Insider NJ’s Morning Intelligence Briefing: 4/27/2020 – InsiderNJ

Below is Insider NJ’s Morning Intelligence Briefing for 4/27/2020:

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “We need to see more progress and more slowing, before we can get on the road to the new normal that awaits our state on the other side of this pandemic.” – Governor Murphy

TOP STORY: Persichilli Fire Hoses Trump’s Lysol Comments

The Supreme Court issued an order on Friday resuming certain court operations while extending the deadlines of other functions.

NJGOP Chairman Steinhardt blasted Governor Murphy for ‘pointing fingers’ at the federal government over the state’s poor fiscal outlook, saying that if state layoffs happen, ‘those consequences were facilitated over decades by a Democrat controlled legislature and for the last two and half years by a Governor whose spending was unrestrained’.

Senator Doherty blistered Governor Murphy’s executive order affecting landlords and tenants, calling it unconstitutional, saying ‘we have a governor, not a king‘.

Senator Testa reacted to reports that recently released inmates are under a gag order from speaking to the press, calling it ‘unjustifiable‘ and blasting the NJDOC for ‘failing both their corrections officers and inmates‘; Testa said the gag order ‘blocks the true story of what is happening behind bars during the COVID-19 pandemic’. Last week, Testa called for an investigation into the NJDOC’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis and called for immediate implementation of extensive management plans.

Senator Ruiz expressed support for the Governor’s willingness to assist undocumented immigrants during the COVID-19 crisis.

The NJ Apartment Association urged landlords to work with their tenants during the COVID-19 crisis, and offered recommendations for landlords.

The NJ Chamber applauded congressional passage of the follow-up $484B COVID-19 stimulus package.

ICYMI: Sweeney appointed Ruiz and Singleton to fiscal recovery team; Coughlin announces new advisory panel; Scharfenberger requested salary withheld; Doherty launched petition for resuming religious services, says he no longer supports ‘draconian shut down measures’; NJOA slammed Assembly shut-down of Webber park closure challenge, blistered Murphy amid growing backlash; Senate’s rough virtual voting session

AROUND THE WEB:

It’s Not Too Late to Go on Offense Against the Coronavirus

Jim Yong Km, New Yorker

• For weeks now, we’ve watched the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the United States. During much of that time, it’s seemed like the only thing to do is hunker down, wait, and hope. We hope that a vaccine will arrive, even though we can’t be sure how long that might take, or whether an effective vaccine is even possible. We hope that those who have had the virus will be able to return to work—never mind that we have yet to see proof of durable immunity.

Gov. Phil Murphy needs to get down to business and restart the state’s economy | Mulshine

Paul Mulshine, Star-Ledger

• I see that the latest Monmouth University Poll gives Gov. Phil Murphy an approval rating of 71 percent. I keep hearing from the other 29 percent.

Mitch McConnell to NJ: Drop Dead | Moran

Tom Moran, Star-Ledger

• Sen. Mitch McConnell has a knack for turning a bad situation into an infuriating one. He did it after the children were murdered at Sandy Hook when he buried sensible legislation on gun safety. He did it after the Russians screwed up the 2016 election when he blocked efforts to fortify our defenses in time for 2020.

N.J. towns and schools brace for economic pain that could force layoffs, property taxes hikes

Riley Yates and Samantha Marcus, NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

• Gov. Phil Murphy says state finances have fallen off a cliff amid the coronavirus pandemic, and he’s warning of historic layoffs at all levels of government if New Jersey is unable to muster the money it needs to meet its obligations.

Large-scale contact tracing is one way out of lockdown. But N.J. still hasn’t announced a plan.

Rebecca Everett and Matthew Stanmyre, NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

• If you test positive for coronavirus in Warren County, you can expect your phone to ring. “Are we still calling everyone? The short answer is yes,” said Sarah Perramant, the county health department’s epidemiologist. “We’re doing our best.”

Rutgers president unveils salary cuts; freezes on tuition, major construction

Daniel J. Munoz, njbiz.com

• Rutgers University President Robert Barchi on Friday unveiled across-the-board budget cuts and pushed for a freeze on both tuition increases and major university construction in a bid to balance the college’s budget as the COVID-19 pandemic decimates its revenue. Barchi will take a 10 percent cut in his salary, as will Rutgers’ senior leadership, the athletic director and the football and basketball head coaches for the next four months. Another 100 top university officials will see 5 percent pay cuts, Barchi added.

