Contracts Draw Fire Over Ties to Christie

Governor Chris Christie Returns, Seeks Federal Disaster Aid For Snow Storm
Snow covered street in Hoboken, NJ CBS2 FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP, N.J. - Back from his Florida Vacation, Governor Chris Christie has this week’s Snow Storm on his to-do list. Christie is signing off on a formal letter to FEMA today requesting federal disaster aid for expenses racked up during the blizzard . Christie has been the target of criticism over not cutting his vacation short as the state struggled to deal with the storm that dumped up to two feet of snow on parts of New Jersey a...

Gov. Christie Returns, Seeks Disaster Aid For Snow Storm
FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) - Back from his Florida Vacation, Governor Chris Christie has this week’s Snow Storm on his to-do list. Christie is signing off on a formal letter to FEMA today requesting federal disaster aid for expenses racked up during the blizzard. Christie has been the target of criticism over not cutting his vacation short as the state struggled to deal with the storm that dumped up to two feet of snow on parts of New Jersey and left hundreds stranded on...

NJ gov defends Fla. trip, praises storm response
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who was criticized for vacationing in Florida as a blizzard pummeled the East Coast, defended his trip and praised his state for its response to the storm, which dumped nearly three feet of snow in some parts. Speaking Friday at his first news conference since returning home, Christie said all major decisions on the state's response he made in consultation with state Senate President Stephen Sweeney. Sweeney, a Democrat, had been serving as acting Governor after C...

Top N.J. Democrats say group tied to Christie skirted pay-to-play law
TRENTON - Some New Jersey lawmakers have called for the cancellation of state contracts with contributors to Reform Jersey Now, a political organization tied to Gov. Christie that released its list of Donors this week after months of criticism that it lacked transparency. Senate Majority Leader Barbara Buono (D., Middlesex) and Assembly Majority Leader Joseph Cryan (D., Union) accused the organization of skirting the state's pay-to-play law, which bars firms that receive more than $17,500 in sta...

Christie returns, starts pointing fingers
CHRISTIE RETURNS, STARTS POINTING FINGERS.... To put a coda on a story that came up this week, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) left for Florida on Sunday after being told of an impending blizzard headed for his home state. His Lieutenant Governor was also away, and their simultaneous trips left the emergency response in the hands of state Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D), who served as the acting Governor. The result was a flap that undermined Christie's image as a hands-on, take-charge...

Liberal Group Criticizes Christie With Parody Website
Gov. Chris Christie attends a town hall meeting - Parsippany, NJ - Dec 3, 2010 - Photo: Tim Larsen / Governor’s Office TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - New Jersey’s governor is the target of a new website that criticizes his out-of-state travels, including this week’s trip to Disney World as a blizzard socked the Garden State. The site was launched by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a Washington-based liberal Advocacy Group. Some Democrats criticized Chri...

Stupid: Dopey Progressive Group Sets Up 'Where's Christie?' Site
It appears these clowns are going to try and milk this non-story for all it's worth. It's not as if the Governor saw the forecast and skipped town. He was already on Vacation when the storm hit the northeast. What was he expected to do? I recall last year after the attempted Christmas Day underwear bombing a member of Obama's crack Homeland Security team was skiing in Colorado and didn't return for days. For some reason, nobody set up a website asking where he was. But then again, people on ou...

Karzai keeps minister considered corrupt by US
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. officials pressured Afghan President Hamid Karzai to remove a former warlord from atop the energy and water ministry a year ago because of Corruption and ineffectiveness, and threatened to end aid unless he went. Karzai rebuffed the request, according to secret diplomatic records, and the minister — privately termed “the worst” by U.S. officials — kept his perch at an agency that controls $2 billion in U.S. and allied projects. The State Depar...

WikiLeaks: Karzai Defied U.S. on Cabinet Pick
(AP) WASHINGTON - U.S. officials pressured Afghan President Hamid Karzai to remove a former warlord from atop the energy and water ministry a year ago because they considered him corrupt and ineffective, and threatened to end aid unless he went. Karzai rebuffed the request, according to secret diplomatic records, and the minister - privately termed "the worst" by U.S. officials - kept his perch at an agency that controls $2 billion in U.S. and allied projects. The State Department corresponden...

Karzai keeps minister considered corrupt by US (AP)
WASHINGTON – U.S. officials pressured Afghan President Hamid Karzai to remove a former warlord from atop the energy and water ministry a year ago because of Corruption and ineffectiveness, and threatened to end aid unless he went. Karzai rebuffed the request, according to secret diplomatic records, and the minister — privately termed "the worst" by U.S. officials — kept his perch at an agency that controls $2 billion in U.S. and allied projects. The State Department correspon...

Karzai keeps minister considered corrupt by US
But U.S. aid to Afghanistan has continued despite the dispute over the former warlord, Ismail Khan, in December 2009. U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry pressured Karzai to remove Khan, a once powerful mujahedeen commander, from the top of the energy and water ministry, according to two State Department reports written at the time by U.S. Embassy officials in Kabul. They were disclosed last month by Wikileaks. A Dec. 19, 2009, memorandum distributed internally under Eikenberry's name described Kh...

Gov. Christie Returns to N.J. to Face Political Storm
Yahoo! Buzz N.J. Gov. Chris Christie may not have quelled the political storm over his Florida Vacation during last week’s blizzard. The WSJ’s Metropolis blog reports that Mr. Christie, who was on a Family Vacation to Disney World during the storm that dumped nearly three feet of snow on parts of the Garden State, relieved Senate President Stephen Sweeney of his acting-governor duties Friday morning. The first-term GOP Governor, who is often mentioned as a possible dark-horse president...

