Christie certainty cuts two ways

Chris Christie offered a strong, convincing case Thursday that he had no knowledge of or involvement in the George Washington Bridge scandal -- but if any holes are
discovered in his story, the political damage could be significant.

Answering nearly every question the press threw at him, the New Jersey governor explicitly distanced himself from the closing of lanes on the George Washington Bridge last September, which caused massive gridlock in the city of Fort Lee. He emphatically declared that he had no
knowledge of the scheme, and only learned of a top aide's effort to orchestrate some political retribution against the mayor of Fort Lee, N.J. before 9 a.m. on Wednesday.

Those certain declarations by the
would-be contender for the 2016
presidential nomination could help
reassure Garden Staters and future
Republican primary voters.

The bright-lined defense could also
become Christie's undoing, if any
holes in his story are discovered.

"He seemed natural, believable,
apologetic and characteristically
blunt," said Ari Fleischer, the former
press secretary to George W. Bush
and Republican crisis communications
guru. "The only thing he has to fear is
information that contradicts his
statement that he didn't know about
the lane closures. Unless that happens, he this issue will likely start
to fade, especially in a GOP primary."

Even a former top adviser to President Barack Obama, David Axelrod, agreed. He wrote on
Twitter: "Christie handled about as well as he could. Unless smoking gun turns up tying him to scheme, or others arise, he lives 2 fight another
day."

Christie set out to do just that in the marathon press conference lasting almost two hours, insisting that he has nothing to hide. He said he has
suffered sleepless nights, but has given no thought to resigning.

"I take this action today because it's my job,"Christie said at a press conference on Thursday. "I am responsible for what happened. I am sad to report to the people of New Jersey that we fell short."

Christie also sought to demonstrate action, by announcing he had fired deputy chief of staff Bridget Anne Kelly, whose emails seeking the bridge closures as retaliation against the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee came to light on Wednesday. Christie also cut loose top political aide Bill Stepien, and said he would conduct one-on-one interviews with other members of his senior staff.

The steps reflected an attempt at concrete and affirmative action by Christie to contain and address the burgeoning political crisis, while distancing the governor from the
actions of his subordinates.
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