09 January 2014

It hardly matters whether Christie knew

For anyone who's not up to speed on Bridgegate, TPM has a timeline, and Rachel Maddow has an excellent report:



So far, Christie's defense has been to blame his staff and claim he didn't know what they had done:



But it hardly matters whether Christie knew or not. Even if he didn’t know (and the average voter will never find that credible), it means he’s the kind of leader who creates an atmosphere in his organization where subordinates expect to get away with this kind of action or even consider it the norm.  That says almost as much about his character as if he had ordered the spiteful act himself.

And don't forget -- there's more where this came from.  Whether the bridge disruption was Christie's act or merely the act of the kind of staff he assembles, it can't be a completely isolated case.  He or his people have almost certainly done such things before (more on that here, found via Progressive Eruptions).  If the media don’t dig it all up before 2016, the Democrats will, if Christie is the Republican nominee.

Smart Republicans know that.

As a 2016 contender, Christie's finished.

14 Comments:

Blogger Shaw Kenawe said...

"As a 2016 contender, Christie's finished."



"Is it wrong that I'm smiling?"

09 January, 2014 12:54  
Blogger Infidel753 said...

If you can't smile at this, what can you smile at?

10 January, 2014 01:42  
Anonymous Leslie Parsley said...

The media, as usual, is giving the bully a free pass for the most part - at least after his press conference yesterday. I don't know who is more disgusting - him or them. He claims he is not a bully and they drank it up - shades of "I am not a crook." But Mother Jones has the proof:

http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2014/01/chris-christie-bullying-videos

10 January, 2014 04:10  
Blogger Ahab said...

If Christie knew or play a role in the bridge debacle, he's being dishonest. If he didn't know, he's dangerously oblivious. Neither is a quality I'd want in an elected leader.

10 January, 2014 05:40  
Anonymous Marc McKenzie said...

Nice piece, Infidel...and I'm here in NJ, Ground Zero! Honestly, something like this was only a matter of time...and you are right--I'm sure that this is only the tip of the iceberg.

Still...we have no one to blame but ourselves. We PUT this guy in office, despite the doubts. Well, we made our bed so...

10 January, 2014 05:49  
Blogger Leslie Parsley said...

As expected, the more people dig, the more that surfaces about this kind, gentle little pussycat, at least in the case of Rachel Meadow.

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/the-heart-the-scandal

10 January, 2014 06:32  
Blogger Grung_e_Gene said...

Christie isn't finished. Already the Ultra-Reactionary pundits have made their mission to defend him because being a conservative means never having to say you're sorry but Christie is also the Koch's Man so he's got the money waiting to make the GWBridge to Narrow a winning point.

10 January, 2014 08:20  
Blogger (O)CT(O)PUS said...

Uno, dos, tres, quatro
Bridget told David about a thing she saw.
Had two big horns and a wooly jaw.
Wooly bully, wooly bully.
Wooly bully, wooly bully, wooly bully.
David told Bridget, "Gotcha, let's take a chance.
Let's jam the bridge, come and learn to dance."
Wooly bully, wooly bully
Wooly bully, wooly bully, wooly bully.
Bridget told David, "That's the thing to do.
Get someone to pull the wool with you."
Wooly bully, wooly bully.
Wooly bully, wooly bully, wooly bully.

10 January, 2014 08:35  
Blogger Infidel753 said...

Leslie: Thanks for the links. At the very least, Christie's given the media a reason to bring out every video they can find like those.

The court issue does seem like a more plausible motive, given the timing.

Ahab: Hence my second video. Sgt. Schultz was harmless enough, but not the kind of guy you'd put in charge of anything. Of course, I don't believe for a minute that Christie was unaware of what was going on. Staff people don't do something of this magnitude behind the boss's back.

Marc: Thanks. I can kind of see why he was popular -- he's come across as pragmatic and not too partisan, when people are fed up of partisan bickering.

I'll be very interested to see what other episodes emerge once the media really start digging.

Grung: There's already a lawsuit against Christie, a federal investigation, and the possibility of criminal charges. Plus, one of the people he fired could easily rat him out. The Kochroaches have a lot of money, but they're not omnipotent.

Octo: This bully's not so wooly, at least, but I think he'll soon be as extinct as the wooly mammoth.

10 January, 2014 09:17  
Blogger Shaw Kenawe said...

Christie to the Mayor of Ft. Lee, New Jersey, or to state Senator Loretta Weinberg:

"Vengeance is mine sayeth the Lard."

10 January, 2014 15:04  
Blogger Alessandro Machi said...

But, But, Benghazi.

10 January, 2014 15:34  
Blogger Infidel753 said...

Alessandro: Yep, the Repubs are hopping mad that a real scandal has come along to distract the media from their fake one.

Shaw: A flabulous obeservation. Though this matter must weigh astoutdingly heavy on "the Lard", it's importlyant to accept that he and his aides are all in the same bloat, and let the punishment fat the crime.

10 January, 2014 16:51  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I always saw Christie as a coward. Why didn't he go against PBO in 2012? We all know Barack Hussein would've put a foot in his ass. I really don't like Americans. This Christie guy gets his jollies berating school teachers. I believe Democrats are hoping he's the nominee. If he were my opponent I'd come up with a new way to piss him off every day. I'd laugh all the way to my victory speech. We expect a little self control from our dignitaries.

Vic78

11 January, 2014 23:02  
Blogger Infidel753 said...

Vic78: Most of his Republican support comes from the fact that polls show him as the only Republican who could possibly beat Hillary. I never thought he actually would -- with his temper and character, if he were the nominee, he would self-destruct at some point. Now, though, it looks like we'll never get the chance to see that happen.

This leave the Republican establishment with a problem. For 2016, Christie was slated to fill the Romney slot -- the one possibly electable candidate among the clowns. Now he's out and they're left with just the clowns.

13 January, 2014 07:03  

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