WASHINGTON – Gov. Christie is pictured departing from his spanking brand-new AugustaWestland helicopter, which was reportedly purchased at a cost to taxpayers of $12.5 million. How he used it yesterday is the stuff of an amateur politician forgetting about perceptions in an era of austerity, which Gov. Christie helped to usher in as the champion of waste-busting.
The dust swirling around Gov. Chris Christie’s big shot entrance yesterday proves just how dangerous Democrats think he could be to Pres. Obama. I wrote back in March that I believe he’s the only Republican who comes close to the personal and political qualities of taking on Obama. Christie’s bluntness and seeming transparency makes him the ultimate un-Obama. Christie hasn’t disappointed either, because like all newcomers he’s let it all go to his head, his poll numbers in New Jersey cratering from where he started.
Yesterday’s stunt won’t help. Everyone is piling on because Christie’s behavior was so appalling it’s hard not to.
Gov. Chris Christie arrived at his son’s baseball game this afternoon aboard a State Police helicopter.
Right before the lineup cards were being exchanged on the field, a noise from above distracted the spectators as the 55-foot long helicopter buzzed over trees in left field, circled the outfield and landed in an adjacent football field. Christie disembarked from the helicopter and got into a black car with tinted windows that drove him about a 100 yards to the baseball field.
During the 5th inning, Christie and First Lady Mary Pat Christie got into the car, rode back to the helicopter and left the game. During a pitching change, play was stopped for a couple of minutes while the helicopter took off.
It’s bad enough it could sweep “Weinergate” out of the headlines.
Wall Street Journal: Chris Christie’s Helicopter Ride to Home Plate.
Ben Smith: Christie Can’t Go Home Again.
ABC’s The Note: Governor Christie Takes State Helicopter To Son’s Baseball Game.
New York Times: Christie Takes State Copter to Son’s Ballgame.
MSNBC’s First Read: Chris Christie’s helicopter ride.
It all segues into the other news coming in about his meeting with Iowa Republicans: Chris Christie won’t run for president, but he’ll visit Iowa this summer.
Damage control to follow.
Taylor Marsh is a Washington based political analyst, writer and commentator on national politics, foreign policy, and women in power. A veteran national politics writer, Taylor’s been writing on the web since 1996. She has reported from the White House, been profiled in the Washington Post, The New Republic, and has been seen on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, CNN, MSNBC, Al Jazeera English and Al Jazeera Arabic, as well as on radio across the dial and on satellite, including the BBC. Marsh lives in the Washington, D.C. area. This column is cross posted from her blog.