JASEY HONORED FOR LEADERSHIP IN CREATING TASK FORCE TO ADDRESS BRAIN INJURY IN SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN 
 
(SOUTH ORANGE) - Assemblywoman Mila M. Jasey was honored by the Brain Injury Association of New Jersey in Trenton for the effort she spearheaded to create an 18 member New Jersey Special Education & Traumatic Brain Injury Task Force. The charge of this task force, in part, is to ensure that educational professionals recognize the signs and symptons of brain injury including concussion sustained by youth during sports activity.

State Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrence) believes that gay rights advocates plan to field a primary challenge to her, and she welcomes it.

“I’m sure they are. I think it’s wonderful this democracy we have.  I admire and respect their rights as well as their tenacity,” said Turner. 

Turner is one of several Democrats who irked gay rights advocates by voting no or abstaining when the marriage equality bill made it to the floor of the state senate last month. 

Last night, members of the state’s main gay rights organization, Garden State Equality, marched through the streets of Trenton to mark the third anniversary of the civil union law that they consider to have failed.   In their press release advertising the event, they specifically noted it was in Turner’s district.  

And when Turner introduced a resolution early this month calling for an end to the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, many progressives scoffed, accusing her of grandstanding on an issue that she has no influence over after voting against marriage equality. 

Girding for a court challenge to establish same-sex marriage, Garden State Equality plans a candlelight march through Trenton tonight to mark the third anniversary of the state’s civil union law, which gay rights advocates say has failed to bring about equal treatment for gay couples. 

The march will begin at the Hughes Justice Complex at 6pm. 

The group’s chairman, Steven Goldstein, made a point of mentioning that Trenton is in the legislative district represented by state Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Trenton), who was one of several Democrats who voted against the failed marriage equality bill in the senate.

There has been some talk in progressive circles of fielding primary challenges to senators who voted against the bill, including Turner.  Her press release earlier this month calling for an end to the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” drew a scathing response from Goldstein, who on his Facebook page called Turner “as ridiculous a spokesperson as I would be for making this national pork and shellfish month."

The race for the Chutzpah of the Day Award was called prematurely for Samantha Gordon; the real winner has to be State Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrence), who has introduced a resolution urging the president and Congress to repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” policy on gay military personnel just one month after voting against a bill that would allow same sex marriage in New Jersey.  Turner is trying to appeal to progressive Democrats who have threatened a primary challenge when she seeks re-election next year. 

Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton) went rogue this month, but the 14-year incumbent hopes to establish a working relationship with Democratic Party’s new leadership.   

“I’m not going to leave the caucus.  I still value Democratic ideals, and I think I can still make contributions to the assembly Democrats,” said Gusciora.  “I just don’t want to be known as the Holden Caulfield of the caucus, but still want to come to the State House to make a difference.”

Gusciora wasn’t happy after he was bumped from his Commerce Committee chairmanship for, he said, supporting his running mate Bonnie Watson Coleman’s bid for speaker over the eventual winner, Sheila Oliver (D-East Orange).   

So he called out the new majority leader, Joseph Cryan (D-Union), accusing him of leaving him in the dark about the chairmanship decision.  Then, two weeks later, he asked Democrats to think twice about reelecting Camden Mayor Dana Redd as the state Democratic Party’s vice-chair because, during her final weeks as a state senator, she blew off a request to meet with NAACP Chairman Julian Bond, who was advocating on behalf of gay marriage proponents (Reed, the only openly gay member of the legislature, was the prime sponsor of the gay marriage legislation in the assembly). 

And just yesterday, Gusciora rode separately from the rest of the Democratic delegation during the Chamber of Commerce’s “Walk to Washington,” opting instead to attend only a few of the events in DC. 

But Gusciora is not a politician with nothing to lose.  Even if his relationship with party leaders remains stressed, he intends to seek reelection and does not want to see his bills ignored by the new speaker, who decides what gets posted. 

“I just hope that eventually we could get some understanding that I could be a contributing member to this caucus,” he said.

With the news coming out of the Democratic caucus today that Senate President Steve Sweeney (D-West Deptford) wants to revisit reforms proposed by the 2006 bipartisan special session to overhaul the current public employee pension and benefits system, Gov. Chris Christie quickly issued a release praising Sweeney.  

“Senate President Sweeney is sending a clear signal that results matter and that bipartisan action is critical to reforming a broken pension and benefits system," the governor said. "I applaud the Senate leadership’s decision to complete the sweeping overhaul of the public employee pension and benefits system that was first proposed over three years ago. The only way to ease New Jersey’s fiscal pain and close our budget gap is by working together to fundamentally change the way government operates and today’s move is a very positive first step.”

