U.S. Report Faults Christie, as Prosecutor, on Hotel Stays

[Beau_Ouiville]

Why should he care? Uncle Sugar was paying!

"WASHINGTON — When he was a top federal prosecutor, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey routinely billed taxpayers for hotel stays whose cost exceeded government guidelines, according to a report the Justice Department released on Monday. The report, by the department’s inspector general, examined travel expenses for all 208 people who served as a United States attorney from 2007 to 2009. It spoke of five who “exhibited a noteworthy pattern of exceeding the government rate and whose travel documentation provided insufficient, inaccurate or no justification for the higher lodging rates.”

While the report did not identify any prosecutors by name, the travel patterns of an official called “U.S. Attorney C” — the one “who most often exceeded the government rate without adequate justification” in terms of percentage of travel — match records about Mr. Christie that were released in the 2009 campaign for governor by his Democratic opponent, the incumbent, Jon S. Corzine…

The report cited stays in the $449-per-night Nine Zero Hotel in Boston and the $475-per-night Four Seasons Hotel in Washington. Both cost more than double the government rate for those cities. In all, Mr. Christie exceeded the lodging rate on 14 of 23 trips without adequate justification, billing taxpayers $2,176 in excess of the maximum normal rates. "

nytimes.com/2010/11/09/nyregion/09christie.html

 

[estesbob]

Why should he care? Uncle Sugar was paying!

"WASHINGTON — When he was a top federal prosecutor, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey routinely billed taxpayers for hotel stays whose cost exceeded government guidelines, according to a report the Justice Department released on Monday. The report, by the department’s inspector general, examined travel expenses for all 208 people who served as a United States attorney from 2007 to 2009. It spoke of five who “exhibited a noteworthy pattern of exceeding the government rate and whose travel documentation provided insufficient, inaccurate or no justification for the higher lodging rates.”

While the report did not identify any prosecutors by name, the travel patterns of an official called “U.S. Attorney C” — the one “who most often exceeded the government rate without adequate justification” in terms of percentage of travel — match records about Mr. Christie that were released in the 2009 campaign for governor by his Democratic opponent, the incumbent, Jon S. Corzine…

The report cited stays in the $449-per-night Nine Zero Hotel in Boston and the $475-per-night Four Seasons Hotel in Washington. Both cost more than double the government rate for those cities. In all, Mr. Christie exceeded the lodging rate on 14 of 23 trips without adequate justification, billing taxpayers $2,176 in excess of the maximum normal rates. "

nytimes.com/2010/11/09/nyregion/09christie.html

Looks like he would fit right in on Obama’s trips…

Seriously you can tell the left is getting very ,very afraid of Christie The 2012 election is two years off and already the smears begin.

 

[bbarrick8383]

$2,176 dollars…really?

 

[shockerfan]

Looks like he would fit right in on Obama’s trips…

Seriously you can tell the left is getting very ,very afraid of Christie The 2012 election is two years off and already the smears begin.

fits Beau’s pattern. Symbolism over substance.

 

[Beau_Ouiville]

If folks on this forum can comment seriously on the cost of the First Lady’s sneakers, I think the spending habits of a self-described fiscal conservative who is traveling on the public dime certainly should be discussed.

But, I think the personal comments off the topic should be avoided.

 

[shockerfan]

If folks on this forum can comment seriously on the cost of the First Lady’s sneakers, I think the spending habits of a self-described fiscal conservative who is traveling on the public dime certainly should be discussed.

But, I think the personal comments off the topic should be avoided.

I agree with you about the cost of the first lady’s sneakers, and other issues that really don’t amount to a hill of beans.

Specifically to the topic. There is no such thing as a perfect politician. There is no politician that I agree with (either what they say or what they do) 100% of the time. Anybody that agrees with a politician 95-100% of the time probably has hero worship issues.

I would agree that Christy needs to watch the dimes of the taxpayers in all aspects of his job.

However, if you consider the tough decisions he has made for the people of New Jersey, tough decisions Corzine did not have the intestinal fortitude to make, New Jersey is in a much better situation financially now, than before. So add up all the positives (like the tough budget decisions), and subtract the negatives (spending too much on hotels) and then lets discuss the net.

