The Morning Briefing - March 22, 2016
STATEWIDE – Pistol-packin' lawmakers? Guns and gavels for judges? State Sen. Gerald Cardinale wants all 120 state lawmakers and hundreds of superior court and municipal court judges to carry guns. Yep, loaded ones. Cardinale told The Star-Ledger that lawmakers would only need eight hours of firearm safety training and a clean bill of health to get strapped. He’s motivated by the 2011 assassination attempt on former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords, now a staunch gun-control advocate. If Cardinale gets his way, showdowns on the Senate or Assembly floor might just take on a whole new meaning.
ATLANTIC CITY – The high-stakes poker game – with the future of Atlantic City sitting on the table – has been ratcheted up. Mayor Don Guardian is now ready to stop paying city employees on April 8 and shut down all non-essential services, as he negotiates with the state and tries to prevent a takeover. Guardian blames the governor for the mess, still questioning why he rejected a bill that would have handed Atlantic City the $33.5 million it was banking on to fund the city that, apparently, is “always on.”
HIGHLAND PARK – This should smoke out new revenue from unregulated businesses. The borough is preparing to become the eleventh New Jersey town to license electronic smoking retailers, or “vape” shops, which the state does not regulate, Patch.com reports. An ordinance would require the borough's nine vape shops to obtain health department permits for an annual $1,200 license fee. Borough officials say they will use the money to launch anti-smoking campaigns. If approved on April 5, the measure goes into effect in July. So, vape'em if you've got'em… now.
TRENTON – Politico continues to track an interesting eBay item: Apparently someone is trying to sell a pair of Gov. Chris Christie’s gym shorts, featuring an autograph from our athlete-in-chief. The starting bid is $175, but you can click the “Buy it Now” option for $375. (Please add $6.75 for economy shipping.) There are no bids yet, but we all have until Saturday. We figure there must be plenty of savvy eBay buyers who are strategically waiting until the last minute on this must-have item. Click here to bid.
NEWARK – As the principal of Central High School for six years, Mayor Ras Baraka vows he knew absolutely nothing about the festering lead issue that has become national news. Baraka tells NJ.com that “I never got one update or memo” about lead, adding “In all of the meetings I attended with (principals of other Newark schools), it was never discussed.” Using words like “never” are dangerous, especially for politicians, as any opponent of the mayor will now be laser focused on proving him wrong. Stay tuned for the next news cycle.
IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS
PITTSBURGH – Hot and fast! That's how most people want their pizza. When that doesn't happen, most people don't end up in handcuffs like the 59-year-old city man who stormed down to his neighborhood pizzeria, threw stuff off the counters and whacked the pizza man with a stool. KDKA-TV says the pizza patron got frustrated after waiting over an hour for a pie that was supposed to be delivered to his apartment in 15 minutes or less. He now faces felony aggravated assault and trespassing charges. Worse, his favorite pizzeria doesn’t deliver to Cell Block C.
GRAND JUNCTION, CO. – For Rent: 2-bedroom apt; Trump supporters need not apply. A landlord, fed up with Donald Trump's outrageous campaign rhetoric, told the Daily Sentinel he flatly refuses to rent to anyone supporting the Republican frontrunner His classified ad reads: “Downtown 2-bedroom apt. Includes organic garden space, hot tub, great backyard. You can bring your dogs if they have references as good as yours. If voting for Donald Trump, do not call.” The landlord isn't breaking any laws; federal Fair Housing Act doesn't consider it discriminatory to deny housing to someone because of their political leanings. In response, mansion dwellers are no longer renting their garden sheds to Bernie Sanders supporters.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
It was on this day in 1630 that it became illegal to gamble in Boston. Meanwhile, in modern-day Massachusetts, it is still illegal to give beer to hospital patients, gorillas can’t sit in the back seat of your car, and, at a wake, you are banned from eating more than three sandwiches.
WORD OF THE DAY
Xanthippe (zan-THIP-ee) — noun
Definition: A shrewish, nagging wife
Example: “My wife saw little humor during our last game of Scrabble, when I scored 46 points for the word `xanthippe.’ My grin didn’t help matters.”