According to the Senate Majority Office, the bipartisan, bicameral committee four years ago made 41 specific recommendations to ensure the  pension and benefits system's long-term viability for career state employees. The legislature enacted 15 recommendations, while other reforms were achieved through collective bargaining.

"The Senate must be prepared to tackle the unfinished business of the joint session,” said Sweeney. “Three years after the special session ended, applying its bipartisan recommendations is more important than ever.”

Having thrashed him three years ago when he challenged her, state Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrenceville) now supports businessman Bob Martin of Hopewell Township, Republican Gov. Chris Christie's choice to run the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

"I do," Turner told PolitickerNJ.com when asked if she intends to sign off on her onetime home district rival, whom she could have stymied by invoking senatorial courtesy.

"We met today at the Statehouse and he discussed with me what he believes," said the veteran senator. "He feels first and foremost a responsibility to the environment. I think he's going to be very sensitive to the environment and I think he will be an asset to our state. He's hit the ground running, as he's been at the DEP for a week now, and he's ready to make the DEP more friendly and efficient."

Turner told Martin that a personal and respectful touch is important because public employees are fearful of losing their jobs.

Republicans are ecstatic that, for the first time in recent memory, their senate leadership PAC finished the year with more cash on hand than their Democratic counterparts. 

But the reason for that has more to do with internal Democratic drama than with a Republican fundraising resurgence. 

As a lame duck senate president, Richard Codey (D-Roseland) took $185,000 from the Senate Democratic Majority PAC and distributed it to his own election fund and the funds of a few key allies.

In November, Codey gave $75,000 to his own campaign, $50,000 to state Sen. Joseph Vitale (D-Woodbridge), $30,000 to state Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Newark) and $30,000 to state Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrence).    All three remained supporters of Codey for senate president, even after it was clear that state Sen. Stephen Sweeney (D-West Deptford) had the votes lined up to topple him.  All three of them also lost their committee chairmanships to senators who supported Sweeney. 

Codey said he decided to distribute the money to those senators because they were listed as possible redistricting targets in an Inside Edge item on PolitickerNJ.com.  

“They were just the ones who were threatened in what we call the Norcross Gazette – Wally Edge,” said Codey.  

Codey, a mortal enemy of South Jersey power broker George Norcross – who worked for years to remove him from the senate leadership post – said the column’s speculation was a clear signal that Norcross and his South Jersey Democratic had those senators in the crosshairs (An October 7 Inside Edge listed state Sen. John Girgenti (D-Hawthorne) – a Codey ally – as a possible target, but he was not a recipient of the funds). 

Trenton Mayor Doug Palmer prepares to leave office with no successor ready to effortlessly inherit the 20-year boots he leaves behind. In such a vacuum, as many as 11 candidates clamor for the right to succeed him, as his coming absence also creates the opportunity beyond the street level contest, for new power brokers to play in a city Palmer ran for five successive terms.

Ultimately, who becomes mayor of New Jersey's capital will impact not only local politics, but conceivably create a power projection platform for the 2011 election in the 15th Legislative District, where state Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrenceville) and Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton) have run afoul of George Norcross III and state Sen. Ray Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) and set up the prospect of a power-boss infused new mayor to run against the pair of longtime Mercer County Democratic Party standard bearers.

Essentially toothless between the power squeeze of North and South Jersey - and with neighboring Middlesex absorbing the consolation prizes of state party chair and senate majority leader for Central Jersey - the political no man's land demarcations of Mercer County stand even more starkly now in Trenton. As Palmer leaves, who will succeed him as mayor also begs the question: who will be the power behind the mayor?

Sources say the power brokers have poked around Palmer to determine if he would be interested in running against Turner.

Contacted today on that question, the mayor wouldn't deny it's true, and ducked the point blank query about whether he would do it with a hasty, "Right now, I'm just concentrating on these last few months in office." 

Neither will the mayor publicly back anyone for mayor, although sources say he's eyeballing - at least - the candidacies of Council President Paul Pintella and Department of Public Works Director Eric Jackson.

SENATOR TURNER URGES GOVERNOR CHRISTIE TO PRESS FOR CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION ON TAX REFORM

TRENTON – Senator Shirley K. Turner today urged Governor Christie to make tax reform his top priority by calling for a Constitutional Convention.

In a statement issued after Christie was sworn in (see below), the Mercer County Democrat said, “It’s clear that politicians lack the political will to effect meaningful tax reform.”

“Governor Christie should lay the groundwork immediately for calling a Constitutional Convention on Tax Reform where taxpayers and fiscal experts who aren’t looking over their shoulders at the next election have a say in reforming the broken system we have now.