 

[Tom_8_0_0]

Chris Christie is one of the greatest politicians EVER. And this little hit-piece won’t change that opinion.

Corzine was as corrupt as the day is long, and no press for him… but Oh my GOODNESS Christie used around two thousand bucks of taxpayer dollars to fund some hotel visits? He should be arrested!!!

Just compare Corzine’s corruption to this episode, and ask yourself which politician you end up disliking more.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I guess it’s just being assumed that he’s the otherwise unidentified “Attorney C” and that the allegations are true.

I understand he’s overweight besides.

 

[estesbob]

If folks on this forum can comment seriously on the cost of the First Lady’s sneakers, I think the spending habits of a self-described fiscal conservative who is traveling on the public dime certainly should be discussed.

But, I think the personal comments off the topic should be avoided.

I don’t care how much the First Lady pays for her sneakers as long as she removes them before her and her husband enter their mosque to pray

 

[Beau_Ouiville]

I guess it’s just being assumed that he’s the otherwise unidentified “Attorney C” and that the allegations are true.

"One, identified as U.S. Attorney C, was Christie, his spokesman, Michael Drewniak, acknowledged. Christie explained the expenses when they were questioned during the 2009 campaign, he said…

Christie, 48, is the first Republican elected governor in New Jersey, a Democratic stronghold, since 1997. During the 2009 campaign, he said he always attempted to get lodging at the government rate. "
bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-09/christie-s-travel-expenses-as-u-s-attorney-questioned-in-federal-report.html

He may have been inaccurate on that claim. But, heck, he’s Republican so we should not criticize.

 

[Stjudeprayforus]

Seriously you can tell the left is getting very ,very afraid of Christie The 2012 election is two years off and already the smears begin.

Exactly!

 

[Beau_Ouiville]

Where’s the smear? Christie just refuses to explain but admits his expense account foolery.

"During one stay in Washington, for example, Christie stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel at a cost of $475 per night, more than double the government rate of $233 per night, justifying the cost by explaining that he was scheduled to speak at the hotel early in the morning.

The report also took note of Christie’s reimbursements for transportation to and from airports. In Boston, for example, to travel a distance of four miles, he arranged for car service that cost $236 round-trip, instead of a taxi. And in London, car service between the airport and a hotel cost taxpayers $562 for a round trip.

Christie declined to be interviewed by the Inspector General’s Office, but provided a letter stating that he was unable to provide “any other specific information” to supplement the travel documentation.

“Most of the justification memoranda that we found simply stated that the government rate was unavailable, but provided no substantiation for this claim,” the report says. “In four cases, there was no justification memorandum at all.”

philly.com/inquirer/local/nj/20101109_Christie_travel_expenses_cited_in_U_S__report.html#ixzz14pOgfSpn

That’s our frugal Republicans!

 

[shockerfan]

Where’s the smear? Christie just refuses to explain but admits his expense account foolery.

"During one stay in Washington, for example, Christie stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel at a cost of $475 per night, more than double the government rate of $233 per night, justifying the cost by explaining that he was scheduled to speak at the hotel early in the morning.

The report also took note of Christie’s reimbursements for transportation to and from airports. In Boston, for example, to travel a distance of four miles, he arranged for car service that cost $236 round-trip, instead of a taxi. And in London, car service between the airport and a hotel cost taxpayers $562 for a round trip.

Christie declined to be interviewed by the Inspector General’s Office, but provided a letter stating that he was unable to provide “any other specific information” to supplement the travel documentation.

“Most of the justification memoranda that we found simply stated that the government rate was unavailable, but provided no substantiation for this claim,” the report says. “In four cases, there was no justification memorandum at all.”

philly.com/inquirer/local/nj/20101109_Christie_travel_expenses_cited_in_U_S__report.html#ixzz14pOgfSpn

That’s our frugal Republicans!

looks like you got us! You are right. This proves that Republicans can’t be trusted.

Just curious though, if you put Christie on a scale of 1 to 10 of the biggest wasters of taxpayers money with Pelosi, Reid, and Obama, where do you think everyone would end up? [Lets see here, $785B stimulus, 4 star Mumbai hotel total rented out, date nights to NYC, Pelosi’s bar tab for her jet back and forth to San Francisco, Pelosi’s airplane, Flying Airforce One over the Statue of Liberty for some promo pictures, etc, etc, etc]

Yep, you got us! Wow, nothing gets past you.

