The “Bridgegate” scandal occurred in Sept. 2013 and it came to light in Jan. 2014. Yet now, months later, Democrats are still investigating the bridge closures, even after the Christie administration has been cleared of any wrongdoing. And there seems to be good reasons for that.
On Tuesday, Gov. Chris Christie’s (R-N.J.) main spokesman Michael Drewniak is testifying before the New Jersey legislative committee tasked with investigating the scandal surrounding the George Washington Bridge closure. And while several members of the committee are eager to talk to Drewniak, Republicans aren’t so happy.
Republicans in the state legislature are threatening to leave the committee if they do not see substantial changes in how it is being run. They have asked for more members on the committee — which is comprised of eight Democrats and four Republicans — a co-chairmanship and equal access to documentation.
The committee has been actively investigating for months now, all at taxpayer expense, and yet has still failed to find any evidence actually linking Christie directly to the bridge closings. There is now speculation that the committee has shifted from a legitimate attempt to expose corruption, either in the Port Authority or in the Governor’s office, to a political tool designed to discredit the Governor.
There is some merit to this theory, given the Democratic membership of the Bridgegate committee. The Chair of the committee, Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Middlesex), is rumored to be considering a run for Governor in 2017.
Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi (R-Bergen), one of the few Republicans on the Committee, who hails from the County in which “Bridgegate” took place, has expressed her concerns about the leadership of the committee.
“It’s a committee of one,” she said in a recent interview. “It’s almost like a John Wisniewski for Governor Tour.”
She also claimed that she receives information regarding subpoenas faster from watching MSNBC than from her colleagues across the aisle.
Also on the panel is State Senator Loretta Weinberg, who was defeated in her bid for Lt. Governor in 2009. Fort Lee, the town at the center of this scandal, is within her district. It looks extremely good to her constituents if it appears that she is trying to prevent them from facing another massive traffic gridlock.
Another Democratic Assemblywoman, Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Mercer) stepped down from the investigation committee in late February after demanding that Christie resign over the scandal.
She came under fire for these remarks, but they may serve her well with primary voters in her competitive primary for the congressional seat being vacated by Rush Holt in a very liberal section of New Jersey.
Several Democrats outside of the state legislature have also heavily criticized the Governor’s alleged involvement in the scandal. Both Mark Sokolich, Mayor of Fort Lee, and Dawn Zimmer, Mayor of Hoboken, heavily criticized the Governor in the wake of the scandal. Both mayors hail from traditionally Democratic strongholds that voted for Christie over Barbara Buono in the most recent gubernatorial election.
It would appear that the intention of these continued hearings may be more about continuing to link the Governor with a damaging buzzword ahead of a possible 2016 run, to bolster potential candidates within the New Jersey Legislature, or to protect traditionally Democratic vote sources than to actually weed out corruption or to fix a problem within the Port Authority.
