Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Home> Politics Feds Investigating Christie's Use of Sandy Relief Funds
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/feds-investigating-christies-sandy-relief-funds/story?id=21511567. Due 20 Dec 2014. Do you believe Gov. Chris Christie knew about the lane closures his staff initiated that caused the traffic jams at the George Washington bridge? Do you believe that Gov. Christie should be impeached? Do you believe Gov. Christie spent Hurricane Sandy relief inappropriately? Predict how big an impact these stories will have on the Christie's campaign for President in 2016.
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ReplyDeleteThere recently was a traffic jam at the George Washington Bridge that lasted for 4 days. This incident is said to be caused by Chris Christie and his aides. I believe that Christie knew about this lane closure that his staff initiated since he is the governor of New Jersey. But although all the information has not been found out yet, I believe that if Christie says he did not know of this incident, then it will make his political position much stronger, but if he is found guilty in causing this jam, then he will be looked down upon, and most likely be impeached. I believe that the funds given to the Hurricane Sandy relief program was used in his own favor for his political career such as advertisements. These events will most likely have a significant impact if Christie plans to run for president in 2016 since these stories will be easily used against him as slander.
DeleteI believe Christie knew about the lane closures initiated by his staff. It seems to me to be too catastrophic of an event and an endeavor to have gone under Christie's radar. This bridge holds a vital connection to other areas and it would make him seem somewhat heroic to fix the traffic problem. In just over a year, things will be in full swing with primaries and elections and perhaps this is his way to continue to get his name out into the press. Therefore, I do believe he should be impeached. Although it's as small of a scale as the grand state of New Jersey, it affects other Americans as well for several reasons #externalities. Especially the misappropriation of funds and money into campaigns and even disasters, that calls for some serious action and voice of the people. Although it was very "heroic" of Christie to extend himself to such realms as those within Superstorm Sandy, take a look at the publicity that it brought him. He was on the news, radio, and even late night talk shows. He was made up to be a hero (not to diminish the great things he did accomplish for the damage in the northeast). His intentions did not seem bright and selfless in the long run. Perhaps it was intentional to get the limelight or maybe just recently it went to his head. Either way, it appears sketchy--to say the least--with this new Bridge-gate Scandal. Christie's chances in the 2016 election are most certainly still up in the air however. No one can really call his chances accurately at this point in the game. I personally believe that it could go one of two ways: the US will get enthralled with all of the press he has received and vote for him ignorantly; fame with dominate good deeds. OR he will develop such a scandalous reputation that no one will trust his character. Either way, Christie and the state of New Jersey are without a doubt in a serious state of flux right now.
ReplyDeleteI do believe Governor Chris Christie knew about the lane closures his staff initiated that caused the traffic jams at the George Washington bridge. "Playing dumb" is a common thing for politicians to do when caught in scandals and that is what I think Christie is doing now. But, he does deserve a chance to prove he is innocent. If he is found guilty though, he should be impeached. I also believe the Hurricane Sandy relief fund money was inappropriately spent. Christie should not have mixed his election campaign with the Hurricane Sandy disaster. All these scandals will probably hurt Christie's chances at winning the presidential election because it makes him look untrustworthy.
ReplyDeleteFrom this specific article, it is really hard to have an opinion as it doesn't really go into the details of the lane closure itself and the evidence for it. From other articles I have gathered that Christie probably new what his administration was doing. I really didn't wanna believe that EVERY politician is a corrupt one but I guess they are. I actually got more information on the details of this "Bridge-gate" from Comedy Central's Jon Stewart here http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VZDLjjm6180 I don't think he should be impeached however. I think he has done a lot of great things in New Jersey and that bridge gate was a childish mistake he made. I really don't know enough about the situation to say wether or not he spent hurricane funds inappropriately though I hope he did not. Before this scandal, Chris Christie was probably one of the few Republicans that a Democrat could vote for. After this scandal, he probably won't even win the republican primary and the republican candidate won't stand a chance. Hopefully he can prove himself innocent or at least turn his administration around to restore faith in him.