 

[Tom_8_0_0]

I’m glad you’re picking your battles…

A few hundred dollars worth of hotel rooms, when the Democrats have spent trillions of trillions of dollars?

It’s like Ed Schultz today on his show is complaining about how Microsoft sends a whopping grand total of 4000 jobs overseas. (isn’t Microsoft a lefty company?)

And unemployment is in double digits, with MILLIONS of people unemployed needing jobs.

And Ed Schultz is mad about 4000 jobs…

The fact of the matter is, conservatives are more fiscally responsible than Democrats.

Let me drive this home, and I think this is an important point for people to take note of:

Josef Stalin once said “A thousand deaths is a tragedy, but a million deaths is a statistic.”

Think about this: Christie spends a few thousand taxpayer dollars, and it’s a TRAGEDY.

But Democrats spend trillions of taxpayer dollars that are NOT paid for, and that’s just a statistic that no one needs to worry about.

Same with jobs…

Ed Schultz: “4000 jobs overseas? That is TERRIBLE! An OUTRAGE! A TRAGEDY!”

Ed Schultz: “A few million jobs lost today? It’s not Obama’s fault, and it isn’t much of a big deal anyway.”

 

[bbarrick8383]

I guess it’s just being assumed that he’s the otherwise unidentified “Attorney C” and that the allegations are true.

I understand he’s overweight besides.

Dr. Lamont Hill, well known for finding racism where none exists as well, said that Christie could not be elected president because he was too fat.

 

[Beau_Ouiville]

looks like you got us! You are right. This proves that Republicans can’t be trusted.

Just curious though, if you put Christie on a scale of 1 to 10 of the biggest wasters of taxpayers money …

As we found out with Nixon, its not the act but the coverup.

I’m waiting for Christie to come clean.

$246 for a cab ride?

 

[Ridgerunner]

"One, identified as U.S. Attorney C, was Christie, his spokesman, Michael Drewniak, acknowledged. Christie explained the expenses when they were questioned during the 2009 campaign, he said…

Christie, 48, is the first Republican elected governor in New Jersey, a Democratic stronghold, since 1997. During the 2009 campaign, he said he always attempted to get lodging at the government rate. "
bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-09/christie-s-travel-expenses-as-u-s-attorney-questioned-in-federal-report.html

He may have been inaccurate on that claim. But, heck, he’s Republican so we should not criticize.

Ah! Your first cited article didn’t say that.

I’m sure all of this will come out in detail, without the spin in some sources, no doubt.

Maybe Christie could get government rate and maybe he couldn’t. Maybe his expenses were justified and maybe they weren’t. Somebody surely reviewed them. We’ll undoubtedly be hearing more about that as well.

For now, I’ll put it in the “Partisan always attacks Republicans” file.

 

[Beau_Ouiville]

Ah! Your first cited article didn’t say that.

Why did you doubt it was Christie?

I’m sure all of this will come out in detail, without the spin in some sources, no doubt.

Maybe not. Christie refuses to comment.

Maybe Christie could get government rate and maybe he couldn’t.

Government rate?

"Inspectors singled out a stay at the Four Seasons in Washington that cost more than double the approved rate of $233 per night, and took issue with Christie’s decision to pay $236 round trip for a car service in Boston instead of taking a taxi for four miles. "

nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/11/gov_christie_cited_as_us_attor.html

 

[SamH]

Looks like he would fit right in on Obama’s trips…

Seriously you can tell the left is getting very ,very afraid of Christie The 2012 election is two years off and already the smears begin.

He’s about 199,998,700 per day to cheap to be traveling with Obama. Anyone checking the per diem rate on Obama’s last over seas’ trip?

 

[SamH]

Ah! Your first cited article didn’t say that.

I’m sure all of this will come out in detail, without the spin in some sources, no doubt.

Maybe Christie could get government rate and maybe he couldn’t. Maybe his expenses were justified and maybe they weren’t. Somebody surely reviewed them. We’ll undoubtedly be hearing more about that as well.

For now, I’ll put it in the “Partisan always attacks Republicans” file.

I agree. Who reviewed and failed to deny the higher than standard rate? What was the rate for people in his position?