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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe Rude Pundit: Random Observations on Chris Christie's Epically Long Press Conference
1. Just for shits and giggles, let's take Christie at his word at his press conference answering questions about his staff's involvement in limiting access to the George Washington Bridge as political retribution against the mayor of Fort Lee, New Jersey. Let's believe everything he said (even though he said he had just heard about the scandal at 8:50 the previous morning and insisted twice that he had lost sleep over two nights which, unless he's living some kind of Groundhog's Day, isn't possible unless he knew that something was going to break, in which case his whole press conference was a lie, but, still, let's pretend, shall we?).
Even looking at what he said in the most generous light possible, what we're left with is a governor who, by his own admission, has surrounded himself with people who are dishonest, who prefers to remain ignorant about problems, who is more concerned with personal betrayal and hurt feelings than public consequences, and who is out of touch with the day-to-day operations of his own government. In other words, he's all bluster and no substance, an incompetent boob. In otherer words, he reached under his gut, took out his tiny penis, and fucked himself in front of the press. In otherest words, the round man waved bye-bye to the Oval Office.
2. But what he said was actually a pretty disturbing portrait of rampant narcissism, as is Christie's way. There was Christie presenting himself as the poor fool, the victim of a lying woman (with its underlying implication of "C'mon, everyone. Bitches be crazy" . He said of Bridget Kelley, "I've terminated her employment because she lied to me." And for no other reason. That's fucked up right there. The sin wasn't mucking up the traffic of the busiest bridge in the United States for some phantom political game. It wasn't delaying ambulances, police, and school buses. No, it was that she lied to Sultan Christie.
Is that too far? Look at the transcript. No less than a half dozen times does Christie refer to Kelly's "lies." And Christie said he didn't ask Kelly why she conspired with David Wildstein to screw the entry lanes to the GWB from Fort Lee because she might be called to testify before a legislative committee? No, fuck that. Again, taking him at his word, you don't ask because you don't want to know.
3. Advice to Chris Christie: When there's ample video evidence, recorded proudly by your own staff, of you being a bully, don't say, "I am not a bully."
4. Advice to Chris Christie, Part 2: Stop giving civics lessons in your press conferences. Yeah, we fuckin' get it. "Politics ain't bean bag" or however the fuck you wanna put it. Really, fucko? We delicate pussies would have never figured that out without you informing us. Oh, and without watching TV news once during our lives.
5. Advice to Chris Christie, Part 3: Yeah, you may have 65,000 state employees. But you don't have that many in your own office. So just stop equating your deputy chief of staff with the poor schlub inputting mailed-in tax forms in some basement office in Newark. You know what Kelly's job was. Or see #1.
6. Advice to Chris Christie, Part 4: In general, stop pretending you don't know people. Port Authority official Wildstein? Mark Sokolich, the mayor of Fort Lee? Dude, Sokolich backed you on a couple of things. He's one of those Democrats you always tout as making you so glori-fucking-fied bipartisan. There's a photo of you with him. He was elected and reelected at the same time as you. You look like the liar you are when you say such things.
7. And what the fuck exactly is the atmosphere in the governor's office if your minions feel free to do such fuckery?
8. What the Rude Pundit didn't hear amid the apologies and the "Buck stops with me, but, you know, I was lied to, but, sure, the buck stops with me, even though, hey, I was lied to" was Christie saying that anyone should be investigated for possible criminal charges, like misuse of government funds, for starters. We already know what David Wildstein will do under oath: take the Fifth so he doesn't, well, shit, incriminate himself. Someone's gonna be offered immunity and a deal, which leads to...
9. Yesterday, the Rude Pundit said what he thought happened to make the bridge debacle possible. But he's calling "bullshit" on the whole press conference. He's calling "bullshit" on Christie's whole internal investigation, which looks like it'll have the same momentum as OJ Simpson looking for the "real" killers. It was an act of political preservation, delivered with braggadocio and pomposity ("Look how good I am at apologizing" . As such, it'll fool the idiots and the simpering reporters who laughed at Christie's exasperated jokes.
