Troy Smith
Former New Jersey Governor and Republican candidate for President Chris Christie is carpet-bombing the media with vindictive predictions that former President Donald Trump will be put in jail following several indictments from the Department of Justice, and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
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“He goes to bed every night thinking about the sound of that jail cell door closing behind him.” Christie said in a recent interview on MSNBC. During the interview, Christie refers to the time he spent in his early career as the United States Attorney For New Jersey. Christie served in that position from 2002-2008.
Looking into the activities of Chris Christie during his time as the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, you may find yourself asking why Chris Christie is not hearing that ‘jail cell door’ every night himself.
In 2005, 20 Wall Street floor traders were busted for trading violations in Manhattan. Among the 20 traders was the brother of former Governor Chris Christie, Todd Christie. 15 of the 20 traders were publicly humiliated, being marched through a Manhattan plaza in handcuffs. Todd Christie just so happened to be part of the group of 5 who were spared public humiliation.
At the time, lawyers speculated that Todd Christie had received preferential treatment because of the powerful position held by his brother, one lawyer even telling New Republic, “What happened with [Todd] Christie was very fishy. When they skipped over him, I was stunned. And then I heard the other stuff [about the contract for Kelley], and I was like, Holy s***, it’s so blatant. In my opinion, [Todd] definitely got a pass because of his brother. I can’t think of any other reason.”
The man in charge of Todd Christie’s case was David Kelley, who was serving as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York at the time. After choosing not to prosecute Todd Christie, Kelley would go on to receive a lucrative monitoring contract from Chris Christie after his retirement from the position of U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York in late 2005.
While Christie attempts to cheer on federal prosecutors in their witch-hunt of former President Donald Trump, he has, in the past, been able to protect his own family and friends from the very process he encourages.
During his time as U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, Christie handed out a whopping $52 Million monitoring contract for 18 months of work to his former boss John Ashcroft. Christie worked under Ashcroft at the Justice Department as the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey from 2002-2005, as Ashcroft served as Attorney General of the United States for President George W. Bush from 2001-2005.
Just after departing the Office of Attorney General of the United States, Chris Christie awarded his former boss John Ashcroft $52 Million in taxpayer funds.
Christie would eventually be forced to testify before Congress on this issue. The New York Times reported on that testimony at the time…
Christopher J. Christie, New Jersey’s former United States attorney, on Thursday aggressively defended his decision to award his political allies lucrative contracts to monitor corrupt corporations, telling a Congressional panel that his actions had upheld justice and saved taxpayers money.
In an appearance that was by turns triumphant and testy, Mr. Christie, New Jersey’s Republican nominee for governor, also brushed aside suggestions that the monitoring contract he gave John Ashcroft, the former attorney general, which was worth as much as $52 million, was an example of cronyism. Mr. Christie said that in addition to Mr. Ashcroft’s extensive legal experience, he is a native Missourian, and the company he was appointed to oversee had requested a monitor “with a Midwestern sensibility.”
https://newrepublic.com/article/116601/chris-christies-rise-and-fall
Among those who received lucrative contracts during Christie’s time as a prosecutor include his mentor, Herbert Stern. Christie awarded a $10 Million contract to Stern and his friend, John Inglesino.
While Chris Christie may portray the image of being a ‘crusader’ against corruption, his own past reveals disturbing truths about his willingness to subvert the law in order to protect those around him.
Why isn’t Chris Christie in prison?
