TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalWhy Pennsylvania's race for governor is so harsh so early
The day after Scott Wagner won the May 15 GOP gubernatorial primary, Gov. Wolf’s campaign released a two-minute digital ad: “Worst of Harrisburg Wagner.”
The title, I’m pretty sure, seeks to tag Wagner, a multimillionaire trash magnate and state senator, as “Harrisburg Wagner,” meaning he represents horrible things, and here are his worst moments.
Otherwise, it says Wagner’s the worst of Harrisburg, which would unfairly single him out in a legion of demons. Surely, Wolf wouldn’t want to be unfair.
But either way, the spot offers clips of Wagner at his supposed worst, including sounding like a male Sybil, claiming he has three personalities: John Wayne, Clint Eastwood and Rambo – interestingly, a deceased actor, an 87-year old actor/director, and a fictional film character.
Read more: http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/why-pennsylvanias-race-for-governor-is-so-harsh-so-early-20180528.html
What one start-up did when it got called out for being too white
Anyone in the tech world can tell you those group staff photos — the kind where everyone’s white and mostly male — are the norm.
So it was kind of radical when Technically Philly reporter Roberto Torres called out a local start-up in December 2016 for its very typical team photo.
“Now, as you may have noticed from that staff picture up there, Stitch seems to have a diversity challenge,” Torres wrote, after listing a few job openings at the Center City data company, which was only a few months old at the time.
For Stitch leadership, the article was hard to read. CEO Jake Stein acknowledges he was “a little pissed off.” But then, he took a step back and couldn’t deny it was a fair critique.
Read more: http://www.philly.com/philly/news/diversity-tech-unconscious-bias-training-stitch-20180528.html
For New Jersey, "Democracy Dies in Darkness"
With critical final decisions about the budget only four weeks away, Governor Murphy has been actively promoting his initiatives and answering questions from the public. The day after his budget address he took his spending plan on the road as seen to the left. Both Senate President Steve Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin have said they are not inclined to raise taxes on millionaires. Coughlin says almost nothing about his position on these key issues, and Sweeney, who has changed his stance on one important matter, only on occasion will make a pronouncement of disagreement with the governor.
Absent is a vigorous debate. The result: at the last moment decisions will be reached in secret by the three leaders seen above. The new motto on Washington Post’s front page, “Democracy Dies in Darkness,” says it all.
NJPP President Macinnes has made his position clear. So has Republican Assembly Minority Leader Jon Bramnick who says Murphy’s fiscal plans are “scary and extreme.” The most recent poll from Quinnipiac has found seven in 10 New Jersey voters were in favor of raising taxes on those with income over $1 million. On the issue of rolling back the recent reduction in the sales tax another poll indicated 53% were in support and 34% opposed.
One consequence of working in the dark can be seen in New York State which operates much the same way. In the past few years there former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos was sentenced to prison for extorting about $330,000, and former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was sentenced to 12 years for pocketing about $4 million. Even earlier Joe Bruno the former Senate majority leader who, along with Silver, was once one of the so-called ‘three men in a room,” was sentenced to two years for mail and wire fraud. Although four N J State Assemblymen have been convicted in the past eight years, the top leadership has been spared. Still it’s no way to run a government.
Read more: http://www.bluejersey.com/2018/05/for-new-jersey-democracy-dies-in-darkness/
Ex-Trenton Mayor Tony Mack released from federal prison
TRENTON >> Just in time for next month’s runoff election, former Trenton Mayor Tony Mack has been released from jail.
But don’t worry, the convict is forbidden from running for office as a condition of his sentence.
Mack, now 52, is currently assigned to a residential reentry management field office in Butner, N.C., according to records on the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) website. After starting to serve his sentence at a federal prison in West Virginia in June 2014, Mack was eventually transferred to a Memphis jail.
Only recently on the BOP website did it show that Mack was released from the Memphis federal prison.
Read more: http://www.trentonian.com/general-news/20180523/ex-trenton-mayor-tony-mack-released-from-federal-prison
Still smarting from that 23-cent gas tax hike? It could go up again.
For many New Jerseyans, the 23-cent-per-gallon tax hike imposed in 2016 is still an open wound.
So this update from state budget experts may smart: Gas tax collections are down and the tax rate may be increased later this summer to ensure it brings in enough cash to pay the bills for road and rail projects around the state.
Until 2016, New Jersey motorists enjoyed the second-lowest gasoline taxes in the country.
But lawmakers desperate to raise money for a nearly empty Transportation Trust fund struck a deal with then-Gov. Chris Christie to hike gas taxes 23 cents per gallon and cut the sales tax, eliminate the estate tax, raise the retirement income exclusion and the Earned Income Tax Credit and offer a tax credit for veterans.
