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January 21, 2014

Hoboken Mayor: Christie Admin Tied Sandy Relief to Development Project 
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The controversy surrounding New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie continues to
grow with new accusations of political intimidation. Over the weekend,
the Democratic mayor of Hoboken, Dawn Zimmer, claimed she was told her
city's access to Hurricane Sandy relief funding was contingent on
approval of a Christie-backed development project. Speaking to MSNBC,
Zimmer said the threat came from Christie's lieutenant governor, Kim
Guadagno.

Dawn Zimmer: "The fact is that the lieutenant governor came to Hoboken,
she pulled me aside in the parking lot, and she said, 'I know it's not
right, I know this thing should not be connected, but they are. And if
you tell anyone, I'll deny it.' And so, these — I mean, the bottom
line is it's not fair for the governor to hold Sandy funds hostage for
the city of Hobokoen because he wants me to give back to one private
developer. I cannot give a windfall to one property owner because the
governor wants me to in exchange for the Sandy funds. So, I'll tell you,
I feel like I'm literally between a rock and a hard place."

Zimmer is a former Christie ally who was one of the first Democrats to
back his administration. On Monday, New Jersey Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno
denied making the threat, calling Zimmer's allegation "false and
illogical." Zimmer met with federal prosecutors on Sunday and says she's
prepared to testify in court. The development project in question was
tied to a law firm represented by David Samson, a close Christie ally
and chair of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Christie is
already facing a political fallout from the disclosure Samson and other
Christie officials were involved in the deliberate closure of lanes to
the George Washington Bridge last year.

 

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