The Christie Tracker

Latest Episodes:

Christie Offers an Alternate Reality Jun 17, 2015

Show notes

Last week, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that Governor Chris Christie doesn't have to make full payments into the state pension system. “We just won a major court decision, supporting the pension reforms that we put into place in 2011," Gov. Christie said on ABC’s This Week.

But the Star-Ledger’s Tom Moran explains how that's the opposite of what happened.

Also on the podcast this week:

New Jersey Public Radio’s Matt Katz says the Bridgegate scandal might have had a surprising effect on the future of the Republican Party. Matt joins host David Furst to explain why he thinks the lane closure debacle forced Gov. Christie to abandon a strategy for winning the White House that could have brought the GOP to a new generation of voters. And Republican strategist Jeanette Hoffman offers another view. She says Bridgegate didn’t do Christie any favors, but it’s not what’s really driving pivots on issues like Common Core and gun rights.

Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

Why the Governor Should Stop Bragging About the Mastro Report Jun 10, 2015

Show notes

The Mastro Report versus The Fishman Indictments.

Sure, it sounds like a showdown between the two most boring intramural kickball teams ever.

But no.

Governor Christie says the Mastro report, which was commissioned by him, was the last word on the GWB lane closure scandal. And he says the investigation and recent indictments by U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman offered nothing new. But New Jersey Public Radio’s Matt Katz joins host David Furst to break down the differences - and to explain why the Mastro Report will become central to the Bridgegate trials.

Also:
The State Supreme Court sides with the governor and says he won’t be forced to pay $1.57 billion into the state pension system before the end of the fiscal year – which is mere weeks away. Matt Friedman, reporter for NJ Advance Media joins us to break down a ruling the governor calls “an important victory.”

Plus:
We’ll sit-in on a Belmar beatdown for Matt Katz, courtesy of the governor. (He had me at, “you’re good at mischaracterizing what I say.”)

And: Bon Jovi shows his true colors. Christie uses the Jersey rocker’s music at town hall events. They’ve been spotted dining out with their wives. But the bromance may be finished. Word comes this week that Jon Bon Jovi will be hosting a fundraiser for Hillary.

Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

Chris Christie's Patriot Act Jun 03, 2015

Show notes

Over the past couple of weeks, Governor Christie has been offering an aggressive defense of the Patriot Act - stressing that he has personally used it to prosecute terrorists in his role as U.S. Attorney for New Jersey.

But how has he used it? And have his actions made the world a safer place?

This week on the podcast we’re joined by New Jersey Public Radio’s Matt Katz and Reporter Petra Bartosiewicz who produced an hour-long documentary for This American Life on the conviction of Hemant Lakhani by then U.S. Attorney Chris Christie. Matt and Petra look into Christie’s track record of prosecuting terrorists in the years following 9/11.

Also this week: the governor’s Common Core pivot is now complete.

Christie says the national education standards are "simply not working.” But the Star-Ledger’s Tom Moran says “it’s hard to know what’s not working, other than the politics.” He joins Host David Furst to break down the politics behind Christie’s decision to back away from the education standards that are kryptonite to many Republicans.

Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

David Wildstein: “A Great Boss” May 27, 2015

Show notes

For the past two years Steve Kornacki has been the host of the weekend morning show Up with Steve Kornacki on MSNBC. But he got his start working for the political news site Politics NJ (now Politicker NJ) - - when it was run by David Wildstein.

The same David Wildstein who pleaded guilty to charges related to the lane closures at the George Washington Bridge.

According to Kornacki, Wildstein remained anonymous throughout his time there. Speaking with Christie Tracker Podcast host David Furst, Kornacki says he was convinced he was “working for a 75-year-old former statehouse reporter” because he had “never met anyone with the kind of institutional knowledge of NJ state politics and government that David Wildstein had.”

Also this week, WNYC’s Andrea Bernstein brings us an update on the “Chairman’s Flight” – the infamous United Airlines flight route that benefited former Port Authority Chair, David Samson. Andrea's latest report uncovered more evidence of a deal between United Airlines and the Port Authority.

Plus: Was it a vicious F-bomb-laced tirade against the local media? Or was it good old-fashioned comedy? Some say the governor crossed the line during his annual appearance at the New Jersey Legislative Correspondents Club Show. But Steve Kornacki and New Jersey Public Radio's Matt Katz defend the show as a fun, extremely silly event.

Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

Obama Hits Jersey. Christie Flees. May 20, 2015

Show notes

President Obama arrived in Camden, New Jersey, to trumpet a drop in violent crime and to highlight the city as a “symbol of promise,” where the local police force is working positively with the community. This week on the Christie Tracker Podcast, New Jersey Public Radio’s Matt Katz and the Star-Ledger’s Tom Moran dig into story behind the crime numbers in Camden.

