Pennsylvania senators call for more information about Gov\’s judicial nominations

By Steve Bittenbender |

The Center Square

HARRISBURG, PA–Four Pennsylvania Senators say they are pushing for legislation to reform the state’s judicial nominating process, calling for more information about the individuals the governor picks to fill vacant seats to be made public.

A news conference this week to announce Senate Bill 978 came just hours before the state Senate voted 42-7 to affirm the nomination of Drew Crompton to fill an opening on the Commonwealth Court, an appellate-level court that hears cases involving state and local governments.

Nominated by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, Crompton served for nearly three decades as a legislative counsel, currently working as the chief counsel for state Sen. Joe Scarnati, the Senate President Pro Tempore.

While his name was mentioned in the news conference, state Sen. Anthony Williams, the Democratic whip in the state Senate, said he didn’t want to make it “the Drew Crompton Show.” While saying it was fair to call into question Crompton’s credentials, Williams – who voted for Crompton – said his issues with the process began well before that particular nomination.

“I don\’t want to draw to just one singular personality because I think that frankly, it underwhelms the argument for change,” the Philadelphia senator said. “It makes it more difficult for people to digest that. It could be a Democrat. It could be a Republican. If they don\’t qualify, they don\’t qualify.”

However, his colleagues at the presser certainly didn’t have qualms speaking out against a candidate they felt was unqualified. State Sen. Katie Muth, D-Royersford, said she wasn’t in Harrisburg to “appease the governor.” State Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-Pittsburgh, spoke out against a process that she said allowed nominations to be made in backrooms.

State Sen. Maria Collett, D-Lower Gwynedd, said she came away concerned about Crompton’s qualifications after questioning him in the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday morning.

“He has never practiced law outside of these walls, and that\’s problematic when we\’re putting someone on the court that doesn\’t have a varied level of experience and a varied level of experiences dealing with people from different walks of life,” she said.

Muth, Collett and Lindsey Williams were among those who voted against Crompton.

The senators’ bill does have the support of Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts. Maida Milone, the group’s president and CEO, said the organization has pushed for a merit-based process to fill vacancies for 30 years.

“I do see this legislation as a step in that direction by making the nomination process much more open and transparent to everyone and allowing for more public participation in the process,” she said.

published here with permission of The Center Square

Trump uses Hershey rally to tout ‘single best year’ for Pennsylvania’s economy

By Steve Bittenbender |

The Center Square

President Donald Trump visited central Pennsylvania Tuesday night for a campaign rally, and while he’s held similar events in other states recently for other candidates, the focus of the evening was on his administration and his re-election campaign.

Trump spoke for about 75 minutes at the Giant Center in Hershey, a 10,500-seat arena about 30 minutes east of Harrisburg. He was joined on stage by Vice President Mike Pence, and while the president brought up national subjects, such as the impeachment hearings the House is holding, he made sure to tell the crowd why they should vote for him again next November.

He reeled off figures demonstrating how well the state’s economy has performed, such as the Pennsylvania unemployment rate hitting a record low earlier in the year, although that figure has gone up slightly since. He also noted a visit he made to a Shell Chemical plant that’s under construction in Beaver County. At $6 billion, it ranks as one of the biggest investment projects in state history.

After Democrats said manufacturing was a dying industry in the country, Trump said his administration found the “magic wand” to bring those jobs back home.

“Here in Pennsylvania you had the single best year that you’ve ever had in the history of our country,” Trump said.

Pennsylvania, with its 20 Electoral College votes, is all but certain to be a battleground state again in the 2020 presidential election. The Keystone State was a crucial victory for Trump over Hillary Clinton three years ago when he won by just 44,292 votes out of nearly 5.9 million ballots cast. It marked the first Republican presidential victory in the state since George H.W. Bush won in 1988.

Winning the state again will be critical for Trump’s re-election hopes. However, while he drew raucous cheers from the crowd Tuesday night, Trump’s prospects in the state are unclear.

According to recent polling, he likely will be the underdog in Pennsylvania next year regardless of who the Democratic Party nominates to run against him. A Muhlenberg College/Allentown Morning Call survey released last month showed that former Vice President Joe Biden held a nine-point lead over Trump, and U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders – two other top Democratic candidates – held five-point leads.

