In Washington and Trenton last week, President Joe Biden and Gov. Phil Murphy both pivoted away from governing through the lens of COVID-19.
March 4 marked the anniversary of the first case of COVID in New Jersey. Since then over 30,000 residents of the Garden State have died from a confirmed case of COVID. More than 2.1 million cases have been reported in those 24 months—though we believe both counts are just the floor and not the ceiling.
That does not take into account the untold damages to businesses, students and long haulers who will have to contend with health issues long after the spotlight has moved on.
We know the March 4, 2020 date well—it was when we published our first article on our website. The big news at the beginning of that day was the surgery that Gov. Murphy went under to remove a cancerous tumor. Little did we know the first confirmed case of COVID of a New Jersey resident would be discovered of a Fort Lee man at Holy Name Hospital and the havoc it would create over the next two years.
The site was launched that day with our intent to cover North Jersey politics more in-depth than any other outlet, showing how the actions of Trenton and Washington lawmakers affect the everyday lives of the residents in our area.
Politics and the pandemic became intertwined and the dominating issue of the day. With North Jersey being the epicenter for the initial wave and having among the higher case counts in each ensuing one, the politics of dealing with the health emergency has been front and center in our reporting.
But at the same time, we kept you informed about the actions of both state and local politicians. Affordability issues, the Jan. 6 failed insurrection, election reforms, redrawing of Congressional and Legislative maps, how the government serves its citizens, and now how an invasion by Russia of Ukraine are all issues that we have looked through from the perspectives of North Jersey.
Three times a week we hit your in-box with the important stories of the day, including exclusive interviews with key lawmakers. We have gone in-depth to cover Presidential, Gubernatorial, Congressional, State Senate, Assembly and County races in the last 24 months. And since it is New Jersey, we have key elections again this year. We have done all this while running a website that does not inundate you with ads (and please feel free to donate to support local independent journalism). Just last month we passed 500,000 views and we thank all of those who have supported the site and spread the word as a news source you trust to help us grow.
We are proud of the coverage we have provided the last two years. We appreciate the feedback—both supportive and not-so-supportive—as it helps us determine the issues we provide resources to.
As we begin Year 3, North-JerseyNews.com is re-affirming its mission statement: an independent news organization informing you of the decisions taken by elected representatives impacting North Jersey residents. What it won’t be is a site dealing with conspiracies and rumors, radical viewpoints from either side of the aisle having little impact on the work done on a daily basis by those working for you in Washington and Trenton.
We have done that since March 4, 2020 and we will continue to do that moving forward. Thank you for your support as we continue reporting on the issues that have the greatest impact on North Jersey.
