Get Up with Steve Kornacki - forcing a project to receive hurricane relief

[malaise]

[deminks]

1. Turn on UP, right effing now

Christie adm used Sandy relief money to force a mayor to do his bidding.

[malaise]

3. If you want that Sandy money that Rockefeller project needs to move forward

From the Lieutenant Governor - WTF???

[House of Roberts]

2. Steve started out good.

Now he's just going faster and faster. Chris Hayes does this too. They get so excited they can't hold back.

[randome]

27. Irritating, isn't it?

Ah, well, at least when we quote them, we don't get the 'benefit' of that rushed delivery.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Everything is a satellite to some other thing.[/center][/font][hr]

[nenagh]

29. I enjoy the speed of the speech...

relating to how fast his neural network communicates. I'm very impressed, but that's just my opinion.

[dorkzilla]

40. +1 nt

[Ecumenist]

4. UMM, these idiots are EXTORTIONISTS!!! HOW STAH-OOPEED CAN YOU BE??!!

WOW, JUST WOW!! I've been calling Christie, CRISPIE FRIED CHRISTIE BUT BROTHAMAN is OVERCOOKED PAST DONE!!!

[malaise]

6. This is the Federal crime

The thing is that Jay Rockefeller will have to recuse himself from that Senate Committee.
Samson - Christie - fugging criminals.

Dawn Zimmer coming up.

[dorkzilla]

24. The Rockefeller family sold the Rockefeller Group to Mitsubishi years ago

I think back in the late-80's/early 90s. I don't think Senator Rockefeller has to recuse himself, although I'm sure people will say he should.

[malaise]

28. No need to reuse himself if he is no longer a shareholder in

the group - thanks for this.

[dorkzilla]

31. Sure thing, malaise!

This SURE is getting JUICY!!!

[malaise]

33. To be truthful

delish does not quite describe this

[dorkzilla]

39. Delish with a cherry on top!!

The sheer arrogance of the Christie administration--that they thought they could steamroll over people and cities and due process (i.e., the planning committee) stinks to high heaven and I am SOOOOOOO happy to see all this come to light. Death by a thousand slashes, as it seems the more time passes, the more his victims come out of the closet to share their stories.

...of course, according to the Drunk Cheesedoodle of Washington, DC, we should "move on" from this post haste!

PASS THE POPCORN!!!


Yummmmmm!

[malaise]

42. If bridgegate hadn't grown legs and they had reached last Tuesday without an extended

investigation, he and his goons would have escaped.
Thanks Rachel, Steve and all the newspaper journalists.

[Ecumenist]

5. I wonder just HOW FAR UP this ROT goes???!! Could the Cock brothers at the top??

THIS IS INCESTUOUS! OH-EM-GEE...

[malaise]

19. It's a mess even without the Koch brothers

Seriously this is a great program today.Listen to this hack - political juice.

If Christie et al withheld federal Sandy money as a lever they committed a Federal crime.

[Laxman]

21. That's correct.

Michael Aron is a jerk. What he said about the Port Authority and its decline in its professionalism is right on however.

On another note: I've written before Sandy money, Sandy money, Sandy money.. more to come on that.

Finally, the Rockefeller Group. There is no doubt that if they were involved, political pressure from their attorneys was also involved.. Its how they do business. Usually, its not overtly stated as Mayor Zimmer indicated. But they are a national power (even have a global presence) in the development industry and have a large presence in NJ. The Rockefeller family does not own the Rockefeller Group. But they are one of the "development interests" that I've written about before who put Christie up to running in the first place. They are represented by...Wolff & Samson.

[malaise]

30. I was responding to his first comment

but he got better as he went on - like you I thought his take on the Port Authority was more than useful. Across the globe the dissing of professionals by political appointees has weakened all institutions. Professionals are sick of watching really good services destroyed at the altar of political expediency at the same time these institutions are looted for personal or political party gain.

[Sienna86]

7. Update?

Had early morning sports. Any more to report?

