The cancelation of the Hudson Tunnel

[narig01]

In Gov Christie's case it never reigns it pours. He is now being investigated for securities fraud by the US Attorney.

Some of has to do with his diversion of funds ti lay for repairs and rehabilitation if the Pulaski Skyway.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/24/nyregion/2nd-bridge-inquiry-said-to-be-linked-to-christie.html?_r=0

Comments anyone.

Thx IGN

[Firelock76]

I don't live in New Jersey anymore, but I still follow what goes on up there.  I've still got family and friends there so that's probably why.

You asked for a comment, so here goes:

The plain fact of the matter is the Democrats are terrified of Chris Christie as a presidential candidate.  He's the closest thing to a superstar the Republicans have, and irregardless of how he's viewed in the Northeast he's pretty interesting to a lot of folks around the country.

So, the Dems have to knock him out quick and knock him out soon.  The New Jersey papers that lean Democratic have tried to nail him with the George Washington Bridge scandal, but it's not sticking.  The New York Times is going to try to nail him on SOMETHING as they've been a Democratic paper for decades, so I'd suspect any negative articles they publish on him.  The US attorney?  Probably a Democrat or Democrat appointee.

Mind you, ol' Chris isn't universally beloved by all Republicans.  Some want Jeb Bush to run in 2016, some want others who's names escape me at the moment.  At any rate, Christies got the most recognition.

Folks want to disagree with me?  That's OK.  I don't mind, but that's how I see it.

Don't know what this has to do with transit, but if it's about the tunnel cancellation the reason Christie did what he did was New Jersey's cost on the thing was open-ended.  Any cost over-runs, and don't kid yourselves, there were GOING to be over-runs, were going to be paid for by the state of New Jersey.  Unacceptable to Christie, especially as the state's damn near broke now as it is.

[henry6]

The Dems have not had to do much to knock Christie off, he's done a great job on his own to foster his own demise. As for the tunnel project, the confusion comes because he heartily endorsed it and signed the papers for it to be done then months later pulled the plug. In part, he was right to do that because the plan was not as good as it appeared and actually would have caused more problems. It was a plan that came about because no other plan appeared from anybody else. And with NJ politics upsidedown and in an uproar because of gubernatorial hi jinx, planners got it passed. But cooler heads have prevailed, and even I have to say Christie was right to cancel the project. The problem now is that between Christie's games and the Tea Party's pranks in D.C., nothing is happening again.

[Phoebe Vet]

I sure am glad that we don't discuss politics in here.

[Firelock76]

Phoebe Vet

I sure am glad that we don't discuss politics in here.

Yeah, I get the point, and how, but since the original poster asked for comments and opinions concerning Chris Christie, I felt I'd oblige.

Trouble is, since transit's publicly subsidized it's tough to keep politics out of it.  Just comes with the territory.

Incidentally I HATE politics, but as a citizen it's my duty to pay attention to what's going on, and judge accordingly.

[John WR]

Wayne,  

I do live in New Jersey.   That means it is difficult or impossible to get any real sense of the national perspective on Governor Christie.   There are so many New Jersey and Port Authority issues--so many trees--I know of no way to see the forest.   So you may well be correct here.   At any rate, I have no evidence to suggest you are incorrect.   

John

[John WR]

Henry,  

I know a lot of rail transit people agree with you that the ARC tunnels should have been cancelled.   But I am skeptical.   Granted, it was a far from ideal solution.   But even as I write our rush hour trains are so jam packed that people cannot get into Manhattan where the jobs are.   

For several months I took the waterfront connection from Hoboken to Newark Penn Station and had at most 5 minutes to get my 55 minute Amtrak train to Princeton Junction (which I was able to ride back then).   I and a few others real had to push, and push hard, just to get through the people on the platform waiting to get on the Coast Line train.  

Of  course Amtrak will ultimately build the tunnels.   But it will take a lot of extra time which will delay a lot of jobs and a lot of wages for a lot of people. 

We really really need those tunnels.   In my (not very) humble opinion Governor Christie made a mistake.   A big mistake.   

