Rep. Bill Pascrell wants the Attorney General to open a formal criminal probe into the IRS following allegations made by former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly that the agency was weaponized by the Trump Administration. Kelly said that among those Trump said “we ought to investigate” and “get the IRS on” were the former FBI director James B. Comey and his deputy, Andrew G. McCabe, who were both selected for a rare and highly intrusive audit by the tax agency in the years after Kelly left the White House. “The recent evidence that Mr. Trump specifically sought to use the tax laws for his own gain and direct the administration and enforcement of such laws to punish his enemies demands a thorough criminal investigation,” wrote Pascrell to Attorney General Merrick Garland. “The American people need to know that the IRS is not subject to political influence and is focused on administering our tax system with competence and honesty.” North-JerseyNews.com
Donald Trump launched a third consecutive White House bid Nov. 15. “In order to make America great and glorious again, I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States,” Trump said during a prime-time event from his Mar-a-Lago estate as he attempts to win the GOP nomination for 2024. He touted his record as president, particularly on the economy, boosting border security and foreign adversaries such as China were held “in check,” while the country avoided launching any new wars. By contrast, Trump painted a bleak picture of the two years of the Biden presidency. “Now we are a nation in decline. We are a failing nation,” he said of inflation, higher gasoline prices and problems at the southern border. “We are here tonight to declare that it does not have to be this way.” The Wall Street Journal
Chris Christie blamed former President Donald Trump for GOP failures in the last three elections that was reportedly received with a round of applause at an annual meeting of Republican governors. Christie, a former Trump ally who is now considering his own 2024 presidential campaign, said voters “rejected crazy” in the 2022 midterms and that Republicans lost because of bad candidates. Republicans lost in 2018, 2020 and 2022, Christie said, with Trump the one constant who has weighed the party down across all three election cycles. Axios.com
State Sen. Richard Codey (D-27) called for the resignation of Bob Hugin as chairman of the State Republican Party over his profane comments about Rep. Mikie Sherrill following her successful reelection. Hugin called Sherrill a “piece of (XXXX) congresswoman” on the podium at an election night gathering on her way to a 17 point victory over her Republican opponent, Paul DeGroot. The former governor of New Jersey believes that the “personally derogatory comments” is a “stain” on New Jersey that can only be remedied by Hugin stepping down from being the leader of the Republicans in New Jersey. “It’s an insult to all the voters in the 11th District,” said Codey. “The language and the attitude are classless and inexcusable. Chairman Hugin should resign immediately from his position as the Republican Party’s leader. It’s not the type of discourse that should be tolerated in New Jersey – even in defeat.” North-JerseyNews.com
U.S. House Republicans elected their slate of leaders for the 118th Congress Nov. 15, even though the party hadn’t yet secured the seats needed to take the majority come January. California Rep. Kevin McCarthy fought off a challenge from the right by Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs and is on track to become the next Speaker of the House in January. Louisiana’s Steve Scalise, House GOP whip since 2014, will become Republican leader, following an uncontested campaign for the No. 2 role. The Associated Press had called 217 races for House Republicans as of Tuesday afternoon, even as the House GOP voted for leaders behind closed doors, still short of the 218 they’ll need to control that chamber. New Jersey Monitor
A Democratic candidate for township committee in Mendham Township has a one-vote lead over an incumbent Republican committeeman, meaning that Democrats may soon be one seat away from a majority in the once-solidly Republican hometown of former Gov. Chris Christie. According to unofficial results from Morris County, Democrat Lauren Spirig has 1,471 votes to Republican Committeeman Thomas Baio’s 1,470. Republican Tracey Moreen is in first place with 1,530 votes, while Spirig’s running mate Martin Slayne is in last at 1,395. The Democrat had led by two votes earlier in the day, but one overseas ballot opened this afternoon went to the Republicans. New Jersey Globe
