A Christie-en Slip

The following is my latest column in The Jewish Link of Bergen County, in which I write about Chris Christie’s recent Israel gaffe and consider what his untimely slip of the tongue means in relation to a possible presidential run:

A CHRISTIE-EN SLIP

By: N. Aaron Troodler, Esq.

Many of us are familiar with the old adage “there is a time and a place.” For Chris Christie, the Republican Jewish Coalition’s spring event was neither the time nor the place to utter the reviled term “occupied territories.”

The RJC’s Las Vegas event was an opportunity for the GOP presidential hopefuls to speak to die-hard Jewish Republicans about the issues relating to Israel and the greater Jewish community. Governor Christie made the trek out west, where he joined Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Ohio Governor John Kasich, and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, each of whom was hoping to win over the crowd and garner major Jewish support for their possible presidential runs.

But the real story was the Sheldon Adelson sweepstakes. After spending more than $90 million during the 2012 presidential election, Adelson’s support and the considerable campaign contributions that come with it are very much sought after. Every Republican with presidential aspirations dreams of winning this coveted endorsement.

Interestingly, Sheldon Adelson was not even present during Governor Walker’s address to the RJC, but he caused a stir when he entered the room as Christie took to the podium and sat down front and center in order to listen to what the Governor from New Jersey had to say.

Everything was going well for Chris Christie until he remarked that he had taken a helicopter ride during his 2012 trip to Israel “from the occupied territories.”

The crowd in attendance knew immediately that Christie had goofed. The term “occupied territories,” which typically refers to Judea and Samaria and East Jerusalem, is generally used by Israel’s detractors to protest what they perceive to be Israel’s “illegal occupation” of these areas.

Perhaps understanding the magnitude of his mistake after the fact, Christie met privately with Sheldon Adelson to apologize for his faux pas and to reiterate to the casino magnate that his support for Israel is rock solid.

The bottom line is that this was a monumental error on the part of Chris Christie. He used a term that people perceive to be anti-Israel in front of an audience of people who are strongly pro-Israel.

Because of Christie’s major gaffe, there reportedly are Republican donors and people in the pro-Israel community who are suddenly questioning his stance on Israel and wondering about his true feelings towards the Jewish State.

Personally, I think all that talk is ludicrous. Yes, Chris Christie said the wrong thing. But does that slip-up call into question his bona fide feelings about Israel and the Jewish community? Absolutely not.

People are blowing this whole situation out of proportion. In my mind, all this is is a guy who has no foreign policy experience who suddenly finds himself on the national stage. If Chris Christie does ultimately throw his hat into the ring and decides to run for president, I assure you that there will inevitably be situations where his lack of familiarity with foreign policy matters will lead him to say the wrong thing.

This RJC incident does not prove that Chris Christie is anti-Israel. What it does prove is that Chris Christie needs to be better prepared.

I think that Christie would be best served by surrounding himself with knowledgeable people who can better educate him as to the numerous nuances associated with various religious groups and faith communities. If he is going to run for president, he needs to know what to say, how to say it, and when to say it.

As far as Israel goes, if Governor Christie wants to give me a call, I would be happy to help work with him on honing his message regarding Israel and the Jewish community. When it comes to Israel, what Chris Christie needs is simply a refinement of his message, not a complete overhaul.

This is a man who has a relatively good relationship with New Jersey’s Jewish community. He is a proponent of school choice measures that would aid the non-public school community, including yeshivas. His high-profile trip to Israel several years ago got him a lot of good press and engendered warm feelings within the Jewish community. I was at the OU Advocacy’s NJ Legislative Breakfast this past October where the crowd of about 600 people rose to their feet and gave Governor Christie a thunderous ovation when he was introduced.

I think that at this stage, calling into question Chris Christie’s feelings towards Israel based on a slip of the tongue or a lack of knowledge on his part is wholly unfair. I am willing to give Christie a pass on this one. The real cause for concern, in my mind, would be if he does it again. Everyone is entitled to make a mistake from time to time. Just make sure that the same mistake does not get made twice.