Read more: http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/05/still_smarting_from_the_27-cent_gas_tax_hike_there.html
How Israel emerged as an issue in New Jersey's hottest congressional races
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal has given embattled New Jersey House Republicans another way to try to stave off a Democratic wave this fall.
Both Reps. Tom MacArthur and Leonard Lance quickly embraced Trump's decision, part of their effort to attract pro-Israel voters who might otherwise go elsewhere in a state where a recent Monmouth University Poll gave Trump a 35 percent job approval rating.
"There are voters where Israel is a top priority for them and would swing their vote regardless of party," said MacArthur's campaign consultant, Chris Russell. "People do vote on issues. This is one that is important to a significant group."
The issue is potent because both MacArthur and Lance face challenges from well-financed Democrats who previously served in President Barack Obama's administration and supported the deal to relax economic sanctions in exchange for curbs on Iran's nuclear program.
Read more: http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/05/pro-israel_community_divided_in_nj_congressional_r.html
NJ Weedman spent 400-plus days in jail. Turns out he was not guilty
Most people released from a county jail emerge clutching their personal possessions, or maybe carrying them in a bag.
Ed “NJ Weedman” Forchion walked out of the Mercer County Correction Center just before sunset Thursday evening pulling a cart stacked with papers and binders accumulated from his two criminal trials. He was acquitted of witness tampering hours before.
A small gathering of supporters greeted him with “gifts.” He smoked one in front of the jail’s sign. Then he got into a car with his girlfriend Debi Madaio at the wheel, lit up another and went on Facebook live. (Debi also broadcast his release moments earlier.)
“I can’t believe I’m out,” Forchion said as Debi drove. “I can’t believe you’re actually sitting there,” she said, and leaned over to kiss him.
Read more: http://www.nj.com/marijuana/2018/05/nj_weedman_is_out_of_jail_after_400-plus_days_but.html
New York keeps inching closer to marijuana legalization
ALBANY - New York's health regulators are nearing completion of a much-anticipated study of recreational marijuana that could clear the way for Gov. Andrew Cuomo to support legalizing the drug.
The state Department of Health has signaled it will soon submit its findings to Cuomo, who has softened his anti-marijuana stance over the years as legalization has drawn more public support.
The expected release of the study — which is examining the impact recreational marijuana would have on New York — comes after the state Democratic Party threw its weight behind a bill to legalize the drug, passing a resolution at its convention Wednesday supporting the measure.
In a statement, Health Department spokeswoman Jill Montag said the agency has been "working to assess the health, economic and criminal justice impact of a regulated marijuana program in New York state and to explore the impact on New York of marijuana legalization in surrounding states."
Read more: https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/politics/albany/2018/05/25/marijuana-new-york-keeps-inching-closer/644717002/
Former TOB Supervisor Venditto cleared of all corruption charges
Former Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto was found not guilty of all corruption-related charges against him on Thursday, according to numerous published reports, after a jury deliberated for five days.
The jury remained deadlocked, according to court officials, on the charges against former Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano and his wife, Linda.
“I think the jury has spoken, and they came out with the proper verdict,” said Mike Rich, 69, a lifelong Oyster Bay resident. “We try cases in court, not public opinion. I think coverage by [some media] was slanted, especially when they repeated the charges every day. I’m very proud of my town.”
Mangano and Venditto were both facing multiple charges of bribery and corruption, and restaurateur Harendra Singh, who has pleaded guilty to bribing the former officials in exchange for help for his struggling businesses, was the government’s key witness.
Read more: http://liherald.com/stories/former-tob-supervisor-venditto-cleared-of-all-corruption-charges,103525
Cuomo Says He'll Push To Make It Illegal To Buy Guns Under Age 21
Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New Castle accepted the state Democratic Party's nomination for governor on Thursday, May 24 on Long Island while promising new gun laws -- including raising the age to purchase firearms in New York to 21.
Cuomo blasted President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress for refusing to act while the number of mass shootings including last week's killings at Santa Fe High School in Texas continue to grow.
Cuomo cited the state's passage of a tough anti-gun control law known as the SAFE Act after the 2012 mass Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting in Newtown, CT, and promised that New York will do more if Congress doesn't react.
He said the state will raise the minimum age to purchase a firearm to 21, up from 18.
Read more: http://yonkers.dailyvoice.com/politics/cuomo-says-hell-push-to-make-it-illegal-to-buy-guns-under-age-21/737708/
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Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
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