Pallone, Menendez, Booker Decry Administration’s Plan to Open Atlantic Ocean to Oil Drilling

NJ Lawmakers Stress Catastrophic Environmental and Economic Consequences of an Oil Spill near the Jersey Shore

WASHINGTON, DC –  U.S. Senators Robert Menendez and Cory Booker (both D-NJ) and Congressman Frank Pallone (NJ-06) released the following joint statement decrying the Department of the Interior’s inclusion of the Atlantic Ocean in its Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Draft Proposed Program (Five Year Program) for 2017-2022. The draft proposed Five Year Program, which was announced today, allows for oil and gas exploration in a portion of the Mid- and South Atlantic planning areas, encompassing areas offshore of Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia:

“It is unthinkable that the Administration would open parts of the Atlantic Ocean, a fragile and priceless ecosystem that is home to such a unique array of marine life, to oil and gas drilling and potential damage from pollution and oil spills. An oil spill in the Atlantic Ocean would not occur in isolation. A spill anywhere along the Atlantic coast would cause severe environmental damage to beaches, fisheries, and marine life throughout the Eastern Seaboard, while also seriously threatening the ocean-based economies that rely on them. Opening up the Atlantic coast to drill for fossil fuel is unnecessary, poses a serious threat to coastal communities throughout the region, and is the wrong approach to energy development in this country.

“The economic consequences of an oil spill near the New Jersey coastline would be catastrophic. Our beaches are a tremendous resource for all those who come here to enjoy them, and they are a huge economic engine for our state. They are the primary driver of a tourism economy that supports 312,000 jobs in New Jersey and generate $38 billion in economic activities for the state each year. An oil spill near our coast could cause real damage to the state's economy, including the loss of jobs.

“In addition to serious economic concerns, offshore oil drilling threatens permanent and devastating degradation to our environment and natural resources. The Jersey Shore is a priceless natural treasure, providing recreation to generations of families and supporting a thriving ecosystem of marine mammals and sea life that must be protected. As our state continues to rebuild and recover from the unprecedented devastation of Superstorm Sandy, we simply cannot afford a manmade disaster from oil and gas drilling off our coast.

“We learned hard lessons in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon tragedy—offshore drilling poses a substantial risk of economic and environmental devastation for our shoreline communities. This latest plan, however, ignores that reality. We should focus our energy policy on expanding renewable production here at home, rather than jeopardizing the environment or our regional economy for the sake of more polluting fossil fuels.

“The Administration attempted to include oil and gas exploration in the Atlantic Ocean in its last Five Year Plan. Ultimately, however, it was removed due to the ecological and economic resources that would be jeopardized by offshore oil and gas activities. It was a bad idea then and is still a bad idea now. We urge President Obama to remove the Atlantic Coast from this plan to ensure that our pristine natural resources are preserved and protected for generations to come.”

Pallone & Menendez to Discuss Benefits of Flood Insurance Reforms with Homeowners

MIDDLETOWN, NJ – On Friday, March 28th, 2014, at 1:30pm, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) and Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) will meet with Middletown homeowners to discuss the benefits of the newly-enacted Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act. The bipartisan bill, which Pallone co-sponsored in the House and Menendez led in the Senate, was signed into law by President Obama last week. Pallone and Menendez will arrive at the Tonya Keller Community Center at 1:30pm and then proceed to tour the neighborhood and speak with constituents.

The law, which passed both the House and Senate with overwhelming bipartisan support, will protect millions of homeowners, many of whom are still recovering from the devastation of Superstorm Sandy, from facing huge National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) premium rate hikes. This law will ensure relief for homeowners living in flood prone regions thanks to key provisions, such as repealing certain rate increase “triggers,” lowering FEMA’s ability to increase rates, refunding excess premium charges to those who have paid significant rate increases and providing FEMA the funding necessary to complete an affordability study.


WHO:
Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06)
Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ)

WHAT:
Discuss benefits of newly-enacted Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act with New Jersey homeowners

WHERE:
Tonya Keller Community Center
50 Bray Avenue
Middletown, NJ 07748

WHEN:
Friday, March 28, 2014
1:30pm-2:00pm

A Tired War on Health Reform

The following op-ed on ObamaCare & Regressive Republicans, written by Joshua Henne, ran last week in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

- by Joshua Henne

In his bid to unseat Sen. Bob Menendez (D., N.J.), Republican candidate Joe Kyrillos has twisted himself into such a pretzel on the issue of health care that he might need a doctor himself after Election Day.

