Trenton Mayor Doug Palmer

TRENTON – There was Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal on a television set and Trenton Mayor Doug Palmer listening with deepening skepticism. Palmer, a short-list candidate for lieutenant governor, thought Jindal’s Tuesday night GOP bite-back at President Barack Obama’s federal stimulus speech was especially poor. 

“I think he’s being panned a lot,” Palmer said of the Republican governor who in his remarks likened an aid package to federal bureaucrats haplessly attempting to micromanage Hurricane Katrina relief, and who would refuse a profusion of new federal funds to his state.

“Bobby Jindal’s either hypocritical or he’s putting politics ahead of his responsibility as governor of Louisiana,” said Trenton’s mayor since 1990. “Louisiana especially should welcome aid, and it’s his job to make sure that money is used effectively. Look, we tried the governor’s approach and it’s not going anywhere.” 

Regardless of the outcome of the game of political musical chairs in the 28th legislative district, where two incumbents and a former Assemblyman are posturing for two spots on the Democratic line, look for the mostly white, blue collar towns of Belleville and Bloomfield to be split away from Newark and Irvington when a new map is drawn after next year's census.

The 28th was supposed to be one of the voting rights districts that protected minority representation in the Legislature when it was drawn in 2001.  The incumbents at the time were three African Americans: State Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Newark) and Assemblymen Donald Tucker (D-Newark) and Craig Stanley (D-Irvington). 

If Caputo holds his seat this year, it makes a defense of the current district under the Voting Rights Act more difficult.

Belleville, which was in the old 36th district, and Bloomfield, part of the old 34th district, were mostly represented by Republican legislators before the towns were moved in to the new 28th.  Rice beat GOP Assemblywoman Marion Crecco (R-Bloomfield) by a 69%-30% margin in 2001.

But Belleville and Bloomfield, which was estimated to have a combined population of 79,816 last year, have proven to be a greater force in Essex County politics than the redistricting commission imagined.  In 2007, Essex Democrats backed Ralph Caputo, a white Freeholder who served as a Republican Assemblyman from 1968 to 1972, to run for the Assembly.  Caputo and Cleopatra Tucker, whose late husband held the seat until his death in 2005, unseated two incumbents, Stanley and Oadline Truitt (D-Newark). 

Eldridge Hawkins, a three-term Assemblyman, challenged Senate President Pat Dodd in the 1977 Democratic primary. He lost.

Assemblyman Michael Doherty says he'll seek the Republican nomination for State Senator against soon-to-be incumbent Marcia Karrow in June.  "Wild horses couldn't prevent me from running in that primary," he said.  Over the last 32 years, six Assembly members have taken on incumbent Senators in primaries, but only two have won.

The last sitting member of the State Assembly to beat an incumbent Senator in a primary was Leanna Brown, who beat James Vreeland in the 1983 Republican primary.  That same year, Senator Joseph Bubba defeated Assemblyman Terry LaCorte in the GOP primary. 

In 1993, State Senator Richard Codey beat Assemblyman Robert Brown in the Democratic primary.  Most recently, in 2003, Assemblyman LeRoy Jones unsuccessfully challenged Senator Nia Gill in the Democratic primary.

The 1977 primary election -- the same one where nine Democrats challenged incumbent Brendan Byrne in the Democratic gubernatorial primary - two Senators faced primary challenges from former running mates:  Charles Yates, a Democratic Assemblyman from Burlington County, ousted Senator Edward Hughes in the Democratic primary; and Assemblyman Eldridge Hawkins took on Senate President Frank "Pat" Dodd in the Democratic primary and lost. (Hawkins finished third, with tennis great Althea Gibson running second.) 

GILL-WEINBERG BILL TO RESTRICT CREDIT CARDS FOR THOSE UNDER 21 ADVANCES

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Nia H. Gill and Loretta Weinberg which would require credit card companies to obtain parental consent before issuing a credit card to someone under the age of 21 was approved by the Senate Commerce Committee today by a vote of 4-0.

“Especially during the current economic crisis, a line of credit can be incredibly tempting – and extraordinarily dangerous – for young people who don’t understand the consequences of massive credit card debt,” said Senator Gill, D-Essex and Passaic, and Chairwoman of the Commerce Committee. “It’s become more and more common in our society for young people to build up thousands and thousands of dollars in unpaid credit card debt before they reach their mid-twenties. Hopefully, by informing parents of their kids’ credit decisions, we can encourage them to offer advice and guidance, so that their children can avoid costly mistakes which will limit them down the road.”