While the survey indicated that 57 percent of Pennsylvania’s registered voters do not believe Trump should win a second term, it also indicated that Biden, Warren and Sanders have higher unfavorable ratings than favorable as well.

The state’s Democratic Party used the visit as a chance to note his policies on health insurance, which they say could raise costs on individuals with pre-existing conditions. Nancy Patton Mills, chairwoman of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, called the president “an ineffective leader” in a statement released shortly after he concluded his rally.

“The President knows that he has to play defense in Pennsylvania because of his broken promises to working families in our commonwealth,” she said. “Pennsylvania Democrats are fired up and ready to work around the clock to ensure victory in 2020. The future of our nation depends on it.”

published here with permission of

The Center Square

Pennsylvania Forms Task Force to Reform Commonwealth\’s Juvenile Justice System

By Steve Bittenbender |

The Center Square

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf, legislative leaders and judges from across the state announced on Monday the creation of a task force that will recommend reforms for the commonwealth’s juvenile justice system.

Monday’s news conference in the state Capitol came about six weeks after Wolf’s Council on Reform identified juvenile justice as a system in need of overhaul. Studies indicate that as many as 9-in-10 kids in the juvenile justice system were exposed to a traumatic event in their young lives, the governor said, with about a third meeting criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder.

“Improving our juvenile justice system can have an enormous positive impact on our commonwealth by preventing young Pennsylvanians from ever entering our state prison system, and that\’s a very good thing,” Wolf said.

Each of the three branches of state government will appoint members to the task force within the next 30 days. That panel will deliver its recommendations by Nov. 30, 2020.

The task force will receive help from The Pew Charitable Trusts and the Crime and Justice Institute. In

a study last year

, Pew noted that Pennsylvania held 999 youth for status offenses, which include underage drinking and truancy, or committing technical violations of their sentence, like missing a probation meeting or not completing a treatment program.

Only California and Texas detained more youth, and Pennsylvania’s percentage of children confined for those matters, 36 percent, ranked fifth nationally.

State lawmakers are already working on reforms to the criminal justice system. The Justice Reinvestment Initiative, which has already cleared the Senate, passed the House Judiciary Committee last week.

“Common sense tells us that as we look at our criminal justice system, we must also look upstream to our juvenile justice system,” said House Majority Leader Bryan Cutler. “By assessing evidence about what works to prevent re-offending, we can direct young people who may otherwise end up off in our adult jails and prisons at a great taxpayer expense. By intervening early, we can save money and improve lives.”

Judge Kim Berkeley Clark, who currently serves as the president judge for the family division of the state’s Fifth Judicial District and as chairwoman of the Pennsylvania Juvenile Court Judges’ Commission, said that judges, juvenile probation officer and other stakeholders have worked hard to produce good outcomes for kids engaged in the system. However, more needs to be done, she said, and that it will require input from both parties.

“I think no matter what side of the aisle you\’re on, so to speak, we all agree that we want our communities to be safe and we want our children to thrive,” Clark said “And this task force will seek to do that.”

published here with permission of

The Center Square

Claire Gustafson Says Norcross Is The One Who Needs To Apologize Not Jeff Van Drew

Where are the thousands of jobs Norcross promised the Economic Opportunity Act would bring to our region?

COLLINGSWOOD – Republican candidate for Congress in New Jersey’s first congressional district, Claire Gustafson, took issue with Congressman Donald Norcross’s

statement

with regard to the news of Congressman Jeff Van Drew coming to the Republican party.

At issue is, in his statement, Norcross claimed Van Drew owes an apology to a list of people and organizations as well as “the people of South Jersey.”

“Congressman Norcross is the last person to demand anyone apologize to the people of South Jersey.” Claire Gustafson said, “Norcross, when he announced he was running for Congress in February 2014

proudly proclaimed

, ‘As Senator, I led the charge on getting the Economic Opportunity Act passed into law – a game-changing law that will help create thousands of jobs in our region.’ More recently, Norcross’s tune has changed and it’s been reported he is trying to downplay his role in getting the law that led to the tax incentive scandal passed.”

