On Wednesday, I wrote about the now inescapable Chris Christie bridge story. It had been simmering for a couple of months, but hit full boil status when texts and emails were released implicating top Christie officials in the retaliatory closing of two lanes on the world’s busiest bridge. This resulted in delayed emergency response times, not to mention one hellish commute for the 139 THOUSAND vehicles stuck in the resulting traffic jam each day, or the $21 Million dollar cost being associated with the debacle. This, of course, really isn’t surprising coming from the assumed GOP presidential candidate who had no problem soaking his state for $24 Million just so he could run a special separate US Senate Election, guaranteeing a huge victory for himself with no Corey Booker as a “down-ticket distraction.”
I mentioned that Rachel Maddow is the one who really broke this story on the national level, and it was assumed that the lane closings were in retaliation for Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich’s refusal to endorse Chris Christie’s gubernatorial candidacy. In a long and convincing press conference yesterday, Chris Christie insisted that he had no recollection of seeking Sokolich’s endorsement and, it turns out, he may be telling the truth.
So now, thanks to the released emails and The Record’s reporting, it is accepted fact that the Port Authority’s lane closures were a politically motivated form of revenge for something…but what? In last night’s program, Rachel Maddow proposed a new theory, with more gravitas and even darker implications for the Chris Christie government. As is normal in her monologues, she deconstructs then reconstructs and puts forward a pretty complicated but believable theory that this was a conspiracy to exact revenge, not simply on some mayor, but the NJ Democratic party itself. My only qualm here is that the leaked messages use derogatory language about Sokolich specifically, and the culprits don’t seem to express any interest in the state-wide Democratic party. That said, I’m not doing Rachel’s segment justice. Here: It’s a must watch:
-Alibi Pierce
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