Ridgewood NJ, Ā Gov. Phil Murphyās plan to raid more than $30 million from a special fund dedicated to helping the stateās firefighters was condemned today by Assemblyman Kevin J. Rooney.
āGovernor Murphy, once again, refuses to acknowledge New Jerseyās affordability crisis. Instead of cutting spending, Murphyās budget relies on gimmicks that take funding away from our first responders,ā said Rooney (R-Bergen). āStealing from our firefighters does not create a āstronger and fairer New Jerseyāā Murphy should be cutting spending and saving taxpayer money.ā
New York NY, In Thursdayās international edition of The New York Times, featured a cartoon with āanti-Semitic tropesā it portrayed a blind President Trump led by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu depicted as a dog with a Star of David collar around its neck.
The cartoon appeared in the April 25 international edition and coincided with the end of the Passover holiday and Shabbat, two days many observant Jews were not online.
āWe The People,ā stand as a united front with Congresswoman Ilhan Omar against the unfair, extreme, and vicious attacks being leveled against her by the President of the United States and some of his supporters. Ilhan Omar is a Somali-American Muslim woman duly elected in 2018 to serve as the U.S. Representative for Minnesotaās 5th congressional district. Rep. Omar has championed the rights of immigrants, the poor and disenfranchised, as well as defended Palestineās right to exist. Rep. Omar has been called Anti-Semitic and ridiculously and erroneously linked to terrorism. She has received numerous death threats since President Donald Trump posted an edited video that suggests Rep. Omar dismissed the tragic events of September 11, 2001.
Washington, D.C. Congressman Jeff Van Drew released the following statement regarding the Mueller Report and the impeachment question:
āCurrently impeachment is not the answer. We have an election in a year and a half and the American people can decide then. We are thoroughly reviewing the Mueller Report, and once we are done with the review it is time to move forward and get to business. Congressional issues such as Social Security, Medicare, Health Insurance, Infrastructure, Student Debt, and Climate Change are all things that we should be focusing on. I look forward to working in a bipartisan way to solve some real issues.ā
Trenton NJ, Governor Phil Murphy today signed legislation that will allow terminally ill New Jersey adults to end their lives peacefully, with dignity, and at their own discretion. The bill, which was sponsored by Assemblyman John Burzichelli and Senator Nick Scutari, makes New Jersey the eighth state to allow such end-of-life decisions with the assistance of medical professionals.
āAllowing residents with terminal illnesses to make end-of-life choices for themselves is the right thing to do,ā said Governor Murphy. āBy signing this bill today, we are providing terminally ill patients and their families with the humanity, dignity, and respect that they so richly deserve at the most difficult times any of us will face. I commend Assemblyman Burzichelli for steering us down this long, difficult road, and thank the Legislature for its courage in tackling this challenging issue.ā
Washington Dc, the law of untended consequences leads to Gregory Craig, who was White House counsel under President Barack Obama, was indicted Thursday on charges of lying and hiding information related to his work for Ukraine. Craig, a 74-year-old lawyer based in Washington, D.C., was charged by the Justice Departmentās Foreign Agents Registration Act, or FARA, unit. Craig faces up to five years in prison for each of the two counts.The charges stem from the federal investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election led by special counsel Robert Mueller, which came to a formal end last month.
Ridgewood NJ, As Tax Day approaches, about eight in ten New Jerseyans feel they pay too much in taxes and are not happy with what the state government is doing about the affordability of living in the Garden State, according to the latest Rutgers-Eagleton Poll, conducted in collaboration with the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA).
Eighty-two percent of residents think they pay too much in taxes for what they get, and large majorities believe the taxes they pay ā namely, property taxes (79 percent), the 41.4 cent gas tax (77 percent), and the state income tax (62 percent) ā are unfair. Only the sales tax sits well with residents, with over half (58 percent) saying the tax is reasonable.
Trenton NJ, Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-26) released the following statement in response to reports that a summit attended by a number of prominent elected officials, including New Jerseyās own U.S. Senator Cory Booker, opened with chants praising convicted cop-killer Joanne Chesimard.
Pennacchio has been a vocal advocate for the return of Chesimard. He and fellow Senate Republican, Sen. Anthony Bucco (R-25) have long sponsored a State Senate resolution, SR-15, urging Chesimardās extradition from Cuba.
