Reports of Christie’s Political Demise Are Greatly Exaggerated

New Jersey and national Democratic politicos who are dancing with glee over the ‘damage” they think they are inflicting on Governor Chris Christie’s second term effectiveness and his presidential ambitions might as well enjoy the moment.  Reports of Christie’s political demise are greatly exaggerated.

Starting today with his State of the State address (which can be viewed live here at MMM at 3PM) Christie’s comeback will begin.  A comeback that the governor starts with a 59% job approval rating, according to the Monmouth University/USA Today-Monmouth/Ocean Edition Poll released yesterday.

The poll that was taken Friday through Sunday, indicated that even with the onslaught of negative publicity that Christie has gotten locally and nationally, New Jersey residents don’t care about Bridgegate with regard to how they view Christie.  His job approval rating is net positive 27%.  His personal approval rating is down to net positive 16%, but his negatives haven’t moved since Patrick Murray last asked the approval question in November when the net positive number was 31%.  28% had a negative opinion of Christie is Murray’s pre-election November survey. 28% expressed a negative opinion in the survey published yesterday.  The 15 point drop in Christie’s net personal approval rating is the result of New Jerseyans waiting for the full Bridgegate story to come out.  Those who said they have “No Opinion” of Christie personally, increased by the exact 15 points from November to January and the 15 point drop in those who said they had a favorable personal opinion.

Even though New Jerseyans think Christie knows more than he is saying about Bridgegate, we are giving him the benefit of the doubt.  We still like him.   If a smoking email surfaces that proves he knew of the George Washington Bridge lane closures, and what they were really about, he’s toast.  If such an email exists, it will probably come out. If it doesn’t exist, Christie will come out of Bridgegate a stronger political force than he was last Tuesday, before The Record published the damning emails.

Christie knows if such an email exists.

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The Nation’s Most Duplicitous Republican

By David Wanetick, Princeton, NJ

Governor Christie claims to have had no prior knowledge of the September George Washington Bridge closing orchestrated by his staff for purposes of political retribution against Fort Lee’s mayor. Why would he? He is above petty and partisan politics. At least that is what Governor Christie wants us to believe.

But is it really difficult to imagine that a man who has inflicted such enormous damage on his own party through his calculated and duplicitous behavior would not be at least equally vengeful against unsupportive mayors from the opposing political party? Let’s review some recent history.

Chris Christie was given his party’s highest honor when he was chosen to deliver the keynote address at the Republican Convention in August 2012. Instead of ginning up support for the Republican presidential nominee when he had the chance to appeal to tens of millions of voters, Christie made an ostentatiously narcissist speech that trivialized Mr. Romney. A day or two later, Christie claimed not to understand what was expected of him in delivering the keynote address.  Are we really to believe that Chris Christie didn’t know that the Republican Convention was about getting that party’s candidate elected?

Did Mr. Christie correct his behavior after disgracing himself at the convention? No.

He shamefully used the tragedy of Hurricane Sandy to enshrine nearly every step President Obama made during his visits and to rhapsodize about the President’s calls in connection with restoration efforts. At a time when he could have been very constructive in helping the Romney campaign, Christie was giddy in his constant Obama worship. Christie sounded more like a teenage girl’s first encounter with a suitor than a statesman in relating Obama’s telephone calls to him. (Here is Christie cooing over his late night calls with Obama, “…President Obama called me last night around midnight … I have to say the.…president himself…. have been outstanding with us so far..….. I want to thank the president personally for his personal attention to this.”)

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Monmouth Leaders Speak Out On Bridgegate, Christie’s Response.

We’re hearing plenty about Bridgegate and Governor Christie’s response to it from cable news pundits and late night comedians.  MMM thought it would be interesting to hear what our Monmouth County leaders, from both parties, have to say about the controversy and Christie’s response to it at his press conference last Thursday.

Sea Bright Mayor Dina Long, said “No, and I’m angry that some are tossing by name around as if I’m waffling about my endorsement,” when we asked her if she regretted endorsing Christie in light of the Bridgegate scandal. “Bridgegate is terrible, but it does not undue the Sandy recovery.  My endorsement was based on the Sandy recovery.   Let’s wait and see what happens when all the facts come out. Right now it’s a feeding frenzy.”

Senator Jennifer Beck said, “The governor has always straight forward me with, and he was forthcoming in his press conference on Thursday.  I believe him.”

Monmouth County Republican Chairman John Bennett said, “Governor Christie was open and sincere in his press conference.  He said that he will now talk to everyone on his staff himself to get to the bottom of what happened.  This issue may have gotten away from him because he departed from his usual practice of doing it all himself.

“Unfettered and overzealous politicos on Christie’s staff went way over the mark.  The lane closures were a bad, bad idea that never should have happened.”

Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Vin Gopal hasn’t returned our calls since we debunked his malicious and inaccurate attempted character assassination of a Red Bank Republican Council Candidate last October, so we asked his predecessor, Victor Scudiery, and the man who opposed him in the chairman’s race in 2011, Frank LaRocca to comment.

Former Monmouth Democratic Chairman Victor Scudiery said, “I take Chris Christie’s word for it. We’ll have to play it out and see what happens.  Everyone is jumping on the bandwagon, it’s frightening, but we have to wait and see.”

