Tag Archives: Chris Christie

national news

Bannon offers spot-on comment on Sessions’s recusal

As a general rule I am not inclined to offer praise for a former Donald Trump policy adviser who has been portrayed as the Grim Reaper on “Saturday Night Live.”

However, Stephen Bannon has offered a spot-on analysis of U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s decision to recuse himself from anything relating to the Russia meddling matter in the 2016 presidential election.

Bannon said Sessions made precisely the correct call in backing out. He added that former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani also would have made the same decision had they been put in that position.

Why? They all had direct involvement in the president’s campaign and, thus, could not possibly be trusted to conduct a thorough, fair and unbiased investigation into Russian meddling in the campaign. The question of the moment is whether the president obstructed justice by firing FBI Director James Comey and whether his campaign “colluded” with Russian operatives who had dug up dirt on Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Yet, Trump has been trashing Sessions for making that decision. He has said repeatedly he regrets selecting him as attorney general. Trump has disparaged the leadership at the Justice Department and the FBI.

The president doesn’t understand the complexities of conflict of interest. Sessions got it when he backed out of the Russia matter. Accordingly, Bannon — someone who hasn’t generally served the nation well — happens to be totally correct in his assessment that Trump is wrong to condemn the AG for acting properly.

I do have to chuckle when Bannon keeps insisting that he still admires and respects the president, saying he cherishes his relationship with him. He offers that caveat while reminding him publicly that he doesn’t understand why he is so damn wrong when he ridicules the attorney general.

national news, political news

Why should we care about one governor’s hubris?

I live a long way from New Jersey. I have no particular vested interest in public policy in that state, given that I live half a nation away, out here in Flyover Country.

However, I do care when that state’s governor agrees to shut down its government, closes its parks, and then takes his wife and children to the Jersey Shore for a little sunshine, surf and family fellowship.

Gov. Chris Christie remains defiant. He is chiding the media for reporting on the notion that the governor is using a public park that has been shut down to the very public that pays for it.

It’s the optics, dude! All politicians should be aware of how things look to those who are watching.

I suppose I care about this issue because Christie, the bellicose former Republican presidential candidate, thinks he casts a shadow that goes far beyond the state’s borders. He sees himself as a major player. He thinks he matters to the rest of the country.

On this score, he’s right. So now he gets all juiced up because the media are reporting on his public policy pronouncements and how they square with his actual conduct as governor.

Give me a break, Gov. Christie!

Christie said: “If the Legislature would pass a budget then the park would be open.”

OK, fine. Here’s an idea, governor. Until the New Jersey Legislature does that very thing, stay the hell out of your state parks.

national news

Do as he says, not does in New Jersey

The dictionary definition of “chutzpah” is as unambiguous as it gets. “Utter nerve; gall,” says my trusty and tattered American Heritage volume.

That would describe New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to a “t.”

The Republican governor shut down the state government on Friday and then took his family to a state park on the Jersey Shore to soak up a few rays.

Did I mention that the state park system was closed to the public? Oh, I guess I just did.

Christie doesn’t get it.

This guy has ripped a page out of Donald J. Trump’s playbook, the one that instructs government executives on how to act and sound boorish while inflicting some hurt on the folks who pay the bills that run the government.

The beach was, of course, deserted. No member of the public could enjoy the park because of budget issues that created the government shutdown.

Christie’s response was typical of the blustering blowhard. ‘‘The governor has a residence at Island Beach (State Park),’’ he said. ‘‘Others don’t. That’s the way it goes. Run for governor and you can have the residence.’’

There you have it. Rank has its privileges, or so the governor would seem to suggest.

Except for this: The governor works for the residents of his state, not the other way around.

national news

Trump said he wouldn’t take vacations … honestly!

https://www.truthexaminer.com/2017/03/watch-this-video-where-donald-trump-says-hell-never-take-vacations-watch-here/

Take a look at this video. It’s only a few seconds in length.

It shows presidential candidate Donald J. Trump and a former Republican Party primary opponent, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

Trump is pledging he’ll never take vacations. The job of president, he said, is too big. It’s too important. It’s too demanding for the president to take any vacations.

Hmmm.

What’s he done since becoming president? He’s jetted off aboard Air Force One to his posh resort in South Florida. Oh yes ! He’s played a lot of golf, too.

I don’t begrudge him the time off, or the golf.

I do begrudge him for, um, telling yet another lie about how he intended to conduct himself as president of the United States.

Hey, I know it’s no big deal. But really … ?

national news, political news

Gov. Christie, we hardly knew ye

We’re two weeks and two days into 2017, so why not take a quick look back at the biggest political winners and losers of 2016?

The biggest winner? No question: Donald J. Trump. He’s the next president of the United States. He won an election almost no one thought he’d win. Not me. Not most of the so-called “experts.”

One of my Facebook friends, though, said she called it early on. She knew Trump would win all along. Bully for her.

