Chris Christie knew about bridge closings, ex-official says: Report
CBS
Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., knew about the lane closings on the George Washington Bridge as they were happening, the former Port Authority official who oversaw the closings said Friday, adding that he has the evidence to prove it,the New York Times reports.
David Wildstein, who was appointed by Christie to the Port Authority and later resigned after the scandal broke, said in a letter released by his lawyer that "evidence exists as well tying Mr. Christie to having knowledge of the lane closures, during the period when the lanes were closed, contrary to what the governor stated publicly in a two-hour press conference."
“Mr. Wildstein contests the accuracy of various statements that the governor made about him and he can prove the inaccuracy of some,” the letter added, according to the Times.
Christie explicitly said during the Jan. 9 news conference that he had "no knowledge or involvement in this issue, in its planning or its execution" and said he didn't know that anyone on his staff was involved in the closings until the day before.
What seemed to be a poorly planned lane closure to conduct a traffic study exploded into a full-blown scandal earlier this month after a series of communications between a Christie aide and two of his political appointees to the Port Authority became public. The email and text messages suggested that Bridget Anne Kelly, one of Christie’s three deputy chiefs of staff, ordered the lane closures.
"Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee," Kelly wrote in an Aug. 13 message to Wildstein, a top executive at the Port Authority who was appointed by Christie.
"Got it," replied Wildstein, who later resigned as a result of the outburst of anger surrounding the lane closings.
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