Tag: Chris Christie

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie

Bridget Kelly, a former top aide to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, testified in court today that the governor knew about planned bridge closings in August of 2013 a month before they occurred.

Via NPR.org:

Kelly is on trial for federal charges that range from conspiracy to wire fraud. She’s the author of the infamous email about the September 2013 lane closures on the George Washington Bridge, and her message in that email — “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee” — has been seen as proof that the closures of crucial roads leading into New York City weren’t just a mishap of planning, but an attempt to punish Fort Lee’s mayor for not endorsing Christie during his re-election campaign.

Kelly, who was fired as Christie’s deputy chief of staff in the fallout from the scandal, testified on her own behalf Friday, saying Christie had consented to the Port Authority’s plan to shut down the roads for four days — a plan that not only ruined commuters’ trips but also frustrated ambulances’ attempts to transport patients.

Today, Kelly gave new details about the scandal, and about Christie’s behavior. Via Twitter, Andrea Bernstein of member station WNYC reports that under questioning by her defense attorney, Kelly testified:

• That she told Christie about the closings one month before they occurred, and that they were expected to cause “tremendous” problems;

• That Christie’s main response was to ask “What’s our relationship with Mayor Sokolich?” — referring to Mayor Mark Sokolich of Fort Lee;

• That Kelly also talked with Christie about Mayor Sokolich’s public safety complaints over the closures while traffic was still snarled;

•That during a meeting in Seaside Heights, Christie flew into a rage over being asked by Kelly to introduce people, and asked her, “What do you think I am, a ****ing game show host?” Kelly was in tears as she said Christie then threw a water bottle at her that struck her in the arm.

Gov. Christie has maintained he knew nothing about the bridge closings.

Christie, a high-level Donald Trump advisor,  has been noticeably absent from the presidential campaign for some time now.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie

Federal prosecutors told jurors today that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie knew about the Washington Bridge closings back in 2013 for political payback.

Via Politico:

Gov. Chris Christie was told of the George Washington Bridge lane closures as they were occurring in 2013, a federal prosecutor told jurors on Monday in U.S. District Court.

David Wildstein, who has already pleaded guilty to playing a role in the incident, and Bill Baroni, who is now on trial for his alleged role in the scheme, “bragged” about the traffic gridlock that lane closures were causing when they spoke with the Republican governor at a Sept. 11 memorial in Lower Manhattan, Assistant U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna said.

The two Christie-appointed former Port Authority officials mentioned the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee, Mark Sokolich, whom they are accused to trying to punish after he refused to endorse Christie’s reelection campaign, the prosecutor said.

“The evidence will show that Baroni and Wildstein were so committed to their plan that, during the precious moments they had alone with the governor, they bragged about the fact that there were traffic problems in Fort Lee and that Mayor Sokolich was not getting his calls returned,” Khanna told jurors during his opening remarks on Monday morning.

Khanna did not elaborate on what was allegedly said during the conversation with Christie, but told jurors that “evidence in this case may show that others could have, should have, perhaps knew certain aspects of what was going on.”

Baroni, the former deputy executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Bridget Anne Kelly, Christie’s former deputy chief of staff, were indicted last May on charges of conspiracy, fraud and civil rights violations.

Christie is currently a top advisor to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.