Governor Christie has been sticking to his guns about not knowing anything about the bridge toll booth closures and the ensuing traffic jams until after the fact. Against mounting evidence to the contrary, he has also attempted to stick to the story that it was the Port Authority and not his office that caused the closures. He now claims not to be sure who initiated the closures, but he's investigating to find out.
I was catching up on the Rachel Maddow Show on msnbc.com this morning when I heard something that caused me to sit up and take notice. I'd be surprised if others didn't catch it, but no one seems to be talking about it. It was during the interview with Christie when he was trying to resurrect that whole traffic study excuse. After reiterating Christie's strong denials of any prior knowledge of the closings, at about six minutes into the "Christie speaks amid breaking bridge jam news" segment, Rachel cuts to a clip of Christie saying this:
"Let's remember something for everybody out there. We did not close lanes to the bridge. All the lanes on the bridge were open. These were three toll booths that are dedicated just to Fort Lee, and that two of those lanes were closed apparently to do a traffic study to see if there was really a need for all those three lanes. That's what I was told at the time..."
The Rachel Maddow Show
His slip-up (Freudian?) in using the self-inclusive pronoun "We" (rather than "They") is the type of thing any good interrogator (as we parents frequently become) is listening for. You don't have to be Deputy Police Chief Brenda Johnson to realize how telling this is. It's not the kind of slip one would likely make if it was indeed a Port Authority decision to close the booths for some study as he goes on to claim, or even if it was done by one's staff without one's knowledge. It's one of the reasons why lawyers admonish their clients to keep their mouths shut. Of course, Christie can't do that if he wants to survive, which is looking increasingly unlikely.