities described as an “extensive multi-year, multi-million-dollar fraud.” As part of the agreement, the Hoboken-based company agreed to be overseen by an independent monitor, implement new policies and add more training for employees to ensure Academy accurately log trips it fails to complete and how many miles its drivers travel, the state Office of the Attorney General said Feb. 11. The agreement is the state’s largest-ever non-health care False Claims Act settlement. The Daily Record
New Jersey’s 21 counties, municipalities with populations over 10,000 or filed related lawsuits signed onto a national settlement agreement with opioid distributors McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen, according to acting Attorney General Andrew J. Bruck. With full participation, New Jersey’s state government, counties, and municipalities will be entitled to the maximum amount available, which is over $641 million. “The full participation of New Jersey’s counties and municipalities in this historic settlement means that New Jersey is on track to receive the maximum amount available to fund life-saving addiction prevention, treatment and recovery programs in the future,” said Bruck. North-JerseyNews.com
Paterson was among three major cities in the state that had fewer shooting victims in 2021 as New Jersey struggled with the nationwide increase in gun violence. The number of shooting incidents in Paterson dropped by 5% from 118 in 2020 to 112 in 2021, while the total number of fatal and nonfatal shooting victims fell by 4% from 165 to 158, according to data released by the New Jersey State Police. Throughout New Jersey, the number of shooting victims rose by 8% from 1,303 in 2020 to 1,410 in 2021, while shooting incidents climbed by 6%, from 1,047 to 1,115. The Record
And finally…A ‘Sopranos’-inspired Super Bowl ad starring Meadow and A.J. Soprano, aka Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Robert Iler, premiered during the game that saw the Los Angeles Rams defeat the Cincinnati Bengals, 23-20. NJ.com
