A second inquiry into a another nefarious bridge-linked scandal is unfolding on Gov. Chris Christie, this time involving diverting 1.8 billion dollars into the Pulaski skyline.
Investigations into the Christie administration and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey have zeroed in on possible securities law violations stemming from a $1.8 billion road repair agreement in 2011, according to people briefed on the matter.
While the inquiries were prompted by the politically motivated lane closings at the George Washington Bridge last year, these investigations center on another crossing: the Pulaski Skyway, the crumbling elevated roadway connecting Newark and Jersey City. They are being conducted by the Manhattan district attorney and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The inquiries into securities law violations focus on a period of 2010 and 2011 when Gov. Chris Christie’s administration pressed the Port Authority to pay for extensive repairs to the Skyway and related road projects, diverting money that was to be used on a new Hudson River rail tunnel that Mr. Christie canceled in October 2010.
Again and again, Port Authority lawyers warned against the move: The Pulaski Skyway, they argued, is owned and operated by the state, not the Port Authority, according to dozens of memos and emails reviewed by investigators and obtained by The New York Times.
But the Christie administration relentlessly lobbied to use the money for the Skyway, with Mr. Christie announcing publicly that the state planned to use Port Authority money even before an agreement was reached.
Read the whole article here.
Gov. Christie just recently spoke to Christian conservatives about his pro-life bonafides, trying to put to rest all his initial Bridgegate problems and resurrect his 2016 presidential aspirations, bit now comes new allegations.
All I can say is, it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