Federal authorities are threatening to cut off payment for all new admissions to New Jersey’s Veteran’s Memorial Home at Menlo Park as soon as next week and the state-run nursing home could be terminated from all Medicare and Medicaid programs, absent major changes there within the next six months. “The facility has been notified that, unless substantial compliance is achieved prior to November 22, 2022, a discretionary denial of payment for all new admissions may become effective,” a U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services spokesman said. “Additionally, unless substantial compliance is achieved by March 8, 2023, the provider may be terminated from the Medicare and Medicaid programs.” NJ.com
Dave Ofshinsky, former business manager and assistant CEO for non-clinical affairs at The Veteran’s Memorial Home at Paramus home, is giving an insider’s account of conditions at the home during the first deadly wave of the pandemic. In Ofshinsky’s view, the COVID crisis at the state-run veterans homes was the culmination of years of neglect by the division responsible for long-term care of elderly and vulnerable veterans within the state Department of Military and Veterans Affairs. Lack of leadership, skills and preparation allowed the virus to run rampant, infecting residents and staff members alike, as staff worked with inadequate protection and infected, uninfected and untested residents mingled together. The Record
New Jersey Democrats are expected to soon begin the process of asking voters to enshrine abortion rights in the state Constitution, with the goal of putting the measure on the ballot next year, when all 120 state legislative seats will be up. “We’re leaning toward doing it. But we’re just talking to all the stakeholders right now to make sure the timing is right,” said Assemblymember Lisa Swain (D-38), who plans to be the amendment’s prime sponsor in the lower house. “People in New Jersey and around the country want to protect rights on reproductive health and contraception. We are always engaged in discussions with the Governor, Senate, and advocates about how to best accomplish that. It is imperative that whatever we do, we protect the freedoms currently enjoyed by the people of New Jersey.” PoliticoNJ.com
Michael Pappas, a former one-term congressman, will seek the Republican nomination for State Senate in the 16th district, setting up a possible rematch of his 2021 race against State Sen. Andrew Zwicker next year. In his announcement speech, Pappas pledged to run a campaign based on fighting inflation, challenging unfunded state mandates that result in increased property taxes, increasing school security, and fighting state directives “shift educational instruction in favor of philosophical indoctrination of value systems that parents may not support” in New Jersey public schools. New Jersey Globe
The New Jersey Attorney General has mandated departments must now publicly list which of their officers have participated in various types of misconduct, including discrimination, excessive force or domestic violence. State Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in the Nov. 15 announcement that departments must create a summary report that details the indiscretions for public release upon request. And he is requiring that departments include a certain amount of information in all their public disciplinary reports, which some agencies have undercut by offering sparse details that shed no light on the incidents that landed the officers on the lists in the first place. The Daily Record
Large public venues and houses of worship are now required to submit to the state emergency action plans to deal with a terror attack or mass shooting event. Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation (S721) requiring the action plans in response to what he termed “the gun violence epidemic.” The new rules cover any house of worship seating more than 500 people, movie theaters with more than 1,00 seats and entertainment venues seating more than 5,00 people. NJ1015.com
The New Jersey Fish and Game Commission unanimously voted on Nov. 15 to reinstate the black bear hunt, less than a week after Gov. Phil Murphy reversed his commitment to get rid of the hunt. Murphy and the commission said that the reason to reinstate the hunt is due to an increase in the bear population with sightings between January and October of this year increased by 237%. The bear hunt is scheduled for Dec. 5-10, with new restrictions. Bear cubs under 75 pounds are off limits, as are adult bears traveling with cubs. Baiting will also be banned. News12 New Jersey
New Jersey officials are investigating possible illegal hunting activity in Ringwood after four dead black bears were found in the township. A state Department of Environmental Protection spokesman said State Fish and Wildlife Conservation police officers were dispatched to investigate the four bear deaths following a Sunday night complaint but refused to provide any further details. Several area residents said the bears were cubs and found shot together near the Ryerson Middle School on Valley Road, though that remains unconfirmed. New Jersey Herald