Ridgewood NJ, Recent polls indicate Democrats are becoming more comfortable holding a skeptical view of Israel. A poll by YouGov for the Economist said just a quarter of Democrats see Israel as an ally, compared to 57 percent of Republicans.
One Democratic House candidate has pledged that she will vote against bills that include aid to Israel, denouncing what she saw as the āinjusticeā of Israelās treatment of the Palestinians. Another wrote that āIsrael has hypnotized the worldā with its āevil doings.āStill another helped write a scathing book on relations between the United States and Israel, while Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive political star expected to win a House seat in New York, condemned the āoccupation of Palestine.ā
Washington DC, Progressives embrace anti-semitism . A vote on a resolution condemning anti-Semitism in response to controversial comments by Rep. Ilhan Omar is being put off amid intensifying pressure from progressives both inside and outside the House Democratic Caucus.
An array of progressive groups declared their support for Omar, while both the Congressional Black Caucus and Congressional Progressive Caucus ā two of the most important factions among House Democrats ā wanted more time to review the situation, lawmakers and aides said.
Bergen county has seen a significant up tick in anti-semitism , including events in the Village of Ridgewood and Ridgewood Schools.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), one of the first two Muslim members of Congress, persists in her anti-Israel, anti-Semitic statements, even after condemnations from leading Congressional Democrats, questions are being asked about the partyās inability to take real action against the freshman firebrand.
Some of those concerns are even coming from Jews in Israel. David Rubin, American-Israeli political commentator and author of āTrump and the Jewsā, has been tracking those concerns, pointing out that, āAmerican Jews and Israelis are used to hearing the bombastic statements of anti-Semites who use Israel to get at the Jews, and Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is no exception.ā
Rubin added, āWhat is especially troubling, however, is the impotence of leading Democrats, in confronting such provocative news voices in their party. Why, for instance, given her harsh views about Israel and Jews, does Omar continue to sit on the House Foreign Affairs Committee? What are the Democrat leaders afraid of? Last, but not least, are the Dems, with their inaction, abandoning their strong base of Jewish supporters?ā
Ridgewood NJ, New jersey economic policy is truly stuck on stupid . 40 years of failure and New Jersey wants to keep doing the same thing till they get it right. Fair and Necessary more like just plain stupid .New Jersey Policy Perspective Senior Policy Analyst Sheila Reynertson in response to reports that Governor Murphy will propose a 10.75 percent tax rate on income tax earners over $1 million in tomorrowās FY 2020 budget address.
Common sense and fiscally responsible management of spending with strict restraints are things the Governor and Trenton Democrats are just incapable of doing! Murphy continues to buy the favor of those in America illegally with things like sanctuary cities & 2yrs of free Community College for them while burdening those cost on the backs of citizens & those legally here. In many case those paying for Murphyās betrayal to us.. canāt even afford to pay for their own childrenās college!! Then thereās the tax on rentals at the Jersey Shoreā¦ cutting the legs out from under all those board walk shops & house rentals!!
Murphy is destroying the future of New Jersey ā¦ Even more sick.. is the fact the Trenton Democrats are all helping him do it!!
Trenton NJ, Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-26) warned that Governor Phil Murphy and New Jersey Democrats havenāt learned from their mistakes and are doubling-down on failed fiscal policies that are driving residents and jobs from the Garden State.
āGovernor Cuomo recently admitted that high taxes are driving residents from New York, leading to budget deficits and the flight of residents from the Empire State,ā said Pennacchio. āUnfortunately, Governor Murphy and New Jersey Democrats still havenāt learned from their mistakes. Theyāre doubling down on tax-hiking policies that have never worked, and New Jersey is doing worse than our neighbors and most of the nation as a result.ā
The budget that was approved last year by the Democratic Legislature and signed into law by Governor Murphy raised taxes by $1.5 billion. It is dependent on revenues growing by 7.5 percent over the course of the fiscal year to stay in the black.
“As just about everyone in this state, if not the country, knows by now, Amazon has terminated its plans to bring its second headquarters to New York State. It is a tremendous loss for New Yorkers and I hope that at a minimum, we understand the lessons learned.
“In my 23 years in the State Capitol, three as Budget Director, Amazon was the single greatest economic development opportunity we have had. Amazon chose New York and Virginia after a year-long national competition with 234 cities and states vying for the 25,000-40,000 jobs. For a sense of scale, the next largest economic development project the state has completed was for approximately 1,000 jobs. People have been asking me for the past week what killed the Amazon deal. There were several factors.
