Remember when Chris Christie killed the then largest public works project in the country because of unforseen costs. It turns out independent congressional investigators have determined the Governor may have exaggerated a wee bit when making his arguments. A New York Times article outlines the details. It turns out there were more than a few questionable justifications involved in the decision making process. It cannot now be emphasized enough how reckless this action by the Governor was considering the economic distress in the country, where jobs are the lifeblood of a recovery. It also highlights just how difficult it is for the President and Democrats to facillitate a recovery when they are being undermined at every step with Republican policies that are not only counter productive, but are also often based on false premises.
Among the conclusions of the report were that the estimates for the cost of the tunnel had remained unchanged for the two years prior to its cancellation, despite Christie's claims that estimates had skyrocketed. The report points out that New Jersey's costs would only be 14.4%, not the 70% the Governor claimed, and the repot disputes the claim that New Jersey would be required to pay all cost overruns.
This was an important project which would have been of enormous benefit to the residents of New Jersey who must commute to New York City. They are currently relying on a century old transportation system, and apparently will have to continue that reliance because of Governor Christie. But it is the jobs that were lost in a recession that cannot be overlooked. If you want to see a perfect example of the Republican obstructionism that has been working to thwart this recovery, here you have it. And this was a solo decision by one of the so called rising stars of the GOP.