Love at the Shore: The Governor and the President ---John Cassidy / The New Yorker
Love at the Shore: The Governor and the President
Posted by John Cassidy The New Yorker
On the fourth day of their taboo-defying relationship, President Obama and Governor Christie made a trip to the Jersey Shore, home to Bruce Springsteen, Snooki, and numerous other Garden State legends. With the roads to the ocean blocked and most of the water routes destroyed, the unlikely duo had to rely on public transport. After flying up to Atlantic City on Air Force One, the President greeted the Governor on the tarmac. Then they both climbed aboard Marine One for an hour-long aerial tour of the damage that Sandy had wrought.
To be sure, they weren’t alone. The two Democratic senators from New Jersey, Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez, had come along for the ride, and so had Craig Fugate, the head of FEMA, which has suddenly been transformed into everybody’s favorite federal agency. But all eyes were on the two lovebirds, who had been making nice on the phone and on the television for the past three days. Would their chemistry survive an actual meeting? The answer was never in doubt. As they walked along, deep in conversation, they looked a bit like Laurel and Hardy. The Governor: animated, rotund, talking ten to the dozen. The President: calm, erect, listening politely—and no wonder.
Two months ago, the man beside him was one of the names on the short list to be Mitt Romney’s running mate—potentially a deadly rival. But ever since Sandy began bearing down on the Northeast, Christie had taken on a new role: as the one Republican in the country willing to say positive things about the President. And now, after Mayor Bloomberg had reportedly turned down a Presidential visit to New York, citing the trouble it would cause, the fat man had come through with an invitation for the President to tour some of the worst hit areas—with a White House press pool in tow, of course.
They flew north over Little Egg Inlet, then swooped low to survey the devastation to the settlements on the barrier islands that stretch from Beach Haven to Point Pleasant, which include Surf City, Ocean Beach, and Seaside Heights, home to the infamous reality show. Precisely what has happened in some of these beach communities is still unclear. But from the aerial footage it looks as if a vengeful giant has taken the oceanfront and moved it a couple hundred yards inland, burying any homes that stood in the way.
After Marine One returned to Atlantic City, the President and the Governor took a limo to Brigantine, about ten miles to the north, which was previously perhaps best known for its Scottish-style links. There they visited a makeshift shelter that was serving as a temporary home for a couple of hundred foolhardy souls who had defied the official evacuation order. In the immediate aftermath of the storm, Christie hadn’t spared these folks his wrath, telling them they’d just have to hunker down and wait for the emergency crews to reach them. But on this occasion, the Governor was all smiles and bonhomie.
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