[dorkzilla]

45. ohhhh, lots and lots and lots

See for yourself!

http://www.msnbc.com/up-with-steve-kornacki

[Laurian]

8. The 1% strikes again. Their pursuit of more

and more money never stops, people in need be damned. Disgusting.

[avebury]

9. After listening to everything that is coming out

on the Christie mafia, I would want to secretly tape any meeting I had with any member of his mafia family. It would be nice to have real undeniable proof of their shenanigans. It is really scary to think that Christie might ever become President.

[malaise]

10. +1,000

Don't forget this was Federal money. They will demand chapter and verse of the way it is being allocated.

[deminks]

11. Christ Christie, can you spell RICO? nt

[semby2]

12. Wow

This is awesome stuff! We should cheer this mayor for going public with her story!

For those not watching, the Mayor of Hoboken wrote notes in her diary when the Lt. Governor personally (and privately) told her she wouldn't get Sandy money unless she approved a development deal. Blockbuster stuff!

People aren't afraid of Christie anymore. They'll be coming out of the woodwork to give us the dirt on him!

[malaise]

15. Yep he has been brought down to size

Stick a fork in him - abuse of power is as clear as day.
You have the ad; you have bridgegate and now you have this.
Stick a fork in the bully.

[malaise]

34. Welcome to DU

I forgot to write that in the first response

Melissa Harris-Perry says she has something new as well.

[Whisp]

66. Wonder if it was a meeting with the Lt. Gov or a phone call, or email

If it was a meeting, his calendar should have that recorded.
If it was a phone call - hey, NSA do your stuff!
If it was email I think that would be easiest to find.

I haven't watched the show but would love to know of the type of communication.

[txwhitedove]

13. So of the millions of dollars in Sandy Relief, he's only given Hoboken about $347,000??? Incredible.

[malaise]

17. Extortion is the word

Nasty, vindictive Re[THUG scumbags.

[Gothmog]

14. This is a great story

I believe the mayor

[avebury]

20. Agree. She is very credible.

I hope the whole thing continues to grown and steam role Christie out of office (a long with the Lt. Governor who delivered the message to the Mayor of Hoboken, NJ).

[Laxman]

23. I Know Her...

She is honest, her administration is honest, her development director Stephen Marks is honest (which is important in these circumstances) and she has backbone. I thought that following Sandy she and some other NJ mayors were far too wide-eyed and adoring of Christie, but she was not alone. And, there was reason for that behavior. However, this was NEVER how things were done in NJ-until now. Access and connections for developers are par for the course. That's how business is done. Instruction to accommodate a particular developer or withholding vital benefits for not accommodating them (or the intimation that this would be done) is a whole other story. If Dawn Zimmer said this happened-this happened.

[Gothmog]

65. She come off as being a honest person

I think that you opinion of this mayor is accurate. I believe this mayor over Christie

[HereSince1628]

16. Here is a link to his story at MSNBC

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/mayor-christie-camp-held-sandy-money-hostage

[malaise]

18. Great link

Thanks

[spanone]

22. governing by blackmail....

[avebury]

25. The defense attorney on towards the end

was pretty funny.

What is to keep people from deleting their emails?

Well if they want to spend a good amount of time in Danbury.

I tell my clients that e in e-mail stands for evidence.

[malaise]

32. Yep he was hilarious

[mucifer]

26. It's another simple scandal that voters will understand. Bribery for hurricane relief.

[malaise]

35. Christie's huge problem is that

people are finally pulling together all his threads. The fact that so many ReTHUGs hate his guts (pardon the pun) makes this particularly troublesome for him.

[HipChick]

36. I had to sleep in this am...anyone got the cliff notes?

[malaise]

38. Check Here Since1628's post at #16

Kornacki is on MHP right now giving a synopsis

[Hissyspit]

46. Same here.

Rachel was talking about this last night, and I just thought "There's no way I'm getting up at 8 a.m..."

[pangaia]

37. Let's just move on.

No reason to bring charges for something that happened in the past.