Lawyers will be the minority on the 2009 State Senate Judiciary Committee headed by engineer Paul Sarlo (D-Wood-Ridge)

For the first time since the new State Constitution was approved in 1947, a majority of members of the 2009 New Jersey State Senate Judiciary Committee -- six of eleven -- are not lawyers.  Chairman Paul Sarlo and Vice Chairman John Girgenti are not attorneys, as is fellow Democrat Loretta Weinberg.  Among the Republicans, Gerald Cardinale (who serves as the unofficial ranking Republican), Joseph Kyrillos and Jennifer Beck are not attorneys.

The lawyers on the Judiciary Committee are Democrats Raymond Lesniak, Nicholas Scutari, Robert Smith and Nia Gill, and Republican Bill Baroni. 

Senate President Richard Codey, who is responsible for the non-lawyer a majority -- a move some pols are applauding -- is one of a few non-lawyers to serve as Senate President.

State Sen. Paul Sarlo could be Dick Codey's choice for Senate Judiciary Chairman

Paul Sarlo, a three-term State Senator with close ties to indicted Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joseph Ferriero appears to be the leading candidate for chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to sources close to Senate President Richard Codey, who has not made a final decision on one of the state's most powerful committee chairmanships.  Codey must decide by January who will replace John Adler, who was elected to Congress.

GILL-SARLO BILL PACKAGE TO UPDATE BUSINESS LAWS, MAKE NEW JERSEY FRIENDLIER TO BUSINESSES

TRENTON – A set of bills sponsored by Senators Nia H. Gill, the Chairwoman of the Senate Commerce Committee, and Paul A. Sarlo, Chairman of the Senate Labor Committee, which would update laws governing corporations in New Jersey to make the State friendlier to business development was approved by the Commerce Committee today by a vote of 4-0.

“As New Jersey comes to terms with the effects of a national economic crisis the likes of which we haven’t seen since the Great Depression, it is incumbent upon us to retain businesses – and the jobs they bring with them,” said Senator Gill, D-Essex and Passaic. “Our regulatory climate for businesses and corporations is among the strictest in the nation, and particularly at a time when we need to encourage additional business investment in the State, we should revisit some of the corporate regulations currently in place to make for a state friendlier to the business industry.”

Rob Tornoe's July 2008 cartoon lampooning State Sen. Nia Gill for accepting a lucrative no-bid legal contract from the Essex County Improvement Authority

A Democrat with strong ties to Senate President Richard Codey says there is "no f#$&ing way" Nia Gill will become Senate Judiciary Chairman when John Adler goes to Congress in January.  Codey's friend cites tension between the two Senators over their shared senatorial courtesy in Essex County, and Gill's growing dependence on legal work from the County of Essex (that means Codey rival Stephen Adubato, Sr.) as key reasons why Gill won't get the job.  The front runner, says the Senate President's ally, is State Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Lesniak), who doesn't excite Codey but may be the least problematic of the potential contenders.

Click here to read Max Pizarro's story on the race for Senate Judiciary Chairman

State Sen. Barbara Buono wants to stay focused on state budget issues

At least three State Senators want to succeed U.S. Rep.-elect John Adler (D-Cherry Hill) as chairman of the power Judiciary Committee, a decision that will be made by Senate President Richard J. Codey (D-Essex). 

Sources say state Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Linden), Sen. Nia Gill (D-Montclair), and Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Wood-Ridge), want to succeed Adler, while two other senators with legal cred say they’re satisfied with their present chairmanships and don’t want to make a play for judiciary chair.

“It would be an interesting chairmanship,” admitted state Sen. Barbara Buono (D-Metuchen). “But I can’t imagine a more challenging chairmanship than the budget committee, and right now with the economy what it is, I would like to stay focused.”

State Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Elizabeth), who already serves on the judiciary committee, said he’s likewise not budging from his current chairmanship of economic development.

GENETIC COUNSELING REGULATION ADVANCES IN SENATE COMMITTEE

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Joseph F. Vitale, Jim Whelan, Shirley K. Turner and Nia H. Gill which would create a system of licensure and accountability for genetic counselors in the State of New Jersey was unanimously approved by the Senate Commerce Committee today.

“Genetic counseling has become an invaluable medical tool for parents looking to assess the risks of transmitting genetic disorders to their kids, and individual looking for greater understanding of their own health,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex, the Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “As we move forward with cutting-edge health care – like personalized medicine and custom-made health care plans – genetic counseling is becoming an even bigger part of the future of medicine. Unfortunately, individuals looking for medical guidance have no way of knowing who’s an appropriate genetic counselor and who’s simply using the title without the necessary training and education.”