N. Aaron Troodler is an attorney and principal of Paul Revere Public Relations, a public relations and political consulting firm. Visit him on the Web at TroodlersTake.blogspot.com, www.PaulReverePR.com, or www.JewishWorldPR.com. You can also follow him on Twitter: @troodler
 

Internal Investigation Clears Christie

The following is a front page news article that I wrote for the April 3, 2014 edition of The Jewish Link of Bergen County, in which I report on the latest happenings in the Bridgegate scandal:

 

Internal Investigation Clears Christie

 

By: N. Aaron Troodler

 

Two months after his last press conference on the subject, Governor Chris Christie once again confronted the infamous George Washington Bridge lane closures head-on and addressed the issue that has mushroomed into a major political crisis.

On March 27, Gibson Dunn & Drutcher LLP, the law firm retained by Governor Christie to conduct an internal review of his administration’s role in the Bridgegate scandal, released its report, Randy Mastro, a partner at Gibson Dunn and a one-time Deputy Mayor under former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, unveiled the findings at a press conference in New York.

After a two-month long investigation, which consisted of 70 witness interviews and a review of 250,000 documents, The 360-page report essentially cleared Governor Christie of any wrongdoing and Mastro proclaimed the report “is a vindication of Governor Christie.”

“Our investigation found that Governor Christie did not know of the lane realignment beforehand and had no involvement in the decision to realign the lanes,” stated the report. “He does not recall becoming aware of the lane realignment during the period the lanes were closed, but would not have considered a traffic issue memorable in any event.”

While the probe found that Christie had not been involved whatsoever with the lane closures and the chaos and traffic jams that ensued from September 9 to 13, 2013, it did implicate some of the Governor’s chief aides and confidants as the main protagonists.

Concerning Christie’s former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly and David Wildstein, a Christie appointee to the Port Authority, the report stated that Kelly and Wildstein “knowingly participated in this plan to realign toll lanes leading onto the George Washington Bridge at Fort Lee, at least in part, for some ulterior motive to target [Fort Lee] Mayor [Mark] Sokolich.”

The report also alluded to a romantic relationship between Kelly and Bill Stepien, Christie’s chief political guru, which ended one month before the lane closures. Sources speculate this revelation was included to explain Kelly’s frame of mind in the weeks leading up to the lane closures.

The report detailed the contents of emails and text messages between Kelly and Wildstein prior to the lane closures, as well as throughout the three-day period during which the traffic patterns in Fort Lee were altered.

The report also noted that Wildstein said he informed Governor Christie about the lane closures as they were occurring during a 9/11 Memorial event on September 11, 2013, although it added that Christie, who has repeatedly maintained that he had no knowledge of his aides’ plan, did not recall the conversation. According to the report, “it seems highly unlikely such a brief mention, even if made by Wildstein to the Governor, would have registered with the Governor at all.”

The inquiry also examined the alleged threats that were directed at Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer by Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno. According to Mayor Zimmer, the Lieutenant Governor attempted to intimidate her and compel her to support a real estate project backed by the Christie Administration, allegedly using the withholding of Hurricane Sandy recovery funds as a means through which to garner the Mayor’s blessing and secure her approval.

According to the report, “Mayor Zimmer’s allegations are, in material respects, demonstrably false. They are contradicted by contemporaneous documents, other witnesses’ accounts, and her own prior statements. In sum, the subjective perceptions she may have do not match objective reality, as reflected in the hard evidence uncovered during our investigation.”

After conducting its investigation and assessing the circumstances behind Bridgegate, the Gibson Dunn report set forth a number of recommendations. In an effort to prevent similar occurrences in the Governor’ Administration and preempt future problems, the report suggested restricting the use of personal email accounts for conducting official state business, disbanding the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and reorganizing its functions within a new and expanded Governor’s Office of Constituent and Legislative Services, appointing an ombudsperson within the Governor’s office who would report directly to the Governor and issue periodic public reports, and appointing a chief ethics officer responsible for ethics enforcement within the Governor’s office.

In a sharp critique of the organizational structure of the Port Authority of New York and Jersey, the report recommended that the Governors of New Jersey and New York coordinate to restructure the Port Authority by appointing a Bi-State Commission to recommend reforms, and promote legislative reforms to promote transparency at the Port Authority.

The report’s release was met with much skepticism and an abundance of criticism.

“Lawyers hired by and paid by the Christie administration itself to investigate the governor’s office who then say the governor and most of his office did nothing wrong will not be the final word on this matter,” said Assemblyman John Wisniewski and Senator Loretta Weinberg, who co-chair a state legislative panel which is investigating the lane closures. “The people of New Jersey need a full accounting of what happened. This review has deficiencies that raise questions about a lack of objectivity and thoroughness.”

The Gibson Dunn attorneys did not interview Bridget Anne Kelly, Bill Stepien, and David Wildstein, a Christie appointee to the Port Authority, since they all declined to be interviewed or to participate in their probe.

Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer, who was harshly criticized by the report, was unbridled in her response. “Randy Mastro could have written his report the day he was hired and saved the taxpayers the million dollars in fees he billed in generating this one-sided whitewash of serious misconduct by the Christie Administration.”

Michael Critchley, Bridget Anne Kelly’s attorney, issued a statement strongly defending his client. “The report’s venomous, gratuitous, and inappropriate sexist remarks concerning Ms. Kelly have no place in what is alleged to be a professional and independent report…Ms. Kelly is not a liar.”

Critchley went even further, seeming to imply that his client may end up cooperating with the federal investigation.

“The only credible investigation into the lane closings is being conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Critchley said. “If Ms. Kelly were provided with the appropriate procedural safeguards, she will be fully cooperative and provide truthful and complete answers to any questions asked of her by the appropriate law enforcement authorities.”

Hours after the report was made public, Governor Christie and his wife, Mary Pat, sat down with Diane Sawyer for a much anticipated interview on ABC News. The Governor, who posted photographs of his children talking to Sawyer on his Twitter feed, pinned the blame for Bridgegate on his aides and expressed his displeasure at what happened.

The next day, Governor Christie held a news conference and announced that David Sampson, the Chairman of the Port Authority, had tendered his resignation earlier in the day. Sampson, a close friend of the Governor, had come under fire for his involvement in the lane closure episode and for reports that his law firm may have improperly benefitted from his role as head of the Port Authority. A state legislative committee is vowing to continue its investigation of the lane closures, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office is conducting its own inquiry.

Christie was confident and sometimes combative as he defended the Gibson Dunn report, proclaiming his innocence, and berating some of the reporters questioning him.

A Very Pricey Probe

The following is my latest column in The Jewish Link of Bergen County, in which I weigh in on the internal Bridgegate investigation commissioned by Governor Chris Christie and question the decision to have taxpayers foot the bill:

 

A VERY PRICEY PROBE

 

By: N. Aaron Troodler, Esq.

 

I recently had the pleasure of attending an event hosted by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, at which he discussed his desire for local governments to explore consolidation and pursue more shared services opportunities. In addition, Governor Cuomo promoted his plan to cut property taxes and noted that he is encouraging people to contact their local lawmakers, some of whom may be resistant to imposing and adhering to a property tax cap, and urging them to sign on to his plan to help achieve much-needed property tax relief.

 

During his pitch, Governor Cuomo made a comment that resonated with me. “The bureaucracy is not going to win,” he said, referring to lawmakers. “Do you know who’s going to win? The people are going to win. When the people speak, the people win.”

 

In theory, he is right. Government is designed to work on behalf of the people. The people’s voices are supposed to be heard by their governmental representatives and their opinions and interests are expected to be duly considered.

 

Unfortunately, in New Jersey, that does not seem to be the case lately.

 

We recently learned that Governor Chris Christie spent an estimated $1 million (or perhaps even much more), essentially to investigate himself. As incongruous as that sounds, the situation became even more contemptible and concerning when we learned that the Governor spent our money. Yes, you heard me right. $1 million of taxpayer funds – our funds – were used by Governor Christie in an attempt to burnish his image.

