Fiscal conservative Christie takes helicopter, limo to son's baseball game

[cinyc]

The disagreement between cinyc and Keystone Phil is pretty good example of why the Republicans won't win in 2012.

That makes about zero sense.  I'd still vote for Christie for President in a heartbeat, despite whether I think he's in the wrong here.

[Keystone Phil]

Please.  New Jersey isn't that large.  You can get from one end of the state to another in 4 hours, tops.  There is no need for any New Jersey governor to use a helicopter to fly anywhere, let alone to and from his kids' baseball game.

Yeah because some of the worst traffic in the country is certainly not a problem in New Jersey...  

You mean the same traffic the governors' constituents have to deal with every day without being able to fly above it in a helicopter at taxpayers' expense?  Let the governor deal with the same traffic that his constituents do.

I'm sorry but there are good comparisons to mention to say that an elected official is just like constituents and there are bad ones. That was a bad one. His constituents don't get a security detail. Should he not get one? I'm all for government reform and not treating our elected officials like royalty but there are certain benefits that an elected official will get to better enable them to do their job.

Whatever the case, I just read that Christie is going to reimburse the state for the trip.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Whatever the case, I just read that Christie is going to reimburse the state for the trip.

Correct

[cinyc]

Please.  New Jersey isn't that large.  You can get from one end of the state to another in 4 hours, tops.  There is no need for any New Jersey governor to use a helicopter to fly anywhere, let alone to and from his kids' baseball game.

Yeah because some of the worst traffic in the country is certainly not a problem in New Jersey...  

You mean the same traffic the governors' constituents have to deal with every day without being able to fly above it in a helicopter at taxpayers' expense?  Let the governor deal with the same traffic that his constituents do.

I'm sorry but there are good comparisons to mention to say that an elected official is just like constituents and there are bad ones. That was a bad one. His constituents don't get a security detail. Should he not get one? I'm all for government reform and not treating our elected officials like royalty but there are certain benefits that an elected official will get to better enable them to do their job.

Whatever the case, I just read that Christie is going to reimburse the state for the trip.

So you're saying it's not safe for a governor to have his chauffeur drive him to his kid's baseball game?  He needs a helicopter instead, for security reasons?  I doubt it.

As well Christie should reimburse the state for the trip.   There was no need for it.

[Keystone Phil]

Please.  New Jersey isn't that large.  You can get from one end of the state to another in 4 hours, tops.  There is no need for any New Jersey governor to use a helicopter to fly anywhere, let alone to and from his kids' baseball game.

Yeah because some of the worst traffic in the country is certainly not a problem in New Jersey...  

You mean the same traffic the governors' constituents have to deal with every day without being able to fly above it in a helicopter at taxpayers' expense?  Let the governor deal with the same traffic that his constituents do.

I'm sorry but there are good comparisons to mention to say that an elected official is just like constituents and there are bad ones. That was a bad one. His constituents don't get a security detail. Should he not get one? I'm all for government reform and not treating our elected officials like royalty but there are certain benefits that an elected official will get to better enable them to do their job.

Whatever the case, I just read that Christie is going to reimburse the state for the trip.

So you're saying it's not safe for a governor to have his chauffeur drive him to his kid's baseball game?  He needs a helicopter instead, for security reasons?  I doubt it.

...no and what's worse is that you know that that isn't what I was saying. I said that elected officials are afforded some privileges to do their jobs. You said he should sit in traffic like everyone else. I say that that isn't always reasonable but since you want to play this "he should be stuck in the same situation as his constituents!" game, I presented you with another example: constituents don't get a security detail. Should he be like them in that regard, too? You knew my point. You opted to twist it to avoid answering.

[cinyc]

...no and what's worse is that you know that that isn't what I was saying. I said that elected officials are afforded some privileges to do their jobs. You said he should sit in traffic like everyone else. I say that that isn't always reasonable but since you want to play this "he should be stuck in the same situation as his constituents!" game, I presented you with another example: constituents don't get a security detail. Should he be like them in that regard, too? You knew my point. You opted to twist it to avoid answering.