Gustafson asked, “Where are those thousands of jobs?”

“Given the fact that it has been widely

reported

that only 27 jobs created by the law he championed went to Camden residents, it’s no wonder Norcross is now downplaying his role.” Gustafson remarked, “Since the tax incentive scandal was created by the law Norcross led the charge in passing, he should be the one apologizing to the people of South Jersey.”

“While we wait and see what kind of Republican Jeff Van Drew will be, the last thing I will do is allow Donald Norcross to attack any Republican, nor anyone about to join the party,” Gustafson said. “I look forward to seeing Norcross on the campaign trail, listening to him apologize to the people of South Jersey and getting an explanation as to where those thousands of jobs are.”

Casha: How Will \”Follow The Leader Mikie” Vote On Impeachment

December 13, 2019

Kinnelon, NJ- Larry Casha candidate for the 11th Congressional District released the following

statement:

How will “Follow the Leader Mikie” vote on Impeachment?

“The impeachment proceedings of President Trump have been under the microscope since day

one, questioned, attacked and defended by many pundits and talking heads. Speaker Pelosi

attacked the President with much fervor, charging him over the past several weeks with bribery.

All the while, Representative Mikie Sherrill followed the Speaker’s lead.”

“Now, the case for impeaching the President is for having abused his power and obstructed a

congressional investigation into his conduct in Ukraine. Wait…Where did the "bribery" charge go?

Why were Pelosi and Sherrill so convinced that it was a clear case of bribery yet now,

bribery is nowhere to be found? The answer is that the word “bribery” tests well in the “swing”

states. However, bribery is, and always was, a false charge. In her campaign just last year,

Representative Sherrill repeatedly said “FACTS MATTER” !!! So why didn’t facts matter when

accusing the President of the United States of bribery? Will the facts matter to Representative

Sherrill when she is presented with the opportunity to vote on impeachment or will she just

follow the leader?

“The false bribery charge is just one more example of “Follow the Leader Mikie”. She said in

the 2018 campaign that she would & bring new leadership to Washington. Well, it looks like the same old Nancy Pelosi politics to me.”

New Stockton Exhibit Shares the Legacy of Congressman Frank LoBiondo

Retired U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo, center, with students who created the exhibit base on the collection he gifted to Stockton University.

Galloway, N.J

. – Stockton University student Michael Ortiz of Millville is majoring in social work and is interested in how public policy is developed.

His said his work on an exhibit of how retired U.S. Rep Frank LoBiondo developed overwhelming bipartisan support for a Bulletproof Vest Grant law was a real-life lesson in effective governing.

“To see how he worked to get the job done was inspirational,” Ortiz said at the opening of a new exhibit at Stockton dedicated to LoBiondo’s career.

The exhibit, “The LoBiondo Legacy: Highlights from a Lifetime of Service to South Jersey” opened on Dec. 9 in the lower level of the Richard E. Bjork Library.

The exhibit, using items from the collection LoBiondo gifted to Stockton, highlights 10 themes from his 35-year career in public service: Background, Aviation, John’s Law, Bulletproof Vest Grants, Intelligence, 9/11, Coast Guard, Environment, Challenge Coins and Relationships in Congress.

“You’ve done an outstanding job,” LoBiondo told the students at a reception, “and you’ve brought back a lot of memories.”

LoBiondo, who spent 24 years in Congress, said he remembers when he was afraid to run for state Assembly because he was sure “a kid from a farm in Rosenhayn,” would get laughed at.

But, when he realized no one was going to just hand him a career in politics, he committed to giving it his best.

“I had to go get it and take the bumps that come with it,” he said, thanking his family for putting up with his long hours and absences, and his staff for keeping him organized.

The exhibit was prepared by 32 students in Assistant Professor of Political Science Claire Abernathy’s “President and Congress” class. LoBiondo met with the class in October.

“Our goal is for students to understand how the political system works in practice,” Abernathy said. “This collection is a new resource for Stockton that we have just begun to tap.”

Stockton President Harvey Kesselman called LoBiondo a statesman, and said the exhibit and collection “help preserve the work of a man who deserves the remembrance. He served the common good and knew how to work across the aisle. He helped shape communities across South Jersey. We are honored to have been chosen by him to house his collection.”

