More clashes in Newark

Good morning!

It’s now been a week since detainees at Newark migrant jail Delaney Hall said they are on a hunger strike to protest conditions inside.

The strike, which Trump administration officials say is not actually happening, has attracted protesters and led to a week of unrest outside the detention center, with clashes becoming especially hostile in the overnight hours.

Sophie Nieto-Muñoz spoke to family members of detainees who say they’re caught in the crossfire, as federal officials shut down in-person visitation because of the protests. On Thursday, some kind of violent incident inside the jail resulted in four people going to the hospital.

Tatiana Barrera told Sophie she’s come multiple times to visit her husband at Delaney Hall over the past week, but jail workers won’t let her in.

“My anxiety is kicking up right now because I don’t know if he’s OK,” she said. “It’s very frustrating that I can’t visually see that he’s OK, especially with what happened today.”

Read more from Sophie.

Trenton: A bill aimed at protecting abortion seekers and transgender people, and their medical providers, from legal threats got a final OK from the New Jersey Senate on Thursday. The bill passed 23-12 in a strict party-line vote, with three Republicans who were present opting not to vote on it instead of voting no. It now moves to the Assembly for a vote. “The Senate’s passage of S2260 marks a major milestone for New Jersey to confirm its commitment to ensuring everyone has equal access to vital healthcare,” said Ruth Kunstadter of the Transgender Rights Coalition of New Jersey. “We urge the Assembly to swiftly move the companion bill to a vote to give transgender New Jerseyans full protection from malicious, discriminatory interference in their right to health from other states and the federal government.”

Energy: An Assembly committee on Thursday advanced a bill intended to expand nuclear power generation in New Jersey. Some critics cautioned that nuclear plants take years to build and that the bill could saddle ratepayers with extra costs for decades, but supporters said the possibility of increased in-state power generation is worth the costs. “Advanced nuclear technology has the potential to strengthen our energy infrastructure, support good-paying jobs, and provide a stable source of power that can meet future needs,” said Assemblyman Wayne DeAngelo (D-Mercer), the panel’s chair and the bill’s sponsor.

D.C.: Ashley Murray in our D.C. bureau looks at President Trump’s $1.8 billion fund intended for Jan. 6 rioters and others Trump believes are the victims of a politicized U.S. Department of Justice. Nikhel Sus, chief counsel for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, otherwise known as CREW, which has filed suit against the fund, told States Newsroom the administration’s order is a “flagrant power grab of congressional authority.”

2028: Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Thursday she is not running for president in two years, saying she’s “looking forward to getting a bit of a break.” This official I’m-not-running statement is not as funny as the unofficial one she made during her April White House visit: