World Cup blame game begins

Good morning!

We’re two days away from the first World Cup match at MetLife Stadium and NJ Transit is freaking out so badly it’s thinking about getting soccer fans across the Hudson in boats.

Ry Rivard at Politico New Jersey reported yesterday that the transit agency has ordered a pair of 600-person ferries to be available in case the trains break down and it needs an alternate way to get World Cup ticketholders from New York to Weehawken, where they would board buses to get them to MetLife in East Rutherford.

The news came after Tuesday was another disastrous commute day for NJ Transit, with an overhead wire problem causing power outages during the evening rush that led to delays. Amtrak owns the northeast corridor lines that NJ Transit uses for its trains, and NJ Transit CEO Kris Kolluri said his agency will not take the blame for any potential infrastructure problems that cripple transit during a World Cup match. Tens of thousands of soccer fans are expected to head to MetLife using public transit because no one will be allowed to drive to the stadium and park there (genius move!).

“Heed my warning. I’ll have no problem telling the world if Amtrak fails,” Kolluri said, per Larry Higgs at NJ Advance Media. “I won’t let NJ Transit take the blame for something we didn’t do.”

Amtrak said it’s fully committed to a seamless experience for transit riders during the World Cup. It should also be committed to having infrastructure that works, but here we are.

Trenton: Yesterday Dana DiFilippo reported on First Amendment advocates who expressed alarm at a provision in the reproductive and transgender healthcare protection bill that was moving toward full passage in the Legislature today. Then the Assembly speaker’s office said the bill was being amended and a full vote in the Assembly moved to later this month. Republicans who oppose the bill not just because of that provision cheered the hiccup, but I’d be surprised if this derails the bill entirely. “Our caucus remains committed to protecting the freedom of families to make medical decisions with their doctors without fear of threats or intimidation, and we refuse to let legislatures and voters from states a thousand miles away dictate medical decisions to families here in,” said the speaker’s spokeswoman, Rhonda Schaffler

Food stamps: A new report from Montclair State University researchers says New Jersey’s investment in food stamp benefits has paid off in multiple ways, reducing families’ stress, boosting revenue at grocery stores, and generating economic activity that surpasses taxpayer investment. “This report reinforces what we already know: SNAP helps people in need by improving access to nutritious food and easing financial strain. It also supports local economies by driving broader economic activity in communities,” said Human Services Commissioner Stephen Cha, whose department commissioned the report.

Inflation: Consumer price inflation reached 4.2% in May, a three-year-high, largely because of higher energy prices that have spiked due to the war in Iran, according to federal numbers released on Wednesday. Inflation was higher here in the northeast, at 5%. Asked about the new numbers at the White House, President Trump said, “I love the inflation, you know why? Because as soon as this war is over, you know I can say it now. Do you know we've been taking out millions of barrels of oil. Nobody knows about it. You know who doesn't know about it? Iran, until right now. We took out, the other night, 22 ships, late at night with no lights, because they don’t have any radar because we blasted the crap out of it. We took out, that’s why oil’s $85 a barrel.” He went on.