Rep. Bill Pascrell condemned the decision of Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy to block Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Eric Swalwell (D-CA) from service on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. “Kevin McCarthy barricading Congressmen Schiff and Swalwell from continuing service on the Intelligence Committee is a travesty and a disgrace,” said Rep. Pascrell. “Under the pretext of fabrications and straight-out character assassinations, Mr. McCarthy has set a terrible precedent and endangers our national security in the process. In truth, Reps. Schiff and Swalwell are being blocked because of their effectiveness in exposing the toxic corruption of the Trump regime.” North-JerseyNews.com
Newly-elected Reps. Thomas Kean, Jr. and Rob Menendez won assignments on the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee for the 118th Congress. Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Chairman Kevin O’Toole welcomed the news, praising Kean and Menendez as cheerleaders for federal funds to support high-dollar bi-state transportation projects. Their committee posts “means the infrastructure needs specific to our region will receive the attention they deserve in the House of Representatives,” said O’Toole. New Jersey Globe
Democrats are beginning to position themselves in the 9th Congressional District to replace Rep. Bill Pascrell. More than 100 local political figures gathered recently in Passaic as that city’s mayor, Hector Lora, hosted a party honoring Assemblyman Benjie Wimberly (D-35), an event seen as Wimberly’s first step toward a possible run for Congress in 2024. Others eyeing a chance to work in Washington include Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh and Wimberly’s legislative running mate, Assemblywoman Shavonda Sumter (D-35). The Record
A Sussex County veteran received her federal sentence this week for aiding Syrian terrorists. Maria Sue Bell, a Hopatcong resident, was sentenced Jan. 24 to 34 months in prison for concealing her attempts to provide material support to Syrian foreign terrorist organizations. Bell previously admitted in court that from February 2018 to November 2018 she knowingly concealed and disguised the nature, location, source, ownership and control of material support and resources to fighters based in Syria who were members of Jabhat Fath al-sham. North-JerseyNews.com
A Paterson man who raced a truck down a Hudson River bike path in 2017 that killed eight people including New Milford resident Darren Drake was convicted of murder charges on Jan. 26 by a federal jury and could now face the death penalty. The man, Sayfullo Saipov, a 34-year-old Uzbek native, said after his arrest that he was inspired to carry out the attack by Islamic State videos that he watched on his phone and that he chose a truck to inflict maximum damage against civilians in what the authorities have called the deadliest terrorist attack in New York City since 9/11. Having convicted Saipov of all 28 counts he faced, the jury will now be asked to decide whether he should be imprisoned for life or face the death penalty. The judge set Feb. 6 for the penalty phase to begin. The New York Times
The National Archives has asked former presidents and vice presidents to check their personal files for classified or presidential records that might have been missed in previous searches. The archives, which oversees materials covered by the Presidential Records Act and other federal laws, sent a letter to representatives on Jan. 26 asking for any materials that were inadvertently retained. The request comes after documents with classified markings were found at former President Donald J. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, President Biden’s Delaware home and his think tank in Washington, and former Vice President Mike Pence’s residence in Indiana. The New York Times
Senate Intelligence Committee lawmakers are weighing how to force the intelligence community to turn over the classified documents that ended up in the personal possession of two presidents. Both Democrats and Republicans have expressed frustration that the sharing of information has been put on hold after the appointment of special counsels. Sen. Angus King (I-ME) said his fellow Intelligence Committee members are “actively discussing” an approach for sometime in the next week to obtain the documents, and that “the committee is unanimous in this, that these documents should come, that we should see them.” The Wall Street Journal
Nearly 80 Democratic members of Congress sent a letter expressing their “great concern” that the Biden Administration is walking back on immigration promises to restore migrants’ access to asylum. Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker argued that asylum was a right granted by Congress and that the administration initially promised to end the use of Title 42, a health policy put in place to prevent non-U.S. citizens from entering the country during a health crisis such as the coronavirus pandemic at the U.S.-Mexico border. “We are seeing the extension of Title 42 that, ultimately, is putting people in crisis and in danger of facing persecution and violence,” Booker said. New Jersey Monitor
