Mere minutes after New Jersey governor Chris Christie said during a press conference on Thursday that he was firing deputy chief of staff Bridget Anne Kelly for lying about her role in closing lanes of the George Washington Bridge, many online posters compared the Republican official's swift action with the utter lack of movement by president Barack Obama, who has yet to terminate anyone in his administration, even if that person is embroiled in scandal.
Several comments included barbs aimed at the “mainstream media” for reporters' wall-to-wall coverage of the Christie scandal while allowing Obama officials to avoid any punishment. “To confused journalists, what @GovChristie is doing right now is called 'leadership,'” noted @derekahunter. “Google it, then look at the White House & feel shame.”
“Heads have rolled for lies in the Christie administration,” posted Erick Erickson, editor-in-chief of the conservative blog site RedState.com. “Your turn, President Obama.”
@RBPundit had some sarcastic advice for people in the press: “Please, media. Whatever you do, don't point out that Obama hasn't fired ONE person related to any scandals in his admin.”
Byron York, a conservative columnist for the Washington Examiner, noted that Christie fired Kelly “because she lied to me.”
The governor also noted on Thursday that he was “blindsided” by the scandal, which led @KatiePavlich to point out that the governor called his staffer “so stupid” and so deceitful.”
The Twitchy staff noted that the GOP official went on to say: “If I cannot trust someone’s judgment, I cannot ask others to do so.”
“And tweeters can’t help but notice that they haven’t heard anything like that from President Obama,” the staff continued. “High-level officials who presided over corruption and scandal are still gainfully employed.”
@tonykatz noted that when Christie said “I am responsible for what happened,” that sentence can be translated as “I'm not Obama.” Also, @Matthops82 stated that firing someone who lied to him is “something Obama's never done.”
“Here is a comprehensive list of the people the Obama Admin has fired in its numerous scandals and failures,” @JasonBWhitman wrote before leaving a blank space at the end of his post.
@Cameron_Gray expressed a similar opinion: “Firings after Chris Christie scandal: 1; firings after Barack Obama scandals: 0. This is how an accountable leader speaks and acts.”
Soon after, @Lloyd Christmis made a surprising admission: "I'm no Christie fan, but he shows a stark contrast between himself and Obama in holding his people accountable for their actions.”
The curiously named @CatsPolitics also expressed support for Christie's action: “Applause for @GovChristie cleaning house of #BridgeGate,” which was “something like Obama & Hillary [Clinton] never did.”
The poster went on to name specific scandals that should have led to someone's dismissal: the Internal Revenue Service's attacks on conservative organizations seeking tax-free status; and the death of four Americans in Benghazi, Libya, during an attack on Sept. 11, 2012.
Also, @ThePantau stated that “Christie fired people” soon after the bridge scandal broke while Lois Lerner, former director of the IRS Exempt Organizations Division, retired in September of 2013 -- just before the release of a negative report on her handling of the attacks on conservative groups and therefore “still has full pay and benefits.”
Not only does @AG_Conservative find that infuriating, but he also asked: “Remember when Obama claimed he wasn't told about IRS by staff?” before asking the rhetorical question: “Who was fired?”
@JedediahBila posted: "Remember that Eric Holder still has his job” as attorney general after participating in the Fast and Furious project, which put American weapons into the hands of criminals in Mexican drug cartels. “So does Kathleen Sebelius,” the secretary of health and human services who was in charge during the disastrous rollout of ObamaCare.
As NewsBusters previously reported, the Washington Post was “on fire” on Thursday while “aping the rest of the liberal national media by leaping all over Gov. Chris Christie.”
In addition, NBC News chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd said that the Republican governor's media “free ride” is over and stated: “Welcome to the Vetting Process” for 2016.
And on Wednesday, the same network evening news shows that ignored vindictiveness by the Obama administration during October's government shutdown were up in arms over Christie's "bridgegate" and the possible tarring it could give his image.
Judging from all the attention this story is receiving in the press, liberals and Democrats must be terrified of Christie and his ability to win the governorship of a highly Democratic state. As a result, they see this situation as a way to take down one of the popular potential GOP candidates before the next presidential race even gets started.