Since last spring, Kyrillos has consistently hammered Menendez for his support of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. But he has a problem here: You see, Kyrillos himself was for Obamacare - before he was against it.

A longtime supporter of Mitt Romney, Kyrillos is on record touting the universal health-care coverage plan that Romney signed as governor of Massachusetts. When he was serving as the New Jersey chairman of Romney's 2008 presidential campaign, Kyrillos boasted that Romney had enacted "legislation that would provide private health insurance to every Massachusetts citizen" and could "do for the nation what he did for Massachusetts."

"Romneycare" was the foundation of Obamacare - especially when it comes to the mandate that individuals purchase health insurance, a feature of both plans that was devised by the conservative Heritage Foundation. Jonathan Gruber, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist, helped write both Romneycare and Obamacare. There was a time when Romney himself said his plan, including the mandate, should be a model for the nation. Kyrillos endorsed this notion just a few short years ago.

Petty pandering

Now, however, Kyrillos is disparaging the Affordable Care Act for no reason other than the fact that President Obama made it a reality. While voters have become accustomed to such craven political maneuvering, Kyrillos' flip-flop is a particularly bad example. It's also a petty pander to the base of his party, calculated to garner right-wing support rather than do what's best for the people of New Jersey.

The Supreme Court's ruling upholding the Affordable Care Act should have closed the book on such bickering. But Kyrillos and his cohorts continue fighting Obamacare simply because of its Democratic origins. And this is not a theoretical dorm-room discussion: While they snipe from the sidelines, real lives are at stake.
Obamacare's benefits are clear. Families are more secure because they can't be denied coverage due to preexisting conditions, or be forced into bankruptcy due to an illness. Two and a half million young adults under 26 now have coverage under their parents' plans, and more than 5.5 million senior citizens and disabled people have saved nearly $4.5 billion on prescriptions under the law.

Consumer savings

Meanwhile, the Affordable Care Act requires that insurance companies spend at least 80 percent of their premiums on patient care, not executive bonuses or corporate retreats. Those failing to meet this threshold must write checks to their customers for the difference, and they have already provided $1.1 billion in rebates. Moreover, insurance companies must submit a justification for public review if they want to raise premiums by 10 percent or more, which has helped save consumers an estimated $1 billion.

In Camden, the law is already helping Project HOPE's federally qualified health center provide services to low-income and at-risk patients. Project HOPE is on the front lines, delivering care in one of America's most economically depressed cities, and 49 percent of its patients are uninsured. Obamacare is giving it more tools to deliver high-quality, cost-effective primary care, including electronic record-keeping to efficiently track results. The center also received a grant to construct a new facility, which will increase patient access and preventive care. And with new funding, health centers are being held to higher standards in the services they provide.

But if Kyrillos had his way, none of this would be possible for Project HOPE or the people and communities they serve. Regressive candidates like him are vowing to refight a stale political battle to put the insurance companies back in charge; Kyrillos has even promised to be "the 51st senator to vote to repeal Obamacare." After Election Day, he can only hope that Obamacare covers contorting oneself on the campaign trail as a preexisting condition.

NEW JERSEY’S LARGEST NURSES, HEALTH CARE WORKERS ASSOCIATION ENDORSES SENATOR MENENDEZ AS MAJOR WOMEN’S HEALTH REFORMS GO INTO EFFECT

HPAE: The nurses and staff taking care of you support Bob Menendez

NEW BRUNSWICK – As the Affordable Care Act’s major reforms for women’s health care are going into effect for more than 1.4 million New Jersey women, the state’s chapter of the Health Professionals and Allied Employees’ (HPAE) today announced its endorsement of U. S. Senator Bob Menendez for re-election. Since 1977, the HPAE, the health care division of the American Federation of Teachers, has grown to become New Jersey’s largest union that represents nurses and health care workers. Many of its 12,000 members reside in Monmouth and Burlington counties.

