| | | | |  | | By Ry Rivard | | Presented by |  | | | Happy Tuesday morning! Randy Mastro is back working for New Jersey. Last week, he made Gov. Phil Murphy’s case in federal court against New York’s plan to toll drivers coming into much of Manhattan — and became part of a sideshow with the judge overseeing the case. Mastro is a familiar name around here. Mastro, a former New York City deputy mayor, was the point man in former Gov. Chris Christie administration’s expensive Bridgegate investigation. That internal inquiry cleared Christie of responsibility for the traffic jam but was widely regarded as more of a public relations exercise than a serious investigation. Because of that, a mastro is a unit of currency familiar to most Playbook readers — $9 million is one mastro. Judge Leo Gordon and Mastro had a sometimes-tense banter that became a subplot during two days of oral arguments in the congestion pricing case. New Jersey is challenging the federal environmental review necessary before New York’s MTA can impose the tolls. At one point, Gordon lectured Mastro for talking over attorneys for the MTA and the Biden administration. “Do not do it again,” Gordon told Mastro during the first day of the trial. When the judge entered the courtroom after a break on the second day, Mastro remained seated, seemingly inadvertently. “Mr. Mastro’s legs don’t work, huh?” Gordon said. Throughout both days, Gordon also chided Mastro for relying on help from one of his associates at King Spalding, Lauren Myers, who kept handing Mastro notes during blocks of oral argument given to New Jersey. “Ah, you’re being rescued again,” Gordon said when Meyers handed Mastro a piece of paper on day two. But Mastro wasn’t alone in relying on notes from colleagues — attorneys for the MTA and federal government also needed help during their arguments, if seemingly less often. And the judge, who normally hears international trade cases, also had court staff approach him before he finished questioning attorneys, suggesting he too needed help. Gordon’s decision is expected by mid-June, just before the tolling is expected to begin. Some observers had initially thought it might be a fairly simple one, given courts’ traditional deference to administrative agencies on complex regulatory matters, like environmental reviews. While Gordon was careful not to drop any hints, he made clear he views the case as precedent-setting, given the unique, first-of-its-kind nature of New York’s tolling plan. It’s unclear how many mastros Mastro’s current legal work will cost New Jersey. TIPS? FEEDBACK? Email me at rrivard@politico.com. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “We want to see fair elections in NJ this year and every year into the future - (note from picture we have some historical perspective in JC)” — Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop posting a photo on social of infamous boss Frank Hague and announcing his gubernatorial campaign would move to file a friend-of-the-court brief in the line lawsuit. HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Cleopatra Tucker, Michael Egenton, Jonathan Atwood, Justin O’Leary, Bert Baron, Stephen Yellin WHERE’S MURPHY? — No public schedule
| | A message from Alibaba: American businesses sold $66B worth of products in 2022 on Alibaba’s online marketplace. New Jersey-based companies such as Phyto-C partner with Alibaba to reach one billion consumers globally. The impact: U.S. sales on Alibaba supported over 10 thousand local jobs and contributed $1.3B to New Jersey's GDP in one year. Explore Alibaba’s local impact. | | | |  | WHAT TRENTON MADE | | NEEDING ANOTHER LAWYER — Nadine Menendez’s attorneys want to withdraw from representing her in the bribery trial against her and husband Sen. Bob Menendez, according to a Friday filing. The lawyers did not give a reason in the filing, but said that “the circumstances associated with the withdrawal” were “set forth” in an accompanying sealed document. It comes after prosecutors said last month that one of her lawyers, David Schertler, could be called as a witness in the case to testify about potentially false information in the case provided last year, the New Jersey Monitor reported. The other lawyers who signed the filing are Danny Onorato, Mark MacDougall and Paolo Pinto. That same day, those same lawyers filed a motion Friday to exclude evidence of Nadine Menendez’s alleged “preference for expensive, luxury items, such as handbags, jewelry, and upscale meals.” The Menendezes are accused of accepting luxury goods, such as a Mercedes-Benz, as well as cash and gold bars, from three businesspeople in exchange for favors. They have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled to go on trial next month. Bob Menendez is also under indictment for allegedly acting as a foreign agent for Egypt and Qatar. He has said that he will not seek the Democratic nomination for reelection to his Senate seat in June, but that he may run as an independent in the November general election.
— Katherine Dailey
| | | | Access New York bill updates and Congressional activity in areas that matter to you, and use our exclusive insights to see what’s on the Albany agenda. Learn more. | | | | | GRAND OFFICE PARTY — A state judge on Monday consolidated two separate lawsuits that could impact whether there is a county line ballot design for this year’s GOP primary. In one lawsuit filed in state Superior Court Monday, four GOP congressional candidates filed a complaint seeking office-block ballots for the June primary. A separate state lawsuit, filed last week by the Burlington County GOP, seeks to restore the county line ballot design there, where the county clerk decided to use office-block ballots for both the Democratic and GOP primary. State Superior Court Judge John Harrington of Burlington County will oversee the consolidated lawsuit, and it comes after federal District Judge Zahid Quraishi in late March issued a preliminary injunction mandating office-block ballots — where candidates are grouped together by the office they are seeking, rather than who they want to affiliate with — for the primary election. However, Quraishi later clarified that his preliminary injunction applied only to the Democratic primary because none of the plaintiffs were Republicans. The lawsuit filed Monday is from U.S. Senate candidate Shirley Maia-Cusick and House candidates Albert Harshaw, Gregg Mele and Hector Castillo. The lawsuit names 18 county clerks in the state where the county line ballot design is being used in this year’s GOP primary. An appeal of Quraishi’s preliminary injunction is ongoing, although all county clerks in the state have dropped their challenge of it; the only party left continuing the appeal is the Camden County Democrats.
