Excusing Christie's many sins finally catches up to editors

Bridgegate trial defendants Bridget Anne Kelly, Governor Christie's former deputy chief of staff, above right in a photo from the New York Daily News; and Bill Baroni, former deputy executive director of the Port Authority, below, will testify in their own defense, and are expected to finger the governor. The federal criminal trial opens on Monday in Newark.

Photo credit: NJ.com

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Today, not one but two of The Record's long-winded columnists choke readers with thousands of words of background on Governor Christie's mean-spirited politics and how they relate to Monday's Bridgegate trial (A-1 and O-1).

Just 10 days ago, the Woodland Park daily ran the last of three long, front-page stories on the defendants, the government's star witness, the jury and Christie's continued claims of innocence in the George Washington Bridge lane closures in September 2013.

Prosecutors and witnesses are expected to explore how the Christie administration used dirty tricks to retaliate against the Fort Lee mayor and other Democrats who refused to endorse the GOP thug for reelection.

All of this piling on comes years after Christie took office -- declaring war on teachers, the rest of New Jersey's middle class and the Democrats who control the state Legislature.

Until now, all The Record's editors and columnists did was shrug.

'Political bully'

In his Page 1 column today, Staff Writer Charles Stile reports the lane closures "permanently saddled him [Christie] with the image of a political bully" (A-7).

That's hardly breaking news, especially in view of the hundreds of vetoes Christie has used to enforce his conservative agenda since he took office in early 2010.

On the Opinion front today, Columnist Mike Kelly sounds like an echo of Stile when he declares "the essential lesson of the Bridgegate trial may turn out to be a reminder of how petty politics can be ..."

Local news?

Readers again question the news judgment of the local editors, who found more value in an idiotic quiz by the Road Warrior columnist (L-1) than the well-written obituary of Raymond X. McCoy, 80, a funeral director-turned-candy apple maker (L-2).

The lazy, incompetent editors also were desperate to plug a hole on L-3 with a gee-whiz picture of a car that flipped onto its side on a highway off-ramp.

Editorial

Today's editorial begins by noting Christie "has refused for nearly seven years to do anything about truly reforming New Jersey's education system" (O-2).

Now, he wants to overturn the landmark state Supreme Court ruling that sought to end the inadequate and unequal funding of poor districts.

But instead of condemning Christie, the editorial calls on him to work "across the aisle with Democrats for real and lasting changes ...."

Isn't that naive in view of the more than 500 vetoes Christie has used to get his way?

Bridgegate editors bury an elaborate Christie cover-up

Today is a thoroughly miserable day to be driving around Bergen County.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

If the miserable, sunless weather doesn't get you down, The Record's whitewash of a legislative panel's report on Governor Christie and Bridgegate is certain to do the trick.

"Cover-up" was the word used by some media outlets to describe the report's conclusions, including WNYC-FM.

But you would have to read far into today's upbeat Page 1 "ANALYSIS," a Charles Stile column and an editorial (A-9) to understand just how far Governor Christie, his aides and his cronies went to cover up the real purpose of the George Washington Bridge lane closures -- political payback.

When the Woodland Park daily's editors and reporters sound like the GOP bully's own spin doctors, you know journalistic principals have been compromised.

Wrong-way Boburg

Staff Writer Shawn Boburg claims in his first paragraph today that the Legislature's Bridgegate report concluded Governor Christie didn't know of the scheme (A-1), but that contradicts what he reported on Friday.

The state legislative committee investigating the September 2013 gridlock in Fort Lee said there was "no conclusive evidence" as to whether Christie "was or was not" aware of the closures or involved in directing them, according to Boburg's Page 1 story on Friday.

And Boburg's lead paragraph today mentions "two reports," a reference to the whitewash by Christie's own lawyers, including Randy Mastro, who soaked taxpayers by submitting a request for $7.2 million in legal fees.

Treating the credibility of the two reports equally completely violates the standards of objective journalism.

Indeed, a gullible Boburg quoted Mastro on Friday's Page 1 claiming that "with this [legislative] inquiry behind it [sic], the governor and his office can focus on what they do best -- serving the public interest."

At the moment Mastro's press release went out, Christie was thousands of miles away in Canada, pursing his White House dreams. 

So much for "serving the public interest."

Editorial trickery

Stile, one of the paper's biggest Christie boosters, claims in his first paragraph the latest report "may help [the governor] in his yearlong quest for rehabilitation" (A-1).

The headlines on today's editorial are even more bewildering (A-9):

No involvement

GWB panel implicates only Christie aides

Really? 

Today, none other than Boburg reports "the legislative report said Christie and an aide had deleted 12 text messages they exchanged during damaging testimony by Port Authority officials" (A-6).

And readers have to question the motives of Boburg and his editors to bury the lead in the last paragraph of his so-called Analysis, quoting a spokesman for the Democratic National Commitee:

"Some of Christie's closest aides and allies put safety at risk, seemingly to exact petty political revenge, and in the aftermath, they lied about it. That, in itself, is inexcusable conduct coming from the administration of someone who wants to be president of the United States" (A-6).