“Senator Bob Menendez is a champion for women and children’s health issues in the United States Senate, and today more than 1.4 million women are benefitting from his efforts,” said HPAE President Ann Twomey. “As a key negotiator for health care reform on the Senate Finance Committee, Senator Menendez helped pushed for common sense reforms against insurance companies that denied people access to health care because of pre-existing conditions. He also secured $100 million in federal investments to protect health coverage for thousands of children in our state, and secured more than $66 million for our state’s Federally Qualified Health Centers to increase access to preventive and primary care.

When you consider that Senator Menendez’s opponent voted six times during the last three years against funding for women’s health care and family planning services, the choice for the HPAE’s members could not be clearer. We want New Jersey families to know, the nurses and staff taking care of you and your loved ones in the hospital or nursing home support Bob Menendez. He fights to keep quality health care for all New Jersey residents,” Twomey said. “The HPAE of New Jersey is proud to endorse Senator Menendez for re-election. We look forward to Senator Menendez continue to fight for the health and well-being of all New Jerseyans.”

"I am proud to accept the endorsement of HPAE, which represents thousands of health professionals who are on the front lines of keeping New Jersey healthy,” said Menendez. “They have my commitment to continue to fight for increased investment in our state’s health centers and hospitals, in order to help them provide families and children access to quality health care. As the son of immigrants and someone raised in a tenement in Union City, I understand the struggles that hard-working middle class families face day-to-day. I will never forget the humble roots I came from or the working families who have given me the honor to represent them.”

The Affordable Care Act’s provisions that go into effect today require that new and renewed insurance policies cover more preventative health care services for women. A list of those services can be found here:
http://www.healthcare.gov/news/factsheets/2011/08/womensprevention08012011a.html

Monmouth Democratic Chairman Gopal Impresses Many At First Municipal Chair Meeting; Senator Menendez Stops By To Lend His Support

I had the pleasure of being asked to attend the first Monmouth County Democratic Municipal Chair Meeting to be presided over by new County Chairman Vin Gopal last night and I have to say, I was very impressed and so were the 50 or so Municipal Chairs and other county leaders that were in attendance.

The first thing that was apparent to many was that it won't be business as usual in Monmouth County. I have heard from many people in the past that the county organization was disorganized, fractured and adrift. Well that is changing, Chairman Gopal and his leadership team have big plans on how they intend to move the county organization forward, and in time, recapture control of Monmouth County.

I'm not at liberty to mention all that was discussed at this meeting but I will say that Chairman Gopal and his leadership team have hit the ground running since taking over the Monmouth County Democrats last month.  A few of the initiatives that are being implemented by Chairman Gopal include:

• Candidate Training Workshops
• Social Media Training
• Database Training
• Help save organization money by facilitating the join purchase of signs and literature.
• Help with Websites Design and Online Fundraising  

All of the initiatives that are being developed and implemented over time, have the very specific goal of making the Democratic Party in Monmouth County stronger, dominant and more formidable in order to seize control of the county away from the Republicans for many years to come.

And as if hearing all this wasn't refreshing and exciting enough, who walks in during the middle of the meeting? None other than U.S. Senator Robert Menendez.

Senator Menendez stopped by show his support for Chairman Gopal and the Monmouth County Democrats. The Senator walked in, shook a few hands, said how he has visited all 21 counties thus far campaigning and was looking forward to helping out the Monmouth Dems anyway he could. He then proceeded to give a rousing and slightly altered version of the stump speech that he gave to the Bayshore Democratic Club back in March, which I have posted below. The main difference being that this time he mentioned his opponent Joe Kyrillos by name and said that he has a lot of explaining to do when it comes to his voting record down in Trenton.

 Menendez stated that he (Joe Kyrillos), said  that he supports women's health issues but voted against funding women health centers, he said he supports children's health care but voted against expanding access to health care for low income families, that he supports education but voted to reduce school funding. Menendez also stated that Kyrillos has long history of ethics issues, sighting Kyrillos's ties to corrupt developer Solomen Dwek.



With Chairman Gopal in control of the Monmouth County Democratic organization, I think the Democrats throughout the county can feel good about the future of the Party in Monmouth.