Enough of that.

The biggest loser? It’s not who you think. I am going to give the Biggest Loser Award to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

Sure, Hillary Rodham Clinton lost big in 2016. Christie, though, imploded in a curious way.

He started the year running for the Republican presidential nomination. He was full of bluster, bravado and boastfulness. He was going to kick a** and take names. He was no pushover.

Then he got steamrolled by Trump, who flattened the field of 15 other GOP contenders/pretenders.

Christie then endorsed Trump and became his go-to guy. He would run his transition if Trump got elected.

Then what happened? Trump actually got elected and just like that Christie was removed as transition boss; Trump gave that task to the vice president-elect, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence.

Christie, meanwhile, has been fingered in that on-going, never-ending “Bridgegate” scandal emanating from the closure of the George Washington Bridge because Christie was mad at a New Jersey mayor who declined to endorse him for re-election in 2014 … allegedly!

Christie’s poll numbers have tanked. He is coming up for re-election and he now stands a good chance of being thumped.

There you have it. Stand tall, Donald Trump and Chris Christie.

national news, political news

Cruz endorsement might not arrive

Trump-Cruz-Cleveland-620x342

The question of the night for political junkies from coast to coast … to coast.

Will U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz endorse Donald J. Trump when he stands in front of the Republican National Convention crowd?

If I could predict anything, I’d say ain’t no way, no how, no never mind.

Cruz has called Trump everything but the Devil Himself.

Pathologist liar; narcissist “the likes of which I’ve never seen”; a whole plethora of nasty names.

He challenged Trump’s courage after the GOP frontrunner put a tweet out there that poked malicious fun at Heidi Cruz, for crying out loud.

Having declared that by any reasonable measure, Cruz wouldn’t ever endorse Donald Trump, we have the following:

Rick Perry endorsed Trump after calling him a “cancer on conservatism; Chris Christie endorsed Trump after saying he is “unfit” to become president; Marco Rubio has all but endorsed Trump after calling him a “con man.”

Cruz’s speech tonight is ginning up a bunch of speculation. Some sources say there might be an endorsement forthcoming; others say there won’t be an endorsement, but that he’ll express “support” for the nominee and for the party.

Still others have suggested that given Cruz’s fervent support among many of the convention delegates that he might deliver a “Dream Shall Never Die” sort of message, a la the kind of speech Ted Kennedy gave during the 1980 Democratic convention after losing that fight to President Carter.

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/07/rnc-2016-ted-cruz-donald-trump-endorsement-225850

Some conservatives want Cruz to endorse Trump.

I’ll tune in later tonight to see if Cruz prefers to stand by a nominee he cannot stand or will stand by the “conservative principles” that mean nothing to the guy who’s going to lead the party into the election campaign.

national news, political news

Pence announcement: not by the book

mike-pence

Donald J. Trump continues to toss aside political tradition as he awaits his nomination as the Republican Party’s presidential candidate.

His selection of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence to run with him as the VP nominee offers a glowing example of an unconventional selection process.

Trump went to Indiana to visit with Pence and his family.

He then apparently decided to select Pence.

He flew Pence to New York on his private plane to make an announcement, which was to occur Friday morning at 11 at Trump Tower.

Trump then “postponed” the announcement — during which he would “introduce” Pence to the political world — in the wake of the horrific terrorist attack in Nice, France. He would make that announcement the next day.

Then, at 11 a.m. Friday, Trump sent out a tweet announcing that — yep! — Pence is his guy. The tweet, therefore, did precisely what Trump said he was postponing out of deference to the horror in France.

Oh, and then it was reported that he didn’t inform New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich — the two other finalists — that he had decided on Pence. Christie and Newt, thus, were left — to borrow a phrase — to twist in the wind.

It also has been reported that Trump wavered a bit once the word leaked that Pence would get the call, but that Trump didn’t want to upset members of his family who apparently talked him into selecting Pence.

Get ready, Republicans. You wanted unconventional when most of you voted for this guy.

national news, political news

VP picks don’t matter … really

here-are-the-top-vice-president-picks-for-donald-trump-and-hillary-clinton_1

Donald J. Trump is getting set to have the most important day of his presidential campaign.

He’s going to announce his selection as a vice-presidential running mate.

No need for a show of hands — if you get my drift. But does anyone out there in Blog World really think Trump’s selection is going to matter, that it’s going to sway anyone’s vote, that it’s going to be determinative of this election?

For that matter, do you think Hillary Rodham Clinton’s choice is going to matter, either?

The only way these picks might determine anything is if they select absolute dogs, losers, Fruit Loops. I don’t expect that to happen Friday or a week from Friday.

Recent political history is full of questionable VP picks. Richard Nixon selected Spiro Agnew in 1968; the Republicans won a squeaker that year and rolled to a historic landslide four years later. George H.W. Bush picked Dan Quayle in 1988 and then piled up a huge victory.