John

[Firelock76]

John WR

Wayne,  

I do live in New Jersey.   That means it is difficult or impossible to get any real sense of the national perspective on Governor Christie.   There are so many New Jersey and Port Authority issues--so many trees--I know of no way to see the forest.   So you may well be correct here.   At any rate, I have no evidence to suggest you are incorrect.   

John

Hi John!

From what I gather people around the country remember the high-profile Chris Christie from the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, both from the glowing news reports and the hilarious "Saturday Night Live" appearance.  His stock is pretty high.

No-one cares about the George Washington Bridge scandal, or any other political flap in New Jersey.  That's certainly the case here in Virginia.  It's a non-issue.

And nariq, NOW see what you've started!

[henry6]

JWR...the Gateway Tunnel project I believe it was called...it was bad because it was only NJT, only two tracks, only a two track dead end terminal, it took a lot of land and questionable layouts in NJ to have really been practical. A different approach philosophically and physically, including Amtrak, run through instead of dead end, and maybe even more than two tracks are all things that could improve the concept and have to be studied. I keep preaching a Regional Concept to rail transportation from south of Philadelphia on the Corridor, Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton, maybe Wilkes Barre/Scranton, Port Jervis, Kingston, Poughkipsie, New Haven, Montauk, Bay Head with maximum 5 minute connections, through equipment for 1 seat rides where practical for equipment and passenger, single through tickets. Such a concept has to be included in a new tunnel/station project in the city. As for Christie, he is a Tea Party favorite but he does carry a lot of baggage and the GWB is just a hand bag compared with what all else is coming down on him. He is not a main stream Republican favorite and certainly not a Democrat's choice. Tea Party can run him if they want, but he won't win because he will have split his party too much. Even the TP can do better, smarter; or at least they should.

[blue streak 1]

henry6

JWR...the Gateway Tunnel project I believe it was called...it was bad because it was only NJT, only two tracks, only a two track dead end terminal, it took a lot of land and questionable layouts in NJ to have really been practical.

Henry you just touched on a point not considered.  Since The ARC was only NJT what would have happened when Boardman's 10 - 20 Years for the North river tunnels came to fruition ? Amtrak would probably not been able to run NYP - Newark ?

Is not Gateway the proposed Amtrak project ?

[henry6]

Maybe Gateway is the Amtrak project which includes the new Moynihan station...I get confused with all the changes and politics down there...but, yes, ARC was the project Christie stopped. But Boardman's 10 to 20 year tunnel lifespan would still be true. In fact, it has always been true. That is why it is important that somebody better start digging soon then put the hole up to the first or highest bidder to show up. It works now...sort of...and it is known that it will not last forever. It is now time to stop asking when is forever, stop betting on forever not ever happening and start realizing any minute could be the forever that all talk about and fear.

[YoHo1975]

I'm confused. Why would Christie be a Tea Party favorite? He's generally Center Right. Or as close is there is right now and his friendliness to democrats in the interest of what's right for NJ has angered partisans. Everything I've read is that he polls well among presidential voters, but he would never ever ever make it through the Primary, because he isn't conservative enough. Did something happen post GWB to change this?

[Firelock76]

Dittos to what YoHo1975 said.  Aside from fiscal conservatism and responsibility I can't understand what attraction Chris Christie might have to TEA Partiers either.  He's very much a moderate Republican, not a hard-core conservative or strict constructionist as far as the Constitution's concerned.

From what I know he has been trying to hold the line on tax increases but with so-so success.  Maybe that's all they know about him?  I'm not a TEA Partier so I couldn't say.

[henry6]

Christie is far from center...he follows the Tea Party mantra of "don't pay for nothing, rip up contracts in place and ignore the processes, do as you please despite law, protocol, and procedure." He makes a decision then fights the legal battles later costing more money than if he adhered to the contracts. He makes moves which are political for his benefit and not necessarily for the benefit of New Jersey, its citizens, nor of the real Republican Party.