ReplyDeleteIn order to "get back" at a political opponent, a four day traffic jam was initiated at the George Washington Bridge that connects mainland New Jersey to areas like Fort Lee. The cause of this immense traffic jam was none other than two of Chris Christie's key aids. Seeing that the mayor of Fort Lee is a member of the Democrat Party, it became clear that this was a politically driven action. The question at hand is whether Christie knew about what his aids were doing or whether his aids went off on their own personal tangent. I believe that New Jersey governor Chris Christie was well aware of what his aids were doing and supported it. I highly doubt his aids, who completely support Christie, would go behind his back and create such havoc. Christie wanted to be seen as a savior of another New Jersey incident and there was no better way to do so than to conduct such chaos. The multiple lane closures cut off transportation to key parts of the state and created a giant burden on the citizens of New Jersey. By "fixing" this, Christie would have been able to get his name in the headlines right before key voting periods. As far as the punishments for what has occurred, I am hesitant to say that I believe Christie should be impeached. Politicians have gotten away with much worse. However, I do support the notion of punishing Christie, whatever it may be. Politicians need to learn that small scale offenses like this should not go unnoticed and they need to learn the consequences of dirty politics.
ReplyDeleteHurricane Sandy devastated the state of New Jersey. As a result, the federal government sent aid to be used by Governor Christie. However, this money was not allocated efficiently. Instead of devoting these funds to helping as many people as possible, Chris Christie used them as an opportunity to make himself look good. This is blatantly wrong. Any politician who uses money meant to help people who have no home for themselves is corrupt in my eyes. I think all the stories about the misuse of government money and inappropriate actions, such as the traffic jam, will severely damage Christie's campaign for Presidency. This article alone would be enough for me, and hopefully others, to shy away from supporting Christie. America needs a politician who cares only for their fellow citizens.
The cause of this immense traffic jam was none other than two of Chris Christie's key aids. Seeing that the mayor of Fort Lee is a member of the Democrat Party, it became clear that this was a politically driven action. I believe that New Jersey governor Chris Christie was well aware of what his aids were doing and supported it. I highly doubt his aids, who completely support Christie, would go behind his back and create such havoc. Christie wanted to be seen as a savior of another New Jersey incident and there was no better way to do so than to conduct such chaos. His intentions did not seem bright and selfless in the long run. Perhaps it was intentional to get the limelight or maybe just recently it went to his head. Either way, it appears sketchy--to say the least with this new Bridge-gate Scandal. Christie's chances in the 2016 election are most certainly still up in the air however. No one can really call his chances accurately at this point in the game. To me, he probably won't even win the republican primary and the republican candidate won't stand a chance. Hopefully he can prove himself innocent or at least turn his administration around to bring back belief in him.
ReplyDelete“Admit nothing, deny everything, make counter accusations;” I have unofficially dubbed this ___ quote as the United States Government mantra.
ReplyDeleteYou’d think we’d be use to the lies and corruption by now, I mean its not like this is the first government office holder caught up in a scandalous situation.
Since apparently no one else is going to be honest with us, lets take the high road, and be honest with ourselves. Is it really possible that a Governor had no idea what his two key aides were up to; and if in fact he is telling the truth, then there is a much larger problem at hand. A Governor should know every detail and every event occurring in his domain.
Though I do believe Christie knew about the plot initiated by his staff, I do not believe the best-suited punishment to be impeachment. Christie and his administration have done so much to improve the state of New Jersey, including the rehabilitation of the Jersey Shore after the mass destruction caused by Hurricane Sandy.
Governor Christie is also being investigated for the misappropriation of Hurricane Sandy relief funds. Personally, although the funds could have been used to helped rebuild about 5 to 7 homes for the displaced hurricane victims, the federally funded ads may in fact help publicize New Jersey as a tourist hotspot, which may prove to be economically beneficial.
America has such a short attention span, that I believe, though his reputation is publically marred, once the next high profile scandal comes about, his iniquity will be forgiven and most likely forgotten. All in all, Christie may still have a chance in the 2016 presidential election.
Surely, Governor Christie could have cooked up a more convincing lie to cover up his work. Closure of key traffic lanes on the busiest bridge in the world for "traffic study" has to be the weakest excuse possible for this situation. I strongly believe that the allegations made against Chris Christie are true, there is no way that a project with such extensive impacts could have gone through without passing by the governor's insight first. I feel that it would be the wisest idea to impeach Christie, especially after his poor judgment and lack of foresight in the Washington Bridge incident. The political world is half knowing how to play the game, and when an official makes a foul move, it's only right that they be kicked off the team. Money from the Hurricane Sandy Disaster fund was probably used inappropriately as well. Taking a subtle, but useful, amount of money from the fund would have been to easy of an opportunity to miss out on. With all of these accusations pointing directly at Christie, and considering the fact that even a few fellow Republicans have turned their backs on him, I doubt that he stands a real chance in the presidential campaign, or even in keeping the position he holds now.
