Bridgegate
Chris Christie announces the resignation of Port Authority chairman David Samson
ANDREW BURTON/Getty Images
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) on Friday announced the resignation of David Samson, the chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, who became the latest casualty in the scandal surrounding the closure of several lanes of the George Washington Bridge in late 2013.
The move comes a day after Christie's internal inquiry into the scandal cleared Christie of any wrongdoing in Bridgegate. (Shocker, we know.) The most curious part of Team Christie's review was the fact that Samson was never interviewed, despite the fact that the Port Authority is in charge of operating the bridge.
At his Friday presser, Christie explained that Samson — who has denied involvement in Bridgegate — had considered stepping down long ago. Why? "He's 74 years old and he's tired," Christie said.
Christie's recent flurry of activity — which included an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer — has been seen as an attempt to put the scandal behind him. Indeed, the presser was something of a return to form for the governor, who tangled with reporters with gusto. But with Samson resigning so quickly after the release of an internal review that conspicuously excluded his input, Christie may have raised more questions than he answered.