 

As the fallout from the Bridgegate scandal continues to chip away at Chris Christie’s political persona, he decided to enlist the services of a law firm to conduct an “independent” investigation into what transpired.

 

The issue is that Christie did not just hire any old law firm. Instead, the Governor engaged Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, a high-priced, politically connected law firm that has close ties to his administration.

 

The high-powered attorneys at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher conducted an investigation, to the tune of $650 per hour.

 

Not surprisingly, the report they ultimately issued at the conclusion of their investigation vindicated Governor Christie and determined that there was no wrongdoing on his part.

 

Interestingly enough, they were somehow able to ascertain that the Governor was not culpable in any way, despite the fact that three of the central figures in the scandal refused to cooperate with their investigation.

 

Bridget Anne Kelly, Christie’s former Deputy Chief of Staff, Bill Stepien, his former chief political advisor and campaign manager, and David Wildstein, a Christie appointee to the Port Authority, all declined to be interviewed by the Governor’s hired guns.

 

Although I am certainly not questioning the veracity or integrity of the attorneys who were hired by Governor Christie to conduct a probe of his role in Bridgegate, I am definitely troubled by the appearance of what I perceive to be a clear conflict of interest.

 

Calling on a bunch of old friends to delve into the details of a scandal that has rocked the Governor’s administration and asking them to make a finding if there was any wrongdoing smacks of cronyism.

 

Making matters worse, Governor Christie dipped his hand into our pockets in order to pay his hefty legal bill. I certainly cannot speak for every New Jersey taxpayer, but I suspect that the overwhelming majority of New Jerseyans, who are struggling with high property taxes and an array of other financial challenges, would not have voted to spend $1 million of their money to rehabilitate the Governor’s image and reward his friends.

 

Remarkably, the $1 million fee that Garden State residents incurred accrued over just a two month period. Governor Christie brought Gibson Dunn & Crutcher on board in mid-January, which means that they earned an average of $500,000 a month, or $125,000 a week investigating their old pal. Not bad work, if you can get it.

 

Was absolving Governor Christie of any liability relating to Bridgegate at a cost of $1 million worth it? If you were to ask Chris Christie, I would imagine the answer is yes. However, if you were to ask New Jersey taxpayers, I am quite certain that the answer would be a resounding no.

 

Putting aside the exorbitant fee that was paid for the “independent” inquiry commissioned by none other than the Governor himself, the fact is that the only investigation that truly matters is the one being conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s office.

 

Christie’s self-initiated $1 million investigation is glorified window dressing. It is the investigation that is being carried out by the federal government that counts. It remains to be seen whether or not the U.S. Attorney’s office will be as magnanimous to Chris Christie as his hand-picked legal eagles were.

 

N. Aaron Troodler is an attorney and principal of Paul Revere Public Relations, a public relations and political consulting firm. Visit him on the Web at TroodlersTake.blogspot.com, www.PaulReverePR.com, or www.JewishWorldPR.com. You can also follow him on Twitter: @troodler

 

National Council of Young Israel Ushers in New Era

The following is an article that appeared in The Jewish Link of Bergen County, in which I detail some of the exciting things that have been happening at the National Council of Young Israel, a century-old organization that has been a leading voice on the issues that face the Jewish community in the United States and Israel:

 

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF YOUNG ISRAEL USHERS IN NEW ERA

 

By: Aaron Troodler

 

When he joined the National Council of Young Israel (NCYI) this past August as its Executive Director, Rabbi Perry Tirschwell hit the ground running. With his considerable experience in Jewish education and organizational life, Rabbi Tirschwell was tasked with overseeing and making Young Israel a transformative force in American Jewish life.

 

At the six-month mark of his tenure as the head of NCYI, which has ably served the broader Jewish community for over 100 years, the immediate impact that Rabbi Tirschwell made was extremely evident. Intent on cutting costs and achieving financial stability, accountability and transparency, Rabbi Tirschwell and the NCYI Board of Directors were successful in significantly reducing the organization’s expenses, which have been cut by more than 50%.