Coronavirus adds uncertainty to future of struggling South Jersey malls

Gianluca D’Elia, Burlington County Times

• Local spots like the Moorestown and Cherry Hill malls were already struggling to compete with online shopping.

The Economy: Where are We and Where do We Go from Here? A Virtual Round-table with Rosemary Becchi, Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce and Freeholder Tayfun Selen

TAPinto Staff

• Rosemary Becchi, a public policy and tax attorney who is running for Congress in the 11th district, is hosting a virtual round-table today at 2pm. The discussion will be co-hosted by Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce, Morris County Freeholder Tayfun Selen and Sussex County Freeholder Joshua Hertzberg.

Longtime Bloomingdale cop, Oakland firefighter dies from coronavirus complications

Anthony Zurita, NorthJersey.com

• Gary Walker, a longtime Bloomingdale police officer and firefighter for Oakland, was remembered as selfless and caring by those who knew him and worked with him after he died Friday morning due to complications caused by the coronavirus. Walker, 53, died after he was in a coma for 30 days,the New Jersey State Policeman Benevolent Association said. Walker leaves behind his wife, Danielle, and his young daughter, Demi.

Paterson schools buried in handwritten homework amid coronavirus shutdown

Joe Malinconico, Paterson Press

• Hundreds of cardboard storage boxes containing thousands of handwritten assignments done by students at home during the first two weeks of the coronavirus shutdown cluttered the school board’s meeting room on Thursday. Box by box, homework sheet by homework sheet, a handful of volunteers worked their way through the piles, sorting the assignments by school and grade level, and then checking off the names of the students who submitted their work.

NJ-03: Gibbs loses 99-year-old grandmother to COVID-19

Matt Rooney, Save Jersey

• NJ-03 Republican primary candidate Kate Gibbs says her grandmother passed away on Wednesday due to COVID-19 complications.“My grandmother Venia was born in 1920 – the year women secured our right to vote. That was just the start of all of the history she would witness in her nearly 100 years,” said Gibbs in a Thursday evening social media post.

We asked N.J.’s labor commissioner 50 questions on unemployment benefits — he answered them all

Tom Bergeron, roi-nj.com

• Why is it taking so long to get my claim processed? … Why can’t I get through when I call? … How are all these claims going to impact my business — and can I, as an owner, get benefits myself? … Who is eligible for the extra $600 dollars in benefits and what do you have to do to get it? … How does the pandemic unemployment assistance program work and who is eligible for it? … How do I get a new PIN or password? … And, again, why is this taking so long?

Freeholders fault state for COVID deaths

Eric Obernauer, NJ Herald

• Members of the Sussex County freeholder board, in their first official comments regarding the more than 45 coronavirus deaths that have taken place in county nursing homes since the end of March, provided little insight Wednesday into why the rising death toll was kept from the public for as long as it was but insisted county health officials were doing everything they could behind the scenes to get the state to address the situation.

Somerset Vo-Tech janitor alleges he was fired for whistleblowing

Nick Muscavage, Bridgewater Courier News

• A Hunterdon County man has filed suit against Somerset County Vocational and Technical Schools claiming he was unlawfully fired after raising concerns about the alleged hiring of uncertified workers.

Nursing students on front lines of COVID-19 testing and call centers in Burlington County

Carol Comegno, Cherry Hill Courier-Post

• When a call went out to Burlington County nursing students to help with front-line testing in the health battle against the coronavirus, the response was immediate — and overwhelming.

Manasquan woman finds remains of Revolutionary War shipwreck in Bordentown

Gianluca D’Elia, Burlington County Times

• Jaclyn Urmey has spent a lot of her career underwater. The Navy veteran and certified scuba diver spent years exploring shipwrecks near Palau and Micronesia in the Pacific Ocean. But it wasn’t until years later that Urmey, now a Monmouth University anthropology graduate student and Manasquan resident, developed an interest in shipwreck history.

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