I twisted nothing.  Without some link to taking a helicopter, you have no real point.  A governor has a security detail because he's a high profile person subject to threats, real or imagined, from time to time.  A governor who takes a helicopter to his kid's baseball game is doing so due to a time crunch or rush hour traffic - something all of us face at times but only a select, elite few get to solve by having the taxpayers fuel up a helicopter to fly us to the game and then whisk us off to a meeting with Iowans to discuss our political future.

Besides, sitting in traffic like the rest of us would do any governor some good, so that he can see for himself how much rush hour sucks in some places and fix it.  But with a police escort, I doubt he'd been sitting in much traffic, anyway.

[DrScholl]

I don't mind you disagreeing with my defense. I do mind the comment that I defend everything someone (Christie, in this case) does because he is "a favorite" of mine. I call out other favorites when I think they're wrong. I'll do the same for Christie when I think he's in the wrong. I don't think using the state helicopter when there is a time constraint is a waste. If he was making a habit out of it and there wasn't a time constraint, he'd be wrong.

Once still costs money, in a state that has financial problems, the Governor of all people should be looking to save money however possible. If it wasn't waste, he wouldn't be reimbursing the state. I stand by my previous comments.

[CitizenX]

The disagreement between cinyc and Keystone Phil is pretty good example of why the Republicans won't win in 2012.

That makes about zero sense.  I'd still vote for Christie for President in a heartbeat, despite whether I think he's in the wrong here.

Heartbeat?!  Ohhh... I don't know if I would use that word around Christie.  If he runs I hope he gets a good VP.  That VP would literally be one heartbeat away from the top job!

In all seriousness I had high hopes for Christie.  In the past I defended him but he's turning out to be the same hypocritical Republican.  My mom and dad worked for a living.  They went to very few of my games.  He does not deserve a helicopter ride to see his sons little league game while teachers are being laid off.  That is totally inappropriate.

[Keystone Phil]

...no and what's worse is that you know that that isn't what I was saying. I said that elected officials are afforded some privileges to do their jobs. You said he should sit in traffic like everyone else. I say that that isn't always reasonable but since you want to play this "he should be stuck in the same situation as his constituents!" game, I presented you with another example: constituents don't get a security detail. Should he be like them in that regard, too? You knew my point. You opted to twist it to avoid answering.

I twisted nothing.  Without some link to taking a helicopter, you have no real point.  A governor has a security detail because he's a high profile person subject to threats, real or imagined, from time to time.  A governor who takes a helicopter to his kid's baseball game is doing so due to a time crunch or rush hour traffic - something all of us face at times but only a select, elite few get to solve by having the taxpayers fuel up a helicopter to fly us to the game and then whisk us off to a meeting with Iowans to discuss our political future.

I don't have to link it to the helicopter. My point was that elected officials are and ought to be provided with certain privileges to get their job done. You complained that constituents don't get to take a helicopter to escape traffic. Well, the constituents that have to walk the streets of Newark, Trenton and Camden don't have security details. The point: a Governor is going to have certain perks. If they aren't excessive and/or abused, I don't have a problem with them.

I don't mind if he takes a helicopter to see his son play if it isn't a regular occurrence and if he's put in a time constraint because of duties pertaining to being Governor. The latter meeting obviously wasn't related to his job as Governor but we haven't heard anything about what he was doing before. I think it's safe to say that it was related to his job. If it was, I'm sympathetic and can let it slide if it is a rare occurrence. If he wasn't able to get to his son's game on time because it was sandwiched between two political events then taking the helicopter is wrong.

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...so then you really don't care to make him wait in traffic.

[bgwah]

Cappuccino conservative!

[CitizenX]

...no and what's worse is that you know that that isn't what I was saying. I said that elected officials are afforded some privileges to do their jobs. You said he should sit in traffic like everyone else. I say that that isn't always reasonable but since you want to play this "he should be stuck in the same situation as his constituents!" game, I presented you with another example: constituents don't get a security detail. Should he be like them in that regard, too? You knew my point. You opted to twist it to avoid answering.