But, somewhere not so very far away, Hillary Clinton just started shifting strategy to how she'll defeat Rand Paul in the general.
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warrior1
(12,325 posts)JaneyVee
(19,877 posts)malaise
(269,054 posts)Christie is a rank amateur - and a liar.
pnwmom
(108,980 posts)would have gone after Mayor Sokolovich because the mayor wasn't even on their radar screen. That if she had asked him if they should do this, his response would have been, who IS he?
But he should have said that it made no sense because everybody knew they should NEVER go after ANYONE like this, regardless of who the person was or what they thought he had done. You NEVER punish a town because you don't like their mayor. Period.
Cha
(297,323 posts)LiberalEsto
(22,845 posts)LuvNewcastle
(16,847 posts)God, I love the Rude Pundit.
rdharma
(6,057 posts)And he's always right on target!
MyNameGoesHere
(7,638 posts)I think it's a trap. I just get the sinking feeling he will come out of this smelling like a turd blossom, rather than just a turd.
Brainstormy
(2,380 posts)Rude Pundit at his best!
BrotherIvan
(9,126 posts)Oh no, it's gonna be Jeb. Especially with the last big gun, CC, gone. He's going to go in 2016 instead of waiting. Don't ever underestimate his evil power. Rand Paul is like an amoeba on a flea on a rat. That's why the big boys aren't pulling out the stops to help Christie. They never really loved him.
lark
(23,105 posts)Glad to see I'm not the only one. Seriously, I'm from FL. and know how insidious Jeb is. He'll say anything, sound very moderate, but always swerves strongly to the right when it's time for the actual laws to be passed. Things he fights for during a campaign are quietly vetoed when they come to his desk - ala Everglades restoration.
nolabear
(41,987 posts)Btw meegbear, I take exception to your sigline.
meegbear
(25,438 posts)catbyte
(34,403 posts)without him having any knowledge of why they did that? That doesn't even make any sense. They resigned a while ago & he didn't know it? He's either a liar or incompetent, most likely both.
George II
(67,782 posts)...he said he didn't sleep for a couple of nights because of this, but the first time he heard about it was yesterday morning!
It just doesn't add up.
LuckyLib
(6,819 posts)Say what you are going to say, say it, take questions, then get off the stage. Telling the truth is actually quite simple . . .
Cha
(297,323 posts)"6. Advice to Chris Christie, Part 4: In general, stop pretending you don't know people. Port Authority official Wildstein? Mark Sokolich, the mayor of Fort Lee? Dude, Sokolich backed you on a couple of things. He's one of those Democrats you always tout as making you so glori-fucking-fied bipartisan. There's a photo of you with him. He was elected and reelected at the same time as you. You look like the liar you are when you say such things".
Not sure it's going to be "rand paul" who will be the little fuck who gets the gopropaganda primary award.
thanks meeg and Rude
bucolic_frolic
(43,185 posts)Manpower, hours, travel, depreciation to set up and remove
Operation Slow Cone.
okaawhatever
(9,462 posts)conferences. No kidding.
Dark n Stormy Knight
(9,760 posts)Staph
(6,251 posts)King Henry II of England: "Will no one rid me of the turbulent priest?"
Royal minions: "Sure, no problem!"
Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket: "I'm dead."
Henry was excommunicated, confessed, and received five blows with a rod from each bishop present at his confession, as well as three blows from each of the 80 monks Canterbury Cathedral.
How about three blows with a rod from each person delayed on the George Washington Bridge during that week in September?
I can't wait to see what happens next.
calimary
(81,322 posts)ctsnowman
(1,903 posts)calimary
(81,322 posts)I couldn't even get through the second half of Point 1 last night without almost falling down with laughter! Oh GOD I love the Rude Pundit! He's a good hurt! And the joy I find in this ouch is that I think he's spot on.