Newark is the latest to drop the state health benefits plan for public workers and go with a private insurer as rates are expected to dramatically increase to levels that officials have warned could wreak havoc on local governments and taxpayers. Newark’s plan with its private insurer, Aetna, goes into effect at the beginning of February, according to Tiffany Stewart, the city’s personnel director. That means more than 8,000 Newark employees, dependents and retirees will exit from the state health benefits plan for public workers. Newark follows Trenton in its decision to change health insurers. NJ.com
The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation index climbed 5% in the year through December, a notable slowdown from November and a continuation of a six-month downward trend. After stripping out food and fuel, the price index climbed 4.4% compared with a year earlier, in line with what economists in a Bloomberg survey had expected and a slowdown from 4.7% in November. The overall picture is one of moderating inflation — providing some long-awaited relief for consumers — but which remains unusually rapid at more than twice the 2 percent rate the Fed aims for on average over time. The New York Times
Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration welcomed the idea of annual, updated COVID-19 vaccines but said scientists should conduct more studies to determine the specifics of the plan. The 21 advisers also voted unanimously on Jan. 25 that people getting the vaccine for the first time should get an updated version that targets both the original strain and the Omicron variant, rather than earlier formulations that targeted only the original strain. The Wall Street Journal
The New Jersey Department of Health will receive an $80.5 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to bolster public health infrastructure and its workforce. The grant—partially supported by the American Rescue Plan Act—will be distributed over the next five years, earmarked for training workers and modernizing the state’s public health system. State officials said the funds will be used to help recruit and retain public health workers; expand the agency’s Centralized Data and Analytics Hub; further health equity programs and women’s health; support local health partners; and address health disparities and social determinants of health and facilitate connections to care. NJ.com
Nearly 144,000 New Jersey families are behind a combined $44.5 million on their water and sewer bills but can’t access millions of dollars in federal funding to help because a majority of water utilities in the Garden State aren’t participating in a relief program. Fewer than 2,000 families had received benefits through December, according to Department of Community Affairs data as only 120 drinking water utilities out of more than 600 water systems currently participate in the program. NJ Spotlight News
State Sen. Anthony Bucco (R-25) said politics is the main reason Gov. Phil Murphy’s has delayed his Energy Master Plan until later this year. Bucco offered there was “no shock” with all 120 seats in the Legislature on the ballot this Fall. “Let’s be clear that ‘later in the year’ means after Election Day…Delaying hearings is all about protecting the Democrat majority in the Legislature,”” said Bucco. “Trenton Democrats are scared that New Jerseyans might learn before November how much their energy bills will rise and how expensive it’ll be to convert their homes and businesses from gas to electric under Murphy’s…plan. People deserve the truth.” North-JerseyNews.com
A federal judge heard arguments Jan. 26 on whether to approve a new set of temporary restrictions to a recently enacted New Jersey gun control law but declined to issue an immediate ruling. Arguments on Jan. 26 focused on whether Judge Renée Marie Bumb should temporarily enjoin provisions that bar guns in health care facilities, on film shoots, at zoos, and in a host of other places not covered by a restraining order Bumb issued in a separate but related case on Jan 9. New Jersey Monitor
Financial incentives provided by the city of Bayonne for a $900 million film and TV studio were unanimously approved on first reading at a special Bayonne City Council meeting Jan. 25. The incentives for developer Togus Urban Renewal include a $65 million bond and a 30-year payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement. They will be voted on for a second and final reading at the city’s next regular council meeting in February, said Council President Gary La Pelusa. The Jersey Journal
The Morristown town council unanimously introduced an ordinance this week that would raise annual fees for so-called “sidewalk cafes” at businesses with at least 10 seats. Morristown established an yearly administrative charge of $250 per restaurant for establishments with outdoor dining in 2018 that was waived the fees during the pandemic. The updated proposal could have some paying as much as four times the rate to help the town oversee sidewalk cafes, which “require quite a bit of administrative time,” Morristown Clerk Margot Kaye said. The Daily Record
And finally…A Morristown man breaks the Guinness record by dining at 18 Michelin star restaurants in a single day. NJ.com
