New Jersey
Democratic calls for a new nominee ramp up as Biden camp pledges to stay the course • New Jersey Monitor
WASHINGTON — Ten more congressional Democrats called on President Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid Friday, the most in a single day since a poor debate performance shook confidence among his fellow Democrats in his ability to win November’s election.
The 10 Democrats on Friday, the day after former President Donald Trump officially accepted his party’s nomination at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, brought the total to 31, increasing the pressure on Biden to withdraw from the race.
While no member of congressional Democratic leadership has publicly called for Biden to step down, several top Democrats who were either involved with handling Trump’s impeachment trials or with investigations into the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol have raised their concerns, citing the former president’s threat to democracy.
California Rep. Adam Schiff, who was the lead impeachment manager in Trump’s first impeachment trial, called on Biden to drop out, saying in a statement that he had “serious concerns” about the president’s ability to win a second term.
And Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, who was a member of the House Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol, stopped short of explicitly calling on Biden to step down, but urged the president to reconsider whether he should remain in the presidential race.
Biden remained at home in Delaware with no public events scheduled after testing positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday evening.
In an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” early Friday, Biden campaign co-chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said the president remained “absolutely” in the race, even as a growing number of Democrats voiced unease about his ability to defeat Trump.
“Absolutely the president is in this race, you’ve heard him say that time and time again,” she said. “He is the best person to take on Donald Trump.”
But reports also surfaced Friday that Vice President Kamala Harris, a potential replacement for Biden if he takes the unprecedented step of withdrawing from a race less than four months from Election Day, was scheduled to speak by phone with top Democratic donors in the afternoon.
Harris did not respond to reporters’ questions at an appearance at a Washington ice cream shop Friday, according to a pool report.
And 10 more congressional Democrats, including more senior members than had previously broken ranks with the president, said Friday that Biden should step aside.
U.S. Rep. Sean Casten of Illinois wrote an op-ed in the Chicago Tribune.
Reps. Jared Huffman of California, Marc Veasey of Texas, Jesús “Chuy” Garcia of Illinois and Mark Pocan of Wisconsin wrote a joint open letter to Biden that they posted on social media.
The quartet represents important constituencies in the House Democratic Caucus.
Veasey is the first member of the influential Congressional Black Caucus, which has been among Biden’s staunchest Democratic backers, to join the call for him to step down. He is also a member of the moderate New Democrat Coalition.
Pocan is the co-chair of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus and a former chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
Garcia is a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and Reps. Greg Landsman of Ohio, Zoe Lofgren of California also released their own statements. Betty McCollum of Minnesota told the Star Tribune newspaper she wanted Biden step aside and allow Harris to lead the ticket with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.
Rep. Morgan McGarvey, of Kentucky, posted a statement on X.
The calls came a day after Sen. Jon Tester, in a difficult reelection race in Montana, said in a statement to the Daily Montanan that Biden should withdraw.
Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, who was one of few Democrats who called on Biden to step down two weeks ago, expanded on his view in an op-ed Friday.
Moulton wrote in the Boston Globe that when he went on a June trip to Normandy to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the president didn’t recognize him, despite their decade-long relationship.
“Of course, that can happen as anyone ages, but as I watched the disastrous debate a few weeks ago, I have to admit that what I saw in Normandy was part of a deeper problem,” Moulton wrote. “It was a crushing realization, and not because a person I care about had a rough night but because everything is riding on Biden’s ability to beat Donald Trump in November.”
New Jersey
Noesen’s Power Play Goal Pushes Devils Past Mammoth | GAME STORY | New Jersey Devils
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – The Devils spent much of the night against the Utah Mammoth searching for answers on the power play, watching chances come and go, starting the game 0-for-4 with the man-advantage. That frustration finally broke when Stefan Noesen planted himself in the crease and finished in tight on Karel Vejmelka to give New Jersey the breakthrough they desperately needed.
