The Jaffe Briefing - April 26, 2019
STILLWATER - If the Sussex County sheriff intentionally touched the butt of a uniformed female officer, that's certainly bad. What may be worse is the contention that the video was deliberately doctored to ruin his reputation and career. It's very unclear what exactly happened, but the fact that someone sent this video to 150 media outlets shows the sheriff has a huge enemy. The six-second video was recorded on a cell phone at the Stillwater firehouse last year, showing the sheriff apparently rubbing the woman's posterior, the New Jersey Herald reports. The person who sent the video along with still images of the alleged assault, who has identified himself as 'David Kazneer,' claims the woman was a victim and that she complained about the sheriff's behavior. Meanwhile, the sheriff calls it all "obviously fabricated." In either case, in this heightened era of #MeToo, let's deem it all "concerning."
TRENTON - Experts didn't sugarcoat things yesterday when telling state lawmakers they'd better get cracking on reducing global warming. Not that they're putting the future of Earth on New Jersey's shoulders, but they are imploring state leaders to become more practical and less theoretical about reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent from 2006 levels come 2050. They also want lawmakers to start taking the social costs of carbon into account. No, this is not just ramblings of the Birkenstock brigade, demanding you only drive a pushbike or a Prius. Apparently, this is all the rage in several other states, as well. Warm up to the topic in today's NJ Spotlight.
ASBURY PARK - Hello Sunshine. If you have no clue what we're talking about, you're clearly not a Springsteen nut. And, if you do know, it means you have been listening, non-stop, to this new song, and watching the accompanying video, since Bruce - the master of hype - released it sometime after midnight. Springsteen nuts are especially excited this morning because this is the first time in five years that the Boss has released a new studio album, titled "Western Stars." Apparently, the icon of the Jersey Shore looked to southern California for new inspiration, after strumming about Asbury Park for the past 50 years or so. You'll be able to get the entire 13-song disc on June 14; pre-ordering available, of course. Springsteen describes it as "a jewel box of a record." Listen here.
EAST RUTHERFORD - Maybe it's all the pollen out there - or it could be the Giants' first round draft pick last night that has us hoarse from screaming. Yes, there is plenty of agony in Giants-land this morning, when the team blew its sixth-overall pick in the NFL draft on some quarterback from Duke named Daniel Jones - the heir apparent to the quickly-aging Eli Manning. The Duke QB is not ready for prime time, meaning the Giants will have to rely on Manning for one more unwatchable year in the Meadowlands. The Giants could have easily taken this guy later on, as they also had the 17th overall pick. A fierce pass rusher was available, Josh Allen from Kentucky, who was then quickly scooped up by the Jaguars with the No. 7 pick. It all leaves Giants fans yelling "Why?" Why?" "Why?"
IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS
SCOTT COUNTY, MO. - The local fire department couldn't buy this type of publicity for their firefighter vacancies. They just posted a sign that read: "Help wanted. Hard labor, odd hours, low pay. Cool helmet." From there, the photos went viral. So far, this rural fire department has received four applications from its tongue-in-cheek posting. Not too impressive, but likely four more applicants than they would have gotten by placing an ad in the local newspaper.
IN OUR NEWS
CRANFORD - Very rare to write about ourselves. But also very rare for a client to nominate one of our young staff members for an award. And so we were all excited to attend the "40 Under 40" awards last night from the NJ Ad Club, which honored our very own Jennifer Pagliei. The nomination came from the great folks of the Middlesex County Regional Chamber of Commerce, which has been working closely with Jennifer over the past year. Terrific to see one of our clients recognize good work in such a way.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
It was this day in 2016 that Rutgers-Eagleton released a poll showing 62 percent of New Jerseyans don't want Trump to be President. Meanwhile, 61 percent said the candidate made them angry and 57 percent admit they were scared of him. Of course, with the Electoral College, none of this mattered.
WORD OF THE DAY
Defenestrate - [də-FEN-ə-strayt] - verb
Definition: To throw from a window
Example: Donald Trump defenestrated the 2016 Rutgers Eagleton poll.
WIT OF THE DAY
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"If we're not meant to have midnight snacks, why is there a light in the fridge?"
- Anonymous
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WEATHER IN A WORD
Wet
THE NEW 60
A Jaffe Briefing Exclusive
by Andy Landorf & John Colquhoun