The Chairman's Plight
The scrapheap of officials laid to waste by Bridgegate and its spin-off scandals expanded last week to include three United Airlines executives.
United says the resignations are related to the investigation into the airline’s dealings with the Port Authority – and with former Port Authority Chair, David Samson, an appointee and close confidante of Governor Christie. Samson is under investigation for getting favors from the airline in exchange for lower costs for United at the Port Authority owned airport in Newark. One of the favors was the so-called "Chairman's Flight," a special flight route from Newark to South Carolina allegedly created at the request of Samson.
Governor Christie spoke about the story on NBC’s Meet the Press and on his monthly radio call-in show, Ask The Governor. His advice: "Let's stop reading newspapers."
On the podcast this week: grab a scuba mask, bring along an extra tank of oxygen and join us for a deep dive into what the governor is saying about the allegations, and what he is not saying.
Don't worry. It'll be easy to follow along. Host David Furst is joined by Matt Katz who covers Governor Christie for WNYC and NJPR and by Andrea Bernstein, Senior Editor for Politics & Policy for WNYC News. Andrea says “What’s being investigated here is bribery, pure and simple. Quid pro quo.”
Check out the WNYC Data News App: The Christie Tracker.