— Daniel Han DURRTHWACKET— Ed Durr won’t rule out run for governor, by NJ Globe’s David Wildstein: “Conservative former State Sen. Edward R. Durr (R-Logan), the giant slayer who ousted Senate President Steve Sweeney in 2021, has not ruled out a bid for the Republican nomination for governor next year. ‘I haven’t definitively ruled out anything, and I never will,’ Durr told the New Jersey Globe. ‘Why would I rule out anything that can help New Jersey?’”
| | | | A message from Alibaba:   | | | | | BIDEN TIME | | CAMDEN JAIL — “White House officials praised Camden’s jail. Women incarcerated there tell a different story,” by NJ Monitor’s Hope Perry: “For two days, Morgan Neilio, incarcerated at the Camden County Correctional Facility, did not have toilet paper.. As recently as January 2024, White House officials praised the jail and its then-warden, Karen Taylor, for the facility’s medication-assisted treatment program to help incarcerated people conquer opioid addiction. But people imprisoned in Camden’s county lockup say conditions there are downright inhumane. They say there are often no recreational opportunities, they have limited access to social workers, meals are inadequate and unhealthy, and there is no access to alcohol and drug addiction recovery services — even as the majority of those incarcerated at Camden struggle with addiction. Neilio and several other women incarcerated filed a lawsuit in federal court last year alleging that the jail, its warden, law librarian, and others have committed a “failed duty of care” that violates their constitutional rights. ‘We all know that jails and prisons are not intended to be a trip to Disneyland,’ said Racquel Romans-Henry, policy director for the racial justice group Salvation and Social Justice New Jersey. ‘But what we’re seeing at these facilities are a real dereliction of duty around the agencies who have been charged with custody, security, and wellness of the human beings.’” THE FUNNIEST ONE-LINER IN NEW JERSEY — Republican gubernatorial candidate Jon Bramnick said in a recent interview that he’ll “probably” choose a write-in candidate for this year’s presidential election between former President Donald Trump and incumbent President Joe Biden. “I won't be voting for Trump and unlikely I’ll vote for Biden,” Bramnick said during a recent TV appearance. “I'll probably write in somebody else. But I'm not voting for Trump.” Bramnick’s decision to not vote for Trump does not come as a surprise as the moderate state senator has been among the state’s most prominent Trump critics. Jack Ciattarelli, who is officially announcing his 2025 run for governor today, has endorsed Trump for president. — Daniel Han
| | A message from Alibaba: New Jersey skin care company Phyto-C grew revenue 600% after launching on Alibaba's online marketplace, which reaches over one billion consumers in China. This small business is among thousands of American brands growing global sales on Alibaba. In New Jersey alone, U.S. sales on Alibaba added $1.3B to the state GDP while supporting over 10 thousand full-time jobs in 2022.
“As a small business, none of this would have been possible without Alibaba. From day one, Alibaba supported our entry into the Chinese market by providing data-driven consumer insights that helped shape our marketing strategy and proactive guidance on supply chain and logistical hurdles,” said Dr. Eddie Omar, CEO of Phyto-C.
Learn more. | | | JAN. 6 — "He protested at the Capitol on Jan. 6. Now he’s running for Congress in N.J.," by NJ Advance Media's Brent Johnson: "Joe Belnome has long been a regular at former President Donald Trump’s rallies. By his own count, the Belleville resident has been to more than 20. He was also among the thousands of Trump supporters who marched to the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 in protest of President Joe Biden‘s victory over Trump, though he insists he wasn’t one of those who breached the building in a violent attack and he hasn’t been charged with a crime. Now, Belnome wants to work in that building." — “Rep. Watson Coleman endorses Rep. Menendez for re-election in 8th District race” (Hudson County View)
| | | | SUBSCRIBE TO GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Don’t miss out on POLITICO’s Global Playbook, the newsletter taking you inside pivotal discussions at the most influential gatherings in the world, including WEF in Davos, Milken Global in Beverly Hills, to UNGA in NYC and many more. Suzanne Lynch delivers the world's elite and influential moments directly to you. Stay in the global loop. SUBSCRIBE NOW. | | | | | | | LOCAL | | “IT’S TO BRING THE MONEY IN, THAT’S ALL” — The Attorney General’s Office of Public Integrity and Accountability released a report Monday evening that explains why the state appointed a new head of the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office last week. A multi-year investigation found the county misused money meant to fund insurance fraud investigations. Among the evidence the state gathered was recordings of a Warren County sergeant who expressed a willingness to fabricate justification for hours worked by people assigned to investigate insurance fraud. “No county has that much insurance fraud that they need two f—ing guys, ok? Two or three guys. They don’t. But they take the grant and say to the guy, OK, you’re – you’re assigned to insurance fraud, but you do other jobs too.” A 22-page report summarizing the investigation can be found here. “As a result of a long-term investigation by the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability, my office took action last Friday to supersede the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office,” Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a statement. “I do not take such action lightly, but I am confident that this change in leadership will ensure that the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office operates with professionalism and fosters an environment in which reports of misconduct are taken seriously and reviewed appropriately.”
— Ry Rivard
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