Free Republic

The story, as told in this classic 2005 This American Life episode, is a tale of ineptitude, entrapment, and bureaucratic self-perpetuation, starring very young U.S. attorney Christopher (!) Christie. The episode is a full hour, and you should absolutely listen to (or at least read) the whole thing. But until then, enjoy some highlights from Christie's dogged the pursuit of this dangerous terrorist: Here is a list of what Lakhani claims he can acquire, when prodded by an FBI informant: Stinger missiles ammo submarines night-vision goggles (although the exchange makes clear that he think that might just be another term...

He told ABC five years ago that he supported citizenship, leaving him with two options now. One: Stick to his guns and give conservatives another reason to treat “Christie” as a curse word. Two: Follow Scott Walker’s lead by pleading ignorance in his earlier views and claiming that he’s since seen the light. Actual quote from Christie: “I have now learned some of the ramifications for all of these things.” What those things might be isn’t clear, but it’d be impolite after such an earnest pander to badger the poor guy for details. He’s trying, Republicans. A for effort? This...

According to New Jersey Watchdog, Christie reportedly spent over $82,000 of taxpayer money on concessions at MetLife Stadium. Christie paid for food and drinks at MetLife with a debit card 58 times over the 2010 and 2011 NFL seasons, accruing a bill of $82,594. That means he spent an average of nearly $1,500 on food and drinks every time he attended a football game.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Friday that the National Security Agency’s bulk collection of phone records should continue and the Patriot Act should be renewed in its current form. The potential 2016 Republican presidential contender said he doesn’t see the government's collection of phone records as an overreach. A federal appeals court has ruled the practice is illegal because Congress didn’t authorize it. […] Christie said he believes Congress can provide “appropriate oversight” of the program. …

A former crony of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie pleaded guilty Friday in the “Bridgegate” scandal — and is willing to testify that the fading GOP star knew about crippling lane closures as they were happening, his lawyer said afterward.

Both Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are speaking bluntly about entitlement reform, advocating means-testing for Social Security retirement benefits as a way to save the system for those who need it. “These are real ideas,“ Christie said in New Hampshire on Friday. “And, you know, I’ve had a lot of people say, ‘Well, why would you possibly want to suggest those things?’ Because we have to. We have to. And if you want to start a national conversation, let’s start one that matters.” “We’re $18 trillion in debt,” Graham told Fox News Sunday. “Eighty million...

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) -- Framing himself as a politician who's unafraid to share "hard truths" with the American people, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is proposing an income cap on Social Security benefits as part of major restructuring plan announced ahead of a likely presidential bid. The Republican is set to deliver a speech Tuesday in New Hampshire outlining his ideas on reforming Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — so-called entitlement programs. As part of the plan, he'll propose phasing out Social Security payments for those making more than $80,000 in other income and eliminating them for those making $200,000...

Link only due to copyright issues: http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-04-13/the-7-gop-long-shots-who-still-have-a-chance

During a town hall at a high school, Cheryl Meyer, 45, told Christie that she'd had trouble explaining to her students why it was fine for the man who holds the highest office in the state to use words like "shut up" and "idiot" when they can't. "How do you defend that?" she asked. The governor sounded an introspective note, thanking Meyer for her question and talking about how everyone has had interactions in which they'd wish they'd said something differently — though not everybody's response wound up on the news. He said that, as a public official, he finds...

Trenton, N.J., Mar 26, 2015 / 04:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A New Jersey law crafted to ban the Archdiocese of Newark from selling cemetery headstones might not pass muster under judicial review, according to a constitutional law expert. Matthew Franck said the law “may well be violating the freedom of religion” guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution because it “singles out religious organizations for disfavored treatment.” Franck directs the Simon Center on Religion and the Constitution at the Princeton, N.J.-based Witherspoon Institute. He characterized the law as “a direct assault on the freedom of churches to offer services to the bereaved...

The Department of Justice is preparing to charge New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez with corruption. Menendez, a Democrat, may not leave office quietly — his term isn’t up until 2018 — but if he does resign, it could present Republican Gov. Chris Christie with an opportunity to get back in the good graces of conservatives statewide and around the country. That’s because Christie would get to choose both the temporary replacement for Menendez and the date of a special election to fill the seat. Christie could choose a moderate Republican such as state Sen. Tom Kean Jr. or former Rep....