 

Rabbi Tirschwell and the lay leadership of NCYI, including President Farley Weiss of Phoenix, Arizona, Chairman of the Board Bob Levi of Silver Spring, Maryland, and 1st Vice President Yosef Poplak of New York, initiated a thorough review of the organization’s finances and enlisted the services of an independent, outside comptroller.

 

As part of its financial restructuring, Young Israel’s national office relocated from downtown Manhattan to Paramus, New Jersey. In addition to cutting the organization’s rent by 60%, the move signaled NCYI’s desire to work with the greater Jewish community. It is now housed in the same building as the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey, the regional Israel Bonds office, and the North American headquarters of Nefesh B’Nefesh. Rabbi Tirschwell has already begun discussions with these new neighbors about joint projects.

 

“With the assistance of our dedicated and forward-thinking board members and a talented and devoted professional staff, the National Council of Young Israel is taking a proactive role in order to strengthen our organization and renew our relationship with all of our branch synagogues,” said President Farley Weiss. “The Young Israel movement is deeply committed to furthering the vital role that synagogues play in Jewish communities all across the United States.”

 

As part of the organization’s efforts to strengthen the NCYI’s relationships with its branch synagogues and members across the United States, Rabbi Tirschwell embarked on a “Young Israel listening tour.”

 

Rabbi Tirschwell has spent a great amount of time traveling to various Young Israel synagogues, where he has met with their rabbis, presidents, board members and congregants, in an effort to ascertain how NCYI can be of assistance to them and to learn which innovative “best practices” they have to share with their sister branches.

 

In a relatively short period of time, Rabbi Tirschwell has already spent Shabbat at the Young Israels of Oak Park and Southfield, Michigan; Scarsdale, New York; West Hartford, Connecticut; Sharon, Massachusetts; Staten Island, New York; Stamford, Connecticut; East Brunswick, New Jersey; St. Louis, Missouri; Memphis, Tennessee and Plainview, New York.

 

In addition, Rabbi Tirschwell has also visited the Young Israels of Brighton Beach, New York; Teaneck, New Jersey; Brookline, Massachusetts; Hollywood, Florida; Fair Lawn, New Jersey; Flatbush, Brooklyn; Houston, Texas; Fort Lee, New Jersey; Pembroke Pines, Florida; the West Side, New York; West Hartford, Connecticut and Kingsbay, Brooklyn.

 

“In his recent visit to the Young Israel of Scarsdale, Rabbi Perry Tirschwell delivered an engaging Shabbat morning presentation about the past, present and future of the Young Israel movement,” said Rabbi Jonathan Morgenstern of the Young Israel of Scarsdale. “As the National Council of Young Israel resets its focus and priorities, we look forward to seeing Rabbi Tirschwell’s ambitious vision for our unique brand of Orthodox Jewish life realized over the coming years.”

 

Aside from bolstering its synagogue services, the National Council of Young Israel has begun an intense effort to return the organization to its roots by putting the “Young” back in “Young Israel.” Young Israel was started a century ago by 25–30 year olds who were not connecting religiously. Rabbi Tirschwell has conducted dozens of meetings about services for, and with, members of this age group, which sociologists now call the “Odyssey Years.” In this vein, he has reached out to the Orthodox Union, Rabbinical Council of America, Yeshiva University, the Jewish Federation and numerous synagogues about undertaking joint projects and working collaboratively for the betterment of the greater Jewish community.

 

“We are in the midst of writing an exciting new chapter in Young Israel’s distinguished history,” said Rabbi Tirschwell. “For more than a hundred years, the National Council of Young Israel has played a pivotal role in the robust growth of Orthodox Judaism in North America. By working in tandem with our branch synagogues, our talented professional staff and dedicated lay leaders will continue enriching the work of the National Council of Young Israel and further cement its reputation as one of the leading Jewish organizations in the United States and Israel.”