OK, just so somebody doesn't get it and play wack-a- mole

[mucifer]

41. Can they scientifically prove that the mayor wrote in her diary around that time

and that she didn't write it now? Because that would be so cool if they can prove this. Of course there might be some amazing emails from then that are floating around.

[malaise]

44. I hope so but I guess they can establish a pattern for her entries

Has she ever left blank spaces to fill in later?
Is it the same pen and so on?
She says she's willing to testify and to take a lie detector test.

[WinkyDink]

50. I think testimony under oath will suffice.

[HereSince1628]

58. Seems enough to justify some search warrants

maybe enough for seizures of public and private computers and public and private email records???

[polichick]

62. They can probably date the ink.

[Bandit]

64. I think she noted time and place of meetings or phone calls.

It would be fairly simple to get phone records of a certain date or a witness for a certain meeting.. That is what will be important with the diary; DETAILS

[warrior1]

43. the documents that the NJ legislators are asking for go back to

Sept. 2012, will this cover the issue Steve was talking about?

[Hissyspit]

47. Since Sandy was at end of Oct. 2012, it seems that's what they are going for.

[mucifer]

48. I thought the documents they are looking for are event specific

They were asking for documents about the GWB not Sandy.

[Hissyspit]

49. Yes, but no telling what will get caught up in it.

[malaise]

51. Follow the Federal Money

What was it being used for - looks more like not endorsement but development projects.
The GWB bridge was just one of the vindictive acts. There is a clear pattern here.
Stick a fork in Christie.

[HereSince1628]

53. remember Whitewater and the "Starr chamber"?

What started out as an investigation into corrupt real estate/banking/financing deal turned into an investigation into what the English word 'is' means relative to the meaning of sex with "that woman".

Corruption investigations seem to go wherever an investigator has the will and resources to steer them.

[Squinch]

52. I have it DVR'd so I can watch it over and over.

It's getting to be like beetles skittering away when you pick up a rock.

[mucifer]

54. Who knows what more will unfold by the time Rachel is on TV on Monday.

Pretty exciting while we have such bad news about the TPP , NSA, net neutrality etc.

[Squinch]

61. I hope at some point they put this same labor into TPP so that there is a popular public record

about it. I know that Ed is covering it, but I think Rachel has more gravitas.

Her ratings have shot up during the Christie coverage, but I hope as it dies down she gives space to TPP and the chemical spill, etc.

[nadinbrzezinski]

55. Real estate

play to pay, I wish I was shocked. I hope he sees the inside of a court room, but, this is hardly surprising. It is that quality of politics akin to water being wet.

Anybody who covers enough local politics will quickly realize everything is really about real estate and who controls it.

But I can dream of an impeachment over high crimes and a longish prison time. He got caught with his hands in the cookie jar.

[malaise]

59. Yep that's the big money along with the roads and bridges

The problem here is that they may have used Federal Sandy money to get their projects which is extortion.

[mucifer]

60. I think it wouldn't matter so much if it wasn't about Sandy.

People saw the human suffering and the way Christie played it.

If it was something else, it might not matter so much.

It's just way too ugly and way too obvious.

[warrior1]

56. what really amazes me

is they didn't think for one moment that they would get caught?

I think that this makes it sweeter.

[malaise]

63. Arrogance and hubris usually bring them down

They get careless and think everyone is afraid of them.

[polichick]

57. The web gets more tangled - great job on Steve's part!

[malaise]

67. Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer's Sandy allegations 'categorically false,' DCA official says

http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2014/01/dca_official_accuses_zimmer_of_lying_about_sandy_allegations.html
<snip>
Hours after Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer accused the Christie administration of withholding Hurricane Sandy relief funds until she approved a development project in the Hudson county city, officials from the agency that distributed the money flatly denied the allegations.

"Mayor Zimmer's allegation that on May 16, 2013 - in front of a live auditorium audience - (Department of Community Affairs) Commissioner (Richard) Constable conditioned Hoboken's receipt of Sandy aid on her moving forward with a development project is categorically false," DCA spokeswoman Lisa Ryan in an interview.

[polichick]

68. Hmm, I wonder who most people believe.