I guess you could make the case that John McCain’s hail-Mary selection of Sarah Palin in 2008 might have turned off some voters, but I believe McCain would have lost anyway.

One of the more interesting selections — to my way of thinking — was Lloyd Bentsen, the Texan who ran with presidential nominee Michael Dukakis in 1988. More than a few Democrats were grousing that year that Bentsen and Dukakis should have traded positions on the ticket.

But this year’s focus has been solely — and not entirely in a flattering way — focused on Republican Trump and Democrat Clinton.

These are two of the most polarizing figures ever to be nominated by the major parties. So, whoever they select will be relegated to the shadows.

I agree, though, that Trump’s selection is drawing the most attention, mostly because the pool of potential GOP stars is so shallow. The word is that he’s leaning toward former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

However, given Trump’s mercurial behavior, there’s a part of me that wonders if he’s going to stun us all with someone no one ever saw coming.

Sure, we’ll then chatter about it for a time.

Then it’ll be Trump being Trump … and the insults will fly.

national news, political news

Mike Pence becomes new VP favorite

mike-pence

Mike Pence has stormed out of Indiana to become the latest possible selection for Donald J. Trump’s presidential ticket.

The Republican presumptive nominee is now “vetting” Pence, the two-term Indiana governor and former House member as a possible vice-presidential selection.

The chatter this morning is quite interesting. According to those in the know, Pence would bring Washington experience, executive government experience, good standing with the evangelical base of the GOP, and strong conservative political credentials … allegedly.

Pence would be a solid pick … for any other presidential nominee in the party.

But not this one, from where I sit.

I’m trying to imagine a Vice President Pence scolding a President Trump about his insistence that we toss out free-trade policies. I’m trying to conjure up the image of these two haggling in private over whether it really is wise to ban Muslims from entering the country solely because of their religious faith.

Would the GOP’s presidential nominee actually listen to anything his VP running mate — whoever he is — has to say about anything?

I believe Trump’s stated declaration that he’s his own man and that he intends to “go it alone” if need be is what likely might be scaring off potential running mates.

Sure, reports indicate Trump’s “team,” such as it is, is vetting New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich for the No. 2 spot. Think about what either of those two gents bring to the ticket: Christie is wildly unpopular in his home state; meanwhile, Gingrich is lugging around his own “family values” baggage based on his three marriages and the affair he was having with a staffer while he was screaming for Bill Clinton’s impeachment based on an affair the then-president was having with a White House intern.

Now it’s Pence’s turn to be examined by the political punditry.

This is more fun than I ever imagined.

Hey, at least Gov. Pence looks good on TV.

national news, political news

VP choice becomes a problem for GOP

Donald J. Trump stands poised to become the Republican Party’s next nominee for president of the United States.

Is there anyone out there who believes Trump’s nomination will be welcomed with a warm GOP embrace, that the party brass that’s now condemning the candidate will back him without objection?

This brings to mind the question that Politico is asking: Who is willing to become the vice-presidential nominee along with Trump? Who is going to hoist the candidate’s hand in the air from the convention podium in Cleveland? Who’s going to be willing to sing the praises of the candidate who’s insulted just about every voting bloc he’s going to need to defeat Hillary Rodham Clinton?

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/06/donald-trump-vice-president-224488

Prominent GOP officeholders have drawn the barbs from Trump.

What about the women of the party? New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez? She’s out. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley? No can do. U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa? Forget about it.

Hispanics? U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida? Hardly. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas? Pfftt!

Anglo males? Trump might have some takers among that group. Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey comes to mind. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry says he’s interested. Some buzz is mentioning former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia.

This is a half-serious suggestion for why someone might accept a veep nomination from Trump. It has to do with what might occur on the remotest of remote chances that Trump gets elected president in November.

Perhaps the No. 2 man/woman could see a clear path to the presidency in the hope — or perhaps the expectation — that Trump commits an impeachable offense.

Look at it this way: Trump would have few friends and allies in the House of Representatives, which could actually impeach him. He also would have few friends in the Senate, which would actually try him. And the Senate, given the responsibility to consider whatever charges would be brought against Trump, might be inclined to convict him on the promise of getting someone better able to govern.

What might a “President Trump” do to compel an impeachment?

He’s spoken freely and loosely about all the things he would do as president, ignoring the fact that the president shares power with Congress and the federal judiciary. He doesn’t understand how government works.

Might he then to try some kind of end-around on a policy that requires congressional approval?

As we saw during the 1990s, members of Congress need little provocation to file charges and to deliver an impeachment.

I’d be inclined to say the selection would be difficult to make. Then I read this in the Politico piece:

“Ironically, the presumptive nominee’s own toxicity is making the job of finding a vice presidential nominee that much easier, because the short list is so short.”