[Firelock76]

Well Henry, maybe Christie's popular with the TEA Party in the Northeast, but here in Virginia where the TEA folks are pretty active no-one's talking about him at all, at least not publicly.  They seem most interested in hammering Obama every chance they get.  They're also claiming credit for knocking Republican Congressman Eric Cantor out running for re-election.  Funny thing is, a lot of Democrats are claiming the same thing.  Virginia has an open primary system, big mistake in my opinion, where you don't have to be a registered member of any particular party to vote in that partys primary.  The catch is though, you can only vote in one. Anyway, a lot of Democrats are claiming they voted for Cantor's oponent just to get Cantor out.  Did it have an effect?  Who knows?

Maybe the Northeast TEA people like Christie because he's not afraid of a fight?  I wouldn't know.

[John WR]

YoHo,  

Chris Christie has a saying:   "If you don't win you don't get to govern."   He is a Republican Governor elected in one of the most Democratic states in the nation.   He will argue that Tea Partiers have a choice.   They can nominate someone from the far right or they can nominate someone who has a reasonable chance to win the election.   And He has a proven record of winning in his own state and has made some important reforms.   

John

[henry6]

So true, Firelock76, Christie was very popular in NJ as a purveyor of Tea Party philosophies but keeps being bombarded by scandals and ineptitudes. His handholding with Obama when Sandy washed away his shore upset and angered Tea Party followers across the country but not across NJ. So, he is struggling to survive as he is drowning in Tea demands and commands, and several scandals and illegal pools of troubles. He is treading liquids of various viscosities but for how long has to be seen.

[schlimm]

Firelock76

Dittos to what YoHo1975 said.  Aside from fiscal conservatism and responsibility I can't understand what attraction Chris Christie might have to TEA Partiers either.  He's very much a moderate Republican, not a hard-core conservative or strict constructionist as far as the Constitution's concerned.

From what I know he has been trying to hold the line on tax increases but with so-so success.  Maybe that's all they know about him?  I'm not a TEA Partier so I couldn't say.

Dittoes in the Chicago suburbs.   From what I've heard, TPers disliked Christie from the moment he and Obama "broke bread."   He may well be more rightist (as henry suggests)  than public perception, but that is all that matters in elections.  I still doubt if he could get through enough GOP primaries successfully to get the nomination.

[Firelock76]

Schlimm, what a lot of the more doctrinaire people in politics, either liberal or conservative, don't realize is the truth of the old saying, "you'll catch more flies with honey than you will with vinegar."

Certainly Christie embraced Obama with open arms when the President came north to see the Sandy damage first-hand.  New Jersey needed help, Federal help, and needed it fast.  I'm fairly conservative myself and I understand exactly why Christie did what he did.  What else was he supposed to do?  Say "go away kid, yer bothering me?"

By the way, even though I'm conservative I'm not one who looks on Obama as the Anti-Christ.  That's just stupid.

[BaltACD]

The extreme Right and the extreme Left with their lack of working with a spirit of compromise in addressing the problems of the country are fostering the destruction of the country.

[Leo_Ames]

Firelock76

Mind you, ol' Chris isn't universally beloved by all Republicans.  Some want Jeb Bush to run in 2016, some want others who's names escape me at the moment.  At any rate, Christies got the most recognition.

I hope Michelle Bachmann tries for the nomination. 

[Paul of Covington]

BaltACD

The extreme Right and the extreme Left with their lack of working with a spirit of compromise in addressing the problems of the country are fostering the destruction of the country.

    I blame the end of the cold war.   It's part of human nature to look for a contest, and during the cold war there was a common enemy.   With no common enemy, they turn on each other.

[blue streak 1]

Paul of Covington

BaltACD

The extreme Right and the extreme Left with their lack of working with a spirit of compromise in addressing the problems of the country are fostering the destruction of the country.

    I blame the end of the cold war.   It's part of human nature to look for a contest, and during the cold war there was a common enemy.   With no common enemy, they turn on each other.

 

Maybe that is the reason for all the conflict in the Balkans and middle east ?

 

[Firelock76]

The conflicts in the Balkans and the Middle East.  It's sad.  In the Balkans, the former Yugoslavia, as soon as Tito died and his iron boot was off their necks they were back at each others throats.  Same in Iraq when Saddam was gone.

Some places in the world are just hopeless.