ReplyDeleteThe traffic accident that had occurred at the Goerge Washington Bridge was believed to be caused by Chris Christie. This lasted for about 4 days. I for one do believe that he was aware of what was going on because of how he is the governor of New Jersey. Right now there is no evidence that supports this accusation, which still means he has a strong political position when it does come down to the 2016 election. If evidence does surface though, he will most likely be impeached for his actions and considered to be out of the running for the election. As for the Hurricane Sandy relief money, I do believe it wasn’t used to its fullest potential. I believe that Christie used the money mainly is his favor for advertising himself to benefit his political career. With all of these scandals though that Christie has been accused of in the recent past, they might hurt his chances of the 2016 election traumatically.
ReplyDeleteI strongly believe Gov. Chris Christie knew about the lane closures his staff initiated that caused the traffic jams at the George Washington bridge. Gov. Chris Christie definitely should be impeached. I also believe that Gov. Chris Christie spent Hurricane Sandy relief inappropriately. The federal probe into Sandy spending comes after a chorus of criticism by both Democrats and Christie's fellow Republicans. The so-called "Bridge-Gate" scandal has already threatened Christie's political future. Surely, the situation Gov. Chris Christie is in right now gives people a negative impression of him. I would say that he stands a little chance in the president election after all.
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ReplyDeleteI do believe Governor Chris Christie knew about the lane closures his staff initiated that caused the traffic jams at the George Washington bridge. When politicians are caught in big scandals, such as this one, they tend to put the matter aside and pretend as if nothing is wrong.Gov. Chris Christie definitely does deserve a chance to prove that he is innocent. Although, if he is found guilty I believed that he should be impeached. The Hurricane Sandy relief fund money was inappropriately spent. Gov. Chris Christie shouldn't have put together his campaign with the Hurricane disaster. There are many scandals hurting Christie's reputation which will very likely hurt his chances of winning the election in 2016.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Gov. Chris Christie said that, "he was embarrassed and humiliated by two key aides who plotted to cause an epic four-day traffic jam at the George Washington Bridge as payback to the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee, where the bridge touches New Jersey", I strongly believe he knew about the plot. I do not believe we should go so far as to impeach him, because we do not know for certain whether he knew about the bridge incident or not. Yes, I do believe the gov. spent the hurricane relief money unwisely and inappropriately. The money could have been used to rebuild and help those in need. I believe these stories will have a colossal impact on Christie's campaign for President in 2016. Christie is permanently stigmatized by all of the media depicting him in a negative manner.
ReplyDeleteAnita Pizzirani (Pizza)
Period: 1
Governor Christie must have known about what his staff were doing, and even if he didn't he had the responsibility to make sure he knew about these thing and what his staff what doing. The traffic jam was entirely the fault of his administration and he should be making sure that those who are serving under him are responsible, so he has no excuse for his ignorance and inaction. I do believe that Christie should be impeached because he used government funds for a personal purpose, and acted against the will of the people. If Christie is not impeached, this will at very least stop him from getting re-elected in 2016. There is no way he is going to be able to live down the irresponsibility he has displayed by using funds specifically set aside for hurricane relief and used it to promote himself.
ReplyDeleteI do personally believe that Governor Chris Christie knew about the lane
ReplyDeleteclosures his staff initiated that caused the traffic jams at the George
Washington bridge. Lots of politicians are corrupt so I wouldn't say for sure if
I believe he should be impeached or not but when everyone finds out the truth, a
sound decision will hopefully be made. I've heard many rumors about money being
used inappropriately over the years so I'd have to say that I believe he spent
Hurricane Sandy relief inappropriately. People love to dig for skeletons in
people's closets so there is no doubt in my mind that these stories will be
brought up again during Christie's campaign in 2016 posing a negative impact on
it as a whole.
I believe that Christie knew about this lane closure that his staff initiated since he is the governor of New Jersey. When politicians are caught in big scandals, such as this one, they tend to put the matter aside and pretend as if nothing is wrong. Gov. Chris Christie definitely does deserve a chance to prove that he is innocent. Right now there is no evidence that supports this accusation, which still means he has a strong political position when it does come down to the 2016 election. If evidence does surface though, he will most likely be impeached for his actions and considered to be out of the running for the election.