Poland’s president said Nov. 16 that it appears that a Ukrainian air defense missile most likely unintentionally caused a deadly explosion on its territory a day earlier. President Andrzej Duda noted that Russian forces had launched a barrage of missile strikes on Ukraine on Tuesday. He said that early indications suggested that Ukrainian efforts to counter the barrage had caused an “unfortunate accident” in Poland — not a direct attack on his country. “We have no evidence at the moment that it was a rocket launched by Russian forces,” said Duda. “However, there are many indications that it was a missile that was used by Ukraine’s anti-missile defense.” The New York Times
Sen. Bob Menendez and Rep. Tom Malinowski are leading a bipartisan call for Big Tech to provide help to the people of Iran following the issuance of a general license (GLD-2i) from the Department of Treasury that would allow U.S. companies to provide communications services to Iranians in the midst of regime oppression. Protest in the Middle East country has been ongoing in Iran since September in the greatest demonstration of anti-regime protests in recent years. The rise was started due to outrage over the death of Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman who had been detained by the morality police for allegedly not wearing her hijab properly. “The Biden Administration has opened a door for tech companies like Apple, Google, and Facebook to help Iranians who are risking their lives for freedom,” said Malinowski. “Now they need to walk through it.” North-JerseyNews.com
The Homeland Security secretary, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, faced hostile questions about the southwest border from House Republicans on Nov. 15, foreshadowing the kind of grilling he can expect more of from the G.O.P., which has threatened to impeach him should it take control of the House. Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) asked a series of questions that appeared to lay the groundwork for a potential buffet of charges against Mayorkas, including whether the secretary had tried to “suppress exculpatory evidence” regarding Customs and Border Protection employees who have come under public attack by the Biden administration and had used his authority to punish homeland security agents identified as conservatives or supporters of Donald Trump. New York Times
A federal judge in Washington struck down a pandemic-era policy known as Title 42 that the Biden Administration has used to expel migrants crossing the border illegally, a ruling that will affect the government’s efforts to slow illegal border crossings. IU.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan said that Title 42 was promulgated in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act, a federal law that dictates how agencies can issue regulations. Judge Sullivan said Title 42 “does not rationally serve its stated purpose in view of the alternatives,” and that the policy was therefore “arbitrary and capricious.” The ruling came in a protracted lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, which has argued that Title 42 violates U.S. immigration laws by denying migrants a chance to ask for asylum. The Wall Street Journal
A middle school principal in the Montclair School District can return to his job after he was placed on administrative leave in 2020 for showing a video showing a skit comedian yelling about virtual learning during a Zoom meeting to welcome staff back to school, a state arbitrator has ruled. Joseph Putrino was suspended from his job as principal of Renaissance Middle School after the Sept. 2, 2020, virtual convocation that included “a completely inappropriate and unacceptable video,” Montclair Superintendent Jonathan Ponds said at the time. NJ.com
Jersey City and Hoboken announced the completion of a protected bikeway between the two cities, connecting 18th Street in Jersey City to Observer Highway in Hoboken. The connection, part of the Vision Zero campaign to create safer streets and eliminate traffic deaths and injuries in both cities, is the latest step both municipalities have taken to make it easier for residents to choose more environmentally friendly modes of transportation in furtherance of both cities’ climate action plans. Last year, Jersey City and Hoboken partnered to launch a unified bike share system with Lyft’s Citi Bike to provide better connectivity between the two communities. The Jersey Journal
Just six months into a statewide ban on single-use paper and plastic bags, billions of these bags have avoided circulation in New Jersey. In a survey of 160 of the 2,000 grocery stores in New Jersey, the locations showed a reduction in single-use paper bags from 1.1 million per month and single-use plastic bags from 55 million per month to zero. “It is our opinion that this is one of the most successful environmental programs ever implemented in New Jersey,” said Linda Doherty, president and CEO of New Jersey Food Council, which represents supermarkets across the state. NJ1015.com
And finally…The New Terminal A at Newark airport ready for takeoff, opening to the public Dec. 8. NJ Spotlight News
