I learned a lot more about the Christie bridge scandal tonight. This from a TPM Reader who must remain anonymous because … well, they play rough.
I’m a longtime reader from Livingston, NJ, hometown of Chris Christie. I’m fascinated by the whole bridge lane closing mess, and I agree this can really hurt him. Because it’s simple to grasp, and it makes him look really mean.
On the surface, it seems strange that a talented, charismatic politician like Christie is making so many mistakes with this. But nobody in Livingston finds it strange at all. That’s because we remember when David Wildstein was mayor.
He was elected young, probably 30 at the most. And he immediately brought a reign of insanity to peaceful Livingston. He practiced a particularly mean-spirited slash and burn style of politics, a combination of Bob Haldeman and Idi Amin. He spread false rumors about people, lied, and tried to ruin reputations of decent people to advance his own career. He is easily the most hated mayor in this town’s history, hands down.
He is a truly bad guy, exactly the wrong person you want with any power. .
Everyone I talk to agrees that closing lanes to get back at a mayor is right out of the Wildstein playbook. But since Wildstein is capable of anything, a lot of people also believe that he would have no problem saying Christie ordered him to close the lanes, whether it’s true or not. That explains the odd, erratic behavior from the Governor….he’s caught between a rock and a hard place.
Either way, some people are questioning Christie’s judgment by giving this guy any power at all.