ReplyDeleteI think Christie may have known about the plot to shut down the bridge and may have turned a blind eye to it. However, I am not sure about Christie's direct involvement with it. The results of the investiation will determine what is true and stuff but Christie shouldn't be impeached unless it is proved he is directly responsible for the bridge shutting down. As for the Sandy relief funds, he spent the money on ads to help tourism to the state but he did spend quite a bit. He could've spent the money better such as more aid so survivors. Doesn't look good for Christie in 2016
ReplyDeleteThere are possibly two ways that this could've 'went down.' Either Christie's staff went along on their own to start the lane closure on the George Washington bridge without his knowledge, giving him a surprisingly great opportunity to give himself some positive limelight. Or he was the one who plotted the epic four-day traffic jam, and created himself to look like a 'hero' figure. Either way, there's no doubt that everything looks suspicious. Even IF he wasn't the one who planned it, i feel like he should have had his own suspicions too and plan to figure what really happened. It was just all a bit to perfect. It might have looked a bit better if he found out what had been plotted and told the truth-- win-win. But that would be in the case, if he sincerely didn't know what he staff had 'cooked up in the kitchen.' In my opinion however, I think he knew what was going on, in fact he probably contributed to the idea itself. Everything just worked by so smoothly with perfect timing and he basically thought that he was going to get away with it cause no one has really looked into until now. Its kind of hard to say whether or not he should be impeached cause no one knows for SURE if he knew what was plotted. However, maybe he should because it was his staff who was responsible for what occurred, those are his people. If he wasn't the person to do corrupt things, would they continue with or without his consent to do so? There has to be some sort of consequence to what happened. By setting an example of him, it would probably make a statement to the public about being active when corruption presents itself. I mean, not all corruption can be avoided, but at least there is some type of comfort of there that something will be done. I don't think that Christie allocated the finds correctly, he used it for the wrong reasons. All of this scandal will have an negative impact on his running for the election of 2016, I personally would hesitate to vote for someone who has been involved in such a scandal.
ReplyDeleteUnder the excuse of getting back at a political opponent, a huge traffic jam was caused by Chis Christie’s two key aids. The jam spanned four days and started at the George Washington Bridge connecting New Jersey and places like Fort Lee. I’m not really sure whether Christie knew about this scandal before it took place or was involved in the planning of it, but either way, he is totally responsible for the whole incident. The mayor of Fort Lee was a democrat, while Christie is a republican. While this looks a little too extreme for political competition, it still looks way sketchy on Christie’s part. He could have taken part in the conspiring. But then again, his two aids could have gone off on their own on his behalf. If they did go off on their own, it seems highly unlikely. They have no personal motive to go out of their way to mess with a political opponent or take such extreme measures that could risk their careers, get them in legal trouble, and land Christie in a lot of trouble and investigations which may ruin his career as well. Christie may have planned this to look like the ideal candidate once he took care of the annoying lane closures. I do think that he should be impeached. He may have very well been in on the lane closure bridge incident. Even if he wasn’t, he was still sully responsible for any damage his aids caused on his behalf. He should have been aware of the activities of people under him and known enough to stop them before the disaster or taken right reparations after. AND even if he wasn’t responsible for this incident, he still misused funds meant to aid suffering people in order to further his image and advertise for his political campaign which is selfish and irresponsible. Not someone you can trust in government. Personally, I think that if people are in their right minds, he definitely won’t get the bid for the presidential election in 2016. But then again, people have elected worse officials in full awareness.
ReplyDeleteI certainly believe that Gov. Christie was aware of this little plot of revenge via traffic jam. He went ahead and fired those aides in order to save face, but there is really no reason aides of his would feel the need to do something like this without being told to do so. I don't know that he should be impeached, seeing as the people of Jersey clearly like his leadership style, as he just won reelection by a landslide. The allocation of Sandy Aid funds was completely innapropriate--it was meant to help people who lost their homes, not fund the political career of a ruthless and pragmatic rich man. These stories affect his hopes for the oval office greatly. Christie is not the top contender he was pre-Bridgegate and a recent poll placed Rand Paul (of all people!) at the top of the list.
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