CHRISTIE IS THE BEST....

Chris Christie is good. In fact he is the best. However, we are talking about another era, not so long ago, when you could get away with anything and everything if you were politically skilled, intelligent, articulate, capable and glib. 

Christie carved an independent niche for himself, within the Republican Party, so that he could have the credentials to win a national election when every demographic in the book shows that this is well nigh impossible. He won the Governorship of New Jersey, a strongly Democratic State, with bipartisanship support. He attacked the Republican Congressional establishment who were, ostensibly, not providing his State with support for hurricane Sandy’s havoc, and then publicly embraced Obama in the process to the cheers of a fatigued electorate who were disinterested with the politics of polarization. 

Christie had a realistic chance of giving Hilary Clinton a go if he could get the Republican nomination. Christie had to believe that could happen because in spite of Tea Party involvement, at the end of the day, the Republican money would see to it that the nominee would be at least someone who had a ghost of a chance - hence John McCain and Mitt Romney.

THE FUTURE AIN’T WHAT IT USED TO ME

However, in this new era, with 24/7 news channels, traditional media and their web sites, libraries of video clips - not to mention the social media, it is so so difficult to spin a coherent story for any length of time. To keep control of all the moving parts as the revelations lead to other revelations is well nigh impossible. In this milieu it is hard to keep a secret. So let it be with Christie.

To add to Christie’s problems, is that whether he likes it or not, he is in the midst of criminal investigations. Now lawyers tell their clients to shut up, just say nothing on the principle that you can do your case(s) very little good but plenty of harm. However, Christie has a political agenda and he has to keep trying to frame the narrative. This in a situation where he has no control and is in effect responding to the world exploding around him.

CHRISTIE IS JUST WILD ABOUT WILDSTEIN

In the New Jersey’s initial news conference on January 9, he couldn’t remember when he last saw David Wildstein, the former Head of the New Jersey Port Authority. He belittled the agent who had set into motion the lane closures at the George Washington Bridge. They did go to school together but Christie had no idea what dear old David was doing while Christie was head of the Student Council and excelling at athletics.

 In no time this narrative began to unravel:

*Several newspaper photographs emerged with the smiling Governor and his errant Head of the Port Authority. Some during and round about the time of the lane closure.

*Wildstein was given his $150,000 a year job on the strength of his relationship with Christie. In fact the position that he assumed did not exist till he came along. There was no job description as to what the duties of this so called head of Port Authority position entailed and Wildstein’s resume hardly had the skill set to be the Head of the Port Authority, whatever that means. One of the staff of that illustrious Authority stated that the message was that Wildstein was the Governor’s friend and he needed to be given a job.

*Wildstein having been thrown under the bus by his “friend” when the lane closures went sour, was explicit that he was not going to take the fall for his classmate. In a series of document exposures and a letter from his lawyer he made it quite clear that the plan to effect the closures emanated from the inner sanctums of the Christie emporium and that Christie new all about it, at least from the moment it happened. In addition, Wildstein was being discriminated against in that the Port Authority was not going to pay his legal bills. Wildstein  was ready to “tell all” if he received immunity from prosecution.

*Christie responded by the ritual denials but rather fascinatingly provided as evidence of Wildstein’s instability what had happened at school when Wildstein was 16.  Christie then outlined the former Head of the Port Authority’s undistinguished career to date. All this undermining his initial narrative that he hardly new of Wildstein’s existence at school and once again questioning his own ability to appoint competent administrators to high positions.

*To be continued.

FILES ON MAYORS

At Christie’s January 9 Press Conference he said he hardly knew of  Mark Sokolic, the Mayor of Fort Lee’s, existence. However, it has emerged that Christie had extensive files on the Mayors of New Jersey. They were color coded. They were given names that the Christie team felt were appropriate to the challenges that he might face in a national race. For example the town would be equated with Ohio or Florida for example. Democratic Mayors’ endorsements for his Governor’s race were a key target to show his bipartisanship acceptability.

It is hardly likely that Sokolic’s failure to endorse him went unnoticed. His town with key development potential at the foot of the bridge was pretty important. Christie’s argument that Sokolic, was not on his radar rings a bit thin when every Democratic Mayor was on his radar.  

HURRICANE SANDY.

Christie’s real problems emanate from the $60 billion Hurricane Sandy Relief Bill. He has been accused by the leading newspaper in New Jersey of using New Jersey’s share of the funds as a political slush fund. This by rewarding Mayors who endorsed him with moneys, whether they were hit by the hurricane or not, and withholding moneys from those Mayors who were in disfavor even though their towns desperately needed relief moneys. He also has not put into effect a New Jersey legislative Act that called for a review committee for any allocation of more than $5 million dollars.

This story has barely begun and this is where State and National attention will ultimately be concentrated on - the use or misuse of billions of dollars of Federal Funds.

WHERE TO NOW

After Christie’s Press Conference on January 9 Jay H. Ell blogged that Christie was history. (BLOG: Christie’s Bridge - Watergate Fast Forwarded, 1/12/14). He believed that the enormity of what was unfolding hadn’t sunk in.  Four days later Jay H. Ell blogged again on one of the breaking stories of usage of Hurricane Sandy money - "Anatomy of Corruption - Christie Style". It really was all over bar the shouting.

In another era Christie would have got away with it all. He has shown how capable he was in building his national persona and the detail he gave to garnering all his support. To this minute there are those that are saying that one must suspend judgment. One respected Republican Commentator on the most popular political show early in the day, “Morning Joe” states that Christie could emerge from this crises even stronger! Bobby Jindahl Republican Governor of  Louisiana has not lost any faith in him as the Head of the Republican Governors’ Convention. Paul Ryan has cautioned a rush to judgement. (A statement he is going to rue in his run for Presidency) The reason for this is Christie is hanging in there sounding convincing in the moment. He has lost none of his charisma, natural ability to connect and appear all things to all people.

As Jay H. Ell began, he is the best. The best Jay H. Ell hopes of a dying breed of politicians.