OPINION Firstly, I want to express my deepest respect and admiration for Donald Payne Jr. His dedication to public service and his unwavering commitment to the people of New Jersey have left an indelible mark on our state’s history. He advocated for the Affordable Care Act, the Raise the Wage Act, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, and the End Racial Profiling Act. He also sponsored bills to address the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, and the protection of human rights defenders around the world. He was a leader in the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congress ..read more

Essex County Executive Joe DiVincenzo today delivered the following eulogy in celebration of the life of Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr., who died last week at age 65: “To Reverand clergy, to the governor and the first lady, to all the elected officials. Now, I got to follow Ras Baraka. My people were part of organizing this too. Hakeem Jeffries? You know, Cory Booker, these are people I have to follow. Maxine Waters, Nancy Pelosi. Now I wonder why I always thought why he was so normal. Donald Payne, he was with all the stars. But when he came back here, he was just Donald Payne. You know, nine mont ..read more

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka today delivered the following eulogy in celebration of the life of Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr., who died last week at age 65: “Distinguished clergy, to Governor Phil Murphy, First Lady, our Senators Booker and Menendez, House of Representatives,  family, those in the New Jersey delegation and those who came from far and near. To to all the other elected officials and dignitaries here today. I just want to first say thank you for coming to our city and helping us bid farewell to Congressman Donald Payne Jr. Helping us to give him a send off and the way he deserves, an ..read more

The late Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-Newark) was laid to rest in Newark today after tragically dying on April 24, but his seat in Congress won’t be filled for at least several months – leaving New Jersey with reduced representation on two important committees and Washington Democrats down a seat in a closely divided House. Payne, who served in the House for eleven-and-a-half years, sat on two committees at the time of his death: the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (or T&I for short) and the Homeland Security Committee. On T&I, Payne was the ranking Democratic member on the Rai ..read more

Senate President Nicholas Scutari today delivered the following eulogy in celebration of the life of Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr., who died last week at age 65: “First and foremost, I’d like to express my heartfelt condolences to Congressman Payne’s family for allowing me to participate in today’s ceremonies. As we all reflect on Congressman Payne’s life, we are reminded of his unwavering dedication to the service of the people of the state of New Jersey. A lot has been talked about his service to the places in Newark and now in Hudson, but in Union County, where I’m from, we claimed him as our o ..read more

Hudson County Executive Craig Guy  today delivered the following eulogy in celebration of the life of Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr., who died last week at age 65: “Wow, what a celebration of life. I mean, when I look at this crowd here in this beautiful basilica, which I’ve been to numerous times to celebrate the first responders, police and fire, for the Blue mass during the course of the year. I can’t forget what a what a beautiful basilica this is. Thank you for having me celebrate the life of Congressman Donald Payne. “Beatrice, my heart, my thoughts, my prayers are with you and your fami ..read more

Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. today delivered the following eulogy in celebration of the life of Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr., who died last week at age 65: “When I got up this morning and really, all week in Washington, I’ve been grieving, and I’ve been grieving for several reasons. First of all, I have to say, some of you know that Donald Payne would refer to me as his Uncle Frank. And so now, I’ve lost my nephew. And so that’s hard. But I also want to explain to you why that grief, if you will, continued. You see, in the House of Representatives, we have an electronic board where your name appears w ..read more

Essex County Democratic Chairman LeRoy Jones, Jr. today delivered the following eulogy in celebration of the life of Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr., who died last week at age 65: “Giving honor to God, the finisher of our faith. To reverend clergy. To the esteemed members of Congress. The governor, the mayors, the local leaders, the members of the Legislature who have come from here and far. Thank you so much for your presence for our friend. “Now, the members of Congress have shared their tributes with all of us. But now it’s time to bring it home. Now it’s time to bring it home. Let me just say th ..read more

The state and national chapters of the Communications Workers of America (CWA), a major union that has outsized influence in New Jersey’s progressive circles, today endorsed Rep. Andy Kim (D-Moorestown)’s campaign for U.S. Senate. Kim, who is seeking to succeed indicted Senator Bob Menendez, faces two underdog opponents in next month’s Democratic primary, activists Patricia Campos-Medina and Larry Hamm. A more formidable Democratic foe, First Lady Tammy Murphy, dropped out of the Senate race shortly before the filing deadline. “When we endorsed Andy Kim for Congress in his first bid for office ..read more

U.S. Senator Cory Booker today delivered the following eulogy in celebration of the life of Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr., who died last week at age 65: “Good morning. Y’all, we’re in one of the most imminent basilicas in all of America, but we’re also still in Newark. Y’all come on. Good morning. Don’t forget where you are. Don Payne had that effect on me. I’d be sitting up in some incredible podium by a president or a world leader, and I’d get off that stage and Don might be right there in front, and he’d look at me and goes, ‘don’t forget where you’re from. I know where you live. Don’t lose you ..read more