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Bridge scandal to be investigated by special committee empaneled by N.J. Assembly

Bridge scandal to be investigated by special committee empaneled by N.J. Assembly (via NJ.com)

TRENTON — Leaders in the state Assembly said today they will form a special investigatory committee with subpoena power to continue the probe of the September lane closures on the George Washington Bridge. The committee will be led by Assemblyman…

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Reckless Media Reports Federal Investigation Into Christie On Pallone’s Say So

Governor Chris Christie and HUD Sec Shaun Donovan announce Sandy Relief Grants in Highlands, April 29, 2013

More on this story here and here.

UPDATE:  Ian O’Connor of the HUD’s Inspector General’s Office responded to our inquiry regarding the audit into the #Stronger Than The Storm ad campaign.

We asked:

“Is this audit anything other than what would occur in the normal course of events regarding any HUD grant?

Congressman Frank Pallone thought it would be clever to inform the media that the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s audit into funds granted for Sandy Relief was an investigation into Governor Chris Christie and his appearance in last summer’s #Stronger Than The Storm ad campaign.

CNN and the left stream media either fell for it or went along this morning. 

MMM asked Ray Zaccaro, Pallone’s press contact in Washington for documentation that the audit is anything other than the normal course of business. Zaccaro said there was no documentation, just a phone call from someone at HUD responding to Pallone’s August letter on the matter saying, “yeah, we’ll look into it.”  Zaccaro said that HUD wouldn’t discuss investigations, “except with us, Members of Congress.”

MMM reached out to Brian  Sullivan in HUD’s press office for confirmation of a separate investigation.  Sullivan referred us to Marta Metelko in the HUD Inspector General’s office.  We received an auto reply from Ms. Metelko referring us to Mr. Ian O’Connor. We’ve yet to hear back from O’Connor.

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Best of Bridgegate Funnies

Found on facebook and twitter

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Kean Sr joins the Christie feeding frenzy

Former Governor Tom Kean, Sr dealt a body blow to his former protégé today in an interview published by The Washington Post.

Governor Chris Christie and former Governor Tom Kean Sr celebrate the first annual Livingston Day, April 11, 2013. Photo by Tim Larsen/Governor’s Office

“On the one hand, I think he’s got a lot to offer. I think he’s the most able politician since Bill Clinton,” Kean (R) said in an interview with The Washington Post. “On the other hand, you look at these other qualities and ask, do you really want that in your president?”

Kean’s comments come as the current governor is beset by controversy over revelations that officials loyal to Christie engineered closure of part of the George Washington Bridge in September, inconveniencing tens of thousands of state residents in an apparent act of vindictiveness against a local mayor.

There is no evidence that Christie knew of the actions of his subordinates and appointees, some of whom he has since fired. But Kean — who has known Christie since the current governor was a teenager — faulted Christie for establishing a culture in his tight inner circle in which no one “will ever say no to him, and that is dangerous.”

He also said that Christie’s approach to governing is overly aggressive and his agenda is personal.

In a press conference last month, Christie said he had not talked to Kean Sr since the attempt to oust Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean Jr from his leadership post.  Kean Sr has characterized Christie’s ill-fated attempt to replace Kean Jr with State Senator Kevin O’Toole as a personal betrayal.

Christie’s got some fence mending to do.

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Haley Barbour defends Chris Christie in bridge scandal, lashes out at ‘liberal media’

Haley Barbour defends Chris Christie in bridge scandal, lashes out at ‘liberal media’ (via NJ.com)

TRENTON — Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour defended Gov. Chris Christie in a lengthy interview for “taking the bull by the horns” after a week of explosive revelations that top Christie aides knew about plans to cause a massive traffic jam…

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Good News, Bad News Poll For Christie

A Rasmussen Poll taken Thursday evening after Governor Chris Christie’s marathon press conference apologizing for the September George Washington Bridge lane closures indicates that 60% of likely New Jersey voters approve of the job that Christie is doing and 55% hold a favorable opinion of him.

Yet, New Jerseyans are skeptical of Christie’s claims that he had no prior knowledge of the Bridgegate closures or his staff’s involvement.

54% of Likely New Jersey Voters believe it’s at least somewhat likely that Christie was aware that traffic lanes onto the George Washington Bridge were being closed as retaliation for the mayor of Fort Lee’s refusal to support the governor’s reelection. 36% think it’s unlikely Christie was aware beforehand.

56% say Christie should resign if it is proven that he knew the lane closures were an act of political retribution.

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More Front Office Fallout From Bridgegate

Kevin O’Dowd, center, holds the Holy Bible while Governor Christie administers the Oath Of Office to Mary O’Dowd, Kevin’s wife, to be Commissioner of Health and Senior Services, June 3, 2011. Photo by Tim Larsen/Governor’s Office

The State Senate put Kevin O’Dowd’s confirmation hearing for State Attorney General on an indefinite hold, which prompted the governor to withdraw Acting Attorney General John Hoffman’s nomination to be a Superior Court Judge, according to a report by the Associated Press.

O’Dowd is Christie’s Chief of Staff. Bridget Ann Kelly, the Deputy Chief of Staff now at the center of the Bridgegate scandal, reported to O’Dowd  prior to being fired by Christie yesterday morning.

During his hour and 48 minute press conference dealing with Bridgegate yesterday, Christie said he expected O’Dowd’s nomination to go forward.

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