Schools and nursing homes; nursing homes and schools.

Both have triggered the most political commentary emerging from the pandemic.

And both popped up at today’s St, Patrick’s Day briefing, one that Phil Murphy ended with a hearty “Erin Go Bragh.”

“Open the schools now” has been a political, rallying cry, especially by Republicans, throughout the pandemic.

It’s not only Republicans, of course. An “open the schools” rally was held last Saturday in liberal Montclair.

Whether it was the outcry, more positive metrics, or a combination of both, the governor is responding. Up to a point.

It’s “time to move forward” regarding opening schools Murphy said today.

Joining him was Angelica Allen McMillan, the acting education commissioner, and the message was clear:

Kids who have now spent a full year out of school – and counting – are being hurt. And “it’s time to stem the tide.”

The governor has not officially ordered all schools to open, but that appears to be his goal. He said the state plans to use whatever money it can from any number of stimulus packages to help get that done. And no matter what happens now, he expects all schools to be fully open by the start of the next school year in September.

What kind of gets lost in the debate is that most schools in New Jersey are open for in-person instruction, at least some of the time.

Of the 811 school districts in the state, which includes all charter schools and institutions for the disabled, only 98 are fully closed. That impacts 317,000 students, but more than a million students are attending school in their regular classrooms.

Nonetheless, “open the schools” likely will continue to be a popular chant, giving credence to the notion that passion often is stronger than facts.

As for nursing homes, critics long have condemned the administration for failing to protect the most vulnerable of its citizens. State Sen. Joseph Pennacchio, in fact, has begun legislative hearings on the subject.

“We were clobbered,” Murphy said today.

That meant that when the pandemic was at its height last spring, the state had no other option than to place COVID patients in nursing homes.

He said the rules were specific – the COVID patients were to be completely separated from the rest of the population. He also makes the valid point that for many such residents, the nursing home was their actual home. So, where else would they go?

Many nursing homes are privately-owned, prompting the governor to ask if there were some operators who failed to do what they were supposed to do.

“I’m afraid there may have been,” Murphy said.

And that may be an understatement.