On Wednesday, a series of emails and documents linked New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to the mysterious closure of two lanes onto the George Washington Bridge. The lane closures were part of a plot orchestrated by aides close to Christie to create a traffic gridlock, allegedly for political revenge.
Following this revelation, Christie faced the cameras on Thursday at the New Jersey State House in the state capital of Trenton, at a press conference during which he addressed the scandal labeled as "Bridgegate." Ahead of the conference, the New York Times reported that the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey will open an inquiry into the lane closure incident.
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At the press conference, Christie said he had "no knowledge" of the plot, reiterating the statement he released on Wednesday after the news erupted linking Christie's top aides to the closures.
For months, Christie had denied the involvement of any of his staffers. On Thursday morning, however, in front of dozens of journalists, Christie claimed responsibility for the actions of his staffers. "Ultimately I am responsible for what happens under my watch," he said. He apologized, saying he was "heartbroken" and "stunned."
"I come out here today to apologize to the people of New Jersey. I apologize to the people of Fort Lee. And I apologize to the members of the State Legislature. I am embarrassed and humiliated by the conduct of some of the people on my team," he said.
On Sept. 9, two of the three lanes that feed into the George Washington Bridge from Fort Lee, N.J. — connecting New Jersey to New York — were abruptly closed, causing major traffic jams. Initially, the closures were attributed to a "traffic study" by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
But emails between Bridget Anne Kelly, Christie's deputy chief of staff, and David Wildstein, a longtime friend of the governor and former director of interstate capital projects at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, released as part of the investigation by a panel of New Jersey lawmakers into the incident, reveal the reality was quite different.
The emails don't clearly show that Christie himself was behind the plot, but do deeply implicate his staff.
"Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee," Kelly wrote in an email to Wildstein on Aug. 13. He responded just a minute later: "Got it."
During Thursday's press conference, Christie announced he had fired Kelly "because she lied." Christie explained that approximately four weeks ago, he met with his staff and asked everyone to tell him whether they had any knowledge of the goings-on in Fort Lee. Nobody came forward acknowledging a role in the plot, Christie said. Upon discovering his staffers' link to the events, Christie said he felt "betrayed."
From the emails, it seems as though the orchestrated traffic jam was political retaliation against the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee, Mark Sokolich, who didn't endorse Christie in his gubernatorial election. But Christie said he wasn't even aware they ever asked for his endorsement.
The plot didn't just create an annoyance; the implications could be far more serious. The gridlock reportedly caused serious delays for emergency responders in four instances, according to the Bergen Record.
In one case, responders were delayed in an attempt to reach a 91-year-old woman unconscious in Fort Lee. The woman later died, according to a letter sent to Mark Sokolich on Sept. 10 by EMS coordinator Paul Favia. The traffic caused by the lane closures also slowed the search for a missing 4-year-old, according to a Fort Lee councilman.
The Port Authority Inspector General’s office opened a formal inquiry into the gridlock incident in December 2012. Meanwhile, Barbara Buono, the Democratic candidate that Christie defeated in last year's election, called on the U.S. Justice Department to open an investigation into the incident, to determine whether there are grounds for criminal charges.
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