Ryan Hutchins of the Star-Ledger reports Lesniak bill would kick Samson, other Christie appointees out of Port Authority.
TRENTON — A leading Democratic lawmaker introduced legislation today calling for the removal of three of Gov. Chris Christie’s top appointees at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, where a scandal over lane closings at the George Washington Bridge has shaken the Christie administration. ...
The bill, proposed by state Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union), would replace the authority chairman, Samson, and Commissioners Pat Schuber and Richard Bagger with what he termed public-interest appointees to be chosen by advocacy groups, according to a statement.
“The abuse of this multi-billion dollar public agency can only be prevented in the future by having public interest members overseeing the Authority’s decision making who are not tied to either the governor or the state Senate,” Lesniak said in a statement. “While political considerations were part of the process under previous Democratic and Republican governors, Chris Christie made the Port Authority a wholly owned subsidiary of his re-election campaign.”
I don't know what the chances are of this bill passing, but I'm delighted to hear about it.
One major obstacle is that the bill must be be signed into law in both New York and New Jersey, which I presume would mean Governor Chris Christie. Even still the symbolic image of Christie blocking this would be an interesting development.