By Matt Rooney | The Save Jersey Blog
Food for thought as the Bridgegate debacle enters a critical day, Save Jerseyans:
(1) What will Governor Christie do next?
Chris Christie typically deals with controversies and minor scandals by tackling them head-on in full view of the cameras. Yesterday’s released statement represented a true departure from what we’re used to seeing. The most likely reason? Our former U.S. Attorney was conducting a fact-finding mission of his own on Wednesday evening; I bet some of the questioned staffers would’ve preferred water-boarding.
What did he discover or decide? Will one head roll in the coming hours? Or several? We’re in uncharted waters, folks, and Wednesday’s email bombshells raised more questions than they answered.
(2) Who was redacted in the emails? And why?
Speaking of emails, the digital communiques at the center of this political earthquake contain numerous redactions (click here). For example, at one point, former PANYNJ official David Wildstein responds to an unknown correspondent who had texted him “I feel bad about the kids” by stating that, “[t]hey are the children of Buono voters.”
Who was on the other end?
(3) Which crimes may’ve been broken?
Democrats want federal charges. A wackadoo over at the Daily Kos thinks the citizens of Fort Lee were victims of terrorism. Hyper-partisan silliness aside, it’s a little premature to definitively say which criminal charges, if any, could be forthcoming since Bridgegate investigations are only in their infancy, but two possibilities at the state level immediately come to mind: (1) perjury and (2) official misconduct. The first one is fairly obvious. The second is contained in N.J.S.A. 2C:30-2 and can encompass situations where public officials, elected or not, use their office to cause injury or, alternatively, fail to report misconduct.
Stay tuned.
(4) Will the Christie Coalition crack or collapse?
Machine Democrats in North Jersey’s urban centers and South Jersey’s halls of power found an unlikely ally in the Republican Governor on issues ranging from landmark education reform to routine government services. They control the legislature and, in 2013, found working with the Republican preferable to the Democrat alternative. That only goes so far. Blood is in the water and Hillary Clinton’s many state-based allies want to score points. Both leading Democrat gubernatorial hopefuls – Sweeney and Fulop – have received substantial support from the Chris Administration’s political apparatus but didn’t hesitate to throw heat on Wednesday.
If Bridgegate doesn’t die quickly, will Governor Christie become an official lame duck before his second inaugural champagne corks get a chance to pop?
(5) How will it affect the national Republicans picture?
I’m not even talking about the base and primary states; truth be told, his support for the N.J. Dream Act could ultimately prove a bigger obstacle to the GOP nomination. Governor Christie needs to successfully clear 2014 first when, as chairman of the RGA, he’s expected to engage no less than 36 gubernatorial contests in states including Iowa, South Carolina and Florida. It’s a time-intensive position.
Can he and his team (whoever remains) pull it off with chaos at home?
Political corruption and patronage is out of hand in New jersey. All these high priced jobs at the Port Authority, Turnpike and the other state authorities go to unqualified political hacks. These hacks feel they have an obligation to the person who gave them their job. Its not a Christie, Democrat or Republican thing. They all do it and do it at the county and local level as well. Its even more rampant in the public schools with high priced administrators.. Put all these jobs into a civil service type of system where people are hired on qualifications not political connections.
Christopher J. Christie (RINO-NJ) will be proven to be the product of his past. His family bought the U.S. Attorney job with a $400,000 contribution to the Bush campaign. ( A lawyer who had never taken part in a trial is appointed U.S. Attorney otherwise? No.) When people of questionable character get power, they are bound to abuse it. Appointing High School fiends (Wildstein) and political hacks (Baroni) to very important positions for which they had ABSOLUTELY no qualifications, will come back to bite the Big Guy in the posterior. Cronyism is a bitter mistress sometimes.
Democrats/Republicans – cogs in the same machine. Vote Patriot or kiss America goodbye!