Politico reported that Chris Christie felt he exceeded expectations at the 2015 Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) convention. The only problem is that Christie is trending in the wrong direction with the GOP’s conservative base. Christie finished in 4th place with 8% in 2014, according to The Washington Times, which plummeted to a dismal 10th place finish with only 2.8%.

In an interview at CPAC with conservative show host Laura Ingraham, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) acknowledged why many governors likely adopted the unproven Common Core standards were dangled before them by the Obama administration: He signed onto them because his state needed the federal funds that would come in exchange for adopting the unpopular education reform. Ingraham asked Christie about his prior support for the nationalized standards, and observed that he did sign his state’s Race to the Top application for the federal funds.

There’s a lot I like about Christie, and I know there’s a lot of people across the country going ‘I can’t believe she’s saying that! Christie’s a liberal!’ First of all, Christie’s not a liberal. (Laugh-snorts), okay? For the record, since bribing and cajoling his way into the governor’s mansion in 2009, the severely conservative Chris Christie has: Signed Hitlerian anti-gun legislation Endorsed Obama’s unconstitutional police state Confessed to agreeing with Andrew Cuomo on “98%”

Wisconsin governor's NYC visit drew sizable New Jersey wallets Scott Walker spent a profitable 24 hours in town and departed with plenty of NYC cash. But perhaps even more encouraging for fans of the Wisconsin governor is that his haul included dollars from at least four prominent New Jersey contributors, the Observer has learned. *** The Observer has learned that last night’s fundraiser was attended by at least four prominent New Jersey donors, further calling into question the hold New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie can exert over his home state contributors. Mason Simpson, an attorney from Holmdel who practices law...

As the state pours billions of dollars in business tax breaks into programs aimed at strengthening New Jersey’s struggling economy, it has put the brakes on another incentive program, leaving hundreds of companies without promised payments that could total in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Seeking to balance the state budget over the last few years, the Christie administration and the Legislature have each slashed funding for the Business Employment Incentive Program, commonly referred to as BEIP, eliminating payments to companies that were promised annual income tax rebate checks in return for moving to New Jersey or expanding here....

On Feb. 3, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) re-introduced his Protect Interstate Commerce Act (PICA), which he attempted to amend into last year’s farm bill. King’s bill would prevent states and local jurisdictions from interfering with the production and distribution of agricultural products in interstate or foreign commerce. In his statement about PICA, King referenced California’s statewide ban on the sale of eggs from hens raised in battery cages. “Just within the last month in anticipation of the new law coming into effect, California experienced a 79 percent increase in egg prices,” King said. “Outside of California, the Midwest has seen...

WEST DES MOINES — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie told an Iowa crowd last night he will bring blunt, straight talk to fill a leadership void in Washington and give the country hope again if he decides to seek the Republican Party’s 2016 presidential nomination. “Leadership matters,” Christie told about 100 Republicans who turned out for a Dallas County fundraiser at a suburban hotel to hear the New Jersey governor who made his third Iowa appearance within a month and his 13th trip overall. He met privately with Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds before attending the...

Federal authorities have launched a criminal investigation into New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, as well as members of his administration, a man at the center of the investigation told ABC News. The U.S. attorney’s office in New Jersey has interviewed former Hunterdon County Assistant Prosecutor Bennett Barlyn, who claims he was fired because he objected to Christie officials dismissing indictments against political allies of the governor. Barlyn confirmed the investigation to ABC News. It was first reported by the International Business Times. “It is true,” Barlyn told ABC News, saying he was interviewed by federal authorities at his Pennsylvania home...

This week, controversy broke out over whether state governments have the power to require parents to have their children vaccinated. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, no stranger to compelling his citizens to stay off the roads during blizzards, announced that he had some sympathy for the anti-vaccination position: "I also understand that parents need to have some measure of choice in things as well. So that's the balance the government has to decide." Kentucky Senator Rand Paul doubled down on Christie's remarks, stating, "I have heard of many tragic cases of walking, talking, normal children who wound up with profound...