The Lies Pile Up: Chris Christie Says He Doesn’t Remember Smoking Gun Bridgegate Text

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Gov. Chris Christie still believes that he can be president, but when a reporter asked about the text that connects him to Bridgegate, the New Jersey governor revealed just how doomed he is.

The Star-Ledger reported on Christie’s press conference yesterday:

Gov. Chris Christie today (Friday) said he doesn’t recall receiving a text message from a top aide in December as talk of the controversial lane closings at the George Washington Bridge intensified.

Regina Ega, whom the Republican governor has named his next chief of staff, testified last month before a state legislative committee that she texted Christie about testimony given by Port Authority officials concerning the lane closings but later deleted the message.

Christie, though, said he has no memory of that.

“I have no recollection of her ever sending me a text,” he said today during a news conference outside the town hall in Parsippany. “So I can’t remember what it was over.”

The text message links to Christie to Bridgegate, but it was the governor’s answer that indicated that the scandal will continue to plague him. The whole “I can’t recall” excuse makes Christie look guilty. The fact that Chris Christie can still believe that he will run for president in 2016 is testament to the weakness of the potential Republican field.

Gov. Christie has been politically damaged to the point that he can’t win a general election. If Christie is tired of the Bridgegate questions now, he hasn’t seen anything yet. If he runs for the Republican nomination, he is going to face Bridgegate every single day on the campaign trail. The scandal isn’t going away. Things aren’t getting better for Christie. His economic record has come under scrutiny, and his entire record as governor has been exposed as his hero of Hurricane Sandy facade has crumbled.

When a politician with presidential ambitions answers questions with I don’t recall, they are doomed. Chris Christie could win the Republican nomination, but that fact says more about the state of the Republican Party than the health of Gov. Christie’s political future.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association