Jaffe Morning Briefing
By JAFFE COMMUNICATIONS
June 4, 2020
TRENTON – $14 billion. Boy, that sounds like a lot of money. And that is the number the state Assembly is kicking around today, as part of Gov. Phil Murphy’s borrowing plan to desperately shore up the state. Politico reports the state is seeking an immediate $5 billion, with the rest of the cash ...
STATEWIDE - You can soon drop your kid off at child care as you get a haircut, shop for new shoes, then meet a friend for a lovely outdoor lunch to chat about what summer camp your little cherubs might attend. Just don't dare lift any barbells or swing any tennis rackets, okay? That’s the message ...
STATEWIDE – One silver lining around this whole pandemic mess are evening walks. Breathe deeply, as you enjoy clean Jersey air and the stars popping brilliantly in our clear skies. Yes, our air quality has improved remarkably over the past two months, with our factories are shuttered. But ...
STATEWIDE – There’s now a big pile of paper stacked in your kitchen. Somewhere near the bottom, clinging to the backside of the February circulars about sweater sales, is the Census form. Of course, since March 15 or so, the task of filling out the Census form seemed about as low priority as ...
STAFFORD – Hard to imagine that anything you read on social media is untrue, but beware! The Stafford cops are trying to correct the raging rumor that they are banning a Beach Haven West resident from blasting “God Bless America” at 7:30 p.m. every night. No, the cops are saying, we are not against ...
TRENTON – Calling out “knuckleheads” and telling them to “cut the crap” is racking up lots of brownie points for Gov. Phil Murphy. Perhaps that’s why a new Rutgers-Eagleton poll shows Murphy’s job-approval rating has “catapulted” to 77 percent since last May. The chief pollster says these numbers ...
STATEWIDE – The time-honored graduation ceremony – a time to sit in uncomfortable gowns in the summer heat, listen to an unmemorable speech by some unknown guy and wait endlessly for all names to be called – has somehow been elevated to the panacea of the high school experience. And, so, following ...
The Jaffe Briefing will not publish from Thursday, May 21 to Tuesday, May 26. Enjoy the holiday weekend! EDISON – Buying a pair of shoes at the mall is a whole new experience, as Gov. Phil Murphy announced that shopping meccas around the state can now offer curbside service at non-essential ...
DEPTFORD – Under the slogan of “Hey! Better than nothing,” a South Jersey high school has figured a way to hold graduation. Deptford High School has formulated a Noah’s Ark approach to pomp and circumstance, with graduates going two by two. This will certainly be memorable: Over the course of five ...
The Jaffe Briefing will not publish from Thursday, May 21 to Tuesday, May 26. Enjoy the holiday weekend! DOWN THE SHORE – Ready for the New York invasion? Brace yourself, people, as suddenly New Jersey will be the place to go for all those Manhattanites and Brooklynites who are typically too ...
TRENTON – The state’s economy, as we all know, has been decimated. That means more layoffs and furloughs, which are just going to put the good people of New Jersey deeper in debt. NJ Spotlight reports about some possible help, which blew through the Legislature in near-record time. Changes to the ...
STATEWIDE – With high school graduations creeping up in just a few short weeks, Gov. Phil Murphy is feeling the heat from ticked-off parents and devastated soon-to-be graduates who have likely had the worst spring of their lives. They are now wandering out to the grocery store and the hardware ...
THOROFARE – Let's assume this South Jersey tavern once served angry patriots demanding a declaration of independence from England, as they glugged their grog. And you can bet the Mount Royal Inn also served up drinks to those toasting the end of the Civil War, World War II and any other darn war ...
TRENTON – People who are somehow able to publicly defecate into bottles managed to make the governor’s press briefing yesterday, with the State Police superintendent rightfully complaining about some, er, litter discovered in state parks over Mother’s Day weekend. Because the restrooms were closed, ...
THE STICKS – Assemblyman Hal Wirths represents one of the emptiest areas of the state, so rural that his legislative district spans 36 towns in three counties. So, from his vantage point in a place where there are more barns than people, Wirths feels he can tell Gov. Phil Murphy that there is ...