Student Taylor Ketcham of Toms River said she hopes one day to work in museum operations and working on the exhibit with Stockton Special Collections librarian Heather Perez was a valuable experience.

Hunter Butkus of Long Valley worked on the Aviation display and said he was impressed with how dedicated LoBiondo was to the work of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center.

“He was very passionate about the committees he was on,” Butkus said.

Criminal Justice major Cordell Irving of Woodbridge said he learned how sensitive LoBiondo was to serving his local community.

“He could work with both sides, but he was always a local guy for South Jersey,” he said.

Political science major Anthony Farfalla from Toms River said the exhibit on LoBiondo’s relationships in Congress show his bipartisanship and ability to work with others.

“His record really stood out,”Farfalla said. “He understood what was important, and what was at stake.”

The display includes quotes from LoBiondo, comments from others about him, and a couple of photos of him playing basketball with colleagues.

“We wanted to show he was also able to have fun,” Farfalla said.

The exhibit, which is open to the public, includes LoBiondo’s desk and a flag that flew over the Capitol building in Washington. Stockton is the exclusive home of the Frank A. LoBiondo Congressional Papers. Stockton Special Collections Librarian Heather Perez said only about 20 percent of the materials Stockton received are on display and more will be loaned or gifted in the future. The exhibit will be updated occasionally over time. The materials are also available for classes and research.

Environmental Bills Up in Committee Thursday

The following environmental bills will be up in the Assembly Appropriations Committee tomorrow, December 12th.

A4267 (McKeon): concerns the regulations of solid waste, hazardous waste, and soil and debris recycling industries. This bill amends the existing law to expand the requirements for

background checks to a broader range of persons involved in the solid waste industry, such as salespersons, consultants, and brokers.

“This bill is important because it addresses New Jersey’s ongoing problems with illegal dumping of contaminated materials. The Special Commission of Investigation’s first “Dirty Dirt” report in 2016 exposed the rampant problem of soil brokers and dirty dirt. Since that report the illegal dumping is still happening, risking the environment and public health. That’s because there hasn’t been any action by DEP and the Legislature to stop it. The industry has ties to the mob, and there are serious pollution and health impacts,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “These unscrupulous dirt brokers are dumping contaminated soil all over the environment. There are loopholes in the law that gives them less scrutiny that need to be closed.”

In June, the Special Commission of Investigation released their latest “Dirty Dirt” report detailing illegal dumping in Marlboro. SCI reported that New Jersey currently “lacks the authority to properly oversee elements of its recycling program”. Illegal dumping in New Jersey has the potential to impact the environment but also cause public health problems, like in Kearny where New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority illegally dumped liquid sewage sludge.

“This bill is an important step forward; however, we need to go further. New Jersey needs tighter regulations and restrictions on how our waste is handled. We have a long history of contaminated materials coming into our state, in part because DEP chooses not to regulate these chemicals. DEP needs to set and enforce standards for toxic materials to prevent any more possible dumping,” said Jeff Tittel. “The Assembly needs to act quickly and get this bill to the governor’s desk before the end of the year.”

A5854 (Pintor Marin): Allows municipalities to adopt an ordinance permitting lead service line replacements in residential properties with at least 24-hour notice to residents.

“This legislation will help us replace lead service lines. This legislation is needed because lead in drinking water has become an ongoing issue in New Jersey. In order to find out if people are being exposed to lead or to get rid of existing lead service lines, you need to have access to the properties. Many times, landlords or property owners will not allow access to municipalities to check for lead. Our water is at risk and we need to be able to replace old lead pipes. This legislation will help municipalities protect residents from being exposed to lead in their water,” said Jeff Tittel.

A5518 (Benson): establishes “Alternative Fuel Vehicle Transportation Financing Commission” to examine the manner in which alternative fuel vehicles may be taxed to contribute to the cost of maintaining State transportation system.

