Chris Christie: "I am not a bully"

[EarlG]

Something about that phrase rings a bell...

[HipChick]

1. It's Nixon's birthday today..

[msanthrope]

15. History repeating...the first time is tragedy, the second time, farce. nt

[SleeplessinSoCal]

29. I don't trust the voters to reject a bully. Many probably want one as POTUS.

They'll call it "leadership quality". Plus Nixon was elected post "I am not a crook".

[tomp]

69. agreed.

it is a fundamental problem that americans can be such poor judges of character (among other things). how anyone can "like" this boorish bully is beyond me.

"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter. --Winston Churchill

[NewJeffCT]

71. Republicans love the "stern father" types

so, he is probably winning votes with the base by bullying a Democrat. Plus, it helps to make up for shaking hands with Obama.

[tulsakatz]

75. while this seems like the kind of thing republicans would like...

...it's hard to predict if this could help or hurt him within the GOP. Of course, I'm no judge because I often have problems understanding why they do the things they do.

The Washington Post has an article today about republican opinions on the scandal....

"This is the other side of the double-edged sword that is Chris Christie's heavy-handed persona and governing style," said Keith Appell, a conservative political strategist. "At one level there's an appeal about it, but underneath it you sense it could blow up. The boss sets the tone for those around him and beneath him."

Appell said he doesn't think "this is the last story we're going to see about problems with Christie's governing style, and even GOP establishment power brokers and money people will be concerned about how this plays in the 2016 primaries and caucuses."

Conservative blogger Erick Erickson wrote Wednesday that the bridge scandal illustrates one of Christie's chief weaknesses.

"I’m ambivalent on his run for the Presidency," wrote Erickson on RedState.com. "But I don’t see him getting that far for the very reasons underlying this issue -- he and his staff operate as divas."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2014/01/09/the-conservative-backlash-against-chris-christie-and-why-it-matters/?wpisrc=nl_politics

[calimary]

24. O. M. G. !!!!!

Oh the irony! Utterly lipsmackingly delicious!

[malaise]

40. Wow

First thing I said this morning was that he was Nixonian

[Maynar]

65. And Jimmy Page's

Just sayin'

[dchill]

66. !

[Zorra]

2. Recommend. nt

[Stuart G]

3. Exceptional...thanks for posting these two pictures...

k and r...

[warrior1]

4. yea right

[Spirochete]

11. Well, Chris,

you'll certainly do until we can find one...

[Hubert Flottz]

13. I think that R stands for rotten...

to the core. The ugly truth about guys like Mitt and Chris, is hard to keep bottled up 100% of the time. I this picture you see the real Chris. In the video of Mitt's fundraiser and his 47% remark we saw the real Mitt.

[KansDem]

35. Wow! Equally adept with both index fingers!

What a talent!

[cinnabonbon]

38. Ugh, I remember that. Despicable.

[Blue_In_AK]

5. " I am not a witch. "

[calimary]

25. "I am not a bimbo" - Victoria Jackson

[NewJeffCT]

72. "she turned me into a newt"

[Happyhippychick]

6. The two photographs are amazing!!!!

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

7. Also, "I am not a micromanager."

[Gidney N Cloyd]

8. He meant "bullemic."

Hardly seems worth pointing out, though.

[Stuart G]

9. Good By ...Asshole...nt

[valerief]

10. He's not a bully. He's an asshole. nt

[calimary]

26. I'd say he's both.

[valerief]

63. You're right! nt

[Enthusiast]

70. Yes. He's an asshole bully.

It's a common Republican condition.

[Hubert Flottz]

12. I don't know what else you'd call the prick...

Okay, he's a freakin' PRICK!

[Mr.Bill]

14. Sure, Chris,

I suppose you're also not a liar, either.

[deminks]

16. Was just coming to post. Deja vu all over again. nt

[Orsino]

17. Therefore he is.

That was easy.

[Jamaal510]

18. Bullying 101: "A REAL BULLY NEVER ADMITS TO BEING ONE." eom

[jsr]

19. Anus denies being asshole

[DallasNE]

20. When I Heard Him Say That

It caused me to ask "what is the difference between Chris Christie and Richard Nixon" and I answered it with "about 200 pounds". When people criticized me for making a fat joke I changed the answer to "Christie has not yet proclaimed I am not a crook". He came close. Regardless, Christie has more or less boxed himself in with this performance.

[B Calm]

21. Bully is too nice, call him what he is, a no good right wing thug!

[Cha]

22. I am so not a bully.. pic

Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka
Follow
Chris Christie: "I am not a bully." #bridgegate

This is him yelling at a woman while his wife laughs.
6:33 AM - 9 Jan 2014

the Obama diary

Thanks EarlG

[Brigid]

36. His wife always has that weird, creepy smile on her face.

[NewJeffCT]

73. But, wasn't that woman a school teacher?

So, Republicans will view it as the oppressed Christie vigorously standing up to the all-powerful teacher's union.

Sadly, I'm not joking.

[yellowcanine]

23. Oops. He really should not have said that.

[calimary]

27. Yep. But he DID. And our job now is to make sure it's jammed straight down his throat.

[DinahMoeHum]

28. "down his throat". . .and Up.His.(blank)

[ginnyinWI]

30. lol!