NJ governor rips critics of storm response
(CNN) - New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie blasted Democratic political opponents Friday for criticizing his absence from the state during the snowstorm that pounded the northeast over the Christmas holiday. He also took a shot at the media for giving what he characterized as excessive attention to the Controversy during what is typically a slow news week. ...

The year in marijuana reform for NJ and PA: 2010
by Chris Goldstein 12/31/2010 - We saw significant progress on cannabis reform issues in New Jersey and Pennsylvania with landmark changes to law and policy during 2010. Medical Marijuana is active in both states and Philadelphia made a significant shift in city marijuana possession procedures. Next week The Philadelphia NORML Examiner will present a series detailing the top reform issues. But on this last day of 2010 it’s important to take a look at a year that saw forward momentum and a ...

Christie defends blizzard vacation
He said he stayed in touch from Fla. with the acting Governor and wouldn't do anything differently. FREEHOLD, N.J. - Gov. Christie, who was criticized for vacationing in Florida as a blizzard pummeled the East Coast, defended his trip and praised the state's response to the storm, which dumped nearly three feet of snow in some areas. Speaking Friday at his first news conference since returning home, Christie said he made all major decisions on the state's response in consultation with Senate Pr...

The urban landscape in 2010, from A to Z
We've covered a lot of urban ground in the past year, so we thought it would be fun to take a look back (and a couple of peeks forward) by going from A to Z in the urban alphabet. Here are some of the things we’ve been watching, and will continue to school ourselves on. A RC Tunnel: When New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie singlehandedly put the brakes on the biggest Public Works project in America, he sent a signal to Washington that a lot of governors out there seem to be echoing: You can't m...

GOP Strategist: Whiny Chris Christies Snowpocalypse Absence Inexcusable
Not even a charming week in Disney World could temper New Jersey Governor Chris Christie ’s curmudgeonly disposition to the press, as he greeted them upon his return unapologetic about missing this week’s Snowpocalypse and generally disgruntled that his judgment was questioned. The grumpiness was reciprocated on CNN by GOP Strategist Ed Rollins , who chastised the governor for being “whiny” about the criticism after not “being there.” Christie answered the cri...

Governor Christie Returns to NJ and a Blizzard of Criticism
A website, WheresChristie.com, mocks New Jersey Governor Chris Christie for leaving the state the day the Holiday Blizzard struck, and being gone all week during the big dig. But after arriving back with his wife and four Children early Friday morning (after a six-hour flight delay), Christie took all of his critics to task. "All this carping and craziness about how could I leave the state stranded -- I was on the phone not only with my staff but with members of the press," Christie sa...

Gov. Chris Christie (R-NJ) asks for federal funds upon returning from vacation
For much of the last week Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) was on Vacation in Disney World while New Jersey suffered from one of the worst blizzards in recent history.  Christie's Republican Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno was also absent during the storm, leaving a Democrat named Stephen M. Sweeney to serve as acting Governor.  Sweeney was third-in-line as the president of the New Jersey State Senate.  While Sweeney did not criticize Christie and Guadagno for their absence, many D...

I Denounce Fat Kapitalist Pig Chris Christie
The Motherland has often warned us through their clever agitprops of the dominantly overweight species of kapitalists and their ability to crush the poor under their massive weight. Their top-hats, canes, and moneybags pose a threat to the People this day. Unfortunately, one of these creatures rules with free-market fascism and negligence over the state of New Jersey. In the name of the collective and all things progressive, I denounce him! That's no moon, comrades, that's Chris Christie! It's n...

Christie Unapologetic About Vacationing During Blizzard
FREEHOLD, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — No regrets and no apologies from Gov. Chris Christie, who was vacationing in Disney World with his family while New Jersey was being battered by the fifth largest storm in the last 100 years. When asked if he thought twice about his decision, Christie responded by saying “of course I did.” The Governor said he ultimately believes he made the right decision. “Life is about choosing and about decisions. I made the decision to be a father first,...

Inside the Beltway
GARDEN VARIETY Post blizzard, New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg issued mighty mea culpas but got a frigid shoulder from press and people for his city's tepid response to the polar blast. The mayor did manage to hire 1,900 extra "day laborers" to help with the cleanup, though. Meanwhile, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie caught cold criticism because he was on Vacation in Florida when the storm dumped 30-plus inches of snow on the Garden State. But hey. His absence has political metaphor. "Gov. ...

Whats Wrong, Really, With Using Campaign Funds For Personal Purposes?
I’m not a big fan of Christine O’Donnell, the Tea Party favorite and unsuccessful Candidate for the Senate from Delaware. Indeed, whenever one of her “I’m you” commercials appeared on my TV, I got up and shouted: “No you’re not.” But whatever the merits of recent reports that say she may be under investigation for inappropriately using campaign funds, I have to say that laws that make this illegal strike me as wrong. Why shouldn’t candidate...

Final 2010 Buzz Kill: MTA Fare Hikes In Effect Today
Photograph by H.L.I.T. on Flickr The MTA has the worst luck. Of course their planned Fare Hike would hit directly after a massive Snow Storm nearly brought their entire transportation network to a standstill. But snow or no, the beat goes on and as of today the agency's third Fare Hike in as many years kicks in....

Labor group: Get answers before giving blood
A Chicago-based social justice group is urging houses of worship across the country to question the American Red Cross about its staffing and blood processing policies before hosting blood drives, in light of federal fines against the agency and worker strikes in several states. "It's an opportunity for the religious community to raise up the Red Cross," said Kim Bobo, Executive Director of Interfaith Worker Justice, which promotes improved labor conditions in the religious community. She said...