“We oppose this legislation. This legislation would undercut the progress of any movement in accelerating EV use. The committee would investigate studies to put fees on electric vehicles even before we get any on the road. Right now, New Jersey only has about 25,000 electric vehicles on the road, it is too premature to be taxing these vehicles,” said Jeff Tittel. “We need to encourage EV use to get to the state’s goal of 330,000 EVs by 2025. In order to find funding for road improvements and mass transit projects, we should be putting fees on gas guzzlers and massive dino SUV’s instead.”

A5583 (Pinkin): Prohibits sale, lease, rent or installation of certain equipment or products containing hydrofluorocarbons or other greenhouse gases.

“This bill is a step in the right direction when it comes to reducing GHG’s from the products we use every day. Hydrofluorocarbons represent around 1% of total greenhouse gases but their impact on global warming can be hundreds to thousands of times greater than that of carbon dioxide. They can be found in cooling products like refrigerators, air conditioning for our homes and cars, aerosols, and more,” said Jeff Tittel. “It is important that we prohibit and phase out all products containing HCF’s and greenhouse gases so that we can mitigate our impact on global warming.”

A6014 (Vainieri Huttle/Pinkin): Appropriates $500,000 to establish NJ Climate Change Resource Center at Rutgers University.

“Establishing a Climate Change Resource Center is a good step forward when it comes to being prepared and stronger than the next storm, but $500,000 is not enough money to get the job done. Rutgers is spending $4 million a year on a new football coach, but we can only spend $500,000 for climate change research. They need to get their priorities straight. This is a fumble when it comes to climate change. A recent study found that much of New Jersey, including inland counties, are more vulnerable to climate impacts now than before Sandy. We must start taking real actions to fight climate change now. We are in a climate crisis, and New Jersey is the only state on the east coast that does not have any kind of sea level rise climate adaptation plan,” said Jeff Tittel. “This Resource Center will help use the latest science to put climate and sea level rise in DEP rules and state legislation, but more money needs to go toward this center for it to be effective.”

A5970 (Lopez): Amends list of environmental infrastructure projects approved for long-term funding for FY2020 to include new projects, remove certain projects, and modify estimated loan amounts for certain projects.

A5971 (Mukherji): Authorizes NJ Infrastructure Bank to expend additional sums to make loans for environmental projects for FY2020.

“We need to step it up when it comes to funding critical environmental programs for New Jersey. We have major problems with lead including $8.2 billion worth of pipes that need to be fixed, $4.6 billion for getting lead out of our water and a $6 billion combined sewer overflow fix. Overall, we need at least $46 billion to fix New Jersey’s environmental problems. We also need to tie fixing our infrastructure to energy efficiency and renewable energy as well as green building including blue and green roofs to reduce flooding. If we don’t consider climate change, we could end up wasting billions of dollars of taxpayer money,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.

Acting Stratford Republican Club President Backs Gustafson

Former running mate endorses Gustafson

COLLINGSWOOD – Republican candidate for Congress in New Jersey’s first congressional district, Claire Gustafson, announced today she has earned the endorsement of former Freeholder running mate and acting Stratford Republican Club President Rob Stone.

Stone’s endorsement is the second out of Stratford, he joins former Councilman John Dudley in backing Gustafson.

“I’ve never endorsed a candidate in a party primary, but I’m not sitting this one out. I’ve known Claire Gustafson for several years, I’ve worked with her and I’ve run with her. I know no one will out work Claire,” Acting Stratford Republican Club President Rob Stone said. “From her days on the school board to stepping up to the plate every time the party has needed her, Claire has laid the foundation necessary to build the organization needed to compete against the Norcross political machine. I’m proud to join former Councilman John Dudley and others in endorsing Claire.”

“Having run for freeholder Rob Stone knows the difficulties of running against South Jersey’s political machine, I’m thankful for his support and look forward to working with him to win races up and down the ballot in 2020,” Claire Gustafson said.

About Claire Gustaafson: Active in her community, Claire is currently the President of Camden County New Jersey Republican Women, a former school board member in Collingswood, a former soccer and Little League coach and a member of Collingswood’s historic commission. She’s owned her own small business for over 30 years and is married with four sons, one daughter and several grandchildren.

Ambrosino Calls Out Assemblywomen Lampitt And Mosquera

For Being ‘Do As We Say Not As We Do’ South Jersey Democrats

Where were Lampitt and Mosquera after former Assemblyman Barclay punched his girlfriend in the face?

