Jeff Smith: Christ Christie is TOAST

[bigdarryl]

Good read http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/04/chris-christie-is-toast-105443.html?hp=pm_1#.U0QHnPldWSo

[malaise]

1. Politico is way late

We called this ages ago

Still that is a very good read.

What does all this mean for Chris Christie? The available evidence suggests that Samson is in real danger of an indictment, and Christie and his lawyers’ desperate effort to shield him from any blowback indicate that they are acutely interested in keeping him quiet. Christie implied in announcing Samson’s resignation that the 74 year-old may simply have wanted to relax, but assuming that prison is not the ideal retirement community, Christie must be concerned about Samson’s exposure—and potentially his own. And based on my knowledge of federal investigations, if Samson is indicted, the only way he’ll likely be able to avoid prison is by revealing knowledge of wrongdoing by Christie – knowledge that, as the governor’s longtime mentor and close ally, he may be uniquely situated to possess. As Christie knows better than anyone, the feds don’t hand out immunity like pediatricians hand out lollipops. And neither judges nor parole boards appear to resist elderly incarceration; indeed, seniors are the fastest growing generational cohort in federal prisons. So if Samson is indicted and wants to die a free man, he probably has to give up something meaningful – i.e., Christie.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/04/chris-christie-is-toast-105443.html#ixzz2yJ1pPBMi

Oops!!!

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. Breaking news headline this am:

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says he has not ruled out 2016 presidential run despite bridge lane closure scandal

According to authors of Game Change, Double Down, the book about the 2012 election,
Christie was snubbed by Romney's camp after they found out some bad things about him
but Christie did not GET IT, and was chasing Romney for attention, at every opportunity.

So he might be the last person to realize he is on the no no list.

[malaise]

6. He has no choice

He'll soon pull the sympathy card and enter some hospital

[Laxman]

2. That's A Really Interesting Article...

and worth reading. I got diverted a bit reading the New Republic piece on Jeff Smith, but Mr. Smith's article is a fairly good summary of Christie and his predicament. As Malaise said, we knew a lot of this already, but its a well-thought out explanation of what is a very complex web of circumstances and evaluations. There are a couple of minor factual errors, but they don't take away from the value of the article as a whole. (Christie was never the state Attorney General and Bridget Kelly's lawyer is not close to Christie by any stretch of the imagination-although her original lawyer was) If you don't quite understand why Christie is in deep trouble and why this is about much more than the bridge lane closures, this is a one-stop explanation that will bring you up to speed.

[napkinz]

4. yummy!

[napkinz]

5. more toast!