TIMELINE: What Did Christie Know and When?
As BridgeGate documents subpoenaed by the New Jersey State Legislature are due to be turned over to investigators today, it's worth reviewing the timeline of what Governor Chris Christie has said he knew about this growing scandal and when he says he knew it. While Christie has doubled down on his claims that he knew nothing of the lane closures while they were happening, his public statements on this timeline have been inconsistent and imprecise. Christie has refused to answer media questions about the scandal for weeks, and his weekend straw man attacks on his appointee David Wildstein's high school years instill little confidence that another shoe isn't waiting to drop.
Rick Scott's 2014 Budget: A Textbook Case Of Election Year Pandering
As Governor Rick Scott delivers his 2014-2015 budget address, Floridians would do well to see Scott’s budget for what it is: A textbook case of election year pandering. While Scott’s budget plans included hundreds of millions of dollars in vague tax breaks for special interests and dramatic cuts to various revenue sources, the Tea Party governor has also discovered an election year infatuation with spending on Everglades reconstruction, child welfare, and teacher pay raises. Scott’s predilection for election year pandering is nothing new, but the extent of it in his latest budget proposal is staggering. Scott Has A History Of Election Year Pandering (VIDEO). According to a news segment highlighting clips of Governor Rick Scott, Scott has a history of election-year pandering. In the clip, a FOX reporter states of Scott: “He’s the Tea Party Republican who slashed school funding then raised it as he prepared for re-election, after he tied teacher pay to performance, before giving out raises regardless of performance.”
Christie Admin Cites Executive Privilege in Denying & Delaying Request for Staff Personal Emails
After Governor Chris Christie stated that he would "act accordingly in terms of releasing...to the public" information related to his office's conduct in the bridge scandal, his administration has now provided unlawful reasons for denying and delaying its response to a request for personal email correspondence of Bridget Anne Kelly and Michael Drewniak. American Bridge requested those emails be made available to the public under New Jersey's Open Public Records Act (OPRA) following revelations that Christie's staff conducted official business on personal accounts. Christie's administration failed to provide a timeline for releasing these emails, and cited the volume of requests it is receiving in its response. Most concerning in the Christie administration's denial is its reference to executive privilege. If Christie truly wanted to put this scandal behind him, his office would swiftly comply with requests for information related to his staff's conduct. Here is a copy of the letter from the Christie Administration. And here is American Bridge's response to their unlawful delay in responding to our request.
VIDEO/MEMO: Christie's State of Controversy
Chris Christie’s reelection last November was supposed to propel him into the pole position for the race to the White House. However, the timing of his victory coincided with the release of a damning excerpt from Double Down: Game Change 2012 by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann. Unwittingly transcribing the prologue for 2016, Halperin and Heilemann recounted the incredulity with which Romney’s VP selection committee discovered the preponderance of scandals in Christie’s wake.
American Bridge NJ OPRA Request
Emails Contradict Christie's Samson Claims
During today’s press conference, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie claimed that David Samson, Christie’s appointee as Port Authority Chairman, had convinced Christie that he had “absolutely no knowledge” of the politically-motivated lane closures brought to light on January 8th in emails from Christie’s top staffers. However, in those same emails, former Port Authority official David Wildstein assured Christie’s Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly “Samson helping us to retaliate.” The ominous message suggests that further exploration of what Christie and his top officials knew, and when, is warranted. David Wildstein Emailed Bridget Anne Kelly That David Samson, Chairman Of The Port Authority, Would Help Them Retaliate. According to the email from David Wildstein to Bridget Anne Kelly on September 13, 2013 “The New York side gave Fort Lee back all three lanes this morning. Samson helping us to retaliate.” [Email, 9/13/13; viewed via New York Times, 1/8/14] Christie Interviewed Port Authority Chairman David Samson, Said He Was "Convinced That He Had Absolutely No Knowledge Of This." During a press conference on January 9, 2014, Christie said: "I think General Samson put out a statement yesterday that he had no knowledge of this. I interviewed him yesterday. He was one of my interviews. I am convinced that he had absolutely no knowledge of this, that this was executed at the operational level and never brought to the attention of the Board of Commissioners until Chairman Foye wrote his email - or Executive Director Foye wrote his email to the Board of Commissioners. And so I sat and met for two hours yesterday with Mr. Sampson - General Sampson - and again, I'm confident that he had no knowledge of this, based upon our conversations and his review of the information. So I think, you know, as he said yesterday, he is angered by this and upset about it, and I know that he's going to lead - cooperate with the OIG investigation that's ongoing and lead a discussion at the Port Authority about what could be done in the future to stop such conduct." [Chris Christie, Official Press Conference, 1/9/14]
Christie on DREAMers: "They can't be second class citizens if they're not citizens"
By threatening to veto a version of the NJ DREAM Act unless the legislature stripped a provision making undocumented students eligible for financial aid -- and then mocking and belittling the concerns of a DREAMer who still felt like a "second class citizen," Chris Christie is trying to have it both ways... and failing. In a transparent attempt to make himself appealing to Latino voters without angering the anti-immigrant GOP base, Christie today created problems for both the primary and general elections in 2016. At a press conference this afternoon, Christie dismissed the concerns of an undocumented student by repeatedly saying: "They can't be second class citizens if they're not citizens." Something tells me this isn't quite the “tone of grace, love, and respect” Reince Priebus was talking about yesterday.
VIDEO: "Great Job" — The loooong list of scandals/resignations under Rick Scott
Adam Hollingsworth, Steve McNamara, Tony Bennett, David Wilkins, Hunting Deutsch, Jennifer Carroll... the list of scandals and/or resignations from Rick Scott's administration is disturbingly long. Perhaps the only things more alarming than Scott's obviously flawed judgment when filling his administration are his repeated assertions that the aforementioned staffers were doing a "great job" while being consumed by controversy.
Tom Cotton flees reporters at Florida fundraiser (VIDEO)
It looks like Tom Cotton was a bit skittish this AM when he spotted reporters outside a Miami fundraiser. It's not surprising that he'd dodge the press, though, since he was neglecting his day job to hobnob with out-of-state donors.
Run away! @RepTomCotton sees press outside his Miami fundraiser at Versailles Restaurant & slips through a kitchen backdoor to avoid any Qs
— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) December 16, 2013
Perhaps a little too skittish....
Doh! @RepTomCotton handlers, worried about press at Miami fundraiser, accidentally blocked Dr. who drove 90mi 2 give a check. He's angry
— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) December 16, 2013
Scott Brown Still Has Massachusetts Plates
Former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown, who is publicly flirting with a 2014 Senate campaign in "Massachesett--uh, in New Hampshire," has spent months parading around the state in his famous GMC truck. It seems that Brown was in such a rush, however, that he overlooked crucial details before jumping over the state line to hobnob with New Hampshire Republicans. As you can see below, Brown's famous truck still has Massachusetts plates. Without a New Hampshire license plate to call his own, it's no wonder that while speaking at a fundraiser this summer, Scott Brown tried to recite New Hampshire's famous state motto "Live Free AND Die," before struggling to recover and correcting himself. Perhaps now is the time for Scott Brown to invest in NH plates, if only to remind him what state he's in and what their motto is.