HADDON HEIGHTS – Camden County Republican Chairman Rich Ambrosino asked today when Camden County’s Democrat Assemblywomen were going to end their hypocrisy.

At issue is a recent

press release

issued by Assemblywomen Pam Lampitt and Gabriela Mosquera heralding a bill offering support to victims of violence and abuse.

“While I agree victims of violence and abuse should be supported, I question the level of support Assemblywomen Lampitt and Mosquera actually provide to victims of violence and abuse, Camden County Republican Chairman Rich Ambrosino said. “Both Assemblywomen sat silently on the sidelines when the news of former Assemblyman Arthur Barclay’s arrest for a domestic incident broke.”

Ambrosino asked, “Where was their support for the former Assemblyman’s girlfriend after he punched her in the face?”

Ambrosino explained, “In their press release Lampitt said, ‘Each year, 10 million Americans will be physically abused by their partners, over 430,000 will be sexually assaulted and nearly 5 million seniors will experience elder abuse. These numbers are appalling and simply cannot be ignored.’”

“For once I agree with Lampitt, those numbers cannot be ignored.” Ambrosino continued, “It’s time for Lampitt to explain to the residents of her district why she chose to ignore the fact that an Assemblyman admitted to punching his girlfriend.”

“Did Assemblywomen Lampitt and Mosquera ignore the Barclay arrest because he’s in their party? Are they ignoring the fact he still has a county job because he’s in their party? Are Assemblywomen Lampitt and Mosquera happy with being silent hypocrites,” Ambrosino asked.

“This is just another example of the ‘do as we say not as we do’ South Jersey Democrats in action,” Ambrosino said.

AG Bill Barr Blasts ‘Completely Irresponsible Press,’

Hits FBI For ‘Gross Abuses’ In Trump Probe

CHUCK ROSS

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER

Attorney General William Barr blasted the “completely irresponsible press” Tuesday as well as the FBI for their respective roles in pushing the debunked theory that the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government in 2016.

Barr said in

an interview

with NBC News he disagreed with

a Justice Department inspector general’s report

, released Monday, that said the FBI had a legitimate rationale to open an investigation into Trump campaign associates in July 2016.

Barr said he believes the FBI may have acted in “bad faith” in opening the investigation.

“I think there were gross abuses … and inexplicable behavior that is intolerable in the FBI,” Barr told NBC News. “I think that leaves open the possibility that there was bad faith.”

WATCH:

The inspector general’s office said the FBI had a proper predicate for opening the investigation; however, the report also laid out extensive evidence of FBI agents omitting and withholding information regarding the Steele dossier, which the bureau used in applications to conduct surveillance against former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.

(RELATED: Watchdog Report Puts Final Nail In Steele Dossier’s Coffin)

The report said FBI agents working the case failed to disclose exculpatory information regarding Page and George Papadopoulos, another former Trump aide. FBI agents also withheld information that called the credibility of dossier author Christopher Steele into question.

Barr doubled down in the interview on remarks he made earlier this year that he believes the U.S. government spied on Trump campaign associates.

“It was clearly spied upon,” Barr said of the FBI’s actions towards the Trump campaign. “That’s what electronic surveillance is … going through people’s emails, wiring people up.”

Barr criticized the press on two fronts. He faulted the industry for largely ignoring the parts of the inspector general’s report that undercut the collusion conspiracy theories. He also accused news outlets of overhyping allegations of Trump-Russia collusion.

He lamented that the inspector general’s report has not been “accurately reported by the press over the last day.”

Barr also added: “I think our nation was turned on its head for three years based on a completely bogus narrative that was largely fanned and hyped by a completely irresponsible press.”

The special counsel’s report, which was released on April 18, said there was no evidence that the Trump campaign conspired with Russia or that any Trump associates acted as agents of Russia. The FBI opened its investigation on July 31, 2016 to find out whether anyone on the campaign was working with Russia to hack and release Democrats’ emails.

As part of the probe, the

FBI relied heavily on the unverified Steele dossier

to assert that there was probable cause to suspect that Page was conspiring with Russia to release emails.

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