“Great road win,” Brett Pesce said. “Didn’t have our best, myself included, felt like I hadn’t played in two months,” Brett Pesce said. “You know what, we got a win, we grinded it out, good teams find ways to get to two points.”
Noesen’s conversion provided a much-needed release on an ailing power play, and the timing made it even more significant. Not only did it snap the drought, but it also handed the Devils their first lead of the night against the Mammoth, one they would hang on to win 2-1 in Utah.
Not to be outdone, Jacob Markstrom was rock solid, allowing just a single goal to Utah, in the first period. As the Devils tried to find their footing in the game, with failed power play opportunities, and Utah pressing hard, Markstrom held the fort.
“This one is on him tonight,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said. “We don’t get the opportunity to hang around in the game and have big moments like we did in the third with the penalty kill and power play, if not for Marky and how held us in. We were outplayed for long stretches of the game, but it’s going to happen from time to time.”
The Devils had a gut-check moment at the end of the third period, when Dawson Mercer took a penalty in the dying minutes of the game and the Mammoth pulled their goalie for a 6-on-4. New Jersey came up with the clears and the blocks to hang on for the victory.
The Devils weren’t going to be denied the opportunity for a win, as Connor Brown explained:
“Marky deserved the win at that point, it was a bit scrambly, maybe a bit more scrambly than we would have liked but they got two extra guys on the ice, so it was nice to gut one out.”
Utah opened the game scoring with a first-period power-play goal by Daniil But, before Connor Brown tied the game in the second period, his second goal in as many games and his third in four.
“I’m playing my brand of hockey,” Brown said. “I’m being empowered a little more, playing a little more minutes than typically have over the last couple of years and it’s leading into a little bit more confidence, little bit more plays, so just kind of running with it.”
The Devils have started to find some more stride in their game and are winning four of their last six, including two straight on the two-game road trip through Vegas and Utah.
New Jersey
NJ corrections officer charged with sexually assaulting prison inmates
What happens when someone is arrested and charged with a crime?
When someone is arrested and charged with a crime, police departments observe a protocol that includes the reading of Miranda Rights.
A Piscataway man who works as a New Jersey Department of Corrections officer in the state’s prison for sex offenders has been charged with sexually assaulting two inmates.
Anthony Nelson, 37, was charged with sexually assaulting the inmates at the Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center in the Avenel section of Woodbridge, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone announced.
Nelson was arrested without incident on Dec. 15 and charged with two counts of second-degree sexual assault and two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact, Ciccone said.
The Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office was alerted by New Jersey Department of Corrections Special Investigations Division on Dec. 1 that two inmates reported they were sexually assaulted by a correctional police officer over that past weekend, the prosecutor said.
An investigation led by the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit along with the New Jersey Department of Corrections Special Investigations Division determined that Nelson allegedly sexually assaulted two inmates under his supervision, the prosecutor said.
Nelson was lodged at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center awaiting a preliminary hearing before a Superior Court judge.
The investigation is active and ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact Detectives Christopher Van Eerde or Tammy Colonna at 732-745-3300 or Investigator Sean Smith at 856-812-3310.
New Jersey
White Christmas in the Philadelphia region this year? Cecily Tynan breaks down our chances
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Is there anything more magical than waking up on Christmas morning to a fresh blanket of white outside?
Well, if you’re dreaming of a white Christmas in the Philadelphia region, keep dreaming. Our chances are really low.
By definition, a white Christmas is defined as having at least an inch of snow on the ground.
But since 1950, we’ve only had eight of those in Philadelphia, the latest in 2009, 1998 and 1995.
Statistically, the chance of a white Christmas in the Poconos is 40%. But then it really drops as you head to the south — Lehigh Valley at 90%, Trenton 12%, Philadelphia, Wilmington, and the Jersey Shore are all less than 10%.
And this year, it’s even less than that because temperatures will be at or above average from Christmas Eve through the 28th.
So Cecily’s official forecast for Christmas: it’s not white, it’s mostly cloudy, seasonable highs in the mid to upper 40s.
There’s always next year!
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