By the time NJ voters figure out that Gov. Krispy really ISN'T on their side, he'll probably have gotten everything he needs from them

Gov. NJ Fats with his close personal friend Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and his, um, close personal friend-in-law Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant

"The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the Cowboys franchise has a stake in Legends Hospitality, a group that was tapped to manage the observatory at One World Trade Center, which is controlled by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Susana E. Guerrero, executive director of the New Jersey ethics commission, told the Journal that Christie can accept tickets and flights on Jones’s private jet because Jones is a personal friend."

-- from Robert Costa's washingtonpost.com report this afternoon,
"Chris Christie to attend another Dallas Cowboys game Sunday"

by Ken

Sure, NJ Fats and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones are close personal friends, so why shouldn't the Fatman be able to accept gifts from, you know, his close personal friend? And maybe every once in a while have his people steer a chunk of public money to his close personal friend?

By now, with such other matters as the big hurt NJ Fats's office put on Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich (aka Bridgegate) and the extortion attempt the governor's made on Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer seemingly lost in the maw of federal "investigators" (who knows? maybe they are investigating and maybe they aren't), and all the other scandals that seem to grow like weeds wherever he plants his carcass piling up under rugs all over the Garden State, I guess we have to accept the fact that it doesn't matter how often the Fatman is caught with his trousers down -- it always reads as if he's swaddled in the Emperor's New Fatboy Pants.

At least there's nothing unethical about Fats rooting for the team that passes itself off as "America's Team" for the benefit of front-runners and better-dealers all over the U.S. of A. But considering that football fans in the northern part of his state tend to root for the NY Giants and fans in the southern part tend too root for the Philadelphia Eagles, and for both the Cowboys are hated NFL Eastern Division rivals, this allegiance -- which Governor Krispy indeed acknowledged when he was first running for the post -- isn't sitting terribly well. An armchair psychologist might suggest that his affinity for an alien team tells us something about his own better-dealing front-runnerdom, but hey, who would come between a man and, you know, His Team?

Still, that's not all there is to the "media firestorm" that WaPo's Robert Costa notes was sparked last week by his kissy-face cuddle with Cowboys owner Jones, which he notes "raised questions about his relationship with the billionaire businessman."

This week, for the record, "The Governor will be paying for travel and tickets for himself, his sweater and his son to make sure we keep silliness out of the football season,” a Krispy spokescreep told Costa by e-mail. For last week's playoff game in Detroit, which the Cowboys narrowly pulled out in a come-from-behind squeaker with a smidgeon of help from the game officials, Kris's pal Jerry paid for his tickets and travel expenses. Hey, this is America! Just 'cause you're a governor, does that mean you can't accept a little schmeer from a friend? (Didn't former Virgina Gov. Bob McDonnell just try that line?)

"The episode," reporter Costa notes,

has generated more than critiques from sports personalities and political watchers. Christie been dogged this week by questions about Jones and whether he is too cozy with the 72-year-old football magnate, who has financial links to New Jersey state government.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the Cowboys franchise has a stake in Legends Hospitality, a group that was tapped to manage the observatory at One World Trade Center, which is controlled by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Susana E. Guerrero, executive director of the New Jersey ethics commission, told the Journal that Christie can accept tickets and flights on Jones’s private jet because Jones is a personal friend.

New Jersey Democrats are considering launching an investigation into Christie’s Cowboys jaunts and whether his association with Jones has violated state ethics laws.

"It smacks of improper behavior. It smacks of hypocrisy," state assemblyman John Wisniewski (D) said in an interview with CNN. "It smacks of inside deals that the average guy in Jersey can't ever dream of having the opportunity to do. It's wrong."

Specifically, they may look at why Christie publicly lobbied the Port Authority’s board of commissioners to approve the deal with Legends in a news release issued a day ahead of the vote in March 2013. State Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D), the other co-chair of the committee, has told NJ.com that she found Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) public support of the Legends bid “a little strange.”

Costa points out that Assemblyman Wisniewski and Senator Weinberg head a NJ legislative committee looking into Bridgegate and related matters. No doubt Governor Krispy or one of his spokescreeps will be happy to remind us that all the accusations agains the Big Guy are just a partisan witch hunt. Interestingly, though, as Costa points out, potential Krispy rivals for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination like Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio are already enjoying the whiff from heat being applied to their fellow Republican's imperial butt.

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