I twisted nothing.  Without some link to taking a helicopter, you have no real point.  A governor has a security detail because he's a high profile person subject to threats, real or imagined, from time to time.  A governor who takes a helicopter to his kid's baseball game is doing so due to a time crunch or rush hour traffic - something all of us face at times but only a select, elite few get to solve by having the taxpayers fuel up a helicopter to fly us to the game and then whisk us off to a meeting with Iowans to discuss our political future.

I don't have to link it to the helicopter. My point was that elected officials are and ought to be provided with certain privileges to get their job done. You complained that constituents don't get to take a helicopter to escape traffic. Well, the constituents that have to walk the streets of Newark, Trenton and Camden don't have security details. The point: a Governor is going to have certain perks. If they aren't excessive and/or abused, I don't have a problem with them.

I don't mind if he takes a helicopter to see his son play if it isn't a regular occurrence and if he's put in a time constraint because of duties pertaining to being Governor. The latter meeting obviously wasn't related to his job as Governor but we haven't heard anything about what he was doing before. I think it's safe to say that it was related to his job. If it was, I'm sympathetic and can let it slide if it is a rare occurrence. If he wasn't able to get to his son's game on time because it was sandwiched between two political events then taking the helicopter is wrong.

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...so then you really don't care to make him wait in traffic.

What?!

No governor should take a helicopter to see his son's game.  And they definitely should not be doing it while firing state workers.  Where are the Libertarians?!  You should not take money out of my paycheck to fly a helicopter to your son's game.  A helicopter from the state capitol to a meeting with the school teachers union or the chamber of commerce can be explained, but a baseball game.  No way.

EPIC FAIL.

[Keystone Phil]

The state helicopter is almost always used for official business. I'm sorry if I'm not going engage in the faux outrage over a father who, like most elected officials, has more difficulty seeing their family members than most other professionals. Yes, I know there are many working parents that can't make it to their kids' activities but if Christie or anyone else has the opportunity to see their kid play for half of their game while using their work vehicle after coming from a work event, I'm not going to go crazy about it (especially when this very rarely happens).

Again, when this becomes a regular habit and/or he isn't coming from or going to a work event, I'll call him out on it.

[cinyc]

The state helicopter is almost always used for official business. I'm sorry if I'm not going engage in the faux outrage over a father who, like most elected officials, has more difficulty seeing their family members than most other professionals. Yes, I know there are many working parents that can't make it to their kids' activities but if Christie or anyone else has the opportunity to see their kid play for half of their game while using their work vehicle after coming from a work event, I'm not going to go crazy about it (especially when this very rarely happens).

Again, when this becomes a regular habit and/or he isn't coming from or going to a work event, I'll call him out on it.

A helicopter is not a work vehicle, and missing things like kids' baseball games comes with the territory of being a politician, doctor, lawyer or other professional.  The state doesn't pay for doctors' or lawyers' helicopters to see their child's baseball games.  Neither should it pay for the governor's.

Luckily, Phil, even Governor Christie himself sees how the optics stink here and has written a check to reimburse the state for the trip.  And on the news tonight, one of the New York stations compared Christie's successful damage control here with Anthony Weiner's worst damage control ever in the Weinergate debacle.  The Christie story is effectively over.  The Weiner story will drag on until he comes clean and tells the whole truth.

[Joe Republic]

The more important question here is how on earth the helicopter managed to stay airborne.

[Keystone Phil]

A helicopter is not a work vehicle

So Marine One, for example, is just a toy?

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Maybe because they don't work for the state. 

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Sure, the optics stink here. That doesn't mean he actually thinks he was in the wrong. 

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

I hated when Pelosi did this, and I hate it now. My views on Christie as a whole are pretty much the same, though this will gash my opinion of him, just a bit.