At the same time Obama was shining a spotlight on Jersey, Governor Christie – who made Camden crime stats a big part of his 2015 state of the state speech – turned to world issues. He was back in New Hampshire delivering a foreign policy speech. Zeke Miller, political reporter for Time tells host David Furst that Christie went bold in his statements on terrorism surveillance but for the most part, stuck to “Republican party orthodoxy.”

Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

'It's Good to Be Back and I'll See You Again' May 13, 2015

Show notes

Gov. Christie is stopping at diners, holding town halls and pressing the flesh in weekly trips to New Hampshire to convince voters that he’s a viable candidate.

New Jersey Public Radio’s Matt Katz joins us this week to break-down the governor’s recent visit. He says even with all the coverage Christie got on the trip, it was trumped by a fat-shaming media free-for-all. $300,000 for snacks at MetLife Stadium? Click here!

Also this week:

Charges? Maybe we don’t need no stinkin’ charges.

Jonathan Rauch, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, is challenging the idea that anyone involved in creating a week-long traffic jam at the George Washington Bridge should go to jail. He offers a spirited defense of machine politics and tells host David Furst that government works best when politicians can help supporters and punish defectors.

Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

Bridgegate: The Criminal Charges Episode May 06, 2015

Show notes

After a year-and-a-half of traffic jams, emails, texts, legislative hearings, political casualties and late night TV mockery, Bridgegate has its first criminal charges.

But there was so much that wasn't revealed when the indictments were announced. Based on what we know about the administration’s involvement, why were only three Christie associates charged? When did the governor find out the lane closures weren’t really part of a traffic study? How many others were in on the planning?

“It’s like the end of Downton Abbey," U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said, "and you’ve got to wait until a whole other season” for more to be revealed.

Like many fans of the series, we can't wait that long.

This week, WNYC’s Matt Katz and Andrea Bernstein join host David Furst to examine some of the loose ends and take a close look at the testimony of the indicted Bill Baroni, who was Deputy Executive Director of the Port Authority when the lanes leading to the George Washington Bridge were closed. The indictment calls his testimony a "sham."

Also this week, Star-Ledger Editor Tom Moran discusses an editorial in New Jersey's paper of record that called on the governor to give up a presidential campaign that has hardly begun.

Also: Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

The Chairman's Dinner Apr 29, 2015

Show notes

Do scandals linger longer in the public memory when they have great nicknames? If so, this one isn't going anywhere.

“The Chairman’s Flight" was the sparsely-traveled United Airlines flight, that ran from Newark to South Carolina - allegedly requested by former Port Authority Chairman David Samson to make it easier to fly off to his weekend retreat.

Samson was appointed chairman by Governor Christie and resigned in the wake of investigations after the Fort Lee lane closures. It was a job where he had the power to make decisions affecting the airline's interests at Newark airport.

News about a federal probe into the “Chairman’s Flight” broke back in February. But new details have emerged thanks to the reporting of David Kocieniewski and David Voreacos with Bloomberg News. Kocieniewski joins host David Furst to talk about the dinner proposal that morphed into a corruption probe.

Also on the podcast this week, Star-Ledger Editorial Editor Tom Moran takes a look at the long-dead “bromance” between Christie and NJ Senate President Steve Sweeney.

And WNYC’s Matt Katz says to understand what Christie is selling in 2015 you need to look back to a speech he made four years ago in Washington, D.C.

Also: Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

Chris Christie's New Hampshire Plan Apr 22, 2015

Show notes

Chris Christie finally brought his famous town hall format to the campaign trail. The Star-Ledger’s Tom Moran says “it’s about time.”

The latest polls on the governor’s chances in a presidential race are brutal. But Christie’s events in New Hampshire drew big crowds and lots of attention from reporters. And while voters in the Granite State took a second look at the (almost) candidate, Christie unveiled Social Security reform proposals, a nuanced position on immigration and unleashed some tough talk on President Obama and Cuba.

This week, New Jersey Public Radio’s Matt Katz and the Star-Ledger’s Tom Moran join host David Furst to play “red meat/blue meat” with Christie’s town hall comments. New Hampshire Republican Party activist, Fran Wendelboe says the governor “redeemed himself” during his visits and Matthew Yglesias, Executive Editor of Vox, tells us why we all focused on the wrong aspects of Christie’s Social Security proposals.

Plus:
Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.

New Subpoena? Bah! Christie Hits Campaign Trail Apr 15, 2015

Show notes

The Manhattan District Attorney is looking into a contract between the Port Authority and a company co-owned by Dallas Cowboys magnate Jerry Jones, who gave Gov. Chris Christie free trips to see his team play. But that didn't stop Christie from making a three-day trip to New Hampshire to make his case to be the next president of the United States. Even if he says he hasn't decided to run yet.

New Jersey Public Radio's Matt Katz reports from New Hampshire. We also hear from Wall Street Journal reporter Josh Dawsey about the subpoenas that have been served to the Port Authority and history professor Brian Murphy gives us a brief history of why New Jersey is so corrupt.

Plus:
Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.