FORT LEE – All that remains are the “tell-all” books sure to be written after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision yesterday to throw out the convictions of two political insiders ensnared in the so-called “Bridgegate” mess that ultimately derailed Gov. Chris Christie’s unlikely bid for the White ...
DOWN THE SHORE – Jersey Shore towns typically love this time of year, when the cash starts flowing from out-of-towners who are willing to pay anything. The suckers, er, or, “tourists” are the backbone of the shore’s economy. But, as the Asbury Park Press reports, towns are now bracing for the ...
WEST LONG BRANCH - Could there be another glorious sign of summer? Monmouth Park is galloping along with its plans to open the Jersey Shore racetrack by July 3, just in time to salvage the Independence Day weekend. Of course, all the planning and intentions need the blessing of Gov. Phil Murphy, ...
DOWN THE SHORE - And here's where it gets messy. Uncle Sam - supported by generous taxpayers from sea to shining sea - funds the millions and millions of dollars in beach replenishment projects in our shore towns. Yet it will be up to municipal officials to decide who gets on the beaches this ...
ROAD – Those “Don’t be a Knucklehead” signs are popping up along highways all over New Jersey and state Sen. Joe Pennacchio doesn’t like it one bit. The Morris County Republican fired off a missive to the media that “strongly condemn(s) the flippant language” that Murphy is using for those ...
STATEWIDE – So, what’s $30 billion or so among friends? That’s the pitch from Gov. Phil Murphy, who cozied up to his new BFF, President Donald Trump, in the Oval Office yesterday. Sure, let’s assume Murphy had plenty of ulterior motives for the drive down I-95, pleading with everyone in Washington ...
ALL OVER – The feds released last week’s unemployment claims this morning, showing another 3.8 million people are seeking benefits. That puts the total number of unemployed workers in the U.S. requiring benefits at 30 million, equal to the entire ...
STATEWIDE – For those still trying to keep track, today is Wednesday. May is arriving in a couple of days. STATEWIDE – So, after COVID-19 finally goes away, what will New Jersey look like? To answer that question, the Wall Street Journal went all the way to Seoul, where there now seems to be ...
TRENTON – So you're telling us there's a chance? It may be more than a million, but Gov. Phil Murphy is telling us there may be a chance that we can all celebrate Memorial Day four weeks from now. “I know what it normally is and I love it, and I hope it can be some form of that,” the governor said.
STATEWIDE – Clearly not a man to count his chickens, Gov. Phil Murphy says that a “responsible reopening” of the state is still a long way off. Nevertheless, he is expected to outline broad parameters of a reopening plan today. Let’s watch for what he says about contact tracing; that’s when health ...
SCOTCH PLAINS/FANWOOD – The road back to normalcy goes through General Tso. That, at least, is the case in Scotch Plains/Fanwood, where all the Chinese restaurants are reopening for take-out at the same time, at high noon next Tuesday, TAPInto Scotch Plains-Fanwood reports. Local Lo Mein lovers ...
STATEWIDE – We all have Constitutional rights, and we like them very much. But let us assume the Founding Fathers were not dealing with a global pandemic when they crowded together in Philadelphia during that steamy summer of 1787 to cough all over each other, as they penned the document that would ...
TRENTON - Yes, assemblyman, we are all tired of this. Yes, assemblyman, we are all hurting. But, we must all ask Assemblyman Erik Peterson how he will ensure the safety of 9 million New Jerseyans as he apparently is preparing legislation to reopen New Jersey's non-essential businesses, with ...
STATEWIDE – Sure, the world is turned upside down. But this is New Jersey, so pay your taxes, OK? Sen. Paul Sarlo, chair of the Senate Budget Committee, is reminding everyone that property taxes are due May 1, just like every other May 1. So, could the deadline be extended for the hordes of ...
PRINCETON – When you have a $26.1 billion endowment, it’s really tough to cry poverty. But, apparently, hard times have befallen Princeton University, announcing it is suspending salary increases, restricting hiring and will have a “decreased dependence” on hourly and contracted workers. Employees ...