Donald Trump continues to have the support of New Jersey Republicans, who do not have the same feeling for native son Chris Christie. A Fairleigh Dickinson University poll released May 10 found that 40% of GOP voters would “definitely” support Trump compared with 25% of the cohort considering supporting the former New Jersey governor. But for Christie, who has said he is mulling a run again in 2024 and has ramped up attacks on Trump recently, Republicans are more open to supporting Christie when asked about Trump’s legal challenges. North-JerseyNews.com
The House narrowly passed a Republican-written bill designed to restrict the flow of migrants across the border by pouring money into personnel and equipment, making it harder to seek asylum and codifying Trump-era policies such as resuming construction of a Southern border wall. The bill, which also would formalize the Trump-era policy requiring asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico during their court proceedings, is the GOP response to the end of pandemic-era powers the Biden Administration had used to quickly expel migrants for public-health reasons. Republicans said that they had written a bill focused exclusively on border security to lay down a marker on one of their highest-priority issues headed into the 2024 elections. The Wall Street Journal
There was relative calm and a sense of uncertainty along the United States-Mexico border early May 12, shortly after the expiration of a federal policy that had limited illegal immigration into the United States for more than three years. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas sounded a tough note as the policy expired, saying in a statement that people arriving at the border illegally would be “presumed ineligible for asylum. Do not believe the lies of smugglers. The border is not open.” The New York Times
As more than 15,000 Americans have died due to gun violence thus far in 2023, Sen. Cory Booker is looking to do something about it. With at least 200 mass shootings on the record so far this year, Booker recently announced that the Firearm Safety Act would be introduced into the Senate, bringing guns and ammunition would be brought under the jurisdiction of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. “Toy guns are subjected to more stringent federal safety standards than real ones – it’s absurd,” said Booker. North-JerseyNews.com
A judge in Virginia has struck down federal laws blocking handgun sales, like the semiautomatic Glock-style pistols, to buyers over 18 and under 21, in a ruling that might augur the rollback of regulation prompted by the Supreme Court’s sweeping expansion of gun rights last year. Judge Robert E. Payne of Federal District Court in Richmond, Va, repeatedly cited the majority opinion in the landmark case New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, which struck down a New York State law that put tight limits on carrying guns outside the home, when he ruled that statutes and regulations put in place over the past few decades to enforce age requirements on sales of handguns by federally licensed weapons dealers were “not consistent with our nation’s history and tradition” and therefore could not stand. The New York Times
Nearly two weeks after Daniel Penny used a fatal chokehold to restrain a Bayonne man on the floor of a New York City subway car, the 24-year-old will face criminal charges, prosecutors said. Penny will be arrested and charged for killing Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old Black man experiencing homelessness and mental health problems after he had been shouting on board the subway. The white U.S. Marine Corps veteran will face a charge of secondary manslaughter, which could carry a jail term of up to 15 years. The Daily Record
A highly anticipated meeting scheduled for May 12 between President Joe Biden and congressional leaders to chart a path forward on lifting the debt ceiling was postponed until next week, officials said. The delay will give White House and congressional staff more time to make progress in their closed-door spending talks, the officials said, adding that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was unable to attend the Friday meeting because of a scheduling conflict. The Wall Street Journal
Just 6% of New Jerseyans think the state’s politicians are “not at all corrupt,” while a staggering 80% view them as corrupt, a new Fairleigh Dickinson University poll shows. More than one-third of New Jersey residents (34%) view New Jersey politicians as “somewhat corrupt,” while 27% say they are “very corrupt,” and 19% view them as “a little corrupt.” While 5% of Republicans view politicians are “not at all corrupt,” that number more than doubles to 11% among Democrats. New Jersey Globe
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York has subpoenaed State Sen. and North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco related to their corruption probe of Sen. Bob Menendez. “As they always have, Mayor Sacco and the Township of North Bergen will comply with any inquiry they receive from law enforcement and will cooperate fully. We do not feel that it would be appropriate to offer any additional comment at this time,” North Bergen spokesman Nick Bond said in a statement. Sacco, who was elected to his ninth term as mayor on Tuesday, received the subpoena in person in the early morning hours of Wednesday. HudsonCountyView.com
A bill making sweeping changes to the state’s business tax is drawing plaudits from business groups that helped draft it, and criticism from others who worry the measure would slash New Jersey revenue by allowing businesses to move more funds into international tax havens. The bill, sponsored by budget chairs in both chambers of the Legislature, would cut New Jersey’s taxation of certain foreign income, called global intangible low-taxed income or GILTI, from a rate of roughly 50% to 5% while eliminating an interest add-back meant to prevent firms from avoiding taxes through sham transactions between them and a subsidiary. New Jersey Monitor
Staffing and business groups have filed a federal lawsuit against the state of New Jersey seeking to overturn a landmark new law giving temporary workers here new protections and rights. Gov. Phil Murphy signed the “Temp Worker Bill of Rights” in February after labor and immigration advocates spent years fighting for it. The law took effect May 7, benefitting more than 127,000 temp workers employed by at least 100 agencies in the Garden State, primarily in the warehouse and logistics sector. NJ.com
Hundreds of nurses and union leaders rallied outside the Statehouse in Trenton on May 11 in support of legislation that would establish staffing ratios at hospitals and other medical facilities. Nurses said staffing issues have long been a problem and while COVID did not start the shortage, it exacerbated it as nurses and other health care workers put their lives on the line to care for a tsunami of very sick, very contagious patients. The Record
The Assembly Education Committee unanimously approved a dozen bills May 11 that aim to help New Jersey recruit and retain more public school teachers. The bills include stipends to some student teachers, reduce student teaching to one semester from the recently-added requirement of two, create a fund to reimburse new teachers for certification-related costs, expand the student loan forgiveness programs to more teachers in more schools, and allow retired teachers more time to return to the classroom without risking their pensions. NJ.com
Roxbury High School librarian Roxana Caivano sued four residents, alleging they worked to discredit her due to the selection of some books within the high school’s library. The dispute is centered on the graphic novel “Gender Queer: A Memoir,” which includes some depictions of sex acts, and other materials that have been approved by the state as part of its sex education and gender-identity curriculums. The complaint notes a “civil conspiracy to defame her character” first began in the Fall 2022 when the critics equated the books in the library to “hard-core pornography” and that it was “a factual assertion of criminal behavior.” North-JerseyNews.com
Seeking to fix a severe judicial vacancy crisis that has shut down civil court trials and divorces in New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy is planning to fill nine more Superior Court judgeships in a state where there are presently 62 vacancies, 13% of the 463-member judiciary. The latest round brings the total number of judicial nominees awaiting confirmation votes by the State Senate to 28. Of those 28, thirteen have cleared the senatorial courtesy process, and six (not including the latest round of nine) are still awaiting signoff from at least one senator. New Jersey Globe
Major delays for New Jersey Transit trains from Thursday carried over into Friday due to issues at the Portal Bridge. New Jersey Transit reports up to 30-minute delays for Friday. The issues are being caused by extensive repairs to the signal at the Portal Bridge. News12 New Jersey
And finally… The New Jersey Devils’ fairytale season ended with an OT loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. NJ.com
