Here is what's really going on with Oroho's gas tax ...

Josh Gottheimer was sworn in on Tuesday, representing New Jersey’s fifth congressional district in the 115th Congress.

Monday’s House Republican move to gut the Office of Congressional Ethics—in secret and before the 115th Congress even officially convened—confirmed some of our worse fears. The party now believes, or at least will act as if it believes, it has a mandate to slash civil liberties and burn the socioeconomic safety net with lightening speed.

If you’re one of Sussex County’s tens of thousands of commuters who spend more than an hour on the road getting to and from work, the $0.23 cent increase in the gas that took effect in November might have bit into your holiday cheer.

No worries! According to state Sen. Steve Oroho, who bucked even much of his own party to support the increase, new tax regulations that took effect on Sunday will help cushion the pain.

When 63 percent of Sussex County voters cast their ballots for the Trump-Pence ticket, they were endorsing a party platform that promised to dismantle programs that provide not only relief for the poorest of the poor, but also interim help for those who struggle when economic conditions beyond their control—the Recession of 2009 being the most sweeping recent example—that threaten to pull the floor out from under them so thoroughly that they can never recover.

Currently, veterans in Sussex County have to travel at least an hour to access care, as the closest VA clinic in New Jersey is in Morris Plains. There is also a clinic in Port Jervis, NY.