That was the first thing I thought of too.

Any time someone makes a grandiose statement about themselves--points to a lie.

[tulsakatz]

76. true...

just delete the word 'not' & you have the more correct statement!

[The Wizard]

31. yeah right

[weissmam]

32. If you have to say it guess what you are

[2naSalit]

33. That's a much better PIC O' THE MOMENT!!!

[dawnie51]

34. If you have to state you're not a bully......

you're a bully. The fact that this jerk has to deny it means he is totally aware of it and guess what, Chris? We all have known it for years. The image of the way he talked to that poor schoolteacher is an image that I will never forget. Surely one of these degenerate people who he's throwing under the bus will get tired of it and tell the truth. This is a career ender for these people; they surely can't allow these cretin to prevail.

[kairos12]

39. It's like saying it's not about the money.

Welcome to DU>

[tulsakatz]

77. I expect that one of them will be given immunity....

....so that they can tell what they know.

edit: let me restate that. Not so that they can tell what they know, so that they will tell what they know.

[TBF]

37. "The (governor) doth protest too much, methinks." ~ Shakespeare's Hamlet, act III, scene II

nt

[malaise]

41. Brilliant

Rec

[SunSeeker]

42. Also: "I'm not a witch." Christine O'Donnell, Oct 4, 2010

[berni_mccoy]

43. Wow.

[hamsterjill]

44. "I am not a bully"....yeah, right!

Top 4 Christie meltdowns:

http://americablog.com/2014/01/top-4-chris-christie-meltdown-videos.html

[riqster]

45. Does "Pavlov" ring a bell?

[abakan]

46. If Chris Christie is not a bully....

Do does a mighty fine imitation of one.

[Beacool]

47. Wuaahhhahhhhaaaa!!!!!!!

[JBoy]

48. Darth Christie

[randome]

60. Pretty much what I need to tell my daughters from time to time.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]Don't ever underestimate the long-term effects of a good night's sleep.[/center][/font][hr]

[indepat]

49. Magnificent! Bravo.

[bench scientist]

50. exactly this!

K & R

[polichick]

51. Everyone has seen him in bully mode - it's just that the right likes that mode.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

53. They LOVE that mode. Well, when it's one of theirs. Obama only has to offer them a stick of gum and

they say he bullied them into chewing it. Also socialist.

[Arkana]

52. It's getting him to deny it that's the trick.

Remember the old Johnson campaign trick? He suggested implying that his primary opponents in his Senate race were pigfuckers? One of his advisors pointed out how ludicrous an accusation it would sound, and Johnson said, "Yeah, but let's see the sonuvabitch DENY it."

[tulsakatz]

79. haha...

that definitely sounds like LBJ!!

[calimary]

54. Oh yes you ARE, chris!

I went back and found this NYTimes story that documents a number of instances that will refute his lie at this morning's press conference - that this is not the kind of tone he's set in his administration over the past four years. What a bunch of baloney!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024306587

Further evidence for your convenience, in case you're in an argument with some christie apologist and you want to cite specifics.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

55. Not long ago I had some idiot ask me, "Would you vote for Chris Christie?" as a "gotcha"....

As if saying, "No" makes you a blind partisan.

I mean, after all, Chris Christie would make a GREAT president.

Right?

The ONLY reason NOT to vote for him is because Christie just HAPPENS to have an "R" after his name. Doesn't MATTER that he's a Liberal. (That part cracked me up)

[spooky3]

56. The replies on this thread are hilarious! Thanks!!!!

[Blue Owl]

57. Peace out fucko

n/t

[grantcart]

58. EarlG is on a roll. Two grandslams in two at bats.

Pretty good for a Brit.

[LeftishBrit]

59. Doesn't being a Republican imply being (or at least approving of being) a bully?

[B Calm]

61. Republicans preach personal responsibility, but rarely practice it!

.

[B Calm]

62. Bullys create lots of enemies. Now that he looks weak, I look for

a lot of these enemies to start speaking about him. It doesn't look good for Christie!

[psiman]

64. That was Fun

Deadhead and PhilJD over at dailykos.com are not bullies either. There is no bullying on the Daily Kos. And JesseCW never claimed that NSA spying is OK because it's being done by white guys.

Thanks! I'm here all week! Try the veal!

[Half-Century Man]

67. Bully, Racist, Homophobic, Excellent Lover, Cool, Kind, Stylish, hard working, or any such label

which you apply (or deny) to yourself lacks creditability. These are labels which are observed in your character by other people, and then given to you.
You may act in a way which plays up or down your perception of what those labels mean and hope to be recognized as such. But self-labeling is simply self delusion.

[R B Garr]

68. Perfect imagery! Doesn't get much better than that

And LOL at the "I am not a witch" reference from Christine O'Donnell upthread.

[tulsakatz]

74. exactly!!

that's the first thing I thought of when he said that!!



2 crooked republicans who got caught in an abuse of power situation...

[olegramps]

80. This reckless escapade looks like a episode of The Sopranos.

They look and act like they the Mafia. Taking the 5th and replies in e-mails like "Got you" and you make me smile. I could only imagine what these thugs would do if they had the power of the presidency at their disposal.